The Magic of Intermittent Fasting Fat Loss
I will bet a gross amount of money that at least a couple times a year you’ve woken up, saw yourself in the mirror, perhaps shirtless, perhaps even in your birthday suit. This could have been followed by a trip to the scale. This scale may or may not have been covered with dust depending on the level of intimacy you have with your scale. You stepped on the scale but not before a feeling dread came over you as if you’re leaning over the edge from the top of El Capitan. Long story short, we could all benefit from losing a pound or two or three. The problem always ends up being how. The world is chock-full of diets and gurus touting the next day. Intermittent fasting for fat loss is not that. Intermittent fasting for fat loss doesn’t require any magic gear, you can still have that Chipotle for lunch and it doesn’t require some grueling regimen that will have you quitting by the time the weekend rolls around.
How Intermittent Fasting Helps Fat Loss: Calories
Before we dive into intermittent fasting fat loss lets first dive into fat loss in general. Our bodies have fundamental caloric needs. Those calories fuel essential life support such as your cardiovascular system i.e. your lungs and heart. Those calories also fuel basic brain functions as well as the functioning of vital organs. We’ve also heard the old adage of “you need calories to burn calories ‘. That’s right, we also need calories in order to fuel the process of digestion which helps us use calories for fuel. On top of survival calories, our daily lives require calories for going to work, school, running errands, and our workouts. Boiling this down, fat loss comes down to calories in versus calories out. If we’re eating fewer calories than we need on a daily basis, we’re in a caloric deficit. If we’re eating more calories than we need, we’re in a caloric surplus. Caloric deficits equal fat loss and a caloric surplus, you guessed it, equals fat gain. Intermittent fasting fat loss works by limiting calories via consuming all your calories in a shorter timeframe than “normal.” Intermittent fasting fat loss is a result of a simple but effective approach because the less frequently you eat, the less hungry you get, and the more full you get which makes it harder to overeat. Can you overeat when intermittent fasting? Absolutely. Which is why I teach my clients macro nutrition and how to make larger meals for fewer calories. I love it when I take on a new client and they post in The Blake Diet community that they couldn’t finish their fat loss meal. Great problem to have!
Image: Photo by Lisa Fotios from Pexels