Ever heard of the term intermittent fasting diet? In fact, intermittent fasting is one method to change your diet and lifestyle by limiting the time you eat. Unlike other diet programs that generally require you to reduce your calorie intake or completely stop eating certain food groups, intermittent fasting only divides your diet into two time windows: mealtime and fasting time. Don't be afraid when you hear the word "fasting"! In this diet program, sleep time can also be included in the fasting time window, you know. Interested in doing it? First of all, choose a method that feels right for you. After that, commit to this method and try to balance it with exercise to reduce inflammation in body tissues, lose weight, and build muscle.
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Part 1 of 3: Making a Diet Plan
Step 1. Consult your wishes with a doctor
Explain why you want to try an intermittent fasting diet and ask your doctor for advice. Make sure you also convey the various drugs that are being consumed and/or health problems that are being experienced.
- An intermittent fasting diet can have a dramatic impact on your daily metabolism. Therefore, a person who is experiencing health problems or women who are pregnant should not do so without the supervision of a doctor.
- Warning: Generally, people with type 1 diabetes will find it difficult to maintain their insulin levels when on an intermittent fasting diet, especially because this diet program requires a person to reduce the frequency of eating quite drastically.
Step 2. Choose an eating schedule that you can stick to
By following an intermittent fasting diet, it means that you need to stop eating for a certain period of time (usually for 16-20 hours or even 23 hours per day). In other words, you only have a 1-8 hour window to eat each day! In addition to losing weight, following an intermittent fasting diet is also able to better manage your daily food intake. First of all, make sure you choose one diet method and stick to it consistently (for example, eating only two meals a day). If necessary, set an alarm to remind you that it's time for your second (and last) meal.
Step 3. Determine the method of fasting
In addition, make sure the method and schedule of fasting you choose is able to meet the body's daily calorie needs (2,000 calories for men and 1,500 calories for women). Periodically or occasionally, eat snacks that contain 20-30 calories or less such as a few sticks of carrots or celery, a quarter of an apple, 3 cherries/grapes/raisins, 2 biscuits, or 30 grams of chicken/fish until the fasting time is over.. In fact, what distinguishes one method from another is the time or dining window chosen. Some of the methods you can choose from are:
- One meal per day: This method requires you to fast for 23 hours and only eat healthy and filling food for 1 hour per day (eg, from 6-7 pm).
- Eat two meals per day: Every day, make sure you eat healthy meals with complete and filling portions for two times, for example at 12 noon and 5 pm. After that, fast for 17 hours after the second meal. Go to bed at night, and don't eat breakfast until your fast is over.
- No food for two days: Don't eat any food on Mondays and Tuesdays, but make sure you eat healthy and filling meals on the other five days. In other words, your last meal will be on a Sunday, at the latest at 8 p.m. This method is known as the 5:2 diet which means 5 days to eat and 2 days to fast.
Step 4. Reduce daily calorie consumption
If you usually always eat 2,000-3,000 calories per day, try to reduce it a little. As much as possible, do not consume more than 1,500-2,000 calories each day. To achieve this goal, try to increase the consumption of complex carbohydrates and avoid simple carbohydrate sources such as white bread and white noodles. Also consume less fat to keep the body energized!
- In one to two meals that are not too long, you should be able to meet the daily calorie needs.
- Do not worry. Cutting calories is actually not as difficult as you might think, especially since you have limited time to eat during the week.
Step 5. Don't drastically change your diet
When on an intermittent fasting diet, you don't need to completely stop eating one food group (such as carbohydrates or fats). As long as your intake is healthy, balanced, and doesn't exceed 2,000 calories per day, you can actually eat any food. Remember, what the intermittent fasting diet changes is your eating schedule, not the type of food you eat.
To maintain a healthy and balanced diet, you must reduce the consumption of foods that are processed, contain refined sugar, and are high in sodium. Instead, try to eat more healthy protein (meat, poultry, and fish), fruit and vegetables, and moderate portions of healthy carbohydrates each day
Part 2 of 3: Following the Fasting Schedule
Step 1. Make the necessary adjustments
If you're not used to fasting, your body will definitely be surprised the first time you start an intermittent fasting diet. In other words, chances are your appetite and body systems will work in different ways. So that the dieting process feels more comfortable, try fasting for one day first after eating food for a whole week. In addition, you can also shorten the fasting time between two meals. By doing so, the body will detoxify slowly so that unpleasant symptoms (such as headaches, low blood pressure, and fatigue) can be minimized.
- At the beginning of the dieting process, you can still occasionally eat light snacks. Do not worry. One serving of snacks containing about 100 calories of protein and fat such as nuts, cheese, etc. will not affect the effectiveness of your fast. Once your body gets used to it, try reducing your snack intake.
- Over time, start reducing your consumption of processed foods (including processed meats, dairy products, and/or soda) gradually.
Step 2. Eat your last meal before fasting
At this stage, avoid the temptation to eat large portions of fast food, processed foods, and high-sugar snacks! Instead, try to increase the consumption of vegetables, fruit, and protein to maintain the body's energy levels. An example of an appropriate final meal is a combination of cooked chicken breast, a slice of garlic bread, and a lettuce bowl consisting of romaine lettuce, sliced onions, and vinaigrette sauce.
- Some people choose to eat as much as possible before fasting. Although not prohibited, understand that by following this strategy, the body will need more time to process food and less time to adapt to the "fast or eat nothing phase".
- Eat a heavy meal that is complete and filling before starting the fast. Don't just eat foods high in sugar and carbohydrates because they won't keep you full for a long time.
- Eat as much protein and fat as possible. Be careful, reducing fat and calorie intake can make you feel constantly hungry while fasting.
Step 3. Fast on your bedtime
By doing so, your body and mind will "sleep" so you are no longer tempted to eat something. Therefore, make sure you always sleep at least 8 hours every night, and set aside a few hours in it for fasting. By doing so, you will not feel hungry when you wake up because you will be eating a heavy meal in the near future.
The first/main meal after fasting is a “gift” for your body. Since the body will be really hungry after fasting, make sure you eat a heavy meal that is complete and filling
Step 4. Keep the body well hydrated
Even though most of the time in one day you will spend fasting, that doesn't mean you have to stop drinking. In fact, you should actually drink as much as you can to ensure that your system continues to function properly during fasting. Make sure you only drink drinks that do not contain calories such as water and herbal teas.
Filling your stomach with fluids will also prevent you from starving while fasting
Part 3 of 3: Losing Weight Through Intermittent Fasting Diet
Step 1. Define your personal goals
Following an intermittent fasting diet is very effective at reducing your daily calorie intake and allowing your body to burn excess fat more effectively. As a result, your weight will be reduced because of it. Why is that? In fact, reducing the time spent eating will increase the body's metabolism and therefore, the fat burning process will take place more effectively. In addition, intermittent fasting will also reduce the amount of inflammation or inflammation found in body tissues.
- Having personal goals will also motivate you to increase your mental strength while fasting.
- Limiting the time you eat is effective in preventing your weight from increasing excessively.
- Burning bad fats has the potential to increase the duration of your life.
Step 2. Increase muscle mass and reduce fat mass while fasting
In fact, intermittent fasting is a very good opportunity to build muscle, you know! Therefore, try to take the time to exercise right before your first meal. If you decide to eat two meals a day, try exercising between the two meals. In this way, the body will burn calories more effectively! That's why you need to eat about 60% of your daily calories right after your workout. To maintain a healthy body and increase muscle mass, try adjusting your calorie intake to your body weight. If you want to reduce it, don't waste more than 10 calories!
For example, a man weighing 80 kg should consume at least 1,800 calories per day balanced with moderate-intensity exercise to keep his body healthy. Be careful, drastically reducing calorie intake will actually threaten your health and prevent the formation of your body's muscles
Step 3. Adjust the type of exercise with the results you want
The type of exercise you can do while on intermittent fasting really depends on the desired result. If you just want to lose weight, try focusing on doing aerobic and cardiovascular exercise. But if you want to build muscle, try to focus more on weight training.
- If you just want to lose weight, focus on doing aerobic or cardiovascular exercise for a long time.
- If you want to build muscle, focus on doing weight training for a short duration. Generally, sports outside of aerobics such as lifting weights and resistance exercise (body resistance) are only done for a short duration and do not have the potential to increase heart rate drastically.
Tips
Once you've decided to stick to an intermittent fasting diet, try to keep your commitments to the best of your ability. At the beginning of the process, you will most likely feel various uncomfortable symptoms because your body is detoxifying and adjusting to the changes in your diet
Warning
- Generally, temporary symptoms of detoxification that accompany dietary changes are headache, nausea, always feeling hungry, bloating or edema, constipation, increased mucus volume, dry, cracked skin, or fatigue. Supposedly, these symptoms will subside by itself over time.
- For those of you who have a history of eating disorders, you should be careful when running an intermittent fasting diet program. If necessary, ask someone to help monitor your diet and make sure your fasting is not too extreme.
