Top Tips for a Fat Fast

Thinking of doing a fat fast?

If you follow my blog, you will know that LCHF or banting or even Paleo was a lifestyle choice for me and not just a quick diet.

I’m also not a fan of ‘quick-fix diets’ and prefer to stay healthy by eating Real Food.

Recently though, I’ve realised that although I’m eating right, I just keep putting on weight slowly but surely…

Then I decided to try the fat fast…

Before everyone get their knickers in a twist, some background info on the fat fast, as well as my views and reasoning behind it:

LCHF – A Lifestyle

For me, switching over to LCHF was a lifestyle choice, and not just to lose weight temporarily.
{Read more here}

The LCHF Basics

LCHF is all about eating real food, going back to our prehistoric roots, without any of the modern-day processed foods, starches, wheat or sugar.

Low Carb High Fat {LCHF} means eating less, naturally, by eating more fat, because the fat is the fuel your body needs to operate optimally, without any interference from useless carbs and sugar.

These just cause problems – read more here.

LCHF – Common Mistakes and Misinterpretations

I’m sure everyone knows just what a LCHF ‘diet’ is – or at least think they know…

Well, we’ve been following a low carb lifestyle for just over 3 years now and I can tell you, there are many mistakes we all make without even knowing it.

And sure, because it’s a lifestyle and not a diet, there should be some leniency, right? Well..yes, but there are also some serious no-no’s and things you have to stick to – for life.

No calorie-counting with LCHF!
Sure, but then you need to actually listen to your body and eat less, because all those nice fats have more than enough ‘fuel’.
And if you ‘listen’ properly, you will realise that you’re not hungry, so don’t worry about conventional meal times, these will just throw you off…
And if you’re hungry? By all means – you MUST eat!

Eat as much fat as you want!
If you’ve just read the sentence above, you’ll know this to be not quite accurate.
Yes, eat your fats {healthy fats!}, but only what you need.
You will find that even if most of your food-intake comes from fat, it is very high in calories {fuel} and you don’t need all that much. A high fat intake for a day can look something like this:
an avocado
a handful macadamia nuts
a few slices of cheese
some olive oil and perhaps an egg or 2
Not quite the butter-drenched, cream-soaked image we all have, right?

But then again – make sure you DO get in enough fats – fat should make up around 70% {or more} of your daily food / calorie consumption.

{Read more here}

LCHF ‘Treats’

This is a serious grey area and quite a stumbling block, for me at least…
Yes, there are certain low carb sugar substitutes that are natural and great to use, as well as flour-substitutes, so what can be the problem?

For one, the sweet taste you get from these ‘approved treats’, can trigger your ‘need’ or ‘want’ for sugar…
Secondly, all these treats are extremely high in calories, even though they’re low in carbs. So, you will naturally eat way more than you should.

My advice is to really save these {sugar-free sweet treats}  for the odd and very special occasion, it shouldn’t form part of your daily life.

The Fat Fast

The fat fast was first used with the Atkins Diet, to help patients break through a weight-loss stall or to kick-start their LCHF journey.

Through various studies, it was determined that restricting your calorie-intake to between 1 000 and 1 200 calories per day, with 80-90% of those derived from fats, will result in the most sustainable rapid weight-loss and help to break through a plateau.

{Read here for fat fast specific recipes and the theory behind it}

My Experience

Following this lifestyle has helped me to shed a few kilos, get fit and stay active, but most importantly to maintain it.

Until I recently realised that very slowly but surely, I’m starting to pick up weight and really battling to lose just 2 kilos.

Because I’ve already cut the carbs, sugar and processed foods, there’s nothing else that I can do to drastically change things, so it really does make losing those stubborn few kilos really difficult.

I decided to give the fat fast a try – even though I’m not a fan of any temporary diet – and after reading all the background info theories behind it.

The concept of forcing myself to lower my calorie-intake, in order to reset my ‘fuel-gauge’ really appealed to me, because even though I was eating right, I was just eating way too much and didn’t really realise when I was hungry or not.

Results

I did the fat fast for 3 days.

The first day absolutely sucked – this was after a weekend of total over-indulgence, as one does, and I was so hungry and HANGRY I could eat a person!

I soldiered through.

Day 2 and 3 was amazing – I kept to my small ‘feedings’ of 200-250 calories, 80-90% fat, and I was never hungry!
Seriously.
I didn’t even obsess with what I could or couldn’t eat – my brain and body was satisfied and I was just happily chugging along on a very consistent ‘vibe’.
{That sounds a bit airy-fairy, but you get the picture…?!}

I managed to lose 1 kg that week

10 cm overall lose around my torso-area:
bust -1 cm
chest -3 cm
waist -3 cm
hips -2 cm
midway -1 cm

Whaat?!?

Oh yes.

Plus – and this is the biggie for me – I’m now more in-tune with whether or not I’m hungry and I naturally eat less.

So now, for the first time in a while it rings true for me: only eat when you’re hungry.
Thanks FATS!

{I also haven’t picked up any of the weight I’ve lost during the fat fast.}

I highly recommend the fat fast if you’re trying to break through a plateau or even just to kick-start your LCHF journey.

DON’T do the fat fast for longer than 5 days and don’t do it as a regular thing – only use it to reset your ‘fuel-gauge’.

Remember

Fat is high in calories and will keep you going and going and going…

Eat real food and keep the carbs low

Eat when you’re hungry

Stick to ‘treats’ only very occasionally

Have you tried doing a fat fast? What was your experience?

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