02/11/2021
Good Question... “Adam, I want to lose a few pounds and so I’m thinking of trying intermittent fasting. Do you think that’s a good idea? Thanks!”
I recommend you try it as an experiment for a while. And you don’t have to be 100% perfect. Try and be 85% perfect for 3 weeks or longer. Then take a mental step back to reevaluate by asking yourself a few questions...
1) Did my weight change in a meaningful amount?
2) Was it easy and stress-free? Or really stressful?
3) Was my overall hunger ravenous or mild?
4) What might I try changing to make it easier on myself?
Ideally, someone would try a new eating strategy and then say “I lost a few pounds, I found it really easy, and I didn’t feel like I was starving.” But it’s more likely you will want to make a few small revisions and try again.
The Research: When nerdy researchers give someone two large meals, then compare that to giving someone the same total amount of food, but spread out into 5 or 6 smaller meals, they find there is no fat loss difference between groups. So the good news is you can eat at the frequency that works best for you. Except...
If you are really active, you probably would do better spreading your food throughout the day at least a bit. Going to a 2 hour, bone-crushing football practice might go better with at least a little food in your system.
