{"id":227,"date":"2022-07-21T02:09:16","date_gmt":"2022-07-21T02:09:16","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-09-05T00:14:11","modified_gmt":"2023-09-04T16:14:11","slug":"most-common-intermittent-fasting-mistakes-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/most-common-intermittent-fasting-mistakes-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Common Intermittent Fasting Mistakes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Intermittent fasting, if done correctly, and successfully avoiding some common intermittent fasting mistakes, can result in many health benefits. Intermittent fasting can be an excellent way to manage your weight, lose weight, and reduce the odds of consuming excess calories throughout the day. For many people, an intermittent fasting regimen helps them increase metabolism<\/a> which is helpful when one\u2019s metabolism starts to slow down.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s even possible to improve your brain health with intermittent fasting<\/a>. However, if you make intermittent fasting mistakes while attempting this eating plan, you may be surprised when you don\u2019t notice results or benefits.<\/p>\n

Before you start any diet, you should take the time to do your research to avoid doing it incorrectly. Read articles like this one, watch YouTube videos, talk to your doctor, and potentially even speak to a dietician or nutritionist. It\u2019s important to be aware of the common intermittent fasting mistakes, so you can avoid them.<\/p>\n

Intermittent Fasting Mistakes<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s common to make some mistakes when you\u2019re first starting out on a new eating plan, or trying a new diet. The important thing is to get out of the habit of making these mistakes, and keep trying to follow the program correctly, rather than getting discouraged.<\/p>\n

Below are some of the most common intermittent fasting mistakes, and tips on how to avoid them:<\/p>\n

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1. Overeating or Binge Eating Once Your Fast Ends<\/h2>\n

Intermittent fasting is all about restraining from food, as well as any drinks other than water, tea, or plain black coffee, for a \u2018fasting period\u2019 each day. For most people, their fasting window is 14 \u2013 18 hours of fasting (don\u2019t worry, this includes time spent asleep.) This is a long time to fast, so you may have the urge to binge eat when your window eating begins and you\u2019re out of fasting mode.<\/p>\n

Overeating once you\u2019re out of fasting mode is one of the top intermittent fasting mistakes out there. It\u2019s one of the worst mistakes you can make, because you could consume way too many calories in one sitting if you\u2019re over-indulging. Since weight loss is all about counting calories<\/a>, you can\u2019t binge eat once you\u2019re out of fasting mode, as you\u2019ll quickly surpass the number of calories you\u2019re supposed to stick to<\/a> each day.<\/p>\n

To avoid this mistake of overeating once your fast is over, you should meal prep to ensure you have healthy food on-hand and ready to be consumed as soon as your eating window begins. Cut up some slices of apple, or wash some grapes and put them in a bowl, ready to eat. Meal prep healthy veggie and protein packed meals and keep them in your fridge, such as a tupperware container of healthy chicken and veggie stir fry.<\/p>\n

No matter how starving you are, try to eat slowly. If you have the urge to take a big bite, that\u2019s fine, but be sure to chew your food well, as this helps you eat slower. Take breaks to digest and sip water. These steps will help you feel fuller and eat slower, so you can stop eating before you over-stuff yourself. If you eat too fast, your body won\u2019t have time to recognize you\u2019re full yet, and before you know it, you overate. The fact that you just fasted for many hours doesn\u2019t give you the freedom to binge eat whatever you want to eat when the fast ends.<\/p>\n

2. Consuming a Drink or Substance That You Mistakenly Believe Won\u2019t Break Your Fast<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s important your body knows it\u2019s fasting for the entire duration of your fasting window, in order for intermittent fasting to work. Many people think diet soda doesn\u2019t break your fast, because it\u2019s zero calories. However, the artificial flavors in these \u2018zero calories\u2019 drinks actually can spike hormones in your body, which will trick your body into thinking you\u2019re no longer fasting.<\/p>\n

This means sugar-free redbull, diet coke, and other \u2018zero calorie\u2019 flavored drinks can break your fast. This is one of the most common intermittent fasting mistakes that many beginners make.<\/p>\n

Putting \u2018just a splash\u2019 of milk or \u2018just a dash\u2019 of sugar in your coffee will also break your fast.<\/p>\n

Similarly, a seemingly insignificant vitamin gummy is a substance that could break your fast if there\u2019s sugar or calories in it. Most vitamin gummies do have sugar and calories. This means that if you take a daily vitamin in gummy form, it should be consumed during your eating window only.<\/p>\n

3. Consuming Foods That You Mistakenly Think Won\u2019t Break Your Fast<\/h2>\n

Many people mistakenly believe that consuming a cup of bone broth, one mint, or a piece of gum, won\u2019t break their fast. However, this certainly could break your fast by signaling to your body that it\u2019s no longer in fasting mode.<\/p>\n

Check out this article on surprising ways you could break your fast<\/a> while intermittent fasting.<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re in fasting mode, you can only have plain water, plain black coffee, and herbal tea with nothing added to it (not even a splash of milk.)<\/p>\n

Everything else (even that piece of gum) has to wait until you are in your eating window.<\/p>\n

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4. Choosing an Eating Window That is Too Long or Doesn\u2019t Suit Your Lifestyle<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re currently doing the 14:10 intermittent fasting program, which is 14 hours of fasting and 10 hours of eating, try encouraging yourself to make a change. Try shortening your eating window to 8 hours, and increase your fasting window to 16 hours. This would make your intermittent fasting program the 16:8 program, which tends to have better results.<\/p>\n

You can do it. All you need to do is believe in yourself, and go for it. You can level up and shorten your eating window to 8 hours. If you find it difficult, try to power through. Find ways to distract yourself rather than sitting on the couch thinking about food. In the end, it\u2019s best to listen to your body. If you can\u2019t do the 8 hour eating window, that\u2019s okay, but it\u2019s worth it to try because you\u2019ll likely be pleasantly surprised that you can do it.<\/p>\n

One of the top intermittent fasting mistakes is failing to believe in yourself that you can do the program with the shorter eating window, and failing to try.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also best to choose eating windows that are during times of day that work for you. For example, if you already know you\u2019re a night owl who doesn\u2019t like breakfast that much, your eating window could easily be 2pm \u2013 10pm. Everyone should choose an eating window that suits their lifestyle best.<\/p>\n

5. Forgetting to Exercise<\/h2>\n

Many self-proclaimed weight loss \u2018experts\u2019 will tell you that losing weight is mostly about what you eat, not about how often you exercise. They\u2019ll often say that losing weight is 80% about changing what you eat and how you eat, while only 20% of weight loss is accounted for by exercise.<\/p>\n

Even if this is true, that doesn\u2019t mean healthy eating on an intermittent fasting program is all you need to do to lose weight and get healthier. Even if it\u2019s working and you\u2019re seeing results, that doesn\u2019t take away from the importance to also incorporate exercise.<\/p>\n

No matter how great you are at sticking to a diet plan, you also have to exercise. It\u2019s not healthy to live a sedentary, inactive lifestyle. You should be exercising for at least 1 hour, 3-4 times per week. Whether that\u2019s a power walk in your neighborhood, a group fitness class, a spin class<\/a>, cycling outdoors, kayaking \u2013 whatever it is, try to exercise regularly in addition to watching what you eat.<\/p>\n

Exercise when it feels right, but figure out when it feels right, and do it often. Listen to your body. Perhaps you\u2019ll exercise when you first wake up, while you\u2019re still in fasting mode. Or, perhaps you\u2019ll exercise during your eating window, because you have a hard time exercising on an empty stomach.<\/p>\n

6. Getting Discouraged if You Don\u2019t See Immediate Results<\/h2>\n

With any new diet plan or new fitness routine, you can\u2019t expect quick results. It could take weeks or months to see results, and you have to be okay with that, yet still stick to your plan.<\/p>\n

One of the top intermittent fasting mistakes is getting discouraged when you don\u2019t see quick results, and baling on the plan. Don\u2019t quit. Wait for your results, and they will come, especially if you\u2019re not making these intermittent fasting mistakes. If you\u2019re doing it correctly and incorporating exercise, results will come, and you need to be okay waiting to see those results without giving up.<\/p>\n

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What Should You Eat During Your Eating Window?<\/h2>\n

Try to eat healthy foods during your eating window. Based on your unique DNA, the type of diet that suits you best, and the types of foods you should be eating, could vary based on your genetic makeup. CircleDNA reveals hundreds of reports about yourself, including your genetic diet and nutrition profile. Take a CircleDNA test and read your genetic diet and nutrition profile<\/a>, to find out the optimal diet for you, based on your DNA, as well as tons of other helpful DNA insights related to health and fitness.<\/p>\n

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References<\/h3>\n
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  1. What are the benefits of intermittent fasting? (Natalie Olsen, R.D., L.D., ACSM EP-C) https:\/\/www.medicalnewstoday.com\/articles\/323605<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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