Intermittent fasting is a technique that has been of much discussion in the health and fitness community for decades, with many people debating whether food timing has a direct impact on body composition. As well as collecting research from various sources, over the years we have have tried to implement the technique into our regime to see what all the fuss is about. We have came up with a list of benefits and disadvantages that we want to discuss so you can have a better understanding about intermittent fasting and you can decide whether it suits your own personal lifestyle and fitness goals.
Firstly, the term 'intermittent fasting' refers to a technique that focuses on the influence of food timing. When implemented into an individual's regime, they are to consume all of their calories within one eating window and then fast (consuming no food or drink that contributes to energy consumption) during the other window. This technique offers an alternative to the generic way of eating in which individuals are encouraged to eat three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. The most popular form of intermittent fasting is the 16:8 split, which the individual is required to fast for 16 hours of their day and eat all of their calories during the 8 hours. Some people, however, do find that the 5:2 split is better suited, as they are required to consume all of their calories for the week within a 5 day window and consume no calories for the other 2 days.
There is no right way to implement intermittent fasting into your diet as it all just depends on convenience and how it suits your lifestyle. Timing of exercise, work life and social life are all different factors that could influence which type of fasting best aligns with your lifestyle.
Benefits
1. Speed up rate of fat loss.
The majority of people who implement the use of intermittent fasting in their lifestyle tend to have the goal of fat loss, as it has been scientifically argued that the technique enables the individual to use their fat stores as a primary source of energy for the body.
Image: metaflow.co
The above image is one that I found helpful in giving an understanding on the matter. Rather than use glycogen as a primary source of energy, the body will automatically collect energy from the fat stores in the body. Alternatively, when an individual's carbohydrates stores are full, which can occur when an individual eats throughout the day, then the excess glycogen gets passed around the body and turned into fat.
2. Easier to track calories and macronutrients.
Despite not having a direct influence on fat loss, most nutritionists and bodybuilders would agree that intermittent fasting is a useful technique for effective diet management and limiting food intake.
We find that sometimes it is frustrating when trying to track our calories and micronutrients throughout the day when eating first thing in the morning, and eating last thing at night. This is because it is easier to forget things, which can sabotage our final calorie count. For example, the biscuit that we pinched in the staff room at work or the lattes that we drink during meetings could add up to an extra 400 calories to our count. We like to refer to these types of foods as 'empty calories' as they are predominately caused by boredom or procrastination and are not needed as fuel for the body. As well as adding extra calories to the count, snacks that are consumed throughout the day generally tend to not be as nutritious, often containing high numbers of carbohydrates and fats rather than proteins.
When we implemented the technique into our regime, we found that we were able to tackle some of these problems from hindering our progress. Not being able to eat during a certain window of the day meant that we weren't adding 'empty calories' into our diet as our meals were split into two meals rather than five. We were able to count and track the types of food we were eating and the numbers involved in relation to their nutrition.
3, Larger and more satisfying meals.
Saving up calories during fasting periods is advantageous for those who prefer to eat larger and more filling meals. Eating during one period of the day still enables the individual to meet their dietary requirements but just in a much smaller time frame. By doing this, it is more likely for the individual to be left feeling satisfied with the content of the food they consumed, as well as feeling fuller for longer due to eating larger quantities of food all at once.
This does, however, involve sacrificing any food or drink consumption during the fasting periods which may not suit certain individuals especially those who get hungry or 'hangry' whenever they haven't eaten in an hour (you know who you are). If this sounds like you then we would advise you to carry on reading and take a look at the disadvantages of intermittent fasting that is discussed later on in the article.
4. Time convenient.
In 2019 it seems like time is more precious now more than ever because of the fast paced world that we are living in. Balancing work life, family life and a social life is hard enough, so it is easy to see why food and nutrition may be hard to prioritise throughout the day. Eating three to five meals a day can be time consuming, due to the preparation, cooking and consuming of meals when simply there isn't enough time. Alternatively, intermittent fasting gives a different approach to food that could solve these issues.
When implementing it into your lifestyle, intermittent fasting can save you time during the night time or the morning, dependent on whenever suits you best. If you work during the day and have to get up early in the morning in a rush for work, then fasting can save you that extra time you'd normally spend making an omelette or any other nutritious meal. Fasting opens up time slots that normally you'd spend eating, and instead enables you to be more productive and get stuff done. An increase in productivity means most probably an increase in your stress levels and so forth; it acts as a domino effect and can have many benefits to your overall wellbeing.
Disadvantages
1. Hungry for larger periods of the day.
It seems pretty obvious that when implementing intermittent fasting into your diet you are bound to be hungry for longer periods than you would normally when eating smaller meals throughout the day. This may not be a problem for some people, and especially those who tend to have a low calorie maintenance limit. However, for those who have a larger maintenance calorie limit then this could be problematic and cause a list of other negative impacts that we discuss in the latter parts of this article.
On the other hand, this point could be argued with as the human body is adaptable to it's surroundings and able to suit whatever system or foods that we put in place for it. The body is meant to adapt after approximately two weeks, where it is likely to succumb to the hunger during fasting periods and find it much easier to deal with in comparison to the beginning stages of the fast.
2. Negative impact on social life.
Even if you are fasting and eating during one period of the day, your friends and family may not be and this can be problematic when it comes to your social life. Activities with your close friends or relatives do tend to involve eating or drinking, whether it is attending a birthday meal or going to the local pub for a drink. This may mean that you have to avoid events that you have been invited to, or attend them and face interrogation from your friends and family judging your dietary choices. It all depends on the individual's lifestyle, and whether they are socially active or surrounded by people who respect their choices. This is something to consider prior to choosing intermittent fasting as a viable dietary technique.
The good thing about intermittent fasting, however, is that it is extremely flexible and can be tailored to suit the individual dependent on their lifestyle. For example, if an individual is socially active on a weekend and enjoys a late night drink with their friends and family, then they can adjust their fast by implementing a 5:2 split into their diet by fasting during 2 days of the week such as Tuesday and Thursday, then leaving their weekends free to boogie and enjoy a nice cold pint without necessarily 'breaking the fast'.
3. Bad breath.
When we chew our food, we produce saliva in the mouth which helps the food slide down our oesophagus but also has other benefits such as making our breath smell nicer. Alternatively, when our saliva is not passed around the mouth throughout the day like we're not eating food then we are susceptible to bacteria building in the mouth and as a result it can cause a strong grotesque smell that no body likes to smell in the office on a Monday morning.
This isn't the worst thing in the world as sugar free chewing gum can help cover the smell, but we wanted to just point it out (give you a little heads up) before you start your fast and go on a date without a pack of gum.
4. Mood swings and lack of sleep.
Remember when I mentioned you in point number one? When I talked about people who get angry or 'hangry' when they haven't eaten in an hour? This is what I was talking about. For some people, not eating or drinking for more than hour causes huge negative effects on their mental health by having excessive mood swings which can derive from stress, anger, worry or depression. As well as this, a lack of food more specifically later on the in the day and prior to sleeping can cause some people to suffer with insomnia and affect an individual's sleeping pattern.
Mood swings and sleeping patterns may have an indirect impact on an individual's personality and therefore have negatives effects on work, family and social life. If this is the case, then we would advise to definitely not implement the technique to your regime as at 'MindandMuscle' we believe family and work should be prioritised over body composition.
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