A Great Fat Loss Combo: Intermittent Fasting and Cheat Days
I recently did a guest post at Trying Fitness about my eating philosophy. It’s similar to articles I’ve written here discussing why the combination of Eat Stop Eat and Cheat Your Way Thin has been great for fat loss. Below is the opening paragraph:
Conventional wisdom says that you should eat 5-6 small meals per day. Conventional wisdom also says that you can’t cheat on your diet. Well call me unconventional then because I’ve managed to lose a significant amount of weight and get to my lowest body fat level ever by skipping breakfast and lunch twice a week and eating whatever I want once per week. Even better, I’m not an outlier when it comes to the successfulness of these approaches. In fact, scientific research actually supports intermittent fasting and cheat days. If you’ve struggled with calorie restrictive diets, maybe it’s time to take a more unconventional approach…the only thing you have to lose is weight!
Read the reasons that I support intermittent fasting and cheat days at Trying Fitness.
Related posts:
- Cheat Stop Eat Your Way Thin: Cheat Diet, Intermittent Fasting, and Healthy Eating
- Intermittent Fasting Weight Loss Approaches: Daily vs. Weekly Fasts
- Intermittent Fasting Diets for Long-Term Weight Loss Success
- Cheat Your Way Thin Review: Use Cheat Days to Burn Fat
- Intermittent Fasting to Lose Weight: Results from John Berardi
Posted in Health and Nutrition
Amazing how we are creatures of habit if we aren’t losing weight we are happy to keep on going .. good point to be unconventional that’s what will make a difference.
I like the slogan of Trying Fitness ” Because you have tried everything else” … clever
Raymond
Raymond,
I like the slogan Eartha uses on Trying Fitness as well. We share some similar fitness opinions. She’s into Beachbody workouts (P90X, Insanity, etc.) and she’ll be doing a guest post in the near future. I know a number of people who have done P90X and all have seen significant fat loss. For me, it’s just too time consuming…however, if I had to be in elite shape for an event, it’s a workout I would definitely consider.
Dave
Dave,
Nice guest post! I also like to combine intermittent fasting with cheat days. It has worked really well and it’s interesting to see the scientific backing behind the concepts in Eat Stop Eat and Cheat Your Way Thin. I’m sure one day, this will become the new conventional wisdom.
Alykhan
Alykhan,
I can only hope that “Not Your Average” Fitness Tips will one day become “Average” Fitness Tips.
Dave
Another thumbs up for fasting!
Nice guest post by the way
Clint,
GLad to hear fasting has another fan…one person at a time, everyone will eventually figure it out. Thanks for the compliment on the guest post.
Dave
Thanks for the great information on fasting.
I am 44 and have never had a weight problem, I have actually always been on the thin side – 5’5″ 115lbs. I am a vegetarian and eat pretty healthy.
The past year however I have gained 20 lbs and am miserable at 135lbs. Worse yet the weight keeps creeping on. I bought all new pants in size 8 and now they are all too tight. Ugh!!! I refuse to be a size 10 – that’s just unhealthy.
I am gong to try fasting to knock of about 10 lbs. Today is my first day. I am excited! I’ll let you know how it goes.
Patricia,
Good luck with fasting. I think it’s the best way to enjoy your food and get in great shape at the same time. I’ve also written a post on daily vs. weekly fasting in case one works better than the other for you:
http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com/intermittent-fasting/intermittent-fasting-weight-loss-approaches-daily-weekly-fasts
Good luck!
Dave
I really want to make fasting work, but every time I try, my blood sugar level seems to crash in the middle of the day, and as soon as I eat something I feel better.
Maybe I have to suffer through it for a couple of days to allow my body to get used to the change in eating pattern.
Or maybe its just not something that works with my metabolism.
I sure would like to find a fasting system that would work for me. Any ideas?
Taylor,
I’d give it a try for 3-4 times. If you’re still struggling after that, maybe it’s not the right fit for you. Is it after a certain amount of hours that you start to struggle? Even though a 24 hour fast has a lot of benefits, a 16-18 hour fast offers some benefits as well. Maybe in the end, you can go with the “feeding window” approach.
Dave
Thanks so much Dave for this fantastic idea! Sure enough, I also don’t like when I drastically put on a lot of weight. It makes me feel uncomfortable especially when breathing becomes hard for me during a hurry walk. I suggest that fasting could smartly work in some ways hence nobody needs a shapeless figure indeed, right? I am going to try fasting to knock out additional weight. Excellent post by the way!
Luicer,
Glad you enjoyed the post. Hope fasting works out as well for you as it did for me!
Dave