Intermittent Fasting

When you hear the word fasting you may think of religious practices and starving yourself. However, that is not always the case. A new health trend called intermittent fasting is meant to bridge the gap between healthy trends and harmful body practices.

When I first learned about intermittent fasting I was extremely skeptical, that is until I learned the basic concept behind the trend and how it is unlike diets. This fasting is based on the concept of how humans used to eat when they had no consistent source of food. Because they would not always know when they would have their next meal their metabolism was used to having an inconsistent input of energy and calories. Compare that to our culture today where people are expected to have three meals each day and it’s understandable why our metabolisms haven’t been able to keep up with our consistent eating habits.

This primitive concept applies to the scientific idea that your body is in a feed state while digesting food, and this usually lasts three to five hours. During this feed state, it is hard for the body to burn fat because your insulin levels are high. After the body has finished the feed state, it goes into a post-absorptive state where it finishes processing your food for about eight to twelve hours. This post-absorptive state leads into a fasting state where your body can burn fat that is not accessible during the feed state. The fasting state does not begin until roughly twelve hours after eating which is why it is nearly impossible to reach this state with a typical three meal eating schedule.

Reasons why I enjoy intermittent fasting:

Only have to plan what to eat for two meals

Become more aware of your eating habits and why you become hungry

No commitment to a standard diet plan

Overall more energy

There’s not a set way of doing it

There are many reasons you may choose to try out intermittent fasting. Personally, the number one reason I choose to keep up this plan is that it makes my day simpler. Since I choose to skip breakfast, I have more time to sleep-in in the morning and don’t have to worry about making breakfast. There are many different ways of executing an intermittent fasting plan, so you are likely to find one that sounds best to you!

Happy Fasting

Josey T