If you have body fat to lose, you can go through an extended period without food. Not only is fasting okay to do, I actually suggest it. Our society eats too well and we sit too much. What a problem to have, eh? Industrialization leads to mass production of every delicatessen you could desire. This has propelled our society into an obesity epidemic that has spread to the world. 

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A key breakthrough over recent years is fasting. I know that sounds weird and maybe obvious. At first anyway, but then you realize we've been bombarded by marketing the entire lives that have told us to eat 3 meals a day and make "Insert Food" apart of your balanced breakfast. Not only that, but you can just go to any restaurant just about and get something really high in calories for a really cheap price. On average a Combo Burger meal from any restaurant is around 1100 calories...well that's not too bad unless your total caloric intake for the day is 1200...then you're going to have a problem...

 

Or will you...what if you just ate one meal a day and then didn't eat again until the next day. Like a predator? Wait, like a Lion or something? Exactly. Let's take a page out of our ancestor's books on this one. 

 

Fasting is a powerful tool for gaining control of your body. Why would you want to do it today? Well, if you have too much fat, that is because our blood sugar is consistently elevated. Most likely from eating too many processed foods. 

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It isn't because of Carbs. It's because of Calories. Fasting for extended periods throughout the day and night gives your body time to burn through all of its immediate energy supply, blood sugar, stored energy in your muscles and liver as glycogen, and then finally as fatty acids. 

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Eating too frequently, and eating too many calories will make you gain weight.

So burning calories by increasing your basic metabolic rate, exercising, and fasting will make you lose weight. It's Physics! 

 

Energy In vs Energy Out

 

There are several ways you can achieve great results through fasting.

Very common methods are the 16-8, 15-9, and 5-2 methods.

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The 16-8 method follows a 16 hour fast and 8 hour feed period 7 days per week.

The 5-2 method follows 5 regular days with two 20 hour fasts each week.

The 15-9 method follows 15 hours fast and 9 hour feed period 7 days per week.

The 24 hour fast you drink only water, and BCAA's. You can do this once or twice a month. 

 

A keynote on fasting - during the fast the only things you can have are water and coffee or teas (no milk) and selected supplements, nothing else at all. This is not easy but will teach you to control your bodies “Lust for Food” and cravings for “junk”. You will also be more aware of the difference between actual hunger pangs, and Food Lust/comfort eating. 

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Fasting and Weight Training

1. Make sure on weight training days that you eat your first and largest meal no later than 2 hours after the workout has finished.

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2. During your fast make sure you take on nothing that will affect your insulin level. Typically in this phase, the restrictions are water, black coffee, and BCAA capsules.

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Benefits of Fasting

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Research suggests that alternate-day fasting is about as effective as a typical low-calorie diet for weight loss. That seems reasonable because reducing the number of calories you eat should help you lose weight.

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Can intermittent fasting improve your health? Losing weight and being physically active help lower your risk of obesity-related diseases, such as diabetes, sleep apnea, and some types of cancer. For these diseases, intermittent fasting seems to be about as beneficial as any other type of diet that reduces overall calories.

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Fasting may be more beneficial than other diets for reducing inflammation and improving conditions associated with inflammation, such as:

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Alzheimer's disease

Arthritis

Asthma

Multiple sclerosis

Stroke

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It's important to note that fasting can have unpleasant side effects, but they usually go away in time. You'll get used to it as you train your body to adapt. Some of them are normal as your body shifts from a fat-storing factory to a fat-burning factory. Side effects may include:

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Hunger Pangs

Fatigue

Insomnia

Nausea

 Headaches

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Intermittent fasting is safe for many people, but it's not for everyone. Skipping meals may not be the best way to manage your weight if you're pregnant or breast-feeding. If you have kidney stones, gastroesophageal reflux, diabetes, or other medical problems, talk with your doctor before starting intermittent fasting.

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Fasting and Diabetes

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Fasting may also improve the way your body manages glucose (blood sugar) and reduces insulin resistance. This is critical for burning fat. If you're always fed, your blood sugar is consistently high, so you're insulin resistant. Your body keeps releasing insulin, and sugars cant get burned. You may be insulin resistant from years of chronic hyperglycemia. ((Elevated blood sugar caused your metabolism to burnout. This is like running your car engine, pedal to the medal, and gassing up at every opportunity. Eventually, you're just storing gas because you can't burn it fast enough. ))    

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One very small study included three men who had had type 2 diabetes for 10-25 years. With medical supervision, the men fasted every other day or 3 days a week. Within a month, all of the men were able to stop taking insulin. And in less than a year, they were able to cut down on or stop other diabetes medications. In another small study, 10 obese men with type 2 diabetes followed a time-restricted eating plan. They improved their fasting glucose and lost weight over 6 weeks.

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Bigger studies are needed to confirm those findings and to see how long the results last.

 

It’s also not clear which fasting plan is best or how often you’d have to do it.
The American Diabetes Association notes that if you’re overweight or obese, weight loss can help lower your A1c level (a gauge of your blood sugar control over the last 2-3 months) and lower your risk for heart disease.

 

 

Just remember, fasting isn’t required for weight loss. It is just a simpler way to go about it for some people.