Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Planning your fast diet
• Part 2 of 3: Following a fast schedule
• Part 3 of 3: Losing weight with an IF diet
• Tips
• Warnings

Intermittent fasting, also known as 'intermittent fasting (IF)', is a diet and lifestyle that, instead of drastically reducing your calorie intake or omitting a certain food group, the number of hours in a day you may or may not eat limited. Fasting usually includes sleeping time plus nothing to eat until the end of your fast. There are different diet types you can choose from. IF can be combined with exercise and / or calorie restriction to reduce inflammation of body tissue, and can also lead to weight loss - or increased muscle mass.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Planning your fast diet

1. Consult your doctor before starting an IF diet. Talk to your doctor and explain that you are considering an IF diet. Ask about its pros and cons and make sure to tell the doctor about any pre-existing medical conditions.
   • The diet can have a dramatic effect on your daily metabolism. Do not start a fast if you are pregnant or if you feel ill without first talking to your doctor.
   • Note: Type 1 diabetics on an IF diet will have difficulty regulating and maintaining healthy insulin levels due to deliberately irregular food consumption.
2. Choose an eating schedule that you can stick to. When implementing this diet, you eat repeated periods of nothing (usually depending on the fast 16 to 20 hours every 24 hours a day) or as strict as 23 hours before you are allowed to eat a full meal during the remaining 1 hour of the day , or four to eight hours of your day. Intermittent fasting (IF) is often a way to lose weight, and is also a good way to control and plan your diet. It's important to plan and stick to a daily eating schedule, such as getting into the schedule by only having two meals a day. Set a time each day to have your last meal within the eating period.
3. Choose and stick to your daily schedule of about 2,000 calories for men - or 1,500 for women. Have an occasional snack of 20 to 30 calories or less (a few carrots or celery stalks, a quarter apple, three cherries / grapes / raisins, two small crackers or 30 grams of chicken / fish, etc.) until the fast is over. Other than the number of hours, most fasting schedules are essentially equivalent. Several suitable methods to choose are:
   • One meal window: So you fast 23 hours a day, and select a one-hour window (eg from 6:00 am to 7:00 am) for preparing and eating a healthy meal.
   • Two meals window: Two healthy meals daily, such as one at noon and the other at 7:00 pm. Then fast for 17 hours after the second meal, sleep and do not eat "breakfast" until your fast is over.
   • Skip days: Don't eat anything on Mondays and Thursdays, and eat healthy on the other five days. So, for example, the last meal of your dining window could fall on Sunday night, eight o'clock. This is known as the 5: 2 diet: five days of eating and two days of fasting.
4. Gradually reduce your daily calorie intake. If you normally eat 2000 or 3000 calories per day, then you only have to limit the number of calories during short meal times. Try to eat no more than 1500 or 2000 calories per day. To achieve this goal, adjust your diet to include healthy carbohydrates, not white bread and white noodles, but with some complex carbohydrates and fats.
   • You will have to take all of your daily calories during the window where you have that one or two meals.
   • You may find that the calorie reduction is easy to achieve as you just won't have that much time to get the calories in a week.
5. Don't change your diet too drastically. When following an IF diet, it is not necessary to omit certain food groups (e.g. carbohydrates or fats). As long as you eat a healthy, balanced diet and don't get more than about 2,000 calories per day, you can eat the same diet you did. The IF diet changes your eating plan, not what you eat.
   • A well-balanced diet contains only a small amount of processed foods (lots of sodium) and added sugars. Focus on healthy proteins (meat, poultry and fish), fruits and vegetables, and moderate amounts of carbohydrates on a daily basis.

Part 2 of 3: Following a fast schedule

1. Get used to your IF diet gradually. If you're not used to fasting, the IF diet can come as a shock to your appetite, hunger, and physical system. You can get used to the diet by gradually fasting longer between meals or starting with one day of fasting per week. This benefits your body as it can detoxify your system and limit uncomfortable symptoms (such as headaches, low blood pressure, and fatigue or irritability).
   • At the beginning of your IF diet, you can also allow yourself to have light snacks while fasting. A 100-calorie snack of protein and fat (nuts, cheese, etc.) will not affect the effectiveness of starting and maintaining your fast. After that, have a few very light snacks.
   • As part of this process, you gradually change your diet by eating fewer processed foods, including cold cuts, dairy, and soda.
2. Eat your last meal before the fast. Avoid the temptation to stuff yourself with junk food, sugar, and processed foods in your last meal before your fast. Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, and make sure to eat a lot of protein to keep your energy levels high. For example, a final meal could be a boiled chicken breast, a piece of garlic bread and a salad with romaine lettuce, tomato, sliced ​​onion and a vinaigrette.
   • Some people eat a little more at the beginning of this strategy, but this means that you spend more time digesting your food and less time "adjusting to the fast" while not eating.
   • Eat a full meal before starting your fast. If you only eat sugary or carbohydrate-rich foods before your fast, you will soon get hungry again.
   • Eat a lot of proteins and fats when you eat a planned meal. Too little carbohydrates and fat can be difficult to maintain, as you will not feel full and will therefore feel constantly hungry while fasting.
3. Fast during your sleep. This will help keep your mind off your rumbling stomach when you are in the middle of a long fast. Make sure you sleep at least eight hours a night, with at least a few hours of fasting on both sides. Then when you are awake you will not feel that you are short of food, because you know that you will eat a large meal quickly.
   • The first or main meal after the fast is the reward for the fasting period. After the fast you are hungry, so you eat a full meal.
4. Keep your body well hydrated. While you will be fasting for most of the day on an IF diet, it doesn't mean you should stop drinking. In fact, keeping your hydrated while you fast is crucial for your body to function properly. Drink water, herbal teas and other drinks without calories.
   • Staying hydrated also removes hunger pains, as the fluid takes up space in your stomach.

Part 3 of 3: Losing weight with an IF diet

1. Set yourself a weight loss goal. An IF diet can help you lose weight effectively by reducing your daily calorie intake and enabling your body to break down fat stores. Reducing the amount of time you spend eating will cause your body to shed too much body fat by increasing your metabolism. Intermittent fasting can also reduce the amount of inflammation in the body tissue.
   • If you are motivated to achieve a personal goal through fasting, this will give you extra mental strength to continue with the fast should you need it.
   • By limiting the amount of time you spend eating, you may be able to reduce excessive weight gain.
   • You can extend your life expectancy by burning body fat.
2. Get a toned body and build muscle mass while fasting. An IF diet gives you a good opportunity to build muscle. Schedule a workout just before your first meal (or, if you eat two meals a day, in between meals). This will allow your body to use the calories most effectively, so plan to consume about 60% of your daily calories right after exercise. To keep yourself healthy and increase your muscle mass, you should not consume less calories than 20 calories per kilogram of body weight.
   • For example, a 90-pound man would need to take in at least 1,800 calories a day to get toned (and not starve) while exercising moderately. If you cut out too many calories, your ability to stay healthy and build muscle tone will decrease.
3. Adjust your training style to achieve the desired body result. The type of exercise you do while on an IF diet depends on the result you want to get. If you're just trying to lose weight, focus on aerobics and cardio. If you are trying to gain some muscle and mass, you should focus on anaerobic exercise, such as weight training.
   • If you're trying to lose weight, focus on long sessions of aerobics or cardio.
   • If you want a more toned body, focus on short bursts of anaerobic exercise. Anaerobic means training in short bursts, without drastically increasing your heart rate. It is based on short resistance training or strength training with weights, not long sessions of aerobics or cardio.

Tips

• Once you decide to try an IF diet, stick to it. The first sessions of fasting can cause unpleasant symptoms as a result of an adjustment of the body's energy sources and a breakdown of toxic substances in the body.

Warnings

• Temporary symptoms of detoxification by changing your diet may include headache, nausea, mental hunger (cravings), bloating / edema, constipation, increased mucus production, blemishes or fatigue.These should disappear quickly.
• If you have a history of eating disorders, then you should be cautious about starting an IF diet. It may be better for you to call in someone to keep a close eye on you to make sure you don't overdo the fast.