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Summary
On episode 334 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan sits down with Brian Gryn, a personal trainer and health coach of over 10 years who fell into intermittent fasting while managing his own body fat, then wrote the Simple Intermittent Fasting Journal because he couldn't find a guide to walk people through it.
Brian argues that intermittent fasting isn't about eating less, it's about eating within a smaller window while your body learns to run on stored body fat for fuel. The easier that transition goes, the more the quality of food eaten during the window matters: real, whole foods and natural fats make the fast far easier to sustain than refined carbs and sugar.
The conversation covers practical tips for getting started: pushing breakfast back an hour at a time, staying busy on fasting days, drinking water and black coffee or tea, handling hunger pangs and headaches with a pinch of salt, and not overloading the eating window once it opens.
Links
- https://briangryn.com
- Episode 634 – How to get lifelong health and vitality with Brian Gryn
Key Takeaways
- Intermittent fasting is about a smaller eating window, not eating less. Brian and Allan both stress that total calorie intake during the feeding window still needs to be adequate; the body simply gets its fuel across fewer hours instead of grazing all day.
- Ketosis often leads people into fasting naturally. Allan explains that once his body adapted to burning fat for fuel, hunger dropped off on its own, which is what pulled him into an intermittent fasting routine without planning it.
- Food quality during the eating window determines how easy the fast is. Real, whole foods that “expire,” natural fats like avocado, olive oil, coconut oil, and butter keep you fuller longer and don't spike insulin the way refined carbs and sugar do.
- The two biggest reasons people fast are fat loss and increased energy. Brian points out that when the body isn't diverting blood to digest a meal, people often feel sharper and more energetic later in the day rather than crashing after lunch.
- Ease into it gradually. Brian's own approach was pushing breakfast back an hour at a time rather than jumping straight into a restricted eating window, the same step by step method built into his 21 day journal.
- Manage hunger and headaches with simple tools. A pinch of Himalayan salt in water, black coffee, or tea can ease headaches and hunger pangs, and staying busy keeps your mind off food during the fasted hours.
- Don't overload the eating window once it opens. Both Brian and Allan note that people expect to need three meals crammed into their window, but the body typically doesn't want that much food once it adjusts.
- You don't need to stop exercising to start fasting. Allan says the first few days of any new protocol (fasting, keto, even changing your diet type) can feel hard, but training can continue unless there are blood sugar issues.
- Check with a doctor first if you're diabetic, pregnant, or on medication. Both agree fasting has real benefits but isn't a protocol for everybody, and medical guidance should come before starting.
“No one makes money when you fast.”
Brian Gryn
