24-Hour Fasting for weight loss and productivity

 

24-hour fasting guide and how to take advantage of the benefits.  

Benefits: 

• Weight loss 
  • Fasting 24 hours depletes glycogen stores by over 50% which triggers your body to break down the fat stores for energy.   I take advantage of this by increasing by cardio on fasting days by playing an hour of tennis, cycling, or taking walks at the minimum.  
• Build muscle
  • Fasting helps build muscle by the growth hormone increase that occurs during the fasting.   An increase in growth hormone matched with strength training workout helps take advantage of extra HGH created by the fast.  I do my workout right before my break fast meal or within an hour after the meal.  
• Mental Focus 
  • While your body is decreasing glycogen stores it increases Ketones which your brain works better on than glucose.  I take advantage of this by scheduling intense mental work usually on my computer like writing a client’s program, creativity sessions for marketing, or administration work.    
• Reduce Inflammation 
  • Fasting reduces inflammation all over your body.  I take advantage of this because my knees get inflamed from all the tennis, strength training, and active lifestyle so I love to help my body heal on fasting days by not doing too much knee intensity cardio.  
• Awareness of Hunger VS Appetite 
  • Most people have trouble distinguishing between hunger and appetite so this allows me to bring awareness to what hunger actually feels like.   I try to eat when I am hungry, not when I see food that is flavorful.  I am able to know when my body needs fuel vs when my brain desires flavor and that’s a game-changer for weight loss.  
• Self-Discipline 
  • The fast really helps your self-discipline because you have to sacrifice eating for a day and that is REALLY hard for me as a foodie.  It helps me disconnect the inner fat kid appetite that tells me to eat everything in sight.  I need this reset to help me understand that food is fuel and not an activity to pass the time or a party for my taste buds.  

Additional ways I maximize the fast for weight loss: 

• Drink tea all day. 
  • I brew a blend of Yerba Mate tea, Green tea, and Chai tea.  
    • Caffeine in the tea helps with mental focus and fat burning 
    • Yerba Mate tea helps with mental focus and fat burning 
    • Green tea helps with fat burning 
    • Chai tea reduces hunger feelings 
• Low carb break fast meal
  • I eat a giant salad for my break fast meal and try to shy away from simple sugars or starches as to keep those glycogen stores low to continued fat burning.  
• Workout 
  • The best combo is to do a short fullbody strength training workout before I eat the break fast meal then cardio about an hour after that meal like tennis is often that cardio for me. 
• Supplements
  • I take Advocare Catalyst during my fasts to help with fat burning and reducing the catabolic effect.

When to do your fast:

• I like to my fast from Sunday evening 6pm to Monday evening because I typically cheat on the weekend with bad foods and alcohol.  It offers me a reset for the week by having a productive Monday with work and weight loss which ignites my confidence and motivates me to work harder for my clients and in my weight management journey.

Have fun with this, it’s difficult, but it’s worth the effort in so many ways!