Why I Stopped Extended Fasting: A Muscle Centric Approach to Fasting and Metabolic Health

Intermittent fasting (IF) and prolonged fasting are wonderful tools that can improve blood sugar health and support longevity. However, both fasting and calorie restriction can accelerate muscle loss and compromise exercise performance.

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Link to articles & show notes: https://bit.ly/3tkW4kG

Study Mentioned: 

Williamson, E. & Moore, D. R. A Muscle-Centric Perspective on Intermittent Fasting: A Suboptimal Dietary Strategy for Supporting Muscle Protein Remodeling and Muscle Mass? Front. Nutr. 8, 640621 (2021).

Show Notes:

00:00 Fasting is counterproductive to preserving and building muscle.

00:40 Extended fasting may have metabolic health benefits for people who are morbidly obese or sedentary.

01:30 Insulin helps build and preserve muscle.

05:00 If you have little body fat, excessive fasting may impact lean muscle mass.

06:00 The more muscle mass you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate will be.

07:12 If you feel weaker, try decreasing your fasting and increase your exercise.

08:00 Muscle mass is inversely correlated with all-cause mortality.

08:30 Quick weight loss can include loss of lean muscle tissue.

10:45 If you are fasting, you may want to increase your protein intake.