Typically, people choose an 11 am-7 pm, 12 pm-8 pm, 1 pm-9 pm time for their eating window, but this varies for shift workers and those who prefer to eat at earlier or later times during the day. There is no definitive time that produces better intermittent fasting results.
The easiest way to follow the 16:8 diet is to choose a 16-hour fasting window that includes the time that a person spends sleeping. Some experts advise finishing food consumption in the early evening, as metabolism slows down after this time.
Consider a simple form of intermittent fasting.
Limit the hours of the day when you eat, and for best effect, make it earlier in the day (between 7 am to 3 pm, or even 10 am to 6 pm, but definitely not in the evening before bed). Avoid snacking or eating at nighttime, all the time.
On the 16:8 diet, you spend 16 hours of each day consuming nothing but unsweetened beverages like water, coffee, and tea. The remaining eight-hour window is when you eat all of your meals and snacks.
Yes, you can! Daily 16:8 time-restricted feeding (TRF) is safe to practice as long as you are acquiring the energy and nutrition that you need within your eating window; 8-hours is typically more than enough time to consume your daily energy/nutrition requirements.
Carbohydrates and protein
Upma, quinoa or oats with lots of nuts, seeds and Greek yoghurt is great for this. “[Eating] complex carbs and nuts together provides both instant and long lasting energy, while the protein helps to build muscle,” explains the nutritionist.
There are even studies that show those that eat earlier in the day lose more weight than those who ate later in the day or skipped a meal. RULE #2: Eat lots of small meals for weight loss. Make sure you eat six small meals throughout the day so your metabolism stays operating at maximum capacity all day long.”
Additionally, it will take your body a while to get used to this new eating schedule. So don't expect results right away. You may need to wait between 2 and 4 weeks to see or feel any results.
A person needs to decide on and adhere to a 12-hour fasting window every day. According to some researchers, fasting for 10–16 hours can cause the body to turn its fat stores into energy, which releases ketones into the bloodstream. This should encourage weight loss.
You can begin losing weight with intermittent fasting gradually by consuming all your meals between 9am and 5pm. It usually takes two to four weeks to create an intermittent fasting habit. Once this becomes a habit you can lose weight with intermittent fasting by reducing your fasting another hour to 9am and 4pm.
The 12-hour fast method generally works for beginners because of its small fasting window. You may perform the fasting at night while you are asleep and just consume a relatively fewer amount of calories compared with your usual ones. One good example of this is if you choose 7pm to 7am as your fasting schedule.
Daily intermittent fasters restrict eating to certain time periods each day – say, 11am to 7pm. The fasting period is usually around 12 or more hours that, helpfully, includes time spent sleeping overnight. Periodic fasting will feel most familiar: No food or drinks with calories for 24-hour periods.
With intermittent fasting, breakfast is not only optional, it's discouraged. The most common method is a 16-hour overnight fast, followed by an 8-hour eating window. Yet, nutrition professionals have long suggested that breakfast is critical.
This is how much weight you can lose with intermittent fasting. In doing the fast correctly and ensuring that it is aligning with your mind, body and soul–you can expect a good weight loss of anywhere between 2 to 6 kgs a month with excellent inch loss and increase in energy levels and brain function.
Intermittent fasting for beginners using the 16:8 approach is relatively easy: simply pick an eight-hour feeding window, eat one to three nutritious meals during that time frame, then abstain from food the rest of the time. You can still drink water, herbal teas, black tea or coffee.
Daily Intermittent Fasting
You can start at 8am and stop at 4pm. Or you start at 2pm and stop at 10pm. Do whatever works for you. I tend to find that eating around 1pm and 8pm works well because those times allow me to eat lunch and dinner with friends and family.
A study at Harvard medical school has found that eating your main meal of the day at 5pm is one of the best ways to lose weight.
Yes, you can eat junk food during your eating window if you practice intermittent fasting. While it's not recommended that you make high-fat, high-sugar, and ultra-processed foods the norm, celebrating with a cupcake or two, and having a Slurpee at a game, is called living your life -in moderation.
Ease back into eating with a small meal at first, gradually progressing to larger amounts. Start with easily-digestible foods such as: raw fruits, bone broths, leafy greens such as spinach or kale, cooked vegetables, healthy fats (such as olive oil, avocado, & eggs), and fermented foods (such as yogurt and kefir).
Intermittent fasting can have unpleasant side effects. They could include hunger, fatigue, insomnia, irritability, decreased concentration, nausea, constipation and headaches. Most side effects go away within a month.
By restricting calorie consumption to a specific time period each day or week (for example, only eating between 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.), you could lose weight, decrease your risk of cancer, reduce blood pressure, and improve blood-sugar control, as Business Insider previously reported.