Intermittent fasting for weight loss is getting very trendy and popular worldwide. So, why not talk about this and share thoughts and experiences.
Intermittent fasting for weight loss is nothing but restricting your eating window to a limited time cycle. During fasting, you can have no-calorie beverages like unsweetened tea, coffee, and drinks. This allows your body to stay hydrated and helps with a headache due to hunger while fasting.
What happens when we fast? When we fast for12-14 hours a day, our body starts burning stored fat turning it into energy which causes weight loss.
Intermittent fasting is similar to fasting by the Muslim community in Ramdhan where fasting time is longer than the eating window. Fasting in Ramadhan has so many health benefits other than spiritual benefits if done with healthy eating.
Why people are preferring intermittent fasting for weight loss over the traditional diet? We all have experienced crazy diets where we cut down the intake of daily calories by following a low carb and high protein meals.
I hope it had worked for you and didn't go wrong. A calorie strict diet is very hard to follow in the long run because at some point you will crave for chocolates, sweets, and junk food failing your diet plan.
Several intermittent fasting for weight loss methods are available. Choosing specific intermittent fasting depends on how physically healthy you are. Let us have a look at the list of some popular ways of intermittent fasting.1. 12:12 fasting
12:12 fasting is where you fast for 12 hours and you can eat anything during the rest of the day. This method of fasting is recommended for beginners, who can only stop eating for 12 hours a day.
Time for fasting depends on the person, most of the people do it during night time because it is convenient to fast during sleep hours. For example, one can start fasting at 07:00PM and can start eating at 07:00AM in the morning.
Personally, I already follow this fasting most of my days during the week.
2. 16:12 fasting
During16:12 intermittent fasting, you fast for 14-16 hours, and the eating window shrinks to 10-12 hours. People choose this fasting method, when12 hours of fasting don't work for them.
Women are recommended to fast for 14 hours and men for 16 hours for this method of fasting. It means if you are having your dinner at 08:00PM, then skip breakfast and have your first meal in midday. So, this diet can work for those who don't start their day with breakfast.
Personally, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Even, I think about having a delicious breakfast in the morning before going to bed. So you can imagine how hard it could be for me to skip breakfast. So16:2 fasting is NO NO for me. What do you think of it? Do let me know
3. 5:2 fasting
People following a 5:2 diet fast for 2 days, while taking 500-600 calories on these days and choose to eat healthy during the rest of the week.
It is recommended to fast on Monday and Thursday, not choosing two consecutive fasting days. Women take 500 calories, while men take 600 calories on a fasting day.
4. Alternate day fasting
Alternate day intermittent fasting is where people fast every other day limiting calorie intake to 500 on fasting days. This fasting is not recommended for beginners.
5. Eat stop eat: 24-hours fasting
This intermittent fasting allows people to fast for 24 hours once or twice a week is also known as Eat Stop Eat diet plan. It is the hardest fasting plan because people don't eat between one breakfast to another breakfast or one lunch to another lunch.
I personally don't agree with this kind of fasting as it can give you headache, fatigue and low energy levels. Not recommending at all.
6. The Warrior Diet
People follow the warrior diet when no other intermittent fasting is working. You eat a small portion of raw fruits and vegetables for 20 hours of fasting window. Then at night, you eat a big meal during the 4-hour eating window.
7. Skipping meals
Another intermittent fasting is skipping meals from time to time. It is convenient because you can easily skip a meal when you don't have something good to eat. You can skip your meal if you are busy and can't cook.
My thoughts, I would say follow the mindful eating rule and understand your body. Intermittent fasting for weight loss can help you lose weight and benefit your metabolism.
Don't forget to take plenty of water during fasting days, while eating healthy on not-fasting days. Most importantly, if you have some medical condition, then check before you fast.
Eat Healthy, Stay Healthy
Informative post..Great
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