Share
Inioluwa Ogunleye
3 weeks ago
Overview
A few weeks into the new year, I began a fast. Though I started it for strictly religious reasons, I started noticing changes in my body weight. I felt much lighter on my feet, my waistline reduced, and a set of jeans that I had made a mental note to set aside for charity suddenly sat comfortably on my waist, with minimal struggle. I was happy to have a few extra pairs of jeans that fit just right. This weight loss reinforced the benefits of fasting.
Intermittent fasting as a means of weight loss became very popular in Nigeria around the mid-2010s. Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern that alternates between periods of eating and fasting. It typically does not prescribe specific foods but focuses on the timing of meals. There are several popular methods of intermittent fasting, including fasting for 16 hours and eating within an 8-hour window (for example, eating between 12 PM and 8 PM while fasting from 8 PM to 12 PM the following day); eating normally for five days a week and restricting calorie intake to around 500-600 calories on two non-consecutive days; fasting for a full 24 hours once or twice a week and finally, alternating between fasting days and eating days, along with other variations of fasting.
Intermittent fasting as a weight loss method became significant that apps were created to help users schedule meals and track their progress because it has real health benefits like weight loss, improved metabolism, and better blood sugar control.
