Intermittent fasting is a big trend at the moment in the health and fitness world.
The practice of fasting has been common in most major religions for a very long time indeed. But now, as studies like this one reveal amazing benefits of fasting, more and people are using it as a technique to help them reach their personal goals.
(If you’re thinking: What on Earth is intermittent fasting and why would I want to do it? Catch up with the basics of IF is and how to go about it safely.)
The term ‘intermittent fasting’ is actually incredibly broad. It means cycling through periods or ‘windows’, as they are often called in the IF community, of eating and periods of abstaining from food (fasting).
One of the great things about IF is that there are so many different ways of fasting, so you can experiment with what works for your body. You may find that IF is not for you, and that’s totally okay.
For now, though, let’s run through some of the options.
Here are 5 methods of intermittent fasting:
1) 16/8 Extended Overnight Fast (aka Leangains protocol)
This version is very widely used and is arguably the easiest version of IF. If you skip breakfast anyway, you would barely even notice this fast.
It works by eating within an 8-hour window each day. Doing some quick maths, this means you fast for 16 hours a day.
This is a great option to try if you’re new to the whole fasting thing. It doesn’t matter when your 8-hour window is in the day, the benefits will be the same. You could do breakfast at 11am and end on dinner at 7pm. Or 10am-6pm, or 9am-5pm. You get the idea. It’s flexible.
Some people shorten the window down to 7, 6 or 4 hours, at the very lowest. This is obviously much harder to stick to, and it’s not recommended for beginners to start on a 4-hour window. (Read all about what happened when I did just that in the euphemistically named IF: A Learning Curve)
The major plus of the 16/8 fasting method is that you’re asleep for a lot of the fast. This method requires way less willpower than going all day without eating anything. It’s also more likely to be sustainable.
2) Whole Day Fasting, or Eat-Stop-Eat
Whole day fasters commit to a full 24 hours of not eating. They usually fast from a mealtime one day to the same mealtime the next day. So, you might have dinner at 7pm and then no food until the following day’s dinner at 7pm. Breakfast-to-breakfast and lunch-to-lunch work well too. Benefits are the same.
This is definitely not an everyday thing, and best kept to once or twice a week.
As you can imagine, whole day fasting requires a good amount of willpower. Not eating for 24 hours can be really tough. This is advisable for more advanced fasters, and is not a great place to start your IF journey.
That said, there are many, many people who swear by the eat-stop-eat method, and report feeling absolutely mint. There’s mounting evidence to suggest whole day fasts can significantly improve your body’s metabolism and even longevity. (Yes, fasting could help you live longer.)
3) ‘The 5:2’
The 5:2 lifestyle has become super popular. It involves eating normally on 5 days of the week and taking two ‘fast’ lower calorie days. On these fast days, women eat 500 calories and men 600 calories.
Many people enjoy the flexibility of this, as you can time your fast days to work around gym days, dinner dates and rest days. Irritability on the fast days, as with any extended period of not eating, appears to be the biggest downside.
4) The Warrior Diet or Caveman Feast
This involves eating raw fruit and veg in the daytime with a big feast to break the fast in the evening. A healthy, nutritious feast, mind you. Lots of colours and whole foods, please. You’ll need to take care to eat enough nutrient-dense foods, as every night you are essentially preparing your body to last through the following day.
The Caveman Feast draws on paleo logic. The idea is that our ancestors might have nibbled throughout the day and only consumed big feasts after a successful hunt. Because they did it, we shouldn’t be afraid of going without food for even a few hours.
The Warrior was popularised by Ori Hofmekler, a big personality in the radical health and fitness world.
In terms of IF, you basically are eating within a really small window, making it an extreme version of method 1.
5) Spontaneous Meal Skips or The Convenience Fast
This method could be the one for you if you have a crazy unpredictable schedule. Some busy-bee fasters choose to simply skip a meal when it is convenient or when they’re just not hungry. This can work if you have an early morning meeting you need to prepare for, where it makes sense to skip breakfast.
Frequent travellers have found that fasting while travelling can be good, too. Plus, you get to skip being ripped off by expensive airport food. Score!
Downsides are that it can be hard to be consistent, and it’s probably not going to work if you thrive on routine.
Important Notes on IF
As with every lifestyle change, make sure you are looking after your physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.
The less intense versions of intermittent fasting are not known to be hard on the body. A healthy, well-nourished adult should be absolutely fine with some short fasts. Do consult a doctor before trying fasting practices you are unsure about. Listen to your body, if something isn’t right, stop.
Fasting is not recommended for pregnant or breastfeeding women, or people who have suffered or are vulnerable to eating disorders.
Don’t overdo fasting. You can stall progress by fasting excessively, as your body begins to conserve fat and resources.
When in Cabarete, booking a chat with eXtreme’s nutritionist can put your mind at rest and kickstart some positive lifestyle changes. You can ask questions and work out a plan tailored to you and your body.
Stay safe, fasters!
