Put simply fasting = results because it burns your fat stores rather than the food you give your body.
Times have changed from days when you had to eat a carb breakfast, and so has science. Look at the word BREAKFAST = BREAK FAST, when we eat we break our fasting. Why would we do this if we were trying to increase the bodies efficiency to burn fat.
Let’s look at timing, most people wake up around 6-7am and at this time Cortisol is at an all time high, this is a good thing. Cortisol is known to tear down muscle tissue, which is bad but it also destroys fat, helping release fat from fat cells. We want Cortisol to attack fast cells and ideally happen when inssulin levels are naturally at their lowest; i.e. in the morning. In the morning when Insulin levels are low, Cortisol levels are high allowing the fat burning to take place.
The role of cortisol in the body
- Help the body to manage stress
- Convert protein into glucose to boost flagging blood sugar levels
- Work in tandem with the hormone insulin to maintain constant blood sugar levels
- Reduce inflammation
- Contribute to the maintenance of constant blood pressure
- Contribute to the workings of the immune system.
Now if all is well we would want Cortisol to be at its highest possible levels for the longest period of time, it trigges triglycerides into free fatty acids for your metabolism and this is what we call FREE FAT LOSS. However this can only happen if we do not eat carboyhydrates when we wake.
I hear you ask the question well if we cannot eat carbs how about proteins and fats. When we sleep there is a hormone that is released throughout the night, its called Ghrelin. This hormone is often referred to as the hunger hormone and is often at its highest levels when we wake in the morning which is why (as my son loves to put it) starving or put another way ravenous.
Whilst Gherlin is released during the night while you sleep so is growth hormone, as your growth hormone levels rise so too does the bodies ability to release fat. This released fat is used as a fuel source and therefore decreases the bodies ability to break down lean muscle tissue. If we have high Gheril, mixed with growth hormone we reach an ideal state with your Cortisol levels being high in the morning, what happens is your lean muscle tissue is preserved and as a result you only break down fat cells. By fasting for 3-6 hours upon waking we use these hormones at their peak and burn more fat. Upon eating the peak of your hormones will stop burning fat cells and start burining the carbs, protein or fats you give your body.
Want a fat burning machine, the answer is simple push back your first meal of the day by 3-6 hours and intermittently fast, don’t forget to exercise and you will see massive results.
Lets not forget there are many variations of fasting, Lemon Detox, Water Diet, African Mango and many many more. Fasting needs to be controlled and done in the right fashion to gain the benefits. If I eat crap I do this exact program for between 2-4 days and cleanse my body, I feel healthier, lighter, my skin is clearer and I have an amazing ability to think clearly and absorb information.