Intermittent Fasting 101

Unless you have been living under a rock, you have probably heard of intermittent 
fasting. This is being mentioned everywhere, from social media sites to health TV 
shows like Dr. Oz. If you read a weight loss, fitness, or health blog, you will most likely 
see it mentioned often there as well. Intermittent fasting is a new way of eating that 
promotes weight loss, fat burning, muscle building, and many other health benefits 
through a very simple eating pattern. Here is more information about intermittent fasting 
so that you can decide if it is a good option for you.

IF is a Pattern of Eating

Many people call intermittent fasting a diet, but it is rather a pattern of eating or dieting 
for optimal success. It teaches you a lot, including how to listen to your body’s hunger 
signals, and to follow a healthy pattern of eating. You are following a specific pattern 
each day, where you only eat during a shorter block of time, fasting for the rest of the 
day, except for having coffee, tea, and water. This pattern helps your body to burn food 
more quickly, so that there is more time for burning fat. 

There are Different Protocols

The next thing you will learn about intermittent fasting is that there isn’t just one way to 
do it, but several methods or protocols to choose from. It is very flexible, so you can 
look at the different methods and choose which one works best for your schedule and 
your lifestyle. Here are some popular IF protocols people like to turn to:

16:8/LeanGains – This is a popular option, allowing you to eat for 8 hours, then fast for 
16 hours. You try to do it as often as possible. It can be done every day of the week.
5:2 – The 5:2 diet requires you to eat how you normally would 5 days out of the week, 
then have 2 alternating days of the week where you fast for 24 hours. You can often 
have a low amount of calories on fasted days, up to 500-600 calories.

Warrior Diet – With the warrior diet, you go 24 hours between eating, having just one 
large meal at the end of every fasted day.

Eat-Stop-Eat/24-Hour – This is similar to 5:2, except you may only go 24 hours once a 
week. You also don’t have the calories, but a full fasting day with only water, coffee, or 
tea.

Tips for Starting Intermittent Fasting

Here are a few quick tips that can make this transition easier for you:
Pick your protocol first, then do plenty of planning. You want to make sure you know 
when you will eat, what to eat, and how much.

Don’t go extreme on the first day. It is best to start with the lesser protocols, like a 12-2 
or 16-8 where you still have a pretty lengthy window of eating. Wait a bit before you go 
to the 24-hour fasting protocols.

Listen to your body. The intermittent fasting method you are using might not work good 
for you, so if you notice bad side effects, go back to your normal way of eating.
