How Often Should You Do Intermittent Fasting?

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New to intermittent fasting? Here’s how often to do intermittent fasting.

Timestamps
0:00 How often should you do intermittent fasting
0:10 Different intermittent fasting options (and which is best)
4:15 A few key things when it comes to intermittent fasting
6:03 How to start intermittent fasting

Today, we’re going to talk about intermittent fasting. How often should you do intermittent fasting? 

There are a few different intermittent fasting schedules you can follow:

5:2
I do not like this fasting schedule. With this fasting schedule, you eat pretty much what you want for 5 days, and then for 2 days you do a version of intermittent fasting. However, it takes 3-5 days to adapt to ketosis. With this fasting pattern, you’re going to be hungry, and you’re going to have a lot of cravings. You’re also going to be spiking insulin on the 5 days, and the 2 days are going to be insignificant. 

Every other day 
With this fasting schedule, you don’t eat anything for one day, and then you eat the next day, and you go back and forth like that. Again, it will be rough because it takes 3-5 days to adapt. I also don’t care for this fasting schedule.

The best fasting schedules:

16:8
This is where you fast for 16 hours, and you have an 8 hour eating window. This is really great for the average person. It’s best to only have 2 meals in your fasting window. 

20:4
With this fasting schedule, you fast for 20 hours, and your eating window is 4 hours. This schedule has even more fasting benefits for your brain, heart, repair, and anti-aging.

OMAD
OMAD means you only eat one meal a day. Many people do this with fantastic success, and it has even more intermittent fasting benefits than the 20:4 fasting schedule. Some people may even need to do one meal a day every other day. 

With all of these different fasting schedules, you can also add periodic prolonged fasting. This is where you fast a little longer (48-72 hours), maybe every two weeks or once a month. This is just the icing on the cake.

A few more things to keep in mind while doing intermittent fasting:

• Always do healthy keto when you eat
• It’s easiest to do intermittent fasting daily 
• Look at the purpose of doing it (weight, or health)

My intermittent fasting guide:

• Start out with 3 meals a day with no snacking (add fat to the meal)
• Next, don’t eat unless you’re hungry (go as long as you can without eating)
• Slowly let your body adapt to 2 meals and then 1 meal a day
• Let your body tell you when to eat, adding fat when necessary
• Make sure you’re getting the nutrients you need

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Dr. Eric Berg DC Bio:
Dr. Berg, age 56, is a chiropractor who specializes in Healthy Ketosis & Intermittent Fasting. He is the author of the best-selling book The Healthy Keto Plan, and is the Director of Dr. Berg’s Nutritionals. He no longer practices, but focuses on health education through social media.

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Disclaimer:
Dr. Eric Berg received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1988. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Berg is a licensed chiropractor in Virginia, California, and Louisiana, but he no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients so he can focus on educating people as a full time activity, yet he maintains an active license. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, and prescription or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Berg and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

Thanks for watching! I hope this helps you better understand how often to do intermittent fasting.

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77 Comments

  1. I started intermittent fasting and keto almost two weeks ago. I do 18:6 daily and my body is adjusting well for the most part. It’s just the GERD that makes it quite challenging for me. I used to take Omeprazole only as needed but since starting intermittent fasting, I’ve had to take it daily because the acid gets so bad especially going into the 16th-18th hour. I can’t drink as much water as I would like because I’m at work by then. Dr. Berg, I hope you can do a video on how those with GERD can sustain this intermittent fasting lifestyle because I am committed to this and want to keep doing this for the rest of my life.

    • Take a table spoon of organic unfiltered ACV plus same organic lemon juice in glass warm water 20 mins before eating and you will never have gerd again.. My husband had it for decades and it stopped the day he started acv. Sweets after meals are a rarity as well now.

  2. Thank you, Dr Berg, you have changed my life👍
    I’m on my 5th day of intermittent fasting (18-6, 2 meals daily, with no snacking) So far it’s going well, no side effects, no real food cravings and I’m surprised at how good I’m feeling and how my mood has improved.
    It’s my 70th Birthday soon, (I have a heart condition & arthritis) and to be honest, I was pretty pessimistic about the future, but this new way of eating/not eating/relationship with food has given me a real boost. I’m now looking forward to a healthier future, so thank you once again👍

  3. Dr Berg. A personal thank you for all your videos. I am going through chemo for colon cancer at the moment and your videos helped me greatly coping with side affects. Thank you so much for the time you spent doing this for mankind. Your videos are priceless.

  4. 😂”maybe I shouldn’t mention cake” – Loving your videos, thank you Dr Berg. Such clear and helpful explanations and scientifically based as well.

  5. I tried intermittent fasting about a month ago. And lost almost 30 pounds in 3 weeks. My friends told me it was too fast, that I should be careful with what I was doing. But at the time I was working so I was very active for those weeks and I was doing the 20-4 fasting. Which my body was already quiet used to.

  6. I’ve been doing OMAD + Keto + calorie restriction since Christmas 2020. I started at around 335 and am now 199. My blood sugar went from 200s to low 80s. I’m not saying it’s for everyone but it works.

  7. I do two meals a day (lunch at 1 or 2 and dinner always before 6 pm. I am fasting 18 hrs and my eating window is 6 hrs. I’ve never felt better in my life! Thank you!

    • @Dr. Eric Berg DC But in this video, you never answered the question that you posed,,,,,,,,How long should you do intermittent fasting. You have explained how to do it, and how many hours to leave in between meals but not HOW LONG..One week? Two weeks? A Month? Forever?

  8. It becomes very important with OMAD for that one meal to have the healthiest ingredients possible. When I did it I began to experience tingling in my finger tips, vision clarity issues, and trouble with balance. I switched to 8-16 and quickly recovered. Everybody’s metabolism is different.

  9. I do 16 :8 daily, works very well. Sometimes I shoot for the 20: 4 and the OMAD. Overall eating less is sustainable weight management.

  10. During the week, I do 12 hour fasting with no snacking between meals. On weekends I try 18 hours and once a month fast 48 hours. I’ve also mostly eliminated refined sugar, eliminated refined flour, eliminated seed oils. I also try to walk 30 minutes a day. Lost 54 kilos in 7 months.

    • Whats your average meal for lunch just a rough idea for myself as im doing the same porridge 12pm and luch 6pm any ideas

    • @Tony…. chop up some seasonal vegetables and some nice sausage, toss in a pot with soup stock and simmer for awhile. Add some spices if you like. Scrambled eggs and bacon. Curry is easy to make using coconut milk or coconut cream. Add beef, chicken or seafood. Chili is real easy to make in a slow cooker. Sweeten with honey if you like. Toss in a couple of whole cloves or generous pinch of smoked paprika to add some mysterious depth to the flavor.

    • @Renee Roberts LOL. Perhaps to someone who has wrecked their tastebuds with sugar, salt, seed oils, cricket powder and the other garbage they put in our foods…

  11. I’ve been doing the intermittent fasting for 5 weeks now and I’ve lost 21 pounds already. I’m a disabled 54 year old postmenopausal female, who happens to be Italian and raised eating some kind of pasta every day. ( and not the non-processed kind they eat in northern Italy). I’m hoping this comment brings inspiration to someone! Wishing you all success

    • @Dead_or_Alive wow that’s amazing I have done slimming world most of my adult life . I loose the weight then gain , I have currently lost 3 stone but still another 2-2 1/2 to go . I found dr berg and am doin well on fasting but struggle on keto . I don’t quite understand the diet . I log all my food daily on my fit bit app so I can monitor my fats , carbs and protein. Am basically eating healthy but counting my calories. I walk 10,000 steps at least 5-6 days a week plus go out on my bike around 3-4 days a week . My scales arnt moving much but my smaller clothes are fitting better . I don’t understand why the scales are showing good losses .

    • ​@Angela Dubose, sometimes you have to check your metabolism. I noticed I was doing everything like in this video but wasn’t loosing any weight then I started to take digestive enzymes with probiotic to move my metabolism then I started seeing small result

  12. UPDATE

    I am now on the Warrior Fasting phase, which is 23:1 with NO sugar drop issues.
    I am also taking Potassium, Choline & Biotin supplements.
    My stomach continues to shrink!
    I am currently doing a squat challenge for exercise, and I am already seeing the muscles growing! 😎💪🏼😉 only working out 3 times, giving myself ONE rest day in between.
    My skin. 🤯 my skin is clearing up and healing BEAUTIFULLY, this has been the most notable thing this week.
    Also, my libido, is higher 🙃

    We will leave it at that for that update 😅😂

  13. UPDATE:
    Ive been on the keto diet for about a week now.
    At first, major thing I was struggling with initially, was more frequent sugar drops.
    I can now fast for 20 hrs, NO sugar drops. Not ONCE.

    I am full, I am energized, and I can see the results in my workouts easier.
    I am amazed at how good I feel and how long I can fast without experiencing any negative effects.

    Thank you, Dr Berg!!!

    • @Maria Perez
      Hi Maria
      What worked for me, may not work for you, that said, this is how I started:
      •Cut out all carbs from diet (grains, no sweets)
      •Stopped buying temptation snacks [for me it was sugary beverages more than anything]
      •Worked on my MENTAL HEALTH [meditation]
      •Embraced fats! [Eating other foods I enjoy, cheese, salmon,avocados, steak, chicken, eggs, chorizo, bacon, butter, cream cheese, low carb tortillas etc]
      • DID NOT EAT UNLESS I WAS HUNGRY [which made it an easier transition into getting used to Fasting]
      •TAKE VITAMINS! [This has been probably my biggest help in being able to do now 72 hr fasts]
      •Exercise [even if its just a 20 min walk around your apt/neighborhood/store every few hours, just to build the habit of movement]

      Hope it helps 😊

  14. I have always gone for long periods without eating and always thought I was doing my body harm. So glad to know now that it was actually very good for me!
    My weight has stayed the same my whole life. I’m 5’10” and weigh 132 pounds. I am always called skinny but I’m loaded with energy so I disagree.

    • We’re the same. Only I weigh 130 lbs and never above it. I eat whatever I want and whenever I want. But I want to do the 16/8 for longevity. Is this Okay? I don’t want to lose weight, I just want to be healthier

    • ​@Jt Rocks same here I’m 6’0 , 158lbs. I also don’t want to lose weight but to be healthier. I hope someone will respond.

  15. I started at 16:8 then two weeks later went to 20:4 with two meals. No snacks. 11am-3pm feeds. Coffee, unsweetened almond milk and water early a.m. only. Absolutely loving it! 💚🏋️‍♀️

    • @Tristan Gybels Yes in Germany they say Jogurt is healthy and Milk🙈🙈🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🙄🙄and meat is full off antibiotics and Hormons,they gat growth Hormons what’s ending up in people!Reis makes you fett,and they say Lunchmeat and Bread is healthy,it turns to Fett in the Body Bread has so many chemicals!🤷‍♀️🙈🙈

    • The best reward for Dr is to hear that his message helped so many people. No need to manifest …. akbar on YT.

  17. Thank you so much, Dr. Berg! I’m 19, and last year I had very bad digestion, my skin was constantly breaking out and my moods were horrible, along with other bad stuff. I started gradually fasting and now I do OMAD and I don’t need to use any skincare, my skin is amazing, I lost all the extra weigh and I’m so much more productive! You’re a lifechanger. I’ve been doing IF for six months already.

  18. My two year weight lose anniversary is Dec 1st and have lost 165 pounds with Keto and intermittent fasting. Thanks Dr. Berg! You saved my life.

  19. I have lost 55 pounds in three months following Dr Berg’s OMAD Keto meal plan. I am 56 years old and this really works BIG TIME! Thank you Dr Berg! You are the man!

  20. I lost 45 pounds in almost 3 months on keto/intermittent fasting. All thanks to you Dr. Berg!! I feel better, confident and most importantly I’m informed about what I eat now. Truly life changing. Thank you.

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