3 Intermittent Fasting Methods

3 Intermittent Fasting Methods

Intro: 

    Intermittent fasting, in short, is eating during a certain part of the day and not eating throughout the rest of the day and/or while you sleep. There are several different time variations you can follow and I will go over some of them below. Some people may stop when they read the word 'fasting' but I like to think of it more as listening to your body when it is hungry vs. the 'its that time of day I am going to eat'.

    I'm going to further discuss 3 methods you can follow when Intermittent Fasting.

16/8, 14/10, 12,12

    The Most common intermittent fasting method is the 16/8. This means you will fast for 16 hours, and eat during the remaining 8 hours of the day. So you decide, when is best for you to eat. Are you a kind of person that has to have there breakfast in the morning? Then opt for starting off with breakfast at 8am and have your last meal no later than 4pm. Then your fasting time would be from 4pm to 8am the next morning. 

    This is my favorite schedule, but I am not much of a breakfast eater so I start my first meal at lunch and then start my fasting time at 8pm. 

    Adjust the time to what you are capable of doing, and work up from there. You can do so by starting at a 12/12 schedule. Simple eat from 8am to 8pm and fast from 8pm to 8am. Then move up to eating during a 10 hour time frame and fasting for 14. 

    Start slow, and with one day at a time. 

5/2:

    The 5/2 method is based off of days, not time. So for 5 days of the week you eat anytime of the day, and for 2 full days you fast. During the 2 days of fasting some might restrict to having 500 calories or less, while others will restrict to not eating any solid foods at all. 

    You can also adjust this to fit your schedule and separate your fasting days. For instance make fasting days on Tuesday and Thursday with an eating day in between.  

Alternating: 

    Alternating days of fasting is as it states. You have a fasting day every other day. This is one way to cut back on half your calorie consumption. Stick to calorie free beverages on fasting days, or restrict calories to less than 500. 

    Alternating days of fasting is more extreme, and not recommend for long term. It is very important to LISTEN to your body if you are thinking of trying this method. Do Not Starve Yourself. 

Tips:

1) During your fasting time, ask yourself if you are really hungry.

2) Not sure if your hungry? Have a cup of coffee, tea, or a flavored water. Then check back in with yourself in 10 minutes. 

2) Don't binge because you starved yourself.

3) Make healthy choices during your eating time frame. Just because you fasted does not mean you can eat whatever you want and as much of it as you want. That is like saying, "I went to the gym so now I can have ice cream."

4)Do NOT starve yourself. Not feeling well, EAT! Your tummy is growling? EAT! 

5) Make healthy choices if your going to break your fast.

6) Stay hydrated with coffee, water, tea, and zero calorie beverages during your fasting time. 

Conclusion:

    The nice thing about intermittent fasting is that you can adjust it to your personal schedule. There are so many different variations to intermittent fasting that you just have to start slow and find which way works best for you. 

    It is also very important to LISTEN to your body. If you are feeling starved during your fasting period, then I highly recommend eating. Stick to healthy choices though. Feeling starved? Have a fruit or yogurt. I also like to have a low calorie protein shake just to tie me over. Also, right before bed drink a hot cup of tea or bone broth. They really help to make you feel full. 

Personal Experience:

    During this last week I have been 16/8 intermittent fasting. I chose to start at 11am, because that is when I get lunch at work. The first day was hard. I went on my morning break and wanted to join everyone who was eating donuts. Before I gave in I asked myself if I was really hungry or not. My response was no. I was not hungry, I was just going to eat a donut because everyone else was and oh they looked yummy. I had a nice cup of coffee while everyone enjoyed donuts and coffee, and proceeded on with the day feeling pretty great that I had said no to the donuts. 

    At lunch time I was just starting to feel hungry. After eating my lunch I was surprised how fast I became full. As the day went on I did not eat an afternoon snack, and had dinner around 7pm. Right at 8pm I was worried I would get the late night munchies. So, I mixed myself a GNC Lean Hunger Support orange mango flavored beverage. I love, the flavor of this drink. It satisfies my sweet tooth, and it is only 40 calories per serving. 

    Low and behold, the next morning I weighed myself and was down 2.6 lbs!!!

Now I know that that was only 1 day. I know my body had some bloating and extra water weight from the weekend mommy beverages I consumed. But WOW! That was enough motivations for me to keep going. 

    I weigh myself every morning, and over the course of the next couple days of using the 16/8 method the scale has continued to go down. Little by little, but it is still going down my friend! 

    I should also add that I did not track my food the first couple days of intermittent fast, because I wanted to focus on my body telling me when it is hungry or not. Now I have begun to log my food using the samsung health app, which is free, and I am working towards small goals like taking diet coke out of my fasting time.

    Lastly, do not worry about missing out on a donut, or a birthday dinner. Enjoy life! Take the donut and save it for later during your eating hours if you really want it.

    Thanks for reading Mission: Motivate Self, and I hope you will leave comments, tips and tricks to help myself and others on their intermittent fasting journey.