Fasting for non-religious causes – and whether or not it’s good or dangerous for you – has grow to be a scorching subject within the well being and health house. Everybody has an opinion they usually appear to be getting increasingly more captivated with it by the day.
Bounce into the feedback part of an Instagram put up of fasting and also you’ll see what I imply.
Personally, I get up HUNGRY.
My sister can’t take a look at meals earlier than midday.
I really feel like crap if I don’t eat earlier than understanding.
My buddy Jules seems like crap if she does eat earlier than understanding.
Way back to 2019, “intermittent fasting” was one of the crucial searched diet-related phrases on Google and the subject solely appears to have heated up since then.
With all of the hype round fasting, particularly for girls, it’s simple to get caught up within the development. However right here’s the factor: fasting for girls isn’t so simple as it might appear.
After diving into the analysis, my largest takeaway is that this: Irrespective of your opinion on fasting, you’ll probably discover analysis to assist your standpoint. However on the subject of fasting for girls, we have to contemplate some necessary elements, from the analysis gaps to how fasting impacts lively ladies’s wants for vitality, muscle restoration, and hormonal stability. Right here’s what you must know.
What Is Fasting, Actually?
Fasting merely means taking a break from consuming (and generally consuming) for a set time frame.
Technically, all of us quick in a single day whereas we sleep—and that fasting window is definitely necessary! It offers our our bodies time to relaxation, restore, and faucet into saved vitality as an alternative of regularly processing new meals. And breakfast is actually the meal once we break the in a single day quick.
This pure “pause” requires that our our bodies expend glucose and fatty acids circulating in our blood and faucet into vitality shops. It trains our our bodies to get higher at processing vitality.
However What About Longer Fasts?
Some folks deliberately stretch that in a single day quick into an extended break, a observe referred to as intermittent fasting (IF). Probably the most well-liked variations known as time-restricted consuming (TRE), the place you restrict your consuming to a particular window – typically round 8 hours (or much less) – and quick the opposite 16 hours of the day.
For instance, you would possibly eat dinner at 6 p.m. after which not have any extra energy till 10 a.m. the subsequent day—so that you simply’re fasting in periods of low or decreased exercise.
There’s a Lack of Analysis on Fasting for Ladies
Many of the analysis on fasting has been finished on males and lots of have solely been finished on animals. Individuals who assist fasting typically make the leap that findings of these research apply to ladies as effectively, however that’s a reasonably large leap as a result of ladies’s our bodies reply otherwise than males’s (or mice)—particularly on the subject of decreased calorie consumption, our hormonal cycles, and train.
The huge majority of research on fasting for girls deal with sedentary ladies and people contemplateed obese or overweight. However with small pattern sizes it’s arduous to generalize the findings to lively ladies and those that usually are not thought of obese or overweight.
We do see that for many who are inactive or sedentary, research have proven fasting generally is a useful stressor on the system that helps enhance insulin sensitivity, glucose metabolism, amongst different issues.
However in case you are an exerciser or an lively ladies or in perimenopause, there’s a main hole within the analysis that makes it even tougher to use the present fasting analysis to your life—particularly on the subject of understanding how fasting impacts train efficiency and restoration.
Fasting for Weight Loss
The analysis on fasting and weight reduction is kind of clear: on the finish of the day, on the subject of weight reduction, fasting is basically only a technique of calorie restriction. Whereas proponents declare fasting has particular metabolic advantages, there’s no strong proof exhibiting that it’s any simpler than different types of calorie management, like portion management, monitoring your meals consumption, or balanced consuming.
Fasting is only a technique of lowering your calorie consumption through the use of the clock to restrict your consumption. And when calorie consumption is managed for, fasting isn’t higher than different “diets” for reaching long-term weight reduction or well being enhancements.
Fasting and Train
Combining fasting and train is the place it will get tough—particularly for girls. Primarily, it’s because fasting and train do comparable issues—they each lower your blood glucose and different necessary molecules circulating in your blood.
So once you mix them and train whereas fasted, you would possibly find yourself with some points.
First, for each women and men, exercising fasted might make your blood sugar ranges go too low and go away you attempting to actually run on an empty tank. No gasoline makes it actually arduous to work out or work out arduous sufficient to get the outcomes you’re after. It might additionally make you dizzy and cross out.
Second, fasted train is related to decreased efficiency, elevated fatigue, decreased talent, impaired focus, and an elevated notion of effort (so train feels tougher than it ought to). This makes it much less probably that you simply’ll have good coaching classes and even wish to work out.
Moreover, muscle preservation is crucial for general well being and metabolism, and fasting alone might not do the job in addition to different consuming methods that prioritize protein and carbohydrates for muscle restoration and progress.
For girls who do select to quick or exercise fasted, it’s necessary that they proceed to deal with consuming enough meals – particularly protein and carbs – all through the day throughout their feeding window to attenuate the danger of low vitality availability and stop muscle breakdown and loss.
Self-Consciousness: The Key to Making Sensible Fueling Selections
Whether or not you’re fasting or following one other consuming plan, self-awareness is important. Everybody’s physique is totally different, and meaning tuning into your private wants and the way your weight loss plan (and train) impacts your vitality, temper, and efficiency.
And context issues—so keep in mind that it’s not nearly skipping that one meal, it’s about the way you’re balancing your wants throughout the day as effectively. So what works for one individual, might not be just right for you. And what used to be just right for you, might in the future not be acceptable or efficient.
Some ladies thrive on fasting, however many others discover that under-eating or fasting interferes with their exercises and restoration.
Everybody’s physique has distinctive wants, and there’s no one-size-fits-all method.
After I introduced up the subject of fasting to my colleague, Jules Mitchell, creator of Yoga Biomechanics: Stretching Redefined, she shared how difficult it may be for individuals who weren’t athletes rising as much as acknowledge their physique’s indicators.
“The older I get, the extra privileged I really feel for having performed sports activities as a child and spent my childhood operating races. At eight years previous, I realized {that a} half banana earlier than a 10k would make me sick. I’ve been listening to my physique’s indicators my entire life. However should you’re simply now in perimenopause and stepping into train, all of the combined messaging should be so complicated.”
Her expertise reminds us that self-awareness isn’t nearly noticing what we really feel in the present day—it’s about understanding how our our bodies reply over time, by way of totally different phases of life and exercise.
When you’re consistently feeling drained, weak, or sluggish throughout your exercises, it is perhaps an indication that you simply’re not fueling your physique correctly.
Self-awareness is about listening to your physique and making changes primarily based on how you’re feeling, not simply following the newest development.
Many Energetic Ladies Are Usually Beneath-fueled
One of many key factors that usually will get missed on the subject of fasting for girls is the problem of under-fueling.
Many lively ladies underestimate their complete every day vitality expenditure (because of all these foolish 1200-1500 calorie weight loss plan suggestions that we grew up with) and find yourself consuming too little to satisfy their vitality calls for. That is very true for girls who do common energy coaching, high-intensity exercises, or endurance coaching.
A 2016 examine carried out on 109 feminine leisure exercisers discovered that 45% have been in danger for low vitality availability – that’s almost half of the ladies recruited from native gyms and health facilities have been in danger attributable to under-fueling.
So under-fueling and low vitality availability aren’t only a concern for “high-level” athletes, any exercising girl could be in danger.
Beneath-fueling can result in poor restoration, decreased efficiency, and even hormonal imbalances. Ladies who practice arduous want to make sure they’re consuming enough carbohydrates and protein to gas their exercises and get well successfully. With out the correct vitamins, your physique can’t rebuild muscle, and you might expertise fatigue, temper swings, and hormonal disruptions.
In my work as a private coach serving to ladies with osteoporosis construct and keep bone mass, most of my discussions with purchasers encompass consuming extra, not much less.
Dietary Therapist Michaela Smith agrees. She shared her ideas with me:
“The overwhelming majority of girls I work with are under-fueling already, even those that wish to drop extra pounds! Beneath-eating is a major stressor that may manifest into hormonal imbalance, weight modifications, and even cognitive modifications.”
In her observe, she typically doesn’t advocate intermittent fasting for girls. Right here’s why:
- Many ladies are already under-eating, which might contribute to anxiousness, mind fog, overwhelm, and hormonal imbalances.
- Fasting can negatively have an effect on blood sugar, resulting in:
- Drops in blood glucose
- Launch of stress hormones
- A rebound spike in blood sugar
- A “blood sugar curler coaster” that leaves ladies feeling off stability by way of vitality and meals cravings
- There’s restricted analysis on the results of fasting on ladies, making lengthy fasts a questionable technique.
As a substitute, Michaela recommends the next method to assist regular vitality and hormonal well being:
- Eat a balanced breakfast inside 30–60 minutes of waking.
- Gasoline persistently all through the day with common meals and snacks.
- End dinner early sufficient to permit time to digest and profit from a mild in a single day quick.
- Purpose for a 12-hour window between dinner and breakfast—this helps vitality metabolism and intestine well being with out over stressing the physique.
“The long-term outcomes I see with the ladies I work with are extra even vitality, fewer jittery emotions, improved blood sugar response, and extra secure weight. All wins in my e-book!”
When You Eat Issues, However So Does What You Eat
Whereas timing your meals or solely consuming inside a particular window may appear stylish, it’s extra necessary to deal with what you eat and whether or not it meets your physique’s wants. Whether or not you’re consuming earlier than or after your exercise, ensure you’re getting sufficient carbohydrates to gas your train and protein to get well.
Carbohydrates are your physique’s predominant supply of gas for train, and it’s good to replenish glycogen shops after exercises. The amino acids in protein are the constructing blocks for all tissue and helps rebuild muscle, keep bone, and assist restoration.
For lively ladies, this stability is essential—regardless of once you eat. It’s all about giving your physique the vitamins it must get well and carry out at its greatest.
When you’re not used to consuming earlier than you’re employed out, however you wish to attempt it, begin small with simply 100 energy of easily-digestible, low-fiber carbs or a sports activities drink to keep away from GI misery. Then, over time steadily enhance the energy to coach your system to tolerate meals at the moment of day.
Fasting and Hormonal Well being: A Advanced Relationship
For girls with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), intermittent fasting has proven some promising advantages in enhancing insulin sensitivity, regulating blood sugar ranges, and selling hormonal stability. A number of research have steered that fasting can scale back insulin spikes, a key difficulty in PCOS, and should assist alleviate signs like irregular menstrual cycles, weight acquire, and zits.
Nonetheless, it’s necessary to notice that almost all of the analysis on fasting for PCOS has been carried out on obese or overweight premenopausal ladies and the findings are nonetheless rising. Whereas the outcomes are encouraging, extra analysis is required to know how intermittent fasting impacts ladies with totally different physique sorts and at varied phases of life, together with those that are lively and in perimenopause or past.
For lively ladies, particularly these in perimenopause, fasting can impression hormonal stability in ways in which will not be instantly obvious. Low vitality consumption, particularly when mixed with a lot of train, can result in low vitality availability and/or finally Relative Vitality Deficiency in Sport (RED-S), a situation that impacts reproductive, metabolic, and bone well being. Indicators of RED-S can embrace menstrual irregularities, fatigue, decreased bone density, and poor restoration.
And right here’s the kicker: throughout perimenopause, distinguishing between anticipated hormonal modifications and the indicators of RED-S could be troublesome.
When you’re experiencing fatigue, poor restoration, or irregular durations (which many ladies gained’t even be capable of inform in the event that they’re utilizing contraception that alters their interval), it could possibly be an indication that you simply’re not fueling sufficient to assist your exercises and general well being.
Sufficient fueling, particularly with carbohydrates, is very necessary in midlife to assist each coaching and hormonal well being.
Conclusion: Fasting for Ladies—A Customized Strategy
Fasting may go for some ladies, but it surely’s necessary to keep in mind that, on the subject of weight reduction, it’s only one technique of calorie restriction and it hasn’t been confirmed to be simpler than different dietary methods.
For lively ladies, self-awareness and listening to how you’re feeling throughout exercises and restoration are essential. Earlier than contemplating a fasting routine, ensure your physique is well-fueled.
A balanced consumption of carbohydrates and protein is crucial—particularly to assist your exercises, restoration, and general well-being. Beneath-eating could make fasting counterproductive—rising stress on the physique quite than supporting well being.
And should you’re very lively or an athlete with targets—working towards a PR in your lifts or coaching for a contest or race—you might wish to go away fasting within the mud as it will probably lower your efficiency and inhibit your restoration.
There’s no one-size-fits-all method. The perfect technique is well-thought-out and helps your vitality, efficiency, and long-term well being—not one which leaves you depleted.
And bear in mind that there’s a rising variety of “docs” and specialists on the market who’re talking about fasting (and benefiting from it) regardless that it is extremely a lot out of their very own scope of observe. So earlier than diving in head first, make sure you examine what sort of physician they’re and confirm that you simply solely take recommendation from certified vitamin specialists.
When you’re not sure the place to begin, contemplate getting assist from a registered dietitian or nutritionist who focus on working with ladies in your particular inhabitants (lively, endurance athletes, and/or perimenopausal ladies) to assist tailor a plan that works for you. —Karin
References
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- Cienfuegos, S., et al. (2022). “Intermittent Fasting and Reproductive Well being: The Potential Results.” Vitamins.
- Correia, M., et al. (2020). “Intermittent Fasting and Cardio Efficiency.” Journal of Sports activities Sciences.
- Batitucci, G., et al. (2022). “The Impression of Fasting on Muscle Mass and Physique Composition.” Frontiers in Diet.
- Zouhal, H., et al. (2020). “Results of Fasting on Train Efficiency: A Evaluate.” Sports activities Medication.
- Mellin, A. (2025). “Carbohydrate Availability and Menstrual Well being in Energetic Ladies.” Journal of Sport Diet and Train Metabolism.
- Aird, L., et al. (2018). “Fasted vs Fed Train: The Impression on Fats Metabolism and Efficiency.” Worldwide Journal of Sports activities Physiology and Efficiency.
- Slater, J., et al. (2016). “Feminine Leisure Exercisers at Threat for Low Vitality Availability.” Worldwide Journal of Sport Diet and Train Metabolism.
