Whether you are trying to lose weight or improve your overall health, it is difficult to ignore the latest trend sweeping diet culture. Fasting is a form of dieting where you restrict what and when you eat. You should get familiar with the four different types of fasting to ensure any success with your diet. Check out all the ways you can tailor this fad to fit your lifestyle and health needs.
Try the Daniel Fast
The Daniel Fast is based on a passage in the Bible and is essentially a vegan diet without any sugars, refined carbs, caffeine, or alcohol. It is a method of spiritual fasting based on the prophet Daniel’s experience fasting according to the book of Daniel in the Bible. Also known as a “selective fast,” the Daniel Fast is a popular method for people aiming to cleanse their bodies. Body cleansing is a popular health trend for people who feel the need to empty their bodies of toxins—which is often why people decide to fast. The Daniel Fast cuts meat, sweets, and carbs and has you drinking more liquids. You can try juice fasting with this method and include fruits and vegetables.
Following the Daniel Fast means that you will be eating a plant-based diet that limits certain foods and all drinks except for water for 21 days. While this may sound daunting for some, finding foods to nourish your body while following these guidelines can be quite simple with a little effort. Unlike some popular diets out there, following the Daniel Fast doesn’t require complicated recipes or caveats. As long as you are sticking to whole foods and avoiding the small list of items that are not permitted, you can quite easily adopt this way of eating for 21 days.
Go On a Full Fast
A full fast is what most people think about when they consider a fast. It calls for you to drink nothing but water for a set number of days, which you determine. You will drink much more water than you’d typically drink during the day. Some people supplement with electrolyte drinks or light juices and broths. It is not recommended for beginners or those who are not in proper physical health to withstand a fast. You should talk with a doctor before going on a complete fast.
Fasting for a few days probably won’t hurt most healthy people, provided they don’t get dehydrated. Your body needs vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from foods to stay healthy. If you don’t get enough, you can have symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, constipation, dehydration, and being unable to tolerate cold temperatures.
Start With a Partial Fast
A limited fast consisting of abstaining from certain foods for a prolonged period of time or abstaining from all foods for a portion of the day (e.g., abstaining from eating before 3:00 P.M.). The Partial Fast is a good stepping stone to a Full Fast for those who have never fasted before. When it comes to a partial fast, there are several ways to execute it. The method is sometimes called a “Jewish fast” due to details in scripture. Biblically, Jewish people did not eat between sunrise and sunset. Other ways to attempt a partial fast are to abstain from specific meals, such as skipping breakfast.
For many people, a liquid fast is an ideal way to cleanse the body and mind and reset their eating habits. It’s an easier place to start than a complete fast for most. Remember that you don’t want to consume sugary beverages, which can cause your blood sugar to spike and crash. The goal isn’t to drink constantly throughout the day but to give your body energy through healthy liquid options at regular intervals.
Use Intermittent Fasting
Today, the most popular form of fasting is intermittent fasting. You can choose how and when you fast when you use this method. Some people fast for three days each week while others fast during the weekdays and not on the weekends. You could also choose to fast every other day or overnight for 12 hours at a time. With alternative fasting, you can do a complete fast, a partial fast, or The Danial Fast.
There are several different ways to do intermittent fasting, but they are all based on choosing regular time periods to eat and fast. For instance, you might try eating only during an eight-hour period each day and fast for the remainder. Or you might choose to eat only one meal a day two days a week. There are many different intermittent fasting schedules.
How this fasting works is that after hours without food, the body exhausts its sugar stores and starts burning fat. This has been referred to as metabolic switching. Intermittent fasting contrasts with the normal eating pattern for most Americans, who eat throughout their waking hour. If someone is eating three meals a day, plus snacks, and they’re not exercising, then every time they eat, they’re running on those calories and not burning their fat stores. Intermittent fasting works by prolonging the period when your body has burned through the calories consumed during your last meal and begins burning fat.
Regardless of how you begin your journey toward feeling better, it is important that you find the method that works best for you. Don’t compare yourself to others and fall into the trap of setting standards that you can’t meet. The different types of fasting methods only work if you stick to them. If you want it to work, find one that you enjoy making part of your lifestyle.
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