Now, before I share anything, this is where I remind you I am NOT a physician, dietician, fitness expert – literally none of those things. I am a woman who 1) loves fasting; 2) has been transformed from fasting; 3) shares my experience to encourage others to find what works for them.
Fasting Changes You!
With that out of the way, I want to share my personal experience with fasting and working out. Some people have a hard time imagining trying Intermittent Fasting as a lifestyle because they imagine the feeling of being hangry or low energy. This is a reasonable assumption. If you’re used to eating 3 meals a day with snacks in-between… yea…. not eating is an unpleasant experience. In a typical eat-all-day lifestyle, you would feel hungry, maybe have a headache or get light headed is you suddenly fast and work out at the same time.
HOWEVER, when fasting is your norm (after adjusting!) your body isn’t expecting to eat all the time! This means you’re not feeling hungry all the time (YAY! 👏 ) but also your body knows where it can get energy if needed – your fat stores. For me personally, this is consolidated hips down! I’ve read many books and am regurgitating what I’ve learned in a very simple form. Essentially, with Intermittent Fasting you become metabolically flexible. You’re body learns that food isn’t coming all the time and if energy is needed, it must use what’s on hand.
This is important to understand because even if you’re not yet metabolically flexible, it’s important to realize you can be if you stick with fasting. I highly recommend checking out these books if you want more information!
But Is the Energy Stored Enough?
Quick answer – YES! Now of course, I am a single person sharing my own experience. But, I will say that when my body is using fat for fuel, this is when I feel most energized! I actually feel wonderful in a fasted state. If I have something physical ahead of me (such as unloading 70 large wall bricks from my van!), I try to eat after the work complete so that I am working in a fasted state. That’s how much better I feel – it’s worth adjusting my schedule for.
Once I eat, I actually notice I feel more sluggish…. not incapable of doing anything, but certainly less energized than fasting.
It should be said I am not an extreme gym rat. I would love to be more consistent with weight training – maybe someday. But I do walk consistently. And I’ve done things in the past like 75 hard (which requires 2 45 minute workouts a day) and successfully completed the tasks mostly while fasting.
My Biggest Trial Yet – A Marathon
Now some in my life have thought this was crazy – yes, I am doing a marathon while fasting! In fact, I don’t plan to eat even after the marathon until the next day (I plan to sleep!!) Before you too think I am crazy, I want to remind you – I’ve had 6 years of fasting… I am not doing the marathon fasting as an experiment. I am doing it fasted because I KNOW I feel better fasted… and don’t I want to ensure if I am walking 26.2 miles that I am feeling my best? Of course. I think this will be a great testament to energy levels and feeling good, even with great physical activity. Previously I walked 50,000 steps in a day and I did this fasted. You can watch the vlog here. It’s actually what made me wonder “are there walking marathons?!” … well Jackie of 2 years ago… the answer is “yes!” and you’re walking in it soon!
I just did my longest practice walk yet – 16.5 miles – and of course it was while I was fasting. I felt great the entire time!
side note: I WILL be having electrolytes in addition to water on the course. It I had to guess, I am thinking LMNT Lemonade Tea.
What Does This Mean For Your Workouts?
Not sure!! BUT, I want to encourage you to not discount intermittent fasting as a potential tool in your life just because you work out. Test it! Learn to fast first (this is important!), & then play around with your work out schedule to see how you feel working out in a fasted state. I just want to emphasize that it takes time to become metabolically flexible, but you can get there!!
I would love to know your personal experiences with fasting and working out! Share in the comments below.
