11 Benefits from 1 year of intermittent fasting

Usually, I do not advocate fasting or diets, but 1 whole year of intermittent fasting has delivered some incredible health and productivity benefits for me. I thought it would be worthwhile to share this journey with you. 

However, before we start, I would like to explain how our relationship with food has evolved in the last 100 odd years. 

Food evolution between 1920 & 2020

Think about this, a century ago –  food storage was difficult, preparation of food took longer and access to processed food was not existential. We also had an active lifestyle.  

Today, we never starve, we eat due to boredom, storage is not a problem, our lifestyle is sedentary and sugar is at our fingertips.  This causes a double whammy of eating more and burning less. 

This chart will help you differentiate our eating patterns and behaviour better.

Let us now look into intermittent fasting & how it works. 

What is Intermittent fasting?

If you haven’t heard this term before, it is a method of eating that is being advocated and pushed by various health experts, dieticians, fitness programs, etc. in short it is all the rage currently. 

While there are several types of intermittent fasting it is not for everyone and you should do your research before you start. 

The method that I follow is called the 16:8 wherein, I fast for 16 hours and restrict my eating to 8 hours per day. My current window is 12 PM to 8 PM. 

Intermittent Fasting is a lifestyle change, rather than a diet as it focuses more on the “When” rather than the “What”. However, this does not mean that you can eat anything you want, it still means that you should be eating food which is healthy and nutritious. 

The Science behind it

While I am not a medical expert and you can read what the experts have to say. Here is a quick summary:

• Our bodies need about 7-10 hours of non-stop process to digest, extract nutrients and generate waste. 
• For us to stay lean and at an optimal body weight we should be able to burn the same amount of calories we eat.
• When the body is not provided with fuel (calories) it starts burning the stored energy (fat). Thus helping us lose weight. 
• There are several health benefits also associated with Intermittent Fasting.  Such as improved metabolism, better bowel movements, reduction in risk for cardiovascular diseases, etc. 

Now that you are upto speed on what is Intermittent Fasting, it is time to move onto my personal journey & the benefits that I have seen. 

Why did I start?

For me, weight reduction was not the goal. I started primarily to reduce the habit of eating untimely junk and sugars especially just before bedtime.

Besides, when I started I was travelling without an end date or access to a kitchen. I wanted to reduce the number of meals I ate out and also my daily cost. 

By fasting, I knew I would reduce 1 meal a day and open up a larger window to dedicate to other activities such as yoga, meditation, trekking, etc. 

How did I start?

I started with a weekly plan of fasting 12 hours in a day and gradually increased my fast window by an hour every week. 

I have stuck to the 16:8 method since the beginning and to make this into a habit I committed myself to the same window daily for 3 months.

 Was it hard?

Building any new habit is hard. This was more of a psychological battle as I feared starving every morning initially. Especially when I got to the 16-hour fasting window.

At first, I would overeat for the first few weeks but then I eased into it. The lesser I ate the lesser food my body demanded. 

Since I was travelling solo, there was no pressure like social events, family, friends, etc. and this made building this habit easy. The longer I did the easier it got. 

One big thing was the mindset adjustment of not focusing on the results but the continuation of the habit so as to reap the benefits as a whole. Within a couple of weeks, the results started emerging, which we will see later. 

How did I manage continuity?

It was easy to sustain while I was travelling solo. However, upon returning from my trip it was a different story. 

The biggest hindrances for consistency were my habits of socialising, drinking and eating food late at night. So I would either not fast over weekends or adjust my timings to conclude my eating window late.

I had to train not only myself but also those around me. Besides, I had to reestablish my image and politely decline for late nights on weekdays. Some weeks, I would fast 5 days a week but did not make this into a weekend habit otherwise I knew that my mind would completely disassociate itself from fasting on weekends.

What benefits did I experience?

I have been noticing some of my best performances during this period. I feel a lot more focused and determined. Below is my list.

1. Energy levels – My biggest gain has been higher levels of energy. The lethargy that I felt around lunchtime and after work has almost vanished. Earlier, I would find excuses for stepping out of the house for any social activities, dinners or parties. I no longer suffer from these. 
2. Focus – My focus levels have improved due to more energy in the body. I can stay focused and consistent for longer as compared to before. This has improved my ability to work on projects longer and with better results.
3. Active body & active mind – An extension of the first two points. I have become more active since I have started fasting. Because I am putting less food in the body, I am a lot more attentive.
4. Reflux – I haven’t had any reflux related issues in over a year now. I think it is due to my consistency with my food timings. 
5. Physical health – The fat distribution in my body has improved significantly. I have been exercising regularly which has certainly assisted my fasts. I feel a lot stronger and more muscular. 
6. One habit brings another – They say that one good habit helps bring another. I have been able to inculcate many more habits during this time. You can read the power of habits here. 
7. Mental health – This sudden burst of energy and the results that I am experiencing has improved my belief system. It has helped in improving my overall well being and happiness, thus elevating my mental health. 
8. Emotional health – Due to this newfound energy I have been less irate and I am also able to manage my hunger pangs better. I don’t feel hangry – it has almost vanished in the last year or so.
9. More time – Due to one less meal, I have more time in hand for other activities. This means I am more productive and have lesser meal planning to do.
10. Cost of living – Another benefit is that my cost of living has reduced and due to restricted time I am a lot more aware of what I am putting in my body which means a reduction in alcohol consumption too. Twice the benefit from one habit. 
11. Quality of work – The level of alertness and mental clarity improves significantly by the end of my fasting period. This has helped me improve the quality of the work I have been delivering. 

Final words

While I have been able to implement this as a lifestyle change, it has certainly not been easy. The longer I have done it, the easier it has gotten. I think that everyone is different and everyone’s bodies respond differently. 

If you want to see change, you will have to experiment and figure out what works and what doesn’t. 

I am reachable at nimishjalan@gmail.com. If you have questions or need help.

Your turn to share anything that I might have missed or if your journey has been different. Comment below now 👇🏾