Intervallfasten - Wirklich so gesund? Ernährungswissenschaftlerin im Interview

Today we're making the Indian chickpea curry. Just onions, bread, short, glazed, sweated, paprika, and then chickpeas and tomatoes. Let it simmer, season and done. And the rice in parallel. But everything else, just let it cook for 15 minutes and then it's done. So good, let's start with the rice. Intermittent fasting is when I don't eat for a certain period of time. And also no sugary, fat or protein drinks. Intermittent fasting means I don't eat and I don't drink anything that has calories. So I only drink water, Sprudel, unsweetened tea. But I don't drink juice, I don't drink smoothies, I don't drink coconut water or milk, just water. So that means there is a period of time where you are allowed to eat and a period of time where you fast, so to speak, and then just water or black coffee, for example. Exactly. So that's the definition of fasting. And it depends on how many hours you fast. There are also different methods. Intermittent fasting, which most people mean when they talk about intermittent fasting, is 16 to 8. But there are also different possibilities. For example, I fast two days a week and then you are allowed to eat around 500 calories during the entire fasting days. But still very little. And then there are different methods. You can say, I only do 12 hours as a fasting period and not the 16 hours. And that's generally also a recommendation. You should always look, but I'll come back to that later. The most important thing is that it fits in your lifestyle. So if you can't eat anything for 16 hours a piece, then don't say, oh, that's nothing for me, but just try not to eat anything for 14 or 13 hours a piece. So I would always think beforehand, do I really think I can do that? Because there are, or I can imagine, there are a lot of people who say, oh, I'll try it now. And then they do it for two days, notice they can't keep up. And then you say, yes, it didn't work and I can't do it. And then they give up right away. And I should think beforehand, can I do this in my lifestyle or in my everyday life? Is that possible? Or am I invited to eat all the time anyway and can't do without it? Or do I have any appointments where I meet for dinner? And that's always the most important thing, no matter what. Does it fit me and can I handle it well? Because the topic of crash diets doesn't make much sense either. The word diet actually means in English that it's a form of nutrition. And with us Germans, we're used to the diet being something I do for two or three weeks and then eat normally again, like I ate before. Which ultimately leads to a yo-yo effect, so to speak. Or if you actually wanted to say that now, you took it ahead of yourself. Exactly. In general, whether it's interval fasting or something else, it's a question of whether I can keep up with it in the long run. And that I don't just do it for a few weeks, but I really want to change my diet. That doesn't mean that I can't have a day at Christmas or Easter or at a family party where I say, son, I still have to fast, but yes. Yes, please. If you fast like this now, you say you fast for eight hours, you eat until evening and then go to sleep. You get up and you have your eight hours around, for example. And you don't have breakfast. That means if you eat again in the afternoon, then it would still be in the thing, even if you slept most of the time from your non-food area. Yes, that's exactly the advantage of interval fasting, that I sleep most of the time. It was so hard to get through. And then I also had, especially after the first two weeks, if someone has already tried it here, I had the feeling that I had to stop. And that's nothing for me. But I am of the opinion, personally, that it certainly applies to many, but that you just get over this feeling when it becomes a bit of a habit. Did you try to fast these 16 hours in advance or did you slowly get used to it? Because that would also be a variant, that you say for the first time, okay, I'll do 12, 12, that I slowly have to cry from the eyes. Fortunately, you and I don't cut, because that's the same for me. We just said, there will be tears soon. Yes, I think the onions are okay. Yes, it works, it works. There are worse. But to answer your question, I tried to start at 16, 8, but I actually did it like this, I ate from 12 to 8 p.m. and from 8 to midnight, 12 o'clock, so the 16 hours, nothing. Assuming I was still hungry after 8 p.m. at the beginning, I mainly ate low-carb, or really completely without carbohydrates, simply because the blood sugar level remains relatively low, which is also the goal of the whole thing, right? Exactly. Interval fasting is generally based on that we try to excrete insulin. Insulin is always excreted when I take carbohydrates with me. Carbohydrates are of course sugar on the one hand, but carbohydrates are also noodles, rice, potatoes, but also juices, fruit juices, smoothies, these are all carbohydrates. And through carbohydrates, the hormone insulin is excreted. Insulin is responsible for on the one hand sugar or carbohydrates that then swim in my blood, to transport them into the cells, but on the other hand, insulin, and many do not know, is also responsible for to bring fat into the cells. When I snack all the time, so I may have breakfast, lunch and dinner, and I drink in between a coffee with milk, and then I eat an apple here, and then I eat a little chocolate bar afterwards, and actually I eat something every hour, then I have insulin excretion all the time. And with interval fasting, that's just the clue to the thing that I make sure as long as possible to have no blatant insulin excretion. Basically, you always have to think about what you want to achieve with your diet. Do you want to lose weight? Do you want to eat healthy? Do you want to do something good to your body and maybe also prevent certain diseases? Or do you just want to lose weight? Or is sustainability also very important to you? And if my goal is to lose weight, then interval fasting is definitely a good method, because it was found out that if I eat the same calories throughout the day and the same calories in these eight hours, I still lose a little bit, so I still lose more than if I eat the same calories or the same food throughout the day. And accordingly, interval fasting also makes sense after six months, for example, because interval fasting generally has positive effects on metabolism. It can be preventive, i.e. preventive for various chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, chronic heart disease, arteriosclerosis, i.e. vessel calcification. In general, it is also positive for insulin and glucose metabolism. In general, for metabolism, it has even been found out that it is preventive for cancer and improves general metabolism processes, also in the sense of the so-called autophagy. This means that the body cleans itself and reduces inflammation and removes toxins or waste products that the body has. And if I fast for a long time, then it is more likely that my body has time to do all these processes in the body and to improve them. That is, to have interval fasting as a long-term diet is good. It is questionable whether you still lose weight after a while and whether you still lose weight through interval fasting. It always depends on what I eat at the time I am allowed to eat. Because there are people who fast these 16 hours and in the remaining 8 hours they still eat unhealthy and high-calorie foods. And then you still don't lose weight. Just because you haven't eaten anything doesn't mean that I lose weight if I don't eat during the time I am allowed to eat. As I said, you lose weight mainly because of the calorie restrictions. Mainly because I fast plus I take fewer calories with me. If I fast but still take a lot of calories with me, then I don't lose weight. You can also say that if you are satisfied with your weight, then you can still do interval fasting but then eat more at the time. Just adjust it according to the amount of calories. We have now cut the onions, we have cut the garlic, Viola is now turning on the stove. Basically, these longer fasting periods are good for the body, good for the glucose metabolism, the cells become more sensitive to insulin, which is good. And I have that even if I don't do it for a few days. So just because you say that you can't keep it up for a few days, to say that you don't do it at all doesn't make sense. Just like you don't say that you want to do sports five times a week and then I can do it, but I'm on vacation for three weeks and then I don't do any sports and then to say so and now I never do sports again because I didn't do sports for three weeks is also pointless. Everything is better than always eating ----. Of course, the best thing would still be to say I do 16 to 8 and I do it every day and then I eat only healthy in these eight hours. That is of course the best. But can you pull through? If yes, great. If no, then don't let yourself be demotivated just because you say I can't do it, I won't do it at all. But every day you eat well is good. Everyone should take at least 0.8 grams per kilogram body weight with them. Just everyone, whether you do sports or not. And if you do sports, you should take more with you. At least 1 gram per kilogram body weight. That means if I now weigh 62 kilos, then I should at least take 62 grams of protein with me But now it's like this, now I don't do competitive sports anymore and have to force myself to do workouts or go jogging or just do something. And it's hard for me to get up to it now. And now I have to pay a lot more attention not to gain weight. And then I started tracking calories to see what I actually take with me. And then I noticed my muesli, which I eat every day, already has 700 calories. And I thought, actually, it's just oats with a few fruits. That's why it helps sometimes to track calories through tracking apps and see how many calories actually have what I take with me. Because many then think, oh, I don't lose weight, even though I eat so healthy. And when they first notice how many calories they actually take with them, then everything is clear. So we have the chopped tomatoes and the chickpeas ready and throw everything into our pan. Good. Regarding the next streams, you are welcome to make us a comment. What would you like to know? And then we can talk about it next time. If you want to know more about me, check out my Instagram, YouTube and Facebook channel. It's called Viola Loves Cycling. And I'm actually planning to start an nutrition channel on Instagram. But it doesn't exist yet. Only in two weeks. But if you follow me on Instagram like this, you will definitely notice it. And then I would say thank you for watching and let's enjoy it. Thank you and hopefully until next time. It was really a lot of fun. Talking is fun anyway. I think we both know that very well. So thank you for listening and participating. Thank you and enjoy your meal. Enjoy your meal. Bye.