Intermittent Fasting Success Report

My One Meal Menu

2012-01-13T22:07:00.021+08:00

My One Meal Menu

Some of the FAQs I received from my readers are: What do you eat in that one meal? What calories, what kind of food and what portion size and did you eat all those foods being recorded in your food blog? Well I’m going to answer all these questions together.

I have a food blog and a fasting blog. These two blogs seem conflicting, but they aren’t. Though one is about eating and the other about fasting, they are related. Today I’m going to use some of the old photos from my food blog to answer the above questions. To answer one of the FAQs: 99% of the food photos were taken from my dining table, so I actually ate the foods.

My meal frequency is somewhat famine style - generally one meal a day, sometimes no food for a day or two. Don’t assume that my one meal is a great super size one. Although sometimes I do binge, at company events or family/festival gatherings, I eat normal portion meals most of the time. Calories, food group…I don't care!

Different people may have different standard of a normal meal. Professional athletes’ normal meal size may be much larger than mine. So let see the normal meal size of a female headhunter.

My Normal One Meal Dinner – Home Cooking
I enjoy eating at home. This is the time when I can sit down, relax and enjoy food. I may have mentioned this before – food become more tasteful after I practice fasting. And some readers also reported that they eat more respectfully after practicing fasting.

Here is couple of examples to demonstrate my normal portion dinner. Simply click on the links to view the original articles from my food blog.

Green Risotto - Hong Kong Style * My Home-Made Vegetarian Pasta

My Normal One Meal Lunch – Economy
Although my one meal is usually dinner, I do eat lunch in some occasions, especially over the weekend when I don’t need to rush for time. Here are some examples of economy normal portions of my normal lunch. Super Value Tea Set * My Vegetarian Lunch Box * Classic Dim Sums

My Normal One Meal – Luxury
In some occasions, I do lunch in a slightly luxury way such as going on an outing and enjoy a holiday seafood lunch. It is luxury in terms of money, but very normal in terms of meal size even it is a 4-course one. Lamma Island Seafood Outing

My Over-sized One Meal
There are occasions that I eat a lot. Over a banquet, I never want to single out myself. So I eat a lot. However I do have a rule that I won’t do two big meals in a day. If that happens, I’ll try to make excuse to one of them. If both meals are unavoidable…mmmm….that’s a very difficult day for me. I usually have to go on a 30-hour fasting after that. In my experience, fasting is a very good remedy for binge eating. Though I sometimes binge over long weekends or holidays, a day or two’s fasting will enable speedy recovery. Here is a blog post to demonstrate how big my one meal could be – an 8-course banquet plus rice/noodle, desserts and fruits. Cantonese Festival Dinner

PS: One meal suits me well. But two meals also proofed to work well for many. There is an eBook called 2 Meal Solution written by a top fitness coach.

If you want to learn manage your 2 meal and at the same time lose weight and eat what you love to eat, this is a great guide. If you’ve decided not to buy the book, you should opt in to the free newsletter or free e-course.

Embrace Hunger and Hunger Pains While Fasting

2012-01-06T17:02:00.004+08:00

2012 Weight Loss Plan
Is losing weight one of your primary objectives in the New Year? If so, I would like to draw your attention to hunger and hunger pains, before you kick start any dieting plan.

Embrace Hunger and Hunger Pains While Dieting
When I talk about my fasting habit, the immediate feedback from most people is hunger and hunger pains. Right, we are taught to avoid hunger and getting hungry even while dieting. I'm going to suggest something that could be a taboo to most of us. You will get faster weight loss results if you allow yourself to get hungry from time to time. I'll even go as far to say that you should embrace hunger and look forward to it for rapid fat loss. Of course I don’t mean to stay extremely hungry for a long period, but to extend the hours between meals is certainly beneficial.

Getting Hungry While Fasting? Good!
In Hong Kong parents are complaining that kids are facing too much pressure at school. There is an argument that if kids cannot put up with some kind of pressure at school, there is no way they can face any kind of pressure from the world when they grow up. Sounds inhuman but true. This made me think of weight loss. If we cannot put up with hunger for a few hours, how can we face other greater challenges in life?

Hunger does not bother me much in my particular body make up. But I always look forward to it. Unlike many people who want to get lean, I seldom feel hungry, but…I just need to remind myself that it is okay to get hungry from time to time.

Getting Hungry is the "Old School" Dieting Approach
When I was a teen in the 70's, people would actually get hungry while dieting! At some point in the 80's, the "eat 6 meals per day" approach became the norm. The idea was that "eating every few hours" keeps your metabolism high. In theory it looked like a great strategy, but it isn't working for most people.

Is Eating Every Few Hours Working For You?
In my years of weight loss struggle, I’ve tried almost anything including eating 6 meals per day which never worked for me. The problem with eating all the time is that you always have "food energy" circulating in your system. When you do any activities or exercise, your body always has an abundant supply of energy from the food you eat. Why would it need to access your stored energy source (aka BODY FAT)? The answer is that your body will not burn body fat with excessive food energy in your system.

Those who do outdoor activities and eat normal meals are usually lean. Those who eat all the time are the ones with weight problems. Think about it…a lot of us play video games and surf the Internet. They are indoor near food. If they get hungry, food is just a few steps away. People at work are near food all the time as well and share the exact same problem!

"Allowing Yourself to Get Hungry" is Key to Getting Lean
I don't believe our bodies were meant to have a never ending supply of constant food. I am not suggesting that you should stay hungry all the time, but don't be so quick to grab food the moment you feel hungry. This is your chance to get rid of some of that excessive body fat. Want to really lose some weight quickly? Let yourself get hungry on purpose before doing cardio. This is when you will see visible results quickly. Try short term fasting. Skip meals whenever you feel you can. Let yourself feel hungry and laid off some fat quickly.

My Suggested 2012 Fasting Plan

Don’t announce your fasting plan. Let people notice it and come consult you for weight loss tips. That was my experience back in 2006. I started my short term intermittent fasting in March and my colleagues came to ask for weight loss tips soon after July.

Don’t set a schedule. Say there must be a day or two in a week that you don’t have any meal appointments or you don’t really feel hungry and that you're sure you can survive without eating, then skip meal. Try this for a quarter and you’ll see noticeable results.

PS: I realize that many dietitians and personal trainers will give you conflicting advice when it comes to the subject of hunger and meal frequency. They will throw out the "slowing metabolism" argument.

There is an amazing eBook on this subject, called Eat Stop Eat. It was written by a top nutritionist who did his graduate research on this topic. His study was called "The Metabolic Effects of Short Periods of Fasting in Humans and its Potential Application in Weight Loss"

It will change the way you think of eating. Even if you don't decide to buy the book, you should opt-in to subscribe the blog.

Fasting Books

2012-01-02T17:10:00.003+08:00

Want to read a fasting book to start a healthy weight loss program in the New Year? When it comes to fasting books it feels like a wide range of fasting methods are being covered. Each book has it’s own special take on how we should be fasting and how long we should be fasting.

To help you go on healthy fasting, here is my list of the top best fasting books.

Eat Stop Eat (Brad Pilon)
eBook available at ClickBank

If you can do one meal a day for twice a week, this will be your perfect guide book to help you kick start your intermittent fasting program. If you are interested in the scientific research behind the use of intermittent fasting for weight loss then you should find this book to be both up to date and accurate.

Brad Pilon is a nutrition professional. His graduate studies were about nutritional sciences specializing in the use of short term fasting for weight loss. Click here to check out Eat Stop Eat

2 Meal Solution (Mike O’Donnell)
eBook available at ClickBank

Mike, as a Certified Personal Trainer/Health and Fitness Coach, has been one of the pioneers talking about intermittent fasting (IF). This book helps you gain back control over food choices and finally build a simple lifestyle for long term weight management. A perfect guide for beginners. Click here to check out 2 Meal Solution

Master Cleanse Secrets (Raylen Sterling)
eBook available at Clickbank

Unlike many fad diets of today, the Master Cleanse has survived the test of time for over 60 years. Celebrities and nutrition gurus alike are raving over the immense health benefits and spectacular body transformations that this diet offers. It’s good but not easy. You need to learn about the tricks and tips in order to make it through the 10-day program. Check out the Master Cleanse Secrets before kicking start.

Juice Fasting and Detoxification: Use the Healing Power of Fresh Juice to Feel Young and Look Great : The Fastest Way to Restore Your Health (Steve Meyerowitz, Beth Robbins, Michael Parman)
Available at Amazon

This book covers comprehensively about how to do juice fasting with raw fruits and vegetables while maintaining a nearly normal work and living schedule. It includes juice recipes, detoxification techniques, exercises, weight loss, water fasting and how to break a fast safely. Truly a must read if you want to go on juice fasting. Click here to view Juice Fasting and Detoxification

A Study of Prolonged Fasting (Francis Gano Benedict)
Available at Amazon

Fasting has been around for thousands of year. It is only during the last hundred years or so, the subject of fasting has undergone close experimental and scientific scrutiny which was probably initiated by the famous physiologist, Dr. Francis Gano Benedict. His book, A Study Of Prolonged Fasting published by the Carnegie Institution of Washington in 1915, is well worth close perusal today. This is a scarce antiquarian, rare and hard-to-find book with something of interest for everyone! Click here to view A study of prolonged fasting

Fasting Books

Creating New Habits Towards Intermittent Fasting

2011-12-14T10:44:00.005+08:00

Want to try intermittent fasting but don’t know if it is right for you? Here is a short article to help.

In a nutshell, intermittent fasting (IF) is to acquire a better life through a simple lifestyle. To begin with, take a look at the following 3 rules and see how you feel.

• Rule #1: Eat Meals Every Day...Sometimes 2
• Rule #2: Move/Exercise for 10 Minutes Every Day
• Rule #3: Quiet the Noise for 10 Minutes Every Day

If these 3 rules sound probable to you, then continue reading.

They say that it only takes 21 days to create a new habit, so for the next 21 days you are going to follow the above 3 simple rules.

It's not going to get any more complicated than that, no need to. No other distractions to get you off track. The goal is to master the foundations of each pillar (eating, movement, lifestyle) with the “IF” Life principles and then make it a lasting part of your lifestyle. Master these foundations and you can stop any yo-yo weight fluctuations than many seem to suffer from nowadays. You will also embrace your own active lifestyle which will add into helping you stay lean and healthy.

Want to take a closer look at the life of an IFer? You can go through this blog or read this article as a fast track: Why I Do “Less” (Eat, Exercise and Work) for Better Results

Author of the article is actually practicing the 3 rules above, although I’m not sure if he developed them in 21 days. I recommend this article not only because I appreciate his style of writing. Because I’m someone in a similar lifestyle and truly understand that what he says is going to benefit anyone who does it. I like his quotes as well, such as:

· Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication ~ Leonardo da Vinci
· It’s not the daily increase but daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential ~ Bruce Lee
· Never confuse motion with action ~ Benjamin Franklin
The article also includes a Bruce Lee video which is truly inspiring.

So here you go:

Why I Do “Less” (Eat, Exercise and Work) for Better Results
By Mike O’Donnell

My general lifestyle theme for the last decade (and on this blog) has been one of practicing more simplicity in all aspects of my life.

Not because I’m trying to neglect myself of anything (that’s not that point of a simple lifestyle), but rather quite the opposite. It is because of what a more simple life can bring in return as far as happiness, sense of freedom, reduced stress and even more results.

Trust me, I still want to accomplish and do many things…but I’ve found that by simplifying the steps to get there, those results can happen quicker. I’m much more focused and efficient at what I do.

Sounds like something worth trying right? So here’s some of my reasons I continue with simple eating, exercise and working. Hopefully it will inspire you to try something new and simple in your lifestyle approach as well!

Click here to read the full article

Intermittent Fasting Success - Creating New Habits in 21 Days

Paleo Diet

2011-11-24T22:05:00.011+08:00

Though intermittent fasting does not restrict food group, I do heard people on paleo diet gain outstanding results. I once recommended a book called The Paleo Diet - The Original Human Diet in this post and received encouraging feedback.

If you seriously want to know “what to eat”, it's worth finding out what 'paleo diet' is all about and to gain some great insight into food and your health.

If you don't have time to read through a book, the link below contains a number of videos which will quickly help you understand more about Paleo Diet.

Click Here
to start with
USDA Food Pyramids Vs Paleo Food Pyramid - Explained

Want to try a few paleo dishes and see how it tastes? I've some free recipes for you. Just click to download, no registration required.
Broccoli and Pinenut Soup
Pumkin Chicken Curry
Lemon Meringue Pie

Intermittent Fasting Success

How to Start Intermittent Fasting

2011-10-28T22:01:00.004+08:00

Starting Your Own “IF” Lifestyle

The biggest concern I have gotten since starting this blog in 2010, is emphasizing too much on my personal experience. There aren’t two Anna’s in this world!

In fact to effectively use Intermittent Fasting (IF) to achieve goals and maximum results can vary by each person with fat loss, muscle gain, better health, improved performance in your sport of choice and more. With that comes the individuality of what is a person’s insulin resistance, current body composition (body fat %), daily lifestyle, eating habits, type of exercise program, frequency and volume of training and so forth.

It is unlikely to find large groups of people with the exact same set of parameters and responses to an intermittent fasting protocol. My suggestion is to start with a basic intermittent fasting format, and then learn how to monitor results and adjust as you go.

Even down the road things will change as you will improve health, lower insulin resistance or losing weight. So nothing is really ever just one set way (as it shouldn’t have to be). Life is dynamic (always changing and evolving) and so should be the way we see our own journey for health and fitness.

What is Intermittent Fasting (IF)?

If you are new to the term, intermittent fasting is just taking “intermittent” times of fasting (no food) and working them into your lifestyle. This can be either daily or a couple times a week (will get into that more below).

How to Begin Using Intermittent Fasting?

Is there only one set way in which to use intermittent fasting? No, of course not.

There are many different IF protocols based on people’s individualistic needs, lifestyle, exercise, goal, macronutrient ratios, and so forth. I am going to keep it simple and give the 2 most frequent options.

• Longer IF 1-2x a week: This is taking a longer fasting period of say for up to 24 hours and repeating 1-2x a week. Note that 24 hours is not skipping a whole day, as stopping to eat on 6pm Tues and then having your next meal at 6pm Wed is 24 hours. I usually don’t talk about anything beyond 30 hours for using IF, as most research is usually based on that fasting window. There is a book called Eat Stop Eat detailing the ‘1-2x a week’ mode of IF.

• Shorter More “Daily” IF: This means that it is done more than a couple times a week with a condensed eating window such as eating their calories in a 8-6 hour window more daily (and the fasting does happen around it). There is a book called 2 Meal Solution detailing the ‘daily’ mode of IF.

With those approaches there are still many variables to include such as calories, activity/exercise, recovery needs, food choices, etc. In the end it is still about finding a way that does work for you. Picking the approach you think fits around your lifestyle best is going to lead to better results.

Wrapping it Up

Over the years I have adapted more of the “long” IF approach than the ‘short’ without really planning.

I eat anywhere from 12-24 hours without worrying about food all the time. I focus more on healthy foods and the results come, while still being able to enjoy other splurges when I go out and eat/socialize. I’m not a slave to some mentality of “needing” to eat all day and enjoy the freedom that comes with that.

Heck sometimes on occasion I may work in a 24+/- hour fast just because of my schedule, but there is more flexibility to how I eat now. I listen to my body and know what is right for me. Staying lean and healthy year round is easy once you can do that.

The key part of the IF experience is just starting with it and seeing how it works for you. Knowing how to change things up when they aren’t working. Making a lifestyle solution and not needing anyone to tell you how to eat again. That is how you find that freedom and results that last.

Personally I enjoy reading the The IF Blog which covers everything about intermittent fasting. And the author Mike O'Donnell answers questions promptly.

Intermittent Fasting - How to Start Using IF

Best Time to Workout

2011-10-02T17:55:00.008+08:00

If you want to find out the best time to workout, this article may help.

Good and informative fitness articles are not easy to find. Mike O’Donnell’s blog is one among the rare blogs that contain original content articles. Mike is a professional personal trainer. His articles are insightful and inspirational which I always enjoy reading. Recently I read his article “What is the best time to workout” which I really want to share with you.

I always emphasis the benefits of exercising in a "fasted state" and encourage doing morning exercises. However after reading Mike’s article, I have changed my views about when and how to do workout.

Below are a few highlights from Mike’s article.

By Mike O’Donnell: In the past I have talked about the advantages of working out in a “fasted state”, which can easily be done first thing in the morning. However early in the morning is not the only time, as a “fasted” state (or the lowered insulin levels) can also happen hours after your most recent meal.

So it is possible to still workout later in the day and reap the benefits, assuming you didn’t eat too soon before your workout.

… it’s how your nervous system (and adaptions it makes) that determines your real strength and performance outputs for a workout during the day.

…So the answer to the best time to workout is based on when you feel optimal to do an intense workout. When is your body and nervous system working at peak capacity?

For me, that means later in the day. I feel stronger, flexible (less chance of injury), focused and my workouts are just more intense/productive.

But for another person, that optimal time may be first thing in the morning.

So whatever time of day you feel “optimal” for maximizing your workout efforts, that is probably the best time for you.

Consistency Matters Too
The other major factor to look at is if you will also stay consistent with the workouts. Doing an intense exercise program for 4 weeks a year isn’t going to get the results you are after.

Now doing some simple workouts consistently year round, now we are talking. Simple daily habits that add up for lasting results.

This can depend on your daily schedule (work, personal) and other things you have going on. Some people like getting it out of the way first thing in the morning before work and the day gets too busy, others rather would do it right after work before going home to wind down for the night.

Wrapping Up
So really it is just a simple equation to try and maximize your performance/ strength output while also making sure you stay consistent with your workouts.

Don’t worry about whether you can or can not get a workout first thing in the morning (esp with IF), as for some it may be more effective later on in the day. You can always get that “fasted” state by just having a long period of time (2-3 hours for example) between your workout and the last time you ate.

So just go with what best compliments your daily lifestyle! You can always change it up as you go along…but the goal is to just get started and keep going!

Click here to view the full article: What is The Best Time to Workout

By Anna Fasting: In terms of consistency, I must grant myself a distinction - simple workouts consistently year round plus simple daily habits. Due to office relocation, my lunch-hour swimming may not be possible but I just switch it to before or after work together with some simply calisthenics daily. No matter what, if you are determined to workout everyday for the benefit of your health, I’m sure you can find time to do it.

Back to Mike’s blog, I really appreciate his knowledge and passion in helping others to keep fit. He also answers email promptly. He is certainly one of my most respected figures in the fitness field. If you wish to take a look, here is Mike’s blog.

My simple daily calisthenics ideas come from this book Workout Without Weights.

For your information, Bodyweight Calisthenics are an incredibly effective and versatile form of exercise... You can do them anywhere and anytime, they do not require expensive equipment or costly gym memberships, you can do them in short bursts and you can effectively train the entire body by using only a few movements. For additional information, download this free report: Cardio Intervals

Intermittent Fasting Success - Best Time To Workout

5-day Mini Master Cleanse

2011-08-15T20:53:00.003+08:00

I have just completed a 5-day mini master cleanse. Here is a summary of my story.

Background
I feel I need a spiritual renewal plus some cleansing and detoxification. I know I’m going to lose weight but I don’t have much weight to lose, so I decide to cut the standard period of 10 days by half.

Preparation
Although the actual fast lasted 5 days, I started to cut my food consumption ahead of time. In fact, I had 4.5 normal meals the week before I started fasting. 4.5 meals in a week sound unrealistic, isn’t it? Nope. I seldom eat more than 10 meals in a week. So I’m actually cutting 50% of my normal diet. If you have to cut your weekly meals by half, would it be possible? I believe it’s no big deal.

My preparation also included the mental part. To be successful, this is the most important. I kept telling myself, if I can’t control myself for 5 days, how can I control myself for the rest of my life? This feeling is really wonderful. I wanted to do it and I did it. I must say this is truly a good exercise to go through. I usually gather at the office pantry for social talk, but in the fasting week, I didn’t even walk into the pantry. I had a water machine nearby my desk, so drinking was not a problem.

Fasting Process
I drink the lemonade three times a day to replace breakfast, lunch and dinner. Rest of the day, I drink water only. What if I really feel hungry and wanted something to eat? Well, hunger has not been my problem for a long time. This may have set the background for my successful fasting lifestyle. However there had been moments that I really wanted to eat. Once throughout my 5 fasting days, I had a spoonful of the maple syrup which was one of the ingredients of my lemonade drink. Guess what. At that moment, if you ask me what the most delicious food in this world is, I must say ‘maple syrup’. No wonder people with fasting experience will eat respectfully, really enjoy the taste of food and without wasting any food.

Lemonade had no fiber in it. So I had a glass of laxative tea every evening which helped me go to the bathroom easier the next morning. The waste quantity wasn’t much, but very dark in color, much darker than usual. I guess this is normal as I’m cleansing out the stuff that had been clogging on my colon.

The Challenge
It was five years ago when I first encountered a 6-day fasting. Throughout these years, my fasting windows have been 24-hour most of the time and quite often 40-60 hours. However beyond that was a little challenge. Day 3 had been the most difficult. Once I past that, I felt great and much more optimistic. In fact, to enable the process run smoothly, I stayed calm on everything and thus picked the week when my boss was away and business was relatively slow.

Side Effect
Coated tongue – I had this for the first two days. But I know this is a normal side effect of fasting and cleansing, so it didn’t bother me much.

Weight loss – I lost 6 pounds and achieved truly flat ab. To many people this is a positive side effect but for me, not really. In fact I’m quite standard in terms of body weight and shape. I’m now actually a bit underweight.

Exercising
Daily swimming had been part of my life for many years. I thought I should remain less active during fasting and swap to hula hoop for the first 3 days. However on day 4 I felt really energetic, so I resumed my lunch hour swimming. So as day 5.
WARNING: DO NOT do this if you are fasting for the first time.

Breaking Fast
I break my fast with a bowl of fish and lettuces congee. A 5-day fast is not too long nor short, but still needed some care in breaking fast. Congee made me feel comfortable and prepare my digestive system for a slightly heavier lunch the next day.

NOTE: This is just a report of my mini master cleanse experience. It is not meant to be a proper master cleanse guide. If you are looking to do a full master cleanse, check out Raylen Sterling’s website about Master Cleanse Secrets. You can even subscribe her newsletter. Find out more before kicking start.

Intermittent Fasting Success Story

2011-07-13T15:34:00.003+08:00

Here is an IF success story from one of my readers which was posted in my food blog on July 9, 2011. This is indeed one of the most encouraging comments that I receive ever since I blog on IF and food. So I’ve decided to copy this comment from my Hong Kong Food Blog and post it here.

Hi Anna, I didn't know where to drop this, so I'm just going to leave this here.

Back in September, I had this massive craving for Cantonese food while I was at school (without my parents' cooking). I googled around and came to your site. Then I read about IF. I've never made an effort to lose weight, but I decided to give IF a try. I did it for about three months. Then Christmas break came around. After that, I reduced my fasts and eventually stopped because juggling my semester schedule and IF was too much for me.

However, I just wanted to thank you so so so much, with every ounce of sincerity that I have. When I stopped IF, I started eating healthier (and I'm not just saying "eating healthier," I really mean it.

Lifestyle changing, healthy eating, not just dieting - "healthy eating", if that makes sense. I don't think I could ever ever have done this if I hadn't stumbled on your blog.

IF taught me how to look at food differently every single day. It taught me about hunger and bored eating. It taught me so much, in only three months that I did it seriously.

I'm down 30 lbs now. I lost 10 pounds on IF, then the other 20 lbs by eating responsibly. This is a leap for me because I had never lost more than 5 lbs at a time in my life. I have a long way to go, but for a girl who has never really put an effort into weight loss until I saw your blog, I really just wanted to thank you. I wanted to write to you for a while, but I didn't know how to thank you, and I really still don't. Thank you so much! Also, I just came back from Hong Kong and the food was delicious! :D

Intermittent Fasting Success Story

Calorie Restricted Diets - Good or No Good?

2011-07-03T13:18:00.004+08:00

Calorie Restricted Diets have helped many to lose weight. But there is an argument that "You're just going to put all the fat back on... "

My friend Brad Pilon has recently written an article on this topic. I like his points and would very much like to share with you.

"Calorie restricted diets are pointless because they are hard to maintain and you just end up putting the fat back on once you stop the diet"

I have NEVER understood this argument against dieting.

To me, it's just a back handed compliment:

"Sure, you're losing tons of fat now and you look great, but as soon as you stop dieting and start eating like the rest of us again your just going to gain all that fat back! "

Funny how you never hear anyone say:

"Really effective weight training programs are pointless because they are hard to maintain and you just end up losing all the muscle when you go back to being sedentary"

or

"Getting out of debt is pointless because it's really, really hard, and once you go off your budget and start spending like crazy, you just end up in debt again!"

To me, this is just the arguments made by the defeated, the lazy and the jealous.

My advice? Ignore these arguments, and stay the course.

Eat less, move more, fast once or twice a week, ignore the naysayers. That's the approach people who transformed their bodies using Eat Stop Eat followed, and it will work for you too.

Your friend,

Brad

Eat Stop Eat

Juice Fasting – Benefits and How

2011-06-12T16:19:00.002+08:00

If you’ve been following my blog, you may know that my fasting journey started with a six-day juice fasting.

To start with, I prefer juice to water for one reason – I like to have some taste, sweetness and at least something rather than nothing in my mouth. May be for this reason, people generally can stay through the first three days without much problem. In fact, there were more scientific reasons to backup my choice, but at that moment in time, I didn’t know. If you want to try juice fasting, let me walk you through some basic facts.

About Juice Fasting
While juice fasting, the stomach actually shrinks to its original size (the size of your fist). When you just drink your food, your stomach gets a physiological rest, allowing the colon to shed old compacted and putrefied material that was waiting there to cause future disease. Hence juice fasting is not only responsible for weight loss, but detoxifying and rejuvenating our digestive organs.

Please always include fresh raw fruits and vegetables. They require no digestion & almost all their vital nutrients are assimilated directly in the bloodstream.

Raw juices of fruits & vegetables are extremely rich in vitamins & minerals, trace elements, enzymes & natural sugars. They exercise beneficial effect in normalizing all the body functions. They supply needed elements for the body's own healing activity & cell regeneration thereby speeding the recovery.

Juice Fasting Juices
If you are technically interested in the nutrition value and benefits of the juice fasting fruits and vegetable juices, you may look up the internet and spend a few days reading overwhelming information.

I’m not a technical person, so my suggestion to do juice fasting is by color rotation. I’m sure you won’t miss anything in terms of nutrition. And that was exactly how I did it myself. Here are some of the fruits and vegetables generally available, delicious and economic. I’m sure you’ll love some, if not all of them.

Acid fruits like orange, lemon, grapefruit, strawberry and pineapple.
Sweet fruits such as prunes and grapes.
Sub-acid fruits like apple, plum, pear, peach, apricot and cherry.
Vegetable fruits, namely, tomato and cucumber.
Green leafy vegetables like cabbage, celery, lettuce, spinach.
Root vegetables like beetroot, carrot, onion, potato and radish.

I made the juices myself to guarantee freshness. Drink immediately after the juices are made. If you don’t have a juicer at home yet, buy one. A simple inexpensive home juicer will do. It is desirable to use juices individually. If you prefer to mix, I would suggest no more than three juices in any one mixture.

Who Should Do Juice Fasting
Anybody – whoever wants to start a new and healthy life. But you may say that ‘if it is easy, then everyone would be doing it.’ Right, each year, millions of people attempt to take control of their weight and health. And each year millions of people fail. If you don’t want to be the next one, you need to find out more about juice fasting and seek support from people with successful experience.

Generally people who suffered from pain and got recovered will share their experiences and hope to help others who had been suffering from similar pain. For me, I create this blog to share my fasting experiences. For Kate West, she has taken her years of overweight/unhappy experience into a simple handbook called Breakthrough Juice Fasting, in which she takes you by the hand and show you step-by-step how to do juicing fasting. FYI, Kate after mastering this system became a detoxification consultant and enjoying great joy in helping others to go through the journey she had.

Intermittent Fasting Sucess Report - Juice Fasting Knowhow

Why Bother With The Lemonade Diet?

2011-05-14T22:25:00.004+08:00

Do you love lemon? A lot of us do. What do you love a lemon for, apart from its fragrant and refreshing nature? Have you ever associated it with weight loss, health and even a master cleanse? In fact, a Lemonade Diet which is also known as The Master Cleanse, is a life transformation exercise where many people enjoy a new and better life after going through it.

As someone who’s enjoying the benefits of fasting, I would like to introduce more fasting diets ideas to encourage more readers to go fasting. Let me begin with the Lemonade Diet.

There's a lot of buzz surrounding the Master Cleanse Lemonade Diet. Lately it seems like every Hollywood actress or actor who needs to get in shape is turning to this decades old health system that involves drinking a mixture of lemon juice, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper.

With all the diets out there to choose from why would anyone bother with the Lemonade Diet?

There are two main reasons people like the Master Cleanse Lemonade Diet. The first (and most obvious) is that it works. The results people are getting with the Master Cleanse border on miraculous, and they are backed by thousands of devoted users who are living testimonials to the effectiveness of the Master Cleanse.

The second reason people choose the Master Cleanse over other diets and wellness programs is that it's fast. The typical person only spends 10 days on the Master Cleanse, compared to other diets that can last months or even years you can see why they choose the Master Cleanse. For urgent dieters who for any reason need to shed pounds in a short period, this method is widely used.

Another interesting thing about the Lemonade Diet lasting just 10 days is that you only need a short term burst of will power to get through it. Having to sacrifice for months is what makes other diets so hard to stay on, but most people can will their way through 10 days.

What can you expect from 10 days on the Lemonade Diet?

Even though most people are going on the Master Cleanse to lose weight quickly, there are many other health benefits to be gained by doing the Master Cleanse. Flushing out your system is what the Master Cleanse is really designed to do. Even back 60 years ago when the Master Cleanse was first invented people had health problems as a result of waste building up inside of them. Today with processed foods, pollution, and all around poor diets our bodies desperately need to be flushed out every once in a while.

When you flush out your body with the Master Cleanse the waste you eliminate will be abnormal. The smell, color, and texture of the waste that comes out of your body shock some people, so you should be prepared.

It's true the Master Cleanse can help you lose up to 20 pounds, look younger, ease chronic pain, cleanse your body of internal waste, and boost your energy levels in 10 days but...You know the saying - "if it was easy everyone would be doing it". Right. Some people can’t even do it for one day.

If you want to try the Master Cleanse, there's more you need to know than just drinking the lemonade mixture for 10 days. In fact most people who try the Master Cleanse without knowing all the steps fail. If you want to see whether the Lemonade Diet is right for you, there's a good book Master Cleanse Secrets that you should read before starting because it covers the common problems people face, and how to avoid them.

Go fasting! I wish you all the best!

Anna

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Lemonade Diet

Is Eating Two Meals A Day Better Than Six?

2011-04-21T12:13:00.006+08:00

Is eating two meals a day healthier or 6 to 10 small meals?

To lose weight, there are two completely contrast approaches. One is fasting, reduce in frequency and quantity of food. One is increased meal frequency such as 6 or more small meals daily, but no reduce in calories. It seems more “health experts” are encouraging people to go for the small meals approach. I doubt how many of them are doing what they encourage others to do.

I’m someone who do what I encourage others to do – fasting for weight loss.

Eating 2 meals a day is in fact one way of intermittent fasting. I have been on this eating style for many years. You may want to hear about how two meals a day contributes to my health and keeping my body weight stable.

Flipping through my food diary, take the first week of April as an example, I had five days on one meal and two days on two meals. For the second week, I had three days on one meal and four days on two meals. I am basically eating everyday with my fasting window ranging from 14 hours to 24 hours and occasionally 30 hours.

Isn’t this meal frequency scary? I don’t think so. Some of my readers had been motivated by me to switch from alternate day fasting to a one-meal or two-meal plan. They like it because they are able to eat their favorite foods everyday.

Who Should Consider Eating 2 Meals A Day?
Please understand…I am not saying that you should adapt to this way of eating at all. If I feel I need food…I eat. This way of eating isn't about starving myself and it is out of my natural need for food. Of course this won’t happen overnight. I took some time to build up this eating habit. Please don't eat this way until you have a deep understanding of the diet.

Fact is, if you want to lose weight but are not prepared to change your eating habit in one way or another, your chance of success could be limited.

About Intermittent Fasting and A Two-Meal Plan
My blog is about intermittent fasting and I talk a lot about IF without going detail about the science behind it. Because I’m not a scientific person and generally people tend to lost interest when articles get too technical. Therefore I would like to point to websites that go in depth into the subject of IF. Mike O'Donnell's 2 Meal Solution is one of them.

My suggestion is to go to Mike's site and do some research to see if a 2-meal day makes sense to you. If it does, give it a try…if it looks impossible for you then continue to eat the way you have been eating. Intermittent Fasting works extremely well for a lot of people and has documented health benefits if done properly.

Mike O'Donnell, the Man Behind 2 Meal Solution
Mike quitted his well paying corporate job to venture into his passion for wanting to help people get better health and fitness. He has been a certified personal trainer for about a decade. I came to know him because I have been following his blog and learn a lot about IF. He has recently re-designed his outstanding "IF Life" blog and re-named it “2 Meal Solution”. Set a couple hours aside…I’m sure you are going to love his site!

The great thing about Mike is that he provides a staggering amount of free info, such as a free e-course and a free reading of the first 30 pages of his ebook. As a blogger, I know just how much work is involved in writing unique content and answering questions. It is a lot of hard work…and Mike does a fantastic job!

Reading Mike’s site, you’ll be inspired by his real passion in helping others to stay healthy and fit. Personally I’m completely impressed by his mission to provide simple and effective ways to improve our weight loss, fitness, health and lifestyle. Here is his website: 2 Meal Solution

Intermittent Fasting Success - Two Meals A Day

How To Win Weight Loss Battle

2011-04-02T15:16:00.004+08:00

The Weight Loss Battle Is Won or Lost In Your Mind

Have you ever stopped to take an inventory of all the things you currently do for weight loss, fitness, nutrition and your health in general?

If you do you’ll quickly find out what you’re doing for your body that is working and what you’re doing that might not be working so well.

You might be following a regular workout routine, and have some nutrition guidelines like ‘never drink calories’ or ‘always choose the low fat version’.

But if you honestly take a really good look at everything you’re doing, can you honestly say which things are working and which things aren’t?

And specifically what is working for weight loss? Weight loss seems to be more of a mental battle than a physical one. Sure there are some hunger cravings to deal with every now and then, but 90% of the battle is in your mind. If you can win the battle in your mind you can also win the battle around your waist or butt (or wherever you store your fat).

The most important thing you can ever do to lose weight is to re-program the way you think to believe that not only is weight loss possible, but that it’s possible for YOU.

Whatever thoughts you hold in your mind will become reality regardless if they are positive or negative.

I can best explain what I am talking about by a rather Profound Statement:

Our Brains become magnetized with the dominating thoughts that we hold in our minds. And, by means which no man is familiar, these magnets attract us to the forces, the people, the circumstances of life which harmonize with the nature of our dominating thoughts*

This is a quote from Napoleon Hill, and believe it or not it explains EXACTLY what I’m talking about. Because if you bend and twist this quote, you get this: It is up to YOU to choose to believe that you DESERVE to lose weight.

(And you can’t wait, not even another day. You need to choose to believe RIGHT NOW!)

Every day that goes by that you don’t take action, is a day that you learn to accept that you DO NOT DESERVE to lose weight. And if you don’t believe you deserve it, it’s never going to happen.

Positive thoughts alone will NOT create weight loss… (You can’t ‘wish yourself thin’)

You need a plan.

And Eat Stop Eat is that plan.

Eat Stop Eat is a PERFECT map that lays out EVERYTHING you need to do to lose weight while maintaining your muscle mass. And it’s much simpler than you probably think. It is not complex nor is it confusing.

Everything that you need to do (and everything you don’t) is clearly laid out for you.

But it’s up to YOU.

Everything you need is RIGHT HERE in Eat Stop Eat.

It’s completely up to you to take action, TODAY.

So Eat Stop Eat is a belief that you deserve to lose weight, AND it’s the plan to help you get there, but if it were just a plan, it would be an average book at best.

It will open your eyes to just how simple weight loss can be, and how you can lose weight without totally complicating your life. There is nothing preventing you from losing weight besides your own mind…

…And it’s time to change your mind.

Get Eat Stop Eat, change your mind and start losing weight today.

Your friend,

Anna

This article is by courtesy of Brad Pilon, author of Eat Stop Eat.

No Breakfast is Good Breakfast!

2011-03-15T18:03:00.005+08:00

You may have heard of ‘no news is good news’. What about ‘no breakfast is good breakfast’? If you haven't heard of this, let me ask you one question. What are the reasons you get off a bed?

You may say that the alarm clock rings; time to go to work; time to go to school; time to go to the airport; or time to go do something.

What if it is on a holiday that you don’t really need to wake up on time to do anything? What are the reasons you get off a bed when you don’t really want to?

Well, I didn’t close my curtain well enough, the sun was shinning on me; there were noises around; my back pain didn’t allow me to stay in bed any longer; or weather was too cold, my heater was out of order….the list goes on… Have you ever been told by your stomach to wake up? Because you are so hungry that you need to get off the bed and eat? I think these are the only group of people who really need a breakfast. Are you one of them?

Today, I have a day off. I have no lunch/dinner booking, so I decided to do something unusual – I went to the McDonald’s. It has the best breakfast deal in town (starting HK$13) so I went there. While I was enjoying my sausage muffin, I had a crazy idea as to ask a few people around me ‘why are you here?’ Some looked at me as if I were a mad woman. But the fact was, nobody said that they were hungry. It was just a habit or they love McDonald’s or they came because it was cheap.

Eat breakfast as a habit, can that be changed? Why are we eating when we are not hungry?

Weight loss is a hot topic nowadays. People tend to spend huge money in SPA, diet programs and expensive gym membership without realizing that the change of a little habit can do the job – no breakfast.

In fact, many people looking to lose weight are reluctant in changing their eating habit. Why don’t we take a simple step to begin with? Let me put it this way – 'no breakfast is good breakfast'. If you could switch to a ‘no breakfast’ lifestyle, then you are on your mark to start an IF lifestyle. IF simply stand for Intermittent Fasting, Intensity Fitness and Instant Freedom, according to Mike O’Donnell, author of 2 Meal Solution.

I notice Mike O’Donnell has newly developed a E-course for those who want to lose weight with a simple lifestyle. The good news is that his E-course is free. Take a look at Mike's website and see if you want to enroll for his free E-course.

Intermittent Fasting Success - No Breakfast is Good Breakfast

Fasting Quotes

2011-03-07T18:40:00.005+08:00

You may wonder who else has fasted.

In the weight loss industry, celebrities always talk about how they stay slim, stay young, stay healthy.... Whether they've been paid to say so, I don't know.

However I've just come across some fasting quotes from some previous fasters. I don't think they've been paid to say what they said. Here they are:

"I fast for greater physical and mental efficiency."--Plato, 428-348 B.C., Greek student of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle; helped lay foundations of Western philosophy

"The best of all medicines are rest and fasting." --Benjamin Franklin, 1706-1790, American founding father, statesman and inventor (bifocal glasses, iron furnace stove and lightning rod)

"America badly needs to go on a diet. It should do something drastic about excessive, unattractive, life-threatening fat. It should get rid of it in the quickest possible way, and this is by fasting." --Allan Cott, M.D., author of Fasting-The Ultimate Diet

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Fasting Quotes

Intermittent Fasting For Beginners

2011-02-24T15:38:00.004+08:00

Intermittent fasting for beginners has two rules for success: (1) Make fasting pleasurable and NOT stressful. (2) Keep fasting simple and NOT rigid.

From an experienced faster’s standpoint, I have a few suggestions for beginners. You may want to do intermittent fasting (IF) for two reasons – weight loss or health or both. In any case, it’s good to observe these two formulas:

More rules = more complicated = low chance of success

Less rules = less complicated = high chance of success

According to Brad Pilon, a nutrition professional, a 24 hour period off of eating is very healthful, it helps you reduce calories without sacrificing what you like to eat on your non-fasting days, and maybe even more importantly it stimulates your body to produce more growth hormone. Yes that’s right growth hormone, the same one you hear about the celebrities talking to ‘stay young’. Growth hormone has many anti aging benefits, and one of the most interesting being fat burning! For more information about IF benefits, visit Brad Pilon's website.

How to do Intermittent Fasting?

In an ideal situation, 2 sessions of 24-hour fasts in a week will be good enough to produce significant health and weight loss benefits. However for beginners, I don't think you should jump start with a 24-hour fast, unless you are absolutely sure that you can do it.

There is no standard rule of doing IF. You are the rainmaker. Try it out and make it work for you. Let simplicity and flexibility be your fasting motto. Don’t make it stressful for yourself.

As a beginner to practice intermittent fasting, I would say ‘clear your mind from any other weight loss methods and focus on IF’. This is your first step towards IF success. Think how many times you’ve been told that breakfast is the most important meal in a day or you need to eat 6 to 10 small meals a day in order to lose weight. I’m not saying these rules are wrong. If these rules work for you, stay with them. But if you are setting your feet onto the route of intermittent fasting, better put these concepts aside at least for the period you are trying out IF.

Having your IF mindset ready? Then begin with ‘skip meal’ and see how your body responds. I would say this is the simplest and easiest way to begin your intermittent fasting journey.

Pick a day to try skip breakfast. Have fresh juice, water or tea instead. No coffee please. If that works out fine, try ‘skip lunch’ and move on progressively. A 24-hour fast shouldn't be difficult for any normal healthy adult. One useful tip is not to think of food. Avoid social talk at the pantry over lunch hour. Go out for a walk or do some simple exercises.

You can also explore these IF options.

• Condensed eating window, e.g. eat ONLY between 11am and 5pm;
• Skip meal on an unplanned basis, as far as it is natural and not interfere your daily work;
• Early and late, i.e. skip lunch;
• One meal a day, ideally dinner only when you are relaxed and really have time to enjoy food.

For more ideas of how to skip meals and arrange your fasting window, check out 2 Meal Solution. You may even enrol their FREE e-course to learn more about IF.

To repeat, fasting has to be pleasurable and not stressful. Don’t press hard on yourself. Be flexible. This is very important. Don’t upset your boss when you are called upon a business lunch by telling him that you are fasting. Do it as you see fit and your schedule permits.

Once you find a way that works for you, I'm sure you'll love it and stay with it. And you don't have to worry about weight loss again in the long term.

Happy fasting!

Anna

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Tips For Beginners

Overcoming Binge Eating By Fasting

2011-02-11T11:04:00.006+08:00

For a period of time, I failed to overcome binge eating by fasting. I think it may happen to you even you are an experienced faster like me.

Chinese New Year holidays were just over here in Hong Kong. I just couldn’t resist eating. Food is for celebration and festival is for family members, relatives and friends to get together and share fun. If I refuse to eat, I’ll make myself extremely unpopular. I used to have a dilemma of loving to eat but afraid of bloating, indigestion and gain a bigger belly. Of course, this dilemma does not exist any more. When I resume fasting, my life goes back to normal.

From CNY eve on Feb 2 through Feb 6 (day 4 of CNY), I have been busy eating for a continuation of five days. I felt overloaded, to be honest. On Feb 7-8, I had only one meal of regular portion. That fast was around 42 hours and I had two meals on Feb 9 and then I continued with my normal one-meal day. Yesterday at the gym, I didn’t notice any weight gain. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I’m extremely disciplined on work days but not on holidays. Once I go back to work, resume daily swimming and intermittent fasting, I’m not afraid of gaining weight.

So have you been binge eating over Easter weekend, Halloween or Thanksgiving? Don’t worry. Simply overcome binge eating by fasting.

BTW, have you read the book The Modern Diet Review? It reviews and compares several weight loss methods including Low Fat, Balanced Nutrients, Cleansing, Low Carb, Intermittent Fasting, Blood Type and Detox. It’s interesting to know that people on IF manage to keep their weight off by adding in a fasting day when they felt like they were starting to over eat and gain a bit of weight. Well that was exactly what I did.

If you want to take a look, I have the author John Barban’s permission to give away this ebook to my readers for free. Right click this link and choose 'save target as' and download The Modern Diet Review. It’s just a 24-page short ebook which you may finish reading in 15-30 minutes.

Enjoy reading and happy fasting.

Anna

Intermittent Fasting Success Report -

Overcome Binge Eating by Fasting

The "Eat" portion of Eat Stop Eat

2011-01-21T22:06:00.005+08:00

My friend, Brad Pilon, author of Eat Stop Eat send me this video which I can't wait to share with you. I really love it. I laugh, because it really reveals a lot of the myths in the weight loss industry. I'm sure you'll agree with me while viewing this video.

The Anything Goes Diet - sounds like a strange name, so as Eat Stop Eat. As Brad name it: This is the "Eat" portion of Eat Stop Eat. If you want to lose weight in an enjoyable way, you must love this video. Get ready to have a new look in 2011? Here you go.

Click Here

Anything Goes Diet Video
Intermittent Fasting Success - Anything Goes Diet

10 Intermittent Fasting Tips

2011-01-08T17:37:00.009+08:00

Looking for some fasting tips to kick start your fasting weight loss program? Here are some of my personal tips that I want to share with you.

1. Identify the tips provider. Many give warnings and horror stories about fasting had actually never fasted. Best to look for tips from someone who has the real fasting experiences.

2. Be well prepared. Forget about some traditional eating rules that you might have been told a million times, such as breakfast is the single most important meal in a day, eat breakfast like a king, eat 6 to 10 small meals in a day is completely necessary to lose weight…and so on. These rules are true to food companies and restaurants but not you.

3. Stick with short term intermittent fasting. Researches have proven that short term fasting does not slow down the metabolism or cause any physical damage. You won't even lose an ounce of muscle while losing weight. If you want to find out the scientific facts, I would encourage your reading Brad Pilon's Eat Stop Eat.

4. Do not binge on food. This is one of the most important fasting tips I would ever give. Short term fasting is a good opportunity to start off with healthy eating habits along with losing weight. Eating crazily before and after will destroy your fasting effort and can be dangerous. Read more about breaking a fast.

5. Start slow, work progressively. Try skip breakfast to begin with. Extend your fasting window gradually until you feel comfortable doing a full 24-hour fasting. For beginners, you may find it hard to go through your first or second attempt of 24-hour fast. You may feel irritated, experience headaches and feel a little of hunger. Believe me, the more fasts you do, the less these problems will bother you and you'll feel better.

6. Start with juice fasting. If you have no fasting experience and want to give it a try, go for juice fasting first, as it is easier than water fast. Also juice fast provides most of the nutrients and calories that solid foods provide. You just give your body a chance to experience a period without solid food. More juice fasting tips.

7. Keep busy. Food is sometimes a psychological need rather than a physical need. To withstand hunger, simply don't think about it. Do something (non food-related) that engages and therefore distracts you as much as possible.

8. Keep silent. Seek support only from people with fasting experience. If you tell everyone that you are fasting, you're sure to receive discouraging comments such as people warning you that you will pass out at any moment and starve to death. As for myself, someone even satirized me of saving food money by fasting.

9. Keep fasting simple and natural. Stick to juice and/or water. Forget about supplements, vitamins, protein drinks, adding egg white powder or mineral salts to your water…and any other fancy little things to complement your shortage of food. If you do all these, you are not dedicated to fasting and I'm sure you'll quit pretty soon. Eat normal in between your fasting days.

10. One slightly longer fast per month. While 16-24 hour fasts are easy to do, try to include one slightly longer fast such as 30 hours once a month. For example my 30-hour fast looks like this: breakfast on day 1, dinner on day 2. That way I'm still eating everyday. However you can opt to do dinner on day 1 and breakfast on day 3. Do it when you feel comfortable and your schedule permits.

You may find lots of other fasting tips. Even real fasters may have different views. For instance, some even don't consider juice fasting as a real fast. After all, there isn't a single fasting bible that has been approved by all. Make your own sensible judgement as to follow fasting tips that sound sensible and work well for you.

I wish you best.

Anna

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Fasting Tips

Top Tips To Lose Belly Fat

2010-12-24T11:17:00.003+08:00

As I lose belly fat significantly, many consult me for tips. Here are my two top tips:

Fasting and Exercising.

Simple enough that everybody knows. But I have some tricks behind. My belly shrank 3 inches by doing these.

Fasting

To begin with, go on a 3-7 days of water fast or juice fast. This will shrink your belly by about one inch or so. Allow some individual differences. A good start is for sure to encourage your going on. Right? Shift to intermittent fasting (IF) for as long as you are happy with your belly size.

Warning: once you see the IF benefits, you may not want to give up the IF way of eating.

IF Suggestion: skip breakfast and lunch twice a week. I.e. Eat dinner only on two days in a week. No need to fix a date. Do it flexibly in order not to interfere your work/life balance.

Exercising While Fasting

Daily exercise of 30 minutes is a minimum. I have been doing this for many years but still suffering from a big belly. Why? The time to do exercise is important. The trick is to do it without food.

Do exercise as soon as you wake up. This is the best time in a day to exercise and burn fat, for two reasons. One you are calling your stored fat as energy. Two food releases insulin which blunts fat burning. When you wake insulin is at its lowest allowing the most fat to be burnt. If you plan to eat breakfast, eat only one hour after exercising.

Fasting Exercising vs Traditional Wisdom

You may find my suggestions contradict some of the health rules which you might have heard of a million times. Listen, something you think is right and that you’ve been told a million times that it is right, may not be right, or may not be completely right. Check out the term ‘factoid’ and you’ll know.

Eat before and after exercising may be necessary for athletes but definitely not for people looking to lose weight. Breakfast is the single most important meal in a day had no scientific support, so as drinking 8 glasses of water a day. These may only be the bibles of cereals companies and water selling companies. To me, they are factoids.

In fact, there are many factoid strange eating rules promoted by health gurus. I have a short report about the top 12 and how to break them. Email me at annafasting(at)yahoo(dot)com(dot)hk with a headline ’12 Strange Eating Rules’ and I’ll email you a copy.

To lose belly fat or lose weight in general, doing morning exercise without breakfast is a very effective fat burning method. Jogging outside if possible, otherwise same-spot jogging at home is also fine. If it is boring, alternate with hula hoop.

Intermittent Fasting Success - Lose Belly Fat

My Health and Fitness Rules – Exercising

2010-11-20T20:38:00.004+08:00

To repeat, I’m one of the few individuals who manage to lose weight and stay fit.

How I do it? I’ve mentioned my eating rules in my previous post, here are some of my workout rules. Again, you don’t have to follow, but if you do, you’re likely to benefit in one way or another.

In fact, my eating rules and workout rules in some perspectives are quite consistent. Let’s see.

1. Morning Exercise
An apple everyday keeps doctors away. My ‘apple’ is the exercises that I do in the first 20 minutes of every morning. It does not keep me away from doctors permanently, but once I started, I didn’t see my doctor for two years. I have been doing this for many years. If you want to minimize your medical bill, try it.

2. Natural Exercise
I eat fresh and natural. Likewise, I workout naturally.

I have a gym membership, but I go there mainly to use the pool. I won’t do treadmills or row a stationary boat. That’s too boring. Instead I do jogging in a park or rowing a real boat. You see what I mean.

Enjoy a natural breeze and breathe well in the nature while working out.

3. Concentration
Seriously, have you ever read or watch TV while doing any exercise at your luxury gym? If so, you're not concentrating enough on what you're doing, plus you're probably not working out hard enough to see any real results. You won’t talk on a mobile phone while swimming, will you? Do exercise that requires your full attention and you’ll see real results. Here is a very insightful article on this topic: Do You Really Need Cardio?

4. Do What You Enjoy To Do
Do you enjoy jogging or playing hula hoop? Personally, I enjoy playing hula hoop more than jogging, though both exercise spent the same amount of calories. I also enjoy swimming, so I do both exercises alternatively. I’m never tired of the exercises that I do. Because I only do whatever I enjoy to do. See how much fun I am having. You will only stick to doing something that you enjoy and continue doing it. If you don’t, you’ll soon quit.

5. Do It Over The Long Run
How often do you do exercise? Once a week for a couple of hours or 3 x 30 minutes per week? Both are fine, provided you don’t do it for a month and quit. If you do it for a month or so, it’s just better than not doing. Want to see the real results that your workout contribute to your health and weight loss, you must do it over the long run. I have been doing morning exercise over the past 20 years and I’m sure I won’t give up. Likewise for my weekly 3 x 30 which I started 10 years ago.

Finally, my two golden rules for health and fitness are:

Rule #1: Eat Less
Rule #2: Workout More

Eating Rule: 2 Meal Solution and Eat Stop Eat
Workout Rule: Truth About Abs and Workout Without Weight

Intermittent Fasting Success - Health and Fitness Rules

My Health and Fitness Rules - Eating

2010-11-06T17:40:00.006+08:00

I’m one among the few individuals who manage to lose weight and keep it off. Want to know how I do it? Here are some of my health and fitness rules.

These are my personal rules that you don’t have to follow. However if you do, you’re sure to benefit in one way or another.

Let me start with my eating rules.

1. Eat Less
When I eat less, I feel better. Foods taste better, I feel happier and less worried. You may already know that eating less can help reduce risks of cancers and diseases.

2. Eat Fresh and Natural
I drink orange juice from a real fresh orange. No bottled or canned orange juice. I’m sure you see what I mean. I don’t take supplements. That’s right. Reading through my blog, you won’t see me recommending any supplements. Fancl House, GNC…no way to make money from me.

If you eat a variety of real fresh good foods, your need for supplements is close to none. And I’m not alone. In fact, overdosing on supplements/antioxidants may take your health in the wrong direction.

3. Eat Less in an Enjoyable Way
I successfully lose weight and stay fit by eating less. More importantly, that’s the way I enjoy. I suggest your finding a sustainable and “enjoyable” way of eating less. That way you will stick with it because you enjoy it.

If you want to learn how to eat less in an enjoyable way, here are the two books I recommend: 2 Meal Solution and Eat Stop Eat.

4. Learn to Cook
The more you cook for yourself, the healthier you eat. Do learn to cook and teach your kids to cook as well. No time? Do you have time to date your boy friend or girl friend? Why not cook together? Share the fun of cooking with people you love and eat healthier.

5. Make My Own Dressing
Eating salad is healthy, isn’t it? But don’t forget the dressing which makes you fat. I start making my own dressing after reading this article - The Salad Dressing To NEVER Eat. It’s quick and easy, however delicious and healthy, and I’m never tired of it.

Finally I suggest everyone read The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet if you seriously want to know “what to eat”. You don’t have to agree with it all…but at least it gives great insight into food and your health.

These are my health and fitness rules in terms of eating. I’ll continue with my workout rules.

I wish you eat well!

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Health and Fitness Rules

How To Make Fasting Weight Loss Work For You

2010-10-23T22:12:00.003+08:00

Want to do fasting weight loss? If so, you’ve made the right choice.

Listen. I mean short term periodic fasting. It is very often referred as intermittent fasting (IF). And it is what this blog is all about.

Fasting may sound scary in the first place. I understand how you feel. If you’ve been on 3x, 6x or 10x meals a day for years, fasting could be something beyond imagination. However if you understand what fasting is and how it works, fasting weight loss is not that scary. In fact, I am eating EVERYDAY.

Why Not Fasting To Lose Weight
Few people will tell you that fasting is a healthy act. Why? Because there are many people who want to make money from people who want to lose weight. Cereals companies advertise heavily by promoting how important breakfast is; diet programs and recipes producers want to sell more of their products. Not to mention the luxury gyms want to recruit more members in order to charge them extremely expensive fees.

99 doctors out of a hundred will not suggest fasting weight loss. Their license which they spent years of hard work to acquire will be challenged.

So why am I here to talk about fasting weight loss?

Well, because it works.

Why Fasting Weight Loss
A fast cleans up the body. If you bath once a week, you may spend an hour in bathing. If you bath everyday, it may be just a matter of minutes. Fasting works in a similar manner. Prolong fasting cleans up your body, your colon and your bloodstream; short term intermittent fasting can do the same.

A Clean Body Needs Less Food. If your car engine is clean, the same amount of fuel will let you run more mileage; in other words, you need less fuel to run the same mileage. Our bodies work similarly. Food is absorbed and utilized better in a clean digestive system. Your clean body will need less food to run. That is common sense. We don’t need research reports, surveys or clinical tests to prove that.

How To Make Fasting Weight Loss Work
Review your eating habit. Today, we have a world of chronically tired, sick, rapidly ageing, overweight and mentally clouded persons around us. Unfortunately they are still being told to eat more often. Or eat like a king over breakfast, like a queen over lunch and so on. Well, eating 3x, 6x or 10x a day is your choice. Have you made the best choice? Review your eating habit and see if there is another way which might be better for you.

If you ever want to find out what the 12 strangest and most destructive obsessive compulsive eating habits are and how to avoid them, while still losing weight, read The Dirty Dozen. Brad Pilon, author of the book has allowed my readers for a free download.

Learn to control food desire. Fasting on a periodic basis allows you to gradually gain control over your appetite. Learn to control your desire for food. When you successfully merge short term periodic fasting into your life, you will not feel hungry when you end your fast. You are not hungry, but the desire to eat is there. There is a big difference between actual hunger and desire for food.

Prepare for a lifestyle change. This is the ONLY way any type of permanent weight loss becomes effective. You must have a change of thought pattern and a change of lifestyle. If you go back to your old destruction way of eating, you’ll soon gain back the weight you lost through fasting.

Intermittent Fasting Success Report - Fasting Weight Loss

Fasting For Weight Loss

2010-09-27T21:12:00.009+08:00

When I talk about fasting for weight loss, some feel curious, some feel feared. Many wondered why and how I developed this habit. In fact, if we review our eating history, it’s easy to find something in common.

Remember how much and how often you ate when you were 13? Look at the photo here.

The bottom row was how I ate when I were 13. True! No exaggeration! I did have a record of eating 5 bowls of rice for lunch. When I grew up, my food consumption decreased accordingly. I thought I cut from two to one at my mid 20s. Now I am eating one meal a day, or even without any food on some days. In fact, this does not only happen to me. Many find that they are eating less and less, especially on weekends when they don’t have to work.

Fasting may sound scary to those who worry about energy level or afraid of hungry pangs. However fasting for weight loss isn’t scary at all. I am still eating EVERYDAY and eating what I love to eat.

The kind of short term fasting I do have almost no impact on my social life and yet my body benefits. That way my digestive system got periodic recess, shifting focus from digestion to cleansing and repairing, resulting not only in weight loss but more energy and better skin, not to mention my bloating problem says good bye to me.

May be you’ve been told a million times that you should eat at least three meals a day; or eat like a king for breakfast and a queen for lunch and a beggar for dinner. Forget about these. They may work for some people, but not for you, if you want to lose weight naturally and permanently. Fasting for weight loss is the new trend, whether you want to shed a few pounds or maintain your body weight. Try to start your fasting weight loss project by skipping a couple of meals a week. I’m sure you’ll see the benefits.

If you are afraid of hungry, drink a glass of fresh prune juice to replace lunch or dinner. Its high fibre will create a feeling of fullness and keep you away from hungry. It will also encourage bowel movements and you will gain additional benefit if you are suffering from constipation. Because of this, please make sure no over consumption of prune juice to avoid diarrhea.

More about juicing for weight loss.

Try it out once, and I’m sure you’ll love the feeling. Be prepared to allow some time for your body to burn fat, and DO NOT expect overnight results.

NOTE: You need to do a little more if you are aiming to maintain a steady body weight, i.e. do this short term fasting in an ongoing manner. It could be even better if you could incorporate some daily exercises. If you do these, you’ll simply save money in buying weight loss programs, diet recipes and still enjoying a healthy life.

Read my fasting for weight loss story.

Recommended reading: Eat Stop Eat – a scientific guide for short term intermittent fasting.