Lose Fat Effortlessly: The Case For Intermittent Fasting If You Have A 9–5
Why Intermittent Fasting is a far superior technique for weight loss especially if you’re a working professional.
No time to meal prep? Busy work schedules leaving you no choice but to go to Mcdonald's for lunch?
Intermittent fasting (IF) is a weight loss strategy that has gained a lot of popularity in recent years. It involves restricting calorie intake during specific time periods, alternating with periods of normal or increased calorie consumption. If you’re a working professional this is the eating pattern you want to follow for maximum productivity. Losing weight is about doing something you can stick to for the long term, say goodbye to fad diets. This is a meal pattern and a simple change that will make losing fat that much easier. In this article, we will explore what intermittent fasting is and how you can do it to optimise your schedules.
The Blueprint. How I Recommend You Do This.
I have been utilizing intermittent fasting since I started bodybuilding and it has been crucial to my success back in my competitive days!
It has been hands down the most effective nutrition hack I have ever come across. Let’s cut to the chase, what is intermittent fasting and how should you do it?
Intermittent fasting is just a pattern of eating where you alternate between times of fasting (not eating) and times of feasting (eating). This is different to the usual 3+ meals/day or snacking when you’re hungry. The most common intermittent fasting protocol is 16:8 which means that you fast for 16 hours including sleep time and eat for 8 hours. For example, you go to bed at 10pm, sleep until 6am, don’t eat breakfast and start eating between 12–8pm.
There are many different approaches to intermittent fasting such as 20/4, alternative day fasting and so on. Unfortunately, most of these approaches overcomplicate your eating patterns making fasting a burden on your life.
I believe in making intermittent fasting as effective and enjoyable as
possible. The solution is so simple! What I recommend is to just push your first meal later into the day. This is when you maximize the benefits of fasting while making it work with your body and your natural instincts. Counting calories help but it’s optional.
The Schedule
- Wake up. Drink black coffee to curb hunger OR any zero-calorie drink i.e. water, diet coke.
- ‘Break’ fast/ first meal. I usually just have a good amount of protein with this meal and have it between 12–1pm. Normally it adds up to around 600 calories but this is dependent on you.
- Afternoon Snack. I would usually have 3–500 calories for this after work. I could come home from work and have a bowl of oats, maybe a few biscuits or some chocolate. Anything you want as long as it’s just 1–2 portions.
- Dinner. Because you didn’t have breakfast and had a small lunch, this is when you can have a large, satisfying dinner. Normally I eat 900–1200 calories here. Just make sure you have enough protein in this meal i.e. 250g chicken. I love to do a large stirfry with a big bowl of rice and soup.
- Final snack (optional). You may get hungry before you sleep. That is a horrible feeling for anyone! Because of this, don’t have a bar of chocolate, or a massive cheesecake. Instead, just have one serving of fruit such as an apple, a mango or 2–3 slices of watermelon. That will also improve your sleep.
Caloric Restriction Made Easy
Let’s say you’re a 28-year-old slightly overweight 200lbs male and you’re 5ft9in. Let’s be optimistic and say you have the training side down for having a healthier and better-looking body. You go to the gym 3–4 times a week.
With that in mind, you’ll probably need around 2,300–2400 calories a day to lose weight. A typical day could be 600 calories for breakfast, 600 calories for lunch, and 800 calories for dinner then a 300-calorie dessert. Remember, this is the best-case scenario.
With intermittent fasting you could have had:
No breakfast. The same 600 for lunch. 4–500 for a snack after work. 1200 for dinner. 100 for an apple before bed.
The numbers add up to the same at the end of the day but my god will you feel much more satisfied with a 1200-calorie dinner and a slightly larger snack.
1200 calories is massive for dinner. Did someone say steak and chips? A whole pizza and a side of chicken sliders to top off?
As you can see, this simple switch by changing your eating schedule and not having breakfast, you’ll be able to have a much more satisfying dinner, not to mention you’ll save more time in the morning which is what we’ll talk about in the next section.
Productivity Maximised
Intermittent fasting saves valuable time. No prepping breakfast at night or making breakfast in the morning. You can sleep longer or get a gym session in before work. This puts you in the right mindset for productivity in the morning. You are setting the tone for the day.
A big bowl of cereal first thing in the morning is a great way to make yourself tired since your body needs to process it. This is contrary to what has been recommended for decades but throughout history, humans weren’t actually designed to eat first thing. Think about it, in the days past, you would be hungry in the morning, you spend the day hunting and you actually only eat later on once you’ve caught your food.
Yes, we aren’t hunter-gatherers but there are merits to eating how our ancestors did. You’ll feel better for it especially once you’re free from breakfast and wasting time in the morning. It’s also one less thing to think about.
Sustainability
Intermittent fasting is a sustainable and flexible weight loss strategy. Unlike many fad diets, IF is not restrictive in terms of what you can eat. Instead, it focuses on when you eat. This makes it easier to stick to in the long term, leading to sustainable weight loss. At the end of the day it’s just mathematical. Calories do matter and how they are distributed matter just as much.
Additionally, IF can be customized to fit your lifestyle and preferences. You can choose the fasting and eating windows that work best for you, making it a flexible weight loss strategy. In this case, if you go to work, then why bother with breakfast? Sit down when you have time in the evening and cook an amazing meal or yourself when you can actually enjoy it.
Conclusion
In conclusion, contrary to popular belief, there is nothing special about breakfast. You don’t need it. You may feel hungry starting out but once your body gets used to it (takes a few days to a week only), you’ll wonder why on earth you ever did it any other way.
Intermittent fasting also frees up your time in the morning, setting yourself up for a productive day and allows you to enjoy a truly great meal when you have the time for it, and when you’re not at work.
The very least you can do is give it a go. I promise you will thank me later.
