subject: Two Day Fast: 3 Reasons Why It's Much Better Than Dieting [print this page] Is it possible and safe to lose or maintain body fat by only changing your eating habits two days a week?
Yes, not only is it possible and safe, it's also highly desireable. A 2-day a week fast is one of the many ways to do something called 'intermittent fasting'. Intermittent fasting done correctly can help you acheive your body composition goals AND improve your health at the same time.
When most people think of the word 'fast' they have negative associations. This is because in health literature most of the references to fasting concern long-term fasts, not short-term. Long-term fasts can harm health, that's more than clear. But study after study have shown that short-term fasts - such as doing two 24-hr fasts a week - do NOT produce the negative results of long-term fasting.
Why don't more people know about the benefits of short-term fasts? First, the studies on intermittent fasting are not funded by the health industry. There's very little money to be made by telling people not to eat one or more days a week. Without the backing and agenda, the many studies that prove that short-term fasts are safe and effective get almost no press.
Why 2 Day Fasts Are Better Than Dieting - 3 Reasons
1. You Only Change Your Eating Habits Twice a Week
Instead of depriving yourself every day and changing your eating habits to reach your fat loss goal (the standard with most diet programs), you only have to change your habits 2 days a week. On those 2 days, spaced a few days apart, you don't eat or drink anything that contains calories for 24 hours, then you resume your normal eating pattern until your next fast.
You can lose the same amount of fat in two 24-hour fasts as it would in 7 days with a standard fat loss program. Also, with fasting, almost 100% of the loss will be body fat as long as you do some form of light resistance training during the week.
2. Increase in Human Growth Hormone Levels
Short-term fasting increases your human growth hormone levels dramatically. Standard dieting does not. Levels peak at about the 24 hour mark of a fast. That's why it's good to go for a 24 period on your fasting days.
Growth hormone is also known as the 'youth hormone'. Levels steadily decline as people age. Intense excercise can boost growth hormone levels, but fasting is a far easier way to accomplish the same thing. It's also far cheaper than getting the growth hormone shots that are all the rage in anti-aging medicine. It's also much safer because the injections can have undesireable side effects.
3. Reduced Hunger and Increased Energy
There is an adaptation period, so it may take three 24-hour fasts before you aren't as bothered by hunger, but yes short-term fasting done correctly can actually reduce feelings of hunger and boost energy levels. Many people report that they're more productive on their fasting days.
Standard dieting can reduce hunger over time, but not as dramatically and quickly as intermittent fasting. Many people who do intermittent fasting find that they have to remind themselves to eat! That usually can't be said about standard diets.
Two day fasts are an ideal way to safely lose or maintain body fat levels and increase growth hormone levels for many long-term health benefits.
