The 16/8 Intermittent Fast: benefits of Intermittent Fasting (IF)

Let me take you on a journey through time, all the way back to the Paleolithic Age, when homo sapiens and homo neanderthalis mingled (and sometimes mated) in the wild natural world.

They were hunter-gatherers, trekking miles each day for edible flora and fauna. Sometimes, they didn't find anything and retreated to their caves that night with empty bellies. They had to go out the next day and find food - sometimes they didn't, and slept a second night without food. Eventually, however, they found food. Chances are, they gorged themselves then and there, but would take some home to the cave for the young to eat. That exquisite first meal after one, two, three... days of fasting.

The human body, as with the bodies of most living creatures on the planet, is able to survive short periods without food. To survive fasting - intermittently.

The super-abundance of food in the First World means that we never, ever have to intermittently fast. The corner shop, the convenience store, the take away, the store cupboard, fridge, freezer, cans, tins, packets... Food is everywhere these days. And so we no longer fast on occasion.

Intermittent fasting is a way of reconnecting with our primitive selves, enhancing our health and relearning how to enjoy food.

Intermittent fasting appears to offer many of the same benefits as calorie restriction, the most common form of dieting on the planet. Calorie restriction is apparently helpful towards living a longer life, reduced stress, better insulin production and sensitivity (the ability to regulate insulin has a huge influence on the likelihood of developing Type 2 Diabetes and in curbing hunger pangs. That 3pm slump after lunch? Down to the sugar you ate leaving your system and the insulin telling you you're still hungry when you're not).

However, who wants to spend every day for the rest of their lives counting calories and avoiding foods and drinks they like and never, ever cracking under the pressure? Why bother, when you can intermittent fast instead and still gain the benefits that come from calorie restriction, but without restricting the calories?.

Longevity

A scientific study in the 1940s found that intermittent fasting in rats prolonged their lifespan, whereas calorie restriction did not. Intermittent Fasting helps with cholesterol and weight loss in obese and overweight people, as well as improving cardiovascular fitness, all of which contribute to a longer, healthier, more enjoyable life.

Mark Sisson of www.marksdailyapple.com has produced this research with attached links on the benefits of intermittent fasting on cancer:

The notion of IF reducing cancer incidence and improving survival is compelling, but little evidence in humans exists. Ketogenic diets may also offer exciting potential for cancer patients, and both IF diets and ketogenic diets share something: fat (either dietary or from your own adipose tissue) as primary fuel sources. But, while ketosis isn’t exactly desirable or optimal as a lifelong dietary regimen, IF is sustainable, simple, and can be integrated into your current diet. As of now, most of the evidence for IF’s protective effects against cancer exist in animal trials, mostly using mice. Still, fasting seems to confer so many other benefits that working it into your life for its anti-cancer potential is probably worth it. Some of the evidence:

Calorie restriction is proven to fight cancer cell proliferation in mice, but researchers found that intermittent fasting was just as effective. In fact, here’s a review of most of the animal anti-cancer evidence. It’s quite compelling.

Some researchers are speculating, based on substantial evidence, that fasting before and during cancer treatment should result in reduced morbidity, better tolerance of chemotherapies, and higher cure rates. This is refreshing news. A preliminary study in human cancer patients found that fasting during chemotherapy reduced the negative side effects of the treatment. The authors are quick to point out that the results are in no way a prescription for fasting in chemotherapy patients and that controlled trials are needed to change official recommendations, but that doesn’t mean you – the individual – can’t experiment.

Autophagy

Autophagy is where the body's cells recycle waste and repair themselves. It is essential for maintaining health and muscle mass. It is also essential in anti-ageing. Fortunately for us, intermittent fasting stimulates autophagy and therefore keeps us young, as well as healthy and fit and muscular.

Fitness

People will constantly tell you that exercising on an empty stomach will result in you burning your muscles for energy and you will simply waste away. However, studies conducted on Muslim athletes who train and even compete during Ramadam show zero effect on performance despite their fasting during daylight hours. Basically, exercising during a fasted state results in the body breaking down less glycogen (blood sugar) for energy; instead, it burns more fat. This leaves you with more glycogen for final sprints or the last thirty seconds of an intense martial arts bout, and with less body fat.

Of course, care must be taken when training in a fasted state and any weakness or dizziness must be dealt with expeditiously.

Now that the benefits of intermittent fasting have been laid out for you (and there are many more out there), when and how should you fast?

Intermittent, random (once or twice per week maximum) full 24-hour fasts are possible, but difficult. They can have great results, especially on weight loss, but can be difficult to maintain if you are one of the millions of people who burn carbohydrate rather than fat for energy. You will simply slump in the shakes and light-headedness that comes from an empty carb tank in your bodies.

People who eat low-carb diets such as the Paleo or Caveman Diet can handle 24-hour fasts much more easily. Their bodies are already used to burning fat, and a sudden, unexpected lack of food simply results in them continuing to do so.

However, if a 24-hour fast terrifies you, you can start out with the 16/8 fast and work your way up from there. Put simply, you fast for 16 hours and eat during an eight-hour window. This is not as difficult as it sounds.

Say you eat your evening meal at 7pm. You then go to sleep and get up the next morning. Instead of eating breakfast straight away, you wait until 11am. You have just completed a 16 hour fast and can now eat.

For those who are worried that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" and "your metabolism doesn't start until you eat", drinking a large glass of cold water upon awaking kickstarts your metabolism quite nicely. And the 16/8 fast does not omit breakfast; it simply delays it.

The 16/8 intermittent fast can be done on a daily basis, adjusting the eight-hour window to take account of any unavoidably late meals, for instance going out for dinner at 9m would mean you don't break the fast until 1pm the following day. Once you are accustomed to the 16/8 fast, you can try a 20-hour fast and then build up to a complete 24-hour fast if you wish.

At the end of the fast, a good meal containing lots of healthy fats and vegetables will see you through until the next time.