There’s a lot to learn before you jump on this diet train

Intermittent fasting is getting a lot of attention now, in part because of several viral videos of buff men and women eating a day’s worth of calories in one sitting. The most intriguing part? They mostly consume junk. 

What is intermittent fasting?

Some argue that intermittent fasting is simply a pattern of eating. The practice doesn’t require you to change what you eat at all – it’s all about when you eat.

What are the types?

Alternate Day: Following a 24-hour fasting period with 24-hours of non-fasting. Extreme, yes, but reportedly incredibly effective.

Whole Day: Having minimum calories – around 500 – within the day and following this with a day of regular food consumption. The cycle just continues.

Time Restricted: The day is split into an 8-hour window of eating and a 12-hour window of non-eating.

What are the benefits?

No calorie cutting: There’s no room for calorie cutting here. You can eat as much as you want – unless you’re doing the Whole Day type of intermittent fasting.

No diet food: The genius of intermittent fasting is that you don’t have to stick to fruits, vegetables and under-seasoned protein. You can still eat what you want to eat.

Burn fat easily: Because of the eating windows, the body is able to burn fat more efficiently. This is because there is a longer period of time that you are in your fasted state, wherein it is easier to burn bad fat.

Is it for you?

Think about your lifestyle and consider whether or not you can survive on these windows. If you need to stay awake and energetic for most of the day, drop this. But if your hours are flexible, pick it up and try it out.