Everything you need to consider before practicing intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting, or fasting , is a very effective method for losing weight in a short time . It basically consists of skipping certain meals so that the body begins to use the reserves it accumulates over time.

This is a technique that you cannot overuse. This means that, although you are going to stop eating for a certain period of time, you should also consider having a completely balanced diet. So in this article, I will explain how you can do it correctly and the different protocols that exist.

What is intermittent fasting and what is it for?

Intermittent fasting is a method that will allow you to lose weight quickly. This can be done by skipping certain meals during the day, or by not eating for a certain number of hours. You can adopt this method if you want to achieve results such as:

• Lose weight quickly, just by making your body use the reserves that are accumulated.
• Increase your muscle mass. Although intermittent fasting will not have much to do with increasing your muscles, you can help yourself with exercise. This will allow your body's triglyceride reserves to be consumed quickly and your muscles to have more energy to repair and grow.

Types of healthy intermittent fasting routines you can follow

These are the healthy fasting protocols that you can start to follow . Of course, keeping in mind that you should not, under any circumstances, increase the hours of fasting or the days that we will discuss below.

Fasting for 12 hours a day

In principle, it is best to set aside 12 hours a day, during which time you do not consume any type of food. The reason is because the body requires between 10 and 16 hours to start using the reserves. You can do this routine every day . Also, when you eat, you should make sure that it is something healthy and low in fat or sugar.

Do not eat anything daily for 16 hours

As I mentioned before, 12 hours is a good fasting time. However, to achieve the best results, 16 hours is the ideal time . But here you should not be confused, to go from 12 to 16 hours, you must first get your body used to the simplest routine, then everything will go well. It is also a daily routine.

Fast for 24 hours once a week

Not eating for 24 hours is also a habit that encourages the body to lose weight quickly. However, this should only be done once a week. On the other hand, to be able to satisfy yourself a little during this period, it is advisable to drink some tea, maybe a bulletproof coffee is ideal, or water in prudent quantities.

Fasting twice a week

This routine doesn't mean that you will stop eating food for 2 days. What it means is that:

• You will eat completely normal food for 5 days , but the other two days, you will only consume between 400 to 600 calories.
• You will complement this habit with a good amount of exercise . If you do not exercise with this method, the changes will not be noticeable.

Alternating day fasting

Exactly the same as the 2-day protocol, but this time it will be a normal day and another day consuming only 500 or 600 calories a day . You can start this routine after you get used to the two-day fast.

Skip meals occasionally

If you are a beginner, you can choose to start with this method. The reason is that you are simply going to skip one of the three meals of the day . But this, taking into account that the other two should be very nutritious. On the other hand, it is a recommendation and a warning that breakfast is one of the meals that you should never skip.

Recommendations for doing a good fasting or intermittent fasting

Here are some recommendations to ensure that your fasting or intermittent fasting is carried out without complications and gives you the best results.

1. First, regulate your diet. Starting fasting to lose weight quickly is a bad idea if you are not eating properly. The first thing you should do is start eating all kinds of foods, but in a balanced way. This way, you will not put your body into a deficit and nothing bad will happen.
2. Choose the protocol that suits you best. Here, you need to consider both of your motives: losing weight or gaining muscle mass. So, to lose weight it is better to fast for longer. While if you want to gain muscle, daily low-calorie routines are ideal.
3. Control your insulin levels. Insulin is responsible for delivering energy to your cells. Very low levels of it are not healthy at all. So if this happens, break the fast and eat something healthy. It is highly recommended to keep insulin levels stable by drinking a glass of water with lemon in the morning.
4. Learn to control your anxiety. It's no secret that you'll feel very hungry during the first few days of fasting. If this is too difficult for you, you can start with 8 hours of fasting and then work up to 12 or 16. Then, you can easily start with 24-hour routines. One of the most effective tips I can give you is to progress little by little. This way, you'll avoid any medical complications.
5. Improve the quality of your meals before or after fasting. Continuing with the first point, I have two things to tell you. The first is that the food before fasting should be nutritious, but in small quantities. On the other hand, the post-fasting food should be a little heavier, but still nutritious and healthy. Never come out of a fast eating junk food, because you throw away everything you have achieved.
6. Regulate your water intake. One of the most common mistakes people make when fasting is to start drinking excessive amounts of water. Although the body is mostly made up of water, consuming too much water without other nutrients can lead to intoxication. So the maximum recommended amount is 5 glasses or two liters per day.