You may have heard of intermittent fasting before in passing or read about it somewhere. It is among the latest in a series of “new” diets that have been trending as of late for their purported ability to spur weight loss without causing much hunger discomfort. The intermittent fasting method of dieting may be for you, and it can help you lose weight for certain. We will be going over what intermittent fasting is, the pros and cons of intermittent fasting, what time ranges are best for intermittent fasting, how to start with intermittent fasting, how long it takes for results to appear, and more in this article.
What is Intermittent Fasting?
As the name implies, intermittent fasting is the practice of “fasting”, that is to say going entirely without food, for a period of time. Intermittent fasting takes advantage of the body’s hunger cues to facilitate maximum satiety during a limited feeding window and keep the person full during the fasting period. The idea is that you do not eat for a set period of time, say 16 hours and that you eat all your meals for the day in the remaining 8-hour window. There are a variety of timing schemes to adhere to, although the idea behind them is similar. Hunger has a tendency to abate during a long period of not eating, and cramming all of that day’s caloric requirements into a short period of time allows you to feel fuller during that brief window than you would be doing a conventional diet.
It is important to remember that the benefits of intermittent fasting are purely in the satiety found through this eating scheme and that weight loss will correlate directly to your caloric deficit while eating this way. A caloric deficit is a negative energy balance, or simply that you are expending more calories than you are taking in. For this reason, intermittent fasting is more appropriately termed a meal timing strategy rather than a diet, as you will still need to lower your overall caloric intake below maintenance to lose body fat while “dieting” this way. You can figure out your caloric needs per day using your height, weight, and activity level on any number of free online calculators that are available.
Pros and Cons of Intermittent Fasting
There are a variety of pros and cons to intermittent fasting, most of them revolving around individual preferences in terms of food consumption. It is definitely a useful tool for those seeking to strip body fat, but intermittent fasting is by no means for everyone. We will be going over some of the various advantages and shortcomings of intermittent fasting below.
Pros:
- Convenient for those who don’t have a lot of time to eat during the day.
- Much of the time spent not eating can be during sleeping hours, thus making the fasting portion of the day far easier.
- You will feel very full eating all your day’s calories during a 6-8 hour window.
Cons:
- You have to be able to last at least 16 hours without eating.
- Many people still get hungry during the fasting period
- Some people struggle to eat all their food for the day during such a short window, and they thus remain hungry for the fasting period.
Which Timing Scheme of Intermittent Fasting is Best for Weight Loss?
The specific timing scheme does not matter so much as individual suitability matters for you. If an 8/16 eating/fasting scheme works for you practically and doesn’t leave you feeling hungry, then it works. If 6/18 is better for you, then you should do that. There is zero evidence that meal timing affects metabolism relative to overall caloric intake. When calories are equalized, meal timing has no influence on weight loss. However, it does influence overall satiety, which can be important for weight control over time. This is the purpose of intermittent fasting, to help you control your hunger and eat the correct amount of calories in order to lose body fat. The best timing scheme for intermittent fasting is the one in which you are the least hungry and the most likely to stick to the prescribed eating plan.
How Do Beginners Start Intermittent Fasting?
The best way to set yourself up for intermittent fasting is to first determine which timing scheme you will use. Beginners should generally start with the 8/16 eating/fasting scheme, with 8 of the 16 fasting hours scheduled to be during sleep time if possible. Next, you will need to calculate your total daily energy expenditure or TDEE. This value is how many calories you burn each day, and you will have to set your daily calories to below this in order to lose weight. You can track your daily caloric intake using any number of free calorie-counting applications. Once you have your TDEE, then you must determine how low you want to set your calories.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends losing no more than two pounds of fat a week for all but the very severely obese. It is no different for those engaging in intermittent fasting. This limit corresponds to a 1000-calorie deficit a day, as a pound of fat takes a net loss of about 3500 calories to lose. If this seems like too much given your TDEE, then simply reduce your calories by 500 a day, and you will still lose a pound of fat a week. This may not seem like a lot, but it adds up very quickly. Dieting this way, you should expect to lose up to 24 pounds in three months if you choose the more aggressive path or twelve pounds if you choose the more conservative path. Now you simply have to eat this amount according to the timing restrictions of intermittent fasting.
Intermittent fasting should help you lose fat in this way by making the caloric restriction that undergirds the whole process easier to maintain. You will be able to eat all your calories for the day in the 6-8 hour window during which you eat, and then you will not be too terribly hungry during the fasting window. Rinse and repeat until you have achieved the desired weight loss.
How Long Does it Take to Start Losing Weight While Fasting?
You should be able to notice changes within a week of starting tracking your calories and intermittent fasting. You will also likely notice that you are feeling better overall, as many proponents of intermittent fasting report greater mental clarity during the fasting portion of their day, as well as decreased bloating after the first week or so. These benefits compound with time, and you should find the intermittent fasting meal timing scheme easier to conform to over time.
What if Intermittent Fasting isn’t Enough for Me?
If intermittent fasting and calorie tracking alone aren’t enough for you to successfully lose body fat, then there are a number of cosmetic interventions that should make the process easier for you, with little to no effort on your part!
Radiofrequency Lipolysis
This cosmetic procedure involves the use of radio waves to heat fat deposits in the body until they are destroyed. This process is relatively similar to other similar procedures in that it is typically performed in a doctor’s office or in a hospital as an outpatient procedure. In this procedure, a device is placed approximately a centimeter from the body, and radio waves are fired into the chosen region of body fat. These radio waves penetrate the skin but do not damage it in any way, and they heat up the body fat in the area being treated until the fat cells themself are destroyed by the heat generated.
Called a permanent fat loss solution, as the fat cells are dead and gone after the procedure, radiofrequency lipolysis is something to consider if intermittent fasting alone is not enough for you. Additionally, a cooling device is typically applied at the same time as the radio waves are being fired to keep the skin cool and the patient comfortable. Common side effects include tenderness in the treated area, as well as some redness, although both should pass shortly.
Cryolipolysis
Fat freezing, or cryolipolysis is a cosmetic intervention in which extreme cold is used to destroy fat cells in the body. Typically, this is performed at a doctor’s office or hospital as an outpatient procedure, and it involves having the chosen region of fat placed in a “clamp,” which cools the area to freezing temperatures, permanently destroying the fat cells in the area while leaving the skin cells untouched. This is done to “contour” the body and target specific areas of body fat for removal. Unfortunately, this procedure carries a risk of something called paradoxical adipose hyperplasia, which is when instead of reducing the number of fat cells in the area, the amount actually multiples. For this reason, it is likely better to pursue procedures that do not carry this risk, such as laser lipolysis.
Laser Lipolysis
This procedure also referred to as “laser lipo,” involves the application of a low-intensity laser to the fat areas you wish to lose. Lasers can generate singular-directional light and heat to a minimal area. With laser lipo, the technician will target the cell with the laser. The laser penetrates the skin, reaches the targeted fat cells, and bores a tiny pore into the cellular membrane. In addition to creating a small hole, the laser emulsifies (melts) the lipids inside the cell, which allows them to seep through the pore.
The body’s lymphatic system then naturally disposes of the lipids. Emerald Laser by Erchonia works differently from other laser lipolysis methods. Emerald’s system uses ten 532 nanometer lasers to target fat cells. While the system allows the cells to drain, they remain intact. Other laser systems destroy the fat cells, which can lead to fatty deposits developing in other areas of the body.
Additionally, Emerald Laser is relatively painless when compared to other laser systems. Most patients don’t feel anything at all. Laser lipolysis is a minimally invasive weight loss method that targets body fat exclusively. It is innovative and relatively new. Laser lipolysis by Emerald Laser is the first FDA-approved laser lipolysis process.
Emerald Laser
Lose that pesky body fat you’ve been meaning to diet off for years, once and for all! Check out Emerald Laser to find a provider near you.
