Can I work out while fasting? Short answer: yes!
You can safely and effectively exercise while engaging in intermittent fasting (IF). Fasting doesn’t mean you have to rest up and give up on fitness.
In fact, there are a range of benefits to maintaining your exercise regime during your fasting phase.
Read on to discover these – and the unique way that Yah Cha can support optimal hydration and energy on your IF workout journey.
Intermittent Fasting And Better Work Outs
Beginners, Take Note:
If you’re a fitness beginner, we recommend using your fasting phase to take some time out. Your body is already working hard. This is not the ideal time to launch into a new gym regime or a running plan.
That doesn’t mean you’re only allowed to chill on the couch. Instead, we suggest taking to your mat for a gentle yoga or pilates session, or restoring both mind and body with an easy-going walk in nature.
What Makes A Fasting Workout?
To truly be a fasted workout, there needs to be a span of 10-12 hours between your last meal and your training session. Naturally, this makes morning sessions the most practical.
Essential: hydration. Take the time to imbibe your favourite Yah Cha blend before launching into your workout to maintain hydration levels. And because your tummy is empty, this is when the prebiotics in our tea blends’ certified organic ingredients can have their biggest positive impact on your gut microbiome.
Remember: it’s crucial to understand what is safe for your body. If you have a health condition or are feeling unsure, chat with your doctor before undertaking workouts while fasting. Even if you’ve got the medical go-ahead, it’s important to listen to your body and learn to recognise what is normal and what is unusual for you. If your intermittent fasting workout hurts in a bad way, stop doing it.
Get Your Gains: The Benefits Of Working Out During Fasting
1. Fasting + exercise = enhanced fat burning
Combining working out and IF is especially smart if you want to improve your body composition. During your fasting phase, your body is most likely to use its glycogen stores for energy. Once those are depleted, the body sustainably taps into fat tissue as the next available energy source.
2. Working out during fasting promotes autophagy
Besides fat burning, autophagy is the main benefit of fasting. Autophagy is the natural recycling mechanism in your body that replaces broken proteins in cells with new ones and drains toxins from your body. Long term, it’s known to prevent diseases like Alzheimer’s, type 2 diabetes, and cancer and it’s been found to slow the aging process.
Tip: In addition to fasting, intense exercise can also really kick-start autophagy, making activities like high intensity interval training (HIIT) ideal to get the most out of this benefit.
3. Avoid digestion issues
It turns out that pre-workout food (we’re looking at you, protein bars and shakes) can actually hinder performance rather than enhance it. That shot of carbs and protein can cause an insulin spike, ultimately preventing fat burning, too.
Exercising during intermittent fasting helps you avoid digestive discomfort and ensures that you get to your goals faster.
4. Reach your optimal muscle state before breaking your fast
Working out shortly before the end of your fast? Ideal. Your muscles will be primed by your workout to better absorb the protein and nutrients from your fast-breaking meal.
Hydration With Added Benefits
Critical during fasting periods is hydration – and it’s even more important if you’re working out, too. While water is essential, reach for a Yah Cha tea for added benefits. Yah Cha teas hydrate and provide an energy boost, plus they will infuse your gut (while it’s empty of food) with nature’s healing botanicals.
Intermittent fasting has lots of benefits, but it’s hard – especially when you add in working out. And tea has a long history of healing. Combine fasting and tea, and they are a powerhouse – take advantage and combine the two.
Shop our Yah Cha tea blends for better workouts now.