16. Intermittent Fasting for Women - with Dr. Amy Shah

Getting Started

Intermittent fasting can be a powerful tool for improving health, but it's essential to start gradually. Dr. Amy Shah recommends beginning with a 12-hour fasting window to allow the body's insulin levels to lower and GI cells to reset. She emphasizes the importance of listening to your body, especially for women, as aggressive fasting can lead to fatigue, cravings, and disrupted sleep cycles 1.

I tell women that if there's a change to your cycle, that's a feedback signal from your body that this is either not for you, too aggressive for you, there's something off there.

--- Dr. Amy Shah

Kelly LeVeque also advocates for circadian-synced fasting, aligning eating windows with natural body rhythms to avoid the pitfalls of late-day hunger and overeating 2.

   

Advanced Techniques

For those more experienced with intermittent fasting, advanced techniques like autophagy can offer significant health benefits. Dr. Shah explains that autophagy, the body's process of cleaning out damaged cells, can be enhanced through fasting and ketogenic diets. This cellular cleanup is crucial for preventing diseases like cancer and diabetes 3.

Intermittent fasting, also ketogenic diets all have been known to trigger autophagy. I would say circadian fasting is the fastest way, easiest way to do this.

--- Dr. Amy Shah

She also highlights the benefits of fasted workouts, which can further ramp up autophagy and support metabolic health 4.

   

Common Challenges

Intermittent fasting comes with its own set of challenges, particularly for women. Dr. Shah advises against jumping straight into long fasting periods and suggests taking small steps, like having a tea or a small amount of fat, to ease into the practice. She explains that autophagy, the body's way of cleaning out damaged cells, is a key benefit of fasting but requires careful management 5.

Autophagy is actually means self eating. That's like the literal term of what it means in Latin. It's our body's way of cleaning out damaged cells in order to regenerate newer, healthier cells.

--- Dr. Amy Shah

Kelly LeVeque adds that intermittent fasting should be seen as a tool to enhance overall health, not a strict regimen, and stresses the importance of listening to one's body to avoid negative side effects 6.