16:8 Intermittent Fasting - Thoughts

For the past month and a half, I've been trying the so-called 16:8 Intermittent Fasting.

You can find more on it here: http://www.myprotein.com/thezone/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-lean-gains-168/

Essentially, how this works is that I eat for an 8 hour window everyday and fast the other 16. For me, that's from 12pm to 8pm, so I skip breakfast.

I know, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, so at first, I was worried I won't be able to stand the hunger. However, I realized that this is like eating a brunch everyday! Brunch is by far my favorite meal, and what used to come only twice a week, I can now do everyday!

I've eaten these by the way if you're interested in Tokyo food:

Brunch blueberry pancakes from Roti Roppongi

Hummus from Roti Roppongi

Oyako-don from Torisanwa

Japanese Steak-don from Sugimoto

My favorite convenience store snack - Monaka Ice Cream!

I absolutely RECOMMEND this fasting technique for several reasons.

I lost weight - I've been stuck at around 58.5-59.5kg morning weight for about 8 months now. Ever since I started this fasting technique, my morning weight is around 57.5kg. That's crazy.

I can eat whatever I want (almost) - Since I'm only eating two meals a day, I can easily eat things that I've avoided because of calorie-count. I've actually looked forward to eating more than 500kcal per meal, and I love planning my brunches everyday.

Breakfast is easiest to skip - Yes, I love breakfast. But it is also the easiest meal of the day for me to skip because I can suppress hunger better in the mornings than at night before sleep.

It hasn't affected my workouts - I'm still doing my marathon training just fine.

Drop in insulin levels - This is certainly more scientific, and I probably don't know much about this, but it seems like fasting 16 hours allows your body to digest completely, dropping insulin levels. You can read more about it in the link above.

But what do I do when I have to eat?

For example, I'm going to Myanmar next week and my family has paid for a car and a guide. Plus, hotels serve breakfast, so what should I do? I think for that week, I will either eat from 10am-6pm or I'll just go back to eating three meals a day.

Also, when I know I can't eat until late afternoon due to work, I drink my version of bulletproof coffee, which I just blend coffee, a tablespoon of coconut oil, and add some vanilla. It works for a few hours, so I usually drink it three or four hours before my first meal of the day.

Overall, I won't say my body feels great because of the fast, but it certainly has not felt worse. Plus, I've lost weight and I'm mentally happier since I can eat whatever I want. It works for me.

#summer #fasting #168 #nutrition #diet #weight