Monday, September 27, 2010

Fasting For Weight Loss

When I talk about fasting for weight loss, some feel curious, some feel feared. Many wondered why and how I developed this habit. In fact, if we review our eating history, it’s easy to find something in common.

Remember how much and how often you ate when you were 13? Look at the photo here.


The bottom row was how I ate when I were 13. True! No exaggeration! I did have a record of eating 5 bowls of rice for lunch. When I grew up, my food consumption decreased accordingly. I thought I cut from two to one at my mid 20s. Now I am eating one meal a day, or even without any food on some days. In fact, this does not only happen to me. Many find that they are eating less and less, especially on weekends when they don’t have to work.

Fasting may sound scary to those who worry about energy level or afraid of hungry pangs. However fasting for weight loss isn’t scary at all. I am still eating EVERYDAY and eating what I love to eat.

The kind of short term fasting I do have almost no impact on my social life and yet my body benefits. That way my digestive system got periodic recess, shifting focus from digestion to cleansing and repairing, resulting not only in weight loss but more energy and better skin, not to mention my bloating problem says good bye to me.

May be you’ve been told a million times that you should eat at least three meals a day; or eat like a king for breakfast and a queen for lunch and a beggar for dinner. Forget about these. They may work for some people, but not for you, if you want to lose weight naturally and permanently. Fasting for weight loss is the new trend, whether you want to shed a few pounds or maintain your body weight. Try to start your fasting weight loss project by skipping a couple of meals a week. I’m sure you’ll see the benefits.


If you are afraid of hungry, drink a glass of fresh prune juice to replace lunch or dinner. Its high fibre will create a feeling of fullness and keep you away from hungry. It will also encourage bowel movements and you will gain additional benefit if you are suffering from constipation. Because of this, please make sure no over consumption of prune juice to avoid diarrhea.

More about juicing for weight loss.

Try it out once, and I’m sure you’ll love the feeling. Be prepared to allow some time for your body to burn fat, and DO NOT expect overnight results.

NOTE: You need to do a little more if you are aiming to maintain a steady body weight, i.e. do this short term fasting in an ongoing manner. It could be even better if you could incorporate some daily exercises. If you do these, you’ll simply save money in buying weight loss programs, diet recipes and still enjoying a healthy life.

Read my fasting for weight loss story.

Recommended reading: Eat Stop Eat – a scientific guide for short term intermittent fasting.

Friday, September 3, 2010

My Fasting Windows

Some readers ask me about my fasting windows. Regarding my eating schedule, I have a diary which records every single details. As someone who eats one meal a day, what to eat, where to eat and with whom to eat are very important to me.

Back to my fasting windows. I have recently draw up a table to compare my eating schedule with two of the mainstream intermittent fasting pattern.

ADF (alternate day fasting) - you know what it means, simply eat every other day. This may suit people who enjoy disciplined life.

IF (intermittent fasting) - one meal a day mode - is my preferred option. But as a matter of fact, I've done this in a flexible way.

Anna - I just pick any week in my diary which records three sessions of 24-hour fasting, two of 16-hours and one of 40-hours.

The big picture is: keep at least two 24-hour fasting windows in a week. That's it. Make it simple and flexible. Never fix a day and do it on an unplanned and natural manner. If you keep your eating schedule too rigid, you will have no fun, and somehow will affect your social life.

Anna's Thought Today:

Make fun by fasting, enjoy eating while losing weight!

Intermittent Fasting Success Report