What is Intermittent fasting and how does it help in weight loss?

Intermittent fasting

We often get to know that in some accident, a person is still alive and being rescued after many days. We often hear on the news that people are alive after many days of being hungry. It can lead to the question that for how long a person can live without eating something. 

The most average answer we get is about 10 days. When studied deeply it was known that a person can survive without food and water for 8 to 21 days. He can even live for two months without food if gets on drinking water at a normal level.

You have read right the above statement.

Intermittent fasting and weight loss. Such a satisfying combination.

Overview

Now we come to our prime topic which is intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting is about switching between eating and not eating. As its name indicates that it involves the timing of meals. It is different from the traditional type of fasting that different people follow.

It is important to know that there is a huge difference between a dietary plan and intermittent fasting. A diet plan is a bit tough to follow while intermittent fasting can be followed easily.

If we closely monitor the dietary plans of different experienced nutritionists and dietitians, it becomes clear that it involves the types of food items that can be eaten. On the other hand, intermittent fasting is not about what we can eat. It involves a tolerable schedule for stay off-feed and eating freely.

So the difference between these two can be summarized in two words that are what and when about eating habits and regimens.

IF is not about the selection of food, it is all about time.

How intermittent fasting is supposed to work?

If we look back to history, it is evident that our ancestors and the human beings of ancient times were hunters. They were not used to eating three meals a day. They had to go hunting and it required a lot of time and energy. That is the reason the natural mode of survival for them was eating at a specific time. 

Along with this dietary routine they used to burn a lot of calories by using energy in moving. They did not have any kind of transportation so they were used to walking a lot.

This kind of routine helped them survive the hardest times.

A neuroscientist from John Hopkins university namely Mark Mattson has worked on intermittent fasting and its effects for more than 25 years. He has stated that our body has a prodigious scope to survive well without eating for many hours. It helps to maintain a healthy figure and smart mind. As per a statement by Mattson, the key to the success of intermittent fasting is metabolic switching.

What is metabolic switching and how is it linked with intermittent fasting?

Metabolic switching is the key mechanism that helped ancient humans to survive periods of food shortage. It helps the body to stay active without food.

It involves the catabolism of stored glycogen and converts it into small units of glucose easily consumed by the body as energy units. This mechanism takes stored glycogen and fatty acids from storage organs like the liver and adipose tissues. It makes them useable to help the body perform activities that require energy.

When the body is in a starving condition, it burns the stored calories. This energy consumption leads to the use of extra fats and sugar molecules as a result of the whole process, weight loss is promoted.

Not only weight loss, but another considerable aspect of metabolic switching is also to initiate autophagy. Which in turn triggers the body to get rid of impaired cells and the process of repair is started.

So if we link metabolic switching to intermittent fasting it becomes easier for us to understand the whole process. In intermittent fasting, food is consumed at a specific time and the person keeps himself away from eating randomly. 

During eating time, we are allowed to eat according to our normal routine. After that time we allow we stop food intake and let our body consume the stored food and burn excessive calories.

You may eat everything but take care of how and when you eat!

What can be eaten while intermittent fasting?

This is considerable to know that it is not a diet plan but more like a lifestyle change. 

Taking this fact into account, it is easier to understand that it has nothing to do with the type of food items to be consumed. It is all about when we get to eat.

There are many methods of intermittent fasting to follow, but the most common and easy-to-apply mode is the 8/16 method and the other common and easy mode is 5:2.

Intermittent fasting involves two phases as follows

Eating phase

Starving phase

In the eating phase, a person can eat normal food items from a balanced diet. It should be taken considering that this phase should not involve overeating. the person should follow his daily routine of the diet with his family as eating with others brings happiness and a sense of satisfaction.

You can eat anything you want in these eight hours (or whatever your eating window is) and prepare the body for an upcoming off-feed phase in the next sixteen hours (depending upon the fasting window).

The other method involves eating regular food for five days( three times a day) and eating one simple meal a day for the remaining two days.

When the starving phase starts, he would stay away from food. However, zero-calorie food items like black coffee and water can be drunk. The starving phase involves resting, sleeping, and performing physical activities.

A combination of intermittent fasting and physical activities is significant. When the body is in the off-feed phase, it realizes the stress of consuming stored food. In this way, we get rid of our extra weight and it makes the body lighter.

Coffee can be your amigo while fasting!

The safety margin of intermittent fasting

It should be kept in mind that not everything is for everyone. Likewise, a plan can be very beneficial for one person and least beneficial or even unsafe for others. Moreover, the body can adapt to this fasting and storing sugars which can lead to obesity.

So it is important to consult with a primary care physician and get approval based on our medical and genetic history.

Moreover, everyone has different purposes for intermittent fasting so the schedule should be followed accordingly.

Who should avoid intermittent fasting?

The list of people who must avoid this dietary routine is as follow

• Patients with diabetes and blood glucose disorders
• Patients with eating disorders
• Nursing and pregnant ladies
• Underage ( below 18 years) and immunocompromised children

It is a lifestyle change and those who cannot afford to stay away from food for a long time i.e. diabetic patients should not follow it. This dietary routine is supposed to bring benefits. It must bring health benefits for people following it instead of causing them health problems.

Potential pitfalls

As per a detailed report by Mattson, our body takes some time to get adjusted to lifestyle changes. Likewise, when we plan to follow intermittent fasting, our body can react and resist it. It can in particular react with the person who is used to eating three meals or even more during the day.

Initially, a person can be disturbed by the hunger pangs and it can insert a negative effect on his mood and disturb work quality.

In the early days, people can face a few health issues like nausea, headache, and even anxiety.

Intermittent fasting alone is not everything.  It needs to be paired with physical activities and exercises to get optimal results.

A sudden start of 16 hours of fasting, can make the person find it boring and difficult.

Our body takes about two to four weeks to adapt to these schedules. Staying consistent for at least a month is mandatory.

Take home message 

Intermittent fasting does not work like a magic. It is a part of lifestyle management that allows you to switch between the eating and starving phases. It helps your body to regain its health.

A person following it can find it hard to follow. Once he starts realizing its positive effects on the body, he feels satisfied. Eventually, his body gets rid of stores of glucose and fats.

Candid dialogue

The spectrum of intermittent fasting is not limited to weight loss. It can bring awesome effects to decrease the intensity of many complicated diseases.

Let your body take its adjustment period. Then you would be having a healthy long life, slim body, and smart mind.

You can read out the episodes related to this topic by clicking on the tag Intermittent fasting and Health refinement.