1) Before you start, read our Beginner’s Guide to Intermittent Fasting, which includes a specif-
ic section for women.
2) Pick the protocol that works with your lifestyle (explained further below):
16/8 Protocol: 16 hours of fasting, 8 hours of feasting every day.
24-hour fast Protocol: 24 hours of fasting 1x-2x per week, eat normally otherwise.
3) Give your body time to adjust! You might not really be hungry, you’ve just trained your body to
expect food every 2 hours over many years. This could take many days. Treat this like a 1-month
experiment. See how your body responds, and adjust along the way
4) Drinking water, black coffee, or black/green tea during your fasted period is acceptable,
but no liquid calories! Avoid all calories during fasting, and confine all eating to the “feasting”
window. If cream/milk/sugar/diet soda makes life worth living to you, add it to your coffee. 95%
compliance is better, especially when building the habit and transitioning to IF, than giving up the
things you love and then abandoning the practice before the habit begins.
5) Exercise during a fast for a turbo boost of fat loss. Fasted morning walks and strength train-
ing during the fasted window can help reduce body fat. If you get lightheaded, drink plenty of water.
Make sure you are consuming enough calories during your ‘feasting’ window to fuel your lifestyle.
Read the full article for questions adding Branch-Chained Amino Acids BCAA supplementation
(advanced).
6) Consume enough calories for your body type and goals. During your feasting window, eat
healthy sized meals that leave you full, and track your progress. Gaining weight? Reduce calories
by 10%. Losing too much weight? Increase calories by 10%. Test, compare, learn, change, fix, test!
7) Don’t overthink it. Traveling? Make that a fast day and avoid unhealthy airport food. Have a
birthday brunch to attend? Eat breakfast that day and skip dinner instead. This is not all-or-nothing.
Skip a meal if no healthy options are present: boom! You’re intermittent fasting.
8) Start with 16/8 or 24 hour fasts, but adjust it to your schedule. Some people like 20/4, or
18/6. Or they do 24 hour fasts 2x per week instead of once. Make it work for your life.
9) Combine this with other strategies for maximum effectiveness. To become an actual super-
hero, Intermittent Fasting can and should be combined with exercise, a nutritious diet composed of
vegetables, protein, and healthy fats, and plenty of sleep. Read NerdFitness.com for other tips and
tricks to level up your life, every single day
INTERMITTENT FASTING BLUEPRINT