Intermittent fasting is more than just a weight-loss regimen, says 10-year veteran
Health coach Dali Harilela wakes up at 4.30am, but doesn’t have her first meal until lunchtime. She says her health regimen keeps her trim and healthy, and she is not alone, with more people trying out the fasting trend
Dali Harilela hasn’t had breakfast in 10 years – no omelettes, toast or smoothies since she started intermittent fasting in 2008.
The 48-year-old wakes up around 4.30am and does not have her first meal of the day until 1.30pm. She usually has dinner around 6pm, and it’s the last thing she eats. Harilela prefers not to eat before she goes to bed to let her body settle. She follows a ketogenic diet, consuming more fat, less carbohydrates and a moderate amount of protein.
When Harilela, a health coach, started this regimen a decade ago, she felt the benefits immediately, including the loss of 4.5 kilograms in the first month.
“In the beginning, you lose weight, but it’s water, not fat,” she says. A diet high in carbohydrates and sugars tends to be inflammatory, she claims, so adopting her new lifestyle reduced her water retention.
Other benefits include her feeling less stuffed and lighter. “Since sleep counts as fasting, when you wake up, you use the energy stored in your body; you start to lose body fat and burn fat in the right way,” she says.
