As a wellness lifestyle company, we are always intrigued by new, healthy lifestyle strategies and methods. Learning about these methods and incorporating them into our lives and products is a defining element of what we do. Recently, we have become more interested in a new method of eating that has gained more traction over the past several years. It’s called intermittent fasting (IF).
IF can be done two ways – the most common is time-restricted feeding, or only eating during a certain daily time-window. Depending on the study you read, the optimal time to eat varies, but most experts agree that it’s best to consume your calories for the day only between 12-8pm. Whole-day fasting is a less common type of IF and calls for a 24-hour fast followed by a 24-hour period of regular eating.
Time-restricted feeding follows the premise that your body works in three digestive cycles, evenly split into eight-hour intervals. The first cycle is known as the detoxification cycle, during which the body is promoting weight loss, increasing energy and expelling waste. Sauna and sauna pod use and exercise are highly recommended during this cycle to promote sweating and further boost the IF cycle.
The second cycle is known as the appropriation cycle – this is when you should be consuming your daily allotted calories. Digestion during this time is optimal. Finally, the third cycle – the assimilation period – is when your body will absorb the nutrients consumed. So, for example, your time-restricted feeding cycle would be: Cycle 1 4am-noon; Cycle 2 noon-8pm; Cycle 3 8pm-4am.
"As long as you are healthy and drink enough water, IF combined with traditional saunas or sauna pods is the next revolution in leading a healthy, active lifestyle."
In order to be successful with IF, the goal is to consume only your recommended daily calories, and no more. That means if you need to eat 1,800 calories a day to lose weight, you should consume only that amount during your eating time window. With that in mind, the fasting period perfectly complements and enhances weight management and cleansing programs. When combined with healthy lifestyle activities such as sauna pods and exercise, IF enhances overall results.
So, how do you achieve optimal results? We like to combine IF with hyperthermic conditioning – the process of acclimating the body to heat stress through sauna use via saunas or sauna pods. It provides metabolic benefits equivalent to those of exercising, which makes it a perfect enhancement to the wellness benefits of intermittent fasting. This process, through regular habits, promotes a healthy lifestyle.
When hyperthermic conditioning (by sauna and sauna pod use) and IF are combined, the wellness and health benefits work in conjunction with each other to enhance the cleansing period. Sweating via sauna, combined with time-restricted fasting promotes weight loss, improves mental acuity and physical fitness, and can help reduce the risk of certain chronic diseases. And the list goes on! A quick Google search on intermittent fasting and hyperthermic fitness will prove just how beneficial they can be to the body.
Forget those fad diets that cannot be indefinitely sustained! As long as you are healthy and drink enough water, IF combined with saunas or sauna pods is the next revolution in leading a healthy, active lifestyle. It truly can be done anytime, any day. And remember, a better life starts with better wellness.
