Lean And Mean Through Intermittent Fasting

If you find yourself saying; “no matter what I do I can’t lose weight!” or “I have done everything and I cannot lean out!” or any other negative affirmation of this type; it’s time to get to work and become best friends with self-discipline. Oooohhh Self Discipline. That nasty entity who demands we spend time with them 24/7. So demanding!

It always drives me insane when people say to me that they wish they had my metabolism. It is almost as if they believe I have a turbo charged metabolism that allows me to eat pies, cake and Twinkies (yuck!!), yet stay lean. Here’s the deal. Yes, I do have a great metabolism but it is not “god given”. I have worked for it and optimized it through *puts hand next to ear*……..yes! Good job! Self-discipline. Uggh there’s that word again.

Let me preface this blog post by saying that if you are reading this and are looking to sculpt and/or alter your body in any way it is imperative that you optimize your hormones. Ladies and Gents, the environment we live in has vastly disrupted our hormones. With all the chemicals in our food chain and personal products we use on our bodies, our meat suits are suffering from sub-optimal hormone levels. This is no longer just a talking point, it is a fact. Men’s testosterone levels are dropping precipitously and women’s hormones are all over the place. The environment is literally wreaking havoc on our hormone levels and it is imperative that you, dear reader, get your ass to a GOOD doctor who understands male/female hormones and get a full hormone blood panel. Do not forego this step! Do not pass go! You will not be granted a get out of jail card if you decide that a hormone blood panel isn’t a priority. It is the NUMBER ONE priority. The road to a better you starts with optimization. I cannot stress this enough and I’m dead serious. OPTIMIZE!

Ladies I’ve made it easy for you. Below are the tests you can hand to your doctor:

• • Estradiol Test

• • Total Estrogens Test

• • DHEA-2 Test

• • Free and Total Testosterone Test  

• • Progesterone Test

• • Thyroid Function ( TSH, Free T3, Free T4)

• Sex Hormone Binding Globulin

Gentlemen I have also included a list for you as well. See below:

• • Testosterone, Free with Total

• • Estrogens, Total

• • Estradiol

• • DHEA-S

• • Progesterone

• • Pregnenolone

• • Dihydrotestosterone (DHT)

• • FSH/LH

• Thyroid (TSH, Free T3, Free T4)

Before I move on, unless you are 30 years of age OR YOUNGER, you need to get your levels checked. If you decide not to do these tests I cannot guarantee that what I’m about to tell you will work. It’s that simple. Stop reading and continue struggling. Perhaps when you get frustrated enough you’ll rethink your choices and do something. If I sound harsh…good. I’m not one to sell you bullshit and lies. I’m here to help you take your fitness goals to the next 4 levels.

One thing I forgot to mention. This blog post is going to target the omnivores. Vegans/vegetarians can take the info and apply it how they see fit. Vegan/Vegetarian diets aren’t in my wheelhouse so I won’t even attempt to address them. Now that we got that out of the way, let’s jump in. Navigating the whole “diet and exercise” scene can be quite daunting. There’s keto, paleo, plant based, blood type and a host of other specialty diets that claim all kinds of benefits. Some are better than others and all of them provide a much healthier alternative to the typical American diet of processed foods and sugar.

Here’s the skinny, pun intended. Eating Keto and/or Paleo is superior to any other diets out there. More and more research and real life stories are revealing that a keto/paleo diet is very effective at combating insulin resistance and excess body fat. Combating insulin resistance is KEY when you are looking to shed unwanted body fat and cellulite. Insulin Resistance is very common in today’s society. Our diets are very high in simple carbs or just excess carbs in general. IR is considered as a pathological condition in which cells fail to respond normally to the hormone insulin. When the body produces insulin under conditions of insulin resistance, the cells are resistant to the insulin and are unable to use it as effectively, leading to high blood sugar. I don’t need to tell you what happens when you have high blood sugar over sustained periods of time (often years). Diabetes and/or obesity often follows high blood sugar. So managing and eradicating Insulin Resistance is the single key component that will turn your body into a fat burning machine.

So how do you do it? It’s all VERY VERY simple. We’re not going to get weighed down in the nuances of a Keto or Paleo diet and I’m going to introduce you to intermittent fasting. This is going to be nuts and bolts simple. Matter of fact, forget the words Paleo and Keto because you are going to be introduced to……

The Way of Life

I’m not going to call it a diet because it’s a way of life. Remember our friend self-discipline? This is where they come in. Didn’t think I’d forget did ya? Lol. To shed excess body fat you need to create a condition in your body known as ketosis AND you need to fend off insulin resistance. This “diet” will do both. Your diet should consist of primarily protein, healthy fats, veggies and no more than 40grams/day of complex carbs.

Let’s break this down further.

Protein (Eat Freely)

• • Grass Fed Beef (Don’t worry about fat content)

• • Pasture raised eggs (whole)

• • Chicken

• • Turkey

• • Protein powders (Whey, Egg, Beef, Plant based etc)

• • Whole fat Yogurt

• Whole fat Organic Grass Fed Milk

Healthy Fats   (Consume 2-3 servings/day)

• • Grass fed butter

• • Raw milk cheeses

• • Olive Oil

• • Avocado’s (Oil as well)

• Raw nuts and seeds

Vegetables

• Any and all

Complex Carbs   (no more than 40grams/day. VERY IMPORTANT)

• • Yams

• • Red Potatoes

• • Grits

• • Oatmeal

• Review Low Glycemic Index Carbs HERE

The idea here is with the exception of complex carbs, consume these foods at will. You feel like eating 4 eggs instead of 2 because you are hungry, go for it. Feel like adding some grass fed butter to your yam? Do it. Want a handful of raw nuts because you are bored? Have at it. The idea here is that you don’t need to starve yourself to get results. You don’t have to worry if you ate a chicken leg and whole breast at lunch. Oh but too many calories? Wrong. Protein won’t make you fat no matter how many articles you read that say otherwise. Eat and be happy. Worried about high cholesterol from consuming healthy fats. Put that out on the doorstep. There is not one single study that proves eating healthy fats (including whole eggs) raises cholesterol levels. Sugar causes heart disease, not healthy fats. Don’t let anyone tell you differently. Eat your healthy fats within reason. You don’t want to eat a block of cheese a day but a slice or 2 a day certainly won’t harm you. Be responsible and reasonable.

The Key to the Kingdom

Intermittent fasting is the rage today and for good reason….IT WORKS. What is IF? Intermittent fasting is alternating periods of fasting with periods of eating during the same day. That’s it? Yes, that’s it. The benefits of IF are incredible and it really is the key to the kingdom for health. Intermittent fasting is something everyone should be doing and it’s incredibly easy to do (more on that in a second).

Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

• •  Increased sensitivity to insulin (Combats Insulin Resistance. AWESOME!!)

• •  Increases fat burning (Oh yeah!!)

• • Promotes cardiovascular health via clearing of fatty tissues from various areas of the body (Bonus!)

• • Increases Cell Rejuvenation (Fountain of youth!)

• Autophagy (Cell “cleans” itself! Potentially cure disease! Research this term)

So how do you do it? Pick 3 days week where you will not eat for 20-24 hours. WHAT?!! That’s crazy! I can’t do that!!!

“Hey self-discipline, I have a reader here that says it’s too hard”

If you know me at all, I’m a savage when it comes to food. I can eat and I LOVE to eat. Trust me when I say that. Here’s what I do that makes it easy. When I fast my last meal is consumed around 6:00 pm. I wake up the next morning and begin my fast. Actually my fast began the night before, but you get the idea. I then go the rest of the day without consuming anything but coffee (black) in the morning and water throughout the day. At 6:00pm that day I break my fast and the food is glorious. Great thing about it is that I can eat a big heavy portion of protein, throw some fat, carbs and veggies in there and it’s a feast. After that meal I’m pretty set for the rest of the night. That was 24 hours without food. Didn’t have to think about what I’d have for breakfast, lunch or a snack. Very easy when you break it down that way.

This lifestyle takes a lot of self-discipline folks, but the reality is there are no shortcuts to getting lean and mean. If all it took was exercising, everyone would be walking around with low body fat. It’s a system that works and it’s a system that devastates excess body fat and raises one’s health tremendously.

If you have any questions or need additional guidance please reach out in the comments. I’ll be sure to assist every inquiry.

Peace,

Chris

Disclaimer: The author(s) of the website and this blog post are not dietitians or nutritionists. Any recommendations are made based on our research or personal experience, but shall not be construed as medical or nutritional advice. You are fully responsible for any actions you take and any consequences that occur as a result of anything you read on this website.