A lot of people have heard about fasting, but few know exactly what it is or how it works. Fastening is a form of “voluntary” or “consensual” dieting that consists of abstaining from consuming food or drink while in a state of health. The general idea is that food affects your body in a negative way, and by removing or reducing the amount of food that you consume, you will positively impact your waistline.
While there are numerous theories and proponents of intermittent fasting, here is a simple and direct explanation of how much weight you can lose with fasting.
Simple Math
The amount of weight you lose depends on the duration that you fast. To figure out how much weight you can lose in a day, all you need to do is multiply the number of hours that you fast by 2. To give you an example, if you skip breakfast and lunch and eat nothing but soup and snacks all day, you will lose 2 pounds in 24 hours.
Similarly, if you skip breakfast, lunch, and dinner and eat just a few small meals throughout the day, you will lose 3 pounds in 48 hours.
Weight Loss Is Relative
Just because you lose a certain amount of weight doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll look the same as before you started fasting. When you’re dieting, you’re depriving your body of calories and nutrients, which causes you to lose weight regardless of whether you eat or drink. The only difference is that when you’re fasting, the amount of weight that you lose is relative to how much food you were eating previously. When you break a fast, you will eventually put the weight back on because your body needs calories to function normally.
How To Break A Fast
To help you break your fast and start eating again, there are a few tips that you can follow.
- Take a walk. Studies have shown that people who take a 30-minute walk after eating lunchtime snacks were less hungry afterward than those who didn’t move around after eating. It seems that being physically active after eating causes your body to use up some of the excess calories from the snack. So, a walk helps to break your fast and get your metabolism up and running again.
- Eat fruits and vegetables. These are the types of foods that provide your body with nutrients that help your cells to grow and function properly. Fruits and vegetables are also high in fiber, which fills you up without the added calories from fat. Studies have shown that people who consumed more fruits and vegetables tended to have lower BMIs (Body Mass Indices) than those who didn’t eat as many healthy foods.
- Drink plenty of water. It’s important to stay hydrated when dieting and exercising. You don’t need to drink soda or other sugar-based drinks, as they are actually dehydrating you. Instead, drink a lot of water or other non-alcoholic beverages to stay hydrated. Thirst is one of the main causes of cravings for food, so preventing dehydration is a great way to avoid unhealthy food cravings when dieting.
- Avoid processed foods. The majority of the weight that you lose while on a diet will come from the food that you eat. However, it’s not necessarily bad food that makes you lose weight. It’s the amount of calories that you consume that have a negative impact on your waistline. Avoid foods that are full of preservatives, additives, and other junk food which contribute to obesity.
- Reduce portion size. When you reduce the amount of food that you intake, but don’t lose weight, it could be because you’re eating too much. Rather than forcing yourself to eat less, it’s better to take a step back and realize that some of the food that you’re eating might not be serving you very well. Instead of having two cookies, have one. Instead of having a soda with lunch, have a cup of tea. Instead of grazing all day long on small snacks, have a healthy meal at lunchtime.
As you can see, losing weight while fasting is a lot easier than people think. All it takes is a little bit of planning and some trial and error to find what works best for your body type and lifestyle. If this sounds good to you and you’d like to give it a try, then by all means, do. Just make sure that you’re aware of the fact that you’re on a diet and you must break your fast occasionally to regain the weight. In addition, make sure that you consult with your physician or dietitian before starting any diet or exercise regimen.