Introduction
Health Benefits Of Intermittent Fasting: is a method of eating alternatively between eating and fasting. It is a popular health trend and people use it to lose weight and improve mental clarity. Intermittent fasting is a great method to achieve your fitness goals in less time. It offers numerous health benefits and gives a healthier lifestyle. In this article, we will discuss intermittent fasting and understand its health benefits and how it is practised?
How Intermittent Fasting Works?
In intermittent fasting, you don’t need to fast for the complete day, but increase the gap between your food. When you try this method, the body stops using glucose as the primary source of energy and starts burning body fat.
In this process, the body also boosts metabolism which gives numerous health benefits. Now you don’t have to count calories and follow any diet plan, just take frequent breaks between your meals to practise intermittent fasting.
Types Of Intermittent Fasting
There are total 5 types of intermittent fasting that we will discuss further:
The 16/8 Method
The 16/8 method is basically taking a 16 hour long break between 8 hour window circle. In this process you take the gap of 16 hours between the meals. You can directly do lunch after the dinner of last time skipping breakfast. This is an amazing method to lose weight, but be careful of your body while practising this method.
The 5:2 Diet Method
This is a simple yet powerful technique to receive numerous health benefits. Here you take a normal diet for 5 days and then limit your intake to 500 calories for two non consecutive days of the week. This intermittent fasting method will give you incredible results in just 1 month of practice.
The Eat-Stop-Eat Method
Do you want to lose weight? Then here is the most incredible intermittent fasting method. The eat-stop-eat method is basically doing fasting for straight 24 hours, whether once or twice in the week. It can be a bit tough and challenging but effective for weight loss and enhance metabolic health.
The Alternate Day Fasting Method
It is a next level of intermittent fasting in which an individual fasts for every other day. You eat for one day and eat nothing the next day, and repeat the cycle. It’s better to take the guidance of a healthcare expert before performing this activity because not everybody’s body is capable of this fasting method.
People may feel dull, tired, and lazy in the start but it’s the most instant way to lose fat and weight in the body. You can limit your food intake to 500 to 600 calories on fasting days to maintain your daily food requirement for survival and avoid the side effects. Some people practise complete fasting on consecutive days, while it totally depends on the capacity of the individual.
The Warrior Diet Method
As the name suggests, this intermittent fasting method is for warriors. This diet encourages eating a small amount of vegetables and fruits in the day and eating a huge meal at night before sleeping. This extreme form of fasting has several health benefits. The natural fruit and vegetable intakes will also help to cleanse your mind along with a healthy mind and body.
Benefits Of Intermittent Fasting For Weight Loss
Where the normal diet focuses on calories and what to eat, Intermittent fasting focuses on when to eat. Now we have studied about the methods of intermittent fasting, now we will understand its actual benefits:
1. Reduced Calorie Intake
The most obvious benefit of Intermittent Fasting is reduced calorie intake which is very beneficial for losing weight. Where other diet plans force you to count every calorie, intermittent fasting makes the process far easier. Fasting has several health benefits and when you follow intermittent fasting diet methods, your body takes the time to relax and transfer the calorie needs to all over the body.
2. Boosts Fat Burning
Intermittent fasting uses the fat as fuel and gives extra fat burning through which you can reduce your weight very fastly. During the fasting, the body uses glucose as an energy booster to burn the stored fat in the body. Follow any intermittent fasting method for at least 1 month and you will be amazed by the results.
The metabolic switch happens when the body not only promotes fat loss but also helps to preserve muscle mass. Additionally, it enhances the production of norepinephrine hormone production which is a hormone responsible for increasing the metabolic rate of the body and also increases the breakdown of fat cells.
3. Prevents Muscle Loss
Intermittent fasting is well-known for fat loss, but the best thing is that it prevents muscle loss during the process. Many people worry about losing the crucial muscle tissue for energy but many research has proven that it is not an issue. If you take proper protein and add some resistance training in your diet then it’ll help you to preserve lean muscle mass while reducing body weight.
4. Helps To Reduce Hunger And Cravings
People usually think that fasting increases their hunger and they will eat more calories after the fasting period. But it is false because fasting regulates the Gherlin hormone which is responsible for hunger response and decreases during the time of fasting that automatically reduces the sensation of hunger.
Whereas, The leptin hormone signals satiety becoming even more efficient and helps you to feel satisfied even in lower calories.
5. Supports Mindful Eating
As you are eating in a limited eating window, intermittent fasting promotes mindful eating habits. You will be able to make conscious and healthier eating choices about what could be better for your health.
Intermittent Fasting encourages a well-structured eating pattern. It helps to reduce the negative eating habits like late night snacking and mindless eating throughout the day. If you are into a diet, then you must be mindful about your eating habits and intermittent fasting can help you with long term weight management.
Intermittent Fasting And Exercise
If you are conscious about your health then one question may arise in your mind that is “Is it good to exercise during fasting?”, and the answer is Yes!
Research has proven that exercise during the fasting days improves muscle growth and enhances the speed of fat burning. It is also essential to listen to your body and stay hydrated during the workouts.
Who Should Avoid Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent Fasting is a natural and helpful practice to do but there are several factors that we should point out to. People who are suffering from specific medical conditions and who have a history of eating disorders should avoid intermittent fasting.
Especially pregnant women, childrens, and other types of people with medical issues should consult a healthcare expert before starting it.
It is always beneficial to take the guidance of a professional before starting Intermittent fasting because safety comes first.
Also read:Importance Of Hydration: How Water Affects Your Body Health?
Conclusion
Hence, we have reached this part of the article and I hope you have got some new information that would be beneficial for your life. Diet Plan is the priority of survival and maintaining a healthy body.
Intermittent fasting is an amazing method to lose weight instantly and balance your eating routines. So start intermittent fasting as per your requirement and take all the amazing benefits of it from now. Focus on your health and diet, and live a healthy life.
