Intermittent fasting (IF) involves not eating (aka fasting) for part of each day or a few times a week. One common example of this is called 16:8, where you only eat during an eight-hour window in a day and fast for the other 16. When your body doesn't have a constant energy source from the food you eat, it utilizes the fat stores it already has, helping you lose body fat.
In a previous interview, Luiza Petre, MD, a weight-loss specialist and board-certified cardiologist, told POPSUGAR that intermittent fasting raises growth hormone levels and lowers insulin levels, both of which help burn more fat.
Eating in a shortened window not only reduces hunger (it's true!), but since you're not eating for long periods of time, there are also fewer opportunities to consume calories, which is why IF helps people eat fewer calories effortlessly.
