Intermittent Fasting

Right now, as I write this, I'm experiencing the following health benefits: • Decreasing body fat & body weight while m aintaining skeletal muscle mass • Decreas ing blood glucose levels (stabilizes blood sugar levels) • Decreas ing insulin levels & increased insulin sensitivity (body fat is burned only when insulin levels are low) • Increas ing lipolysis & fat oxidation (releases fat from cells so it can be burned) • Increas ing Uncoupling Protein 3 mRNA (increases fat burning) • Increas ing norepinephrine & epinephrine levels (trigger the release of glucose from energy stores and increase fat burning) • Increas ing Glucagon levels (helps maintain blood sugar levels, decreases cholesterol, increases fat burning) • Increas ing growth hormone levels (stabilizes metabolism during fast, increases fat burning and maintains muscle mass) • Decreas ing food related stress • Decreas ing chronic systemic Inflammation What if I were to tell you that I've found a way to get these health benefits, and it didn't cost me a cent. In fact, it saved me money. I didn't have to travel anywhere to get these benefits, do any unreasonable physical activity, change my daily work, sleep schedule, or ingest any pills or liquids. What am I doing? It's called intermittent fasting, or IF. Twice a week, I'm not eating for 24 hours. That's two days per week that I've turned into fat-burning and cell-healing rests from food. It's not tough at all, and once I put my mind to it and realize all the benefits of IF, it's something I actually look forward to. Don't take my word for it, and please stop me as soon as this starts sounding like an infomercial. If you're interested in IF, read the book " Eat Stop Eat . " I read it, twice, actually, and found that it dispels many myths that I believed were true about fasting. No, you don't slow down your metabolism; no, you don't burn muscle instead of fat; no, you don't become stupider as the fast progresses (my results may vary :); and no, you don't harm your system in any way. In fact, as you can read from the list of benefits above, the overall affect on your health is outstanding. While there are plenty of on-line articles on intermittent fasting, you might consider purchasing "Eat Stop Eat," as it consolidates theories, peer-reviewed studies, and a generous helping of common sense into an easy-to-read reference for your IF journey. I've got five hours left on my 24 hour fast, and I'm burning more fat than people on Atkins right now. My stomach is grumbling a little, but it's easy to ignore, and this comes and goes. I fasted last Thursday and found it easy enough to want to try it again. Now I'm hooked. Twice a week is all you need to drop 1.5 pounds/week while otherwise eating perfectly normally. Try it - after you consult your physician, and let me know how it works for you.

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Intermittent Fasting is an episode from Step to the Beat.

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This episode was published on Jul 27, 2011.

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