EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT INTERMITTENT FASTING + MY PERSONAL RESULTS

Well Hiii there! 

Okay so INTERMITTENT FASTING. Let's talk about it. 

First of all, leave me a comment below if you've ever tried it and let me know how it went for you! I did intermittent fasting (I.F.) for my very first time like 4 or 5 years ago and I LOVED IT. I actually also thought it was super easy. I remember adjusting to it quickly and being able to stick to it for longer than I had initially planned...like MONTHS. 

Haha - not quite the story this time around. 

Okay so first of all:

What is intermittent fasting???

Most people won't call it a diet as much as it is just a new way of eating or an "eating pattern". There's a few different ways that you can do it but the idea is that you allow yourself to only eat for a certain period of time and then you FAST for the rest of the day. 

For example, if I eat dinner at 8pm and then go to sleep, then have breakfast at 10:00am the following day - I technically just fasted for 14 hours. So a lot of us are already basically doing it!!

The reason I wanted to try it again though was because I work late nights at a cocktail lounge and sometimes (okay a lot of the time) that leads me to snacking late at night. I'll nibble on some bread or some little cookies if I'm bored so I just wanted to really try and cut myself off from that in a way that would last. 

I figured if I did I.F., that I would start eating at Noon, stop eating at 8pm, then fast for 16 hours. (This is probably the most popular method). So - this is the method I went with and girrrrl it was rough haha. 

Is Intermittent Fasting Healthy?

YES. YES. YES. Like I mentioned before, a lot of us are already DOING it. Studies have shown that even people who fast every OTHER DAY still lost 2.5% of their initial body weight and 4% of their initial body fat percentage over the course of 22 days. (Study here). 

That's 3 weeks!! 

When we fast, our levels of HGH (human growth hormone) sky rocket - which is a GREAT thing! When our levels of HGH go up, we are more likely to experience weight loss, increased energy, increased mental clarity, improved sleeping patterns and a stronger immune system...just to name a few. 

Also while fasting, our insulin sensitivity improves which is always a plus because when our insulin levels are LOW, access to our fat storages is HIGHER.

Studies also show that fasting reduces inflammation within the body, it may reduce LDL's (unhealthy cholesterol), (study) supports brain health by increasing a brain hormone called BDNF and also may help prevent Alzheimer's (study). 

Moral of the story - YES, INTERMITTENT FASTING is HEALTHY, and SAFE, for the most part.

The only time someone should avoid I.F. is if they are trying to become pregnant and are having problems with fertility, or if they are pregnant or breast feeding. Also if someone has had serious eating disorders in the past then it's probably not a good idea to do I.F.

Also - if you have diabetes or low blood sugar then fasting would not be ideal for you.

Anyway! You can drink coffee or tea, work out and take certain medications WHILE fasting but always talk to your doctor first. Personally, I would drink a small coffee in the am with some almond milk and that would get me through my workout! 

Although - "work out" is a relative term. I know my body so I pushed myself to MY personal limit, and if I felt like I was getting too low on blood sugar to be doing a tough workout, then I would opt for a hike instead. 

Always do feel what feels right for YOU and not what other people say they do or say is "right" or "wrong". You don't want to take the risk of passing out during an exercise, right? RIGHT. 

More of The Benefits

You might be wondering the same thing that I was before I started which was - Does I.F. slow down my metabolism?? I mean, there's so many people out there who are stuck on the idea that WE MUST eat every couple of hours and we can never skip breakfast or we'll go to hell soooo what's the deal??

I learned that studies have actually showed that short-term fasting BOOSTS metabolism (study), but longer fasts (like 3 days or more) can slow it down (study). 

While fasting your cells also undergo repair, you eat less, you lose weight, and have the opportunity to try and help prevent yourself from cancer! WINNING. 

Okay so like, where the fuck do you even start right?

Here. 

How to actually DO Intermittent Fasting. 

Like I said before you can do the 16 hour fast where you just pick 8 hours in the day where you will be eating. It doesn't have to be Noon - 8:00pm, it can be 10:00am - 6:00pm, or whatever, just do something that work best with your sched. (This is where I messed up lol, we'll get into that). 

The other 2 popular ways to practice intermittent fasting are:

1. Mini Fasts - This is what I like to call them. This means that you fast for 24 hours once or twice a week. My only suggestion with this is, don't do it on a busy day when you have like 899 things going on. Do it on a day where you're going to be alone and unbothered so that you can be in control and not go all hangry on someone. 

2. The 5:2 Method - This is where you eat normally for 5 consecutive days, and then for the last 2 days, you consume 500-600 total calories for the day. 

1 FOR SURE WAY iNTERMITTENT FASTING WILL NOT WORK:

At the end of the day, this isn't magic. No one has figured out how you can have your cake and eat it too MEANING, during the hours that you ARE eating, you still need to be reasonable with your caloric intake. 

The big reason that IF works is because you are on a CALORIE RESTRICTION. If you just don't eat for 16 hours and then go and eat even MORE calories during your 8 hour time window than you would on a normal day - then you will not lose weight. You might even gain weight lol. 

So be smart about it. 

Start with the 16 hour method and see how it goes. If you get to a point where that no longer feels challenging to you or your results have plateaued, then try the Mini Fasts, then move on to trying the 5:2 method. 

An even less direct way to begin 'fasting" would be to just skip dinner or breakfast if you aren't hungry! 

My Intermittent Fasting Results:

Hokay - soooooo. I think alternating days of fasting will be something that I try nextt!! Because the 16 hour back to back fasting didn't really do it for me BECAUSE my schedule is so insane. 

For most people the fasting is somewhat easy because they eat dinner around 8 and hit bed around 10 or 11pm like a normal person, and then get up at like 8 or 9 and then only have a few hours of conscious fasting. 

ME ON THE OTHER HAND. I work until 12 or 1am and then have to wake up at 5:30am, train someone at 7, then go to school from 8am-11am, and then workout from 11am - noon AND THEN I would try to break my fast. 

LOL. 

Guuurl.

My Intermittent Fasting Schedule:

Day 1 : I didn't get a coffee and wanted to die during my workout, then went home and had the biggest salad in the universe with 2 pieces of chicken. I was full for literally HOUUUURS, Like did not get hungry again until maybe 6:30pm? At which point I realized I had under 2 hours to eat before I had to start it all over again. 

Day 2: Woke up at 5:30 after closing last night and went straight to starbucks for a small capp. Felt better today but still noticed really low energy throughout the morning. I had the same chicken salad for lunch again and then wanted to take a nap because I just felt SO tired but I managed to pull through. 

Day 3: Same ish, different day...except, I actually wasn't starving at noon so I ended up not even breaking my fast until like 1:30! This was nice because then I let myself eat until later in the evening. I personally enjoyed some wine and included those calories in on MyFitnessPal to make sure I was still in my 1,200-1,400 calorie range for the day. I also noticed by day 3 that my stomach was flatter and my waist felt smaller.

Day 4: Started to realize I hate intermittent fasting this way haha. Also realized that not having anything to eat for 16 hours after 2 glasses of wine was a dumb idea so I caved on this morning and bought a Power Crunch Bar. I almost felt like it didn't even do anything haha. 

Day 5: I waited until noon to eat and then I decided that I didn't want to fast anymore so I don't know when my last meal was on this day. 

Basically what I learned was that:

1. My schedule is too insane right now to be doing the 16 hour fasting. 

2. I would eat such a big meal at lunch that I would end up having a smaller dinner which would screw me over because then I would end up eating MUCH less than what I wanted to which is why the mornings were so difficult. 

3. I wasn't prepared with snacks at school for when my fast broke. Honestly, I didn't bring them because I knew that if I felt like I was super hungry around 10:00am and I knew I had a bar in my backpack, I would have eaten it haha so it was better for me to not even bring it. 

All in all i'm really happy that I gave this another shot and that I was able to learn SO much more about it along the way. I'm still super interested in the benefits of IF which is why you'll see me on Instagram over the next few weeks playing around with Mini Fasts :)

Try intermittent fasting and let me know what you think!

Until next time!!!

XXXX

CBD OIL (& NO, IT DOESN'T GET YOU HIGH).

I walked into Kreation stressed, high anxiety, running late for work AND had a ridiculously painful situation going on with one of my floating ribs...(google it).

I think I was originally going in to get their "Enhance" Maca root drink that I love to buy when I feel like treating myself but that day when I walked in there I saw that they had a water drink with CDB oil.

I didn't really know what CBD oil was but there was a picture of Marijuana on it and it said that it relieves pain and anxiety so it wasn't hard to figure out. I grabbed one, (FOR 14 EFFING DOLLARS) and went on my way to work. 

I had one sip, it kinda smelled like weed, taste wasn't bad though, and figured it probably wasn't going to really do anything. 

I think I finished it like an hour later and hadn't really been paying attention to the way I was feeling until I found myself in a SUPER chill mode. It seemed like everyone around me was stressed and running around and I was just kind of floating through my shift, light hearted, good mood, far from having any stress or anxiety. 

AND my back wasn't bothering me as bad. I wouldn't say the pain totally went away but it wasn't aching anymore. 

That was basically all it took and I was hooked!

I got one the next day and wanted to slap myself for spending another ridiculous amount on a DRINK but I was in a 'spending money phase' and kindaaaa didn't totally care.

Once again, I felt amazing and I knew I had to find a way to get this oil. 

It's only sold at dispensaries and I don't smoke so I don't have my card but luckily I work with someone who does and I asked her to check her spot next time to see if they had this CBD oil. Sure enough the next day she came in with this little gem for a total of 35 bucks. WAY better deal compared to my Kreation purchases. 

Okay so let's talk about what CBD oil actually is for a second.

It's one of the compounds found in Marijuana aside from THC which is the main compound that gives you the feeling of being high. But apparently the CBD oil is the part that holds a lot of the actual benefits of Marijuana. 

You can get the oil the way that I got it or you can buy creams depending on what you're using it for. The cremes have been used to help with acne and fibromyalgia by applying it to the problem area and I've heard AMAZING things about these products.

Apparently when my friend had the worst cramps ever, she applied the cream to her lower back and within 5 minutes she felt insanely better. I haven't tried this for myself but I think it might be the next trick for helping me with all my back pain. 

The oil has also been shown to help people reduce the amount of cigarettes they smoke, and it helps people from suffering from post traumatic stress disorder by reducing their stress and anxiety but also giving them mental clarity. 

Other benefits include helping with insomnia, Crohn's Disease, schizophrenia and mad cow disease. 

For me personally, I just have it handy in case I need a little help falling asleep, need to RRELAX or if I'm having some muscle soreness. 

I've noticed that this one I have now makes me a little sleepy but apparently you can buy different strains of CBD. Some will be more useful for knocking out than others so it's definitely something to keep in mind when you're looking!

I also don't need to take the entire serving which is one full dropper. I have about 5 drops under my tongue and notice that I start chillin out within 30 minutes or so. 

I've also heard that you can go get massages with CBD oil which just sounds like a dream come true so I'm the look out for that here in LA, if you know of a spot let me know!

So it's something to look into! 

Have you guys tried it? Let me know how it helps you!

THE ASICS EVENT EXPOSED.

Ah finally time for some details on this past weekend.

I couldn't wait to share this with you guys because it was probably the coolest even I've ever been to. The production and the planning behind it all was INSANE. 

They said that they spent over 6 months planning for our first run! That doesn't even include finding influencers to invite, finding the hotel, the lunch, dinner and after party locations and so on. 

Basically the event was put on my Asics to promote their new shoe that is coming out in just a few weeks! But they also teamed up with SMSB to promote the WELLNESS that comes along with running. 

They wanted to remind us that running is supposed to be FUN. You're allowed to enjoy yourself and you don't have to be so uptight when you hit the pavement. 

#RUN4ADVENTURE was the hashtag of the weekend and that is definitely the kind of running that we did. 

So to start off the adventure, ASICS had a driver come swoop me up from the Valley and take me to the ACE HOTEL in DTLA. 

I came to found out that I was SUPER lucky for being able to arrive at the event the day of when I was later meeting girls from South Korea and Germany who were saying that they had to get the event a few days before hand so that they could try to adjust to the time change!

I checked in and fell in and immediately fell in LOVE with my hotel room. My boyfriend and I actually decided that we want the layout of our room at our new apartment to be very similar so WE'LL SEE HOW THAT GOES. 

Not to mention, I'm a verrrrry big fan of working and chillin at hotels. So once I got there I settled right in. I organized the room with all of MY shit, put on the rob, opened the windows, and got to blogging and taking pictures. 

UHHHH I NEED LIKE A BILLION OF THESE, ANY SUGGESTIONS ON WHERE TO GET ONE?

I posted up here for a while and wrote my last blog about maca root powder which you definitely need to check out if you haven't already. 

I've been putting it in my iced coffee in the morning with almond milk and the energy I get is UNREAL.

Around 5:00 pm there was about 40 of us plus staff that were lining up to get on four different buses that would each drop us off somewhere different in Downtown LA. 

This is kind of where we found out that this run wasn't any normal old boring run. 

We we're basically on a hunt, and who we thought were random people strolling the city, were actually in on it. It seemed like every corner we turned there was a random person that would rush us off the sidewalk, down a flight of stairs and into an abandoned underground building. 

(The whole time I was just wondering how the marketing team at Asics was able to even contact the people that owned these buildings, they seriously seemed ancient!).

We were being chased out of buildings, up stairs, up hills and were basically forced to get in a solid 5 mile run. 

Every detail was insanity. They had a woman who was like our next "pit stop" that was dressed up in clothes from the 20's sitting on an old school car, at our next pit stop they had a woman on stilts, then they had a tap dancer in an ally, plus magicians and "gangsters" underground just waiting for us to arrive. 

I just felt like it showed a lot about Asics as a brand and the amount of work that they are willing to put into something to make sure they we had an adventure while running. They made sure that we had fun and the amount of work they put into a 1 hour run for us definitely didn't go unnoticed. 

The rest of the days spent there included one more run, beautiful views from Perch in Downtown LA then of course lots of delicious food and drinks. This gave us downtime from the activities just time to really get to know these people that came together from all over the nation. 

THESE STRAWBERRIES WERE MY DINNER. HA, I LEGIT COULD NOT STOP.

On my last morning there, my boyfriend met up with me and of course we did what any normal person would do in a hotel on a sunday morning. 

We ordered breakfast, I ate in bed in my robe and enjoyed my latte then we took some pictures and bolted out of there for a last minute apartment appointment in the valley. 

(We're getting ready to move in March soooo pray for us! Haha, it's our first place together and I'm SOO excited!). 

Overall, the event was incredible. It reminded me that it's fun to get outside and to stop stressing over working out. Make an effort to sweat daily and you're good. You don't have to kill yourself every time you exercise and you don't have to get down on yourself for missing a day. 

ALSO - I was happy to hear that they were stressing the importance of meditation and yoga even if you only consider yourself to be a runner.

Whatever your thing may be, it is important to take those few minutes to yourself first thing in the morning and clear your mind. 

Well, I'm off to yoga then I'm spending the rest of the day organizing and looking for apartments!!

Leave your comments below !

XX

THE DRUGSTORE ITEM THAT YOU SHOULD BE USING 3X'S A WEEK

Seriously? Who knew that the Ralph's 10 steps away from my house was holding on to this little treasure??

Because I sure as hell didn't. Today we're talking Epsom salts.

But first, can I set the mood for you right now because it is pretttty vibey. 

It's raining (STILL WTF) but I kinda love it because I don't need to leave the house today. My candles are lit, NFL Playoffs are on, and I just made some Macha Coffee with Almond milk.

SO right after I write this I think I'm going to make my way over to Ralphs to get some Epsom salt because after reading about all the benefits, I just want my life to revolve around this ish. 

Maybe I'll Postmates it because I'm kinda over getting slapped in the face with wind and rain for the time being. 

Alright so, do any of you guys take Epsom salt baths? When I go apartment hunting next month I think my top two MUST HAVES are going to be, a nice white kitchen...and a big bath tub because I feel a Epsom salt habit coming on. 

It first came up the other day when i was at work and the other cocktail server that I work with was saying that she couldn't wait to get home, have a glass of wine, and soak her feet in an Epsom salt bath. 

We had NOTHING going on in the bar so I decided to get in to it. I was asking her why use Epsom, if she really thinks it helps, how it helps blah blah blah. 

She said that especially after working a shift where we of course standing and walking around for 8+ hours, it's like an orgasm for your feet. 

She said that it seriously helps relieve soreness and a shit ton of other things. 

She also said they have scented ones and that she buys the lavender one which made me even more excited...(I know I'm getting older when I start to actually appreciate the smell of lavender.)

I ended up looking into it this morning and these are just SOME of the other benefits that Epsom salt apparently has:

• RELAXES THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
• CURES SKIN IRRITATIONS
• SOOTHES BACK PAIN AND ACHING LIMBS (yes please!!)
• EASES MUSCLE STRAINS
• HEALS CUTS
• TREATS COLDS AND CONGESTION
• REMOVES TOXINS FROM THE BODY 
• EASES STRESS

Like what?? I feel like this is the best possible spa day, all in one. 

So what exactly Is Epsom Salt?

Well first of all, it's actually not a salt. It's a natural occurring pure mineral compound made up on magnesium and sulfate. Magnesium is a supplement that some people take as a natural way to relax as it calms down the nervous system AND it is easily absorbed by the skin soooo just imagine that relaxation for a second. 

Sulfate is ALSO very easily absorbed by the skin and it's benefits are that it helps flush toxins, relieve migraine headaches and actually IMPROVE the absorption of nutrients. 

Amazing right? I swear, I find one vital piece of taking a spa like bath and it makes me want to go buy more candles and bath bombs and wine just to take it to that level. 

(I'm 100% doing all of that by the way, HA!)

Okay, let's look at some more of the benefits and how they actually work:

1. EASES STRESS AND RELAXES THE BODY 

When we stress out whether it's over running late to work or missing a dead line, or realizing that it's Tuesday and we didn't record The Bachelor last night....

our adrenaline obviously rises but what we might not know is that our magnesium decreases. By taking a bath with Epsom salt, our skin is absorbing all of that yummy magnesium which helps produce serotonin which is like a mood elevating hormone. 

Magnesium ALSO helps increase our ATP levels which is like the energy in our cells so these baths also are shown to helps increase energy and stamina. 

2. CRAMP AND MUSCLE PAIN REDUCER

Um, yes? I feel like 80% of my life is me either cramping or trying to get my boyfriend to rub my feet. Pour 2 cups of a lavender salt into warm water and just SOAK. Don't forget your wine. 

3. HELPS PREVENT HARDENING OF ARTERIES AND BLOOD CLOTS

I'm only in my mid twenties but I feel like I pay pretty close attention to the reality of heart attacks and what we can all do to avoid them. Obviously working out helps avoid heart attacks because it keeps the blood circulating and keeps the heart strong. 

Then of course eating plant based foods and avoiding un healthy fatty, fried foods plays a critical role but if I can just lay in a tub and let something else do the work, I'M IN. 

4. RELIVES CONSTIPATION

Interesting? But if you've ever been bloated and in the world tiniest cocktail dress... then I'm sure you're willing to try anything. Taken internally, epsom salts create more water in the intestines and relieve constipation ALTHOUGH you should consult a doctor before consuming any!

5. ELIMINATES TOXINS FROM THE BODY

The sulfates in epsom salt help remove toxins and heavy metals from the cells which helps ease muscle pain AND allows the body to let go of harmful substances. If you want to detoxify, try soaking 3 times a week for 10 minutes at a time in warm water with two cups of Epsom salt. 

Also feel free to add a cup of olive oil or baby oil for smooth skin!

Leave any other tips you have below! 

XX - Chelsey