What Are The Benefits Of A Keto/if Diet
Proponents of combining IF with a keto diet for weight loss suggest that the metabolic effects are one of the biggest benefits.
Unlike many weight loss strategies that focus on significantly reducing total calories, the Keto/IF approach doesnt necessarily require a decrease in caloriesonly a change in where those calories come from, and when you eat them. Many individuals opt to decrease total daily calories, but only slightly.
The result is that your body burns fat stores due to ketosis and fasting rather than low calorie intake. When ones goal weight is met, its suggested that maintaining weight loss is not as difficult since total calorie level and metabolic rate for not forced to decrease significantly.
Another benefit suggested by Keto/IF books is that fat provides satiety and suppresses appetite. Think about the last time you ate a meal really high in fat then think about how you really didnt even think about food, hunger, or appetite for a large remainder of the day. Since the majority of calories come from fats and oils, theres natural appetite suppressiona particularly nice perk when one is trying to maintain a 16-hour fast.
Health Benefits Of Intermittent Fasting
There are very few studies on the 5:2 diet specifically.
However, there are plenty of studies on intermittent fasting in general, which show impressive health benefits (
After 12 weeks, the fasting group had:
- Reduced body weight by more than 11 pounds .
- Reduced fat mass by 7.7 pounds , with no change in muscle mass.
- Reduced blood levels of triglycerides by 20%.
- Increased LDL particle size, which is a good thing.
- Reduced levels of CRP, an important marker of inflammation.
Summary
The 5:2 diet may have several impressive health benefits, including weight loss, reduced insulin resistance and decreased inflammation. It may also improve blood lipids.
Promotes Better Health By Fighting Inflammation
While acute inflammation is a normal immune process used to help fight off infections, chronic inflammation can have serious consequences for your health.
Research shows that inflammation may be involved in the development of chronic conditions, such as heart disease, cancer and rheumatoid arthritis .
Some studies have found that fasting can help and help promote better health.
One study in 50 healthy adults showed that intermittent fasting for one month significantly decreased levels of inflammatory markers .
Another small study discovered the same effect when people fasted for 12 hours a day for one month .
Whats more, one animal study found that following a very low-calorie diet to mimic the effects of fasting reduced levels of inflammation and was beneficial in the treatment of multiple sclerosis, a chronic inflammatory condition (
Summary Some studies have found that fasting could decrease several markers of inflammation and may be useful in treating inflammatory conditions, such as multiple sclerosis.
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Mistake #: Youre Eating Too Many Calories
“Does anyone else eat like crazy right when the fast is over and is it normal to have a huge appetite during the feeding period? It is hard for me to get full after a 20 hour fast and I just eat the whole 4 hours. LOL.”
Id venture to guess that this person is eating more calories than whats needed in that 4-hour window. So instead of laughing your way through a marathon all-you-can-eat session, plan for how youll break your fast. Stock up on high-protein foods and/or high-fiber foods . Theyll not only fill you up, but will keep you feeling full.
“If I do a 20:4 fast then I should consume 1500-2000 calories within four hours? Am I understanding this correctly?”
Technically, yes. But depending on a persons body size, eating 2,000 calories in a 4-hour window might not yield any weight loss. I dont know this persons size, though. Now, most people lose weight on 1,500 calories, but one of the pros of IF is that its hard to eat a ton of calories in a short window of time. For some, following IF is an easier way to cut calories and lose weight than simply following a traditional calorie-restricted diet. So if you cant hit the 1,500- or 2,000-calorie mark in 4 hours every day, its OK. If falling below 1,200 calories a day becomes a regular habit, though, reconsider your diet plan. If youre not sure how many calories youre consuming, track them in a free app like MyFitnessPal.
How Many Calories Should I Eat To Lose Weight
The calorie calculator allows you to calculate how many calories you should eat a day in order to lose a certain amount of weight by a certain date.
Maximize your weight loss efforts by using the results from this calculator and apply them to this visual hack.
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Activity Level:
- Very Light:
- Light:
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The Concept Of Intermittent Fasting
First of all, you need to understand that intermittent fasting is not a diet but an eating approach. The main rule of any type of this nutritional concept is to limit the time when you can eat during a day or a week . Different types of intermittent fasting have their eating window when you can consume the food of your choice.
Here are the most popular types of intermittent fasting and their rules :
What You Can Eat And What You Can’t
You eat normally 5 days a week, and fast for the other 2 days. Your fasting days should not be back-to-back you should have at least 1 normal eating day in between them.
During your fast days, you can eat, but not very much. Women get 500 calories per day men get 600. Thats far less than whats usually recommended. Depending on age, gender, and how active you are, you could need three or four times as many calories.
The Fast Diet encourages you to eat lean protein, vegetables, and fruit on fasting days, usually as two small meals plus a few snacks.
A typical 500-calorie fasting day might include oatmeal with fresh blueberries for breakfast, a tangerine for a snack, and a chicken and vegetable stir-fry for dinner. You will drink lots of water and may also have calorie-free beverages such as tea, coffee , and club soda.
On your 5 “off days,” you can eat anything. Surprisingly, the research team that studied the diet found that people didnt gorge themselves on off days.
The Fast Diet strongly discourages drinking alcohol on fasting days and suggests that if you drink on your “off days,” you drink only in moderation. And once you reach your weight loss goal, 1 day of fasting per week is recommended for maintenance.
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How Do Fasting Diets Work To Help Rev Weight Loss
The idea behind intermittent fasting is that it increases your metabolic rate, which helps you burn more calories. And by restricting the time periods during the day when you eat, you take in fewer calories each day.
Going into diet change, I knew there was only early evidence that fasting can lead to temporary weight loss, and that more research is needed especially on the potential long-term health effects of this diet. As it stands, experts warn that fasting may not be safe, or smart, for everyone. Fasting is not recommended for some groups, such as pregnant or lactating women, some people with diabetes, people dealing with eating disorders or issues such as low blood sugar, according to the Mayo Clinic. Thats why experts stress that its important to consult your healthcare team before trying any type of fast.
Despite the lack of comprehensive research on intermittent fasting, this eating style has helped me lose weight, regain my energy, and become more mindful about my eating choices.
What Breaks A Fast
The age-old question people into intermittent fasting are constantly pondering about. What breaks a fast?
Here are some of the hallmark features of a fasted state:
People do intermittent fasting for different reasons and therefore it also changes what aspects of the fast are more relevant to them. If someone wants more of the health benefits, they have to pay more attention to things like autophagy, sirtuins, and insulin. For just weight loss, it doesnt matter that much as long as youre still making progress.
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Intermittent Fasting: Is It Right For You
U-M dietitian Sue Ryskamp weighs in on intermittent fasting benefits, who it works best for and how to get started
Weight loss can be difficult, but could intermittent fasting help? This eating pattern, which features cycles of fasting and eating, is making headlines as research confirms its not only what you eat, but when you eat, that matters in the struggle to lose weight.
During intermittent fasting, individuals use specific periods of eating typically within an eight-to-10 hour window to lose weight, says Michigan Medicine dietitian Sue Ryskamp, who sees patients at U-Ms Frankel Cardiovascular Center.
The premise behind intermittent fasting is relatively simple, she says: When our insulin levels go down far enough and for long enough, as they do during a fasting period, were able burn off fat.
Insulin levels drop when a person is not consuming food. During a period of fasting, decreasing insulin levels cause cells to release stored glucose as energy. Repeating this process regularly, as with intermittent fasting, leads to weight loss. In addition, this type of fasting often results in the consumption of fewer calories overall, which contributes to weight loss, Ryskamp says.
A Harvard research study also reveals how intermittent fasting may slow the aging process through weight loss, lower blood pressure and reduced cholesterol.
One Calorie If You Live In A Dictionary
As you have just seen, any calorie ingested goes against the technical definition of fasting. But an all-or-nothing approach is rarely sustainable in the long term. You can still get a myriad of benefits without necessarily going for a strict water-only fast.
Now, if you are currently practicing water-only intermittent fasting and its easy and sustainable for you in the long term, then there is no reason to change that. But for the vast majority of people, including myself, flexibility is helpful to create a long-term lifestyle change.
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What Is The History Of Intermittent Fasting
Fasting has been around since ancient times and has predominantly been practiced within religions, according to a study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in August 2015. But the version of IF thats talked about today arose in the past eight years or so. According to Harvard Health, IF became more popular around 2012 when the documentary Eat, Fast and Live Longer aired. The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics study says many books on the topic were published around that time as well, including 2013s The Fast Diet, which added to the buzz. Research followed. Over the past five years, rigorous research has shown the remarkable benefits of intermittent fasting, which is behind this sudden interest, says Sara Gottfried, MD, the Berkeley, Californiabased author of Brain Body Diet.
What Does Breaking A Fast Mean
First, we have to address what breaking a fast really means.
From a pure definition standpoint, any fuel coming into your body, in other words, any calorie, will break your fast. This is following the theoretical definition of fasting to the letter.
But as you know, we dont live in theory. Real life is rarely that black and white. The more practical question you should ask yourself is: why are you fasting? What benefits are you trying to obtain from your fast?
There are multiple benefits to intermittent fasting, from blood sugar control, inflammation reduction, ketones production to increased longevity, just to cite a few. But the most common ones can be grouped into three main categories:
From that angle, breaking a fast is context-dependent. Whether you are trying to lose weight, rest your gut or get powerful longevity benefits wont give you the same answer. There is a lot of nuances depending on the situation.
In that sense, you will break your fast if the food, drink, and calorie intake negates the fasting benefits you are expecting to get from the fastitself.
Hence defining your goals and what you are trying to achieve is essential.
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Intermittentfasting To Lose Fat
Fasting doesnt burn more calories than regular eating patterns but it mayyield a higher proportion of fat oxidation. This has some metabolic benefits andcreates a different metabolic environment where your body is more primed to beburning fat.
To lose fat, you still need to create an energy deficit. Its just thatintermittent fasting seems to make it easier for some people and helps tosustain a diet for longer. In my opinion, if you dont over-stress yourself andget enough nutrients, youll also preserve more of your energy balanceregulating hormones such as leptin.
Some concluding remarks on how to burn more calories while fasting:
If you want to know how to optimize intermittent fasting, resistance training, sleep, and food combining, then check out my Metabolic Autophagy Master Class.
How To Get Started
Getting started is simple.
In fact, chances are youve already done many intermittent fasts before. Many people instinctively eat this way, skipping morning or evening meals.
The easiest way to get started is to choose one of the intermittent fasting methods above and give it a go.
However, you dont need to necessarily follow a structured plan.
An alternative is to fast whenever it suits you. Skipping meals from time to time when you dont feel hungry or dont have time to cook can work for some people.
At the end of the day, it doesnt matter which type of fast you choose. The most important thing is to find a method that works best for you and your lifestyle.
Summary
The easy way to get started is to choose one of the methods above and give it a go. Stop immediately if you experience any adverse effects.
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What Is The Best Way To Break A Fast And Begin Eating Again
Dont take the end of your fast as an excuse to go wild with unhealthy foods thatll undermine the potential success of the diet. The principles of healthful eating and breaking a fast are the same whether or not it’s a normal overnight fast or time-restricted eating, Lowden says. Focus on breaking your fast with a healthy, balanced meal filled with lean proteins, healthy carbohydrates, and healthy fats.
Pay particular attention to protein, especially if you have diabetes. In order to maintain normal sugar levels and avoid worsening insulin resistance, we always recommend eating a form of protein with every meal, particularly when you’re breaking a fast, Lowden says. Protein doesnt break down into glucose as efficiently as carbs, so it has a slower, less immediate effect on blood sugar levels, according to Diabetes.co.uk.
Gottfried says having a healthy source of carbs when breaking your fast will help restore depleted glycogen levels. She recommends a Mediterranean-style meal with 40 percent carbohydrates, 30 percent protein, and 30 percent fat.
Intermittent Fasting 16/8 Vs 20/: Which One Should You Try
If you are a beginner, the 16/8 method would be better for you than jumping headfirst into the intermittent fasting 20/4 method. Unlike the latter, the former gives you less time to fast, translating into a longer feeding window. Once your body gets used to the 16:8 variation, then you could choose to attempt a 20/4 intermittent fasting meal plan.
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Do Supplements Break A Fast
What if you take daily multivitamins and other supplements? Will continuing to consume these affect your fast in any way?
Its hard to say, so our answer is it depends. A slew of supplements could break a fast but arent very likely to. Here is an overview of these.
- Prebiotics and probiotics: Carb and calorie-free, it should be fine to take prebiotics and probiotics when intermittent fasting.
- Pure collagen: If youre seeking to burn fat during your intermittent fast, pure collagen shouldnt interrupt this. That said, your bodys ability to recycle old and damaged cell parts, also known as autophagy, may be interrupted.
- Creatine: This supplement should be okay to continue taking on an intermittent fast.
- Micronutrients: Certain micronutrients should be consumed with food so they absorb better. These include vitamins K, E, D, and A. B vitamins and potassium might be better to take when fasting.
- Algae and fish oil: With no carbs and calories, you dont have to omit algae and/or fish oil on an intermittent fast.
- Multivitamins: Double-check that your multivitamin doesnt have calories, added fillers, or sugars. If it doesnt, then continue ingesting it as usual without risk of breaking your fast.
These supplements probably would count as breaking a fast, so proceed carefully:
If you dont see your supplements on the list above, we recommend calling your doctor and getting their opinion about whether the supplement would break your fast.
How Many Calories Should I Eat During Intermittent Fasting
How many calories should I eat during interval fasting? Can interval fasting cause a calorie deficit?
Intermittent fasting is not a diet. And thats a good thing because short-term diets are doomed to failure from the start. Because once the diet is over, the discipline usually ends, and the old habits return. Hello, yoyo effect.
And baby stapes, you can start with the 14:8 or the 16:6 form. After that, you can take it to the next level and try more advanced forms like the OMAD diet.
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