According to Science Direct, Intermittent Fasting can be very helpful for weight loss, but it is not better than other diets that restrict calories. This means that there aren't any benefits to it from a fat loss standpoint if calories are all equal.

I agree with this entirely. The law of calories in vs. calories out will always determine fat loss and fat gain. HOWEVER... most studies surrounding Intermittent Fasting are comparisons between it and other diets.

Ultimately, this does not necessarily mean that Intermittent Fasting might not be efficient for you. All diets could potentially work... but you need to find the best diet that works for you.

So let me give you reasons why I LOVE Intermittent Fasting, and why I prefer to utilize it.

Why I Love Intermittent Fasting

Now if you look at prior articles, you can see different viewpoints from one another. My reasoning for this is to show you that all diet styles and methods work for some people... but not everyone.

But I wanted to talk to you as to why I love Intermittent Fasting, and provide you more anecdotal reasons rather than the science surrounding it.

A Brief On The History Of Fasting

Fasting has been around for centuries. If you look at our history, you can see that most societies would feast in the evenings because food wasn't readily available.

Here are some examples of civilizations of the past and their uses of fasting:

• In the Roman empire, big breakfasts were a luxury. Most citizens of the empire would typically feast in the evening.
• Fasting was used as a curative to help combat diseases in ancient Egyptian and Greek empires.
• Greeks also believed that fasting improved cognitive abilities (more about this later).
• For more, you can read here.

With that being said, let's dive into other anecdotal reasons.

Physical & Mental Satisfaction

Intermittent fasting is the KING of physical &  mental satisfaction. You just almost ate 1500 calories in one sitting - you are feeling FULL.

Fat loss has always been easier for me when I fast, because I ultimately skip breakfast, and allow for big calorie meals in the evening.

This is physically and mentally satiating because of the following reasons (some are personal):

• As plate sizes could fuel calorie consumption (Behavioral Psychology), Gigantic feasts or big plates filled with large protein sources, a great amount of carbohydrates, and fruits and veggies is super satisfying.
• We already mentioned fullness, but fullness is a good feeling to have when the fat loss diet is kicking your a**.
• Anecdotally, it allows me to become a cook and become a total aspiring masculine dad with a "kiss the cook" apron. Whenever I Intermittent Fast, I barbecue and cook things because I enjoy the time I have doing so. If you cook, you know that cooking before the meal is a sublime experience.
• You can have an appetizer, a main course, and a tiny dessert.
• You can indulge a lot easier when you have literally ate a few lbs of fruits, vegetables, & proteins... and need to fill the rest with calories.

Now obviously some of the previous statements require a little bit of discipline and self-control.

Make sure you are eating the proper nutrients by following some of our nutritional recommendations here, or clicking on the banner below.

Spiritual Performance

“What kills the creative force is not age or lack of talent, but our own spirit, our own attitude.” - Robert Greene

If you do a simple google search about the "spiritual benefits of fasting", you will find 4.3 million results - from religious to philosophical.

From a philosophical standpoint, I feel my most creative during fasting. My best social media content, strategies, and business decisions are made while fasting because I feel "in the zone".

This is what I call spiritual performance: your attitude of how you look at life, it's energies, and more. Whether you believe in a religion, Mother Nature, or a philosophy like Stoicism, you know that the "spiritual" is something that we find hard to explain in modern times today.

Even writing this, I can see how some could view this as silly.

However, we all have a unique philosophy or attitude towards life. That creativity allows us to break boundaries that we have never thought possible... and the most creative & flexible individuals are the most successful.

Flexibility Over Rigidity: Some Things to Consider When Intermittent Fasting

In this last section, I wanted to make this point: my Intermittent Fasting is never on some strict time window. It's flexible. I like to combine the Flexible Dieting "philosophy" with Intermittent Fasting to reach my fitness and lifestyle goals.

With that being said, here are a few suggestions and things to consider when implementing Intermittent Fasting:

• According to one study, some side effects could include dizziness or nausea. If you do intend on implementing fasting protocols, be aware that these side effects could happen.
• You *might* need to track your calories or macronutrients. In this diets, people tend to overeat or under eat. Both of these could potentially detrimental to your fitness & lifestyle goals. Track properly until you get used to it, then you can get into intuitive eating if that works for you.
• I don't like to follow strict 16:8 fast and feast. This means 16 hours of fasting and 8 hours of feasting. Sometimes life gets in the way and it's hard to time it properly. So what I do is feast when I am ready to feast, and finish the day off by macronutrient or calorie tracking. Also if I can't finish my "feast" by 9pm, I am not going to stop there. I'm going to finish my calories.
• Fasting is hard if you're looking to gain muscle. You have to eat a ton more calories, so I would recommend the fasting window be a lot smaller than a 16:8 one.
• I've done 24+ hour fasts, but with exercise, it's difficult as you need food to replenish your glycogen, regulate blood sugar levels, and more.
• If I workout in the morning, I try not to train fasted, and have something small like a meal replacement shake. This is especially true when transitioning from eating a good amount of calories and dieting. Your energy levels of lower, and it can be hard to complete the exercise without carbohydrates.
• Quality food counts. It's quite easy to hit 2000 calories by eating a whole cake. Make sure you're following some of our nutritional recommendations when fasting.
• Remember that most studies don't support it in a spiritual, behavioral, or mental sense. Most studies compare the diet between other diets. All diets will work when calories are equal to each other... however, you need to find the one that works for you.

With that, I want to leave one final note:if you have underlying health conditions, you should always consult a diet or physician in regards to fasting. Fasting can prove to be difficult for people with cardiac issues, diabetes, or other health conditions.

Fast It Up

There you have it: my reasonings as to why I love Intermittent Fasting. To you, it may be unique. It may be odd.

But to me, the best diet is the one you can ultimately follow.

Adherence is the key to success in fitness - whether it is exercise or nutrition. If you can't stick to the nutrition or exercise program, the program is broken for you.

Ultimately, Intermittent Fasting is not a diet... but a system, similar to what Flexible Dieting is. I truly believe combining the two allows me to live my greatest potential through exercise.

Now whether or not it works for my career and personal development, I have yet to find out if it truly pays off... but time will tell.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to email me at Tony@reforgedperformance.com. Due to excess amounts of email spam as a result for putting my email on every blog post, if I don't get back to you, message us @thereforged.

Until next time, Reforged Legion!