A Health Plan with the Bonus of Weight Loss

The thing I love most about Intermittent Fasting is the health and healing benefits. I am happy with the 30 pounds of weight I have lost, however, my goal was to become healthier on the inside. IF heals your body from the inside out with a side effect of weight loss.

This week I'll reference the following chapters from Gin Stephens books:

Fast Feast Repeat:

• Chapter 1 (second half) - Human Growth Hormone and Building Muscles
• Chapter 2- Autophagy and Health Benefits

Information on Fasting

What is Autophagy? It is a cellular mechanism that helps our cells survive. I love this word. In 2016 the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his research on Autophagy. He found that Autophagy is a process where cells tranform by-products, waste materials, useless and unwanted products into new materials of better quality and value. The cell uses autophagy to recycle damaged or unwanted cell parts to use for energy or building blocks for new growth. Think about that for a minute, many health issues are due to defective parts of cells creating problems. When you are fasting you are allowing your cells to clean out the garbage which leads to many health benefits and prevents inflammation and disease. 

Many of you know me as an educator who loves to up-cycle things during STEAM activities. I teach students and teachers how to be makers and our cells are makers of their own.

Here are some researched health benefits from Intermittent Fasting:

• Combats Hyperinsulinemia (too much insulin)
• Reverse and/or prevent metabolic syndrome (see previous blog post)
• Reverse type 2 diabetes
• Anti-inflammatory (inflammation can lead to cancer and heart disease)
• Relieve and/or reduce Auto-immune diseases: rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis
• Cardio-vascular benefits
• Brain health - fewer signs of depression, improved memory, increased production of neurons, enhanced ability to ward off Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases
• Decreases visceral fat (the dangerous fat around organs)
• Adjusts our hunger and satiety hormones
• Resets the gut microbiome
• Anti-tumor - has positive effects during cancer treatment, reduced rate at which cells increase, positive and low-intensity stress to the body, increased anti-oxidant activity

Fasting also preserves and increases muscle mass. It is linked to a higher metabolic rate (as I shared in the previous blog post). IF leads to a natural increase in our levels of Human Growth Hormone(HGH). With higher levels of HGH we are more likely to gain muscle just by actively living our lives. the increased HGH not only increases muscle but it improves bone density and leads to faster healing of wounds and injuries.

Gin uses the analogy of babies growing and building muscle without "weight lifting" or "working out" so it is possible for our bodies to produce muscle just by doing our daily routine when HGH is released during fasting.

Fasting Protocols and Tips

Don't let your brain get in the way. You will discover how boredom creates mindless eating. If you can conquer your brain, the fasting will be easier. Think about the healing that is going on inside your body and not only about weight loss.

Interesting Observations  - Things I notice when I am fasting and/or Non-Scale victories

Last week I broke my fast with coffee and sweetner and hot chocolate (homemade mocha) and smoothie and then took Jada on a walk and I felt shakey on the walk due to an insulin release. I should have just walked before breaking my fast. On the weekends we do lots of work around our property and I do most of it in the fasted state. I love physical exercise and labor in the fasted state. It's amazing how much energy fat provided your body in the fasted state.

Metabolism and Intermittent Fasting

This week we will take a look at metabolism and why calories in/calories out does not work for weight loss. My journey with intermittent fasting has taught me many things about metabolism.

This week I'll reference the following chapters from Gin Stephens books:

Fast Feast Repeat:

• Chapter 1 (second half) - metabolism and metabolic flexibility
• Chapter 4 - CPIR (cephalic phase insulin release)

Delay, Don't Deny:

• Chapter 3 - The Biggest Loser Study on metabolism

Information on Fasting

A few more words about Insulin

What is CPIR and what does it have todo with fasting? Remember in my last post when I mentioned that when you take a sip of something flavored or sweet you body releases insulin? This process is called Cephalic Phase Insulin Release (CPIR). It is something that helped me make sure that my coffee and water are completely black and/or plain. When you TASTE sweetness or sour or umami (described as the meaty, savory deliciousness that deepens flavor) this is what happens:

• 2 minutes after tasting there is an insulin release
• 4 minutes after tasting insulin peaks
• 8-10 minutes after tasting insulin levels return to baseline

So, if you accidentally lick your finger while making a PB&J sandwich as long as you stop there, your insulin levels will go back down quickly. That is why brushing your teeth during fasting does not break the clean fast.

A few words about Metabolism

Here's an interesting statistic: the weight loss industry is a $66,000,000,000 money making machine with it's primary suggestion reduce calories, increase exercise. What the industry does not tell you is that study after study has shown that decreasing calories and increasing exercise does not work and can cause "persistent metabolic adaptation".

In Delay, Don't Deny Gin mentions the Biggest Loser Study in 2016. In a nutshell, they studied 14 former contestants six years after being on the show. They found that before the show the participants had normal metabolic rates and after the show their metabolic rates had slowed and their metabolisms never recovered. Doctors used the metaphor of stretching out a spring, it never gets it's original springiness back. Here is a link to one of the articles describing the Biggest Loser Study: CLICK HERE.

How is it possible to protect your metabolic rate when you are intermittent fasting? Fasting flips the metabolic switch. Here is another simplified explanation:

• Our bodies use glycogen stored from the foods we eat
• During our fast the liver glycogen is used up (sometime after 12 hours)
• Our body starts running on stored fat from fat cells and produces ketones to fuel our brain (we are now in ketosis)
• We do not deplete muscle because there is plenty of fat for our bodies to use.

Metabolic Flexibility has kicked in and our bodies become very good at switching fuel sources as needed. Intermittent fasting creates the opposite scenario from metabolic adaptation and protects your metabolic rate.

Fasting Protocols and Tips

I like to break my fast with cashews and/or almonds. It provides protein and it is also a healthy fat. Remember if you are trying One Meal A Day (OMAD) your "one meal" is a full multi-course meal.

Interesting Observations  - Things I notice when I am fasting and/or Non-Scale victories

• After you have been fasting for a month or so, feel the skin on your elbows - it will be soft and smooth without putting lotion on
• I went to the skin doctor this month and for the first time in 15 years I had ZERO cancers biopsied or frozen off. My usual is 4 - 6 things frozen and at least 1 - 2 biopsies. That is a huge NSV!
• According to my husband, I no longer have a snoring problem

Next post we'll look at Human Growth Hormone and how fasting builds muscles.

Insulin and the Importance of Clean Fasting

This week we are going to get sciency (not sure that is a word) and take a look at how insulin works in our bodies and how fasting is the key to reversing issues caused by insulin. It will also explain why the "clean fast" is so important for our bodies to clean out and repair themselves. This was the the key to me starting IF because I have always had blood sugar issues, feeling faint and/or passing out, shaky, hangry, etc... Since I started fasting, I have not felt any of those things, NOT ONCE. However, I KNOW that if I did not clean fast I would still be feeling that way throughout the day.

I am going to be re-explaining information from Gin Stephen's books, specifically these chapters:

Fast, Feast, Repeat: Chapters 1
Delay, Don't Deny: Chapter 4

You can get the specific low down by reading these books.

Information about Fasting - Insulin (this is going to be simplified for better understanding)

The following is the way our bodies are supposed to work when we take a bite of food or drink a sugary or flavored drink: 

• Our pancreas releases insulin (unless you are a type 1 diabetic) to take care of the glucose in our blood.
• Insulin takes the glucose from our blood and stores it in the liver and muscles as glycogen, the excess is stored as fat for later use
• When glucose goes down (thanks to insulin) the body receives a signal to release glycogen from the liver to be used by our body and brain.
• Once the glycogen is used up, the body taps into fat stores, produces ketones, which are a great fuel source, and uses the fat for energy.

Unfortunately for many of us, we are drinking, snacking, eating all day long which causes our body to continually release insulin. This creates a state of hyperinsulinemia or too much insulin. Because of the continual insulin release your body never gets the opportunity to tap into stored fat.

To be blunt, insulin is a fat storing hormone. If we constantly have it coursing through our bodies the outcome will be fat storage.

A good analogy is to think about a hoarder's house with all of the stuff everywhere. The inside of your body is like the inside of a hoarders house. There is so much "stuff" in your body it never gets the chance to truly clean it out.

The best way to clean out your body and tap into your fat stores is to clean fast. If you have cream or sweetener in your coffee or tea or flavored water, you will cause an insulin release and start the cycle of your body accessing glycogen. When you clean fast and get to hour 16, that is when your body transitions to fat burning (this is very simplified and generalized).

Fasting Protocols/Tips - What does my fasting day look like?:

• Just start fasting with plain tea or black coffee and/or plain water
• Notice how your body feels 
• When I feel a tummy rumble I celebrate the fact that my body is tapping into my fat stores
• I do a modified One Meal a Day (OMAD): 
• I begin my day with black coffee and sparkling PLAIN water (I like bubbles)
• I break my fast between 2:00 and 3:00
• I usually start with some protein like cashews, almonds, nuts
• I will have a snack or small meal - I like breakfast sandwiches or burritos
• When I get home I have a protein smoothie with almond milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, almond yogurt, protein powder (Arbonne) and ice and then a small dinner
• I have not ever been a big eater so instead of eating one multi-course meal I spread it out over a 4-5 hour eating window and eat two smaller meals instead of one big one.
• I love the flexibility of changing up when I fast or eat to fit my schedule for the day.
• On Sundays, I have a large family breakfast and I only fast 16 hours (sometimes it's only 15 hours)

Interesting Observations - Things I notice when I am fasting and/or Non-Scale victories

An interesting thing that I have noticed since I began fasting is that I go through stages of "soreness" in my body. Because of fasting, my body is healing from the inside out. Because of autophagy (I'll write more about that in an upcoming post) my body cycles through areas of need. An example is blemishes on my face and head which I liken to my body working on getting toxins out. Another interesting observation is the first 4 - 6 months of fasting I had great energy all during the day and while eating and then when my body started digesting dinner, I became very tired. Luckily, that passes as your body adjusts to fasting. Now I have great energy until I go to bed, even after a 5 hour eating window.

Up next week we'll learn about our metabolism, calories in/calories out and metabolic adaptaion.

My One Year IF (Intermittent Fasting) Anniversary

Happy Intermittent Fasting (IF) Anniversary to me! This week last year was a whirlwind that began a sustainable change for my health and well being just before the pandemic hit. I decided to celebrate my first year I would start a blog to share the continued learning and knowledge I have acquired about IF. For this first post I want to share my why and how I began my journey.

My Why

I had just turned 55 and I was not happy with the belly fat I had accumulated over the past 10 years. Of course like many, I attributed it to menopause and the fact that this is just what happens to women as they age. Unfortunately, my family history of heart disease and diabetes combined with my blood work was causing my doctor to start the discussion of my own high cholesterol and blood sugar. I wanted to be healthy for my family but I also wanted to try and fix these without taking medication. 

A Series of Serendipitous Events

For some reason the word fasting was swimming around in my brain at the beginning of 2020. 

• I had had a colonoscopy in the summer of 2019 and after fasting for over 36 hours, my digestive tract seemed to be functioning SO much better. 
• Then on February 11, 2020 my friend Laurie Jones posted that she was on an IF podcast telling her and her husband's story of fasting. Now my curiosity was kicking into high gear. I listened to the hour long podcast (Click Here) hosted by Gin Stephens who was the author of the book Delay Don't Deny, and a huge advocate of IF. I actually listened to the podcast in two parts because I heard them talk about drinking black coffee and thinking - I'm out! Lucky for me, my curiosity forced me to turn the podcast back on and continue listening. 
• I began tossing around the idea of fasting and purchased Delay Don't Deny (DDD) on Audible so I could listen to the book.
• February 18th I listened to DDD while I cleaned out my home office
• February 19th I decided this would be my final non-fasting day. I took my son and his buddie to the movies and had a chicken sandwich with fries as my last "normal eating day"

Taking the Leap

On February 20th, I poured myself a cup of black coffee, closed my eyes and took a leap of faith and trusted that this would work for me as it had for others.

After listening (and re-listening) to the book these were the things that gave me enough confidence to take the leap:

(I will elaborate on each one later in this post)

CLEAN FAST IS THE KEY 

• I don't have to change my diet, I'm just delaying what I'm eating until later
• I can still drink wine
• I don't have to exercise for it to work (I am a walker but I wanted to test this)

Nitty Gritty Details:

Total weight lost and kept off - 30 pounds

Eight inches off my waist (42 inches to 34 inches)

What exactly did I do? 

• My first goal was to clean fast for a minimum of 16 hours everyday.
• I decided that my eating window would be from about 1:30 - 7:30 (6 hours) to start that meant I was fasting from 7:30pm to 1:30pm (18 hours)
• I also wanted to take note of how I felt during fasting and eating
• If someone brought donuts to school, I would take one and put it in my office and wait until my eating window was open or if I wanted a mocha, I would have one in my eating window
• I also started eating dessert when I wanted to because I had deprived myself of dessert for MANY years
• I walked on the weekends but did not do any other exercise
• I would drink wine when it fit into my eating window (until I quit drinking altogether in April).

I lost 5 lbs/month for the first 5 months and my waist was six inches smaller. I sort of stalled after that and lost the final 5 pounds and two inches very slowly. I became what many IFers fondly call themselves - a turtle (because of the slowed progression).

There are also things called NSVs - Non-Scale Victories because while you lose weight, inflamation and inches, the inside of your body starts re-compositioning itself, the term for this is autophagy. Here are some of my NSVs:

• Blood sugar is normal
• Cholesterol is lower - still not in the healthy range but we are problem solving that one
• Incredible energy - when your body is eating fat it produces great energy (no more head bobbing during afternoon IEPs)
• Incredible awareness of how my body reacts to foods
• Incredible awareness of when my stomach growls, that I'm not hungry (I take the growls as a signal that my body is dipping into my fat stores because there is no glycogen for it to consume)
• Reduced or no joint pain
• My hair is getting thicker
• My skin is softer
• I'm sleeping so much better and no more snoring
• Better memory and brain function
• And many more I have forgotten

So what does it look like a year later? 

• I fast 18 - 20 hours a day (sometimes longer)
• I eat a snack, a smoothie, and dinner each day
• I eat dessert a few times a week
• I have not drastically changed my diet
• I started walking 5 days a week in December so I've added exercise
• I never feel hungry or hangry or shaky or weak
• I've conquered my head - I often ask my self if I'm hungry and most often the answer is NO

So now that I have started this blog, I am going to spend each week sharing information and science that support IF. I'll be using Gin's Books: Delay, Don't Deny and Fast, Feast, Repeat to go beyond the basics.

Let me know if you have any questions or things you are curious about

Next week we'll look at Insulin and Clean Fasting