One of the cool things I was reminded about fasting is that you can workout while you are doing it. In fact, Brad not only recommends that you workout three times during the week when fasting, but also adds that you can train on days that you fast without problem.

Do We Need Would Pre-Workout Shakes?

As you will see in the video below, I can confirm Brad’s message – fasted workouts get the job done. A month or so ago I decided to participate in an internet pull up contest. I managed to do 15 strict dead hang pull ups. My all time record at the time was 17 (current record is 21). The deadline for the final entry in the contest was Thanksgiving.

It just so happened that I was fasting on that day because it was a Thursday and my plan was to fast on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I wasn’t going to alter my plan. Plus, a nice dinner was awaiting me at home because my 24 hour fasts are from 8-9pm to 8-9pm the following day.

Doing Pullups While Fasting

As you will see, no performance problems here. In fact, I did slightly better than the previous time. When you eat, some of the sugar or energy from the food enters your muscles.

Now, it can only leave them through exercise. So if you have a nice dinner tonight and don’t eat nothing the next day, like I did, you will still have the food energy from the dinner in your muscles.

Image credit

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So I decided to get it and was amazed how easy it was to follow the plan. I quickly lost 5-7lbs and kept it off during the vacation even though I ate whatever and whenever I liked there. It was hardly a diet

[Here is a photo from the vacation, sporting the Magnum P.I. Hawaiian shirt. No I'm not in the desert ]

The Eat Stop Eat Plan

The idea is simple – twice a week you don’t eat anything between, say 6pm and 6 pm the following day. Any other combination is also possible – for example – from 8am to 8am the next day, from 2pm to 2pm, etc. You can drink water, coffee and tea but no sugary drinks. This puts you in a 20-30% weekly caloric deficit and you lose weight.

It is possible to not eat all day and still exercise. You see, when we eat the food converts to sugar and then goes to be stored in the liver and in the muscles as glycogen. The neat thing is that sugar cannot leave the muscles and can be burned off only with exercise. So even though you may be fasting today, the food that you ate last night has fueled up your body with energy for quite a workout.

You Won’t Lose Muscle While Fasting

Because of the specific hormonal activity, you will not lose muscle mass while fasting. Brad however emphasizes that the Eat Stop Eat program is a combination of fasting 1-2 times weekly for 24 hours and resistance training 3 times per week.

This combination preserves the muscles from wasting away when there is no food. If you don’t train, however, the body will eat up the muscles. This is called atrophy – muscles shrink from not being used.

[In this video Brad explains how intense exercise and fasting have similar effect on your body. In both cases insulin levels drop and growth hormone goes up. This causes free fatty acids to be released in the blood and this means increased fat burning.]

The Hunger of Fasting Goes Away Quickly

It is true that you will sometimes feel hungry on the program. However you will quickly get used to this feeling and won’t be bothered much by it. Brad Pilon mentions the numerous health benefits of following the Eat Stop Eat plan.

Among them are decreased insulin levels and increased insulin sensitivity – which means increased fat burning, increased glucagon levels – which means less fat storage, increased epinephrine and nor epinephrine (also known as adrenaline and noradrenaline) levels – which causes mental alertness and clarity.

Currently, as part of my fat loss transformation challenge I train with weights on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday and fast on Tuesday and Thursday. I find it I have more productive workouts when training on days I don’t fast. You should be flexible and fit your diet and training around your life and not the other way around.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Fasting

No training or diet plan is perfect. The negative things are that it is a form of restriction and that you may feel the urge to overeat after a fast which can hinder your progress. Until you get used to it after 1-2 weeks, the sense of hunger can be distracting too.

The advantages however far outweigh the negatives. I really like the flexibility of the plan – you can start and stop the fast whenever you like. I really appreciate the mental alertness, clarity and warrior-like feeling I get from the epinephrine/norepinephrine surge. Also, on days you fast you don’t have to worry about preparing food. Plus, on this plan you can enjoy going out to parties and restaurants, as well as eating deserts and drinking with your friends.

How to Make Sure the Plan Works for You

Here are some mistakes to avoid. Make sure you don’t overeat – you need to continue to eat normally on off days. Also, make sure to train with weights 3 times per week – this is what will preserve your muscles.

If you want to test drive the plan – choose two days when you feel it would be least intrusive for you to fast. I recommend weekdays so you can enjoy weekends with your friends and family fully. The day before you fast eat your last meal, say dinner at 8pm. The next day, wait until 8pm to eat again. You can drink water, tea and coffee throughout the day.

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