Exploring Intermittent Fasting: An Introduction to Fat Loss and Longevity

Are you curious about all the hype around Intermittent Fasting (IF)?

Maybe you’re skeptical about the whole idea because of the misleading promises in the diet industry. Do you need clarification about how it fits into a healthy lifestyle and proof that it is worth the effort? I must admit that I was initially unsure about all the buzz…until I tried it!

Let’s take a closer look at the WHAT, HOW, and WHY of IF to help you decide if it’s the solution for YOU!

WHAT IS INTERMITTENT FASTING?

Intermittent Fasting isn’t a diet—it’s a way of timing your meals. Traditional diets focus on WHAT to eat, but intermittent fasting is all about WHEN you eat. 

Your body operates in two states: fed (when digesting food) and fasted (8-12 hours post-digestion). In the fed state, your body's high insulin levels make it challenging to burn fat. But in the fasted state, insulin levels drop, allowing your body to tap into fat stores for energy.

Intermittent fasting runs contrary to the popular idea of consuming multiple small meals for better health, which may prevent you from entering the fat-burning fasted state and hinder fat loss with constant insulin spikes. It’s true that eating small meals can initially cause weight loss (usually due to fewer calories), but it often leads to losing muscle alongside fat, reducing your metabolic rate.

Intermittent Fasting is different—it encourages fat-burning for energy while preserving muscle, which increases your body’s long-term metabolic rate! Plus, you give your body the gift of digestive rest and cellular repair while fasting.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

There are several different ways to do intermittent fasting, but they are all based on choosing regular time periods to eat and fast. For instance, you might start with a 14/10 schedule (eat within a ten-hour window each day and fast for the remaining 14) and work up to the highly recommended 16/8 fasting and feeding schedule. There are also options for a 5:2 approach (one low-calorie meal two times a week) or longer fasts of 24-36 hours.

During fasting, the body exhausts its sugar stores (glycogen) and starts burning stored fat for energy. This is known as metabolic switching, a critical cellular adaptation that aids in healthy weight loss and maintenance. Intermittent Fasting also impacts the “I’m hungry” and “I’m full” hormones (ghrelin and leptin), which leads to better brain signaling over time. 

Consider this scenario to see the bigger picture:    

1. You grab a buttered egg biscuit and tater tots at your favorite drive-through on the way to work. Your digestive system breaks down the food into energy to keep you alert on the road. 

2. Your blood sugar levels rise rapidly as the glucose (sugar) is released from the food (rapidly in this case because of the high percentage of carbohydrates).  

3. Your high blood glucose levels signal the pancreas to release insulin, a hormone that allows the body to use or store glucose. Insulin is like the key that opens muscle and fat cells to grab the extra glucose and store it for later use. So, insulin levels are usually high when feeding and low when fasting. NOTE: Stress, sleep, and other hormonal fluctuations also affect insulin sensitivity (how easily your key works to open and close the cells).  

4. In summary, high levels of insulin put the brakes on burning fat for fuel. During fasting periods, lower levels of insulin accelerate the burning of stored fat for energy.   

WHY IS IT BENEFICIAL TO WELLNESS?

Intermittent Fasting has numerous other benefits besides a leaner body! Studies show that IF can improve blood pressure, cholesterol, and memory. Fasting also has a positive impact on heart health, hormone regulation, and disease protection. However, it is generally not recommended for children under 18, pregnant or breastfeeding women, individuals with type 1 diabetes, and those who have a history of an eating disorder. Always check with your doctor before engaging in fasting protocols. 

HIGHLIGHTS

* Intermittent Fasting (IF) is a nutritional approach that limits eating to specific periods of time.

* During fasting, the body stops using its primary energy source, glycogen (the stored form of glucose/sugar), and starts using stored fat. 

* Intermittent Fasting encourages fat-burning while preserving muscle, which increases your body’s long-term metabolic rate. It also gives your body a chance to rest and repair.

* Intermittent fasting combined with whole-food nutrition is a powerful punch! The benefits extend far beyond weight loss and physical appearance.

* Always discuss nutritional strategies with your doctor, as IF isn’t for people with specific conditions. 

As you can see, balancing blood sugar levels is vital to managing weight, reducing inflammation, balancing hormones, decreasing metabolic disease, boosting brain health, improving cellular functioning, and increasing longevity.

GIVE IT A TRY!

Intermittent Fasting helps achieve that beautiful balancing act, which is why it's a core component of the FASTer Way to Fat Loss®. Along with whole foods, carb cycling, and efficient workouts, people who adopt the FASTer Way lifestyle experience fat loss, improved sleep, increased energy, and enhanced confidence.

The proof is in the…research! The nutritional and exercise guidelines provided in the FASTer Way app (and through personal coaching) are backed by rigorous scientific validation (from the Applied Science Performance Institute: ASPI). 

Are you ready for a healthy lifestyle that is sustainable instead of painful? 

I’m here to help you! Join my next 6-week round in the FASTer Way to Fat Loss®, and we’ll restructure (and re-energize) your second half of life! Click HERE to add your name to the waiting list, and we’ll connect about your next steps. Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for more fitness strategies! 

Don’t let another year, month, or week go by without prioritizing your wonderfully made body and purposeful life! Learn and apply a lifestyle of wellness instead of a rollercoaster of dieting regimes.

Commit and Click HERE to connect with me!