Intermittent Fasting: Intermittent Fasting – The Weight Loss Strategy for Busy People

Intermittent Fasting – A new trend is becoming popular on the internet. In this article, CM will tell you what this new trend is all about and what exactly makes it popular. The advantages like increased fat burning and improved cholesterol levels, but also the disadvantages like headaches and fatigue we will explain to you in this article. What criticism and what opportunities the fasting concept brings with it, you can read in our article.

What is intermittent fasting?

“Intermittent” means “interrupted.” The name already gives it away, intermittent fasting is a form of nutrition in which alternately eaten and fasted. It is more of a nutritional schedule than a diet, as it does not dictate what to eat but when. Intermittent fasting is becoming increasingly popular and is particularly popular with athletes and for weight loss reasons. Intermittent fasting, unlike therapeutic fasting, is a form of permanent diet. One reason for the popularity of this type of fasting is that interval fasting is flexible and simple to plan. Unlike the DASH diet …

Procedure of intermittent fasting

There are different methods of interval fasting. Here are the most popular approaches simply summarized:

16:8 Method

16:8 Method: With this approach, you are allowed to eat whatever you want for 8 hours. However, the following 16 hours you have to abstain from meals. The fasting phase during sleep is thus extended by a few hours. For example, breakfast could be skipped and eaten between 12 noon and 8 pm.

5:2 Method

5:2 method: On two days per week you eat 500 to 600 calories. The other days you can eat whatever you want.

Eat-Stop-Eat

Eat-Stop-Eat: Fasting and eating days alternate. For 24 hours you abstain from food and the following 24 hours you are allowed to eat what you want.

Tips & experiences for you

Intermittent fasting is risk-free for a healthy person. Experience reports often speak of increased resistance and more energy.

You can find experiences and tips for interval chamfering here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAt-Hk8FBqU

Benefits: Fat burning and cholesterol levels

Intermittent fasting has many advantages. In addition to the advantage of losing weight, there are numerous other aspects that speak for intermittent fasting.

Among these benefits are:

  • Increased fat burning
  • Inhibited inflammatory processes
  • Improved cholesterol levels
  • Reduced age-related risk factors

Disadvantages: Fatigue and headaches

Some negative side effects become noticeable during the transition, but quickly disappear. The side effects include:

  • Increased fatigue
  • Dizziness and headaches
  • Ravenous appetite and bad mood
  • People with eating disorders and pregnant women should consult their doctor about interval fasting.

The benefits of intermittent fasting are manifold and reach every corner of the body: fat burning is increased, inflammatory processes are inhibited, blood cholesterol levels improve, new nerve cells are produced in the brain. Age-related risk factors are reduced, weight is lost more easily and it is also assumed that such a dietary pattern has a life-prolonging effect.

Side effects during the changeover?

However, side effects may occur, especially in the beginning, while the body is working on the change, but these usually disappear quickly:

Increased fatigue may occur in the evening but is often perceived very positively. Especially at the beginning dizziness and headaches can be felt. We advise you to drink enough to prevent this. In the first few days, cravings and bad moods can occur, but these quickly disappear as soon as the body has become accustomed to the new diet.
Pregnant women and women during lactation, as well as people suffering from an eating disorder, should not prioritize interval fasting as a diet. In the case of a chronic disease should first consult a trusted doctor.

Learn the biggest and most common mistakes in intermittent fasting and how you can best avoid them in this video.

Criticism of the fasting concept

While the most popular 16:8 hour fasting window fits best into everyday life for most, it is not the optimal time frame according to some experts. In addition, they warn against overeating during the eating window. However, 16 hours is still not long enough for optimal results, they say. A 20-hour window is closer to ketosis. The decrease would not be because he gives an insulin metabolism, but because the oversupply of food is omitted.

Questions and answers about intermittent fasting

As with all diets, this form of nutrition also raises many questions. The answers to the most frequently asked questions about intermittent fasting can be found here.

What does intermittent fasting mean?

Intermittent fasting literally means “interrupted” fasting. Since this type of fasting is not about not eating for as long as possible, but the type of fasting has a rather intermittent character. Thus there is e.g. the 16 hours chamfered. After 16 hours it is allowed to eat again. Thus the fasting does not last days or even weeks, but extends only over a period of hours, which one can also still put in such a way as it fits best to the individual daily rhythm.

What is 16 hours of fasting?

16 hour fasting is a form of intermittent fasting where nothing should be eaten for 16 hours. During these 16 hours, only water and unsweetened tea may be drunk. The remaining 8 hours of the day may be eaten what you want. Of course, you can also set the 16 hours in such a way that you sleep during this period anyway. For example, you can skip breakfast and then eat whatever you want in the afternoon.

How good is fasting?

Fasting is recommended by many doctors, as it stresses the digestive system and gives it time to recover. In addition, it has been proven that through intermittent fasting the blood values improve significantly and a fasting period as read above also brings other benefits with it.