Four Rules for Intermittent Fasting

 

If you’re new to intermittent fasting or thinking about giving it a try, here’s a quick list of the most fundamental rules you’ll need to follow and some mistakes you’ll need to avoid.

 

Intermittent Fasting Basic Philosophy

 

The use of short-term fasting has been shown to dramatically influence specific hormones related to weight loss and weight management. The intent of intermittent fasting is to use meal timing to influence and utilize fat-burning mechanisms already present in the system.

 

This includes metabolism, hormones, blood sugar, and other weight loss variables.

 

While most diets focus on content and calories, the most important element of intermittent fasting is when you eat and when you don’t.

 

Here are the most important intermittent fasting rules.

 

Rule #1: When To Eat

 

Separate your day into two blocks—one for eating and one for fasting.

 

You don’t need to obsess about calories like a lunatic with intermittent fasting. As explained above, it isn’t a content diet. It’s a meal-timing diet.

 

As you reach the later stages of a short-term fast, usually 12-16 hours per day, your body will begin increasing natural growth hormone secretion and other hormones regulating appetite and body fat. It also influences your blood sugar and how your body repairs its cells.

 

So when should you eat?

 

First, decide how long you want your fast to be each day. 12 hours is a minimum and optimal for first-timers, and 20 hours is considered extreme.

 

Then, all you have to do is separate your day into “eating” and “non-eating” time frames. So, if you fast for twelve hours and start eating at 8 a.m., you have until 8 p.m. to consume all of your daily calories.

 

Once you enter the “non-eating” time frame, you cannot consume any more calories until the following morning.

 

Rule #2: What To Eat

 

Intermittent fasting doesn’t require specific foods or diet to work.

 

Once you’ve decided how long you want to fast each day, it’s time to decide what content you want to consume. Unlike most diets, there isn’t a fixed requirement regarding the type of food you eat.

 

This makes intermittent fasting very flexible and allows it to be combined with other diet philosophies, such as low-carb, paleo, vegetarian, and simply eating healthy.

 

However, you will want to keep a close eye on your calorie total. It isn’t necessary to enter a huge calorie deficit because your hormones, blood sugar, and other weight loss factors are doing all the heavy lifting for you.

 

Unfortunately, intermittent fasting does not allow you to maintain a calorie surplus and lose weight. A minimum deficit of 200 calories is enough to lose weight efficiently.

 

However, many dieters have lost weight and gotten leaner while intermittent fasting without significantly restricting calories. This means that they didn’t change what they ate every day; they just followed the eating and non-eating time frames without significantly changing daily calorie totals.

 

The larger your calorie deficit, the more significant weight loss you can expect.

 

Rule #3: When To Exercise

 

Exercising during your non-eating time frame is recommended.

 

If you’ve heard the phrase “fasted workout,” it was likely part of an intermittent fasting schedule. Trying to exercise, especially cardio, can be very challenging if you’re at the later stages of a fast, but it’s proven to be effective for fat loss.

 

Your body will have a progression of preferred resources with calories consumed at the top of the pecking order. When you don’t have calories from a meal in your system, your body is more likely to tap into fat stores for use while exercising.

 

Rule #4: Don’t Break Your Fast

 

The absolute most important rule is “Don’t break your fast.”

 

It’s more important than how many calories you eat daily or how you structure your meal timing. The core principle to take advantage of intermittent fasting is consecutive non-eating hours.

 

If you never enter this fasted state because you snack constantly every few hours, you won’t reap the rewards of improved blood sugar, increased growth hormone secretion, and decreased appetite.

 

Beware of foods labeled zero calories, as most will have trace amounts of calories that can break your fast if you eat enough. Drink lots of water, and include a fiber source with your meals or use a supplement to help manage hunger cravings.

 

Need to lose 10 pounds fast?

 

Try intermittent fasting. It is effective for weight loss and will improve your health, too! You’ve got this!