In this video, the speaker discusses the best foods to eat during intermittent fasting. They emphasize that intermittent fasting is about regulating eating periods, and the focus is on addressing the root causes of weight gain, such as sugar and stress, rather than relying on stimulants or quick fixes. They recommend consuming animal proteins like grass-fed beef, fatty fish, and whole eggs, as well as healthy fats like butter and olive oil. The speaker also suggests incorporating vegetables like avocado, leafy greens, and cabbage into the diet for added nutrients and satiety. They stress that individual differences and long-term health goals should be considered when determining the most suitable food choices.
Key Insights:
- Intermittent fasting is about controlling and regulating eating periods.
- The root cause of metabolic imbalance is often sugar, stress, and frequent dieting.
- The best foods for intermittent fasting are those that support stable blood sugar levels.
- Animal proteins, such as grass-fed ribeye and fatty fish, are satiating and have high protein value.
- Fats and oils, like butter and olive oil, can be added to meals for satiety.
- Creamy options, such as creme fraiche and coconut cream, can also be used.
- Nuts and seeds, like macadamia nuts and flaxseeds, make for great snacks during feeding periods.
- Including vegetables, like avocado, leafy greens, and cabbage, is beneficial for overall health.
Transcript
Hello Health Champions. Today I want to talk about the best foods to eat when you’re doing intermittent fasting. Immediately, some people will say, „Well, that’s a contradiction because fasting is when you’re not eating, so why are you talking about what to eat when you’re not eating?“ Well, fasting is about eating nothing. That’s the period when you’re not eating. But intermittent fasting is about controlling and regulating the periods. It’s about time-restricted eating, so you could do, for example, 14 hours out of every 24 without eating. And that leads to 10 hours to eat, and that’s a great place for a lot of people to start. And if you get results, great. If not, then you push that window out a little further. So you might have a 16-hour or an 18-hour or 20-hour fasting window.
So when we talk about the best foods to eat for intermittent fasting, we’re talking about the best foods that will support you for that fasting period. What kind of foods are the best to eat to make it through that fasting period the easiest and with the least hunger and with the most stable energy? Now, some people are probably wanting to hear about some magical fat-burning food or some magic herbs that will melt off the pounds. Even if that existed, and I’m not saying that it does or it doesn’t, but it’s not what we’re interested in. Because that would be a stimulant. It would push your body into burning fat. But what we want to talk about is addressing the root cause. The root cause, the reason that your metabolism broke in the first place, is because of sugar and stress, and because of frequent dieting. When you restrict calories for a period of time and then you go back to eating junk, which is more sugar and more bread and more processed foods, over time you’re pushing your body out of balance more and more and more, and you actually break your metabolic machinery.
So if we address the root cause instead of trying to find a quick fix like some stimulants, addressing the root cause will allow the body to restore normal balance. And that is the only thing that we’re interested in in the long term. That’s the only thing that will create long-lasting results. And the foods then are the ones that help you maintain the most stable blood sugar. And here’s where a lot of people fall into a trap because they have abused their metabolism and they’re jacking up their blood sugar, and the blood sugar comes crashing. So they’re both hyperglycemic and hypoglycemic, and then they feel the only time I feel good is when I restore my blood sugar, when I eat frequent meals, when I eat carbs. And even though that feels good in the short term, it ruins your chances of improvement in the long run. So at some point, you have to cut back on the sugar and the carbs to allow your body to create some stable blood sugar.
The best foods are also going to be the ones that create the least upset to your equilibrium. Your body likes to be stable. That’s the most important thing, is your blood sugar. But there are other things as well with hormones. So you want to address all of these: the sugar and the stress. Then the best foods are also going to create a lot of satiety. They’re going to make you full and keep you full. So foods that are low fat and high carb, they’re not very satisfying. But your body also burns through them quickly. You want to think of this as a campfire. You put a big log on the campfire, it’s going to burn slowly and keep you warm through the night. That’s what your food is supposed to do as well. You want to eat something that burns slowly, so that it’ll keep you going for many hours until the next meal.
But then some people say that, you know, it really doesn’t matter what you eat because I eat whatever I want as long as I do some intermittent fasting, as long as I restrict my feeding window and I only eat once or twice a day, it doesn’t matter. I lose weight anyway, so don’t come talking about different foods and quality. I eat pizza, ice cream, and candy, and it works just fine. Well, to those people, I just want to say three things. First, great for you if that is getting everything done for you. Fine. However, it is still not healthy. So if your only goal is to lose weight, you can probably do that, but if your goal is to be as healthy and functional as possible, if you want strong, healthy organs and a strong brain when you get into your 80s and 90s, then these foods will not do that for you.
I ate a lot of garbage when I was an athlete, and it came back to bite me. I ate pizza and ice cream and candy, 6,000 calories a day, and half of that was junk. But I worked out so much, I had a 3% body fat, and I thought that was okay. But I had a lot of injuries that kept me from reaching my full potential. And today, I know better. So now I’m looking at optimizing health into my 80s and 90s and beyond. And the third thing I want to tell these people is, we are all different. So just because it works for you, don’t go and give advice to other people. Because it works for you, it may not, or probably won’t, work for others. One of the most important things is to not look at the results of others. It can be very discouraging. Just figure out how to learn enough and apply enough that you start getting the results and don’t look at how much results someone else got or how long it took them. Because all that matters is that you do enough for you and that you’re patient enough for you. It’s going to be a lifestyle for the rest of your life anyway.
„The way“ does not exist. There is no one way that’s going to work for everybody. There is no best diet. There’s no perfect number of carbs in a day, etcetera. It’s kind of funny. I’ve even gotten comments on my videos where some people say, „You just don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re giving us so many different factors. Just tell me the one that’s going to make the difference.“ And again, they’re totally missing the point, because it’s about your individual activity level, your basic metabolism, your emotional level, what have you been through, how stressful has your life been, did you have child abuse or marital problems or post-traumatic stress disorder, what’s your set point, what’s your age, what’s your gender, what’s your genetic predisposition, right? So, everyone is different. That’s why we have to learn the principles and apply them until we get the results.
Here’s one way we can try to illustrate this, and hopefully that’ll sink in even more. Let’s say that you’re average, and this is your thermostat for your metabolism. The yellow zone is where you kind of stay the same, get a little better, a little worse, but nothing really changes. But if you get a little bit worse and you’re in the red zone, now things really start getting worse. However, if you dial back on the carbs and the sugar and the frequency of meals, then you dial back a little bit, now you’re in the green zone and you’re starting to get results. And if you’re average, you probably don’t have to dial it back too much. And then we have the people who have it just so easy, and these are the people who still eat pizza and ice cream, and they just stopped eating snacks, so they go down to maybe two meals a day because they just have to dial it down a tiny little bit to be in the green zone. And now they’re getting results and telling everybody else, „Just do it like me. That’s how it works. That’s all there is to it.“
But if you’re watching this video, chances are that it wasn’t this easy for you. And I sympathize because I meet a lot of people like that in my practice. So if you are stubborn, if your body is stubborn, if you’re a tough case, then it might seem like you have to dial things back forever. And that is essentially how it is. If you do things just a little bit worse, now you’re in the red zone, but you’ll have to improve, you have to get so much better it seems ridiculous before you’re in the green zone. Well, that’s life. That’s just what you have to do. But understand that this is you and this is somebody else, and it’s not fair. But if you want the results, just learn what it’s going to take to get there.
I’d like to start the list of good foods with animal protein. These are, in no particular order, some of the best because they’re very satiating and they’re a complete food. Some examples are grass-fed ribeye, high-fat steak, grass-fed ground beef with 20-30% fat, fatty fish like salmon, sardines, and mackerel, and whole eggs or egg yolks. These animal proteins have zero carbs, are very satiating, and have a high protein value. They also have the least impact on blood sugar and insulin.
Fats and oils are great for cooking food and adding calories for satiety. Some examples are butter (preferably grass-fed), olive oil (extra virgin first pressing for added nutrients), and MCT oil (derived from coconut oil and can aid in the transition to fat energy). These foods have zero carbs, are satiating, and mildly processed. Choosing organic options is important to avoid ingesting toxins that are stored in fats.
Creamy foods are another option to add satiety. Examples include creme fraiche (fermented sour cream), sour cream, heavy cream, half-and-half, and coconut cream. These options are low in carbohydrates and can add flavor and texture to meals and beverages.
Nuts and seeds can be a snack option during the feeding period. Macadamia nuts, pecans, walnuts, flaxseed, chia seeds, and pumpkin seeds are good choices. They are high in fat, low in carbs, and offer a range of nutrients.
Vegetables are also important to include in the diet. Avocado, broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper, leafy greens, and cabbage offer low-carb options with added fiber and nutrients.
Remember, individual differences play a role in dietary needs and results. It’s important to find what works best for you and focus on overall health and long-term goals.
