Fasting Attempts to Recreate Food Flows and Shortages

With over $165 billion spent annually in the diet industry, it is clear that people are obsessed with losing weight. Intermittent fasting offers an affordable solution that can standalone or be used in conjunction with a menu plan for healthy eating. What makes fasting an appealing dietary solution is the reduced burden for grocery shopping, menu planning, and cooking. It simply saves time and money, plus you never need to spend your day counting calories. Intermittent fasting and time restricted eating strategies attempt to recreate the natural flow of food and food shortages to recreate the natural human eating process that evolved thousands of years ago.

• 2 Days-Per-Week Fast - With the 5:2 Method, people eat normally five days a week but only consume 500 to 600 calories on the 2 non-consecutive days of fasting.
• Time-Restricted Feeding - By eliminating meals when you don't feel hungry, you can trigger cellular repair processes throughout the body with improved gene expression to help stave off chronic diseases.
• LeanGains Method - When you fast for sixteen hours, you can skip breakfast, eat an early dinner and simply avoid all late night snacking, then repeat the process the next day.
• Occasional Prolonged Fasting - Similar to a fasting-mimicking or elemental diet, occasional prolonged fasting is followed for 3 to 4 days and is repeated up to four times per year.

One of the controversial issues involving fasting is that prolonged periods of food deprivation places one at risk for overeating during feasting periods and may foster behaviors such as an unhealthy fixation on food as well as other types of eating disorders. If a prolonged low-calorie diet causes the body to adapt to the calorie restriction, it prevents further weight loss. Many fasting protocols address this problem by cycling between low-calorie intake for a brief time followed by unrestricted meals. Some health experts don't recommend fasting but current studies have shown that the cycles between eating and fasting may actually boost weight loss and help preserve muscle.

*NOTE: Due to a difference in hormonal makeup, women have special considerations when fasting. Intermittent fasting is not a good idea for women under 18 years of age, those with a lean body profile, or those with medical conditions, such as hypothyroidism or a history of eating disorders. Ask your physician about an appropriate fasting protocol for you.