Is Intermittent Fasting for You?
You have likely heard of intermittent fasting by now.
The question is whether it might benefit you.
Intermittent fasting means just what it says, going for periods of time without food. More of an off-and-on kind of thing rather than fasting one long stretch.
Have you ever tried a 24 hour fast? Or a 3 or 7 day fast? For some, it is torture. For some, it is a great experience, even pleasant. Either way, it is a big deal when you haven’t done it before.
Intermittent fasting is a little easier. It more typically involves fasting for a portion of the day. You would fast for 12 – 23 hours out of 24. Most typically folks fast for 14-18 hours overnight and eat in a 6-8 hour window during the day.
Some folks make intermittent fasting their new norm and do it every day. Others do it several times a week.
Why would you intermittent fast?
- Contribute to weight loss
- Improve heart health including cholesterol and blood pressure
- Decrease inflammation in brain and body
- Decrease brain fog, increase brain function and memory
- Improve insulin sensitivity, decrease risk and severity of diabetes
- Improve gut health
How to get started if you want to try it?
It is best to first be on at least some level of a paleo or whole 30 type of diet. And decrease your overall carb intake, especially decreasing simple carbs like bread and flour products, sweets, juice and soda.
Intermittent fasting is a form of timed eating.
Begin with simply going 12-14 hours overnight with no food. This means nothing with any calories in it.
Then eat during the 8-12 hours remaining. Be careful to get plenty of healthy, nutrient-dense, bio-available foods in during your eating window.
Yes, you can have your morning coffee or tea during fasting, as long as there is not cream, sweetener, or any other substance with carbs in it.
One of the most basic advantages of IF (intermittent fasting) is insulin reset.
In a healthy person, this may occur in 12-13 hours without food. But, if you are beginning to have some insulin resistance, your insulin level rises, and it will take longer for it to reset.
A really great benefit of IF is autophagy.
Autophagy is a process in which the body cleans house and starts regenerating itself. It eliminates dysfunctional, damaged cells to make room for new, healthy ones.
Autophagy may protect against diseases like cancer or dementia. It also seems to protect against the negative effects of oxidative stress and inflammation.
There is some difference of opinion among experts on just when autophagy kicks into action. There is likely some autophagy occurring as early in a fast as 10-12 hours, but it really kicks into higher gear after 16-18 hours.
So, if you are fasting 14 hours overnight and doing well with this, you can increase your fasting window and further decrease your eating window to get greater benefits.
The most common is to fast for 16-18 hours and eat in the remaining 6-8 hours.
Are there hours that are better for fasting, eating?
Because digestion peaks around midday, there is likely some benefit in an earlier eating window. This might be 9am to 5pm or 10am to 6pm, rather than 1pm to 9pm. Of course, you have to figure out what works for you in your life.
If weight loss is your goal, focus on eating ONLY protein and fat in the first half of your eating window and eat any carbs in the latter half along with protein and fat. Protein and fat keep you full longer and don’t trigger hunger cues as carbs can.
There are situations in which fasting is not recommended.
- Trying to conceive, pregnant, or breastfeeding
- With “adrenal fatigue” or under significant stress
- With hypoglycemia
- With an eating disorder
- With hormone imbalance
If you are concerned about heart health, insulin resistance, brain and gut health, or wanting to lose weight, let me help you.
Intermittent fasting could be part of an overall health program to address your concerns.