Justin Grinnell
"Ever since we were kids we’re told by our parents that skipping meals is bad for you. Fasting was equal to starvation and only reserved for those who were practicing a discipline or religion.
But what if I told you that fasting is actually good for you? Trainers will extol the virtues of eating meals every two or three hours and how it increases your metabolic rate, improve sensitivity to insulin and give you a leaner, fitter physique in the end. No one dared challenge the fat loss claim of spacing smaller meals in an effort to curb hunger pangs- heavens forbid if you actually skipped a meal for any reason at all!
Just before I learned about intermittent fasting, people would approach me and say that they were absolutely famished by 10 am even when they ate breakfast earlier. Then, more and more people kept telling me that increasing meal frequency did little to curb their level of food satiety.
While it’s perfectly understandable that you skip breakfast because of excuses, e.g., lots of things to do in the morning, no time to prepare food or eat every couple of hours, I didn’t know better and kept telling my clients they had to stick with the lifestyle to see the results.
But then one day I just had to find the answer to why this was the case, and if I could do something about it. I stumbled upon a free ebook that gave me a deeper understanding of what intermittent fasting was all about. In fact, at one point in my life, I was actually doing intermittent fasting without even knowing it!
This is the story about why I chose intermittent fasting, the benefits and some different ways to go about doing it."
"The Benefits of Intermittent Fasting
Easy Caloric Restriction
Intermittent fasting goes against everything "small, frequent meals" represents, which can actually be better for you in the long run. Adopt the lifestyle and you can restrict your calories effectively and without having to deal with hunger pangs.
Better Appetite Control
Hunger is mostly a psychological factor than a physical one, which means you could be feeling famished but it’s not really food you want. Our body is a marvelous machine that can store more food and energy than you’d think, and it can survive skipping a meal or two and still work efficiently.
Yes, I know that IF can be difficult to follow at first, but that’s just your body making all these positive changes and veering away from the basic impulse to eat when stressed, tired, etc. Frequent eating has zero benefits- in fact, you’re tuning your body to give in to basic desires and become even hungrier.
More Productive
A study of young adults has shown that fewer calories may equal better productivity. The participants were given 300 calories a day over two days, and it was observed that they didn’t show any lapses when it came to cognitive performance and brain tests, e.g., reasoning, memory, reaction time, memorization and vigilance.
In another study caloric restriction is linked to better memory in aged adults.
Reduced Blood Sugar Levels
Managing your blood sugar is important because too much of it can lead to diabetes, obesity, insulin resistance and a host of other diseases. The fitness industry believes that 5 to 6 meals a day can effectively regulate blood sugar levels, but this isn’t the case.
Intermittent fasting, on the other hand, has been proven to reduce blood sugar levels anywhere between 15 to 30 percent, thereby making you more sensitive to insulin and encouraging the metabolic system to start burning fat.
Increased Fat Oxidation
Fat oxidation is the body’s ability to tap into stored fat for energy. This phenomenon often occurs when you’re exercising or spending time at the gym. It also happens in intermittent fasting, where you’ll burn calories from stored fat reserves.
Lower Inflammation and Eliminate Toxins
IF has been proven to be one of the fastest ways to speed up natural healing via lowering inflammation. Metabolic inflammation can cause all sorts of problems with your health, including unwanted weight gain and retention. It’s been said that about 50% of the US population are experiencing metabolic inflammation without being aware of the condition.
Boost Your Growth Hormone
The one thing I like about intermittent fasting is how I could boost my growth hormones naturally and begin burning fat at a faster rate than most diet lifestyles. Fasting activates a certain hormone made by the pituitary gland, which is responsible for cell regeneration and reproduction in both animals and humans.
Moreover, science has proven that growth hormones are arguably the best components for building muscle, looking young and burning unwanted fat. Its mechanism of action involves preventing the formation of fat cells and eliminating them at the source. Who doesn’t want that in their diet?
Say Goodbye to Hunger Pangs
How does fasting help with staving off hunger pangs? It all revolves around the hormone Ghrelin. A lot of diets are non-sustainable simply because they don’t have a way to deal with hunger and emotional eating. When mood swings, stress and irritability strikes, you unconsciously reach for that bag of potato chips or bottle of beer.
Ghrelin is mainly responsible for making you feel hungry, but there’s an upside to this if you can control the hormone. It’s a ‘mind over matter’ thing, and if you can stop eating when Ghrelin shows up in your system, the better off you will be. Growth hormones are at its highest when Ghrelin is present, so if you counteract the effects of the ‘hunger hormone’ you’ll be left with just the good stuff.
If all these benefits sound good to you, then you should try out intermittent fasting today!"