Human biology runs on a schedule. Modern living, disrupts this schedule. A TRF see food diet, puts metabolism back on schedule – so fat fails to accumulate.
I don’t need to tell you, a see food and then eat it diet, is pretty easy to follow. No calorie counting or worrying about the calorie composition of the food you’re about to it.
If you see it and want it – you tuck in.
I know, I know …………… you’re thinking, this diet is only for the genetically gifted. And you are not genetically gifted, actually, you are genetically disadvantaged, to the point that all you have to do, is see it and it somehow manages to accumulate on your hips, even if it never touches your lips.
You’re right, a traditional see food diet is usually a recipe for trouble.
But, this story is not about a traditional see food diet, it is about a TRF see food diet. The TRF stands for time restricted feeding.
In a TRF diet, you can eat whatever you like, but you have to do it in a narrow window of time.
Time restricted feeding
Don’t panic …………… the time allocated to feeding, it is not between 5 and 6 am each day.
The idea is not to starve !
The window is actually quite reasonable – the window needs to be, between 8 and 12 hours each day.
This is long enough to
- Limit your exposure to the anabolic signals that cause your belly to grow, while
- Maximizing your exposure to the signals that get your body burning your fat stores.
And, as an added bonus, you can cheat on weekends.
And it still works.
It really works
And it works really well.
Not only are you protected from accumulating unsightly fat. Following this regimen morphs overweight lumps, into lean mean “fighting” machines – that have excellent cholesterol numbers.
This is what a group of scientists from the University of California (San Diego) discovered, when they adopted TRF, in their lab.
Mousing over meals
No matter what diet they fed their mice
- High fat
- High fructose
- High sucrose
The mice benefited from the time restricted feeding approach, which saw them being able to tuck in to dinner for a limited time period, during their active phase. Which for mice, is the middle of the night – remember these little critters are officially nocturnal.
No matter which diet they were on – the effect of TRF was a slimming one.
The 9 hour window proved to be a little more beneficial, than the 12 hour window. The benefits were lost when the eating window extended to 15 hours.
But, sticking to a 12 hour window for eating is do-able.
On weekdays at least, but on weekends………. you want flexibility.
Weekends were for cheating
The team wondered what would happen when the routine was shifted.
To their delight, they discovered, mice going off the programme for 2 days, was not enough to scuttle the benefits. When the mice followed a regimen of 5 days on 2 days off………..
- Fat mice – lost weight
- Overeating mice – remained lean mean “fighting” machines.
The multiple benefits hinged around changes in gene expression and a brief interruption in the routine, made no difference to this gene expression.
But………if the animals stopped the TRF programme for 10 days – the benefits of time restricted feeding, ceased.
Something humans need to do
Human biology, just like mice biology, runs on a schedule – so if it works in mice, it should work in humans too. 537
As humans……
- Our day shift, is designed to gather and store energy
- Our night shift is designed to run off the stores
Modern living, disrupts this schedule – one of the consequences of this, is the obesity epidemic.
The TRF see food diet, puts metabolism back on schedule.
No counting
This is how “dieting” should be.
No calorie counting. No carb counting. No fat counting.
Just eating according to your biological schedule each and every week day. And the weekend indiscretions, can be swept under the table.
Isn’t it time to try the TRF see food diet ? It’s worth a try…..
I would suggest, giving yourself a 8 -12 hour window for eating. In your eating window, go BIG. Include a BIG BREAKFAST and a BIG lunch/dinner, minimize the snacking. Eat until you’re satisfied – remember this is not about starving. Eat what catches your fancy and provides you with nutrients.
Further reading
Why midnight feasts cause bigger hips
If you eat, when you should be asleep, the enzymes contracted to work the night shift clock in for work, but they don’t do the work, so fat burning ceases.
Body power stations are not designed to run 24/7
If your body rhythms are off, there is a good chance your mitochondrial furnace never turns off. This means ROS 24/7 and oxidative stress is what kills.
Stop worrying about fat and start worrying about timing
Stay away from fat and nibble all day – lots of small meals, at regular intervals, are the key to weight management. WRONG !
Battling an out of control sugar gremlin ?
