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Last Updated on April 12, 2023 by Latrice
Learning how to do intermittent fasting for weight loss properly is the key to making this easy.
And yes, it can definitely be easy.
With the right intermittent fasting eating plan, the weight fell off. So much so that one morning I got up, stretched my arms to the sky, and my waist beads slid down to my feet.
I was shooketh!
Losing weight had always been a struggle for me. But learning what is the best intermittent fasting window to lose belly fat worked great. The right foods, schedule, and approach to exercise made weight loss effortless.
I know the struggle is real so I share the methods that work.
And you don’t have to do intermittent fasting 20/4 for great, sustainable results!
Below I detail how I lost 45 lbs using the best intermittent fasting for weight loss that was relatively easy and didn’t take much to follow.
Does intermittent fasting work?
As I update this post in April 2023, intermittent fasting has been pretty mainstream for some time now.
Countless people have achieved their weight loss goals and shared their journeys with intermittent fasting online. I can’t help to think its popularity has something to do with how well it continues to work for people.
On my weight loss journey, intermittent fasting helped me lose 45 lbs in 4 months and a total of 75 lbs in 6 months to a year.
And I’ve tried all types of diets, too. Failing over and over like a majority of dieters do.
Intermittent fasting is what finally worked for me.
Learning how to do intermittent fasting for weight loss properly is what I believed really made the difference.
What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?
Experts have been sounding off for years about the numerous evidence-based benefits of intermittent fasting.
My favorite evidence-based benefits for weight loss have been lowering my insulin to levels that allow for fat burning, increasing levels of Human growth hormone (HGH) levels which helped build my shapely bottom nicely, and boosting my metabolism. (1)
This felt like a regulated appetite, getting rid of cravings, and super easy fasting windows. Finally being able to free myself from the restrictions of feeling hungry often and worrying about food.
Besides the weight loss, my hair also grew longer than its ever been, my toenails cleared up, I was accused of getting a BBL, my skin got healthy, and I saw improvement in my mental health.
So, intermittent fasting how does one get started and avoid common mistakes?
The common mistakes I’ve seen have been eating foods that increase hunger, not having a supportive, healthy lifestyle, exercising too hard too soon, and trying schedules that are too advanced for where their bodies are at.
The first thing I did was put together a healthy lifestyle and get clear on what humans are actually supposed to eat.
DESIGN A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE FOR WEIGHT LOSS
Before learning how to fast to lose weight, we need to lock in the basics.
I had to get clear on my goals, determine what action steps would help me stay on track with those goals, and then turn those steps into routines I could track in a habit tracker.
Working on healthy habits in a schedule you can manage is by far the best way to start with intermittent fasting for weight loss.
Beyond the food choices and your fasting schedule, your daily habits need to align.
LEARNED HOW TO EAT LIKE A HUMAN
The second most important thing I did to learn how to do intermittent fasting for weight loss properly was re-learn how to eat like a human.
There is so much about food that I had to unlearn and relearn. Once I did, intermittent fasting got easy as hell.
Figuring out how to eat clean, nutrient-dense foods helped me then figure out how to eat when I need to lose weight.
Here are a couple of my favorite books that have taught me the truth about food, the problems with the Standard American diet, and what to do to live a healthier life.
Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It by Gary Taubes
A great book to read that simply explains why we get fat, what foods to get rid of, and why get rid of them.
Eat the Yolks by Liz Wolfe
She’s funny and really informative.
Eat the Yolks debunks a lot of misinformation we’ve been force-fed about what is healthy eating including egg white omelets.
What to eat to lose weight intermittent fasting
First attempts at trying to lose weight I had the conventional understanding of healthy eating for weight loss: vegetables, fruit, low-calorie foods, healthy starches, brown rice, lean meats, and plant-based fats.
But the hunger, hunger headaches, moodiness, and intensified cravings made sticking to a caloric-restriction diet extremely difficult on these foods.
Doing fasts like the Master Cleanse and raw juice fasting was also too hard for me to do because I was so damn hungry.
I learned the best healthy foods for weight loss are foods that regulate appetite, keep blood sugar in check, and get rid of cravings. Taking insulin to fat-burning levels.
Intermittent fasting for weight loss became much easier to manage as my body started using stored body fat. Naturally and effortlessly lowering my caloric intake.
If you’ve also had challenges with sticking to a clean diet, find yourself feeling addicted to foods, and have a tendency to binge eat if you slip off of a super strict routine, give this list a try.
BEST FOODS TO EAT TO LOSE WEIGHT WITH INTERMITTENT FASTING
- Fatty cuts of beef
- Fatty ground beef
- Bacon
- Dark chicken meat
- Butter
- Eggs
- Duck
- Ghee
- Tallow, lard, and duck fat
- Low-carb, low-sugar fruits in moderation: berries, avocados, citrus fruits (if you end up struggling with cravings and hunger, cut these out)
These foods fall within the keto, carnivore, and ketovore (a mix of keto and carnivore) diets.
Intermittent fasting on its own isn’t a diet and can work with any healthy diet, really.
But eating foods that actually allow the body to tap into stored body fat and survive fasting windows will help improve discipline and make weight loss a breeze.
How to eat these foods to lose weight with intermittent fasting
Without regard of calories and until satisfied. I didn’t even worry about the macros. I just ate.
This was a lot of food at the beginning of my journey to manage cravings. By the end, I was effortlessly eating much less and forgot to eat on super busy days. This is fat being burned for fuel. Easy, healthy weight loss.
A huge transformation for someone like me that believed I was naturally a hungrier-than-most type of gal.
I highly recommend combining a low-carb, keto, carnivore, or ketovore diet with intermittent fasting for weight loss.
What not to eat to lose weight with intermittent fasting
I avoided the typical unhealthy foods, of course.
Highly processed foods, processed meats, sugar, trans fats, and refined starches.
What got me called crazy, but improved my weight loss results and overall wellness significantly, were the “healthy” foods I removed from my diet.
These were whole foods high in carbs, starch, and natural sugars that weren’t doing anything for my out-of-control appetite and problem with cravings. If anything, they made them worse.
And contrary to doubts, I did not become malnourished or deficient in essential vitamins and my diet didn’t feel too restrive to stick to.
My diet became easy to stick to giving me incredible weight loss results with intermittent fasting.
If you’re eating healthy, but still struggle with hunger while intermittent fasting, try removing foods from the list below for 1 to 2 weeks. Pay attention to your hunger and cravings. If removing these foods improves things, continue not eating them.
Not only can feeling hungry often make intermittent fasting hard to stick to, but it can also be an indication that you’re stressing your body, not eating what your body needs, and getting unsustainable weight loss.
Worst foods to lose weight with intermittent fasting
- Highly processed foods, processed meats, sugars, trans fats, and refined starches
- Beans
- Rice
- Oats, barley, cream of wheat, grits
- Pastas
- Bread, grains, wheat
- Bananas, apples, grapes, plantains, watermelon
- Dried fruit
- Nuts, nut butter, and raw nuts
- Fruit and vegetable juices
These are the types of foods that signal to the human body it’s time to feast because plenty of food is around. Appetites and cravings increase. We’ve got an obesity problem because these foods are always available, telling us to eat more of them.
Removing these foods from the diet induces the human body’s natural response to famine. The appetite is lowered and insulin gets to fat-burning levels more often. Burning fat for fuel.
Seems counterproductive to eat them while trying to lose weight, especially with intermittent fasting where going without food is part of the program.
What is the best intermittent fasting schedule for weight loss
Knowing how to do intermittent fasting for weight loss the best way FOR YOU is essential.
This requires working with the best schedule FOR YOU.
From my experience, it’s better to cut out dinner than to cut out breakfast to start. But test out what will do well for you.
I lost most weight switching between a 16/8 and 20/4 schedule, but the best method for weight loss with intermittent fasting is to start with a schedule you can actually stick to.
Choosing the roughest, toughest intermittent fasting method you’ve seen because someone lost 20 lbs in 2 weeks with it can lower your chances of sticking with it if it’s beating you up relentlessly along the way.
Stop asking how long does it take for 16/8 intermittent fasting to work. Instead, ask yourself can you survive it.
Choose an schedule your body can manage and your mindset can get through.
Build the habit before worrying about weight loss. It’s happening. Instead, get the habit down and the weight loss will be easy.
How to WORKOUT when intermittent fasting for weight loss
Another key tip for knowing how to do intermittent fasting for weight loss properly is allowing your body to adjust before jumping into a workout schedule.
I gave myself time to adapt to intermittent fasting before starting a workout routine. My body wasn’t adapted to fat-burning and fasting when I first started.
And I felt it. Working out can be a pain in the ass as well as damaging to the body. Taking it easy was and is important.
I started with workouts that I can manage, made me feel good, and I could do consistently enough to build a habit.
Check out my 16:8 fasting weight loss results 1 week here.
Ready to get started on your intermittent fasting journey?
Here are some more useful, powerful tips that worked to help get you started.
- Intermittent fasting – 5 simple tips for painlessly getting started
- How to choose the best intermittent fasting method for you
- How to intermittent fast on keto for weight loss: how I lost a total of 75 lbs after trying “everything”
- How to lose weight in a week: 5 simple steps I’ve used to lose 10 pounds in a week
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