Using Intermittent Fasting for Lifelong Weight Loss and Weight Management
Has weight become a major issue in your life? Have you tried most of the diets and weight loss programs out there? Do you feel like a failure as you go back to your old eating habits and gain back the weight you lost and often even add more pounds to your love handles? It comes to a point that as we age we feel our metabolism is slowing down and think to ourselves what’s the point of even trying anymore.
Well, I am going to tell you there is a better way to losing your weight and keeping it off for the rest of your life. Before you start thinking this is just another fad diet that is out there, it’s not! This therapy and lifestyle practice has been around since the beginning of human existence and it’s in our DNA. I am talking about fasting! That’s right, it’s that simple. It does not require adding special recipes and foods to your diet and following a tedious diet plan, it’s as simple as just not eating. With that said, I do suggest you eat a low starchy carbohydrate diet with the intermittent fasting, as your insulin becomes more sensitive to carbohydrate input. Eating meals with healthy fats, protein, and low starchy carbohydrates is best.
Calorie restriction diets have shown to be difficult to follow through for a long time and they decrease your metabolism. It is a poor lifelong weight management program. Not only will you gain back the weight when you go back to your normal eating lifestyle, you will likely gain even more because of having a lower metabolism from being on the calorie restriction diet.
Fasting on the other hand has shown the opposite in research. Fasting will not only increase your metabolism but it will increase your human growth hormones (which is an essential hormone for building and maintaining muscle during fasting) and decrease insulin levels which is another hormone that is a big culprit in weight gain.
When it comes to intermittent fasting, every person is different and it requires discipline and practice to know what kind of fasting regimen is going to work for you for your healthy weight loss and healthy lifestyle. It is best to start with intermittent fasting with an 8-10 hour eating period and a 16 –14 hour fasting time. Remember, your insulin becomes more sensitive when you use intermittent fasting, so the foods you eat during your eating period need to be healthy and ideally, low carbohydrate. Include healthy fats and proteins in every meal. Give it a try and see how easily you progress.