The benefits of intermittent fasting can boost many areas of your life, such as weight loss, muscle building and increased energy. Intermittent fasting, a method of weight loss that restricts food and drinks intake to a certain time each day, is an effective way to do this. Although this may seem difficult, it is possible to reap the many benefits once your body adapts.
What is Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting is simply a restriction on your food and drink intake at a specific time during the day. This is known as your “eating window.” This is also called “time restricted eating.” Both are the same thing, but intermittent fasting is more focused on longer fasting periods that last anywhere from 14 hours up to 48 hours.
Fasting for 14-18 hours is the best, since more stress can cause damage to the body.
What is the process?
Intermittent fasting has many benefits. It keeps your body in a catabolic condition, meaning that it doesn’t have any food or energy resources, and instead uses excess fat to get energy.
This is the opposite to an anabolic state. It is when you have eaten food and your body is actively processing the nutrients and fats and allocating resources accordingly.
Although there is ample evidence to suggest that fasting may be beneficial for the brain and body, most of the research has been done on animals, mainly rats and mice. Fasting researchers, like myself, have been asking for more human studies and waiting for them to confirm the results of animal studies.
Myths about Intermittent Fasting
Myth #1: Starvation Mode
I have heard the term “starvation mode” used with a loss relationship to IF. However, this term does not accurately describe how the body deals with fasting and restricted eating. Some believe that the body will enter a type of starvation mode and all food consumed will be transferred to fat deposits. This can lead to weight gain.
Rachele Pojednic Ph.D. is an assistant professor in nutrition at Simmons College. She is also a staff scientist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. ”
Your body doesn’t need to go without food for days or even weeks.
Myth #2: Extremely low energy
Another myth is that fasting causes energy levels to drop dramatically. This myth stems from the belief that your body requires food continuously for energy and survival. I will refute this notion by saying that your body is far more resilient than that.
It is possible to go for several days without eating food as long as you have enough water. My experience has shown that energy levels can be sustained even when there is a time limit on food intake. This is as long as proper macro- and micronutrients have been consumed at each meal window.
You will have a lower energy level if you don’t eat enough calories or nutrients during each meal.
Energy will not be an issue if you’re focusing on high-quality nutrients, and hitting all your “numbers,” during your meal window.
