You’ve probably heard of intermittent fasting at one point in your life, particularly when you are trying to lose weight. Following a diet program is all well and good but let’s face it, how many of us actually get to stick with it? If you are one of the numerous people who can’t seem to achieve their weight loss goals through regular means, why not try the intermittent fasting? Intermittent fasting, as the name suggests, is limiting your consumption of calories to specific hours of the day and having shorter eating hours. An example of this is going on a 16 hour fast with 8 hours of eating window.
Are there any benefits to doing intermittent fasting? Well, there are several to be exact. Here are a few that you should take note of.
Convenient
There is no denying that intermittent fasting is one of the most convenient ways for you to lose weight since you don’t have to prepare a lot of food unlike those who are following a set diet. All that you have to do is to stick to your eating window hours, choose healthy foods in the process, and fast afterwards.
Remove excess weight and belly fat
Another advantage to doing intermittent fasting is that it can actually help you lose weight since you are limiting your calorie intake. And because of this, your hormones are enhanced considerably where they can help break down the stored fats particularly around your midsection. Going on intermittent fasting can raise your metabolic rate up to 14%!
Prevents overeating
Intermittent fasting actually stops you from overeating especially at night. Most of us tend to have midnight snacks which are not easily digested before we go to bed which is why they are converted into fats. Through fasting, your calorie consumption will be limited to a few hours which will then keep you from bingeing at night.
Reduce insulin resistance
What else can you get from intermittent fasting? Well, it can reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes because it lowers your insulin resistance. Those who fast have lower blood sugar levels compared to those who don’t. This actually protects them from acquiring Type 2 diabetes. However, the effects of intermittent fasting can vary from one person to the next so you might want to keep an eye on your blood sugar levels especially when you have a family history of having diabetes.
Boost productivity levels
Another plus to fasting is that your productivity levels will go up because you don’t have to spend time preparing your meals according to the recent diet that you are following. Those who fast tend to have more time doing their work which they find better compared to skipping hours of work just to make sure that you don’t deviate from the strict diet rules that you are following.
Fights inflammation and oxidative stress
Oxidative stress is one of the components of aging as well as acquiring various diseases. The free radicals that are present in our body are the ones that cause damage thus speeding up aging. It appears that intermittent fasting can actually fight off oxidative damage as well as inflammation in the body which mean that you will be well protected against various illnesses and premature aging.
As you can see, intermittent fasting has its perks. It is up to you to decide what type of fasting you want to follow to achieve your desired results.
