Intermittent fasting is something new for many people. It is a diet that has been used for years. It is a form of intermittent fasting. During fasting, you do not consume food and/or drink for some time.
Fasting is also a part of many religions, so it takes place during Ramadan. With intermittent fasting, there is another goal, which is to lose weight.
In this article, I explain how intermittent fasting works and which types there are.
What types of intermittent fasting are there?
There are many different forms of intermittent fasting. Below I will discuss some of these species in more detail.
Fasting every other day
You eat less than 25% of your energy needs every other day. The next day you can eat anything.
Periodic fasting
You fast 1 or 2 days a week. The 5:2 diet is one of the diets that involve periodic fasting. You then eat for 5 days according to your energy needs. You eat extremely little in 2 days.
Alternate-day fasting (ADF) is also a form of intermittent fasting. You eat 500 kcal in 2 days.
16/8 fasting
With this diet, you can eat for 8 hours a day. You can choose at which times you fast. For example, you can fast from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. The period in which you are allowed to eat is also called an ‘Eating Window'.
Then you only have to skip your breakfast. If you perform poorly without eating breakfast, this diet is not right for you.
24-hour fasting
With this diet, you eat nothing at all one day a week. The rest of the days you can eat whatever you want.
The Warrior Diet
With this form of intermittent fasting, you fast for 20 hours a day. You only eat 1 large meal a day.
Nowadays there is also a combination of a 5:2 diet with an ‘Eat window'.
Can you lose weight from intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting can only cause weight loss if your energy intake is lower than your energy needs.However, this also happens with a calorie-restricted diet.
Intermittent fasting works better for some people because it makes it easier for them to eat less. They should last for a while and eat for a while. They find it difficult to eat smaller portions throughout the day.
This often suits people with an ‘all or nothing mentality. It is difficult for them to do things in moderation. This makes it difficult to eat in moderation. Thanks to intermittent fasting, they are less tempted to eat.
With most forms of intermittent fasting – where people fast for part of the day – they will feel full faster from the meals eaten. After all, there is less time between meals than if you followed a diet with 3 main meals and snacks.
Does intermittent fasting have health benefits?
Several studies have been done on intermittent fasting and its possible health benefits.There are indications that it can have a positive effect on certain values in the blood.
In contrast, it has not been shown that this effect is due to intermittent fasting, weight loss, or because you consume fewer calories due to a low-calorie and healthy diet.
For example, some studies show a beneficial effect on fasting insulin levels and insulin resistance. This effect can also be seen with many other calorie-restricted diets.
Some studies show a drop in LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol. This is not reflected in other studies.
There are no clear results yet on the long-term effect of intermittent fasting. More research needs to be done to clarify the short- and long-term effects of this diet.
