Everything You Need to Know About Intermittent Fasting

For some people it is a diet; for others, a lifestyle. Daily or weekly, this is a new way of losing weight without making your body go hungry. In this post we explain everything you need to know about intermittent fasting. Keep reading.

Eating during an 8-hour window and fasting for the remaining 16 hours, or eating normally 5 days a week and fasting on the other two, is how intermittent fasting is put into practice. The aim? To turn it into a lifestyle for losing weight in a healthy and controlled way.

What does it involve?

As we mentioned at the start of this post, intermittent fasting basically consists of not eating for a certain number of hours each day or week in order to lose weight. But what type of foods can I eat? Do they have to be low in calories?

Not necessarily, provided you follow a balanced diet rich in fruit and vegetables. That is why experts stress that intermittent fasting is not a diet, but a lifestyle.

And during the fasting period, what can I drink? Any drinks that are low in calories or calorie-free, such as water, tea or coffee. Yes, if you add a splash of milk, nothing terrible will happen. But do not turn it into a milky coffee.

That said, no juices or fizzy drinks, even if they contain no calories. Our recommendation is to use the opportunity to drink water, so you achieve two goals at once.

16:8 intermittent fasting

With this method you do not need to count calories, just watch the clock. This does not mean that, because you only eat during 8 hours of the day, you can fill up on industrial pastries and saturated fats.

With intermittent fasting, we lose weight simply because we eat less (around 400-500 kcal fewer), as the time window in which we can eat is shorter.

And the remaining 16 hours? At first, being told you have to spend two thirds of the day without eating may sound impossible, but it is not as demanding as it seems.

Of those 16 hours, we spend roughly half asleep. Seen that way, we would eat for 8 hours and fast for another 8 hours.

5:2 intermittent fasting

The other intermittent fasting option is to fast 2 days a week or, more accurately, consume only 500 kcal, and eat as usual during the other 5 days.

Do you have to fast on two consecutive days? No. It is advisable to fast on alternate days, to lose weight more quickly and also more sustainably. On the other 5 days you would eat normally, as with 16:8 intermittent fasting, following a balanced diet rich in fruit and vegetables.

And no binge eating with the excuse: because I barely ate yesterday.

Can everyone do it?

No. The first and most important thing, before starting intermittent fasting, is to consult a specialist who can assess your case and determine whether your body can tolerate it.

It is not recommended for pregnant or breastfeeding women, adolescents, people who are underweight or people with chronic diseases affecting the liver or kidneys to follow this lifestyle to lose weight.

Can you exercise? Yes, between 3 and 5 times a week as a complement to weight loss. But it is important to avoid exercising while fasting and to combine cardio and toning.

With cardio, such as spinning or running, we burn more calories and speed up metabolism. With toning, through yoga, Pilates or GAP classes (glutes, abs and legs), we work the muscles.

Benefits of intermittent fasting

Although studies are still being carried out on whether intermittent fasting is good or harmful for health, what is known so far indicates that this weight-loss practice does not have to be negative, provided it is supervised by a specialist and the requirements we mentioned are met (keeping to schedules, eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, drinking water...).

It is also said that it may support cardiovascular health, help control cholesterol, reduce triglycerides and improve performance.

What we do know is that more and more people are adopting this lifestyle with the aim of feeling better about themselves. Have you tried it yet?