Intermittent fasting is the latest sensation taking the world of weight loss by storm. Some people swear by it as it helps them manage their appetite, let alone fuel weight loss. In some cases, it helps support good health. There are different types of intermittent fasting depending on lifestyle and goals.
Simply put, intermittent fasting is an eating pattern whereby one refrains from consuming calories for an extended period. The fasting period may last 12 to 40 hours, during which one takes calorie-free beverages like water and coffee. While some may fast from breakfast to supper, others take one meal a day until the next day, thus completing a full 24-hour fast.
Studies have shown that abstaining entirely or partially from eating offers benefits, including fat loss, better health, and increased longevity. Other people claim that an intermittent fasting program is easier to maintain as opposed to controlling the amount of calorie intake. Nevertheless, each person’s experience will always be different and bore different results.
Types of Intermittent fasting
Fast for 12 Hours
As the most popular type of intermittent fasting, it involves adhering to a 12-hour fasting window. It is a good option for beginners as the window is relatively small. In addition, fasting 10 to 16 hours a day causes the body to turn stored fat into energy, thus encouraging weight loss.
The easiest way to accomplish this type of intermittent fasting is to include the period of sleep in the fasting window. For instance, one can take an early supper, say at 7 p.m. and only take breakfast the next day at 7 a.m. With this method, you don’t have to skip meals. Instead, you only ensure there is a prolonged period during which you don’t take any meal.
The 16:8 Method
The 16:8 is a type of intermittent fasting for people who do not see any benefits with the 12-hour fasting schedule. In this case, men get to fast for 16 hours, leaving an eating window of 8 hours. Women, on the other hand, fast for 14 hours.
With this method, people take an evening meal at, say 8 p.m. and only take the next meal after 16 hours which would be noon the next day. As a result, individuals can minimize calorie intake by skipping breakfast while prompting the body to burn fat to generate energy.
Studies have shown that limiting the eating window can reduce the risk of obesity, inflammation, and diabetes significantly.
5:2 Fasting
It is increasingly becoming a popular type of intermittent fasting whereby people eat standard amounts of healthy foods for five days and then reduce calorie intake on the other two days. During the two fasting days, people consume less than 500 calories.
The fasting days don’t have to be consecutive. Instead, one can opt to take a smaller number of calories on Monday and Friday and eat normally on the other days. The 5:2 fasting method is proving to be popular due to its short periods of fasting, and one does not have to abstain completely from eating. Whenever one is hungry during a fasting day, one can always look forward to the next day.
Meal Skipping
It is a flexible type of intermittent fasting whereby one occasionally skips meals when they don’t feel hungry. It is a good approach for beginners who cannot go the whole day or hours without meals. In this case, one only skips a meal depending on the level of hunger and only eats when hungry.
Whole Day Fasting
Also known as the Eat-Stop-Eat diet, whole-day fasting is a type of intermittent fasting whereby people refrain from solid food for 24 hours. For instance, one can take breakfast at 7 a.m. and only take the next meal the next day at 7 a.m. During the 24 hours of fasting, people can have water, tea, or other calorie-free drinks.
This type of intermittent fasting reduces the total calorie intake, allowing the body to break down more fat. Nevertheless, fasting for 24 hours can be challenging and may cause fatigue and headaches.
Bottom line
Intermittent fasting is a sure way of reducing the amount of calorie intake when looking to lose weight through dieting. While there are different types of intermittent fasting one should start slow and increase the period of fasting over time.
