Before You Try Intermittent Fasting
If you want to give intermittent fasting a try, make sure to discuss it with your doctor first, says Dr. Rimm. Skipping meals and severely limiting calories can be dangerous for people with certain conditions, such as diabetes. Some people who take medications for blood pressure or heart disease also may be more prone to imbalances of sodium, potassium, and other minerals during longer-than-normal periods of fasting.
Thinking About Your Activity Level
Finally, last but not least, you need to think about your activity level. Those who are more active throughout the day are going to be burning up more calories total, so this needs to be considered. If you’re working a desk job, you’ll hardly burn any further calories, while if you’re on your feet all day long, you’ll be burning up far more.
Use this as a guideline.
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How Can I Suppress Hunger During Intermittent Fasting
Eat high-fiber foods, such as nuts, beans, fruits and vegetables, and high protein foods, including meat, fish, tofu, or nuts, during your eating window, Varady advised. Chewing high-fiber gummies can also help.
Drink lots of water. People tend to think they’re hungry, when they are really just thirsty, she said.
Go for black coffee or tea, or cinnamon or licorice herbal teas. These beverages may have appetite-suppressing effects, Varady noted.
Watch less TV: I know this sounds strange, but while you are watching TV, you are bombarded with dozens of ads for food. This can make you feel hungry, when in actuality, you are not hungry at all, she said.
Remember, being “a little hungry” is the best thing that can happen to you, wrote Madelyn Fernstrom, health and nutrition editor at NBC News, calling it a “true mind-body connection” that helps you recognize fullness.
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What Should I Eat With 20/4 Intermittent Fasting
Now that you know how to effectively follow the intermittent fasting 20:4 rules, your next step is to make a meal plan. Meal planning is an easy way to ensure that you always have meals at the ready for whenever you break your fast. This ensures that you always have healthy meals or snacks, which prevents you from consuming unhealthy food options.
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Since intermittent fasting is an eating plan and not a diet, people do not have any strict regulations on what kinds of foods or drinks they should eat during the feeding window. However, the warrior diet stands out as it offers some guidelines on how to eat. Your meals should make up a balanced diet, which is a diet that gives your body enough nutrients to work effectively, protecting itself against disease, infection, fatigue, and low performance .
With that in mind, here are some foods that should be included in your 20/4 intermittent fasting meal plan or grocery list. Not only will these foods help with your weight loss goals, but they are also good for your overall health.
Week Three Phase Three
This is known as the concluding fat loss week or the high-carb high-protein cycle. During this week, your food consumption should be as follows :
- 1 to 2 days high in carbs
- 1 to 2 days high in protein and low in carbs
- one to two days high in carbs
- 1 to 2 days high in protein and low in carbs
High-Carb Days
1. Undereating window Eat the same foods that you had been eating during the first week.
2. Overeating window Break your fast with the same salad that you have been having. The next large meal or smaller meals should consist of cooked vegetables, some animal protein, and one main source of carbohydrates like corn, rice, potatoes, whole-wheat pasta, barley, or oats.
High-Protein Low-Carb Days
1. 20-hour Underfeeding window The same foods and drinks that you have been having throughout the previous weeks.
2. 4-hour Overfeeding window Break your fast with the same salad, and the next meals should have 227 to 454 grams animal protein and some cooked, non-starchy vegetables.
3. Fruit While you should not consume grains or starchy veggies during these days, you can have some fruit if you are still hungry at the end of the night.
Once you have completed this 3-week phase, you are supposed to start it all over again. If this suggestion does not appeal to you, just stick to the undereating rules set for the 20 hours and then consume healthy, high-protein meals in the 4-hour overfeeding window.
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Figure Out Caloric Needs
There are no dietary restrictions when fasting, but this does not mean calories do not count.
People who are looking to lose weight need to create a calorie deficit for themselves this means that they consume less energy than they use. People who are looking to gain weight need to consume more calories than they use.
There are many tools available to help a person work out their caloric needs and determine how many calories they need to consume each day to either gain or lose weight. A person could also speak to their healthcare provider or dietitian for guidance on how many calories they need.
A person interested in losing or gaining weight may find it helps to plan what they are going to eat during the day or week.
Meal planning does not need to be overly restrictive. It considers calorie intake and incorporating proper nutrients into the diet.
Meal planning offers many benefits, such as helping a person stick to their calorie count, and ensuring they have the necessary food on hand for cooking recipes, quick meals, and snacks.
How Does Fasting Affect My Calorie Count
Plain and simple it shouldnt. Your calorie goals should remain the same, youre just spreading out your mealtimes a bit more than you might normally. As we discussed earlier, you should never cut your calories to an unhealthy amount. You should always stay at or above your daily recommended calorie value.
Do note, however, that your meals might change due to your new schedule. Youll likely be eating just a few quite calorie-dense meals, so its important to adjust accordingly and make sure that youre getting a good amount of nutritional value in each meal. Calories arent the only thing that matter, you should be looking at your macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals as well.
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What Side Effects Can I Expect On An Intermittent Fasting Diet
For many people, transitioning to eating this way is not easy. Per the April 2019 Nutrients research, IF can lead to migraine, dizziness, nausea, and insomnia. It can also make people feel hungry and weak in general, limiting their activity throughout the day.
Some women might stop menstruating as a result of calorie restriction, according to the same Nutrients study. If you miss three periods in a row, its time to see a doctor, says the Mayo Clinic.
Dont Drink Alcohol On Empty Stomach
Suppose youre going to drink during intermittent fasting. In that case, its best to eat something first or consume alcohol along with a hearty meal. Alcohol is digested much faster if you drink it on an empty stomach. As a result, more alcohol enters the bloodstream, and you will quickly get drunk. In addition, your body can become intoxicated, and the result will be unhealthy soon after drinking.
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How To Do Intermittent Fasting Right
There is a right and wrong way to do intermittent fasting. It shouldnt be restrictive, it should be used as a way to give you that extra little push that you might be needing. Intermittent fasting is a technique that should be used somewhat sparingly. It can help you cut fat and give you an energy boost, but only if done right.
You shouldnt be fasting every single day. Its common to fast for up to 24 hours, but not beyond that point. Whats more, you should not be fasting for days on end. This falls under the category of unsafely cutting your calories. If youre fasting for 12, 18, or 24 hours and youre doing it multiple days per week, it will be difficult for you to get in a healthy amount of calories when you are supposed to be eating. As such, many people choose to simply fast one to two days per week or maybe even less. Some individuals choose to only fast when they simply want to cut their fat percentage down a bit, so they just use it occasionally. Others, use it when their body is feeling overwhelmed which also doesnt require weekly use.
All of this is actually contingent upon constantly counting your calories. If youre not doing a good job of eating a healthy amount, intermittent fasting probably wont work for you. You can only see a difference in how you feel if you have a solid calorie plan set out in advance.
So What Does The Science Say About The Foods And Drinks That Will Break Your Fast If You Are Trying To Maximise Your Weight Loss Results
Technically, consuming any food or drink that contains a significant amount of calories will break the fast. This includes coffee with milk, protein shakes, bulletproof coffee or a piece of fruit. While these foods are relatively low in calories, they still offer 50-100 calories per serve, which will have an impact on the hormones that influence glucose levels, thus ceasing the beneficial metabolic processes that justify fasting.
Image: iStock
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What Happens If You Break A Fast Early
Perhaps youre intermittent fasting as youre reading this. You had seen the James Clear article and other sources that say its okay to eat 50 calories while intermittent fasting, so thats what youve been doing. You now realize you have accidentally broken the fast.
If youre fasting for your own personal reasons, such as weight loss, a stronger immune system, or a bodily reset, then now you know better. Theres nothing you can do to fix the fast you broke. We recommend you wait a few days and try another intermittent fast when you feel ready. This time, make sure you refrain from ingesting calories if those are the rules of your fast.
Ramadan includes Iftar, a nightly meal that effectively breaks that days fast. According to Islam rules, if youre in good health, there is no reason to stop fasting early. Doing so is seriously punishable, and other religions may have similar rules.
As we said before, if you break a fast when testing for cholesterol, triglycerides, and diabetes, you could skew the results. These inaccurate results then influence the treatment your doctor prescribes, which can be potentially dangerous.
There are some situations when you may need to stop a fast early, and well talk about those later. If you absolutely must maintain a fast for religious or medical reasons though, then we suggest going to sleep if you can. It passes the time and keeps you away from the refrigerator.
Are There Any Side Effects Of Intermittent Fasting 20/4
Yes, there are. Some downsides of participating in a fasting eating plan include:
- May lead to a binge-eating disorder This is a serious eating disorder in which you frequently consume unusually large amounts of food and feel unable to stop eating. Fasting has been linked to the increase in the onset of binge-eating .
- May lead to nutrient deficiencies Since you are eating during a very small window, you are unlikely to consume the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Nutrient deficiencies that can lead to anemia, fatigue, weakness, poor eye health and immunity, short term memory loss, diarrhea, dementia, and skin disorders, muscle loss, osteoporosis, and depression .
- It has no basis in science As we mentioned above, this diet was developed by an ex-military guy who based all his findings from his experience during active duty. He is neither a scientist, nutritionist, nor a dietitian. On the other hand, most of the benefits mentioned have been linked to fasting in general or other forms of intermittent fasting and not the 20/4 method.
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What Should You Eat When Breaking A Fast
Your intermittent fast has ended, so its time to get right back into your prior diet, right? Not so fast.
Weve written about this once before, but jumping into three meals a dayand big, heavy meals at thatputs you at risk of refeeding syndrome. This condition affects those who have fasted or are malnourished.
All that food so quickly triggers cell production of protein, fat, and glycogen. However, the phosphorous, magnesium, and potassium concentrations in your blood decrease to such a point that its possible to have heart failure. Other symptoms include heart arrhythmias, seizure, an increase in blood pressure, breathing issues, confusion, weakness, and fatigue. As you may have guessed, refeeding syndrome can be fatal.
Thats why its much better to ease your way back into eating. Heres what to do.
How Many Calories Breaks A Fast
Hate to break it to you, but “technically, consuming any calories breaks a fast,” says Benjamin Horne, Ph.D., a genetic epidemiologist who has published research on the effects of intermittent fasting. Even a few calories’ worth of food can inactivate some of fasting’s perks. According to Horne, some mechanisms behind fasting’s benefits, like ketosis , remain active with the consumption of certain macronutrients but others, like autophagy, may or may not remain active. “In humans, it appears that autophagy does not remain as active when any food is consumed,” he says.
But what if we’re talking about a measly 2 to 5 calories in a cup of tea or coffee? This ultra-low-calorie territory is where things get a little tricky. According to Horne, it likely needs to be a water-only fast to maintain the maximum benefit from autophagy.
Others aren’t so sure we need to be quite this nitpicky, though. “I’ve heard good debates about whether coffee can break a fast. We don’t have any good evidence to show either way,” says Vincent Pedre, M.D., an integrative physician and gut health expert who frequently recommends intermittent fasting diets to his patients. “I would say if you’re drinking organic black coffeeno cream, no sweetenersthen you should be fine. That said, I would say stick to as close to zero calories as you can during your fasting hours with plenty of clean filtered water herbal teas are also good.”
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Is 1: 8 Fasting Good For Weight Loss
Some studies have found that theres virtually no difference between people who regularly practiced intermittent fasting and those who simply cut back their calorie intake overall.
A growing body of research demonstrates that a better strategy is optimizing the nutritional quality of what you already eat versus fasting or counting calories. Also, science suggests any potential benefit from fasting is quickly undone during the eating part of the cycle, in which appetite-suppressing hormones switch gears to make you feel even hungrierthan you felt at baseline.
But some dieters may benefit from daily fasting if they have trouble sticking to prescribed meal plans or restrictive diets a 2018 pilot study published in the Journal of Nutrition and Healthy Eating suggests that a 16:8 fasting plan can help obese dieters lose weight without having to count every single calorie they eat. This approach to fasting could also aid those battling other weight-related issues namely, high blood pressure. A new scholarly review published in the New England Journal of Medicinesuggests that a 16:8 fasting plan may help the body naturally improve blood sugar regulation, as well as decrease blood pressure overall in the long run.
Moderate Alcohol Intake May Be Beneficial
Research shows that drinking alcohol in moderation can benefit your health in the long term. Several large studies have shown that people who drink in moderation have better blood sugar control and a lower risk of heart disease, stroke, dementia, and diabetes. So a glass of wine with dinner can make you healthier. It just doesnt need to be overused.
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How About Bcaas Can I Sip On Those During My Fast
I get why people do this: to help preserve muscle mass while in the fasted state. But when you’re consuming branched-chain amino acids , you’re not truly fasting.
As you probably know, amino acids combine to form protein. There are 20 aminos that are used as the building blocks of protein, including the nine essential amino acids , as well as the 11 nonessential amino acids . If you consume just one of these amino acids, you’re essentially consuming some small amount of protein and therefore are technically not fasting.
One exception for using BCAAs during fasting is if you train in a fasted state. Here, you can sip on BCAAs during your workout. When you’re exercising, BCAAs are a powerful source of energy for the muscles. And since you’re just sipping on a drink with BCAAs in it, you’re not pounding down a bunch of them. The benefits of BCAAs for your workout outweigh any potential negatives.
Amino acids that aren’t proteinogenic can be consumed during fasting. For example, it’s OK to have beta-alanine, betaine, D-aspartic acid andâeven though they’re not technically amino acids, but many people classify them as suchâL-carnitine and creatine. These are fine to sip on during the day, especially if you’re training in a fasted state.
Nutrition is only one aspect of successful weight loss. You also need a solid training plan. Pair Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Shred program on Bodybuilding.com BodyFit Elite with intermittent fasting and get ready for serious results.
