The Best Foods to Break Your Intermittent Fast For Weight Loss [+3 FREE Recipes!!] (2024)

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The Best Foods to Break Your Intermittent Fast For Weight Loss [+3 FREE Recipes!!]? ›

Protein rich foods include eggs, cheese, greek yogurt, meat, fish, chicken, tempeh and lentils. Fat rich foods include avocado, dairy products, nuts, seeds, high quality oils and olives. Fiber rich foods include chia seeds, flax seeds, raspberries, artichoke, cacao nibs and other green veggies.

Soups that contain protein and easily digestible carbs, such as lentils, tofu, or pasta, can gently break a fast. Avoid soups made with heavy cream or a large amount of high-fiber, raw vegetables. Vegetables. Cooked, soft, starchy vegetables like potatoes can be good food options when breaking a fast.

"For a standard 16:8 plan, one could break a fast with a low-glycemic meal of choice," says Ali Miller R.D., L.D., CDE, registered dietitian and functional medicine practitioner. "If you're going to have carbs, ensure that they're balanced with protein and fat.

A 2023 review of research found that the 16/8 method and 16/8 combined with restricting calories were effective strategies for weight control in adults with overweight or obesity. An eating window starting before noon led to greater weight loss than one that began after noon.

When breaking a fast, aim to avoid foods that are highly processed and rich in sugar, fats, and calories, along with coffee, meat, nuts, seeds, legumes, and raw fruit and vegetables rich in fiber. Avoiding these foods will prevent you from overloading your digestive tract and incurring side effects.

Intermittent fasting methods

These are the most popular methods: The 16/8 method: Also called the Leangains protocol, this involves an 8-hour eating period and a 16-hour fasting period. Some people do this by skipping breakfast, but you can also do the reverse and skip dinner or eat early.

It's best to limit ultra-processed foods like packaged snacks, deep-fried items, sugary drinks, and most frozen meals. These negate the positive effects of 16/8 intermittent fasting. To begin 16/8 intermittent fasting, choose an 8-hour window and limit your food intake to that time span.

Fast for 12 hours a day

According to some researchers, fasting for 10–16 hours can cause the body to turn its fat stores into energy, which releases ketones into the bloodstream. This should encourage weight loss. This type of intermittent fasting plan may be a good option for beginners.

Why am I not losing weight on 16:8 fasting? ›

If you've tried intermittent fasting but aren't losing weight, possible reasons why include overeating during your eating window and poor food choices. To help, you can try eating fewer calories, work on balancing your meals, or create a smaller or larger eating window.

If you consistently stay active while following intermittent fasting, you can lose as much as 6-8 pounds per month. This estimation is shockingly high when you consider that all you have to do is not eat for select hours throughout the day.

As previously stated, any amount of calories will, technically, break your fast. Even foods with extremely low calories, like celery, still contain fiber and other nutrients that could potentially trigger your body's digestive process.

To lose 10 pounds in one week, you'll need to burn between 3,500 and 5,000 calories more than you consume each day by restricting your diet to small portions of nutritious yet low-calorie foods, and significantly increasing your aerobic exercise with interval training, sports, and other vigorous activities.

This method follows a 16:8 or 14:10 schedule, in which you fast for 16 or 14 hours a day and have an 8- or 10-hour eating window, respectively. Schedule: There are no restrictions on when you need to have your fasting hours begin or end. However, it is important to be consistent with what you choose.

No matter whether you enjoy them scrambled, boiled, or even cooked in an omelet, eggs can be a fantastic food to choose when breaking a fast. They are packed with high-quality protein, are relatively easy to tolerate, and are a nutritional powerhouse.

Best foods to eat while intermittent fasting

They include things like avocado, potatoes, cruciferous veggies, fish, seafood, whole grains, nuts, and fermented foods. It's also key to remember water as a part of your daily routine.

The best way to break a fast is to continue eating normally and get back into your regular eating routine. If you eat an unusually large meal after your fast day, you may end up feeling tired and bloated. Try easing gently back into your normal food routine instead.