We’re constantly told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and you absolutely have to subsequently eat small meals every couple hours throughout the day. I’m a firm believer that eating that way can teach discipline, portion control, and keep you from feeling hungry…..but we are all different and it’s probably not for everybody. There are other healthy ways to schedule meals throughout the day. Maybe eating frequently isn’t cutting it, or you just want to try something new. Either way, you can unlock your potential with intermittent fasting.
Intermittent fasting isn’t a diet, like Paleo. You can actually do both at the same time. This is more of an eating habit than anything. It’s basically the way in which you time your meals during the day.
So How Does It Work?
Let me put this in the simplest terms possible. Basically you just pick a time frame during the day in which you eat all of your daily calories. That time frame can be an 8 hour block (for example, from noon til 8pm) or even a two hour block (for example, 6pm to 8pm). It’s really up to you when you want to do your “gorging”.
The functionality of your fasting plan is really up to you. That’s one of the great benefits. You set your own time frame where you will eat all of your daily calories. I know what you’re thinking….this sounds really odd. How is this even healthy?
Well if you think about it, the original people (cavemen) didn’t have a fridge that they could just open up and eat snack meals every few hours. They had to eat whenever the food was available. Studies are starting to show that maybe this is actually a better type of eating habit.
The Pros
When you are fasted, you have less glycogen in your blood and stored in your muscles. That’s your body’s favorite source of energy, so it will check there first. Since there won’t be enough to sustain your energy efficiently, it will then turn to fat to keep your energy level high.
So that’s good right? We’re using more fat for energy throughout the day, and especially during workouts. In addition to that, when you eat your bigger meals, the insulin used to break down the food will be a lot more sensitive. That is a big factor in preventing diabetes.
If you like really big high calorie meals, then this might be for you. You’ll have to eat bigger meals during your selected eating time in order to maintain enough calories to hold you over.
The amount of food prep time will be decreased as well, because you have to plan for less meals during the day. You’ll have more time to get other stuff done.
The Cons
There’s really only one big negative characteristic to intermittent fasting. That’s the fact that the transition period from a regular eating schedule cane be miserable.
If your body is expecting food every few hours, it’s not going to be happy when it finds out that it can only eat in a 6 hour window everyday.
The good news is that the human body is VERY adaptable, and it will get used to it in as fast as 48 hours.
Can You Still Build Muscle?
One of the most frequently asked questions about intermittent fasting is….”if you’re just starving yourself all day, how are you supposed to build muscle”?
The fact is that you CAN pack on lean muscle even as you partake in an intermittent fasting routine. The trick is to do your workout immediately before your selected eating time.
You might want to pick an eating time frame sometime in the evening. That way you’ll have time to figure out when you want to workout, and then go right from there to chowing down. That will replenish your muscles and give your body enough building blocks to restore itself.
As long as you’re getting in the same amount of calories that you normally would….you will retain your muscle and keep on building.
I hope I convinced you to unlock your potential with intermittent fasting….or at least try it. Everyone is different, so the results may not be the same as your friends. It’s definitely worth it to give it a shot. If you found this article informative, please take a second to share it on facebook. You might also like to find out if a gluten free diet is right for you.
About Adam Pegg
