Intermittent fasting is a controversial weight loss technique because it involves not eating food for an extended period of time. Many people have the notion that not eating will slow down your metabolism and send your body into starvation mode, but it turns out this is not true at all. In fact, the human body was designed to go long periods of time without eating, so intermittent fasting is actually a natural practice. Perhaps that is why it is so effective.
If you would like to lose weight but don't want to give up certain foods or don't want to partake in vigorous exercise, intermittent fasting is probably your best option. Fasting will help you lose weight quickly, even if you don't eat extremely healthy or exercise, although that would greatly enhance your results. This technique doesn't even require you to lower the amount of calories you consume. It simply takes a little bit of discipline in the beginning.
If you don't like the idea of fasting, perhaps the benefits will convince you to give it a try anyway. Intermittent fasting has many benefits that will greatly increase the quality of your life. Some of the benefits include:
- Rapid fat loss
- Lowered blood pressure and cholesterol
- Increase in energy, especially in the mornings
- Enhanced memory and cognitive ability
These are just a few of the many benefits that fasting can offer you. If you simply want to be a healthier and/or happier person, it would be of your best interest to begin an intermittent fasting routine. So, how can you begin?
There are a few ways one can begin fasting. One method, the one I prefer, is daily fasting. This involves eating your food for the day within a time period of 6 to 8 hours. This would mean you fast for 16 to 18 hours every day. The easiest way to do this is to skip breakfast in the mornings. You will benefit greatly from this. Even greater benefits will be experienced when you can lengthen the time spent fasting. For example, fast for 20 hours and eat for 4. Figure out what works best for you.
Another method that also works well is weekly fasting. This would involve a period of fasting that lasts between 24 and 36 hours. So, for example, you would eat as you normally do for 6 days of the week, then one day you would not eat any food at all. Drink plenty of water during the time when you are not eating. Weekly fasting is also effective, but not as effective as daily fasting I have found. I encourage you to learn more and begin to incorporate one of these strategies into your life.
