What is Intermittent Fasting & Is It Worth the Hype?

a photo description showing the different types of fasting.

Full
disclosure: I get so many inquiries from clients and people in general
asking, “what is intermittent fasting, and what’s your opinion on
it,” that I have been wanting to write this article for a long, long
time! But here is the thing: I typically try to actually do a diet at least a
couple times before writing about it. That way I’m able to also share my
personal experience with the protocol. But with my busy client schedule and
athletic training routine, I couldn’t find a compelling enough reason to
impose intermittent fasting and time restricted eating into my day to day
life. So, I’m sharing this article purely from research and observation in my
field of nutrition coaching work. So let’s dive in!

What is intermittent fasting? It’s a popular eating pattern that
has gained a lot of attention in recent years for its purported health
benefits. It involves alternating periods of fasting and eating, with the
goal of improving overall health and weight management. In this article,
we’ll take an in-depth look at intermittent fasting, its benefit claims, it’s
potential drawbacks, and whether I think you really need to do
it.

What is Intermittent Fasting?

Intermittent fasting (IF) is an eating
pattern that involves cycling between periods of fasting and eating. There
are several different approaches to intermittent fasting, but the most common
include:

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Tofu & Spinach Mashed Potatoes with Porcini Mushroom Gravy

These tofu & spinach mashed potatoes are practically a meal on their own- with 19 grams of plant based protein, spinach, and nutrient-dense porcini mushrooms. There really is no need for much more, and the fiber in the potatoes will help you feel full as well!

The porcini mushrooms in the gravy give it a really rich flavor- they are my favorite mushroom for making an intense, delicious sauce; and the tofu and cashews in the special cream for the potatoes really hit it home.

Whip this delicious dish up any time you’re craving comfort food. Where I live, in the mountains outside of Los Angeles, it’s starting to get chilly at night. So this was inspired by coming home to a cold kitchen one evening after work! Enjoy!!

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Paleo Turkey Tacos

These Paleo Turkey Tacos, also known as “Super Clean Turkey Tacos” are a simple and delicious way to get a nutritious dinner on the table, without the unwanted carbs and grease that come with a traditional taco.

For something a little more filling, some diced red potatoes or yams would go great mixed into the turkey. You can use traditional Mexican pickled vegetables, or your favorite sauerkraut from the Farmers Market or grocery store. I used Wildbrine Organic Red Cabbage Sauerkraut and it was delicious!

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Why Diets Don’t Work- 5 Possible Reasons

Are you contemplating a diet, or currently dieting? Or, have you tried several diets only to find yourself back to your old unhealthy or overweight self after a couple months? Do you ever start to wonder why diets don’t work? There is a statistic flying around that 95% of all diets fail. I honestly had to search, a lot, to try to find the origin of this statistic. I could only find one article, The 95% Myth, that referenced a 40 year old study of just 100 participants. What I did find, however, is an overwhelming consensus

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5 Fabulous, Nutritionally Dense Foods for Spring

It’s spring at the Farmers Market! If you are like me, you are guilty of over doing it during the Spring months with more fresh, fabulous produce than you can possibly eat in a week. It is hard to reel in, focus and choose from all the stuff that the farmers are bringing us this time of year. So, I have an idea. How about taking some of that “kid in a candy shop” excitement and enthusiasm, and channelling it into getting more nutrition out of your next Farmers Market visit? I used a sampling from the ANDI scale, developed by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, MD, to help identify some of the most nutritionally dense foods that are in season and hanging around the Farmers Market right about now.

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Nutritional Cleanse- How to Know What’s Best for You

Detox, fast, cleanse, master cleanse, fat flush, nutritional cleanse…I’ll bet if you try to follow a fairly clean and healthy lifestyle, that you have run into each of these terms a few times. Some people love trying different approaches to improving their well being, and may have tried all these approaches, yet others see the popularity of a detox as just a fad or even a product scam. I suppose there are some inferior products out there, and that could lead to poor results, and the impression that one is being scammed. But in general, it is widely believed, and supported, that ridding your body of toxins, resetting your metabolism, and interrupting addictive eating behaviors is a really good idea.

So how do you know who to trust, or which products are not going to leave you feeling “scammed?” I have some basic guidelines that you can easily

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3 Reasons Why Fast Weight Loss Never Works

We see it over and over again – people want to lose weight.  They don’t feel great about how they look and so they go to a “fast weight loss” program that promises quick and easy results.  Sometimes, those programs even deliver – in the short term. Which is perfect if you only want to lose weight for a short period of time, say for a wedding or other special occasion. But most people would probably rather shed unwanted weight for good, if asked to give their honest intentions.

The problem with fast weight loss (and the reason it never works in the long run) is that your body isn’t designed to lose weight quickly.  As soon as you

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4 Ways to Create Healthy Lifestyle Habits that Last

Sometimes no matter how much great nutrition advice we get, it really comes down to our ability to create sustainable healthy lifestyle habits. With that, I created this quick “pop-up” blog post to help readers simplify their healthy lifestyle routines. See if you can apply any of this to your day-to-day life. Enjoy, and tell me what you think in the comments!

Start Early in the Day

Your willpower tends to be highest at the beginning of the day, so harness that energy and use it to your advantage.  A great example is crockpot cooking: your desire to be healthy can motivate you to toss ingredients into a crockpot in the morning, so you’re not dealing with cooking when you’re tired after a long day at work.

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