http://www.marksdailyapple.

com/fasting-weight-loss/#axzz1vM62K7nl
Study after study shows that whatever you want to call the protocol intermittent fasting, fasting, alternate day fasting, or alternate day caloric restriction it works very well for weight loss. A few recent ones:

In non-obese patients, alternate day fasting increased fat oxidation and weight loss. [10] In obese patients, alternate day fasting was an effective way to lose weight [11]; dietary adherence remained high throughout. In young overweight women, alternate day fasting was just as effective as caloric restriction at causing weight loss [12], and adherence to the former was easier than to the latter.

... To dig a bit deeper, lets look at how weight loss occurs during a fast. Ill stick to research involving humans only (sorry, rodent personal trainers). Secretion of growth hormone, one of the premier fat burning hormones [14], increases during a fast. In a five-day fasting protocol, men experienced increased GH secretion on day one and day five [15] (the only two days where GH was measured). A later study showed that during two-day fasting sessions, growth hormone secretions increased in both frequency and intensity in men [16]. They experienced more frequent GH bursts and each burst secreted a higher mass of GH. A more recent study [17] found that 24-hour fasts increased GH by 1300% in women and almost 2000% in men. Fasting decreases fasting insulin levels. The presence of insulin inhibits lipolysis, the release of stored triglycerides (body fat). Without lipolysis actually releasing stored body fat, its rather difficult to, well, burn that body fat for energy. During a fast, fasting insulin decreases and lipolysis increases [18]. This insulin-blunting aspect of fasting quite literally allows the fast to be successful, because without the ability to access stored body fat for energy, making it through a period of zero caloric intake will be nigh impossible. Fasting improves insulin sensitivity. 20-hour fasts were enough men.
[19]

to improve insulin sensitivity in

Fasting increases the catecholamines, both adrenaline [20] (epinephrine) and noradrenaline [21] (norepinephrine). Both catecholamines increase resting energy expenditure during a fast, and guess where your fasting body finds the energy to expend? From body fat. Catecholamines activate hormone sensitive lipase [22] present in adipose tissue, spurring the release of said fat. This makes intuitive sense, doesnt it? If youre hungry in the wild, you need to hunt (or gather, or fish, or somehow procure food) and you need energy to do it. The catecholamines help provide some of that energy while burning fat in the process. Hmm, notice anything? All those mechanisms dealt with fat burning specifically. While there may be some weirdo out there whos interested in reducing bone mineral density and muscle mass while maintaining fat tissue, I would wager that what most people mean by weight loss is fat mass loss. From the stuff I just linked, it looks like fasting burns fat, rather than just weight. But what about Conventional Wisdom which claims that fasting increases muscle wasting maybe because your body will totally recognize the lethal nature of all that arterycloggingsaturated animal fat and choose to break down muscle instead? Is it true? Lets go to the research: In one study [23], normal weight subjects ate just once a day without reducing overall caloric intake. Weight didnt change, which isnt really surprising, but body composition did change and for the better. Body fat decreased and lean weight increased (in addition to a bunch of other beneficial changes) without an overall reduction in calories. A recent review [24] of the relevant literature found that while fasting and caloric restriction are equally as effective in decreasing body weight and fat mass, fasting is more effective for the retention of lean mass. Conventional Wisdom
[25]

strikes out again.

In closing
It appears that fasting works in several different ways:

1. It decreases caloric intake. In order to lose weight, you need a caloric deficit. That really isnt in contention here, folks. 2. It increases fat oxidation while sparing lean mass. Since what were trying to do is lose fat (rather than just weight), the fact that fasting increases hormones that preferentially burn fat and decreases hormones that inhibit fat burning is extremely desirable. 3. It improves adherence. In most of the studies surveyed, participants found fasting to be an extremely tolerable way to diet, especially when compared to outright caloric restriction...

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/fasting-longevity-lifespan/#axzz1vM62K7nl
A time-honored and research-tested way to extend an animals lifespan is to restrict its caloric intake. Studies repeatedly confirm that if, say, a lab mouse normally gets two full bowls of lab chow a day, limiting that mouse to one and a half bowls of lab chow a day will make that mouse live longer than the mouse eating the full two bowls. Cool, cool, a longer life is great and all, but what about the downsides of straight calorie restriction, aside from willfully restricting your food intake, ignoring hunger pangs, relegating yourself to feeling discontent with meals, and counting calories and macronutrients obsessively? Are there any others? Sure: Loss of muscle mass. Humans undergoing calorie restriction often suffer loss of lean muscle mass and strength [3], all pretty objectively negative effects (unless you really go for the gaunt Christian Bale in The Machinist [4] look and use a super-strong bionic exoskeleton for all your physical tasks). Loss of bone mineral density. Humans who calorie restrict in studies also show signs of lower bone mineral density when compared to humans who lose weight from exercise, particularly in the hip and spine [5] the two areas most susceptible to fall-related bone breaks. I wrote about this study some time ago here [6]. Oh, and theres the fact that the act of restricting ones calories can be mind-numbing, miserable, and difficult for a great many people, especially if its a lifelong pursuit. (Unless, of course, you eat according to the Primal Blueprint [2] and are fat-adapted [7]. It can make CR not only tolerable, but a cinch because we become so good at living off stored body fat. We dont suffer from sugar lows when we skip meals [8] the way most people who fast do, but I digress.) Thats kind of a biggie. What about fasting? In previous installments [9] of this series, Ive explained how fasting can sometimes be described as a short cut to the benefits of calorie restriction [10], an easier (and even more effective) path to the same destination. Studies on fasting/calorie restriction and cancer [11] find that fasting is more effective in a shorter amount of time (weeks or months versus mere days). Does the same hold true for longevity? Can fasting also extend lifespan without making us look like a calorie-restricted monkey [12]? 1945 marks the first real study (PDF [13]) of the effects of intermittent fasting [14] on lifespan in animals. Beginning at day 42 of their lives, rats were either fasted one day in four, one day in three, or every other day. All fasted rats, save for the females who were fasted one day in four, lived longer than control rats on a normal schedule. Although females outlived males in general (like always), fasting had the greatest effect in males. Male rats did best on every other day fasting; female rats did best on one day in three fasting. Fasted rats weighed less than control rats, so they likely also ate less, even though feeding days were ad libitum. In a 1982 study, mice fed every other day lived 82% longer than mice fed ad libitum every day word on calorie intake.
[15]

. No

Another study [16] from 1983 showed that rats fed every other day lived longer and had lower body weights than rats fed daily and ad libitum. Fasted rats were less active in their youth, but more active than control rats when adults. The lower body weights in the fasted rats indicate a reduced calorie intake. In 2000, female mice who fasted for four consecutive days every two weeks lived for 64 weeks on average [17], while normal fed mice lived just 47 weeks. Interestingly, the fasted mice were heavier than the fed mice throughout the experiment, which indicates that calories werent significantly restricted. Okay, so it looks like fasting promotes longevity, which may be mediated by a reduction in calories. Provided the faster doesnt gorge him or herself on the feeding days so much that they make

up for all the missing calories, it should be effective. In other words, fasting promotes longevity in all but the most ardent of big eaters. I dont see this as a gotcha or a problem, because fasting almost invariably produces calorie restriction. (I might eat a fairly big meal after a long fast, but I definitely have never doubled my intake to make up for the fasted day.) In fact, that fasting makes calorie reduction painless and inadvertent is a highly-touted feature of the practice, and a big part as to why its so effective for people who have failed with traditional calorie restriction. ... Well, we know that intermittent fasting appears to conserve more lean mass than CR...

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/fasting-brain-function/#axzz1vM62K7nl

... Fasting Boosts Neuronal Autophagy

Ive cited this study before, but Ill do it again because its central to the theme of todays post: short-term fasting induces profound neuronal autophagy. Autophagy, or self-eating, is the process by which cells recycle waste material, downregulate wasteful processes, and repair themselves. Brain health is highly dependent on neuronal autophagy. In fact, a recent paper shows that deletion of an essential autophagy gene in the hypothalamic neurons of fetal mice resulted in metabolic derangement (more body fat, poor glucose tolerance) and impaired neuronal development. Another study shows that disruption of neuronal autophagy induces neurodegeneration. Simply put, without the process of autophagy, brains neither develop properly nor function the way they should.

Fasting Increases Levels of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF)

BDNF is a protein that interacts with neurons in the hippocampus, cortex, and basal forebrain (the parts of the brain that regulate memory, learning, and higher cognitive function uniquely human stuff). It helps existing neurons survive while spurring the growth of new neurons (neurogenesis) and the development of synapses (lines of communication between neurons). Low levels of BDNF are linked to Alzheimers, and supplementary BDNF prevents neuronal death, memory loss, and cognitive impairment in an animal model of Alzheimers disease.

Fasting Increases Production of Ketones

Ketone bodies like hydroxybutyrate are famously neuroprotective, and fasting often induces ketosis. Increased autophagy and BDNF and ketones from fasting sounds awesome, but do they manifest as actual benefits to neurological health? Lets see what the research says. No discussion of fasting and neurological health research is complete (or can even be initiated) without including Mark Mattson. Mattson, chief neuroscientist at the National Institute on Aging, has been releasing paper after paper on the neurological effects of intermittent fasting for the past dozen years, and hes amassed an impressive body of work that suggests IF can induce neurogenesis and protect against brain injury and disease. In the following sections, Ill discuss the evidence from Mattson and other researchers for the beneficial effects of fasting on neurological health across a spectrum of conditions.

Stroke
The most common type of strokes are ischemic strokes (composing about 88% of all strokes) cerebrovascular events in which a blood vessel that supplies blood to the brain is blocked by a clot. Without blood, the brain cant get oxygen or nutrients, and (often permanent) brain damage can occur. In an animal model of ischemic stroke, fasting upregulated BDNF and other

neuroprotective proteins, reduced mortality and inflammation, and increased cognitive health and function. However, its worth noting that fasting was most effective against stroke in young animals, who enjoyed a four-fold increase in neuroprotective and neurogenerative BDNF. Middle aged mice saw a two-fold increase in BDNF, while older mice saw no increase. Poststroke cognitive function had a similar relationship to age and feeding status; young and middleaged fasted mice retained far more than old mice and fed mice. Fasted mice displayed lower levels of inflammatory cytokines, but this effect was also modulated by age. Overall, fasting increased neuroprotective proteins and decreased inflammatory cytokines in young and middleaged mice, thereby reducing the brain damage incurred by stroke.

Brain Trauma
Research indicates that fasting is also effective against physical trauma to the brain. Its not that fasting somehow physically repels impending trauma by generating a magical ketone-powered force field; its that fasting reduces the oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cognitive decline that normally result from brain trauma. Employing one of these contraptions, researchers induced a controlled cortical impact on fasting rats and found that a 24-hour fast (but not a 48-hour fast) was neuroprotective. Perhaps the reduced appetite that commonly accompanies a concussion is a protective mechanism rather than an annoying side effect?

Cervical Spine Injury

Every other day fasting was neuroprotective following an injury to a rats cervical spine. Despite extensive trauma, fasted rats improved gait pattern, vertical exploration, and forelimb function (all heavily dependent on brain function). Neuronal integrity was preserved, cortical lesion volume was reduced, and corticospinal axon (nerve fiber) sprouting increased. The same team performed a similar study on mice suffering from a spinal cord injury, but had very different results; every other day fasting failed to confer any neuroprotective or functional benefits to the injured mice whatsoever. How can we reconcile these apparently contradictory findings? Well, in the rats who experienced neuroprotection, fasting increased ketone production by 2 or 3 fold. The fasting mice never reached ketosis. Ketosis was key.

Alzheimers disease.
In a mouse model of Alzheimers disease, both intermittent fasting and 40% (!) calorie restriction conferred cognitive and behavioral benefits when compared to mice on the control diet. IF and CR mice showed higher levels of exploratory behavior, and, when placed in a Morris water maze, found the escape platform sooner than the control mice. However, only IF mice showed evidence of protection against synaptic pathology a hallmark of the disease.

Huntingtons disease.
Huntingtons disease is also characterized by a depletion in BDNF levels. In a rat model of the disease, intermittent fasting normalized BDNF levels, while regular feeding kept them low. Fasting rats lived longer and even enjoyed better glucose tolerance than ad libitum fed rats. By all accounts, fasting slowed progression of Huntingtons disease.

Age-Related Cognitive Decline

Weve all had a grandmother who called us by our siblings name, or a grandpa who forgot to unwrap the Werthers Original before popping it into his mouth these are the innocent, simple, quaint, seemingly unavoidable declines in cognition that accompany the aging process. Well, maybe they arent unavoidable. Although most of the research focuses on neurological trauma and disease, theres evidence that intermittent fasting is good for basic age-related cognitive decline. I find it interesting that this was late-onset intermittent fasting, meaning elderly rats who began fasting only after showing signs of decline still wrought cognitive benefits. Contrast that with the stroke study in which older rodents saw almost no benefit from fasting and a picture emerges: as long as theyre not trying to counter a debilitating event, like ischemic stroke or trauma, older brains can also expect to benefit from fasting.

Depression?
Depression has long been associated with lower BDNF levels as a prognostic of the disease, but its only recently that researchers are entertaining the possibility that low BDNF and depression could be causally related. And indeed antidepressants actually increase BDNF signaling and synthesis in the hippocampus (the part of the brain where depression happens). Could fasting help with depression via upregulation of BDNF and promotion of neurogenesis? Perhaps. Id say its worth a shot, especially since skipping a few meals doesnt require a prescription. Obviously, since these are mostly rodent studies, and hard-and-fast peer-reviewed evidence of the neuroprotective and neurogenerative effects of fasting in humans doesnt exist yet, were only speculating. But Id argue they are plausible speculations worth pursuing. The mechanisms are there. Speculations about IFs other health effects to general health and cancer and longevity and fat loss are being borne out by human research. Both the risk and barrier to entry are low. And it makes sense in light of our evolutionary history as huntergatherers. In a recent interview, Mattson even couches the neuroprotective effects of fasting in evolutionary terms, noting that during pre-agricultural times of scarcity, people whose brains responded best who remembered where promising sources could be found or recalled how to avoid predators would have been the ones who got the food and lived to pass on their genes. As I age, the risk of my uniquely human brain going screwy and sabotaging my selfish desires to remain cognizant and engaged with life until the very end increases. It is not a foregone conclusion I know too many quick-witted, sharp-tongued folks thirty years my senior but the chances do increase. Since I dont want that to happen, and the occasional fast is a nearly riskfree endeavor with proven benefits in other areas, Ill continue to miss a few meals every now and then. It hasnt hurt me yet, it just might be one of the factors that allows me to live long and drop dead, and hey, since Im fat-adapted its not even a struggle to do it.

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/fasting-exercise-workout-recovery/
...If youre sedentary, you can probably get by without guzzling water, but if youre an athlete, or even just someone who dabbles in a bit of lifting, some walking, and maybe a few sprints[7], your performance and results will suffer without adequate hydration. And Id say a complete and utter absence of water during daylight qualifies as inadequate hydration, wouldnt you? Second, since eating and drinking are limited to pre-dawn and post-sunset hours, Ramadan often means sleep [8] deprivation. Studies show that sleep onset occurs later than normal, sleep duration is lessened during the month (PDF [9]), daytime sleepiness increases, and general performance of daytime tasks decreases [10]. Were already aware of the importance of sleep for general health[11], but inadequate sleep can also translate to poor athletic performance [12]. Third, the subjects in these studies most likely arent on a healthy Primal eating plan. Heck, theyre probably not on a conventionally healthy whole foods diet. While it would be nice to believe that these Ramadan fasters were feasting on fresh lamb, high quality extra virgin olive oil [13], extra-thick pastured labneh, grass-fed breadless shawarma [14], and pomegranate salads, they were likely eating the same junk that everyone in the industrialized world eats. And as such, they were probably poorly equipped to shift smoothly and easily to the fat based metabolism [15] required by fasting. Sure, they switched over to burning their own body fat out of necessity and a sheer lack of calories, but it wasnt the easy, seamless transition that Primal eaters typically enjoy at the drop of a hat. For the carb-addicted, fasting

is mentally, physically, and spiritually taxing. For the fat-adapted, fasting often just happens. As we often say around here, we eat WHEN When Hunger Ensues Naturally. For folks with easy access to the fat-burning switch, skipping a meal (or three) doesnt ruin the day and preclude exercise. Right off the bat, then, Ill say this: dont even consider fasting going to hydrate, sleep, and become fat-adapted.
[16]

and training if youre not

Now that we have those caveats out of the way, lets look at some of the purported benefits of exercising in a fasted state, as shown in the literature:

Improved Insulin Sensitivity

Intermittent fasting improves insulin sensitivity, as I mentioned before in the fasting and weight loss post. A recent study [17] found that this effect is heightened when combined with exercise (in this case four days of endurance training each week). By the end of the study, subjects who fasted had lower body weights (the only group not to gain weight), better body-wide glucose tolerance, and enhanced insulin sensitivity. Furthermore, only fasted training significantly improved muscular adaptations to training.

Improved Recovery from Endurance Exercise

Three weeks of overnight-fasted endurance cycling (with caloric restriction to boot) improved postworkout recovery [18], maintained lean mass, lowered fat mass, and maintained performance. There was unfortunately no control group, but this study does show that fasting doesnt hurt (and it may help). Another study [19] suggested that fasted endurance training may quickly re-activate the muscle protein translation that was negated in athletes who had eaten carbohydrates before training.

Improved Recovery from Weight Training

A 2009 study [20] found that subjects who lifted weights in a fasted state enjoyed a greater intramyocellular anabolic response to the post-workout meal. Levels of p70s6 kinase a muscle protein synthesis signaling mechanism that acts like an indicator of muscle growth one hour after a fasted workout doubled levels compared to one hour after a fed workout (in the same group). In other words, fasting boosted (physiological indicators of) post-workout muscle growth. For a further look, check out Martin Berkhans take on the study [21]. Also note his recommendation that 10 grams of BCAA (branch chain amino acids) taken before the workout should boost the enhancement without taking you out of the fast.

Improved Glycogen Repletion and Retention

What happens when you train in a low-glycogen state? If youre used to running on full glycogen stores, your performance might take a hit when you have to shift toward a more oxidative, fat-based energy pathway. Thats understandable. Another thing that could happen is you learn to make do with less glycogen [22] by, well, making do with less glycogen. This is elementary stuff, folks. Just like your muscles adapt to imposed stressors by getting stronger, your body adapts to low glycogen training by learning how to train under low-glycogen conditions, thus sparing glycogen for when its really needed and boosting performance when glycogen is actually available. Its the classic train low, race high idea that Ive discussed before [23]. Its the specific adaptation to imposed demand (SAID) principle, only in this case the imposed demand is a low-glycogen, low-food environment. A recent study [24] exemplifies this phenomenon, pitting a group of untrained, carb-fed cyclists against a group of untrained, overnight-fasted cyclists and comparing both groups muscle glycogen content and V02 max. Who won? The fasted group improved their V02 max by nearly 10% and their glycogen content by over 54%, while the fed group improved V02 max by just 2.5% and glycogen by a paltry 2.9%. Lesson? Dont eat 1.5 grams/kg body weight in cereal-based carbs pre-workout, and definitely do not eat a delicious shake of waxy maize during your workout (unless you really really like cereal and corn starch slurries).

What do you notice? Fasting does not instantly imbue its adherents with super powers. Its not supposed to. Improved performance during a given training session isnt really the point of fasted training. The point of fasted training, as I see it, is to maintain performance while enjoying the metabolic benefits, like improved recovery, higher glycogen stores, better insulin sensitivity, and improved muscle response to exercise. The point is that fasted training wont kill you, wont eat your muscles, and it might even improve adaptation to exercise by forcing you to train in a less optimal state, which can boost performance down the line. The Olympian isnt going to be wellserved by doing the main event on an empty stomach, but he just might benefit from occasionally training on one.

Mind and Matter Matter

The success of your training, whether it be lifting heavy things, running, sprinting, rowing, cycling, or climbing, isnt wholly dependent on your physical state. The amount of glycogen in your muscles and liver, the mobility of your tissues, the structural size of your muscle cells, the distribution of the fiber types within those muscle cells, the V02 max these all matter and help decide the amount of weight youre going to put up, the time youre going to hit, the miles youll be able to check off, and the number of pullups[25] youll complete, and fasting will obviously have an effect on these and other markers. But just as important is your mindset, your personal approach to fasted training. Me, I like a good long hike in the morning with maybe just a cup of coffee in me. It gives me exactly the kind of steady energy I want without negatively impacting my performance (which doesnt really matter on a pleasant hike) or my enjoyment (which does). However, I dont like playing Ultimate Frisbee on an empty stomach. I can do it, but I feel like it impairs my performance and when I play Ultimate I play to have fun and win (as PrimalCon attendees are soon to find out). As far as lifting goes, Ill sometimes do it fasted, but Im a big fan of fasting after a strength workout. I do so to milk the post-workout growth hormone surge [26] and because Im just not that hungry immediately afterward. If immediately stuffing ones face was required for optimal gains after a workout, youd think wed all be ravenous after lifting heavy things, but were not [27]. I can do sprinting [28] on an empty stomach, but I hit the wall quicker (probably due to the depleted glycogen). Dont let the results of a study (or my words) dissuade you from doing something that seems to help you. If fasted resistance training has you hitting PRs (or at least feeling like you could if you wanted), keep doing it and disregard studies that suggest THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE. YOUR GLYCOGEN-DEPLETED MUSCLES WILL SURELY DISSOLVE INTO THE ETHER. If fasted resistance training has you lagging, eat something the next time and disregard studies that suggest YOUR POST-WORKOUT MUSCLE PROTEIN SYNTHESIS AND INSULIN SENSITIVITY WILL SKYROCKET TO THE HEAVENS ABOVE. In the long run, it may not matter. People have gotten in great shape eating six meals a day or just one...

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-fast-part-six-choosing-a-method/#axzz1vM62K7nl
First, lets go over the different variations of fasting. Ill give a quick rundown. Each involves not eating for a period of time, unsurprisingly.

A couple other rules that apply to all the given methods:

1. 2.

Sleeping hours (provided you dont sleep-eat) count as fasting hours. Eat well regardless. While some fasting plans tout their adherents ability to eat crappy food and still lose weight, Im not interested in fasting solely as a weight loss method.

Okay, on to the variations.

Leangains
Martin Berkhans incredibly popular fasting protocol
[3]

is slightly more involved than others, but still pretty simple:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

A daily 16 hour fast (Martin sometimes recommends 14 for women, who just seem to do better on shorter fasts) during which you eat nothing. Coffee, tea [4], and other non-caloric fluids are fine. A daily 8 hour (or 10 for women) eating window. Three days of weight training, ideally performed at the tail end of the fasting period. To improve performance and muscle protein synthesis, you have the option of consuming 10 grams of branched chain amino acids [5] 10 minutes before the workout. Always eat high protein. On training days, eat more carbs and less fat [6]. On rest days, eat more fat, fewer carbs, and slightly reduce calories. Most people begin their fast after dinner (say, 9 PM), workout in the afternoon (at around 12 PM), and break their fast immediately postworkout (at around 1 PM), but you can use any schedule you prefer [3]. Your post-workout meal should have about 50% of your days caloric allotment (a real feast).

Who should try it?

Because its geared toward people interested in losing fat and putting on muscle and strength, Leangains presupposes that you will also be lifting heavy things several times a week, usually in the fasted state. Therefore, Leangains is best-suited for people who will be training on a regular basis. In fact, its probably the most meticulously-designed IF program.

People with steady schedules will have more success than people with erratic schedules. A huge part of Leangains is the hormonal entrainment induced by regular feeding times. Once you get locked into your routine, your hunger hormones will adapt to the schedule, and the fasting should get easier, or even effortless.

Eat Stop Eat

Put together by Brad Pilon
[7]

, Eat Stop Eat is really basic:

1. 2. 3. 4.

Once or twice a week, dont eat for 24 hours. Start your fast in the morning, at lunch, or at dinner. It doesnt matter as long as you dont eat for 24 hours. Break your fast with a normal-sized meal. Dont try to make up for the lost calories by feasting. Exercise regularly.

Who should try it? People interesting in fasting for the therapeutic benefits [8] (cancer protection, autophagy, life extension, etc.) would probably get a lot out of this method, as opposed to people interested in the body composition benefits.

Going a full 24 hours without food is a much tougher slog than going for 16 hours. In my experience, going lower-carb and higher-fat makes longer fasts easier, so Id have to say a low-carb [9] Primal eater would do better than most.

The Warrior Diet

Ori Hofmeklers plan is based on the feast-and-fast concept:

1. 2. 3.

Eat one meal a day, at night, and make it a big one. A real feast. You have three or four hours to eat until full. So its basically 20/4 hours. You can occasionally snack on low-calorie raw fruit and vegetables during the day, but try to limit protein as much as possible until the feast. Exercise during the day, in a fasted state.

Who should try it?

People who have trouble sticking to a stricter fast will do better on the Warrior Diet, as it allows light eating during the time leading up to the feast, but I wonder if youd be squandering some of the benefits by eating.

Alternate Day Fasting

Researchers often use this method in lab studies:

1. 2. 3. 4.

Eat normally one day (last meal at, say, 9 PM Monday). Dont eat the next day. Resume eating the day after that (at, say, 9 AM Wednesday). It works out to a 36-ish hour fast, although theres plenty of wiggle room. You could eat at 10 PM Monday and break the fast at 6 AM Wednesday for a mere 32 hour fast.

Who should try it?

People who have no trouble going to bed hungry. With Leangains, Eat Stop Eat, and the Warrior Diet methods, you can always manage to get to bed with a full belly; with ADF, you will be going to bed on an empty stomach several times a week. That can be tough.

That said, the therapeutic benefits to serious conditions will most likely really be pronounced with this way of fasting. The casual 20-something Primal eater who lifts heavy things and enjoys going out with friends? Probably not ideal. The older Primal eater interested in generating some autophagy and maybe staving off neurodegeneration [10]? It might just work out. And while Im not able to tell a cancer patient undergoing chemotherapy what to do, Id guess that the longer fasts will be more beneficial in that regard, too.

But my personal favorite way of implementing fasting?

Eat WHEN When Hunger Ensues Naturally

Im not going to put any bullet points here, because none are required. Instead, Ill give a few scenarios: I wake up bright and early on a Saturday morning. Its about 65 degrees, the suns out, Buddhas [11] walking around with the leash in his mouth, and Red Rock Canyon is kinda calling my name. Ive got my coffee already and Im actually not all that hungry from dinner. You know what? Ill go on that hike [12], skip breakfast [13], and really work up an appetite for lunch. Or not. If Im hungry afterwards, Ill eat. Its a fast, but not really. I hit the gym, put in a light workout, then swing by the beach for some sand sprints [14]. Im toast by the end and have to stagger back to my car, but Im not hungry. Even when I get home and smell the grilled salmon, I have no desire for it. I might eat later that night, but only if my appetite returns. Im fasting post-workout [15] only because it doesnt occur to me to eat, not because Im following a plan.

Im away on business, stuck on a layover thats turned into a delay thats turned into an overnighter. The only food available is a Kudos candy bar I mean, healthy granola bar (they seriously still make these?) from the mini fridge, a greasy pizza joint on the corner across the street from the hotel, a Chinese takeout place next to the pizza joint, and a slew of fast food [16] restaurants some ways down the road. Its late, Im tired, I had a Big Ass Salad [17] before I left for LAX you know what? Im just going to skip the meal. Ill figure out something at the airport in the morning (20 hour fast) or once I land (24 hour fast). And Ill be okay either way.

Thats eating When Hunger Ensues Naturally.

This is the most natural, most effortless way of fasting, at least for me, because it allows a person to eat intuitively. Although most people will eventually acclimate to more regimented fasting schedules, and many may even need and thrive with that structure, I prefer a more fractal [18], loose, random pattern of missing (in quotations because I dont feel like Im missing anything, and thats the whole point!) meals. I have no data on whether its as effective or more effective than the more popular methods, but I do know that Ill often fast for 16 hours and eat for eight, or skip an entire day of eating, or sometimes (but very, very rarely) even approach a full 30 hours, and it seems likely that this random pattern of eating characterized the eating schedules of our ancestors.

In short, were all doing the same thing, chasing the same goals. Were all skipping meals, reducing calories, staying active, and all the while were doing this without feeling miserable and restricted. It just so happens that because were efficient Primal fat-burning beasts [19], switching over to burning our own body fat reserves for energy during a fast is a natural, seamless transition. We often dont even notice it. Theres no effort involved. Thats the key: lack of stress [20]. If any or all of these fasting methods stress you out, make you irritable, kill your performance, make you feel restricted, or reduce your ability to enjoy life, and these feelings persist beyond the first five fasts you attempt (when some adaptation difficulties are totally expected), you shouldnt employ them. You should shelve fasting for a while and come back to it later, or never. Its not a requirement or anything. Its just a tool you can wield if your situation warrants it. In fact, this is the perfect opportunity to conduct an informal experiment of one [21]. Try Leangains for a week or two, then throw in a full 24 hour fast once or twice a week for a bit, then try the WHEN method. Compare and contrast. How did you feel? How did you perform at work, at home, and in the gym? Take some waist measurements perhaps, or analyze your favorite barometer of body composition [22] to see how the different fasting methods worked or didnt work for you.

Now, Id like to hear from you. Whats your favorite fasting method? Do you have one, or you just kinda go with the flow? Be sure to review the previous installments below and if you have any questions about any of the stuff Ive covered in this series, leave them in the comment section and Ill try to get them answered for you next week. Thanks for reading!