It is a simple strategy that many people are adopting, but how does intermittent fasting work?

Intermittent fasting has become a popular way of eating, particularly for people wanting to lose weight, but also to achieve a broader range of health benefits. But does intermittent fasting work?  And what exactly does intermittent fasting mean?

Despite the advice we have all been given since we were kids to never skip breakfast (and that is still true for young children), intermittent fasting promotes just that in order to change the way our bodies burn fat.

Intermittent fasting can be an easier way of losing weight because it doesn’t require you to drastically change your eating habits or restrict the food you can eat. Here we take a more in-depth look at just how intermittent fasting works.

What is intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting, once you understand it, is a very simple strategy for trying to lose weight and fat. It works by putting your body into a fasted state so that it’s easier to burn fat.

Your body is typically either in a fed or fasted state. The fed state begins when you eat, and can last for 3-5 hours as your body digests and absorbs the food. During this stage, your insulin levels are high which makes it harder to burn fat. After those 3-5 hours, your body goes into a post-absorptive state and is no longer processing the meal you ate.

This stage lasts for around 8-12 hours after your last meal, which is when you enter the fasted state. During this stage, it’s much easier to burn fat because your insulin levels are much lower. As we won’t typically enter the fasted state until 12 hours after our last meal, this is the base consideration for an intermittent fasting regime.

The most popular method is to follow a 16-hour fast followed by an 8-hour eating period. This means your body will be in a fasted state for at least 4 hours, to help you burn more fat during that time. You can start your 8-hour eating period at whatever time you like, for example, begin eating at 11am and stop eating at 7pm.

How long should you fast for?

Many people adopt intermittent fasting for long periods of time, while others simply do it until they have reached their weight loss goals. It’s up to you whether you want to follow it for the long term, bearing in mind that many people advocate the long-term health benefits.

There are many different ways of intermittent fasting, so choose the one that will make it sustainable for your lifestyle. For instance, some plans suggest only fasting for one day a week, or alternate days. But for many people, it really does become a way of life.

As Jane Hickey, one of Healthy Life Essex’s contributing nutritionists says:

I consider fasting as “one of my things” and have introduced it into my life since I first learned about the benefits. I’m fascinated by the tradition of fasting which has been practised since antiquity in most of the world’s religions. It’s perfectly normal for us to experience fasting – we do this naturally every day, breaking our fast with breakfast. Building on this with safe fasting puts the body under a little stress, which has so many potential benefits for health.

What benefits does fasting provide?

The important thing to remember with intermittent fasting is that you still eat the same amount of calories, but in a shorter timeframe. However, fasting can naturally put you in a calorie deficit if you skip breakfast or cut out those late-night snacks! Make sure you’re still eating the required amount of calories your body needs and, importantly, good quality natural foods that contain sufficient vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates.

Intermittent fasting can be beneficial for weight loss because it gives you an element of freedom to find the right routine that works for you, which mean you’re more likely to see results. Fasting is often the most popular method for fat loss and it can make your day much simpler.

As well as the weight loss benefits, intermittent fasting also provides a range of other health benefits including improving your insulin response, activating autography for cell generation, and improving metabolic efficiency.

How do you start intermittent fasting?

If you’ve never followed an intermittent fasting schedule before, you might feel wary about not eating until lunchtime or stopping eating in the afternoon. It can be helpful to start by doing it one day a week to get used to it, and eventually extend it throughout the week until you feel more confident in your new eating habits!

An excellent option might be to consider getting a fast-tracker app, as it can help you stick to your new habits, and guide you through your fasting journey.

Remember, if something happens in your schedule such as a breakfast date with a friend or a late-night event, don’t worry if you eat outside of your eating period. It’s important to still enjoy yourself and just get back on track the next day, so long as you don’t go too far off track all the time!