Fasted Solutions

Back around the time I got started in this industry, circa 2007-08, fasting was seeing a resurgence in popularity.

While fasting itself has been around for centuries, part of the recent popularity surge was its effectiveness for fat loss.

Advocates of fasting will often cite improved cognitive function, better mental clarity/focus, and their ability to handle and manage their hunger signals.

That being said, fasting is often contraindicated for those struggling with eating disorders.

When I was watching fasting protocols regain momentum in the fat loss world, there were two protocols in particular which appeared to be the most popular:

-A 16:8 protocol with a daily fasting window of 16 hours and an 8 hour eating window.

-A weekly 24-hour fast, often fasting from dinner of one day to dinner the next.

Of course, there are myriad ways to utilize a fasting protocol, using shorter or longer fasting periods and also, alternating days of fasting.

While fasting is not magic and when studied in metabolic wards where calories and protein are matched against a consistent energy deficit, both dietary methods work with the same level of effectiveness.

Ultimately, any diet tool you can stick with consistently is likely going to have the best results.

I do want to give a rough breakdown of how fasting might work to your benefit and how it might work against you.

Let’s start here.

We’ll assume that your body’s current maintenance calories are 2000 calories per day to stay at the same body weight.

This also correlates to 14,000 calories per week.

It’s roughly estimated that 3500 calories equals one pound of fat.

The numbers aren’t perfect but we want a guideline to work against.

One approach might be to reduce daily calories by 500 to drop you down to 1500 a day (10,500/week)

After one week, you “should” be down one pound of fat.

One person might decide to keep themselves at a relatively consistent energy deficit throughout the week to achieve this drop in fat.

Another person might utilize a fasting protocol to do the same.

Bear in mind, that if you use a 16:8 protocol, it doesn’t mean you’ll automatically be in a deficit. It’s still very much possible to consume at least 2000 calories during your 8-hour eating window.

However, if that protocol makes it easier for you to hit 1500 calories, perhaps it’s a good tool.

If you opt for the 24-hour fast, you’ve removed upwards of 2000 calories from one day of the week, but you’ll still need to find the space in the remaining 6 days to account for the additional 1500 reduction. One way to do it, is to change your deficit from 500 a day to 250 a day. This will still get you to the same weekly goal.

One thing to note is what happens to your carbohydrates. Carbs hold 3-4g per water per gram of carbohydrate. If you’re seeing large drops in carb intake, “water weight” will also be reduced which usually shows up on the scale too.

As the adage goes, if you see a fast drop in the scale, that’s probably water weight and if you see a fast rise, that’s also probably water weight.

A couple I currently train, were recently telling me about a particular fasting protocol which worked for them sometime back: a 48-hour fast followed by a one day feeding.

Using our 2000 calorie example, that’s 4000 calories removed from the diet during each fast and the same fast is completed twice in a week:

Theoretically, 8,000 calories are removed from the diet over the span of one week. That’s just over 2lbs of fat lost per week, even if the feeding days are brought back up to 2000 calories.

It should be noted that if you’re engaging in high intensity activity like boot camps, CrossFit, HIIT classes, etc., fasting protocols may reduce your energy levels.

In addition, with as much talk as their is around retaining lean muscle during a fat loss phase, you will likely find it much more difficult to hit your protein goals week after week if you follow the aforementioned 48-hour fasting protocol. As a result, you may end up losing more muscle than you wanted to.

What I will say is that I’ve done some fasting protocols myself and I’m not personally a fan. I have an active lifestyle and I prefer to be fueled appropriately throughout the day.

In practice, I have had many clients experiment with fasting protocols during their time training with me. While most will see results initially, the novelty tends to wear off and once old habits return, I find it’s harder for people to come back to their fasting programs.

As with any dietary method (I’m not referencing fasting for religious purposes), if you feel that fasting helps you get closer to your goals, by all means utilize it.

And if you feel that it leaves you ravenous, lethargic, or frustrated with your results, perhaps another tool may be better.

(Photo courtesy of MacDonald Almeida)