Millions of people who have tried different diets and failed countless times have searched and have been intrigued about intermittent fasting. In their search for something that works to lose excessive body weight, this type of diet program has been proven to work the best.
If you are interested in why intermittent fasting is beneficial and its basic applications, I encourage you to read on and you will find why it is good for your health and your body.
The medically sound fasting duration should take up 24-36 hours. You can do this once a week if you have a difficult time taking time off from your work. For those who have limited work commitments, three times a week should be enough. The increased number of fasts allows you to reduce the duration of the fasts and still gain the benefits of the practice.
Here is a simple methodology of intermittent fasting that you can apply immediately. Start with eating breakfast on the first day and then your next meal should be breakfast on the next day. If you find that this practice is not sustainable for you, change the mealtime or the duration. It takes time and effort to find out what works best for you, just do not let despair stop you from testing all possible combinations of meal time and duration of the fast to find the correct combination.
Known Benefits
When you decide to try intermittent fasting, also know that you force your body to use its internal food reserves for energy and other metabolic processes. As it consumes the food reserves, your body will also increase the rate at which it releases waste substances through your various body organs such as the skin, digestive system and lymph system. This is a process known as Autophagy (which means the digestion of cellular constituents by enzymes) It encompasses the removal of waste matter from body cells all over your body.
In our society Alzheimer’s is a very serious and growing epidemic. Thousands of people suffer from this very sad disease. One well-known benefit of taking up this form of fasting is that it assists your body in protecting itself from the Alzheimer's disease. This happens because of increased production of brain-derived Neurotropic factor (BDNF(is a secreted protein that, in humans, is encoded by the BDNF gene).
Many Crossfitters and active people are part taking into Paleo diets. The practice of intermittent fasting also leads to the stimulation of growth. As long as you take your regular amount of food before and after every fast, this will induce an increase in the production of growth hormone.
For the big time gym goers and weightlifters, this gives them faster results in the increase of muscle mass. The important factor for weightlifters is that if they decide to use this fasting program they must continue doing their daily activities as if they were not fasting. This helps the body to maintain a metabolic balance so that instead of breaking down your muscles, it breaks down excess body fat.
As with anything, before going ahead with the intermittent fast, you might consider talking to your nutritionist. It is important to get advice on the right amount of calories and other food quantities that you may need for the optimum functioning of your body. Besides the nutrition caution, there is no other mandatory thing that you need to look into before going on your fasts.
After this explanation of intermittent fasting, you are now better prepared to organize a fast period and then repeat it regularly as you get the desired results.