Intermittent Fasting 16/8: A complete Guide

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Let’s Customized Complete Intermittent Guide That Will Meet Your Specific Need


Fasting! I will never forget the day I finally got its meaning. I was just 5 years old and attended a program with my parents at their Pentecostal church, I can see your eyebrows from here, yes! THEIRS because I cannot associate myself with such a church that can so freely punish little children!

The program was designed in such a way that parents who were obviously the adults would not eat for 7 days while the children, my category would not eat for 3 days. I mean NOT TASTE ANYTHING! If you were thinking how on earth, I could remember such event, now think again after acknowledging the fact that children love food and should not be so terribly denied of it.

Anyways, I did not fast for the full three days, I passed out and my mum was kind enough to beg them to allow me eat. You could have heard about fasting for the first time through similar situation, maybe you did it the first time also based on religious injunctions, the beautiful truth is, fasting is so much more and I came to understand this better as an adult, no one had to coerce me, I did it freely.

What you must know is that there are different kinds of fasting. Oh no! It’s not the religious kind of white fast, dry fast, and other names that describe this kind. I’m talking about the fast that promotes good health, yes! Now you know, fasting can be very good for your health. Now, have you heard about intermittent fasting? It is so popular now that celebrities world over are really adopting it, well, people do not do what does not benefit them, especially when it has to do with letting go of food or would you?

So much to think about this kind of fast that the likes of Janet Jameson and Vanessa Hudgens have made their way of life, same which you are yet or here to find out, what exactly is INTERMITENT FASTING? Do not hold your breath, I will not only tell you what it is but also how you can conveniently start it. You might be surprised you have been doing it and only have to be intentional about it for you to start achieving results.

INTERMITTENT FASTING

Intermittent fasting is actually a pattern of eating, however very deliberate. It is a kind of fast that is personally scheduled, that is, a certain period of time during the day when you do not eat. Alissa Rumsey a New York Based Dietician explained it better when she said “Intermittent fasting is when you allow yourself to eat only during a specified window of time each day.” A spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Sonya Angelone described it as a kind of fast, which is programmed by an individual as a number of hours or days when they do not eat, she went further by saying there are no right or wrong ways to go about it as it solely depends on individuals and their goals.

You should also note that there are different types of intermittent fasting, one the is 5/2 diet, which is dependent on the number of calories individual wishes to cut off from their meal within a period of time. Another type is the 16/8 diet, which is a kind of intermittent fasting where you only eat within a specific 8-hour window period and stay without food for the remaining 16 hours of the day. Some people actually stop eating at 6PM and would not take anything until 10AM the next day is cool and have the highest number of subscribers because they believe they could use the highest number of fast hours for sleep but you can choose the window period that works for you.

Another type under this type of fasting is completely abstaining from food for a 24 hours window period, yea, you are right that is a whole day and it must happen twice a week and you are free which days of the week you will do this and you are not left hanging on  nothing, you can actually have water, tea, coffee, and other drinks with low or non-caloric drinks. You should note that you do not need to alter what you currently eat; you can keep eating the foods you normally eat during your non-fasting period although you and I know eating healthy meals is a good and right thing to do.

HOW DO I START INTERMITTENT FASTING 16/8?

Basically,there is no one rule fits all for this type of fasting, you are totally in control.

START BY CHOOSING A FAST WINDOW PERIOD: You just have to choose the fasting period that makes so much sense to you and you can actually reach out to your Dietician or doctor for you to get an idea on which time is best for you. You can try this for like a 4-week period and see if your weight loss and health benefits are achieved, you can thereafter decide whether you should continue or stop. Assuredly, 16/8 intermittent fasting has no confirmed adverse effect on your health, only good effects such as lowered blood pressure, better response to insulin treatment and improvement in the health of diabetic patients and obviously healthy weight loss have all been recorded as benefits.

Some people may decide to eat between 12PM and 8PM which means they’d skip breakfast but eat a healthy lunch and dinner at 7PM and start their fast at 8PM. This will help them fast during the night time and the early hours of the day and normally some people skip breakfast conveniently without missing it. Others may decide to do it between 9AM and 5PM that is, they would take their normal breakfast, lunch and have their dinner early at 4PM and start their fast from 5PM till 9AM the next day. Like I said earlier, you alone can decide which works best for you and it is best done during the day when the body is actively working for you to achieve the best results. You should also know that you can eat snacks in between your meals, in fact, it is best to eat in small portions than eating everything all at once. This will help stabilize your blood sugar and keep hunger at bay from you.

FOOD PLAN FOR 16/8 INTERMITTENT FASTING

Regardless of the fact that you can eat your normal foods during this period does not mean all your normal food are healthy so you need to stick to healthier meals like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, calorie-free drinks, and drinking more water. Below you can find a meal schedule that fits into the time of the day you decide to eat and you can always eat something related and not exactly what is listed especially if you cannot access them.

EARLY EATING WINDOW

8 AM: egg and veggie scramble

12PM: apple and almond butter

4PM: chicken and veggie stir fry

Evening decaf tea

MIDDAY EATING WINDOW

Morning black coffee or tea

11AM.: banana peanut butter smoothie

2PM: avocado toast with pistachios

4PM: dark-chocolate-covered almonds

6PM: turkey meatballs & tomato sauce over whole wheat (or zucchini noodle) pasta

LATE EATING WINDOW

Morning black coffee or tea

1PM.: blackberry chia pudding

4PM.: carrots and hummus or guacamole

9PM: grilled salmon, vegetables, and quinoa

INTERMITTENT FASTING 16/8 VEGAN

Yes! My vegan friends are not left out in the 16/8 intermittent fasting plan that is how it loves everyone no matter what you decide to do, meats or vegetables, you are gracefully covered. For you dear Vegan, there are even more amazing and quick results! However, as a vegan nursing mum, you should stay away from 16/8 as supported by Dieticians. How you can faithfully go about this seemingly difficult adventure is carefully outlined below:

Create a Sustainable Guide: Only you know what your daily life looks like from your habits to your work hours, your tendencies with food and eating method. If you are someone who easily skips breakfast ?without feeling it or you can go hours without eating food without acting out then 16/8 is a perfect plan for you.

Take your Time: How do you feel when someone walks in on you suddenly? Or at a sudden loud sound like a bang? Shocked right? Yea, I guessed right. That is exactly how your body is going to feel if you take a plunge with the 16/8 fast as a vegan. You can conveniently start with a 10/12-hpur eating window before graduating to the 16/8 window.

Make a timeline: Before you adopt 16/8 as a way of life, well, which is rarely done, you might want to test yourself by setting a timebound plan initially. You can make it as early as 2 weeks or as late as 2 months for you to monitor your progress and evaluate your initial decision. Did you achieve your plans? If you have no tangible results within this time frame you can voluntarily opt out like you opted in.

Ensure you have a Meal Plan: fasting helps you not to worry planning your meal, right? Well, as a 16/8 vegan, planning your meal is even more important. You should go for more meals with nutrients and fibre-filled as they would help in ensuring people don’t start speculating malnutrition as something you should watch out for during this period.

Let’s Customized Complete Intermittent Guide That Will Meet Your Specific Need


PROS AND CONS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING 16/8

It is a popular saying that everything has good sides and bad sides, right? Well, except for writing this post for you to read. Though intermittent fasting became mainstream in the early 20th century, there has been ongoing researches to highlight the good sides and the bad sides. Of course, celebrities with tangible results made it popular, we love the results and we love the celebrities, who doesn’t love Vanessa Hudgens? That popular saying is right after all and you can find the benefits and the not so good sides of intermittent fasting 16/8 listed below:

PROS

Helps you lose weight: Fast weight loss is indeed possible with intermittent fasting and a carefully controlled healthy meal guide like the one written above. There are still ongoing researches to establish exactly how intermittent fasting allows you to lose weight – some think it has more to do with the restricted eating times while some think it’s just because you consume less fat and calories overall.

Improves mood and focus: While some research notes that the first few weeks of fasting can make you crabby and irritable, these effects wear off over time and you tend to experience improved focus and mood over time. This is because it boosts the production of BDNF, a protein in your brain linked to improved mood and cognition, by 50-400% now is that not awesome?

Reduces the risk of diseases: one of the top benefits of 16/8 intermittent fasting is the evidence backed with tedious research works that intermittent fasting could help to reduce the future risk of various diseases, assuming that you eat good food and follow a relatively healthy lifestyle, which is exactly what this type of fast promotes.

Increases energy and endurance: It is an undisputed fact that intermittent fasting boosts mitochondrial biogenesis, meaning that your cells create more mitochondria. Of course, I just made youremember your biology lessons though we won’t go into full details today but suffice it to say that mitochondria give your body’s cells more energy, hence giving you more energy as a person made up of said cells.

May help increase lifespan: Association of smart people of Harvard University newly discovered that intermittent fasting could help to increase your lifespan due to some very complex science stuff that we mere mortals cannot understand.If you’ve not taken care of your body as well as you should have, perhaps it’s time to try a 16/8 intermittent fasting meal plan.

CONS

Overeating: Some people tend to eat more while fasting because they are busy trying to make up for the time when they lacked access to food, this is likely to lead to weight gain and defy the primary purpose of fasting, also digestive problems might start as a result of unhealthy eating habit.

Short-term negative effects: there are going to be normal body reactions to this adjustment in eating habit such as such as hunger, weakness and fatigue — though these often ensue in the early stage because they get to subside once the body gets used to it.

Likely Fertility issues: even though more researches are needed to establish this likelihood, yet, some researchers have stated that men and women of reproductive ages might be adversely affected by intermittent fasting based on some animal studies reports.

To be on the safe side, it is advisable to take intermittent fasting gradually in order to note body adjustments, and when negative symptoms are experienced consulting your doctor should be of great priority for you.

Dos and Donts of Intermittent Fasting

DO ENSURE YOU ARE FIT: not everyone can fast, medically speaking, it is not a good step to take by the following people: pregnant women, nursing moms, diabetics, children (remember my grievance upstairs?) and anyone currently on any form of prescriptions (to avoid unpredictable reactions). You should consider the advice of Christine Palumbo, RD, who stated these people can actually practice cleaner eating (eating food in their most natural state) while they stay away from fasting.

DON’T FORGET TO INFORM YOUR DOCTOR: I stated this earlier, try as much as possible to inform your doctor while embarking on intermittent fasting even if you are sure that you are in a good health condition. It actually allows you to stay on the safe side.

DO FIT YOUR 16/8 INTERMITTENT FASTING INTO YOUR LIFESTYLE: It is going to be greatly beneficial if you can fit your fast into the perfect times of your life. It is not ideal fasting when you have a lot of work to do, you know, those heavy weight lifting kind of work that easily drains you, or when you are really tensed because of your body’s natural metabolism. You know the perfect days, might be your weekends, it might be your every single day

DON’T OVEREAT: It is tempting to want to make up for the long hours of no food, 16 hours! I mean you normally sleep for about 8 hours and that is an extra 8 hours without food, you make up your mind that you can eat the portion meant for that long on your last meal of the day. THOU SHALL NOT DO THIS. It is wrong, wrong, wrong! It can adversely affect your health and even waste all the time you spend fasting. When you overeat, you add weight, so do not overeat.

DO LISTEN TO YOUR BODY: You have your eyes set on a goal, which you are ready to achieve no matter what. Good! Such grit should be celebrated, but do not be blinded by your goals, be enlightened by them. When your body is telling you stop as soon as you start to feel symptoms like heart palpitations, dizziness, and weakness please kindly stop. Give yourself a break and talk to your doctor, who will show you your next best options.

DOES INTERMITTENT FASTING 16/8 WORK AT ALL?

I can boldly tell you just like all the established authorities like Dieticians that 16/8 intermittent fasting can help you lose a lot of weight in the space of just a month, however, the exact amount of weight you want to lose depends on a number of things like yourself, your body composition, your current weight and how committed you are to the fasting. If your initial weight before the fast is only a few pounds overweight, you will lose it in a gradually yet significantly and if you were so overweight then you can lose up to 20 lbs in a month. The other ways by which 16/8 intermittent fasting is effective is your increased energy and improved mood amongst other benefits.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD I ENGAGE IN 16/8 INTERMITTENT FASTING?

Like I stated above, 16/8 intermittent fasting gives you the power to determine so many things about your food. No restrictions except for the ones you set, this means that you can fast as often as you want. And remember we do not just do 16/8 fast; it is tied to some expected goals even though they might vary from one person to another. Whatever your goal is, as soon as you achieve it, you can stop the fast even though it is something you can easily come back to.

WHEN CAN I WORKOUT WHILE 16/8 INTERMITTENT FASTING?

According to Registered Dietician, Christopher Shuff there are three things to consider to ensure your workout is effective while fasting: exercising before, during or after your eating window.

For someone who has no issues with exercising on an empty stomach, working out before the eating window is suitable for them, as for someone who cannot stomach the thought of working out on an empty stomach it is more effective for them to work-out during their eating window.

This is a way of capitalizing on post workout nutrition, which ideally promotes performance and recovery, according to Shuff, this is actually the best option. As for those who would love to exercise after eating but are not chanced during this period, after the eating window is much suitable for them.

Let’s Customized Complete Intermittent Guide That Will Meet Your Specific Need


CAN I TAKE ALCOHOL WHILE ON INTERMITTENT FASTING?

Nice big question, hmm, can you? Can you not? Sorry, to achieve maximum quick results with intermittent fasting, you cannot drink alcohol. Why? I know you would ask why; it is not a great idea to drink alcohol during this period because it is such a high-calories drink, just a single shot of bear contains 154 kcals. So, what’s the essence of fasting if you are taking back in bulk what you are shedding in bits? However, if you so cannot do without alcohol, you can fix it in during your eating period, are we good to go now? Yea!

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8 Comments

  1. Intake metformin as my A1C is borderline of my being a type 2 diabetic. What must I eat or follow if I want to to begin IF 16/8? Your article of IF info was very interesting and informative. Thank you so much for the educated insight.

  2. Very helpful article. Learnt a lot and I know incorporating all the tips will help me achieve my weight loss. God bless

    • Hi, People have seen results like this so it is possible but it depends on some factors. My advice is that you start Intermittent Fasting ASAP if you’ve not started then introduce exercise also. If you need further guide kindly do let us know.

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