But a growing body of research suggests that the timing of the fast is key, and can make IF a more realistic, sustainable, and effective approach for weight loss, as well as for diabetes prevention. IF as a weight loss approach has been around in various forms for ages but was highly popularized in by BBC broadcast journalist Dr.

Michael Mosley's TV documentary Eat Fast, Live Longer and book The Fast Diet , followed by journalist Kate Harrison's book The Diet based on her own experience, and subsequently by Dr.

Jason Fung's bestseller The Obesity Code. IF generated a steady positive buzz as anecdotes of its effectiveness proliferated. In the Obesity Code, Fung successfully combines plenty of research, his clinical experience, and sensible nutrition advice, and also addresses the socioeconomic forces conspiring to make us fat.

He is very clear that we should eat more fruits and veggies, fiber, healthy protein, and fats, and avoid sugar, refined grains, processed foods, and for God's sake, stop snacking. IF makes intuitive sense. The food we eat is broken down by enzymes in our gut and eventually ends up as molecules in our bloodstream.

Carbohydrates, particularly sugars and refined grains think white flours and rice , are quickly broken down into sugar, which our cells use for energy. If our cells don't use it all, we store it in our fat cells as, well, fat.

But sugar can only enter our cells with insulin, a hormone made in the pancreas. Insulin brings sugar into the fat cells and keeps it there. Between meals, as long as we don't snack, our insulin levels will go down and our fat cells can then release their stored sugar, to be used as energy.

We lose weight if we let our insulin levels go down. The entire idea of IF is to allow the insulin levels to go down far enough and for long enough that we burn off our fat. Initial human studies that compared fasting every other day to eating less every day showed that both worked about equally for weight loss, though people struggled with the fasting days.

So, it's very reasonable to choose a reduced calorie plant-based, Mediterranean-style diet. But research suggests that not all IF approaches are the same, and some IF diets are indeed effective and sustainable, especially when combined with a nutritious plant-based diet.

Our metabolism has adapted to daytime food, nighttime sleep. Nighttime eating is well associated with a higher risk of obesity, as well as diabetes. Based on this, researchers from the University of Alabama conducted a study with a small group of obese men with prediabetes.

They compared a form of intermittent fasting called "early time-restricted feeding," where all meals were fit into an early eight-hour period of the day 7 am to 3 pm , or spread out over 12 hours between 7 am and 7 pm. Both groups maintained their weight did not gain or lose but after five weeks, the eight-hours group had dramatically lower insulin levels and significantly improved insulin sensitivity, as well as significantly lower blood pressure.

The best part? The eight-hours group also had significantly decreased appetite. They weren't starving. Just changing the timing of meals, by eating earlier in the day and extending the overnight fast, significantly benefited metabolism even in people who didn't lose a single pound.

But why does simply changing the timing of our meals to allow for fasting make a difference in our body? An in-depth review of the science of IF recently published in New England Journal of Medicine sheds some light.

Fasting is evolutionarily embedded within our physiology, triggering several essential cellular functions. Flipping the switch from a fed to fasting state does more than help us burn calories and lose weight. The researchers combed through dozens of animal and human studies to explain how simple fasting improves metabolism, lowers blood sugar levels; lessens inflammation, which improves a range of health issues from arthritic pain to asthma; and even helps clear out toxins and damaged cells, which lowers risk for cancer and enhances brain function.

According to metabolic expert Dr. Deborah Wexler, Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Diabetes Center and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, says "there is evidence to suggest that the circadian rhythm fasting approach, where meals are restricted to an eight to hour period of the daytime, is effective.

So, here's the deal. There is some good scientific evidence suggesting that circadian rhythm fasting, when combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle, can be a particularly effective approach to weight loss, especially for people at risk for diabetes.

However, people with advanced diabetes or who are on medications for diabetes, people with a history of eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia, and pregnant or breastfeeding women should not attempt intermittent fasting unless under the close supervision of a physician who can monitor them.

Adapted from a Harvard Health Blog post by Monique Tello, MD, MPH. Effects of intermittent fasting on health, aging, and disease. de Cabo R, Mattonson MP.

New England Journal of Medicine , December Effect of Alternate-Day Fasting on Weight Loss, Weight Maintenance, and Cardioprotection Among Metabolically Healthy Obese Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

JAMA Internal Medicine , May Alternate-day fasting in nonobese subjects: effects on body weight, body composition, and energy metabolism. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition , January Intermittent fasting interventions for treatment of overweight and obesity in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports, February Metabolic Effects of Intermittent Fasting. Annual Review of Nutrition , August Early Time-Restricted Feeding Improves Insulin Sensitivity, Blood Pressure, and Oxidative Stress Even without Weight Loss in Men with Prediabetes.

Cell Metabolism , May As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. Please note the date of last review or update on all articles.

No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician. You have tremendous latitude in what goes into your daily diet—and the choices you make can have profound consequences for your health.

But what diet should you choose? The range is truly dizzying. Just some of the diets you might encounter are vegan, pegan, and portfolio. Raw food, whole foods, and Whole Keto, carnivore, and paleo.

Groups were matched for kilocalories consumed and macronutrient distribution TRF ± Subjects were tested before and after 8 weeks of the assigned diet and standardized resistance training program.

Fat mass and fat-free mass were assessed by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and muscle area of the thigh and arm were measured using an anthropometric system.

Total and free testosterone, insulin-like growth factor 1, blood glucose, insulin, adiponectin, leptin, triiodothyronine, thyroid stimulating hormone, interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor α, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides were measured.

Bench press and leg press maximal strength, resting energy expenditure, and respiratory ratio were also tested. Triiodothyronine decreased in TRF, but no significant changes were detected in thyroid-stimulating hormone, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, or triglycerides.

Resting energy expenditure was unchanged, but a significant decrease in respiratory ratio was observed in the TRF group. Our results suggest that an intermittent fasting program in which all calories are consumed in an 8-h window each day, in conjunction with resistance training, could improve some health-related biomarkers, decrease fat mass, and maintain muscle mass in resistance-trained males.

Fasting, the voluntary abstinence from food intake for a specified period of time, is a well-known practice associated with many religious and spiritual traditions. In fact, this ascetic practice is referenced in the Old Testament, as well as other ancient texts such the Koran and the Mahabharata.

In humans, fasting is achieved by ingesting little to no food or caloric beverages for periods that typically range from 12 h to 3 weeks. Muslims, for example, fast from dawn until dusk during the month of Ramadan, while Christians, Jews, Buddhists, and Hindus traditionally fast on designated days or periods [ 1 ].

Starvation could also refer to some extreme forms of fasting, which can result in an impaired metabolic state and death. However, starvation typically implies chronic involuntary abstinence of food, which can lead to nutrient deficiencies and health impairment.

While a prolonged period of fasting is difficult to perform for the normal population, an intermittent fasting IF protocol has been shown to produce higher compliance [ 3 ].

The most studied of the above form of IF is Ramadan fasting: during the holy month of Ramadan, which varies according to the lunar calendar, Muslims abstain from eating or drinking from sunrise to sunset. The effects of Ramadan have been extensively investigated, not only on health outcomes [ 1 , 4 — 8 ], but also on exercise performance [ 9 — 16 ].

Moreover, in recent years a focus on other forms of IF, unrelated to religious practice, has emerged. A growing body of evidence suggests that, in general, IF could represent an useful tool for improving health in general population due to reports of improving blood lipids [ 17 — 20 ] and glycaemic control [ 3 ], reducing circulating insulin [ 21 ], decreasing blood pressure [ 1 , 21 — 23 ], decreasing inflammatory markers [ 7 ] and reducing fat mass even during relatively short durations 8—12 weeks [ 23 ].

These reported effects are probably mediated through changes in metabolic pathways and cellular processes such as stress resistance [ 24 ], lipolysis [ 3 , 17 , 25 — 27 ], and autophagy [ 28 , 29 ]. One particular form of IF which has gained great popularity through mainstream media is the so-called time-restricted feeding TRF.

TRF allows subjects to consume ad libitum energy intake within a defined window of time from 3—4 h to 10—12 h , which means a fasting window of 12—21 h per day is employed. A key point concerning the IF approach is that generally calorie intake is not controlled, but the feeding times are.

In sports, IF is studied mainly in relationship with Ramadan period [ 9 — 16 ], whilst TRF has become very popular among fitness practitioners claiming supposed effects on maintenance of muscle mass and fat loss.

Very limited scientific information is available about TRF and athletes, and mixed results have been reported [ 22 , 30 , 31 ]. We demonstrated very recently [ 30 ] that TRF did not affect total body composition nor had negative effects on muscle cross-sectional area after 8 weeks in young previously-untrained men performing resistance training, despite a reported reduction in energy intake of ~ kcal per fasting day in the TRF group.

Thus the aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of an isoenergetic TRF protocol on body composition, athletic performance, and metabolic factors during resistance training in healthy resistance trained males. We hypothesized that the TRF protocol would lead to greater fat loss and improvements in health-related biomarkers as compared to a typical eating schedule.

Therefore, 34 subjects age The research staff conducting outcome assessments was unaware of the assignment of the subjects i. a single blind design. Anthropometric baseline characteristics of subjects are shown in Table 1.

All participants read and signed an informed consent document with the description of the testing procedures approved by the ethical committee of the Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, and conformed to standards for the use of human subjects in research as outlined in the current Declaration of Helsinki.

Dietary intake was measured by a validated 7-day food diary [ 32 — 34 ], which has been used in previous studies with athletes [ 35 ], and analysed by nutritional software Dietnext®, Caldogno, Vicenza, Italy.

Subjects were instructed to maintain their habitual caloric intake, as measured during the preliminary week of the study Table 2.

and 8 p. ND group ingested their caloric intake as three meals consumed at 8 a. This meal timing was chosen to create a balanced distribution of the three meals during the feeding period in the TRF protocol, while the schedule for the ND group maintained a normal meal distribution breakfast in the morning, lunch at 1 p.

and dinner at 8 p. The specific calorie distribution was assigned by a nutritionist and was based on the reported daily intake of each subject.

ND subjects were instructed to consume the entire breakfast meal between 8 a. and 9 a. and 2 p. and 9 p. TRF subjects were instructed to consume the first meal between 1 p.

and 5 p. No snacks between the meals were allowed except 20 g of whey proteins 30 min after each training session. Every week, subjects were contacted by a dietician in order to check the adherence to the diet protocol. The dietician performed a structured interview about meal timing and composition to obtain this information.

Training was standardized for both groups, and all subjects had at least 5 years of continuous resistance training experience prior to the study. Training consisted of 3 weekly sessions performed on non-consecutive days for 8 weeks.

All participants started the experimental procedures in the months of January or February The resistance training program consisted of 3 different weekly sessions i.

a split routine : session A bench press, incline dumbell fly, biceps curl , session B military press, leg press, leg extension, leg curl , and session C wide grip lat pulldown, reverse grip lat pulldown and tricep pressdown. the inability to perform another repetition with correct execution with s of rest between sets and exercises [ 36 ].

The technique of training to muscular failure was chosen because it is one of the most common practices for body builders, and it was a familiar technique for the subjects. As expected, the muscle action velocity varied between subjects due to their different anatomical leverage.

Although there was slight variation of repetition cadence for each subject, the average duration of each repetition was approximately 1. The research team directly supervised all routines to ensure proper performance of the routine. Each week, loads were adjusted to maintain the target repetition range with an effective load.

Training sessions were performed between and p. Subjects were not allowed to perform other exercises other than those included in the experimental protocol. Body weight was measured to the nearest 0.

Fat mass and fat-free mass were assessed by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry DXA QDR W, Hologic Inc. Muscle areas were calculated using the following anthropometric system. We measured limb circumferences to the nearest 0. We also measured biceps, triceps, and thigh skinfolds to the nearest 1 mm using a Holtain caliper Holtain Ltd, UK.

All measurements were taken by the same operator AP before and during the study according to standard procedures [ 38 , 39 ]. Muscle areas were then calculated using a previously [ 40 ] validated software Fitnext®, Caldogno, Vicenza, Italy.

Ventilatory measurements were made by standard open-circuit calorimetry max Encore 29 System, Vmax, Viasys Healthcare, Inc.

The gas analysis system was used: Oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide output values were measured and used to calculate resting energy expenditure REE and respiratory ratio RR using the modified Weir equation [ 43 ]. After resting for 15 min, the data were collected for 30 min, and only the last 20 min were used to calculate the respiratory gas parameters [ 37 , 44 ].

All tests were performed in the morning between 6 and 8 a. while the subjects were supine. The room was dimly lit, quiet, and approximately 23 °C.

Subjects were asked to abstain from caffeine, alcohol consumption and from vigorous physical activity for 24 h prior to the measurement. All samples were analysed in the same analytical session for each test using the same reagent lot. Before the analytical session, the serum samples were thawed overnight at 4 °C and then mixed.

The inter-assay coefficient of variations CVs were 3. Insulin-like growth factor 1 IGF-1 was measured using the analyzer Liaison XL DiaSorin S. A, Vercelli-Italy. This test is a sandwich immunoassay based on a chemiluminescent revelation, and the CV for IGF-1 was between 5.

Fasting total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol HDL-C , low-density lipoprotein cholesterol LDL-C , and triglycerides TG were measured by an enzymatic colorimetric method using a Modular D Roche Diagnostics, Basel, Switzerland.

The inter-assay CVs for total cholesterol, HDL-C, and triacylglycerol concentrations were 2. Glucose was measured in triplicate by the glucose oxidase method glucose analyzer, Beckman Instruments, Palo Alto, CA, USA , with a CV of 1.

Leptin and adiponectin were measured by radioimmunoassay using commercially available kits Leptin: Mediadiagnost; Adiponectin: DRG Diagnostic ; insulin was measured with a chemiluminescent immunoassay Siemens Immulite Thyroid-stimulating hormone TSH , free thyroxine T4 , and free triiodothyronine T3 were measured by automated chemiluminescence methods ACS SE; Bayer, Milan, Italy.

Plasma testosterone was determined using Testosterone II Roche Diagnostics, Indianapolis, IN, USA performed on Modular Analytics E analyzer with electrochemiluminescent detection. One repetition maximum 1-RM for the leg press and the bench press exercises was measured on separate days.

Subjects executed a specific warm-up for each 1-RM test by performing 5 repetitions with a weight they could normally lift 10 times. Using procedures described elsewhere [ 45 ], the weight was gradually increased until failure occurred in both of the exercises tested.

The greatest load lifted was considered the 1-RM. Previously published ICCs for test—retest reliability for leg press and bench press 1-RM testing was 0. Results are presented as mean ± standard deviation.

The sample size was obtained assuming an interaction of a Root Mean Square Standardized Effect RMSSE of 0. An independent samples t test was used to test baseline differences between groups. The two-way repeated-measures ordinary ANOVA was performed using time as the within-subject factor and diet as the between-subject factor in order to assess differences between groups over the course of the study.

Post-hoc analyses were performed using the Bonferroni test. In order to reduce the influence of within group variability a univariate test of significance ANCOVA was performed. We fixed as depended variable the Δ pre-post for each group and the baseline values of the outcomes were adopted as covariate; IF vs ND were assumed as categorical predictors.

The same trend was observed for arm and thigh muscle cross-sectional area. Leg press maximal strength increased significantly, but no difference was present between treatments. Total testosterone and IGF-1 decreased significantly in TRF after 8 weeks while no significant differences were detected in ND.

Blood glucose and insulin levels decreased significantly only in TRF subjects and conformingly a significant improvement of HOMA-IR was detected. In the TRF group, adiponectin increased, leptin decreased but this was not significant when normalized for fat mass , and T3 decreased significantly compared to ND, without any significant changes in TSH.

No significant changes were detectable for lipids total cholesterol, HDL-c and LDL-c , except for a decrease of TG in TRF group. TNF-α and IL-1β were lower in TRF at the conclusion of the study as compared to ND. A significant decrease of respiratory ratio in TRF group was recorded Tables 3 , 4.

However, only a single study has reported its effect during a resistance training program aimed at achieving skeletal muscle growth [ 30 ]. Our data demonstrate that during a RT program, TRF was capable of maintaining muscle mass, reducing body fat, and reducing inflammation markers.

However, it also reduced anabolic hormones such testosterone and IGF A key point of the TRF approach utilized in the present study is that total daily calorie intake remained the same while the frequency of meals i.

time between meals was altered. This is dissimilar to many other IF regimens. There are a number of different IF protocols, most of which have the goal of reducing total energy intake.

Additionally, unlike ADF and some other forms of IF, the regimen utilized in the present study employed the same schedule each day, consisting of 16 h fasting and 8 h feeding. Although IF has received a great amount of attention in recent years, the majority of studies have investigated the effects of IF in overweight, obese or dyslipidemic subjects [ 19 — 21 , 47 — 50 ].

However, little is known about the effects of such nutritional regimens in athletes, and more specifically, in body builders or resistance-trained individuals. The present study provides the first in-depth investigation of IF in this population of athletes. With the exception of reduced triglycerides, our results do not confirm previous research suggesting a positive effect of IF on blood lipid profiles [ 17 — 19 , 47 , 49 , 51 , 52 ], however, it has to be taken into account that our subjects were normolipemic athletes.

The magnitude of reduction in triglycerides was also smaller than is typically seen in individuals who have elevated concentrations prior to IF. As reported, a decrease of fat mass in individuals performing IF was observed.

Considering that the total amount of kilocalories and the nutrient distribution were not significantly different between the two groups Table 2 , the mechanism of greater fat loss in IF group cannot simply be explained by changes in the quantity or quality of diet, but rather by the different temporal meal distribution.

Many biological mechanisms have been advocated to explain these effects. Moreover, adiponectin acts in the brain to increase energy expenditure and cause weight loss [ 53 ].

It is notable that in the present study, the differences in adiponectin between groups remained even when normalized relative to body fat mass, whereas the significant decrease of leptin that might be considered a unfavorable factor for fat loss was no longer significant when normalized for fat mass.

Interestingly, although reductions in the anabolic hormones testosterone and IGF-1 were observed, this did not correspond to any deleterious body composition changes or compromises of muscular strength over the duration of the study.

It has been previously reported that men performing caloric restriction have lower testosterone than those consuming non-restricted Western diets [ 56 ], however, the present experiment did not restrict calories in the IF group.

Also, the reduction of IGF-1 in the TRF group deserves some discussion. A previous study by Bohulel et al. Even though it is plausible that IF mimics caloric restriction through common pathways e.

It is possible that the increase of adiponectin and the decrease of leptin could influence the IGF-1 concentration, even though it is unclear to what extent changes in adipokines impact circulating IGF-1 levels following weight loss [ 59 ]. Previous studies have reported mixed results concerning the ability to maintain lean body mass during IF, but the vast majority of these studies imposed calorie restriction and did not utilize exercise interventions [ 22 ].

In our study, the nutrient timing related to training session was different between the two groups, and this could affect the anabolic response of the subjects [ 61 ] even though these effects are still unclear [ 62 ].

However, we did not find any significant differences between groups in fat-free mass, indicating that the influence of nutrient timing may be negligible when the overall content of the diet is similar.

There is an increasing amount of data suggesting that IF could potentially be a feasible nutritional scheme to combat certain diseases. In the present study, both blood glucose and insulin concentrations decreased in the IF group. The potential of IF to modulate blood glucose and insulin concentrations has previously been discussed, but primarily in the context of overweight and obese individuals [ 3 ].

The concurrent increase in adiponectin and decrease in insulin may be related to modulation of insulin sensitivity, as adiponectin concentrations have been positively correlated with insulin sensitivity [ 21 , 50 , 63 , 64 ].

Moreover, related to the well-known anti-inflammatory effect of adiponectin, it is possible that the reduction of inflammatory markers is related to the improvement of insulin sensitivity. Inflammation plays an pivotal role in insulin resistance development through different cytokines that influence numerous molecular pathways.

Moreover IL-6 could decrease insulin sensitivity in skeletal muscle by inducing toll-like receptor-4 TLR-4 gene expression through STAT3 activator of transcription 3 activation. Modulation of some of these inflammatory markers by IF was seen in the present study: TNF-α and IL-1β were lower in the TRF group than ND at the conclusion of the study, while IL-6 appeared to decrease in the TRF group, but was not significantly different from ND.

Previous information on the impact of IF on inflammatory markers is limited, but a previous investigation by Halberg et al. Although a reduction in T3 was observed in the IF group, no changes in TSH or resting energy expenditure were observed. The observed reduction in RR in the TRF group indicates a very small shift towards reliance on fatty acids for fuel at rest, although a significant statistical interaction for RR was not present.

Fasting RR has been previously reported to be a predictor of substantial future weight gain in non-obese men, with individuals who have higher fasting RR being more likely to gain weight [ 67 ].

Interestingly, it was reported by Seidell et al. Based on the present study, a modified IF protocol i. TRF could be feasible for strength athletes without negatively affecting strength and muscle mass.

Caloric restriction in rodents has been reported to decrease testosterone and IGF-1 even though human data on long-term severe caloric restriction does not demonstrate a decrease in IGF-1 levels, but instead an increased serum insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1 IGFBP-1 concentration [ 60 , 68 ].

However, no data are available for most forms of IF. In addition to altering IGF-1, fasting can promote autophagy [ 28 ], which is important for optimal muscle health [ 70 ].

Additionally, there is a possibility that the different eating patterns of the groups in the present study impacted the relative contributions of different hypertrophic pathways in each group. Some limitations of the present study should be taken into account. On this point, there is not a consensus among researchers.

The beneficial effects of pre-exercise essential amino acid-carbohydrate supplement have been suggested [ 61 ], but the same group found that ingesting 20 g of whey protein either before or 1 h after 10 sets of leg extension resulted in similar rates of AA uptake [ 62 ].

Additionally, other studies have reported no benefit with pre-exercise AA feeding [ 71 , 72 ]. Another limitation of the present study is that the energy and macronutrient composition of the diet was based on interview, and this approach has known weaknesses.

Because of the limitations of this method, it is possible that differences in energy or nutrient intake between groups could have existed and played a role in the observed outcomes. In conclusion, our results suggest that the modified IF employed in this study: TRF with 16 h of fasting and 8 h of feeding, could be beneficial in resistance trained individuals to improve health-related biomarkers, decrease fat mass, and at least maintain muscle mass.

This kind of regimen could be adopted by athletes during maintenance phases of training in which the goal is to maintain muscle mass while reducing fat mass. Additional studies are needed to confirm our results and to investigate the long-term effects of IF and periods after IF cessation.

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J Mol Med. Fujita S, Dreyer HC, Drummond MJ, Glynn EL, Volpi E, Rasmussen BB. Essential amino acid and carbohydrate ingestion before resistance exercise does not enhance postexercise muscle protein synthesis. Burke LM, Hawley JA, Ross ML, Moore DR, Phillips SM, Slater GR, Stellingwerff T, Tipton KD, Garnham AP, Coffey VG.

Preexercise aminoacidemia and muscle protein synthesis after resistance exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. Download references. TM and AP designed the study. TM, GM, QFP performed the experiment.

TM and AP analysed the data and wrote the manuscript. MN performed nutritional assessment. GB, AB participated in the design of the study and helped to draft the manuscript.

GT and PG helped to draft the manuscript and participated in the data analysis. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

The data of the current study are available at request for scientists wishing to use them with kind full permission. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padua, Italy. Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.

College of Physical Education and Dance, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, Brazil. You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar. Correspondence to Antonio Paoli.

Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4. Reprints and permissions. Moro, T. et al.

J Transl Med 14 , Download citation. Received : 20 March Accepted : 03 October Published : 13 October Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:.

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article. Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative. Skip to main content. Search all BMC articles Search. Download PDF. Abstract Background Intermittent fasting IF is an increasingly popular dietary approach used for weight loss and overall health.

Methods Thirty-four resistance-trained males were randomly assigned to time-restricted feeding TRF or normal diet group ND. Conclusions Our results suggest that an intermittent fasting program in which all calories are consumed in an 8-h window each day, in conjunction with resistance training, could improve some health-related biomarkers, decrease fat mass, and maintain muscle mass in resistance-trained males.

Background Fasting, the voluntary abstinence from food intake for a specified period of time, is a well-known practice associated with many religious and spiritual traditions.

Table 1 Subject characteristics at baseline Full size table. Table 2 Diet composition and macronutrients distribution at basal level and during the experimental period in both groups Full size table.

Table 3 Major results of experiment with statistics adopted highlighted in italics text Full size table. Table 4 Univariate tests of significance ANCOVA Full size table.

Conclusions In conclusion, our results suggest that the modified IF employed in this study: TRF with 16 h of fasting and 8 h of feeding, could be beneficial in resistance trained individuals to improve health-related biomarkers, decrease fat mass, and at least maintain muscle mass.

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But there are so many people who are still sceptical to give it a shot. Put those worries to rest, because multiple randomized trials reveal how helpful this method is to reduce weight, and rev up your metabolism and cardiovascular health.

A review titled Intermittent Fasting and Obesity-Related Health Outcomes published in the journal JAMA found that intermittent fasting has associations with weight loss and improvements in metabolic and cardiovascular health.

Plus, it was noted that some kinds of intermittent fasting are more helpful when it comes to weight loss. Before we dive into those details, let us first understand what intermittent fasting really involves. To help us out, we have Parul Malhotra Bahl, Nutritionist, Certified Diabetes Educator, and Founder at Diet Expression, who shares more with HealthShots.

Most of us are already aware that fasting has been a practice that has been followed across various cultures to lead a healthy lifestyle. Starvation is the involuntary uncontrolled absence of food, whereas fasting is the voluntary controlled abstinence from food. This is exactly the principle around which intermittent fasting revolves.

It is all about abstaining from food entirely or partially for a set period of time before you start eating regularly again, she says. The food we eat is broken down in our gut and eventually ends up in the form of molecules in our bloodstream. Carbohydrates, particularly the simple carbs sugar, white flours, rice, etc are quickly broken down into sugar, which our cells use for energy.

Insulin brings the sugar into the fat cells and stores it there. Also Read: Can intermittent fasting help you beyond weight loss? Fasting is the most effective and consistent strategy to decrease insulin levels. Since the body switches over to burning stored fat for energy during the fasting state, it helps in weight fat loss.

Many studies have explained how simple fasting improves metabolism, lowers blood sugar levels, says Bahl.

Intermittent fasting lessens inflammation, which improves a range of health issues from arthritic pain to asthma, and even helps clear out toxins and damaged cells, which lowers the risk for cancer and enhances brain function. This is the fasting method, in which you fast for 16 hours and eat in the remaining eight hours of the day.

During fasting, one is allowed to have only water or any zero-calorie drink. It is important to know when and what to eat during the eating window.

Two to three meals 2 main with a small snack in between that are high on fibre, protein, and good fat work the best. This is the most comfortable form of intermittent fasting especially for first timers , and can be easily sustained for a longer period of time.

Alternate day fasting is where people end up avoiding any solid food or restricting to calories a day every alternate day. Also Read: This intermittent fasting plan will melt that extra fat away.

Also known as the Eat-Stop-Eat diet, this intermitent fasting pattern involves eating no food for 24 hours at a time. Many people fast from breakfast to breakfast or lunch to lunch. On non-fasting days, one can eat in a regular pattern.

A hour fast can be quite challenging as it may lead to fatigue, headaches, or irritability. Over a period of time, people may get used to this new eating pattern, and start seeing the benefits.