This is NOT a fad diet:
A regular question I get asked is: What so you think of Intermittent fasting?
The truth is intermittent fasting was completely normal until 150 years ago… It wasn’t called that; it was called Winter! Throughout history winter meant less food availability. So, it wasn’t some kind of fad diet!
In fact, going for extended periods without eating was normal all year round for our hunter–gatherer ancestors—if a hunt wasn’t successful, food may not have been available. So, we’re actually biologically adapted to this style of eating because we didn’t have access to a steady food supply until the agricultural revolution.
There are several different approaches to intermittent fasting.
One popular version of this approach is the 16:8 diet: it involves fasting for 16 hours and compressing your eating into an eight-hour time slot.
Another popular time-restricted approach is called the Warrior diet. It extends the fasting block to 20 hours and shrinks the eating window down to just four hours.
Whole Day Fasting is fasting for 24 hours for as little as once or twice a month or as much as once or twice per week. Several variations of this method have been popularized in recent years.
It’s important to note that you don’t have to follow any of these approaches exactly. Intermittent fasting can be as formal or informal as you like. Personally, I like the 16:8.
However, thanks to recent studies, one thing we do know is that intermittent fasting can be a healthy way of eating with great benefits for your overall well-being, including:
Weight loss and improvements in metabolic health
Increased insulin sensitivity
Reduction in risk for cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions
Protection against memory loss and neurological disorders
If you’ve wondered about intermittent fasting but you’re unsure how to start. Try having a late breakfast, an early dinner and keep snacks to a minimum. Do this twice or three times a week, extending it out to 7 days once you get comfortable with it.