What is the Key to Intermittent Fasting?
I have written several columns about intermittent fasting and I know it works incredibly well if you do it right. What does that mean? It means fasting for a sufficiently long period to invoke benefits. It also means being truly fasted. I’ve worked with many folks over the past few years, and some are rewarded handsomely for their efforts, while others achieve no benefits at all. The reason is, in my experience, those who follow the rules without exception do well, while those who adjust the rules to suit themselves fail.
On the one hand, intermittent fasting couldn’t be a simpler concept. Don’t consume any calories for a scripted period of time. It emphasizes “when” you eat, not “what.” However, on the other hand, it’s very easy to mess things up.
For example, I advocate that while fasting, you can consume black coffee, unsweetened tea, or water, and nothing else. Some interpret this to mean “If I can drink coffee, surely it won’t hurt to add a little something, like a creamer or sweetener.”
Excerpted from Courier-Journal
