Every once in awhile, you might have come across the term "Intermittent Fasting." As intimidating the name may sound, this method is easier to follow.  And it was also crowned as the trendiest weight-loss method in 2019. If you are familiar with fasting, then intermittent fasting won't be harder for you to follow. And it's not necessary that you can only follow intermittent fasting if you are familiar with the concept of fasting. Intermittent fasting has made its name all across the globe, and a lot of people follow it regularly. It has a lot more benefits than you might think. And if somehow you are not familiar with Intermittent Fasting, then we will give a helpful guide related to it through this blog.

WHAT IS INTERMITTENT FASTING?

You might be thinking 'what is intermittent fasting,' well Intermittent Fasting in the long term means intermittent energy restriction. It is a scheduled cycle of your daily meal preparation between your fasting and non-fasting time period. You only eat two meals a day and fast for 16 hours until you can eat again. Yes, you might think why only two meals, well, you will understand it as we go further in the blog.

It is not necessary that everyone does 16 hours of intermittent fasting; some people don't have the stamina to do so, which is entirely okay. You can also break down your fasting techniques by fasting for a shorter time span, but keeping in mind that you have to eat two meals a day that fully completes your appetite. You can either eat from 9 a.m to 5 p.m, or you can also have your meals from 1 p.m to 8 p.m. You have 6-7 hours to yourself just to eat. However, don't go too extreme with your food consumption. Remember, you are still on a diet.

HELPS IN WEIGHT LOSS:

If you are familiar with the term diet plans, you must also be familiar with not following it thoroughly. Still, if you are a determined individual, then it is a completely different story. And if you cannot follow a diet plan till the end, later you might as well try out intermittent fasting. According to a study, we found out that intermittent fasting is relatively more effective than other diets. If you follow the intermittent fasting plan accordingly, then you will definitely see results in just a few days.

The main focus behind intermittent fasting is to decrease the levels of your insulin. A low level of insulin is your one-way to weight loss. When you are fasting, the insulin in your body automatically decreases. When your insulin decreases, the already stored sugar in your fat cells will release in your body in the form of energy. The insulin levels decrease for long enough for the fat into your body to burn off.

WHAT YOU CAN EAT AND DURING DURING FASTING AND POST-FASTING:

You can take some things during fasting, so you don't feel thirsty or de-energized. You can have water, coffee, calorie-free beverages. And when it comes to solids, you can consume avocados, as it can complete your appetite. You can also have fish that are rich in proteins and contain healthy fats and Vitamin D, and all of these elements are very important for your body to consume to function properly. 

In vegetables, you can consume broccoli, cauliflower, both being rich in fiber. Well, you can also have potatoes. YES! You can have potatoes. A case study shows that eating potatoes is part of a healthy diet, and it even helps you with weight loss. But, don't eat fried potatoes, that will backfire on your diet. You can also have other foods such as lentils, chickpeas, black beans, and beans. And all of these are proven to help with weight loss. Other than that, you can have strawberries, eggs, and also nuts of any kind.

OTHER BENEFITS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING:

Apart from weight loss, the other benefits of intermittent fasting are lower blood sugar, improved metabolism, and lessening inflammation, which helps improve a number of other health concerns, mainly including asthma.

TYPES OF INTERMITTENT FASTING:

There are mainly three types of intermittent fasting:

1. The 5:2 method:
Now, this method is the most approached one as you are fasting only two days a week. And during the other five days, you only focus on healthy eating that doesn't disturb your diet. Try to cut down on the carbs, so it doesn't affect your diet.

2. Alternate-day fasting:
As the title itself suggests, this focuses on your alternate days of the diet. You fast one day and skip the other and then fast the next day and skip the other. During this type of intermittent fasting, make sure that you are consuming a healthy diet, so it doesn't affect your fasting.

3. The 16/8 or 14/10 technique:
During this method, you set the record straight of when to eat and when not to eat. In the 16/8 method, you fast for 16 hours and eat for 8 hours. Well, not everyone can fast for 16 hours, so here is another method that is 14/10. In this method, you fast for 14 hours and eat for 10 hours.

Intermittent fasting is bringing the revolution to the diet world and is surely doing great. If you are really dedicated to fitness or are interested in trying out new diets just to see which one suits them best, try out intermittent fasting. This might be your next great diet.