Raise your hand if you’ve heard about intermittent fasting by now. Everyone has, right?
But, like with many health strategies, the information out there is often conflicting or confusing. Everywhere you look there seems to be a new book about intermittent fasting, or a new fasting plan.
It’s hard to find the facts about exactly what intermittent fasting can do to improve your health, and exactly what sort of fasting strategy is right for you. So, let’s cut through all the noise and get down to the straight talk:
Q: What does Intermittent fasting actually do for my body?
A: Studies are ongoing, but early research shows that intermittent fasting can produce a wonderful bunch of benefits.
It can help with inflammation, which is one of the underlying causes of heart disease and Alzheimer’s. It can help with energy levels, and it may even be able to help you live longer.
But the #1 benefit for most people of intermittent fasting is that it can help with insulin resistance. It simply helps your body process sugar better, because it is giving your body rest periods where it isn’t constantly being asked to do the work of digestion.
Think of it like a shift at work. Which would you prefer, to have to work almost all day and night in snippets, or to go on a single shift and then get to go home and not worry about work until the next shift comes along?
That’s essentially what intermittent fasting is doing. It’s giving your body a break. And science is finding that your health improves when you give your body a break. Improving your insulin resistance is a key to weight loss and to avoiding chronic diseases like Diabetes.
Q: There are a lot of plans, so what sort of intermittent fasting plan should I follow?
A: The short answer is any plan that you can stick to.
But the truth is that if you are following a plan that says you can eat absolutely whatever you want on the non-fasting days or windows, it’s probably not a great idea.
Remember, the goal of Intermittent fasting is to give your body a break from inflammation and digestion. But, if you are eating twice as much horrible, inflammatory foods during your eating windows, you really aren’t giving your body a break. That’s like pulling a double shift at work, and we all know how hard that can be.
The key to a good intermittent fasting strategy is eating as healthy as you can when you do eat. That means your body is repairing itself when you aren’t eating, not trying to recover from the bad food you ate before you started fasting.
Here’s Dr. Juan describing the right way to practice intermittent fasting.
Q: How can I stick to my fast?
A: This is the golden question. Intermittent fasting, especially at the beginning, can be hard.
Here’s a tip: make sure you are drinking plenty of water and giving your body the nutrients it needs. If you are giving your body what it needs to repair itself, you’re less likely to have cravings, which are often the body’s way of telling you it is running low on essential nutrients.
You can achieve this by eating healthy during your eating windows, but it’s also a great idea to supplement with vitamins and minerals.
A good multivitamin will give your body all the nutrients and micronutrients it needs to repair itself, and that is the entire point of intermittent fasting. Do you have a good multivitamin? If not, we’re here to help.
Our Santo Remedio Multivitamin is specifically formulated to give your body a base of key vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals. And it’s available in custom versions for both Women and Men. We’re proud of our Multivitamin, and we think it should be a key part of any fasting regimen.
Happy fasting!
Your friends at Santo Remedio
