Lose Weight without Hitting the Gym

Intermittent Fasting – An Effective Approach to Lose Weight without Hitting the Gym

Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern which involves phases of eating and skipping meals. Unlike traditional diet plans that are designed to control your calorie intake, intermittent fasting uses a timed approach to eating. It is a popular way of losing weight without going to the gym, but should only be used with doctor’s recommendation, particularly if you have a medical condition.

If you are a foodie, then intermittent fasting may seem difficult to you initially. After all, it’s not easy to cope with the cycles of eating and fasting. However, having the necessary information about this approach can help you make a quick start.

Below, we’ll look at different aspects of intermittent fasting to help you get started.

Define a Purpose

Since intermittent fasting has several uses, you should have a clear purpose in mind for it to be effective. After defining the purpose, consult with your specialist to see if it can help you achieve your goal.

Choose a Method

Your next challenge is choosing the right method. Normally, there are five intermittent fasting methods for people that ask how to lose weight without hitting the gym. These include:

Alternate day fasting: Requires you to fast every other day.
Overnight fasting: Involves a 12-hour fast every day.
Eat-stop-eat: Involves one or two 24-hour fasts a week.
Whole day fasting: Requires you to eat once a day.
Leangains: Involves 16 hours of fasting and 8 hours of eating whatever you want every day.

Typically, it takes a month to see if a method is working for you or not. For healthy, well-nourished people, it’s safe to change plans on their own but if you have a medical condition, then you should take specialist’s advice before doing so.

Remember that deciding a method does not mean deciding which foods to eat or avoid. It simply means you have to pick the time for eating/skipping meals. In terms of diet, you can eat whatever you like. However, the true secret to losing weight without hitting the gym lies in hi fiber and healthy diet.

Make a Calorie Plan

After choosing a suitable method, your next step is to make a calorie plan. While intermittent fasting has nothing to do with your calorie intake, this does not mean you should leave your caloric needs unchecked.

Remember that your primary goal is weight loss – this is why you’re on intermittent fasting to begin with. So focus on taking fewer calories than you consume. If you are struggling to determine your caloric needs, search the market. Several tools are available in the market to help you make an effective calorie plan. If nothing seems to work, then consult with a specialist to determine your caloric needs.

Make a Meal Plan

Since intermittent fasting is about losing weight without going to the gym, your meal planning plays a key role in it being effective. For example, if you’re trying to lose weight but your diet only revolves around unhealthy junk food, then it won’t help you achieve your goal. If anything, it will put it even farther.

Meal planning in intermittent fasting is easy. It doesn’t require you to be extra cautious with your food choices. All you need to do is make a plan that sticks to your calorie count and fulfills your body’s overall needs.

These are the top food suggestions for intermittent fasters:

Potatoes
Avocado
Fish
Beans and legumes
Eggs
Berries
Nuts
Whole grains

Intermittent Fasting Effects on Human Body

Fasting has been an essential part of humans’ life since ancient times. Earlier humans used to go for days without eating as the food was scarce. This forced fasting strengthened their immunities and prolonged their lifespan.

Intermittent fasting is the modern day forced fasting. It enables you to go extra hours without food. Now this is extremely useful for people asking how to lose weight without hitting the gym.

Intermittent fasting is a natural and effective way to lose weight. It has various effects on human body, including:

Improves your body’s ability to store fat by reducing insulin.
Prolongs lifespan by changing the working of certain cells.
Keeps your blood cholesterol under control.
Improves muscle growth and your body’s ability to use fat by increasing human growth hormone (HGH) levels in your body.
Improves your body’s ability to recycle old or damaged cells.
Reduces inflammation.
Helps in reversing type 2 diabetes.
Increases your overall energy levels.

Are there any side effects of intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is the secret to losing weight without hitting the gym. It has almost zero side effects on a healthy person. However, people with medical conditions shouldn’t try it without doctor’s advice.

In the beginning phase, you may experience mental or physical sloth as your body has yet to adjust to this new routine. But after the adjustment, it’ll go back to being normal.

Here is the list of people that may get side effects from this eating approach:

Breastfeeding moms and pregnant women
Diabetes patients
Low blood pressure patients
Foodies or the ones that are underweight

Is it safe to exercise when fasting?

The primary goal of intermittent fasting is weight loss. And combining it with exercise may sound like a great option. However, your body needs glycogen to fuel exercise.

Glycogen is a type of glucose that provides energy to your body for performing different functions, including exercise. Now, when you are fasting, the glycogen levels lower down in your body, allowing its ability to do exercise.

Not only this, the low amount of glycogen causes your body to break down protein, which is a muscle building block. This may result in muscle damage and other serious problems. This is why doctors advise against combining hard exercise with intermittent fasting.

Final Words

So this was the necessary information about the importance of intermittent fasting for people asking how to lose weight without hitting the gym. The bottom line is that you don’t need to add or eliminate certain foods for it to be effective. Just make sure to eat the healthy ones without breaking your fasting plan to lose weight. Good luck!