We all know when we need a break. Our body, brain and heart tell us so very clearly.
But there’s a way to give our bodies a break more regularly from the constant churn and metabolic stress of the digestive process. It’s nothing to fear though it does terrify people who associate intermittent fasting with hunger pains and starvation.
Once your body is working as it should, which only takes a few days to reset, you welcome the opportunity to let your body take a breather.
There is now overwhelming scientific data on the health benefits of fasting, such as cellular repair, reduced insulin resistance and inflammation, visceral fat loss, improved liver function, reversal of type 2 diabetes, reduced blood pressure and cholesterol and autophagy – the process of removing waste material from our cells, reducing the risk of numerous diseases.
Technically, the form of fasting in the AstonRX program is known as nutritional fasting. It’s a different pathway to access stored fat more readily, especially visceral fat around the organs, and mobilise it or get it working better for you as energy.
At the heart of this process is reducing the body’s reliance on glucose by lowering insulin levels. Rather than enforcing long periods without food, nutritional fasting selects foods for their low impact on insulin levels, allowing you to consume optimal nourishment whilst reaping the benefits of fasting. Meal timing and obeying your circadian rhythm also plays a critical role in this process.
Most of us in the west are totally reliant on glucose for energy because we follow a diet that is high in refined carbohydrates. We also don’t exercise enough.
But when you eat healthily (millions of vegetables and good quality protein), you switch the balance away from glucose and the body starts looking to the fat stores for the purpose they were deposited – fuel! One of the main ways to initiate this switch is to incorporate nutritional fasting into your life.
That’s when you start to see the body functioning much better and weight starts to shed as a welcome bonus.
The highs and lows of glucose dependence disappear, the painful ache of hunger subsides because your body is always calling on the right tank for fuel. You also lower the risk of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or completely reverse it by allowing your body the opportunity to fast. Eating all the time is a stress on your body because the organs are constantly digesting food. They need a break, and this also will increase the levels of growth hormone in the body, impact cellular repair and help rid your body of damaged cells.
I often liken this process to going to the supermarket to do your grocery shop, coming home and filling your pantry, and two hours later you’re filling the pantry again when it’s already full. You need a break from the grocery shopping!
