Intermittent fasting (IF) involves a cycle between periods of fasting and meals. Many diets focus on what to eat, but intermittent fasting is about when you eat. With intermittent fasting, you only eat for a specific time. Fasting certain hours of the day or eating just one meal a few days a week can help your body burn fat. And scientific evidence also points to a number of health benefits.
How does intermittent fasting work?
There are several different methods of IF, but they are all based on choosing regular eating times and fasting times. For example, you can try to eat only eight hours a day and fast the rest of the time. Or, you can choose to eat only one meal a day, two days a week.
This diet works best when you stop eating at some point during the day and avoid eating at night altogether. This means there are no in-between or bedtime snacks. Although meal times vary from person to person, many of my patients have been successful when they eat between 10 a.m & 6pm. Intermittent fasting can be difficult, but as your body adapts to a new way of eating, eating becomes easier. The general idea is to learn more about what to eat and when to eat.
In addition to weight loss, IF also help lower cholesterol, insulin levels drop and human growth hormone (HGH) increases. Your cells also initiate important cell repair processes and change the genes they express. Reduces liver fat and improve blood pressure. Better exercise coordination and better sleep. Studies have also shown that fasting can lead to calorie restriction and can even extend the life expectancy of healthy people.
Fasting can reduce tumor growth and help prevent breast cancer recurrence. Studies show that intermittent fasting can improve numerous risk factors for heart disease, such as blood pressure, cholesterol levels, triglycerides, and inflammatory markers.
Intermittent fasting is a very popular way to lose weight, but its benefits don’t stop there. According to research involving animals and humans, it can also help you live a longer and healthier life.