2023-06-29 16:50:00
Intermittent fasting is a great way to lose weight without having to count calories, new research shows. Participants lost almost as much weight with six months of intermittent fasting as with six months of counting calories and then kept it off for six months. You only lose weight if you eat fewer calories than you expend and you can do that with fasting. Also read: You don’t have to count your calories every day if you want to lose weight, according to new research
If you want to lose weight but don’t feel like counting calories, intermittent fasting is a good alternative, new research shows.
To lose weight you need to be in a calorie deficit (consuming fewer calories than you burn), but that doesn’t necessarily mean counting calories all the time. Many people find that stressful and it takes time, so they don’t keep it up.
New research shows that intermittent fasting (in this study, eating only between noon and 8 p.m.) without counting calories leads to similar results, compared to people who track exactly what they eat and have a calorie deficit of 25. percent per day.
The study, published in The Annals of Internal Medicine, followed 77 obese people. A third were asked to do intermittent fasting, a third to count calories and a third (the control group) not to change their diet. The fasting and calorie-counting groups, respectively, also had regular appointments with a dietitian throughout the experiment.
After the six-month “lose weight” phase, the participants entered a “maintenance phase,” where the fasting group was given an extra two hours to eat. The group that counted calories was allowed to eat a little more.
After twelve months, the fasting group had lost an average of about 4.6 kilograms compared to the control group. The calorie counter group had lost 5.4 kilograms compared to the control group.
The researchers say in a press release that their research shows that the personal preferences of people who want to lose weight must be taken into account in order to choose the right approach.
University of Illinois nutrition professor Krista Varady tells NBC News: “What we’re showing is that people don’t have to go on complicated diets where every calorie has to be counted, so that they spend all the time entering data into their phone. Instead of counting calories, all they have to do is count the hours.”
Fasting is not suitable for everyone
The fasting group was not asked to count their calories, but they ended up with a calorie deficit because they had fewer hours to eat. So intermittent fasting can be a good way to lose weight for some people. It is also not the first study to conclude that intermittent fasting may be a suitable method.
But it is not suitable for everyone, because people who have tried it have previously told Insider that they had a hard time keeping it up, because they were too hungry, had too little energy to exercise, felt the need to be in the hours when they were allowed to eat, cram in a lot or find it difficult to maintain a social life.
One study also found that intermittent fasting caused people to lose more muscle mass instead of fat, which is not the kind of weight you want to lose.
If you want to try intermittent fasting, you need to make sure you’re eating enough protein and fiber to feel full, Paul Arciero, a professor of health at Skidmore College and author of the book The Protein Pacing Diet, previously told Insider.
READ ALSO: 3 ways you can eat more and still lose weight, according to dietitians
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