Seven Ways to Do Intermittent Fasting

When it comes to losing weight, intermittent fasting is one of the most effective strategies. It is so effective that it can help you lose up to 200 or more calories daily than regular calorie-counting dieting.

It helps you break your sugar dependency by switching to healthier sources of protein and other nutrients, which makes it even more potent. This article will explore different ways to do intermittent fasting and how it can help you achieve your weight loss goals. You must follow the conditions and pattern of fasting provided below to lose weight.

How to do intermittent fasting?

There are several ways to do intermittent fasting, but you can broadly categorize them as fasting or non-fasting. If you count calories but don't eat anything during particular hours of the day, you're fasting. Alternatively, if you abstain from certain foods, you're not fasting.

Some people also use it later in the day, such as eating in the evening. This allows you to consume fewer calories and feel full as you no longer eat in a deficit. While there are many different ways to do intermittent fasting, most methods fall under one of two categories − fasting or non-fasting. Here are the 7 ways to do intermittent fasting -

The 5-2 Diet

The 5-2 diet is a well-known variation of the intermittent fasting diet, in which dieters restrict their caloric intake for the first 5 days of the week and then usually eat for the remaining 2 days. This diet intends to assist individuals in losing weight by lowering the total number of calories consumed throughout the diet.

Adhering to this diet can assist you in losing five times the amount of weight that you would lose by adhering to a conventional eating plan. Michael Jensen and his brother, Mogens Jensen, are responsible for developing the diet.

16:8 Diet

The 16:8 diet is another popular form of intermittent fasting that involves eating for eight hours and fasting for the remaining 16. You can eat what you want during the eight hours you're allowed to eat and then fast during the remaining hours.

This diet is effective for weight loss and has been called the "gold standard" of weight loss diets. 16:8 diet advocates claim that it helps you lose more weight, increases your metabolism, and improves your health while on a diet. You can try the 16:8 diet by eating between 10 am and 6 pm and fasting the rest of the day. You can also eat less than 5 percent of your calories daily.

16-hour Fast

Some people try to replicate the 16-hour fast with an 8 or 16-hour eating window, but eating all day is only possible sometimes. If you are attempting to do an 8-hour eating window, you are likely to find yourself ravenous and unable to function.

If you want to do 16-hour fasts, you will need to follow a different dieting protocol. Essentially, you will eat during the eight hours you are allowed and then fast for the remaining 16.

 5-3-1 Diet

The 5-3-1 diet is a variation of the 5-3-16 diet, where you eat five times a day, three times a day, and then fast one day a week. The diet is designed to help you burn fat while providing the energy you need to function daily.

To make this diet work, you will need to ensure you eat the right foods and eat them in the right amounts. To keep energy levels high while burning fat, you will want to eat carbs first in the morning, followed by protein, vegetables, and fruit.

Shorter Intermittent Fasting Periods

You can also break your fast in the morning and then eat again in the evening for shorter periods. This may work best if you work regular hours and face the challenge of fitting in your intermittent fasting protocol during other times of the day.

For example, you can do a 16-hour eating window from 8 am until 6 pm, then fast for 16 hours until you are allowed to eat again. There are other variations of this diet, such as skipping breakfast and eating dinner later. Still, the 16-hour eating window is the most common.

Longer Fasts

If you want to go without eating for extended periods, you could skip breakfast and lunch instead of consuming only dinner. This will increase the amount of time that you can go without eating.

Many different diets are available, and some require you to skip breakfast regularly. The one that is practiced the most frequently is called intermittent fasting, which consists of eating nothing but dinner daily.

Alternate day Fasting

Utilizing a technique known as alternating day fasting (ADF) is yet another method for engaging in intermittent fasting. This strategy entails getting 20 percent of your calories from nutritious sources like protein, fat, and fiber daily and then getting 80 percent of your calories on alternate days.

The Atkins Diet Framework (ADF) is a well-liked diet because it is straightforward and does not require its adherents to keep a food journal. You consume the same quantity of nutritious meals each day, and when you are not "fasting," you are free to go for anything you like.

Conclusion

There are many ways to do intermittent fasting, from more extreme diets like the 5-2 diet and the 16:8 diet to simple methods like skipping breakfast and eating dinner only once a day.

And you can also try shorter or longer periods of fasting. While there are many different ways to do intermittent fasting, most fall in any one categories: fasting or non-fasting. And you can also mix and match the various methods to find one that works best for you. It takes a commitment to follow fasting rather than just noting up or practicing it occasionally. On a long-term basis, the habit of fasting will bring a significant impact on good health. Promoting a healthy diet and fasting brings out the quality of life. However, you must check with experts before proceeding with certain medical conditions.