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Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting has become a recent health trend and people following this trend, claiming it helpful in weight loss, improve metabolic health and increase life span.

Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern that involves fasting for short term to several hours or periods of minimal or no food consumption. It is a diets that restrict food intake to certain time period. Recently, the practice of this dietary pattern has become increasingly popular as this help in weight reduction and improve health. The reason to attain the popularity of this diet may be because people consider it more easier to maintain than to some other diets.

According to studies, intermittent fasting in humans found to be safe and effective but not much than other diets that restrict calorie intake. Studies also found that it could also be helpful in reducing weight, blood pressure, insulin sensitivity, and cholesterol. On the other hand calorie restriction diet involves a major reduction on the amount of calories you consume every day. It is basically  reducing of average daily calorie intake below usual, without reaching a state of deprivation or malnutrition in your body. 

However previous research in their findings, suggest that both fasting pattern are similarly effective for weight loss.

Daily energy restriction will reduce weight by reducing body fat whereas people with intermittent fasting will reduce half of the total weight came from body fat. The other half came from fat-free mass.

Different Types of Intermittent Fasting

Several ways are there to follow this but which one works best depends on one person to another. Some of the popular ways include:

The 16/8 method: This method involves fasting for about 16 hours every day and restricting your daily eating pattern to approximately 8 hours. For example, if you finish your last meal at 8:30 p.m., then u don’t eat until noon the next day, keeping you fasting for 16 hours.

The 5:2 diet: The 5:2 diet involves eating for 5 days in a week and restricting your calorie intake to 500–600 for 2 days of the week.

Eat Stop Eat: Eat Stop Eat involves a 24-hour fast once or twice per week. For example, if you had your dinner at 7 p.m. on Monday, then you should eat next day i.e. Tuesday at 7 p.m. to complete a full 24-hour fast. The same way you can fast from breakfast to breakfast or lunch to lunch — the end result is the same. 

The Warrior Diet: The Warrior Diet involves eating small amounts of vegetables or raw fruits during the day time and eating one huge meal at night. This was one of the first popular diet to include a form of intermittent fasting.

Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Benefits of Calorie restricted fasting

Calorie restriction offers several benefits like weight loss, prolonged life expectancy. 

Intermittent Fasting Vs. Calorie Restriction Weight Loss

Intermittent fasting focus more on weekly calorie averages than daily calorie averages. It involves choosing periods of no eating or eating the minimum that our body required for normal functioning during fast hours or fast days and results in weight loss whereas calorie restriction diet includes a certain amount of calories people need every day. 

Which is better and easier to follow for quick weight loss:  Intermittent Fasting or Calorie Restriction ?

According to research, both the approach is not better than another or are equally better. They both leads to weight loss, although intermittent fasting now a days getting much hype for weight loss. Basically weight loss depends on individual to individual, based on how they are following the diet pattern.  It is also found that intermittent fasting is not superior to calorie restriction diet. 

If still weight loss are not seen, one should see to the professional to get the correct advice and the diet pattern according to their body, as weight loss is not quick and not these diet patterns are magic tricks that happens instantly.