Intermittent fasting - Stay healthy!

Intermittent fasting for weight loss is a good way to lose weight, get your body in order, and remove toxins. The method has received good reviews and many people not only use intermittent fasting as a diet, some have even made it their usual diet.

A healthy diet for athletes is as important an element of their lifestyle as regular training. Any professional will tell you that physical activity without proper nutrition brings little benefit.

What is intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting does not mean that a person will need to constantly fast. This is another good way to quickly lose weight and keep it within the desired range.

The essence of intermittent fasting is to divide the food intake cycle into two periods: a feeding period and a fasting period. The time period from the first meal of the day to the last is the feeding period, and the interval from the last meal to the first (including sleep) is the fasting period. An alternative name for the eating period is the dietary window.

The most effective weight loss occurs when all meals per day fit within a 6-8 hour period.

Intermittent fasting may help maintain muscle mass

One of the worst side effects of dieting is that your body loses muscle along with fat ().

Some studies have shown that intermittent fasting may be beneficial for maintaining muscle mass while losing fat.

A scientific review found that intermittent calorie restriction causes the same weight loss as chronic calorie restriction, but with much less reduction in muscle mass ().

In calorie restriction studies, 25% of weight lost was muscle mass, compared to only 10% in intermittent fasting studies ().

However, these studies had some limitations, so take the results with a grain of salt. More recent studies have not found any differences in muscle mass with intermittent fasting compared to other types of eating plans ().

Summary:
While some evidence suggests that intermittent fasting, compared to standard calorie restriction, may help you maintain more muscle mass, more recent research has not supported this idea.

Benefits and harms

Intermittent fasting has obvious advantages:

Accelerates the production of hormones. The body does not receive nutrition, insulin levels drop, and internal fat reserves begin to be used to maintain vital functions. Due to this, hormones are produced that stimulate an increase in muscle mass;
Burns fats in the body. Fasting for such a long period forces the body to use up fat reserves;
Acceleration of metabolism by 5-15%;
Preservation of muscle mass;
Reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes due to decreased insulin;
Improving well-being, sleep quality and stress resistance;
Increased performance, increased energy;
Stabilization of the digestive system;
Improving the condition of the skin;
Reduces the amount of time a person spends on cooking;
Doesn't require a lot of money.

But for some people, the intermittent fasting method is not suitable, and in some cases it can be harmful to health. The reasons may be the following:

Possible problems with digestion, gastrointestinal upset, constipation, etc.;
Belching, heartburn, discomfort in the stomach;
Muscle spasms;
Headaches, migraines, and dizziness occur due to a sudden transition to a different diet.

In any case, before starting to use the method, you should consult your doctor.

The effects of intermittent fasting on women and men

There is some scientific evidence that intermittent fasting is not as effective a diet for women as it is for men.

One study found that blood sugar levels worsened in women after three weeks of eating this way, which was not the case in men (). There is also evidence that some women experienced irregular menstrual cycles after starting this way of eating.

These shifts occur because the female body is extremely sensitive to caloric restriction. And when calorie intake is low—for example, from fasting too long or too often—a small part of the brain called the hypothalamus is affected. This may interfere with the secretion of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). It helps release two reproductive hormones: luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) ().

When these hormones can't communicate with the ovaries, you risk adverse health effects. For example, menstrual irregularities, infertility, poor bone condition and others

Although there are no comparable studies in humans, tests in rats have shown that 3-6 months of intermittent fasting caused a decrease in ovarian size and the development of irregular monthly cycles in female rats ().

For these reasons, women should consider a modified approach. For example, shorter periods and fewer days of not eating.

Foods that increase and decrease testosterone
Coffee for intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting may not be as beneficial for women as it is for men. To reduce any adverse effects, women should take a gentle approach: shorter periods of not eating.

Indications and contraindications

Intermittent fasting can be used in the following cases:

The need to lose weight and activate metabolism in the body;
The presence of nutritional obesity;
The desire to cleanse the body of waste and toxins;

Contraindications include:

Tuberculosis;
Kidney problems;
Oncological diseases;
Diseases of the cardiovascular system;
Hypertension;
Stomach ulcer;
Pregnancy;
Diabetes;
Problems with the nervous system.

Weekly fasting

Giving up food for 7 days helps cleanse the body. After cyclically repeating a daily fast on water, a person must proceed to observing a seven-day fast from food. One-day fasting is easy to endure; although it helps to lose weight, it does not sufficiently cleanse the body of waste and toxins. Eliminating food for a week from your usual daily routine will help you lose weight and put in order the internal processes occurring in the body.

By Paul Bragg

The system of food refusal according to Paul Bragg is therapeutic fasting on water - 7 days. The liquid can be mineral or distilled.

Bragg's 4 rules of hunger:

During fasting, drinking juices, broths and other liquids other than water is not allowed;
Laxative enemas for bowel cleansing are harmful;
Nature is the best place for a hunger strike. It is recommended to adhere to the method in solitude, maintaining an active lifestyle.
It is important to complete the fast correctly.

The scheme followed by Bragg:

One-day fasting – once every 7 days;
Seven-day fasting on water - once a quarter;
Fasting for 21 days - annually.

While a person is on a 7-day fast, he is allowed to drink distilled water with additives. It is allowed to mix 5 grams of natural raw honey and 10 ml of lemon juice. The drink will help remove waste and toxins from the body.

Fasting lasts 7 days, in some cases – 10 days or 3 weeks, the signal for completion is the appearance of appetite and the disappearance of bad breath.

One-day fasting has its own benefits; it will not help to thoroughly cleanse the body, but it will help restore the stomach.

There are results from the Paul Bragg method, especially for people who want to lose weight. There were reviews with photos about how people managed to lose weight up to 40 kg. You can overcome hunger in a way that consolidates your weight loss results using the Paul Bragg method. After a seven-day water fast, both the stomach and intestines decrease in size, so you need to return to your daily diet gradually.

On the afternoon of the last day of fasting, you should start going out. To do this, you need to take 4 tomatoes, cut them and pour boiling water so that the water covers the tomatoes. There are no restrictions on the amount you can eat, but it is better to chew thoroughly.

For breakfast the next day, make a vegetable salad. To do this, take a medium head of cabbage, a carrot, grate it and season with citrus juice. The dish acts as a “brush” and is also beneficial for losing weight and cleansing the body. Afterwards you can eat thermally processed greens or 2 crackers. For lunch, cook carrots with celery and a couple of boiled vegetables. On this day you will have to skip the evening meal.

Don't forget about water, drink enough.

On the 2nd day after fasting, make tomorrow from fresh fruits with a little honey. Spend lunch similarly to the previous day. Dinner is allowed, but until 6 pm. It is advisable that the meal be served with lettuce leaves in lemon juice.

The way out of a famine that lasted 10 days is similar.

We recommend reading: how not to gain weight after fasting

By Marva Ohanyan

Marva Ohanyan is an experienced therapist. The woman developed her own healing fasting system, which has distinctive features. The method is suitable for losing weight at home without medical supervision.

Refusal from food, according to Ohanyan, should last up to 14 days and be accompanied by cleansing procedures, but to lose weight it is enough to fast for a week. One-day fasting according to the method will not give tangible results.

Preparing for hunger is accompanied by taking laxatives: magnesia and hay decoction. Magnesia is a saline laxative, sena is a herbal laxative. You need to drink both drugs that cleanse the gastrointestinal tract the day before the start of fasting.

Before taking a laxative, prepare a heating pad with water. You will need it to cleanse the liver. Immediately after consuming laxatives, lie on your right side and apply a heating pad to your liver. You will have to lie in this position for 60 minutes, without a pillow, moving as little as possible. You can move to drink a decoction of hay. Before the evening (8-9 hours) you need to consume a liter of infusion.

Marva’s method pays great attention to the biological clock: a person’s biorhythm must coincide with the solar cycle - wake up at sunrise, fall asleep before 9-10 o’clock in the evening. However, if you use hunger only for weight loss, this rule can be neglected.

The scheme of water fasting itself is clear: changes affect only the person’s condition, the regime remains the same.

Cleansing the body occurs by taking a decoction of herbs, rather than mineral or distilled water. The fast is partial; you can add honey and lemon juice to the infusion. Decoctions are made from various mixtures: mint, plantain, thyme, nettle, valerian, etc.

Daily regime:

Cleansing enema in the morning;
Take 250 ml of decoction every hour;
Walks in the open air;
Rubbing massage;
Easy activity;
Sleep from 9 pm to sunrise.

After the end of the fast, you are allowed to eat only fruits and vegetables in the form of purees for another 4 days. Be sure to continue taking the herbal decoction.

The exit is scheduled by the hour, again, due to the human biorhythm. Meals are taken in 3 sets - at 10, 14 and 18 hours.

Products are introduced into the daily menu gradually; on the 5th day of release, you can add vegetable salads seasoned with citrus juice. At 6 – vegetables and fruits can be cooked and thermally processed. Butter, sour cream and fatty foods are allowed to be introduced into the diet only on the 15th day after fasting. Porridge - even later, after 40-60 days. Animal protein is added as desired, but not before cereals, nuts and legumes.

Getting out of hunger is sometimes more difficult than avoiding food itself, but the results are worth it. After fully completing the course, the body will improve; reviews talk about the benefits of the method for losing weight.

Types of Intermittent Fasting

There are three main types of intermittent fasting:

Classical. The eating window is 8 hours, the fasting period is 16 hours. Recommended time for eating: from 12 to 20 hours. You can adjust the time frame for yourself;
Moderate. Of the 24 hours, 14 hours are spent on the fasting period, the remaining 10 are the dietary window. This option is easier for beginners, as it does not subject the body to severe stress;
Daily. The most difficult option involves fasting for 24 hours between meals.

Beginners are advised to start with less extreme options and gradually increase the fasting period.

How to Succeed with the Intermittent Fasting Protocol

If you want to lose weight through intermittent fasting, there are a few things you should keep in mind:

Food quality . The food you eat is still important. Try to eat mostly single-ingredient whole foods.
Calories . Calories are still counted. Try to eat normally during non-fasting periods, not so much to compensate for the calories lost during fasting.
Subsequence . As with any weight loss method, you need to stick with it for a long period if you want it to work.
Patience . It may take some time for your body to adapt to the intermittent fasting protocol. Try to stick to your eating schedule and you will feel better.

Most popular intermittent fasting protocols also recommend exercise, such as strength training. This is very important if you want to burn mostly fat while maintaining muscle mass.

In the beginning, intermittent fasting usually doesn't require calorie counting. However, if your weight loss is slowing down, calorie counting can be a useful tool.

Summary:
With intermittent fasting, you still need to eat healthy and maintain a calorie deficit if you want to lose weight. It's important to be consistent and include exercise in your plan as well.

Nutrition rules

Basic rules of nutrition while using intermittent fasting:

During the dietary window, you need to consume the daily allowance of calories, dietary supplements and vitamins;

Calculate how many calories you need to eat per day. We have made a convenient calculator

The highest calorie meal should be breakfast. During it, it is worth consuming complex carbohydrates, as well as animal fats, which are easily digestible;
It is forbidden to consume store-bought juices, they contain a lot of sugar;
You can’t eat simple carbohydrates – baked goods, baked goods. They are easily digestible, and after a while the person feels hungry again;
Don't overeat during your diet window. 3-4 meals with small snacks is a good option;
Remove processed foods, fast food and other unhealthy foods from your diet. This will help you lose weight faster;
You need to drink your daily fluid intake. Water, green tea, celery juice are allowed;
Meals after breakfast should be protein, for lunch you can eat carbohydrates and fats;

Intermittent fasting for weight loss involves some dietary restrictions. Be prepared to give up unhealthy foods, even if they are among your favorites.

Safety and side effects

Modified versions of intermittent fasting appear to be safe for most women.

However, a number of studies have reported some side effects. For example, hunger, mood swings, lack of concentration, fatigue and headaches on fasting days.

There are also some reviews from women about disruptions in the menstrual cycle. This happened if they eliminated meals in the morning or evening.

If you are undergoing treatment, be sure to consult your doctor before starting a fast.

Indications for intermittent fasting are:

metabolic syndrome,
insulin resistance,
type 2 diabetes.

In these three cases, intermittent fasting will be the most effective therapy.

Contraindications for intermittent fasting in women are:

eating disorders, leptin resistance,
diabetes or low blood sugar,
underweight, nutritional deficiencies,
preparation for conception, pregnancy, lactation,
menstrual irregularities or infertility,
adrenal insufficiency.

For most women, intermittent fasting has a good safety profile. However, if you experience any problems, stop immediately.

Periodically not eating can cause hunger, fatigue, headaches and bad breath. Women who are pregnant, trying to become pregnant, or have a history of eating disorders should seek medical help before starting an intermittent fasting regimen.

Menu for a week, how often can you do intermittent fasting

Sample food menu for the week:

Day	Breakfast	Dinner	Dinner
Monday	Cottage cheese with berries, green tea, bread	Chicken broth soup, carrot salad	Steamed fish, beet salad, cheese
Tuesday	Omelet, glass of water, fruit	Okroshka, Greek salad, orange juice	Turkey from the oven, kefir, vegetable salad
Wednesday	Oatmeal with milk, berries, green tea	Pasta with boiled chicken, fresh vegetables, kefir	Boiled eggs, stewed meat with vegetables, halva
Thursday	Curd casserole, honey, nuts	Chicken or turkey cutlets, vegetable salad, apples	Seafood with rice, cottage cheese, green tea
Friday	Pancakes with jam, boiled eggs, tea	Pasta with chicken in creamy sauce, pomegranate juice, sliced vegetables	Steamed fish, vegetable salad, tomato juice
Saturday	Cottage cheese with berries, green tea, omelette	Cheese soup, couscous, crushed cucumbers	Turkey risotto, cheese, kefir
Sunday	Cheesecakes, fruit salad, pomegranate juice	Chicken soup, pasta, Greek salad	Grilled chicken breast with vegetables, boiled potatoes, tomato juice

The question about the frequency of application of the technique does not have a clear answer. It is recommended to gradually introduce the diet into the desired framework and adhere to this diet constantly.

If your goal is to lose weight, then using the method one to two weeks a month will be enough. The rate of weight loss will be noticeable from the first days, but will gradually slow down. In two weeks, on average, you can lose about 5 kg.

16/8 intermittent fasting scheme

The 16/8 intermittent fasting schedule involves a 16-hour break from eating and an 8-hour eating window. This frequency is optimal for beginners; it is allowed for those who are actively involved in sports.

Are there any special features for women and men?

The principles of 16/8 intermittent fasting are the same for women and men, but some nuances should be taken into account:

men need to include more protein foods in the menu;
It is better for women to limit the fasting period to 14 hours;
representatives of the stronger sex should eat more high-calorie foods;
ladies can deny themselves nothing until 12 noon, then only light food must be on the menu.

How to organize meals

Before switching to a 16/8 diet, you need to prepare the body in general and the nervous system in particular. Experts recommend doing the following:

Visit a therapist, undergo a brief medical examination and rule out any contraindications. The fact is that many pathologies are asymptomatic for a long time, for example, gastritis, cholelithiasis. Dramatic changes in diet will provoke their exacerbation, which may lead to the need for surgical intervention.
Gradually increase the amount of fluid consumed. Only clean water is taken into account, and you need to drink about 2 liters per day. Juices and coffee are not taken into account.
Systematically switch to a healthy diet - give up too salty foods, fast foods, fatty foods.
Reducing the “eating window”. First you need to give up eating after 18-00, then shift the breakfast time until you reach a 16-hour fasting period. Be sure to eat proteins, greens, vegetables and fruits at every meal.

During periods of fasting, you are allowed to drink only zero-calorie drinks: water, tea/coffee without sugar and milk, herbal decoctions of mint, chamomile. They can be drunk in unlimited quantities; the feeling of hunger is perfectly relieved by warm drinks consumed in small sips.

Meals at food windows may include:

carbohydrate products - pasta, legumes, honey, all grains, nuts, herbs, vegetables, fruits, honey-based sweets, dark chocolate, low-calorie baked goods;
fat-containing – vegetable oils (preferably olive), low-fat fish, milk and fermented milk products, butter (in limited quantities), halva;
protein products - turkey, chicken, lean pork, veal, hard and soft cheeses, omelet or boiled eggs.

How to survive a 16-hour fast

A 16-hour fast will be problematic to endure only for the first 1-3 days if preparation has been made and the body is already ready for drastic changes in diet. Hunger and side effects will be most disturbing for 7-10 days, and this period can be alleviated as follows:

Set your fasting period individually. If a person is used to breakfast at 8-00, then eating should be stopped the day before at 16-00. Some people do well without a morning meal; in this case, you can have dinner at 20:00 and have breakfast the next day no earlier than 12:00. It is important to simply maintain the 16-hour period of time.
Drink a lot. We are talking about tea and herbal infusions. Sugar-free coffee can be consumed warm and in small sips - caffeine has been proven to perfectly relieve hunger.
During the “eating window”, eat really high-calorie foods, but within normal limits. Doctors, by the way, recommend reducing the number of calories you take in to get a greater weight loss effect, but it’s better not to do this when switching to the 16/8 regimen - a gastronomic breakdown is almost guaranteed.

While you are awake during a hunger strike, it is better to distract yourself with some active actions: do general cleaning, go to the gym, visit exhibitions or the theater. You need to distract yourself from thoughts about food, so simple walks around the square or park, where the aromas of pies and pasties are in the air, will not do.

Watch this video about the principles of intermittent fasting:

How often to apply

It is recommended to introduce intermittent fasting according to the 16/8 scheme into the usual rhythm of life and stick to it constantly. But for weight loss, it is enough to use it 1-2 weeks a month. The first results of weight loss will be noticeable already on the 3rd day of the process - up to 2 kg of excess weight can be lost per day. But already on day 5 the pace will slow down and, according to reviews from those who practice intermittent fasting, in 10-15 days you can get rid of an average of 5 kg of excess weight.

Recommendations for creating a diet menu

The diet can be followed for only 1 week, in which case the menu may be as follows.

Day of the week	Breakfast	Dinner	Dinner
Monday	Cottage cheese with sour cream, fresh or frozen raspberries, coffee with cream and a piece of halva	Vegetable soup with chicken broth, carrot salad with sour cream, fresh apples, any hot drinks	Protein omelet, steamed or baked fish with a salad of fresh vegetables and vegetable oil, kefir
Tuesday	Boiled, fried, grilled sea fish, rice porridge, coffee with marshmallows	Boiled beet salad with mayonnaise, okroshka or any low-fat chicken soup, freshly prepared juice	Boiled eggs, grilled white meat chicken, fermented baked milk. Can be replaced with fish and vegetables
Wednesday	Oatmeal with milk and butter, any berries, dried fruits, coffee and marshmallows or dark chocolate	Boiled pasta, salad of any fresh vegetables, fresh apples or plums	Cottage cheese casserole with sour cream, two boiled eggs, whole milk
Thursday	Boiled sea fish with pasta or any porridge, fresh tomatoes, coffee with cream and sugar with kozinaki	Chicken cutlets, grilled or oven-baked bell pepper (or any other vegetables), pomegranate juice	Boiled squid, scrambled eggs/omelet, kefir. You can replace it with stewed zucchini with meat in the oven or grilled mackerel
Friday	Curd casserole with sour cream, tea with milk, honey, dark chocolate	Couscous with boiled meat, any fresh vegetables	Cottage cheese in any form, fermented baked milk
Saturday	Pancakes with berry jam/jam, cocoa or coffee with marshmallows	Any soup, you can have borscht with lean meat, tomato salad with vegetable oil	Omelette, any seafood, kefir. Can be replaced with boiled meat and tomato juice
Sunday	Boiled potatoes, any fish, fresh tomato salad, coffee/tea with pastries	Casserole with mushrooms and chicken, any fresh vegetables, any drinks	Fresh cucumbers, baked meat or fish, boiled eggs or omelet, kefir

Such a menu is quite easy to customize specifically for a person. For example, you can supplement your diet with 1-2 snacks of vegetables, fruits or nuts.

Breaking through food restrictions

It is important to properly return to your usual diet after a week of intermittent fasting:

eat small portions of familiar food - for example, eat from a saucer and a teaspoon;
in the evening, continue to refuse food, but if you have an acute feeling of hunger, you can drink kefir or eat fresh vegetables;
fast food, alcoholic drinks and sweet carbonated drinks should be practically absent from the menu;
increasing the daily calorie content of food (if necessary) is done gradually and through the use of healthy foods;
All food should be processed as thermally and mechanically as possible in the first week - it will be easier for the stomach to digest;
do not stop physical activity.

Efficiency in losing weight

Intermittent fasting for weight loss for women is a good method that can quickly bring the body to the desired weight. Each person’s body is individual, so each case should be considered individually.

According to reviews, one month of eating according to the plan can reduce weight by 5 kg. If you strictly follow all the rules and regulations, and also start playing sports and devote time to cardio training two or three times a week, the effect will be even better and you will be able to lose weight many times faster.

However, there are opposite examples when the body does not accept the method of intermittent fasting and weight loss either does not occur, or, on the contrary, the amount of body fat increases. If you feel very stressed while fasting, this method is not for you.

Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting for Women

Intermittent eating not only benefits your waistline, but it can also reduce your risk of developing a number of chronic diseases.

Heart Health

Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. High blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol and high triglyceride concentrations are among the leading risk factors for heart disease.

One study of 16 obese men and women found that intermittent fasting reduced blood pressure by 6% in just eight weeks (). The same study found that LDL cholesterol levels decreased by 25% and triglycerides by 32%.

However, evidence on the association between intermittent fasting and improved LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels is mixed. A study of 40 normal-weight people found that four weeks of restricted food intake did not reduce LDL cholesterol or triglyceride levels ().

Diabetes

Intermittent fasting is believed to be effective in reducing the risk of diabetes. This occurs mainly by lowering insulin levels and reducing insulin resistance.

In one experiment, more than 100 overweight or obese women fasted for six months. As a result, insulin levels decreased by 29% and insulin resistance by 19%. Blood sugar levels remained unchanged ().

Moreover, 8-12 weeks of intermittent fasting has been shown to reduce insulin levels by 20-31% and blood sugar levels by 3-6% in people with prediabetes. This is a condition in which blood sugar levels rise, but are not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes ().

However, this method may not be as beneficial for women as it is for men in terms of blood sugar levels. A small study found that women's blood sugar levels worsened after 22 days of following an every-other-day regimen. At the same time, such a negative effect was not observed in men ().

Despite this side effect, reducing insulin and insulin resistance is still likely to reduce the risk of developing diabetes, especially in people with diabetes.

Weight loss

Intermittent fasting can be a simple and effective way to lose weight when done correctly. Because regular short-term refusal of food will help you consume fewer calories and “throw off” those extra pounds.

A number of studies show that intermittent fasting is as effective as traditional calorie-restricted diets for short-term weight loss (). A 2021 review of studies of overweight adults found that eating this way led to an average weight loss of 6.8 kg over 3 to 12 months ().

Another review found that this type of eating reduced body weight by 3-8% in overweight or obese people over 3-24 weeks. The review also found that participants' waist circumference decreased by 3-7% over the same period ().

It should be noted that the long-term effects of intermittent fasting for weight loss in women have yet to be studied. In the short term, it is proven to help with weight loss. However, the amount you lose will likely depend on the number of calories you consume during your eating periods and how long you've been doing this lifestyle.

How to keep fit

Having obtained the desired result, you need to regularly maintain your shape to stay in good shape. Following these rules will help you do this:

You need to sleep at least eight hours a day. At this time, the body completely relaxes and rests, and metabolic processes work;
Take the fasting method more simply, don’t get hung up on it. This will help you avoid stress and always be in a good mood;
Live an active life - it distracts from the feeling of hunger and promotes weight loss;
You can start using special anti-cellulite massages. They activate blood flow and also accelerate metabolic processes;
The maximum effect in terms of weight loss can be achieved if the diet is combined with cardio exercise. Set aside two to three days a week for training and exercise regularly;
Drink more clean water. The feeling of hunger will dull for a while, you will be able to control your appetite.