Intermittent Fasting (IF) is the latest diet revolution to sweep the country. However, this powerful health tool, which can and has changed the lives of many people, is often misused & misunderstood.
Fasting has been around since the beginning of time. Some fasting is used for spiritual purposes, but as early as the second century A.D., people have used it for its health benefits as well. It was noted by Greek doctors & scholars that fasting could make a person well & clear the mind.
Of course, the centuries old version of fasting came not only from choosing to limit food to a certain eating window but also from the very real fact that food wasn’t always readily available, nor was it convenient.
While I am a huge proponent of eating enough food, I am also keenly aware that IF works & provides many health benefits. I never recommend my clients start with Intermittent Fasting, but instead use it as a tool once they have a firm foundation of whole food eating.
I find that people are very confused about IF because of the vast amount of information available through social media, internet articles, mainstream publications & word of mouth.
Simply put, Intermittent Fasting puts an emphasis on when you eat & the time you spend between eating your last meal of the day & the first time you eat the next day(s).
But as most things relating to nutrition are, IF is a little more complicated than just the amount of time in which you eat or don’t eat. The problem with the modern-day version of this ancient health tool is that it has been complicated by too much misinformation, thereby leading to a lot of misunderstanding.
So, let’s clear up some of the myths floating around about intermittent fasting:
MYTH #1 – it’s is a great way to lose weight
While losing weight will likely be a benefit to Intermittent Fasting, it is not a weight loss program. An IF program, whether used daily, certain days of the week or longer time periods, is designed to improve health, including insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, heart & other disease risk, & brain health. While there are several different methods to using IF as a health benefit, research has shown that all of them improve things like bloating, mental clarity & cravings. Over time, these things lead to choosing smarter & being mindful of what you eat, which in turn leads to weight loss & management. IF is not a quick fix & it will likely take several weeks or months on a specifically designed plan for you to notice changes. Working with a nutrition coach is the best way to make a plan.MYTH #2 – you can eat anything you want during your fasting window
I cringe every time I hear someone say this or read it in an Intermittent Fasting article. This method does not lend itself to improving your actual health, but instead just puts you into a diet mindset where all you need is a little willpower in order to put off indulgence. It makes absolutely no sense to follow an IF pattern but eat foods that are full of processed ingredients. Keeping meals to whole food choices is the only real way to allow IF to do its job of reviving your cells so that your body makes positive changes, such as increasing metabolism & regenerating healthy cells to give you energy, & decreasing odds for diseases.MYTH #3 – it slows your metabolism
The opposite is actually true: while traditional diets slow metabolism, IF has been proven to help maintain muscle tissue which is the key source for increasing metabolism. This is because when you fast, your body produces a hormone called human growth hormone (hgh) which increases the burn of stored body fat. While traditional dieting causes your body to slow down because it learns how to function on fewer calories, IF causes your body to use the energy stored in your cells.MYTH #4 – it makes you binge later
It would seem that if you refrain from eating for a long period of time you would initially want to stuff yourself with food when you finally get to eat. But this just isn’t the norm with IF. When a person is doing Intermittent Fasting correctly, ghrelin, an appetite boosting hormone declines over time. In turn, leptin, the hormone that tells you when you’re full, works better because you are more aware of how you are feeling.MYTH #5 – it makes you sluggish
Generally people believe this because in the past when they have felt hungry, they might have gotten shaky or light headed. These are typical signs of hypoglycemia, a condition which occurs when your blood sugar drops. But your body is smart & it has many parts that store food energy to use when needed. When you fast, your body turns stored fat into fuel & your liver breaks down stored fat into ketones & can even make new glucose in a process called gluconeogenesis. Simply put, if doing IF correctly, you should not feel sluggish or have blood sugar issues.
Overall, Intermittent Fasting is a great tool for someone who has built a foundation of eating whole foods & has a good handle on their nutrition. It is not however, a good resource for someone who is a chronic dieter, has a history of eating disorders, is pregnant or breastfeeding or someone who is already underweight.
And as for those with type 1 or type 2 diabetes who want to consider IF; it is possible for it to be done safely, but only with the supervision of medical personnel.
If you are considering Intermittent Fasting, please CONTACT ME & let me help you find the right plan for your life & your specific body needs.