What you're getting wrong on your intermittent fasting journey

The practise of intermittent fasting has gained a lot of popularity in the last few years. Also known as intermittent energy restriction, the fasting style involves cycling between voluntary fasting and non-fasting over a set period.

From weight loss to the betterment of overall health, several benefits put people on the path of intermittent fasting. But whether you’re following the 16-8 method or going for the 5:2 diet, there are some mistakes that everyone is prone to making on their fasting journey.

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Let’s see how you can avoid these intermittent fasting faux pas and increase your chances of weight loss.

Going too drastic, too quickly

Adopting a daily fasting practice is a big change from your regular habit of eating every three to four hours. First of all, it's important to check with your doctor if your health allows you to take up intermittent fasting. Secondly, people often switch to a drastic method like 16 hours of fasting overnight which is a recipe for failure.

Don’t shrink your non-fasting period overnight. Try to ease yourself by maybe starting at 10 to 12 hours and then extend the period gradually.

Eating too many calories

Just because you’re restricting your meals to a certain timeline doesn’t mean that you’re automatically eating less. If you overconsume before your voluntary fasting hours arrive, you won’t achieve the goal of calorie reduction.

To avoid this, find out how many calories you need to consume and track everything you eat so that you maintain a healthy calorie deficit.

WATCH MORE Calorie calculator: how many calories should you eat per day?

Not eating enough calories

Conversely, eating too few calories is no good either. If you’re starving yourself with an overly low-calorie diet, you will actually sabotage your metabolic rate. Less than optimum nutrition can lead to bone and muscle loss so you might feel like you’re losing weight when you’re actually losing the good stuff.

It is best to know your limits and stick to them for sustainable and healthy weight loss!

Your fasting method is not for you

There are several methods of intermittent fasting to choose from. If you go to the gym 6 days a week, then the 5:2 diet that involves fasting for 2 days may not be for you.

Make sure that you analyse your lifestyle before choosing a fasting plan that works for you, and not against you.

Ignoring the nutrient quality of food

One of the most important things that are oft-forgotten is the nutrient quality of the food you eat when fasting. If you have a non-fasting window of eight hours and all you eat is refined, sugary or processed junk, you will gain almost no health benefits.

Shift the focus from eating less to eating better. Aim to eat nutritious whole foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. Get adequate amounts of good protein (such as from meat, poultry, fish and legumes) as well as nuts and seeds to make sure you’re always satiated!