Daily Intermittent Fasting

This page is dedicated to intermittent fasting methods that are based on daily fasting periods. If you want more information about intermittent fasting in general, you can read all about it here: Intermittent fasting

How daily intermittent fasting works

You can eat all your meals as usual, but only during a 10, 8 or 4-hour window every day, and you fast for either 14, 16 or 20 hours each day. Sound hard? Keep in mind that most of the fasting hours will be spent sleeping.

Here are the details of different variations:

14/10 Diet – the easiest version

The 14/10 method divides the day into a 14-hour fasting period and a 10-hour eating period. You can eat any foods you choose, although healthy options are always recommended.

To give an example of an eating schedule for the 14/10 method: You can have breakfast at 8 am, eat what you want throughout the day, and finish dinner 10 hours later at 6 pm. Only the timing of the first and last meal of the day matters, the rest is up to you. Drink water, black tea or black coffee after your last meal, no other drinks (or food) are allowed. You can eat again 14 hours later at 8 am the next day. The 14 hours you spend fasting will mostly be spent sleeping so you won’t feel too hungry.

The 14/10 method is the easiest version of intermittent fasting because it has the shortest fasting period (only 14 hours), but this also means that you will lose less weight at a slower pace.

16/8 Diet – the most popular version

The 16/8 method still divides the day into two parts, but the fasting period lasts 16 hours and the eating period lasts 8 hours. For example, you can have your first meal at 10 am and your last meal at 6 pm. If you want breakfast, you may want to have your first meal at 8 am and your last meal at 4 pm. The best part of this diet is that it’s adjustable and can fit into anyone’s schedule to suit individual habits. Eat your breakfast as early as you like with an early dinner in the afternoon, or eat a late breakfast and a late dinner. As long as you let 16 hours pass between your last meal of the day and the first meal of the following day, it’s all up to you!

This method is a little more challenging compared to the 14/10 method because the fasting period is longer, but you will still spend most of the fasting time in bed. The majority of people attempting the 16/8 diet don’t have any issues with it. You will lose more weight at a faster pace with this method.

20/4 Diet – the most challenging version

If you choose the 20/4 method, you will fast every day for a 20-hour period and eat any food of your choice during the remaining 4 hours. This is the most challenging version of intermittent fasting because you have a very short eating window and a long fasting period. You will lose a lot more weight in a shorter time compared to the other two methods, but the fasting period is so long that many people can’t handle feeling hungry for such a substantial part of the day. This method is recommended for those who have tried one of the easier methods before and want to lose a little more weight that they couldn’t lose with the other methods.

If you want more information about intermittent fasting, check out our pages about the Intermittent Fasting Diet and Weekly Intermittent Fasting.