Intermittent fasting has now become a boon for people aiming to shed some weight. The first thing to know about it is that intermittent fasting is not a diet, it’s a pattern of eating.
Health specialists have revealed a wide range of benefits from improving metabolic health to even possibly extending the life span of the individual.
But, before you select intermittent fasting or any other eating pattern, be sure you understand its effectiveness and how to practice it correctly so you may enjoy all of the benefits while avoiding the negative side effects.
As the name suggests, in intermittent fasting, a person follows an alternate cycle of eating and fasting. Unlike other dieting plans, intermittent fasting focuses on the scheduling of meals rather than the nature or content of those meals. People usually fix a time window in which they have their food while fasting for the rest of the day.
Timing
Intermittent fasting can be done in a variety of ways, and time plays a vital part in each of them. One way to do this is by consuming just raw vegetables and fruits during the day and devouring a heavy meal at night. It is advised to have the night meal within a window of four hours.
16/8 Method
The 16/8 method involves fasting every day for about 16 hours and restricting your daily eating window to approximately 8 hours. You abstain from food for the remaining 16 hours, though you’re still allowed to drink water and other no-calorie beverages, like plain coffee or tea. This practice may support weight loss, improve blood sugar, and increase longevity. This pattern is followed every day where you can fit several meals in the eating window of eight hours.
Take it easy
If you want to reduce weight, you don’t need to follow a strict intermittent fasting plan. Especially, if you are a beginner, it is advised to simply skip meals whenever it is convenient. This way you will lose weight without burdening your body too much.
Skip a day
In this method, you basically fast for a full day or 24 hours once or twice every week. Sleeping is also a form of fasting and extending that period even after waking up can do the trick for you.
Side effects
Like any other eating trend, intermittent fasting also has some side effects and people with certain health conditions are recommended to step away from it. When you make a significant adjustment in your dietary habits, your body takes some time to adjust. Beginners following this fasting method have experienced minor issues like bloating, headaches, and lightheadedness which usually fades away with time.
Related: Moving more often is beneficial for weight loss in older adults; Study
