I frequently hear people say, “I eat so little, yet I put on weight quickly.”
THE COMMON BELIEF:
- Eat more, move less and consume a high fat diet — you gain weight. Yet the time-honored saying “Eat less- Move more” doesn’t work for most people when it comes to weight loss.
- The next approach is usually a Low-calorie diet. The traditional theory “Calorie in- Calorie out” also fails to give effective results in the long run.
If you are dragging that stubborn weight despite best efforts, you are missing a critical piece of information: Putting on weight easily is a sign of poor metabolism which does not depend on a simple equation of calories— Everything you eat is going into storage compartment and not getting converted to energy.
THE TRUTH BEHIND WEIGHT GAIN: It’s about What you eat and When you eat!
- Eat & munch every few hours- produces repetitive spikes of glucose & insulin which converts it to fat
- Consuming a low fat, high carbohydrate- sugary diet, rich in processed food amplifies the process
- Sedentary llifestyle- the prevalent behavior these days
This is the story of a 27-year-old boy who was struggling to shed weight since last 4 years.
He was obese and weighed 120 kgs (Body mass index/BMI = 34) at clinical presentation. Investigations revealed a fatty liver (grade 3) with damage to liver tissue (seen as raised liver enzymes AST 178/ALT 225). Cholesterol level (lipid profile) was deranged (High TG~260/ LDL~ 210). There was no identifiable organic cause for obesity other than sedentary lifestyle (thyroid profile was normal).
Engaging in a regular exercise program and a low-calorie diet helped him lose 3 to 4 kgs in the beginning after which it stagnated.
He adopted the following dietary recommendations and enrolled in a fasting program:
1. Time restricted eating/ Intermittent fasting (16:8): He switched to 2 meals a day. Eating window was limited to 8 hours during the day (9am to 5pm) with 16 hours fasting overnight. No meal after sunset.
2. Switched to Millets from wheat as the main grain in his diet.
3. One day water fast every week: Every Sunday was a complete water fast. (A fast that lasts longer than 24 hours where only water or caffeine free herbal tea is consumed. Find the link below for a complete guide to water fasting).
4. 2nd month: Observed a continuous 3-day water fast. A cup of CCF decoction helped tide the hunger pangs (made out of coriander seeds- cumin-fennel in equal proportion).
There was a noticeable increase in his energy levels on fasting days which kept him more active throughout the day. Sleep quality improved, body felt lighter, digestive issues disappeared. Once comfortable with a 3 day fast, he was ready for a longer fast.
5. 3rd month: Observed a 5-day water fast successfully. He broke the fast with vegetable soup followed by small easy to digest light meal (vegetable millet porridge) later in the day. In order to let the body adapt, full meals were resumed slowly. Meanwhile once a week water fast continued.
6. 5th month: He observed a 7-day complete water fast.
Result: He lost 30 kgs in a span of 7 months without any strong food cravings or food withdrawal symptoms which often make people quit their diet plans. Weight started falling by 1–2 kgs a month right from the first month of fasting program, while significant weight loss started after longer fasts of 3 days, 5 days and 7 days. His liver function and cholesterol levels normalized at 6 months of the fasting program.
Long term impact: Seeing the positive impact of fasting on his body and mind, he continues to follow time restricted eating (16:8) with 2 meals a day, a 24 hour water fast once every week and 5-day water fast once every 6 months till date. It is now his lifestyle.
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PART 2: What happens in your body during a 5 day water fast?
Fed state: Eat Food — Make glucose — Make insulin. Body goes into storage mode. Fat builds up in the liver and around the belly (reflects a state of high insulin and insulin resistance in the body).
Fasted state: No food — No glucose — Insulin levels drop. Storage compartment opens up. Fat stores are burnt to produce glucose which is converted to energy- gives the feeling of enhanced energy on the day of fast and the day after.
What you eat after a fast, you absorb & digest better. Eating in a fed state converts everything into fat.
Weight loss by Calorie restriction versus Fasting- What’s the difference?
Calorie restriction doesn’t work in the long run for the following reasons:
- Weight loss is quick, but once you are off the diet plan — so is the weight gain.
- Gives you strong food cravings with food withdrawal symptoms. Makes you quit.
- Tendency to binge or overeat food once you stop following the diet.
Calorie restriction leads to an initial weight loss which plateaus after a while. It doesn’t fix the underlying slow metabolism. Rather it resets it to a lower level- proportional to lower calorie intake. In simpler words- you eat less and you burn less.
On the contrary, Water fasting boosts the metabolism, helps in lowering the insulin levels and overcome insulin resistance promoting natural weight loss.
WHY CHOSE LONGER FASTS?
- Longer the fast- stronger the benefit: Short once weekly water fasts help in regular detoxification. While longer fasts have the potential to reverse resistant chronic ailments.
- More chronic a disease- longer the fast to reverse it. For instance- in case of an autoimmune disease a 5 day water fast mobilizes the stem cells from the bone marrow (cells with the capacity to build new tissues). It reboots the immune system, promotes repair of damaged tissues decreasing chance of further relapse.
- Repairs a leaky gut (root of most chronic disorders) including autoimmunity.
- Increase growth hormone levels in the body, make new cells and promote autophagy (cleaning of cellular junk).
- Makes new brain cells- better memory, cognition. Increased secretion of a chemical called brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).
Food is eaten not merely to satisfy hunger, rather to please the sense of taste and fulfil the desires of the mind. Fasting strengthens will power and helps overcome food cravings and food addiction.
Practice of Extended Water fasting can be a game changer in managing Obesity and lifestyle disorders related to insulin resistance like — diabetes mellitus type 2, PCOD, hypertension, high cholesterol, non alcoholic fatty liver disease and even autoimmune diseases.
