How difficult is intermittent fasting? Don't do the hardest thing now

(Author: Mike Moseley, Mimi Spencer)

When should fasting start?

If you are not sick and if you are not a person who is not suitable for fasting ("Can people who want to get pregnant fast?" and "Who else should not fast?"), you can fast now. Please ask yourself: If not now, when?

You may want to get your doctor's advice. You might decide to prepare in advance: talk yourself out of a lifelong habit of overeating, clean out the fridge, eat every last cookie in the jar. Or you may want to start right away and wait to see noticeable results within a few weeks.

Nevertheless, please start on a day when you feel strong, focused, calm and determined. Tell your family and friends openly that you have started fasting. Once you make it known to the world, it will be easier for them to stick to it. Avoid holidays and festivals, and don't pick days when you have to attend a fancy business lunch, so that you don't have to stare at a whole basket of bread, cheese, and four desserts in addition to the main course.

Also remember that a busy day can make a fasting day fly by, while a lazy day tends to make time move at a snail's pace. When you have decided on your first fasting day after careful consideration, prepare yourself mentally.

Before you start fasting, write down your weight, BMI, and goal weight in a diary, and wait to see your progress. Dieters who keep a record of their food intake are more likely to lose weight and keep it off. Then… take a deep breath and relax. Better to shrug your shoulders. It's no big deal, you have nothing to lose except the weight.

How difficult is fasting?

If you haven't felt hunger for a long time, without even the slightest feeling of hunger, you might find it difficult to consume less than 500 or 600 calories a day, at least at the beginning. However, those who practice intermittent fasting do find that it will get easier over time, especially after seeing the results in the mirror and on the scale.

The first fasting day should be over quickly, and the novelty of fasting will help boost your willpower. Fasting on a rainy Wednesday in the third week may feel difficult. Your job is to follow through and remember that even if you say no to chocolate today, you can have it tomorrow. This is the fun of the 5:2 intermittent fasting, and it is also what makes it different from others.

The article is excerpted from Sancai Culture Publishing House (http://www.books.com.tw/exep/prod/booksfile.php?item=0010591006)