Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan Example: What Are The Cons Of Intermittent Fasting
As a beginner you may experience some short-term side effects such as hunger, headaches, dizziness, and irritability as your body adjusts to your new eating plan. However, these effects often go away in no time.
It should be noted, however, that IF is not recommended for everyone. People who should not try this eating plan include :
- Anyone suffering from diabetes
How Does The Warrior Diet Work
The diet claims that fasting produces fat-burning hormones, allows your body to use protein more efficiently, stabilizes your blood sugar levels, increases testosterone and growth hormone levels, and allows amino acids to act favorably on the brain. Consequently, at the end of the undereating phase, your body is positioned to eat a lot of food without gaining body fat. The author writes, This is the best time to eat as much as you want and enjoy this wonderful sense of freedom.
Diets that are centered around intermittent fasting, like the warrior diet, may also put your body into ketosis, according to research published in October 2017 in Ageing Research Reviews. Ketosis, the basis of the keto diet, is a metabolic state in which your body gets its fuel from fat rather than sugar.
But experts are skeptical about the benefits of the warrior diet. The plan encourages a swing from starvation to bingeing, and its not really something a body could or should withstand without consequence. It makes your body either starve and feel really deprived, or it makes your body work so hard to try to get rid of that giant eating binge, says Bonnie Taub-Dix, RDN, author of Read It Before You Eat It: Taking You From Label to Table.
How Intermittent Fasting Works
Intermittent fasting is a method of eating where you only eat one meal per day. This means that you fast from food during certain hours of the day. The most common type of IF is the 16/8 diet, which consists of fasting from breakfast until lunch, and then having dinner at 8 pm. Other types include 24 hour fasting, 5/2 diet, 10/5 diet, etc. There are many benefits to this lifestyle. Some people who practice IF report feeling healthier, losing weight, sleeping better, and even lowering their risk of diabetes and heart disease.
There are two main reasons why we should consider practicing intermittent fasting. First, there is evidence that suggests that intermittent fasting helps us lose weight faster than traditional diets. Second, research shows that intermittent fasting improves our health. Its been shown to improve blood sugar levels, increase insulin sensitivity, reduce inflammation, lower cholesterol, and help prevent cancer.
The first reason we should consider intermittent fasting is because it helps us lose weight faster. In a study published in the Journal of Nutrition, researchers found that after just three weeks of intermittent fasting, participants lost an average of 2 pounds. Another study showed that overweight women had less body fat when they were following a 12-hour fast compared to those who ate normally throughout the day.
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How To Schedule Meals When You Are Intermittent Fasting
While the idea of fasting can be overwhelming, especially if you haven’t done it before, intermittent fasting can actually be a lot easier than many other types of eating plans.
Once you start your intermittent fasting journey, you’ll most likely find that you feel fuller longer and can keep the meals you do eat very simple.
There are a few different ways you can fast, so I broke up each of the different plans below into beginner, intermediate, and advanced along with a typical meal plan for each day.
The combination of nutrients will give you the energy you need to enhance the benefits of your fasting journey.
Just make sure to take into account any individual food intolerances, and use this as a guide for your particular health case, and adjust from there.
Remember, intermittent fasting does not necessarily mean calorie-controlled, so be sure to eat according to your personal caloric needs.
How To Do It 1: 8 Fasting Schedule
The 16:8 intermittent fasting method, sometimes referred to as the 16 hours fast, restricts your eating to eight hours.
This form of intermittent fasting is particularly popular because you spend a large portion of the fasting window asleep.
To get started, begin by selecting the eight hours during which you will consume all of your meals and snacks.
Many people prefer to eat between noon and eight oclock in the evening, as this means that they only need to skip breakfast, while still eating a typical lunch and dinner.
Some eating windows include:
When developing your 16:8 plan, you may want to use your current sleep patterns and mealtimes as a guide.
Or perhaps your appetite is the greatest at night before bed. If this is the case, then you may decide on a 1 pm to 9 pm window to allow for an evening snack.
Read Also: What To Eat After Fasting For 16 Hours
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Omad Plan One Meal A Day
- 7:00 a.m. 11:00 a.m.: Open your eating window with a healthy coffee drink, and finish eating your main meal by 11:00 a.m.
- 3:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m.: Open your window with a small snack, followed by your main meal at 5:30 p.m., then finish eating dessert by 8:00 p.m.
- 5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m.: Eat your main meal between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m.
- 1:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m.: Eat your main meal at 1:00 p.m. and finish eating dessert by 4:00 p.m.
Related: OMAD Fasting Health Benefits And Precautions
Recommended Reading: What To Eat When On Intermittent Fasting
Does Lemon Water Break A Fast
If you mean plain water and lemon juice then no, it wont break a fast! Lemon juice has little to no carbs compared to other fruit juices so if youre looking to add some flavor to your water, go for it! Lemon water has a bunch of benefits.
Just make sure that you dont go over 3 ounces of lemon juice, otherwise, your metabolism will notice the 0.3 grams of sugar from the lemon .
LEARN MORE: 9 Amazing Benefits of Lemon Water + How To Drink It
Chicken With Fried Cauliflower Rice
Total time: 35 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients:
- Kosher salt and pepper
Directions:
Per serving: 427 calories, 45 g protein, 25 g carbs , 16 g fat
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How Often Should You Do 1: 8 Intermittent Fasting
Refer to the four examples above of Compliant Charlie, Jump Around Jill, Christmas Carl, and Party Pete. They each took a slightly different take on when and how to fast. You can see their calorie results in that section.
Fasting gives you a lot of flexibility. Theres no right way to do it.
Personally I go somewhere between Jump Around Jill and Christmas Carl with a consistent meal plan to pull me back on track.
I use a meal plan as my core diet plan and fasting to smooth out the bumps for fun eating. I suggest you do the same.
Wild Cajun Spiced Salmon
Total time: 30 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients:
- 4 medium tomatoes, diced
Directions:
Per serving: 408 calories, 42 g protein, 9 g carbs , 23 g fat
Read Also: What To Expect Intermittent Fasting
Circadian Rhythm Or 16/8 Fasting
When it comes to losing weight, there are healthy and unhealthy paths. The Circadian Rhythm or 16/8 Fasting is when you eat solely during an 8-10 hour window each day. The rest of the time you refrain from meals and caloric beverages, but you can drink non-caloric, non-alcoholic drinks, including low-sugar coffee and tea.
Fitness expert and early promoter of intermittent fasting, Martin Berkhan called this diet, The Leangains Protocol.
Modified Alternate Day Fasting
Modified alternate day fasting is very similar to normal alternate day fasting except individuals will have a small meal consisting of about 500 calories. You can choose to eat this meal at any time of the day, but most people tend to prefer to eat around dinner time.
This form of intermittent fasting is a great step into normal alternate day fasting. Itâll help you get used to going such a long time without eating without having to dive right in.
Even if you choose to never transition over into regular alternate day fasting, this is still a great form of fasting because the fasting window is so large-itâs similar to OMAD.
Here is an example of a modified alternate day fasting eating plan.
- 6pm : Zucchini noodles with red sauce, meatballs, and parmesan cheese with garlic bread and green beans
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How To Create An Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan
How to Create an Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan
Posted a year ago
Adopting an intermittent fasting practice isnt always easy. It often means changing long-standing habitshabits like curling up on the couch after dinner with a bowl of mint chip ice cream.
Meal planning makes things easier though. When you commit to an intermittent fasting meal plan, you increase your chances of following through with it.
Its basic psychology. When we make a plan, were more likely to perform the desired action. In one study published in the Journal of British Health Psychology, people who wrote down when, where, and how they would exercise were 2-3 times more likely to exercise than controls.
The same principle applies to intermittent fasting. Charting your fasting and feeding periods in advance will help you stick to the program.
In this article, youll learn how to make a meal plan to fit your fasting goals. Before that, though, lets talk about nutrition.
Can You Give Me An Example Of A Good Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan For 1500 1700 Or 1800 Calories
Of course!
I could tell you exact things to eat, but I think you can take any foods you love and make them fit into your intermittent fasting lifestyle.
A good rule of thumb is to take your daily calorie goal and split it up like this:
- 20% of calories to break the fast
- 60% of calories for dinner
- 20% of calories for dessert or before-bed snack
Remember, since youre skipping breakfast, you only have to make it a few hours after breaking the fast until its time for a big dinner feast.
You can alter the percentages a little bit as needed.
For example, I prefer to have a few more calories at lunch so I can eat a respectable meal with my wife and daughter, and fewer calories before bed.
Some people prefer a bigger dinner, or more snacks throughout the day.
Do what works for you. But in general, the goal is to have a large and filling dinner and split the rest of your calories as you see fit.
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Foods List And Meal Plan
To maximize the potential health benefits of your diet, its important to stick to nutritious whole foods and beverages during your eating periods.
Filling up on nutrient-rich foods helps round out your diet and supports a healthy weight. Try balancing each meal with a wide variety of whole foods, such as:
- Fruits: apples, bananas, berries, oranges, peaches, pears, tomatoes, etc.
- Veggies: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cucumbers, leafy greens, etc.
- Whole grains: barley, buckwheat, quinoa, rice, oats, etc.
- Healthy fats: olive oil and avocados
- Protein sources: eggs, fish, legumes, meat, poultry, nuts, seeds, etc.
Drinking calorie-free beverages like water and unsweetened tea and coffee, even while fasting, also helps control your appetite while keeping you hydrated.
Its best to avoid ultra-processed foods like packaged snacks, deep-fried items, sugary drinks, and most frozen meals. These negate the positive effects of 16/8 intermittent fasting and may harm your health.
Summary
To begin 16/8 intermittent fasting, choose an 8-hour window and limit your food intake to that time span. Be sure to follow a balanced diet based in whole foods.
Summary
Animal and human studies suggest that intermittent fasting may increase weight loss, improve blood sugar levels, and extend longevity.
Here Is The Intermittent Fasting Diet Meal Plan
You may know that the intermittent fasting diet has become quite popular. Maybe we can even call this fasting meal plan a health trend..
You may encounter information online saying that there is no specific meal plan for intermittent fasting.
This is not so wrong, because people who follow the diet can continue their normal eating habits, provided that they do not eat outside of the specified hours.
Despite this, we have seen a need that those who wanted to follow this diet might have for a detailed guide. So, we have prepared a daily plan for you.
Before introducing you to this plan, lets briefly examine the question of what is an intermittent fasting diet in the case of those who have just started researching this diet so that there is nothing we do not know.
Also Check: How I Lose Weight With Intermittent Fasting
Choosing A Time Window
To get started, begin by picking an 8-hour window and limiting your food intake to that time span.
Popular 16/8 time windows include:
- 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
- 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Many people prefer to eat between noon and 8 p.m., since you need to fast only overnight and skip breakfast but can still eat a balanced lunch and dinner, along with a few snacks throughout the day.
Others opt to eat between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., which allows plenty of time for a healthy breakfast around 9 a.m., a standard lunch around noon, and a light, early dinner or large snack around 4:30 p.m. before starting your fast.
However, you can experiment and pick the time frame that best fits your schedule.
It may help to set timers at both the beginning and the end of your eating window to remind you when to start and stop eating.
What To Drink During Intermittent Fasting
To get all the health benefits of Intermittent Fasting such as fat loss, increased metabolic rate, lower blood sugar levels, boost in the immune system and others, you have to restrict from consuming any caloric food. But you can still consume non-caloric beverages because they do not break your fast and allow you to get all the benefits of fasting.
This is because non-caloric beverages do not cause the release of insulin, and as a consequence, do not interfere with fat burning and autophagy .
This would include:
- Plain black coffee
Got more questions about Intermittent Fasting Drinks? Weve got more information in our blog post What Can You Drink During Intermittent Fasting.
Read Also: Workout Plan For Intermittent Fasting
Meal Plans For Fasters On : 2 Diet
Essentially a type of alternate-day fasting, the 5:2 diet involves eating normally for five days, and using calorie restriction for two non-consecutive days of the week.
During your fasting days, you should not exceed 500-600 calories, which are typically split by eating 2 meals a day.
When you eat your two meals during this fasting diet doesnt matter as much, so long as you stay beneath the calorie limit. But many people find it better to eat in the late morning and again in the evening to keep feeling full for longer.
This is a great intermittent fasting meal plan for people with busy schedules who dont have many days to devote to fasting. Instead, by alternate-day fasting, you can tailor this fasting meal plan to your lifestyle, and still lose weight by doing so.
A sample intermittent fasting meal plan for two during the 5:2 schedule could have:
- Meal One Wrap with Feta Cheese and Olives .
- Meal Two Creamy Pesto Chicken .
Intermittent Fasting: Can Betterme Help
Figuring out your optimal eating and fasting window ratios, make sure your IF transition is safe, adjusting to a new lifestyle this all seems like a lot to handle! BetterMe is ready to help you become the healthiest and happiest version of yourself!
We offer:
- Filling meal ideas and meal plans for your IF journey
Ready to try? BetterMe app will change your life starting today!
Sticking to a healthy diet based on your health needs, allergies and preferences is a great idea, however when combined with a workout plan that meets your goals, it might bring you significant benefits. Better mood, stronger muscles, and endurance are just some.
Recommended Reading: How To Do Healthy Intermittent Fasting
