Fasting has largely appeared in the eating habits of the French and has become a fashion in recent years. Increasingly widespread, particularly for its benefits in weight loss and for its ease of implementation, intermittent fasting is today highly popular. If the rules of this diet are simple, recommendations concerning meals during fasting periods are rare. In this article you will find all the advice for eating well during intermittent fasting and the keys to good nutrition adapted to “fasting”.
What is intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting involves alternating periods of fasting (from a few hours to several days) and periods where you eat normally. During this fast, it is advisable to drink water throughout the day, but also tea or coffee to help fight the feeling of hunger. This method is therefore much less restrictive and restrictive than strict fasting (religious or not).
How to do intermittent fasting? What method to adopt?
There are many ways to practice intermittent fasting:
For example, the 5:2 fasting diet involves fasting two days a week.
The 24-hour fast involves fasting every other day.
Daily intermittent fasting consists of fasting between 12 hours and 16 hours per day and concentrating all your meals in the remaining time slot. It amounts to skipping breakfast or dinner (two meals a day). If it's easier for you to skip lunch, don't hesitate! Stay flexible with your schedule. Choose the fast that best suits your lifestyle.
It is also possible to train your body to tolerate intermittent fasting by gradually extending the time you abstain from food. You can also change methods from time to time until you find the method that suits you best.
Who is intermittent fasting for? Why practice intermittent fasting? What are its effects and advantages?
Fasting generates the release of fats and sugar from the body: when you do not eat, your body must mobilize reserves to provide you with the energy necessary for the functioning of vital organs and to ensure muscular contractions (natural or linked to physical exercise). During the first hours of fasting, the body put on a diet will quickly use muscle and liver glycogen reserves (carbohydrate reserves). When these reserves are exhausted (more or less long time depending on the state of the reserves and the sport practiced), the body will draw on the fats stored in the adipose cells and thus promote weight loss. This fat will “melt” little by little to take over as a source of energy until the next food intake. The longer the fasting period, the faster the weight loss will be.
Fasting prevents certain diseases associated with being overweight. By its nature, intermittent fasting helps reduce the risk of overweight and obesity. In doing so, it acts to prevent associated pathologies such as cardiovascular diseases or diabetes. By limiting weight gain or promoting weight loss in certain people, fasting constitutes a real health benefit for the body.
Fasting gives you back control over your eating sensations: it is very easy today to eat more than you are hungry (during meals or while snacking during the day). Intermittent fasting allows you to regain control of your desire to eat and reacquaint yourself with your feeling of hunger.
IN SUMMARY.
The benefits of intermittent fasting:
- can help regain control over your weight
- can improve digestion
- can improve sleep
- can beautify the complexion and skin
- may be effective in treating certain diseases
The risks of intermittent fasting:
- watch out for hypoglycemia in some people
- not always recommended in combination with certain medications
- not always recommended for pregnant women
- you must be careful to ingest a sufficient quantity of calories when you are not fasting
How does intermittent fasting work?
All the benefits of intermittent fasting on the body and health come from the fact that its main effect is to keep insulin levels at a low level. Consistently high insulin levels are the main cause of all metabolic syndrome-related illnesses because it promotes the storage of fats and sugars in the body. By spacing out food intake and adapting your diet, fasting is the ultimate weapon in your arsenal to lower insulin levels.
What to eat during intermittent fasting to keep your insulin levels under control?
Fasting is not everything, nor are calories: it is important to have good eating habits.
The main objective of the diet during a fasting period is to provide all the essential nutrients to the body while maintaining its insulin level at a low level. It is therefore essential during a fast to have a healthy diet by following a few simple rules.
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Reduce sugars and refined grains
Although it is best to avoid processed foods, there are many reasons that sometimes make this impossible. It is therefore important to know the most harmful ones in order to be able to rule them out.
It is particularly important to avoid sugars (except when practicing high-intensity sport) and refined cereals such as white flour which drastically increases blood sugar and insulinemia which tires the body. For equal calories, these products are more fattening than others like vegetables, which explains why low-carbohydrate diets are effective for weight loss.
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Consume more natural fats
For decades, fats have been presented as public enemy number because they are high in calories. Health authorities gradually agreed that their stigmatization was not justified and the expression "good fats" is now commonly accepted. Foods high in monounsaturated fats that were once avoided, such as olive oil, dried fruits, avocados and nuts are now being called superfoods due to their qualities and health benefits.
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Consume less artificial fats
Not all fats act in the same way on the body and are not all equally harmless. Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils found in fats, fried foods, margarine and baked goods, such as cakes, cookies or other highly processed sweet or savory products, contain trans fats whose assimilation is problematic for health .
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Pay attention to your protein intake
Whether or not you practice intense sport, it is important to have a protein intake during your fast-breaking meals. To prevent the breakdown of your muscles, favor meals rich in quality proteins whose absorption is “slow” such as vegetable proteins (legumes) or complete dairy proteins (cheese, yogurts). A word of advice: if you resort to protein supplementation, opt for taking vegetable proteins or casein rather than whey.
What about hydration?
Good hydration is essential for the body during meals but also and especially during periods of fasting. Indeed, drinking all day is possible and even recommended.
What drinks are compatible with fasting periods?
Only certain liquids are compatible with fasting: water, tea, herbal tea or coffee…
Water: During a fast, it is important to drink water often, from morning to evening. You can opt for still, mineral or sparkling water. You can very simply enhance your water with lemon (green or yellow), slices of other fruits to infuse (without eating the fruit), cider vinegar, Himalayan salt or even chia and flax seeds. ground. Sugar-free sweeteners should be avoided.
Coffee: You can drink classic or decaffeinated coffee during fasting phases. It is best to drink it black, but, if you wish, add a tablespoon of fat (coconut oil, medium chain triglyceride oil, full fat cream, liquid cream, whole milk, cinnamon powder …)
You can also drink iced coffee and always unsweetened (just prepare the coffee normally, put it in the fridge and pour over a cup filled with ice cubes).
Skimmed or semi-skimmed, liquid or powdered milk should be avoided, as should sweeteners.
Teas and herbal teas: Tea and herbal teas can be consumed at will between meals. Some even act as effective appetite suppressants. Green tea, cinnamon chai tea, mint tea, black tea, Oolong tea, etc., feel free to vary the types and flavors.
It is best to drink plain teas and herbal teas, but as with coffee you can add a tablespoon of certain fats, refrigerate them or ice them.
IN SUMMARY.
Whatever program you choose, intermittent fasting, to be more effective, must be accompanied by a healthy diet. Even if the menu remains free and you can eat almost whatever you want, it is important to keep a simple and minimally processed diet in which you favor good fats, quality proteins, and unrefined carbohydrates which will maintain insulinemia. low. Sugars should therefore be limited as much as possible.
Hydration, for its part, is essential from breakfast to dinner, during or between meals.
Whatever your motivation, we advise you to contact your doctor before starting intermittent fasting, to implement the method that best suits your needs.
Also find our articles on how to lose weight without exercising , vegetables that make you lose weight , or how to lose belly fat .
