Intermittent Fasting. Surely you have already heard of this thing or maybe even tried it in your diet. There are opinions here or there about this method, but what is surely known to everyone (we very much hope so) is that there is only one way to lose weight - maintaining a negative caloric balance Over time. Everyone agrees on that, right? Excellent!
in a meta-analysis, which included 19 clinical studies and lasted from 4 days to 3 months, and were conducted among 475 participants [54 percent women, 10 studies conducted among healthy people, and 9 studies among people with obesity and/or metabolic syndrome or fatty liver], it was found, Because compared to the control group, intermittent fasting contributed to greater weight loss [difference of 0.9-kilogram (0.1-)-1.7- 95%CI] and for the decrease in fat mass [difference of 1.6-kilogram (0.5-)-2.6- 95%CI] without damage to lean body mass.
It is also important to note that intermittent fasting has been found to be particularly effective in overweight or obese people, compared to people of normal weight, but this does not mean that you cannot derive health benefits from fasting even if you are not overweight. You can find links to additional studies at the end of the article.
In this article we will try to understand how this method can be applied effectively in our diet. We will understand the advantages of this method And how it can help you manage the process of weight loss in a convenient and simple way. By the way, it is completely possible to apply intermittent fasting also in the process of increasing muscle mass, but that is another topic. Here we will focus on the toning and weight loss process.
With all the diets around and all the different methods around us, finding the right approach and method for us can be quite a challenge. Many people have difficulty with strict diets and counting calories andTherefore, the method we will present below can be an excellent way to lose weight without counting calories אלא ע"י היצמדות לקווים מנחים פשוטים שבעזרתם נוכל להיות בגירעון קלורי מבלי להרגיש שאנחנו בגירעון. מעין "קומבינה" כזאת נחמדה…
We'll get to that in a second...
Intermittent fasting has gained popularity in recent years due to its potential health benefits beyond just weight loss. Here are some key benefits:
- Improvement in insulin sensitivity: Fasting helps reduce insulin levels, which makes the body more sensitive to insulin. It can lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.
- Increased fat burning: During fasting, insulin levels decrease, which encourages the use of fat stores for energy.
- Improvement in metabolic health: Intermittent fasting can improve various metabolic indices, such as blood sugar levels, cholesterol and inflammation.
- Autophagy: Fasting stimulates autophagy, a cellular repair process that removes damaged cells and promotes longevity.
- Hormonal balance: Fasting can increase the production of norepinephrine, which increases metabolism, and growth hormone, which helps maintain muscle mass.
So basically, what is intermittent fasting?
The idea is simple: instead of eating the first meal of the day early in the morning, we simply postpone it until a few hours later. זאת אומרת שהארוחה הראשונה של היום תתחיל בשעות הצהריים/אחר הצהריים. בזמן הזה נתמקד בלאכול את המזונות שאנחנו אוהבים, כשאנחנו שמים דגש על כמות חלבון מינימלית של לפחות 1.3 גרם חלבון לכל ק"ג גוף (במידה ואתם מתאמנים ואנחנו מקווים שכן כמובן, נרצה לקחת את זה גבוה יותר לכיוון ה1.5-1.6 גרם לכל ק"ג משקל גוף).
It is important to keep these important guidelines at all times:
- We will keep as much protein as is sufficient every day – 1.3 – 1.6 גרם חלבון לפחות לכל ק"ג משקל גוף
- Make sure to drink a lot of water and fluids (אפשר גם זירו ומשקאות ללא קלוריות, אבל בעדיפות למים או סודה) – לפחות 0.04 מ"ל נוזלים לכל ק"ג משקל גוף ביום.
- We will make sure to combine vegetables and fruits So that we get essential minerals and vitamins for the body.
- We will focus mainly on fresh foods, natural and less in processed foods.
How to begin? A simple guide that will help you implement the method step by step
📅 Week 1: Mindset and understanding
- Mindset: The mindset here is important, first of all we will understand if this method is for us and if we want to try something else and different. If so, we will understand that from now on this is the form of our nutritional conduct
- liquids: שתו הרבה מים לאורך היום. כמה הרבה? תכפילו את משקל הגוף שלכם ב0.04 מ"ל ותקבלו את מספר הליטרים הרצוי. שתיה מרובה עוזרת פלאים "לנטרול" תחושת רעב ובאופן כללי מומלץ ובריא "להציף" את הגוף בנוזלים.
- Adjusting meal times: רשמו את הרגלי האכילה הנוכחיים שלכם והתחילו להפנים איך אתם "מנהלים" חלון אכילה קצר יותר בהתאמה לאורך החיים שלכם. נסו למשל לאכול ארוחת ערב מוקדם יותר וארוחת בוקר מאוחרת יותר.
📅 Week 2: Start with a 12-hour fast
- Fasting for 12 hours: It's much easier than it sounds. After all, at night we don't eat anyway, assuming we sleep for 7 hours for example, all we do is pull a few more hours after we woke up and we're already 12 hours without food.
- Nutritious and healthy eating: Focus on balanced and full meals during your eating window. Include natural foods, lean protein sources, vegetables and fruits and of course lots of fluids (as we discussed earlier).
📅 Week 3: Increasing the fasting window gradually to 14 hours
- Fasting for 14 hours: After the second week we passed successfully, we will extend the fasting window to 14 hours (for example, from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 a.m.). It's only two more hours, but gradually increasing the fast helps the body get used to it.
- listening to the body: Eat mindfully during your eating window. Try to understand when you have reached your satiety threshold and try to pay attention to the feelings of hunger you feel. Drink a glass of water when the feeling of hunger rises and try to feel what happens in the body afterwards (the chances are that suddenly the feeling of hunger has disappeared).
📅 Week 4: Reaching a 16-hour fast!
- Fasting for 16 hours: בשבוע הרביעי כבר נעבור לצום של 16 שעות (למשל, 21:00 עד 13:00) וחלון אכילה של 8 שעות. זה הלו"ז הטיפוסי של צום לסירוגין (16/8). אגב, במידה ותרצו תוכלו די בקלות לעבור 17/7, 18/6 ואפילו מעבר 🙂
- meal planning: Once we've reached our destination, we'll make adjustments to our daily schedule and plan our meals optimally to ensure we get enough nutrients and nutrients during our eating window. We will focus on quality protein sources, healthy fats and vegetables.
Integrating intermittent fasting in the toning and weight loss process
So as I mentioned earlier, The most important thing in the weight loss process is to be in a caloric deficit for a long time. This means that we need to make sure that we are putting out more energy than we are taking in. Food = energy.
זאת אומרת שבמידה ונאכל פחות (או נשלב פעילות שמגבירה את שריפת האנרגיה) נהיה ב"חשבון שלילי" וכך נצליח לרדת במשקל. צום לסירוגין הוא פשוט עוד כלי שעוזר לנו להיות בגירעון בצורה יותר קלה (בעיקר מנטלית).
תחשבו על זה: הרבה יותר קל לאכול 2000 קלוריות בחלון אכילה קצר יותר לעומת אותם 2000 קלוריות לאורך יום שלם. חשוב לציין שאין דרך אחת יחידה שטובה לכולם ולגמרי יכול להיות שלאכול בצורה "הרגילה" תתאים לכם יותר. אבל מניסיון שלנו עם לקוחות, צום לסירוגין יכול להיות כלי מדהים שעוזר מאוד בתהליך ירידה במשקל.
אם אף פעם לא ניסיתם, אולי שווה לכם לתת לזה צ'אנס. אין לכם מה להפסיד כאן ובמקרה הכי גרוע תרדו כמה ק"ג במספר שבועות 😉
Give it a chance and you might be surprised...
In conclusion…
Intermittent fasting can completely become a lifestyle and with gradual assimilation as we mentioned here, you will be able to lose weight easily and simply. And it's important to remember The key to success is progress, not perfection.
Intermittent fasting, as a strategy that determines when to eat and when not to eat, can be extremely beneficial with the weight loss process and even help us healthily, it's just important to understand that this is not a magic solution and that these positive effects depend on the type, quantity and quality of the food we eat during the eating hours. Eating ultra-processed food, high in trans fat, high in salt and sugar will not contribute to human health just by observing intermittent fasting.
The amount of calories should also be taken into account and as I mentioned at the beginning, only a caloric deficit over time will cause us to lose weight, so going wild and eating large amounts during the eating window will not allow the body to lose weight, even though during the fast we did not put calories into the body.
Ultimately, any diet or other strategy that produces a caloric deficit will actually lead to weight loss and fat loss. So take it as another method in your toolbox 🙂
Successfully!
Scientific sources:
- Benefits of intermittent fasting in the process of losing weight: Beneficial Effects of Time-Restricted Eating on Metabolic Diseases: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis
- Improvement in insulin sensitivity: Early Time-Restricted Feeding Improves 24-Hour Glucose Levels and Affects Markers of the Circadian Clock, Aging, and Autophagy in Humans
- Increased fat burning: Effects of eight weeks of time-restricted feeding (16/8) on basal metabolism
- Improvement in metabolic health: Metabolic Effects of Intermittent Fasting