For maximum fat burning and overall health benefits I am a strong believer in skipping breakfast for weight loss. But how could this be? I mean unless you live in a cave you’ve probably heard over and over again that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Most people are told to eat like a King for breakfast, a Queen for lunch and a Pauper for dinner.
Well I tried that approach and it never seemed to work for me. For one, I wasn’t particularly hungry in the morning and stuffing food in my face when I wasn’t hungry in the morning seemed to be illogical especially when trying to get lean. (Sometimes I would feel hungry in the morning but that was false hunger that would go away soon after).
Secondly, a big morning breakfast would make me hungrier throughout the day. In addition, a big breakfast would make me sluggish and tired. I thought this was unusual but after talking to a bunch of people, they’ve had similar experiences. Wow, talk about counterproductive.
Lastly, eating like a king for breakfast and a pauper for dinner isn’t very convenient. I love to have big dinners with my friends or family. Rarely do people get together for breakfast (except maybe the occasional weekend brunch).
So I flip the script! One of the strategies I talk about in my Warrior Shredding Program is where I wake up in the morning and push my first meal later into the day. I blunt my hunger with 1-2 cups of black coffee and then around the afternoon, I break my fast with one or two pieces of fruit. I found this to be a powerful strategy that satisfied me and allowed me to eat huge meals!
Wait, Isn’t Skipping Breakfast Bad?
Is missing breakfast bad for you? Why is skipping breakfast bad, if at all? If you don’t eat in the morning won’t your metabolism slow down and lose muscle? The short and sweet answer is no. You won’t lose muscle and your metabolism will not change. In fact in one study, researchers found that when they made people fast for 3 days, their metabolic rate did not change.
In addition, fasting for 72 hours did not cause an increased breakdown in muscle, nor did it slow down protein synthesis. This is 72 hours without food. So much for needing to eat every 3 hours.
NOTE – I found out all of this info from Brad Pilons book Eat Stop Eat. Eat Stop Eat is definitely a great read and allows you to let go from all the dieting myths that have been holding you back.
Ori Haufmekler, author of the Warrior Diet explains why humans are inherently night eaters and why eating big meals in the day will shut off fat burning and cause you to be tired. His key points are:
1. Humans are better off using body fat for fuel not food. This is because using fat for fuel stimulates the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) which promotes alertness, focus, creativity, energy and strength.
This makes complete sense because back in the hunter/gatherer days humans had to hunt for food. They did not have a bowl of cheerios waiting for them when they woke up. They had to rely on their fat stores (stored energy) to provide them with energy to catch their prey.
2. When you have a meal you shut down the sympathetic nervous system and turn on the para-sympathetic nervous system which promotes relaxation, rest, recuperation. This is why when people have big breakfasts or big lunches they become tired and sluggish a couple hours after.
And the results of not just me, but thousands of others who have been following the Kinobody approach to intermittent fasting take my breath away!
*Your results may vary. Testimonials and examples used are exceptional results and are not intended to guarantee, promise, represent and/or assure that anyone will achieve the same or similar results.
*Your results may vary. Testimonials and examples used are exceptional results and are not intended to guarantee, promise, represent and/or assure that anyone will achieve the same or similar results.
The Warrior Approach to a Chiseled Spartan Physique
In the book the Warrior Diet, Ori Hofmekler recommends having one major meal at night. I prefer to split that up into 2 separate meals. Both equal in size which will allow you to have big, satisfying meals.
The benefit of this approach is that you can do it every day! Another benefit is that by spacing your meals out, your body adjusts to eating at certain times so you won’t feel hungry until right before your next meal.
After adjusting to intermittent fasting, you’ll be able to fast all day, allowing you to experience amazing productivity benefits.
What is the optimal Daily Fast Length?
I have found that 16-20 hours is ideal for me. Usually my fast lasts around 18 hours. I wake up at 10am and have my first meal at 5pm. In Brad Pilon’s book eat stop eat he explains that the ideal fasting period is 24 hours. This is because from 18 hours to 24 hours HGH levels steadily increase.
Brad only recommends doing these 24 hour fasts once or twice per week. Whereas I prefer a more flexible approach by just fasting for 4-7 hours after you wake up in the morning to burn fat. And since you are going to be working out on an empty stomach your HGH levels will already be maximized therefore you won’t need to fast the full 24 hours. (You can throw in a full 24 hour fast once per week if you are up for it).
Empty Stomach Training
One of the greatest benefits of daily fasts lasting for 16-20 hours is that you get to perform your workouts on a completely empty stomach. In fact, intermittent fasting workouts cause you to use fat for fuel (thereby stimulating the sympathetic nervous system which will give you a kick of energy) and Human Growth Hormone is maximized (HGH is the strongest fat burning hormone in the human body and HGH is also beneficial for building muscle).
Furthermore, when you workout on an empty stomach protein synthesis is higher during your post workout meal. NOTE – I like to have some caffeine before my workouts to give me some extra energy. I find this very helpful.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER Cutting Plan Example for a 150 lb male
1-2 cups of black coffee (fasting 4-7 hours after waking).
A couple pieces of fruit to break fast and stave off hunger (apples or bananas preferably).
Lunch 2-4pm -65g protein, 25g fat, and 70g carbs
- 300g of lean meat (93/7 turkey or beef, flank steak, sirloin steak or salmon)
- 350g of baked potato or sweet potato
- Broccoli or Cauliflower
- 1 tsp butter/oil for cooking
Dinner 7-9pm – 65g protein, 25g fat, and 70g carbs
- 300g very lean meat (chicken breast, tilapia, tuna or turkey breast)
- 350g of potatoes/sweet potatoes (mashed, wedges or rosti)
- 5 tsp of butter, coconut oil or 100% olive oil for cooking
- Broccoli, cauliflower or spinach salad with rice vinegar and cucumbers/peppers/onions
TOTAL = 1700 to 2000 calories
The results?
I have fine tweaked this eating style after only a few weeks but it has helped me tremendously in terms of getting leaner. Here are some recent pictures of me.
As you can see there I haven’t lost any muscle and I have become quite lean. I am going to continue this style of eating to drop another 5 pounds of fat. From there I will increase the size of the meals slightly to maintain.
Tips if you are Hungry
- Drink tea or coffee throughout the day (my favorite is Fasting Fuel). Helps reduce appetite and increase energy.
- In addition working out before your first meal is helpful as exercise temporarily shuts off hunger.
- Pay attention to whether your hunger is real or whether it is psychological. If you are craving meat and vegetables than your hunger is probably real. However if you are craving high carb processed foods than that is a false hunger.
The Warrior Shredding Program
If you want a full blown intermittent fasting workout routine for dropping body fat effortlessly and getting into shredded condition, check out my Warrior Shredding Program. It takes intermittent fasting and strength training to the next level to strip off fat and reveal incredible muscle tone.
