What Is Intermittent Fasting? A Comprehensive Guide For Smart Beginners

One of the world’s trending diet protocols for fitness and health is intermittent fasting(IF).

When done right, it can bring significant health benefits, such as weight loss, reversal of type 2 diabetes, and better body and brain functions, which may help you live a longer quality of life.

This article will give you a comprehensive beginner’s guide to intermittent fasting.

What Is Intermittent Fasting?

Intermittent fasting is an eating protocol rotating between periods of fasting and eating. It is most particular about when food is eaten and not what foods to eat. So, it is not like the typical ‘diet’, but an eating protocol that may involve daily 16-hour fasts or fasting for 24 hours, twice per week.

Fasting has been the lifestyle of ancient dwellers since evolution. Because grocery stores, refrigerators, and other technologies that keep food fresh didn't exist then, food was not readily available to eat as it is today. Consequently, the ancient people lived their lives without food for extended periods of time.

Actually, fasting periodically is more natural than always eating 3–4 (or more) meals per day. Furthermore, fasting is also a regular religious practice of Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Judaism.

Intermittent Fasting Protocol

Intermittent fasting protocol varies, depending on which day or week is designated for eating and fasting periods.

In the fasting process, you must choose to eat a very small portion size or abstain from eating anything entirely.

Here are some of the popular protocols of intermittent fasting:

16-hour fasting(Leangains 16/8 protocol)

This is the most common protocol, and it requires you to restrict food consumption to an 8-hour window, say between 11 am and 7 pm only. Then abstain from food, fasting for the remaining 16-hour period of the day.

2. 24-hour fasting(eat-stop-eat)

This protocol requires you to fast for an entire 24-hour period, say for one or two days of the week, abstaining from eating anything after dinner until the next day's dinner. If necessary, have only water or other low-to-zero calorie beverages to lessen your hunger and stay hydrated.

3. Alternate day fasting(5:2 diet)

This protocol requires you to consume not more than 500–600 calories on two alternate (non-consecutive) days of the week, but eat normally the other 5 days.

Any of the above protocols should produce desired weight loss provided you don’t compensate by eating much more during the eating periods. However, the 16/8 Leangains protocol seems to be the simplest, most adaptable, and most sustainable.

Intermittent Fasting in Weight Loss

Intermittent fasting is very attractive to individuals who want to lose weight.

Because it restricts eating fewer meals, it thus makes your body absorb fewer calories, which can lower insulin levels and influence certain growth hormonal changes that aid weight loss.

Furthermore, intermittent fasting elevates levels of the fat-burning norepinephrine (noradrenaline), changing hormone levels and may increase your metabolic rate by 3.6 to 14%.

Intermittent fasting aids in less food consumption and higher calorie burn rates, thus changing both sides of the calorie equation and accelerating further weight loss.

Many studies prove that intermittent fasting is a great tool for weight loss. One such in 2014, reveals a 3 to 8% weight loss and a 4 to 7% decrease in waist circumference, for people fasting for 3 to 24 weeks.

These results are huge compared to most weight loss studies and clearly show intermittent fasting can produce a significant loss of harmful belly fat that builds up around your organs and causes disease.

Furthermore, in yet another study, intermittent fasting produces less muscle loss than the more standardized continuous calorie restriction programs.

The success of intermittent fasting hinges on the fact that it aids in much fewer calorie intake overall. However, if you excessively consume calories during your eating periods, then your effort would fail woefully with zero weight loss.

Other Health Benefits

After several studies in both animals and humans, intermittent fasting has been proven to provide powerful benefits for weight control and improvement to your body and brain health for longer life.

Here are the main health benefits of intermittent fasting:

Brain Health - increases the brain hormone BDNF and new nerve cells, protect against Alzheimer’s disease
Cancer prevention
Heart Health - reduce all risk factors including “bad” LDL cholesterol, blood triglycerides, inflammatory markers, blood sugar, and insulin resistance
Inflammation - reduces inflammation markers, a key driver of many chronic diseases
Insulin Resistance - reduces insulin resistance, lowers blood sugar by 3–6% and fasting insulin levels by 20–31%, and protects against type 2 diabetes.
Aging - reduces aging, extends the lifespan
Weight loss: aid weight and belly fat loss, without any calorie restrictions.

However, it's important to note that research is still in its preliminary stages. While some of these are conducted in animals, whether short-lived or small, it is yet to be fully tested in humans as some questions still arise.

Intermittent Fasting Aids Simpler Healthy Lifestyle.

One of the reasons why individuals love intermittent fasting is that it aids a simpler healthy lifestyle. You don’t need to plan, cook or clean up after as many meals as in other healthy eating protocols.

That's why intermittent fasting is very popular among individuals who want a novelty method to increase weight loss efficiencies, as it improves your health while simplifying your life at the same time.

Intermittent Fasting Impact On Cells and Hormones

During the fasting period, your body undergoes cellular and molecular adjustments to hormone levels which make stored body fat more accessible.

In addition, your cells also trigger important repair processes and change the expression of genes.

Below are some of the changes that occur in your body during fasting:

Gene Expression: The gene function for longevity and disease prevention is triggered.
Insulin: Insulin sensitivity is elevated while reducing levels drastically, consequently making your stored fats readily available for energy fuel.
Cellular Rebuilding: Cells trigger healing and rebuilding processes including autophagy, where cells consume and eliminate disabled proteins within it.
Human Growth Hormone: Boost growth hormone levels by 500% increase, which aids fat burning and muscle gain, etc.

Clearly, the health benefits of intermittent fasting can be attributed to these changes in hormone levels, cell function, and gene expression.

Who is Fasting For?

Not everyone is cut for intermittent fasting. Indeed, some factors may not allow some individuals to try out this protocol.

Individuals who are underweight or have a history of eating disorders should consult their doctor or health professional before embarking on this protocol.

Otherwise, it may cause you some harm or unintended consequences.

For women, past studies indicate intermittent fasting, may not be as promising as it is for men. As it elevated insulin sensitivity in men, but depressed blood sugar control in women. Although not conducted in humans, intermittent fasting rendered female mice masculinized, emaciated, infertile, and messed up their period cycles.

There is reported evidence of women who say that intermittent fasting had obstructed their menstruation cycle and that it only went back to normal when they stopped the fasting protocol.

That's why women should be careful with intermittent fasting. They should adopt separate guidelines, like starting the protocol slowly and stopping as soon as they observe any issues like amenorrhea (absence of menstruation).

It may also not be ideal for pregnant or breastfeeding women or for those with fertility and or conception issues.

Side Effects

Some side effects of intermittent fasting include hunger, weak feelings, and reduced brain performance.

However, these may just be temporary and may disappear as your body adjusts to the fasting protocol.

In some cases listed below, especially with a pre-existing medical condition, it is advisable to consult your doctor or health professional before embarking on intermittent fasting protocol.

This is particularly important if you:

Are underweight
Have a history of eating disorders
Have problems with regulating blood sugar
Have low blood pressure
Have diabetes
Are under medication
Are a woman who is trying to conceive.
A woman with a history of amenorrhea.
Are pregnant or breastfeeding?

Affirmatively, intermittent fasting is very safe, especially for healthy and well-nourished individuals.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are some questions you might want to ask about intermittent fasting:

How long should I fast?

As a beginner, it is ideal to start by fasting for 12 to 16 hours. This will give your body time to adapt without a sudden abruption.

2. When should I fast?

By doing, say, 16-hour fasting, it is recommended that you eat your dinner before 7 pm, and fast until 11 am the next day.

3. What should I eat after fasting?

It is advised that you make the most of your non-fasting windows by eating whole foods rich in essential nutrients. Minimize, or avoid at the very least, eating junks.

4. Is intermittent fasting going to cause muscle loss?

Yes, it does, just like all weight loss methods out there. So, try and lift some weights and keep your protein intake high. Intermittent fasting causes less muscle loss than regular calorie restriction, according to some studies.

5. Is intermittent fasting going to slow my metabolism?

No. It actually elevates your metabolism, though, fasting for 3 or more days can suppress your metabolism.

6. Would it be unhelpful if I skip breakfast?

No. Skipping breakfast may result in an unhealthy lifestyle. So it's imperative to eat healthy food for the rest of the day.

7. Am I allowed to drink liquids while fasting?

Yes. You can drink water and other low-to-zero calorie beverages, like tea and especially coffee to contain your hunger. No sugar is added to your coffee. Very little milk or cream may be okay.

8. Am I allowed to take supplements while fasting?

Yes. Though, some fat-soluble vitamins are better taken with meals if you wish.3.

9. Am I allowed to work out while fasting?

Yes. It’s okay to do fasted workouts. Taking branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) before working out, is recommended by some experts.

10. Can children fast?

It’s not ideal for kids to fast.

Starting Out With Intermittent Fasting

It’s mostly possible that you have done intermittent fasting once or twice, or more, in your lifetime.

This could be true if you have experienced eating dinner and then sleeping late, therefore missing breakfast and only making up for it by taking lunch, which gives you more than 16 hours of not eating.

Some people do this naturally. They are just not hungry enough to take breakfast.

They call this the 16/8 method. Perhaps, it’s a good place to start when you try intermittent fasting since they consider this the simplest and the most sustainable way.

If that is too simple for you, then you can check out the more advanced methods like one to two days a week of 24-hour fasting (Eat-stop-eat) or one to two days a week of fasting with only 500 to 600 calorie consumption (5:2 method).

But maybe you can just simply fast if you feel like it. You can skip eating every now and then if you don’t have time to cook or if you’re not that hungry.

After all, doing intermittent fasting isn’t like having a manual that tells you exactly what to do.

By experimenting with several styles of fasting, you may find it more enjoyable and schedule-friendly. What’s better, you still get healthy benefits whatever you choose.

Should You Try Intermittent Fasting?

Not everyone has to do intermittent fasting.

Just like any strategies that everybody tries to improve their health, it only offers the same. Moreover, the most important factors to still consider include proper sleep, exercise, and eating healthy foods.

If this method doesn’t suit your personal preferences, you may as well continue doing what you’re currently doing and kindly set this article aside.

One way or another, no solution can absolutely fit everyone in regard to nutrition. But whatever diet you think is the best should be the one you keep up with in a long term.

If you find it satisfying and sustainable when you fast, this method can work out great for you. Aside from weight loss, it also helps in improving your health. It wouldn’t hurt to try if you want to know more.