Tag: fasting

Intermittent Fasting as a Couple – 5 Tips for Success

These days, more and more people are realizing that intermittent fasting has tons of health benefits.

 

It can help you prevent various chronic illnesses, and even reverse some of them (like type 2 diabetes).

 

But what if you wanna try intermittent fasting, and your partner’s not on board?

 

Today I’ll share a few tips and suggestions about how you can implement intermittent fasting as a couple, or a family.

Discuss Your Goals

First off, it’s a good idea to sit down and discuss your motivation with your partner. In other words, don’t just tell them you want to try fasting, talk about the frustrations that made you want to try this in the first place.  Then tell them your health goals, how you think fasting can help, and what sacrifices you’re willing to make.

 

If you spend some time chatting about these issues, your partner is a lot more likely to be supportive. In some cases, they may even decide to try it out with you.

 

Choose Breakfast or Dinner – Whichever is More Convenient

The easiest way to start intermittent fasting is to simply shift the timing of one of your meals, at least one day per week.

 

In other words, you could delay breakfast by a couple hours (or skip it). On the other end of the spectrum, you could eat dinner a bit earlier (or skip it).

 

Talk to your partner about which meal is more important to them, in terms of sitting down and eating together. Most people prioritize dinner, because it has a stronger social element, but other people may be the opposite.

 

And don’t forget, you don’t have to do it the same way every day because…

 

Fasting is Flexible – Adapt to Your Schedule

One of the great things about intermittent fasting is that it’s super flexible.  You don’t have to do it the same way every day, which makes it really convenient and adaptable to almost any lifestyle.

 

For example, you may find it convenient to skip breakfast on weekdays, but perhaps you like having a special breakfast with your family on weekends.  And that would be totally fine.

 

Keep track of what works for you over time, and talk to your family about it.  See what works for the best for everyone involved, and then get into a routine.

 

Focus on the Benefits

If you think about it, fasting can actually be really convenient and save you time and effort.

 

For example, think of all the time and effort you could save in terms of shopping, cooking, and clean-up if you skipped breakfast (or dinner) a few days per week.

 

Notice these “wins” and bring them up when you talk to your family members. That will help you remember the positive benefits you get from intermittent fasting (other than the health benefits).

 

If You Have Kids…

In addition to your partner, having kids throws an extra wrinkle into the situation.

 

Here are a couple tips you can try if you have kids:

 

First, even if you’re going to skip breakfast you could still sit down with your kids when they’re eating breakfast, and drink a cup of black coffee or some type of tea.

 

It’s ok to drink coffee, tea, or something like apple cider vinegar while fasting because they have almost no calories and don’t really disrupt your fast.  And by having a drink you can make it seem like you’re still “participating” in the meal.

 

If you decide to skip dinner you could do something similar.  This is a good way to still have that family time while getting the health benefits of fasting.

Final Thoughts 

Intermittent fasting has a ton of health benefits, but sometimes it can be challenging to coordinate as a couple, or with family members.

Overall, fasting is super flexible and it’s worth using a little bit of creativity to figure out something that works.

By implementing intermittent fasting into your lifestyle, you’ll be more likely to live longer and avoid illness, which means you can spend more quality time with your family in the long run.

Header Image Source 

 

About The Author

Ben Tanner is a physician assistant / PA (similar to a doctor) with experience working in the emergency room, family practice, and urgent care. After observing the devastating complications of diabetes and other chronic illnesses, he started a website about fasting to help other people take control of their health.

How to Detox After the Holidays

It happens every year. The holiday temptations are just too much to resist. After all, how can you say no to that gorgeous cheese plate, those yummy Christmas cookies, or that delicious holiday ham? And let’s not forget the cocktails, pumpkin spice lattes, and eggnog. But once the holidays are over, all of that overindulgence is bound to leave you feeling more than a little bloated and sluggish.

There’s no doubt that most of us could benefit from a reset after the holidays. But that doesn’t mean you need to kill yourself at the gym or live on celery sticks for the next few weeks to get things balanced again. With a little support and a nudge in the right direction, your body can detox itself after the holidays. No crash diet required!

Back to Basics

Sometimes it’s the simplest changes that can have a positive impact on how you feel. Lemons are known to offer several health benefits, including stimulating digestion. When you combine the benefits of lemons with water, you’re also hydrating your body, which is key in order to detox and feel better in general.

Start each day with a cup of warm water and fresh-squeezed lemon to nudge your digestive system into motion. And then, sip on lemon water throughout the day to keep your liver and kidneys in tip-top shape and encourage the detoxifying process.

Green tea is also great for digestion and boosting metabolism. You can even add lemon to your green tea for an extra boost. If you’re suffering from heartburn, indigestion, gas, bloating, or irritated bowels, try sipping on fennel tea after meals. It soothes the digestive tract and calms the stomach while improving digestion.

Nourish Your Body with Fruits and Veggies

It’s tempting to skip meals after you’ve overindulged, but you’re much better off nourishing your body with nutrient-dense fruits and veggies that are also hydrating. When in detox mode, limit your intake of animal proteins and go for plant-based proteins instead. Plant-based foods are easier on the digestive systems and will support your body’s efforts to detox itself.

Consider Colon Hydrotherapy

Colon hydrotherapy is a safe and gentle way to improve your digestion, remove harmful toxins and excess waste from your intestines, and rebalance your gut. A colonics treatment will reset your digestive system by cleansing your bowel. Not only that, but colon cleansing can also give you an energy boost, improve your mood, relieve chronic headaches, clear up acne, and reduce joint pain and inflammation throughout the body.

Try Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is a great way to give your digestive system a break without having to endure a full-on fast. It can help you lose weight and detoxify your body without feeling like you’re on a diet. To do an intermittent fast, eat your last meal of the day no later than 7 PM. When you get up in the morning, have a cup of bulletproof coffee to help you feel satiated until lunchtime When you’re ready to break your fast, eat a healthy lunch as you normally would. This will keep your body in a healthy fasting state for around 16 hours, forcing your body to burn fat as fuel and your gut to reset. You don’t need to do this every day, once a week is plenty.

Get Moving

Exercise is important for your overall health and giving your sluggish digestive system and metabolism a boost, but that doesn’t mean you have to drag yourself to the gym. Find a form of exercise you love, such as dancing, swimming, or simply taking long walks in the fresh air. Yoga is a great way to get your body back into balance, plus it relieves stress and boosts your mood. You could attend a class in your community, or stream one online.

Hit an Infrared Sauna

One of the easiest ways to get a good sweat going and detox your body is to hit an infrared sauna. Infrared saunas are more comfortable than traditional saunas because the infrared light heats objects in the sauna, rather than the air, which allows your body to get a good sweat going at lower temperatures. If you don’t have an infrared sauna in your area, a traditional one will still do the trick. Sweating is amazing for detoxifying the body and it may also you lose weight.

Get Your Probiotics

A healthy gut is essential for good digestion, detoxification, and weight loss. Probiotics are healthy gut bacteria that can rebalance your gut after you’ve overindulged. The best way to get your probiotics is to eat some probiotic foods every day, such as yogurt and fermented foods. You can also take a probiotic supplement to give your body an extra boost of healthy bacteria.

Most importantly, don’t beat yourself up for overindulging during the holidays. We all give in to temptation this time of year. The good news is, the damage isn’t permanent and making some simple changes to your lifestyle will get things back on track pretty quickly.

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