Intermittent Fasting: Explained

Intermittent fasting (IF) is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating.  It specifieswhen you should eat rather than most diets that specifywhat you should be eating. Intermittent fasting (IF) is currently one of the world’s most popular health and fitness trends. People are using this practice to lose weight, improve their health and simplify their lifestyles.

Fasting has been a practice throughout human evolution. Ancient hunter-gatherers didn’t have supermarkets, refrigerators or food available year-round and sometimes couldn’t find anything to eat.  As a result, humans evolved to be able to function without food for extended periods of time.  In fact, fasting from time to time is more natural than always eating 3–4 (or more) meals per day.

There are several different ways of practicing intermittent fasting — all of which involve splitting the day or week into eating and fasting periods.  During the fasting periods, you eat either very little or nothing at all.  One of the most common intermittent fasting methods is to restrict your daily eating period to 8 hours of the day and fast for the remaining 16 hours: for example, your “eating window” is between 11am-7pm. Another common method is to fast for 24 hours once or twice a week or consume 500-600 calories on two non-consecutive days of the week and eat your usual amount of food the other 5 days.

Many people find the 16/8 method to be the simplest, most sustainable and easiest to stick to. When you fast, human growth hormone levels go up and insulin levels go down. Your body’s cells also change the expression of genes and initiate important cellular repair processes. For example, your body adjusts hormone levels to make stored body fat more accessible.  Changes in hormone levels, cell function and gene expression are responsible for the health benefits of intermittent fasting.

Every individual has their own daily energy needs and people obtain energy through foods – specifically the calories that make up food. At Honey Bee Meals, Toronto’s freshly prepared and delivered healthy, pre-portioned meals available in a variety of types and sizes, we can help you obtain the energy you need.IncorporatingHoney Bee Meals into your daily routine makes intermittent fasting a breeze! 

Whether you enjoy a Paleo, Low Carb, Keto, Vegetarian or Vegan diet you cancount on Honey Bee Meals for delicious and nutritious meals delivered right to your door.  We prepare each of our meals with a balance of what we believe are the keys to healthy eating including foods that contain fat, carbohydrates and protein. We take care of the shopping, chopping and cleaning up so you can focus on enjoying the meal in front of you!