Intermittent Fasting - Update Four and a Half Years Later

Why a photo of loose leaf black tea? Because it's the only thing I consume during the fast.
Water, black coffee, and herbal tisanes are also allowed.

Since I've been at this intermittent fasting lark for several years now, I thought it was time to give you an update. It is something I researched for several months before I started doing it more than four and a half years ago (I don't like to rush into things!). 

Other than my emphasis on sustainable, local, organic whole foods, I don’t follow any particular diet or have a lot of food rules. Just three:

• No trans fats, high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners
• No more than six teaspoons (24 grams) of sugar in a day
• No after-dinner evening snacking

Always interested in maximizing my health and preventing problems before they occur, I’ve always believed something Mark Hyman, MD, said so succinctly: The most powerful medicine is at the end of your fork.

I do a bit of daily exercise, including weight training, to prevent the loss of muscle mass that starts occurring much earlier in life than you might imagine. According to WebMD: Physically inactive people can lose as much as 3% to 5% of their muscle mass each decade after age 30. Even if you are active, you'll still have some muscle loss.

The other key to avoiding muscle loss is maintaining healthy insulin sensitivity. And that is what got me interested in intermittent fasting, specifically 16/8 intermittent fasting.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor of any kind, have no formal education in the field of diet or nutrition, and would suggest that anyone who is under a doctor’s care for any condition should consult their doctor about dietary changes as their medication dosages will likely need adjusting. According to Dr Jason Fung, people who should not fast are those who are: underweight, malnourished, children, pregnant, or breastfeeding. And if you’ve ever had any sort of eating disorder, consult your doctor. I'm not an expert, I’m simply telling you what works for me.

But there is plenty of information out there from people who are experts. So do your own research before making up your mind. On completion of my research, I knew this was something I would do for the rest of my life.

This is not “a diet”—I don’t believe in temporary diets—it is a way of eating that can be done for a time or for a lifetime. I spent months researching it before starting it. I learned it has many benefits and is really quite easy to do. You can choose any 16 hours to fast, including however many hours you sleep. If you sleep 8 hours, that’s half of it right there.

Since I had already stopped after-dinner evening snacking a few years before, it was really just a matter of postponing breakfast until 10:00 in the morning. So I decided to do all my eating between 10 am and 6 pm. This might mean packing a breakfast to have at work or wherever you're going—something with lots of protein, not Starbucks and a donut!

But no need to get obsessive about it. If the 16/8 schedule won't work for you some days, just make it 15/9 or even 14/10. It's all good! I was not doing it for weight loss, but soon found myself losing weight. Had I continued with the 16/8 regimen, I would have continued to lose weight, which I did not want to do.

So I switched to 15/9 to give myself an extra hour to eat enough food to maintain my weight. That did the trick. Stable weight for four years and counting! Anyone interested in losing and maintaining, or just maintaining, a stable weight will appreciate that a stable weight means not having to keep three sizes of clothes in their closet!

Black tea - my beverage of choice during the fasting hours

(and every other waking hour!)

Benefits of 16/8 Intermittent Fasting

• Regulates insulin and glucose, lowering the risk of diabetes, obesity, fatty liver disease, fatty pancreas
• Stimulates metabolism for slow, steady loss of body fat (including that dangerous excess visceral fat) rather than loss of lean body mass
• Improves lipid profile and heart function
• Stresses the brain in the same (good) way that exercise stresses the body, reducing amyloids in the brain and lowering the risk of stroke, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and dementia
• Increases human growth hormone and boosts immune system
• Reduces oxidative stress and stimulates the body to maintain and repair cells and tissues
• Increases energy level
• Eliminates food cravings

If this is something you think you might like to try but think it's going to be difficult, I'd just like to tell you it's really quite easy. If you like, you can build up the number of fasting hours gradually. It's compatible with any diet (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, keto ...), compatible with any schedule, and doesn't require willpower.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on fasting, dieting, nutrition and health. And don't worry, I'll be back with a really good comfort food recipe next time!

Jean

Intermittent Fasting 16/8 - It's Not Just About What You Eat, But When You Eat

Why a photo of loose leaf black tea? Because it's the only thing I consume during the fast.

Note: This post was updated 08/18/22 after having more than 4 1/2 years of experience with intermittent fasting. See the updated version at Intermittent Fasting - Update Four and a Half Years Later.

Intermittent fasting is something I've been researching for several months (I don't like to rush into things!). Other than my emphasis on sustainable, local, organic whole foods, I don’t follow any particular diet or have a lot of food rules. Just three:

• No trans fats, high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners
• No more than six teaspoons (24 grams) of sugar in a day
• No after-dinner evening snacking

Always interested in maximizing my health and preventing problems before they occur, I’ve always believed something Mark Hyman, MD, said so succinctly: The most powerful medicine is at the end of your fork.

I do a bit of daily exercise, including weight training, to prevent the loss of muscle mass that starts occurring much earlier in life than you might imagine. According to WebMD: Physically inactive people can lose as much as 3% to 5% of their muscle mass each decade after age 30. Even if you are active, you'll still have some muscle loss.

The other key to avoiding muscle loss is maintaining healthy insulin sensitivity. And that is what got me interested in intermittent fasting, specifically 16/8 intermittent fasting.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor of any kind, have no formal education in the field of diet or nutrition and would suggest that anyone who is under a doctor’s care for any condition should consult their doctor about dietary changes as their medication dosages will likely need adjusting. According to Dr Fung (see next paragraph), people who should not fast are those who are: underweight, malnourished, children, pregnant or breastfeeding. And if you’ve ever had any sort of eating disorder, consult your doctor. I'm not an expert, I’m simply telling you what works for me.

But there is plenty of information out there from people who are experts. There are YouTube videos of nephrologist Jason Fung, MD, and others.

This is not “a diet”—I don’t believe in temporary diets—it is a way of eating that can be done for a time or for a lifetime. So I spent months researching it before deciding to do it. I learned it has many benefits and is really quite easy to do. You can choose any 16 hours to fast, including however many hours you sleep. If you sleep 8 hours, that’s half of it right there.

Since I had already stopped after-dinner evening snacking a few years ago, it was really just a matter of postponing breakfast until 10:00 in the morning. So I do all my eating between 10 am and 6 pm. This might mean packing a breakfast to have at work—something with lots of protein, not Starbucks and a donut!

But no need to get obsessive about it. If the 16/8 schedule won't work for you some days, just make it 15/9 or even 14/10. It's all good!

Black tea - my beverage of choice during the fasting hours

(and every other waking hour!)

Benefits of 16/8 Intermittent Fasting

• Regulates insulin and glucose, lowering the risk of diabetes, obesity, fatty liver disease, fatty pancreas
• Stimulates metabolism for slow, steady loss of body fat (including that dangerous excess visceral fat) rather than loss of lean body mass
• Improves lipid profile and heart function
• Stresses the brain in the same (good) way that exercise stresses the body, reducing amyloids in the brain and lowering the risk of stroke, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and dementia
• Increases human growth hormone and boosts immune system
• Reduces oxidative stress and stimulates the body to maintain and repair cells and tissues
• Increases energy level
• Eliminates food cravings

If this is something you think you might like to try but think it's going to be difficult, I'd just like to tell you it's really quite easy. If you like, you can build up the number of fasting hours gradually. It's compatible with any diet (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, keto ...), compatible with any schedule and doesn't require willpower.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on fasting, dieting, nutrition and health. And don't worry, I'll be back with a really good comfort food recipe next week!

Jean

Homemade Blueberry Syrup or Sauce

Homemade blueberry syrup on pancakes or waffles is one of my favorite "breakfast for dinner" meals (since I rarely eat anything but fruit, nuts and oatmeal for breakfast).

But it can't be phony, store-bought blueberry syrup, in which blueberries are a distant third on the ingredient list, after high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup. I can't remember the last time I ingested either of those things. Not being a food snob, just trying to take care of my health.

Which is why I also do not use artificial sweeteners and limit my intake of sugar and other natural sweeteners, such as honey and maple syrup. I use just 2 tablespoons of real maple syrup to make 1 cup of blueberry syrup. A cup of the blueberry syrup is enough for 12 5-inch pancakes.

So, to do the math (which I always do, in order to stay within my daily sugar allowance): 1/4 cup of my homemade blueberry syrup, perfect for 3 5-inch pancakes, contains just 1 1/2 teaspoons of real maple syrup (sugar).

To read how I, a comfort food blogger and frequent baker, handle sugar in a way that is realistic for me and doable for the long term, read Sugar - Toxin or Treat? And here are my recipes for Pancakes, Gluten-Free Pancakes, and Waffles. You can also use this as a sauce on desserts.

What do you like to put on pancakes and waffles?

Don't forget to Pin it!

 

Blueberry Syrup or Sauce

(Makes 1 cup, enough for 12 5-inch pancakes)

6 ounces (170 grams/about 1 1/4 cups) fresh blueberries
2 tablespoons (1 fluid ounce/30 ml) real maple syrup
4 tablespoons (2 fluid ounces/59 ml) water, divided
Tiny pinch of salt
1 1/2 teaspoons non-GMO cornstarch
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 Put washed blueberries in 1-quart saucepan. Add maple syrup, 3 tablespoons of water and tiny pinch of salt (don't overdo it!). Bring to boil over medium heat; lower heat and simmer for 8 minutes.

2 Stir cornstarch into remaining 1 tablespoon water, and stir into blueberries. Simmer for a minute or two. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

Sugar - Toxin or Treat?

I'm often asked: 1) how I maintain a normal weight being a food blogger who features a lot of desserts, and 2) how making those desserts squares with my whole healthful eating philosophy. So I thought I'd address those questions here today. Sugar - Toxin or Treat?

A Balance I Can Live With

Am I anti-sugar? If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I make plenty of recipes with sugar (though I reduce the sugar where I can, but never use artificial sweeteners). So, no, I am not anti-sugar. Do I think sugar consumption "in moderation" is a good thing? No, not exactly.

It's just my opinion, but I think I would probably be better off eliminating all added sugar (whether it is sucrose or fructose, coconut palm sugar, maple syrup, honey, agave, etc.) from my diet. But, barring a dire pronouncement from my doctor that I've developed a serious condition and truly must, I'm never going to do that. I mean, let's be realistic!

Quality Over Quantity 

I've seen recommendations that we not exceed 6 to 9 teaspoons (24 to 36 grams) of added sugar per day. It sounds like a lot, but when you consider that a 12-ounce can of soda has more than 9 teaspoons of sugar, it's easy to see that if you want to stay within that limit, something's got to give!

With so many fabulous homemade pies, cakes, ice creams, scones, jams, biscuits and all sorts of desserts to be enjoyed, I've chosen to eliminate sodas, candy and all but the very best (I am fond of Walkers shortbread) store-bought sugary treats from my diet. I can't see wasting my self-imposed sugar allowance on junk!

It All Counts, Not Just Dessert

There's lots of "hidden" sugar in things like flavored yogurts, teriyaki sauce, sweet and sour sauce, barbecue sauce, ketchup, salad dressings.

Alcohol is also a sugar, so if I'm planning to have a glass of wine with dinner, then I adjust my sugar allowance for the day. If I'm having biscuits or toast and homemade jam or marmalade for breakfast, that will affect dessert or snack choices for the rest of the day.

Doing the Math

The dessert I posted last week, Coffee Chocolate Gelato, contains 32 teaspoons of sugar in a quart; a 1/2-cup serving contains 4 teaspoons of sugar. Fresh Peach Sheet Cake contains 38 teaspoons of sugar and I cut it into 16 servings; so one serving contains under 2.5 teaspoons. 

Fresh Peach Scones recipe contains 12 teaspoons of sugar for 12 scones; one scone contains 1 teaspoon of sugar. Chocolate Butter Cake without frosting contains 72 teaspoons of sugar and I cut it into 16 servings; one serving contains 4.5 teaspoons of sugar. (You can do the math on the frosting; I always scrape off frosting!)

It doesn't call for a lot of math because I never weigh or measure myself, I never "diet," I don't concern myself with fat grams (I simply avoid the unhealthy fats, trans fats, altogether) or calories or anything else. I just monitor the sugar and ask myself "Is this worth it?" before I start eating. No mindless eating. And, as I often say to Mr Delightful, we don't need to have a dessert every day! I also tell him, "Don't do the Dew (Mountain Dew)!"

And the Science

I like to have all my sugar for the day in one sitting, so my body just "takes the hit" once a day instead of having several blood sugar and insulin spikes. (Don't ask me about the science on that one, it's just a feeling I have.)

There are a lot of documentaries, books and articles out there about sugar, but I'm not going to go into all the scientific data about sugar. That's beyond the scope of this blog. I just wanted to tell you how I handle it. How about you?

The Conclusion

Never more than 6 teaspoons (24 grams) of sugar in a day. Never. No exceptions. And you will be able to "take it or leave it" when it comes to sugar. 

Update 04/12/18: Just posted the latest addition to my health regimen: Intermittent Fasting 16/8.

Jean