Looking for a way to lose weight where you don't count calories or workout all day? Welcome to fasting!
Yes I know...fasting sounds hard! Well it is! But anything that is worth it, always is.
What Is intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting just means that you don't eat for a prolonged period of time each day. You already don't eat while you are asleep. Fasting just means that you would skip breakfast and/or lunch and only eat maybe one or two meals a day. The goal is to lower your blood sugar spikes and let your body run off of its stored fat and not the sugar eaten from meals and snacks.
Most people will fast for 16 hours and eat in an 8 hour window. Or you could fast for 20 hours and eat in a 4 hour window. Again the point is to let your body use body fat for energy, not sugar. Here is a great video from Dr. Berg for beginners.
Getting Started
Like anything else you have to make up your mind at you are going to do it. First start only eating 3 meals a day with no snacks. Then move to not eating after 6 or 7 PM. Next move to not eating breakfast, then to not eating lunch and only supper. It takes a while to work through the progression of not eating. Give it time and know that hunger is ONLY an emotion.
The Mental Game
Fasting is not going to kill you. Your body will be fine if are you hungry for a while. When you do finally eat, it is so much more pleasurable and enjoyable.
Here are a few tips to help you get through those hunger pains.
1) Drink water or hot tea/coffee with no sugar.
2) Get active by going for a walk, stretch or workout.
3) Read a book, listen to music or meditate.
The whole point is to get your mind off of food, your hunger pains will go away in a few minutes.
Benefits
Intermittent fasting has great benefits. It can lower you weight, blood pressure and blood sugar levels. I actually feel better when I don't eat. I have so much more energy now. The great part is that I weight less now than I when I got married, over 30 years ago.
My Journey
Here is my weight loss by month. As you can tell you will plateau. Your first months will be the biggest losses as you will have more fat to lose. I lost this weight eating only two meals a day on Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The other days were 1 meal a day (supper). I normally ate anything I wanted within reason; but I definitly was not on a Keto diet. I also tried to walk every day if possible.
January: 8 lbs
February: 3 lbs
March: 4 lbs
April: 2 lbs
May: 3 lbs
June: 2 lbs
July: 1 lb
August: 1 lb
September: 1 lb
November: 1 lb
October: 2 lbs
Total: 28 pounds
Worth It?
When you start wearing clothes you haven't been able to get into for years, when other people start noticing and complementing you, and most importantly when you start having so much more energy, you will definitely say "it was worth the sacrifice"!
Caution
Intermittent fasting can be safe for many people, but it's not for everyone, especially if you're a diabetic, pregnant or breast-feeding. Talk with your doctor if you have kidney stones, gastroesophageal reflux, diabetes or other medical problems.