What is Intermittent Feeding?
· Intermittent feeding is a type of scheduled eating plan where you adjust your normal daily eating schedule to a certain window of time without cutting calories.
· There are several different intermittent feeding methods, all of which split the day or week into eating periods and NON-eating periods.
· Many people find this is a natural progression that they fall into on their own when following a ketogenic lifestyle
· The most common NON-eating period we all experience each day/night is while we sleep.
· During the KIIT program we will be using the 16/8 method of intermittent feeding. 16hrs (continuous) of each day will be NON-eating and 8hrs (continuous) will be selected where you will eat. Most of the 16hrs of NON-eating occurs while we sleep.
· Intermittent feeding is not a form of extreme caloric restriction, in fact the same or more calories should be consumed during the 8hrs feeding window. It's a practice that should make you feel good.
Benefits of Intermittent Feeding
Throughout history periods of NON-feeding has been a commonplace practice and has been a spiritual tradition for millennia. Today, modern science has proven that NON-feeding yields the following benefits:· Helps promote insulin sensitivity – Optimal insulin sensitivity is crucial for your health, as insulin resistance or poor insulin sensitivity contributes to nearly ALL chronic disease.· Normalizes ghrelin levels, also known as your “hunger hormone”· Increases the rate of HGH (human growth hormone) production, which has an important role in health, fitness, and slowing the aging process· Lowers triglyceride levels· Helps suppress inflammation and fight free radical damage· In addition, exercising in a NON-fed state can help counteract muscle aging and wasting and boost fat-burning
Transitional symptoms of Intermittent Feeding
Attempting intermittent feeding before being “fat adapted” (which will occur over the first 30 days of the KIIT program) could bring about a multitude of symptoms such as:
· Headache
· “Extreme feeling of hunger”
· Brain fog
· Dizziness
· Gastrointestinal side effects (i.e. stomach growling)
However, once you have entered into a state of Ketosis with an overall decrease in appetite (due to becoming “fat adapted”) extending your normal intermittent non-feeding periods will be much easier.