To fast or not to fast…?
Fasting has been around for eons. Only recently has it increased dramatically in popularity…but is it right for you?
There is so much evidence that fasting works for many people. There is also so much evidence that fasting is potentially detrimental for many people. So who is right and who is wrong?
First up, what is Intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting is when you eat food within a certain window of time. There are various fasting approaches from not eating between sunrise and sunset (as part of the month of Ramadan), to eating within an 8 hour window daily (16:8), 4 hour window (20:4) or even fasting for an entire day each week. More recently, organic fasting has come on the scene which is simply listening to your body and only eating when you are hungry which can lead to spontaneously fasting.
Why could fasting be good for you?
Fasting has been shown to:
be good for weight loss due to the calorie reduction.
allow your body to switch from burning sugar for fuel to burning your own fat
potentially increase insulin sensitivity lowering your risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Increase cellular repair, reduce inflammation and even be good for brain health.
Why could fasting be bad for you?
Fasting has also been shown to:
If not done well, it can lead to nutrient deficiencies
Can lead to over eating and binge eating
Some populations are at risk including pregnant or breastfeeding mothers or those with predisposed conditions
It can increase the levels of stress hormone cortisol which will end up giving you more food cravings and stopping your body burning fat
Has intermittent fasting worked for me?
As with most things, this is very much a bio-individual question. For some people, intermittent fasting is the only way to go to feel fit, healthy and shed a few kilos. For others it’s a complete stress and the kilos simply aren’t budging.
The first time I tried intermittent fasting, I was so hungry by 10am and became quite obsessed about eating at 12pm. It stressed me out. To top it all off, the few kilos I was hoping to shed were not budging. Which then got me all disheartened. Little did I know that if I got hungry like this during fasting that my stress hormones, cortisol, would rise and actually stop my body from burning fat and the other benefits of fasting fell away too.
I then tried to fast for one day a week and I must admit to feeling so much better in my body and particularly my mind (a lot more focused), once I got through it. However it simply didn’t fit in with my lifestyle, kids and being the chef in the house! I still do a full day fast once in a while but it’s certainly not regular.
Should I give intermittent fasting a go?
The only way to know if this approach works for you is to try it out. Give it a go for a fortnight and see what happens. If you are keen to try intermittent fasting, here are some tips from me and some pros out there:
If you get hungry why fasting and get stressed out about your hunger then intermittent fasting might not be right for you at this time. It will only increase cortisol levels which will increase insulin resistance and stop your body from burning fat.
If you do fast, watch what you eat in your eating window. Just because you skip a meal doesn’t give you the permission to scoff a full packet of biscuits. It’s even more important to eat a well balanced whole food diet.
Make sure you keep drinking water. Keep that bottle with you and bonus, many times when you feel hungry your body is actually thirsty!
Finally and SUPER importantly, watch what you eat in that first meal after your fast. Introduce food back into your body with a smallish meal that has a good serving of protein and fats in it. Check out my recipes for some ideas. Steer clear of eating food that will quickly increase sugar into the blood like sweets, processed foods including processed carbohydrates (bread, pasta) and even fruits (unless it’s part of a well balanced meal). This can take you from really low insulin levels in your blood to really high levels way too quickly. Doing this will not only impact many systems in your body (and mind) but doing this every day will impact your insulin resistance too.
As always, I’m here to help. If you have any questions. You can email me directly here.
Put the mask on yourself first, see if intermittent fasting works for you and thrive again!