The Fasting Method Podcast

In today's episode, we share our journey from illness to being able to help the people we work with lose weight and reverse the chronic and "incurable" type 2 diabetes.

Truth be told, we started this podcast because there is so much misinformation out there about intermittent fasting. Today our team at The Fasting Method has worked with over 16,000 adults worldwide helping them achieve sustainable weight loss and improve blood glucose levels through various fasting strategies and real, whole-food nutrition principles. We believe we have a responsibility to bust these fasting myths and set the record straight.

And we're not just practioners of fasting; it's saved our lives. We've struggled with obesity, type 2 diabetes, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and fatty liver disease. We were able to take the lessons we learned throughout our own journeys and apply them, first to our clincial practice and then to our online community, and now we want to bring them to you in this podcast.

Learn More About Our Community: https://www.thefastingmethod.com

Join our FREE Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/obesitycodenetwork

Watch Us On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClZ5e2ICw_sAo1P7z9JAneA

Follow Us on Instagram: @fastingmethod

Episode #158

In this Fasting Q&A episode, hosted by Coach Lisa Chance, Dr. Jason Fung answers questions from the TFM Community:

1. Does fasting help with not choking for an impacted oesophagus? [01:58]
2. I have been struggling with my fasting due to terrible headaches that last days after 36-hour fasts. I've been put on a bunch of supplements to support me with detoxification including liver supplements, B vitamins, and activated charcoal, but I find that these can sometimes make the headaches worse. I've been advised to do shorter fasts but this doesn't result in any weight loss. Any idea how I can move past this? [03:36]
3. How many meals between fasts is ideal for weight loss? Two or three meals a day? [07:21]
4. I understand how excess carbohydrates can be stored as fat (via insulin)., but I'm having a hard time understanding how dietary fat is utilised and stored if we go low carb and increase our fat intake. Isn't dietary fat stored as fat? I am confused about how we are able to burn body fat while eating more dietary fat. [09:25]
5. Which fasting protocols would you recommend for people who have a low BMI but still have insulin resistance? [13:09]
6. Does miso soup break a fast? It would be a great source of salt and I prefer savory drinks to sour. [15:33]
7. I got a CGM so that I could see my glucose response to various foods. Is it correct to assume/conclude that, if I see an increase or spike in glucose, there will be a corresponding increase in insulin? And, conversely, if I do not see an increase in glucose, there is little or no increase in insulin? Could there be a situation where glucose does not go up but insulin does? Is there a correlation between an increase in ketones and a decrease in insulin? [16:41]
8. I’ve measured consistently high in oxalate on an OAT test over the last decade. I’ve read that oxalates are difficult to measure in the body, outside of stones which I'm hoping to preempt. Will fasting, detoxing, releasing toxins help reduce high oxalates? [18:03]
9. Fasts longer than 48 hours have triggered inflammation in individual finger joints. Is that a potentially common way for detoxing or autophagy to present (meaning, the specific, targeted area rather than more broad based)? [19:59]
10. Could you please address the subject of metabolic flexibility? Is it possible to be too fat adapted? [21:22]
11. Since cancer is a disease of too much growth and fasting slows down growth, why is it not a good addition to *most* chemo therapies when the patient has sufficient fat mass to allow for fasting? [24:45]
12. In their book, Brain Energy, Dr. Chris Palmer talks about how ketones are beneficial for brain function. In your Toronto clinic, back in the day, did the patients who fasted under your and Megan Ramos's supervision anecdotally report mental health improvements as they progressed through therapeutic fasting regimens? [30:42]
13. Why do different people need potentially drastically different amounts of magnesium supplementation when they eat the same foods? My partner and I are almost identical age and weight, and have the same activity level and diet. They do not benefit at all from magnesium supplementation, while I need almost four times the recommended daily dose to feel good and not have muscle cramps. [32:21]

Please note that you need to be a member of the TFM Community to submit questions to the Q&A webinars with Dr. Fung but you can submit questions to our regular Q&A episodes here: https://bit.ly/TFMPodcastQs

Transcripts of all episodes are available at www.thefastingmethod.com on the Podcast page.

Learn More About Our Community: https://www.thefastingmethod.com

Join our FREE Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/TFMNetwork

Watch Us On YouTube: https://bit.ly/TFMYouTube

Follow Us on Instagram: @fastingmethod

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. You should always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before doing any fasting, changing your diet, taking or adjusting any medication or supplements, or adopting any treatment for a health problem. The use of any other products or services purchased by you as a result of this podcast does not create a healthcare provider-patient relationship between you and any of the experts affiliated with this podcast. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Episode #185

In this week's episode, Terri is joined by Coach Bethany to talk about the importance of establishing and returning to your fasting foundations or the framework structure you have put into place.

They emphasize that having strong foundations or a solid framework is integral to navigating life (stressful times, vacations, holidays, etc.) and your fasting lifestyle (fasting and eating healthy foods).

• Terri and Bethany use the analogy of building a house to illustrate this concept - starting with laying a solid foundation. [03:08]
• Then building a strong frame - TRE (time-restricted eating) [06:07]
• Go back to the fundamentals - focus on the basics first, such as making healthy food choices and establishing consistent eating and fasting patterns, before attempting more advanced fasting regimens. [08:15]
• Don’t try to "make up" for periods of going off track by drastically increasing fasting or using fasting in a punitive way as this can be counterproductive. Instead, go back to the fundamentals and rebuild the foundation. [11:18]
• Don’t try to out-fast a poor diet. [18:38]
• Balance and patience is important in developing a sustainable fasting and eating routine, rather than quick fixes or extreme measures. [22:32]
• Don’t compare your journey to other peoples’ experiences. Trust the process and take your time. [27:47]

Transcripts of all episodes are available on the Podcast page at www.thefastingmethod.com

Please Submit Your Questions for the Q&A episodes here: https://bit.ly/TFMPodcastQs

Learn More About Our Community: https://www.thefastingmethod.com

Join our FREE Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/TFMNetwork

Watch Us On YouTube: https://bit.ly/TFMYouTube

Follow Us on Instagram: @fastingmethod

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. You should always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before doing any fasting, changing your diet, taking or adjusting any medication or supplements, or adopting any treatment for a health problem. The use of any other products or services purchased by you as a result of this podcast does not create a healthcare provider-patient relationship between you and any of the experts affiliated with this podcast. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Episode #184

In this Fasting Q&A episode, hosted by Coach Lisa Chance, Dr. Jason Fung answers questions from the TFM Community:

1. Can fasting help with tinnitus and sleep apnea? [09:24]
2. Is distilled water okay to drink? [17:41]
3. Convenience is sort of necessary for active, working people, but getting food from restaurants is not always a good option. What kinds of foods/restaurants are best for simple, no or low-prep foods for someone who does not want to cook or finds cooking to be problematic because of portion-sizes and clean-up? [21:29]
4. Can I use spices like green cardamom pods, cloves, and fennel seeds during fasting days to combat bad breath? My coach said it’s OK to green cardamom pods but I wanted to know if it can be extended to other spices? Are there any I should specifically avoid? [20:55]
5. Could you please talk about how we should change our dietary fat consumption as we progress through the fat-loss journey on LCHF, specifically from the angle of supporting healthy endocrine function. If we define the different stages of fat loss in terms of how much adipose is needed to lose (more than 50lbs, more than 20lbs, less than 20lbs), would dietary fat requirement increase as we progress through these stages, as we would need more dietary fat to support endocrine function? [22:30]
6. I am in perimenopause and have just started HRT. My MD is very supportive of my desire to use fasting as part of my goal to lose fat, lower A1C (I am pre-diabetic) and apoB. She recommended I have full labs in six months to make sure my body has adjusted to HRT and we’ve had enough time to adjust dosage if needed. Does six months seem like an appropriate time frame to wait, and how regularly after that should we repeat these labs? [26:29]

Please note that you need to be a member of the TFM Community to submit questions to the Q&A webinars with Dr. Fung but you can submit questions to our regular Q&A episodes here: https://bit.ly/TFMPodcastQs

LINKS

#147 (Constipation): https://youtu.be/mM79Rv9Gt2I

#76 (Constipation): https://youtu.be/5uKER8scDB4

#180 (Longer Fasts): https://youtu.be/yfwW7mcfEc4

#45 (Gallbladder): https://youtu.be/QQmdsOJsRsw

#20 (Gallbladder): https://youtu.be/aSVDawoT-1A

Transcripts of all episodes are available at www.thefastingmethod.com on the Podcast page.

Learn More About Our Community: https://www.thefastingmethod.com

Join our FREE Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/TFMNetwork

Watch Us On YouTube: https://bit.ly/TFMYouTube

Follow Us on Instagram: @fastingmethod

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. You should always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before doing any fasting, changing your diet, taking or adjusting any medication or supplements, or adopting any treatment for a health problem. The use of any other products or services purchased by you as a result of this podcast does not create a healthcare provider-patient relationship between you and any of the experts affiliated with this podcast. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Episode #173

In this Fasting Q&A episode, Megan Ramos answers some of your fasting questions:

1. Why is it that, when I am consistent with fasting and diet, my PMS and period symptoms (cramps, headaches, and backache) are lessened? Is it to do with insulin? (Jenna from Michigan) [01:30]
2. I keep hearing mixed answers about fasting for PCOS. Some say it’s really beneficial and then others tell me to eat 5-6 small meals a day and not to fast or have coffee on an empty stomach because of the cortisol response. Can you clarify please? I feel better when I fast. I’m still only fasting 14-18 hours per day and trying to stick to TRE but I’m afraid I’m making it worse with my cortisol response. Help! (Amy from South Dakota) [02:45]
3. I’ve been trying to heal my PCOS with ADF for about six weeks now. I have started spotting occasionally and sometimes have shorter periods. Could this mean that my body is healing and trying to self-regulate and get my cycle back to normal? (Sarah from Maryland) [08:12]
4. I take vitamin D daily because my levels were low a few years ago. They have since returned to normal. Since vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, do I have to eat something with it on my fasting days or can I take it without and still get the benefit? (Beth from Nova Scotia) [09:47]
5. Should you eat dark chocolate every day? I read a study that says, “The research findings suggest that eating 48g of 70% dark chocolate each day may help lower fasting glucose levels and reduce insulin resistance.” I’ve also heard that dark chocolate reduces LDL cholesterol. Do you agree with this? (Michelle from British Columbia) [12:17]
6. I need some mindset help! I am 53 and spent most of my 40s gaining weight. I spent hours and hours every day unhappily thinking about my weight. My doctor told me about TFM and, after four months of TRE and 24,42, 48-hour fasting, I reached my goal weight. I was looking forward to the mind freedom but it’s been nine months now and I am still consumed by thoughts about weight and fasting. I eat whole foods, little sugar and processed foods, and fast 24-48 hours three times a week with TRE the rest of the time. I just want the mental freedom that so many people talk about. Help! [14:46]
7. I’m a 40-year-old female and have lost 53 pounds following different protocols but mostly intervals of OMADs 3-4 times a week and 2MADS for nearly two years. Recently, I’ve also added one 42-hour fast a week. I’ve noticed that I’m just not hungry. I end up eating based on the planned windows which are scheduled around workouts and a busy schedule. Should I wait for hunger and so extend my fasts further? I feel more like I *want* to eat than *need* to eat. (Michal from Israel) [18:25]
8. I keep hearing that fasting is different for men and women and that women can actually gain weight if we fast at the wrong times. I am a 48-year-old woman. Is this accurate? [20:33]
9. Do you have any tips for fasting when you have ADHD, specifically, the lack of dopamine and how food can be a source of dopamine. What other ways can we get dopamine, especially in the immediate and easy way eating provides? [22:39]

Please Submit Your Questions here: https://bit.ly/TFMPodcastQs

Transcripts of all episodes are available at www.thefastingmethod.com on the Podcast page.

Learn More About Our Community: https://www.thefastingmethod.com

Join our FREE Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/TFMNetwork

Watch Us On YouTube: https://bit.ly/TFMYouTube

Follow Us on Instagram: @fastingmethod

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. You should always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before doing any fasting, changing your diet, taking or adjusting any medication or supplements, or adopting any treatment for a health problem. The use of any other products or services purchased by you as a result of this podcast does not create a healthcare provider-patient relationship between you and any of the experts affiliated with this podcast. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.