It seems like everyone is constantly talking about what to eat to lose weight.  But fewer people are talking about what to not eat.  Obviously, there’s no money to made in telling people to NOT consume, so you don’t hear a lot of advertising about abstaining from eating.  Countless products are made with the promise of “Eat this and you’ll get thin!” “Eat more in smaller increments and you’ll lose weight!”  But what if we told you not eating for small periods of time was the magic solution? When you think about it, it makes the most sense right?  Eating less = weighing less. It’s called, “intermittent fasting.”

Here are some things you probably didn’t know about this weight loss secret.

The Longer You Go Without Eating The Less Hungry You Get

Some people think that the longer they go without eating, the more their hunger will increase.  Wrong.  In fact, it’s not a snowball effect.  It’s more of a wave pattern.  You become hungry, then less hungry, then hungry, and less again. After about 8 hours into a fast, your hunger levels off and you can distract yourself with an activity.  Some people like to go to bed early during a fast.  That way, ⅓ of your fast was spent asleep. Sleep becomes a time machine to breakfast! What a concept!

Fasting Lowers Body Fat and Cholesterol

That’s right.  Fasting lowers body fat and cholesterol. During a fasting study by Dr. Krista Varady, author of “The Every Other Day Diet,” researchers studied two groups, one that ate normal every day, and another group that ate as much as they wanted every other day alternated with limiting themselves to 500 calories a day. The fasting group had a significant drop in weight loss, body fat, and cholesterol.  Short periods of caloric restriction paired with supplementation and exercise can cause incredibly fast results.  

Fasting Increases Human Growth Hormone

Can you imagine if they sold a diet pill that increased the human growth hormone? That stuff that stimulates growth and cell production? Makes your muscles grow and your body stretch?  Well, fasting produces that very substance.  Brad Pilon, intermittent fasting pioneer and author of fasting book “Eat Stop Eat” says “I’d go so far as to say that growth hormone should be renamed “fasting hormone”, since growth hormone plays a vital role in ‘overseeing’ or ‘regulating’ your metabolism while you are fasting.” That’s right, not eating can actually make you stronger. Who knew! You do now!

You Can Still Drink Coffee and Diet Soda During a Fast

During a fast, it’s still ok to drink all the carbonated water you want as well as diet soda.  Experts say the benefits of fasting far outweigh the risks of aspartame.  Drinking these bubbly drinks can curb your appetite giving you a “full feeling.”  Same goes for coffee.  Just skip the cream and sugar!