Intermittent Fasting, an Introduction
Episode #1 of the course The beginner’s guide to intermittent fasting by Theo Brenner-Roach
Welcome to the course and thanks for joining.
I’m Theo, the founder of and blogger at Lift Learn Grow. I live and breathe all things fitness, nutrition, and mindset.
Together over the next ten lessons, we’ll cover everything you need to know about intermittent fasting (IF*), and by the end of the course, you’ll not only know what it is and how to use it, but you’ll also know:
• the benefits of using IF
• how to work out when fasting
• if it affects men and women differently
• how to get more from your fast
• an example fasting day setup (that you can use)
• the science behind it all
Today’s lesson will ease you into the topic and give you a bird’s-eye view of intermittent fasting, what it is, why you should try it, and how to do it.
Then, from tomorrow, we’ll get into the meat of the topic, and after ten lessons, you’ll be ready to go.
What Is IF?
Intermittent fasting is not just a way of eating, it’s a lifestyle.
It’s performed by hundreds of thousands of people all around the world and has revolutionized the way people (including me) view dieting, meal timing, and the act of fasting.
But what it is?
Simply put, IF is a way of eating that has you split your day (or week) into two distinct periods:
• a fasting period
• a feeding period
During the fasting period/s (the majority of which is usually done when you’re sleeping), you will abstain from eating any food or drinking anything that has calories in it.
This means you can drink things like water, black coffee or tea, and zero-calorie beverages (we’ll cover additional tips in a later lesson).
Then during your feeding period/s, you would consume your day’s calories in whatever structure works best for you (more on this later too).
One of the great things about IF is that it doesn’t set limitations on what you eat but instead, sets restrictions on when you can eat it.
But Why Do It?
It’s a good question.
I’ll be the first to tell you that IF is not magical or necessarily superior for fat loss than any other diet, BUT (and it’s a big but) it offers several key benefits that most other diets do not:
• It reduces decision fatigue and simplifies your day.
• It helps you lose fat in two key ways.
• It saves you time, which can be spent doing other things you love.
• It gives you increased nutritional freedom, which improves diet adherence.
It’s for these reasons, among others, that IF has changed my lifestyle and is, by far, my preferred method of eating.
Great, How Do You Do It?
Like most good things, there are many different approaches when it comes to IF; however, they generally fall into two categories:
• daily intermittent fasting
• weekly intermittent fasting
Daily intermittent fasting, as the name suggests, sees you split each day into two parts: a fasting window and a feeding window.
On the other hand, weekly intermittent fasting sees you split your week into two different parts: fasting days and feeding days.
As you might imagine, there are pros and cons to each one, and choosing what’s best for you comes down to a variety of factors, but fear not: We will cover all of this in tomorrow’s lesson.
Until then.
Recommended book
The Obesity Code: Unlocking the Secrets of Weight Loss by Dr. Jason Fung et al.
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