I have been following the Eat Stop Eat method of intermittent fasting called Eat Stop Eat for the last two weeks.
(We are going to be giving this as an option in your meal planning for our upcoming 28 Day Rapid Fat Loss Challenge, so I thought it was only right that I at least test it myself, and give you the full report!)
Here is an overview of the Eat Stop Eat protocol (I recommend you purchase THAT book if you really want to learn all about it, and how it works):
— Fast 1-2x per week for 20-24 hours.
— Consume as little as possible during your fast. Calorie – free beverages such as tea, black coffee, water are encouraged during the fast.
— EAT on the days you’re not fasting – do NOT “diet” on your eating days!
— A ROUGH guide is to eat ~ 2000 calories (women) and ~ 2500 calories (men) on all other, non-fasting days of the week.
— Shoot for approx 100 grams of protein per day.
— Weight train 2-5x per week to maintain muscle while you lose fat.
So far, my #1 take-away is that fasting is a very effective way to to create a calorie defict, and lose body fat. (I was down 6.5 pounds by noon of this last Tuesday, my 3rd fast day – not all fat obviously, but still!)
2x per week, although more challenging, seems like it would be ideal for more rapid weight loss, and 1x per week more to maintain – which I will probably continue to do after this initial “test”.
It IS a little painful. You DO get hungry. A little low energy. A tad iritable. But for me personally, I’d rather go all-out for a couple of days per week, and then eat more normally, and generally healthy … but not stress about every single calorie, on the other days.
And as strange as it sounds, I think it’s a nice break from eating, and all that goes along with it. It saves time. It helps you apprecaite that you have more or less an endless supply of food, and how lucky you are to have that.
At the end of the day, if you want to drop body fat, you need to eat less, and move more. It’s the ONLY scientifically proven way to lose weight, and keep it off!
HOWEVER – there are different approaches to this end goal that are going to work better, for different people. Nutrition is HIGHLY individualized – and you have to find what is going to work for YOU!
If you want to give it a try:
Pick up a copy of Eat Stop Eat => Eat Stop Eat
and / or
Sign up for our upcoming 28 Day Fat Loss Challenge => Sun’s Out Guns Out Challenge
And I look forward to hearing how it goes for you!
– Forest Vance
Owner, FVT Boot Camp and Personal Training