Benefits of intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting benefits

Benefits of intermittent fasting: Intermittent fasting or IF (intermittent Fasting) is a nutritional model. A way of eating, which is based mainly on periods of fasting and periods of food intake. This type of food or this strategy has multiple benefits for our body and our health.

In other words, intermittent fasting means that you don’t eat for a period of time each day or week.

Some popular approaches to intermittent fasting include:

• Alternate-day fasting, eat a normal diet one day and fast completely or eat a small meal (less than 500 calories) the next day.
• 5:2 Eat a normal diet five days a week and fast two days a week.
• Daily time-restricted fasting Eat normally, but only within an eight-hour window each day. For example, skip breakfast, but eat lunch at noon and dinner by 8 p.m.

Some studies suggest that alternate-day fasting is almost as effective as a typical low-calorie diet for weight loss. That seems reasonable because reducing the amount of calories you eat should help you lose weight.

Benefits of intermittent fasting

Fat burning

When you eat, your body processes it hours later. It burns the energy from what you’ve consumed, mainly blood glucose or glycogen from your muscles and liver, rather than the fat you’ve stored.

During a ‘fasting’ state, there is no food to use for energy, so you are more likely to draw energy from your body’s fat.

It helps to reduce mortality and delays aging, both physically and in our body.

Reduces inflammation indicators.

It helps to improve our lipid profile, that is, our cholesterol, in addition to reducing triglycerides.

It has positive effects on our neuronal plasticity.

Intermittent fasting helps us to reduce anxiety, markers of inflammation and triglycerides in the blood.

It also helps to activate the metabolism, retains muscle mass in weight loss and improves insulin sensitivity, among other benefits.

It’s free, it doesn’t cost money (this is why it’s a practice that doesn’t interest the industry).

It even helps limit the growth of cancer cells.

As far as body composition is concerned, it helps to retain lean mass while losing fat.

It also helps to improve insulin sensitivity and improve the use of glucose as an energy substrate.

Improves the capacity of self-control: in many occasions we think that we are hungry, but it is not a real hunger, it is a rather false hunger, so if we are able to “overcome it”, we will improve our capacity of self-control.

It improves the immune system

The power of fasting was investigated by scientists at the University of Southern California, who found that taking a break from eating for just three days can regenerate the entire immune system.

Letting the body feel hungry prompts stem cells to produce new white blood cells to fight infection. Old or damaged parts of the immune system are eliminated during fasting, and studies have shown that fasting for 72 hours is enough to help cancer patients protect themselves from the side effects of chemotherapy treatments.

How to combine exercise with fasting

There are certain points you should keep in mind if you want to combine fasting (such as intermittent fasting) with physical exercise:

If you are trying to lose weight, for example, it is very important that the calorie deficit is moderate and that you only try to lose 0.5-1% of weight per week.

Include strength sessions in your training routine and increase protein intake (25% or more of your total energy intake) to maintain muscle mass.

In addition, you should train just before your largest meal of the day. If, on the other hand, you intend to combine high-intensity training with periods of fasting, we recommend that you consult a doctor or a specialist in nutrition and sport beforehand.

Tips for not giving up intermittent fasting

Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water and non-caloric beverages, such as herbal teas, throughout the day.

Avoid obsessing about food. On fasting days, keep busy to avoid thinking about food, such as catching up on paperwork or watching a movie.

Rest and relax. Avoid strenuous activities on fasting days, although light exercise such as yoga may help.

Be smart when choosing your calories. If the plan you choose allows for some calories during fasting periods, select nutrient-dense foods that are rich in protein, fibre, and healthy fats. You can eat beans, lentils, eggs, fish, nuts, and avocado.

Eat high-volume foods. Select foods that leave you satisfied, but low in calories, such as popcorn, raw vegetables and fruits with high water content, such as grapes and melon.

Enhance flavour without the calories. Season your food generously with garlic, herbs, spices or vinegar. These foods are extremely low in calories, but full of flavour, which can help keep you from feeling hungry.

Choose nutrient-dense foods after the fasting period. Eat foods that are high in fibre. Vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. So that your blood sugar levels stay healthy and you avoid nutrient deficiencies. A balanced diet will also contribute to weight loss and overall health.

Contraindications

• Decrease in aerobic capacity as a result of reduced energy intake that could pose a danger in case of more or less intense physical exercise.
• Dizziness, headaches.
• It could affect the levels of vitamins such as B1.
• Loss of muscle mass.
• Increased anxiety and irritation.
• Stomach upsets. Concentrating a lot of food in a few hours can cause diarrhoea among other problems.
• Intermittent fasting is not recommended for people with eating disorders as it may increase these unhealthy behaviours.
• Of course, it is also not recommended for children, adolescents, pregnant women, the elderly or the sick.

We hope you enjoyed our article “Intermittent Fasting Benefits”. See you next time!