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Intermittent Fasting For Weight Loss

4 Intermittent Fasting For Weight Loss protocol

This is my day four of my 108 days of content creation challenge. 

The topic today is intermittent fasting for weight loss.

I will be finding answers for the questions

  • What is intermittent fasting?
  • What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?
  • What are the different types of intermittent fasting?
  • Is intermittent fasting for weight loss effective?
  • What are the long term effects of intermittent fasting?
  • What are the negative aspects of intermittent fasting?

First, let me post an update on my progress.

Day 4 OMAD challenge

Let me first start with the summary of day three.

I completed 18:45 hours of fasting, relatively effortlessly.

I was not hungry. 

Neither did I feel any tiredness or weakness.

I did not experience any headaches either.

I think my body is adjusting to its new feeding window.

I did Surya Naskar and light Kettlebell training in the morning.

Intermittent Fasting For Weight Loss

I have been a practitioner of intermittent fasting for a long time now.

It is easy to implement lifestyle change that has many health benefits in the long run.

Fasting as a method for healing your body and mind has been part of the human story from ancient times. 

Intermittent fasting or time-restricted eating is a new addition to the traditional fasting ritual.

There are many physiological and phycological benefits of intermittent fasting.

Intermittent fasting for weight loss is an effective tool for people who are concerned with their body weight. 

Click here to read “6 reasons to be addicted to healthy weight“.

What is intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is a lifestyle choice in which you cycle between periods of eating and fasting. 

It is more about when you eat your food, rather than what you eat?

There are various intermittent fasting protocols, all of which split your days into fasting periods and eating periods. 

It is easy to make intermittent fasting part of your lifestyle, as you already “fast” every day while you are sleeping. 

The only change that you have to make is to extend that period, like maybe pushing your breakfast to a later time in the day or having your last meal earlier in the day.   

I will totally recommend intermittent fasting as a healthy lifestyle choice that can help you lose weight, improve metabolic health, protect against diseases, and maybe even help you live longer. 

What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting has been extensively studied both on humans and animals.

It is been shown to be beneficial both to your body and brain.

  • Intermittent fasting for weight loss is a very effective and proven method. It will help you lose your belly fat, without calory restriction. 
  • It helps reduce inflammation in the body and therefore helps your immunity become more potent. 
  • It is an effective lifestyle choice against diabetes. It reduces insulin resistance. It has been shown to lower blood sugar by 3% to 6% and fasting insulin levels by 20% to 30%. 
  • It is good for your heart. Intermittent fasting has shown to reduce many health markers that factor in heart diseases like inflammation, LDL cholesterol, blood triglycerides, blood sugar, and insulin resistance
  • Animal studies have shown intermittent fasting can help in the prevention of cancer.
  • Intermittent fasting has been shown to increase BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) in the brain, which helps to grow new neurons. It also prevents many neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
  • It has been shown to extend the lifespan of rats by 36% to 83%.

What are the different types of intermittent fasting?

There are many different types of intermittent fasting protocols. 

  • The 16/8 method: This is the easiest to implement intermittent fasting protocol. In this, you fast for 16 hours and eat in the 8-hour window. You can adjust the eating and fasting window according to your convenience. If weight loss is your goal then don’t binge eat during your eating window. 
  • The 5:2 diet: In this method, you restrict your food intake to 500–600 calories on two non-consecutive days of the week. And eat normally for the rest of the week. This is comparatively easier method as you are not entirely fasting, you will only be reducing your calories for two days.
  • Eat-Stop-Eat: In this protocol, you fast for 24 hours once or twice a week. Rest of the days you eat normally. If your goal is weight loss then eat normally during your feeding window. You should eat the same amount of food as if you are not on a fast. This is kind of more advanced than the 16/8 method, as you have to fast for a longer period. 
  • The Warrior Diet: This protocol follows a 20/4 fasting and feeding window. You fast of 20 hours and feed in the 4-hour window. During your 20 hours fast it is recommended that you have small portions of fruits and vegetables. 

For getting maximum benefits out of any intermittent fasting protocol you have to practice it consistently for a long period. 

And it is also important that you don’t binge eat during your feeding window. 

Is intermittent fasting for weight loss effective?

Intermittent fasting for weight loss is a very effective lifestyle change that you can implement for many physiological and phycological benefits. 

If you practice intermittent fasting consistently you will lose weight. The only rider is that you don’t binge eat during your feeding window. 

Protocols like the 16/8 method and 5:2 diet can easily be implemented into your lifestyle for reaping in the benefits of intermittent fasting.

What are the long term effects of intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is not a fad diet, but a healthy lifestyle choice. 

It simplifies your life with fewer meals to plan and fewer dishes to clean. 

You will see improvement in your discipline, focus, and productivity as a side effect of the regular practice of intermittent fasting. 

Weight loss results may slow down after a year or so of this practice. It makes sense as there is only a limited amount of fat that your body can lose.   

It will keep your body and mind in top condition to fight many age-related diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, etc.

Implement weight training as a regular part of your exercise, otherwise, there is a good chance that you may lose muscle mass with long term practice of Intermittent fasting.

I will recommend Intermittent fasting as a healthy and easy to implement lifestyle choice that can extend your life as well as the quality of your life when you get older. 

You must maintain a very healthy diet and exercise regiment along with the intermittent fasting protocol.

What are the negative aspects of intermittent fasting?

If you are underweight or have any history of eating disorders, then you should consult your doctor before starting an intermittent fasting protocol. 

Women should be extra careful while doing any intermittent fasting protocol. 

Intermittent fasting has been shown to affect men and women differently. In men, it has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity, but in women, it worsened blood sugar control.  

Everyone is different, and you should always listen to your body. 

So when starting an intermittent fasting protocol it is advisable to start slowly. If needed consult your doctor. 

Conclusion 

Fasting gets easier after day two. 

Your ability to resist temptation also goes up. 

I may be imagining but my concentration has improved. 

Intermittent fasting weight loss works. 

If you incorporate HIIT (High-intensity Interval Training) along with intermittent fasting into your workout routine, you will see faster weight loss results. 

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