A pretty simple concept but one I have taken to like a duck to water. I was searching for something that would increase my energy, clear my brain fog and become my best self.
I stumbled upon intermittent fasting when I became an avid Bulletproof fan. Dave Asprey and his company Bulletproof, explore the concept of well sourced food, whilst using coffee with grass fed butter, as a staple to your diet.
I know what many of you may be thinking. But go with me on this. I have lost over a stone in weight whilst, also learning lots of new and exciting information about the body by following his teachings.
Intermittent fasting is eating within a structured time period. When your not in your hours of food window, you fast, meaning that you don’t eat! It sounds harder than it is and I must say, it actually has some amazing benefits to the body.
Since I started, I haven’t felt hungry at all and have lost weight. Whilst becoming more centred and finding time for other new exciting things in my life. It has given me a new perspective, one that isn’t based only around food, what to eat and when to eat it.
When you fast, you eat within a shortened window of time throughout your day, every day. I don’t have breakfast, my first meal is around 12.30-13.00pm and I stop eating between 8-9pm. Each day my eating window is around 8 hours.
During my fast I only drink water or Bulletproof coffee. I do love coffee. What makes it better is that I invested in a good coffee machine and amazing coffee to go with it.
I could never have imagined myself drinking coffee accompanied with butter before. But when I found Bulletproof, which is clear of mould toxins (that you find in around 80% of other coffee brands in the market), it totally changed my world.
Weight management is a great place to start with intermittent fasting. A lot of our clients come to us and say;
”how do you fast without feeling hungry”
”how do you start” and ”how does it help you loose weight”?
When you start to think of an eating window it can be quite daunting to begin with. Most people are so used to eating breakfast. Whether it be a quick bit of toast or sitting with the family before work, and having a collection of foods. What we try to install into people is that intermitting fasting isn’t a diet.
A diet is what you feed your body with. You are what you eat. If you feed your body with sugar throughout your eight hour window, you will not see much of a change in your body. Other than, putting on weight, feeling fatigued and being filled with inflammation. Not to mention, a shortened temper and concentration span.
When done correctly, intermittent fasting will regulate insulin levels, protect the body against disease and allow you to become an optimum weight.
Your body uses glucose for its energy. When you only eat within a shortened time from, your body has to then learn a new way to store and use its energy. Once it has used the available glucose, it will then turn to fat for its energy sources. This is referred to as Ketosis. Ketosis has a whole host of studies behind it outlining prevention of insulin and leptin resistance.
One my favourite benefits of intermittent fasting is that it can help to reduce cellular waste.
Your cells accumulate waste overtime. That waste can interfere with the natural functionality of your cells. Fasting promotes a natural process in which our bodies go through called ”Authophagy”. The cycle that happens, when your body clears out its waste so that the body can function at its optimal state.
Intermittent Fasting contributes to healthy aging. This means that it can help protect your cadiovasular system. And how you manage blood sugar to support your bodies aging. It supports your mood, creates a more balanced lifestyle, and can even protect against disease.
We were not designed to graze on foods through the day at all. Giving the body a well deserved rest at certain times on some days, allows the body to recoupe its energy levels. And use food for what it was always intedned for, energy. It can combat the waste in your body and leave you feeling lighter, more reseliant inside and out.
When you eat too many carbs and sugar, your body can’t keep up with it, let alone your pancreas. (the bodies support system to produce the hormone called insulin). If your not carful, you could send your body into a frenzie. It can not cope with the amount of sugar that you put in, meaning that, you feel tired and have insulin resisitance.
When you give your body that well needed rest from food, it has time to rest its levels. Your glucose levels remain stable without spiking. And this enables your body to maintain weight and promote longevity.
There are many different types of fasting:
Fasting 3 – 5 days a week, restricting your calories on week days to around 500 – 600 per day. Then eating ‘normally’ over the weekend.
I personally don’t like this approach. Because your are tricking your body into a routine then, you throw a pizza in there on Saturday and the body has to cope with it.
Lots of bodybuilders use this type of method to cut weight. They do it so drastically that over the weekend, they consume more calories than they do Monday to Friday.
I like to keep my body on a level playing field and allow it to work with me each day. The odd bad meal isn’t the end of the world. But I promise you, when you start fasting, see and feel the benefits, you won’t deviate because you won’t feel the need too. You will feel so great every day that you will say no thank you to the ice cream and vanilla latte.
One meal a day – this method is quite popular in certain cultures. It means that you eat all of your calories in one meal. Again, I appreciate this method, but its not my personal choice. I believe it can leave big gaps for people to fall off the wagon and not reap the real benefits of fasting day in day out. I also wouldn’t recommend that you only eat one meal every day forever more.
My personal favourite is the 16:8 method meaning you eat within an eight hour window and fast for the rest of the time. I dont do this every day. I do it every other day. On the days off from fasting i usually have a high fat breakfast. The things I usually put on my plate are a mixture of: Eggs, avocado, wild caught salmon, collagen protein and grass-fed bone broth.
I have a Bulletproof coffee in the morning with grass fed butter. Due to the amount of quality fats from specific butter and MCT oil
I don’t switch on my digestion at all. If your products are well sourced like mine, this means that you wont be breaking your fast. Plus, you will be fuelling your body in the right way. My personal favourite as you may have guessed, is the Bulletproof method.
I use Dave’s products daily and have followed him for years. My first meal will be around 13.00pm and I aim to stop eating at 20.00pm. If I know I have a busy day full of meetings, I do alter the eating window from time to time but I never break the 16/8 ratio.
I have seen huge benefits for myself, and can say that I never feel hungry on this type of plan. I am more energetic, clearer focused and have a natural WANT to get up and go – every day. This deters me from any takeaway or bad food. I simply, don’t want it.
You should make sure that your ingreadients are well sourced. Too many coffee companies trick us into thinking they are clear and have no toxins attached to them. But I can tell you my friends, that isn’t the truth. If you start intermittent fasting and have a normal coffee with milk you will be breaking your fast. And causing more harm to your body than good. Of course, you don’t have to have a coffee at all. You can only drink water in the hours of fasting, you decide but try it out and see how you get on.
We would always advise that you to speak to a health care professional first, before trying any of these methods.
