(upbeat music)
- Hey, Munchies.
Welcome if you're new.
I'm Alyssia.
I know a lot of you are focusing on weight loss goals
so I thought it would be an appropriate time to talk about
weight loss plateaus and specifically
a highly requested topic: intermittent fasting.
So first of all, what's a plateau?
When we go on a journey to lose weight,
we typically make some changes in our diet and lifestyle.
The types of foods we eat, the amount of food we eat,
and maybe the type and amount of exercise
we participate in too.
At first we may see some immediate results in terms
of weight loss and it's exciting.
But after awhile, our bodies can get used to these changes
and we stop seeing results.
AKA, we may have hit a weight loss plateau.
Now this can be frustrating but a plateau is pretty normal
on a weight loss journey.
Our bodies are smart and they adapt.
If we start feeding our bodies less food,
it learns how to survive on less.
And then although you started eating less
than your body needed,
that new intake can become what your body now needs.
But we can't just eat less, and less, and less forever
or exercise more, and more, and more.
Now it's important to know that what seems like a plateau
might actually mean a few different things.
One, you haven't committed to your weight loss plan
as well as you could.
A piece of chocolate here, an extra handful or two,
or three of nuts there,
and we end up eating more than we think.
We have to be honest with ourselves.
Is this really a plateau or have we gotten too lax
with our diet and exercise plan?
Two, you may be at your ideal weight.
That number is gonna vary by the person
but sometimes we set weight loss goals that aren't realistic
or necessarily healthy for our bodies.
Our bodies will naturally try to maintain a certain weight
where it's most comfortable,
and reducing that further can result in regaining
the weight later on.
And three, other health factors
might be preventing weight loss.
Such as thyroid problems or other health conditions.
Medications that you take, smoking habits,
pregnancy, or menopause.
Or it could just be you lost all the weight you're going to
on that particular plan and now it's time to reassess
and consider a new strategy.
That is why it's important to switch things up.
So like I said, our bodies get used to what we do.
Over time, especially when we've tried many different
diets or yo yo'd between them, we can end up in homeostasis.
So pretty much the body establishes a norm
and then tries to maintain it.
We eat less, our body adjusts to that new norm,
and then we have to take some action to shake up
that new norm again if we wanna see further progress.
So, homeostasis can lead to a weight loss plateau
but remember that not all plateaus are a result
of homeostasis as we discussed earlier.
There are a few ways to overcome a plateau.
It could be just adjusting calorie intake.
But it doesn't have to be.
Remember, we don't want to cut our calories too low.
We need that fuel to function and eating too few
calories consistently can actually slow down our metabolism.
You can also try switching up your macronutrient ratio
or alternating between different workout routines.
We're all different and it takes some trial and error
for each of us to find what works for us.
But one specific way that could be helpful
to overcome a weight loss plateau and the main purpose
behind this video is intermittent fasting or IF.
Intermittent fasting is essentially an eating pattern
that cycles between periods of fasting and eating.
Now this is not a diet.
It's not about which foods you eat but when you eat them.
Someone who is intermittent fasting is choosing to not eat
on purpose for a period of time.
They consume calories during a specific window of the day
and choose to not eat for a larger window of time.
There are many different approaches, but generally
the fasting period can last between 16 and 48 hours.
And remember, fasting means not eating anything.
You can have beverages that don't affect blood sugar
like water, coffee, tea, and non-caloric beverages
but fasting will not work if we're consuming food
and calories even if it's healthy.
The idea is you're not eating anything.
But that doesn't mean you have to go two full days
without eating to incorporate this into your lifestyle.
16 hours really isn't that long.
If you finish dinner by 6:00 p.m. and then don't eat again
until 10:00 a.m. the next day, that is 16 hours.
So your window of eating would be 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
and fasting would be 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m.
It doesn't have to be more extreme than that for people
to see results.
Another approach is the 5:2 diet.
You fast two days per week eating only 500 to 600 calories
and then eat a normal amount of calories
on the other five days.
You can also alternate between eating normally one day
and then fasting for the next.
Now I definitely encourage you to do your own research
if you wanna try out intermittent fasting,
but remember, it does not have to be extreme.
A lot of you might be thinking what the heck?
I thought we were supposed to eat all day long.
What happened to not skipping breakfast?
What happened to eating a bunch of small meals
throughout the day?
Breakfast does not actually kickstart your metabolism
to help you lose weight.
Now that being said, some people may benefit
from eating breakfast or multiple smaller meals.
Sometimes skipping a meal leads to overeating at the next
meal but that ultimately comes down to portion control.
The problem with eating so many small meals
is a lot of us are more likely to overeat at each
of those meals so we end up consuming more overall
than we would have otherwise.
The bottom line is eating many meals throughout the day
doesn't really rev up your metabolism.
Whether our calories are spread out across six meals
in a day or eaten in a small window of time,
our bodies will still burn up about the same number
of calories processing that food.
After we eat, our body processes the food for a few hours
burning what it can.
Our bodies will use that energy first because it's the most
accessible rather than burning stored fat.
But if we stop eating so often,
our body isn't digesting food constantly
and it turns to the fat stored in our body
for energy instead.
So essentially, you're getting into a fat burning state
of ketosis for a period of time without a high fat diet.
For more on ketosis, what that Keto 101 video.
I promise it will explain a lot.
And if you're finding this episode helpful so far,
don't forget to subscribe and if you wanna be notified
of new videos each week, be sure to hit the bell.
Overall, much less of the food we eat after fasting
is likely to be stored as fat.
Basically intermittent fasting can teach our bodies
to use the food we eat more efficiently by depriving
the body of constant calories or not eating all day long,
we can learn to burn fat as fuel.
So intermittent fasting doesn't necessarily mean
you're eating less calories, you're just eating them
in a shorter window of time.
So what are the benefits of intermittent fasting?
Body changes to facilitate weight loss.
While fasting, our insulin levels drop significantly
which helps facilitate fat burning.
And human growth levels increase maximizing muscle gain
and fat loss.
Lose weight and belly fat.
Eating fewer meals mean you may end up
naturally eating fewer calories.
But this won't be true if you binge
during your eating windows.
Plus, intermittent fasting has shown to cause less
muscle loss and burn more calories even at rest.
Reduce insulin resistance.
Intermittent fasting can reduce our fasting
blood sugar levels and insulin levels
which can help protect us against Type 2 diabetes.
Prevent chronic diseases and live a longer life.
Studies have shown promising results
that intermittent fasting can help prevent
neurological diseases such Alzheimer's,
fight inflammation, and reduce oxidative stress.
Less oxidative stress means slower aging and a longer life.
You can incorporate intermittent fasting while following
whichever kind of lifestyle suits you but it's become common
among low-carb dieters.
If you watch my Keto 101 video, you know that a diet
high in fat can get you into ketosis
which I mentioned earlier.
When you're in ketosis you tend to stay satiated
for much longer and you don't have as many cravings.
So adjusting the intermittent fasting and skipping a meal
can feel easier or more bearable.
If you aren't on a low carb diet,
you can still try intermittent fasting,
just recognize that you may feel hungrier
especially at first.
If you struggle with portion control or have an addictive
relationship with food, it can help to track calories
to make sure that you don't overeat at those meals.
But I really don't recommend intermittent fasting
for someone who doesn't have a healthy relationship
with food because it's so important that you're able to view
food as fuel rather than a reward
for this to work effectively.
Who else should be careful
of considering intermittent fasting?
(upbeat music)
But you should also know that there aren't enough
longterm studies on intermittent fasting
in humans to draw definitive conclusions just yet.
So really listen to your body.
Everyone will respond differently and just like any other
lifestyle choice, intermittent fasting
won't be for everyone.
What's most important is that you inform yourself
as best you can.
Keep in mind that there's nothing dangerous
about intermittent fasting in general
if you're healthy and well nourished overall
then it can be a helpful tool.
One thing I don't love about intermittent fasting
is that a lot of people try to use it as an excuse
to not eat well.
I've always said that if you don't have the eating
wholefoods and avoiding processed foods thing down yet,
don't waste your time.
What you eat matters more than when.
The when that intermittent fasting tackles is more
of a specific detail for those who have truly reached
a plateau following a healthy lifestyle
that nourishes their body.
One last note I wanna bring to your attention
is that while intermittent fasting can help some people
overcome a weight loss plateau, remember that our bodies
can adjust to this new schedule too.
So if you've been incorporating intermittent fasting
for awhile, it could be time to switch it up
or you may wanna do a few weeks on and a few off
to keep your body guessing.
I hope you found this helpful.
Remember, I definitely recommend doing your own research
to find which approach to intermittent fasting
resonates with you if you choose to try it out.
But first and foremost, really be honest with yourself
about whether or not you truly hit a plateau
before making any extreme changes.
It could be that tightening up your existing routine
and finding that discipline will make a big difference.
If you want more educational videos like this
be sure to give this video a thumbs up
and share it if you thought it was helpful.
I will see you all in a few days and remember,
it's all a matter of mind over munch.