Kill Breakfast

I don’t eat breakfast, I workout on a “empty” stomach, and my first meal starts around 2pm — would you believe I’m trying to gain muscle?

Growing up, I rarely ate breakfast, much to the dismay of… well, everyone. You see, it’s generally accepted that eating a balanced breakfast is a staple of a healthy diet and, more importantly, crucial in nailing standardized tests. As I grew older and wiser, a big, tasty breakfast became a key in my diet and eventual weight gain.

Once I hit the weight I wanted to maintain, however, I started looking for ways to improve my body composition without sacrificing strength gains and too much thinking.

Enter the Leangains Diet

The Leangains Diet, created by Martin Berkhan, is an intermittent fasting protocol that uses a 16-hour fast and a 8-hour feeding window that ideally begins after your workout. Since I workout between 1-2pm, my feeding window is typically from 2-10pm. Then, I’ll sleep through my fasting state and skip all meals until my first meal the next day, at 2pm. During my fast, I’ll also be sure to drink plenty of water and – in lieu of breakfast – matcha green tea.

Leangains can be used to achieve almost any aesthetic goal. While the name “lean gains” describes how the fasting protocol can help you gain muscle without a lot of fat, Leangains is more commonly used for fat loss and body recomposition.

[Check out the Leangains Guide for full details.]

Thoughts

Call me crazy, but I love being in a fasted state. I feel more alert, more productive (because I’m not using time to eat), and more focused. Yes, there are slight hunger pangs, but a lot of it has to do with the habit of eating at certain times.

People often say, “I can’t do that. I’ll get too hungry.” While fasting isn’t for everyone, you’ll be surprised what you can do if you try. One thing that helps is to realize people go without food all the time. Fasting is also common in different cultures – during Ramadan, Muslims refrain from eating and drinking liquids from sunrise to sunset.

Chances are, you won’t lose your mind.

More Resources

There’s a lot of information on intermittent fasting, as well as different fasting protocols than just Leangains. When I was in Korea, for example, I lost over 5kg while hitting personal records in my back squat, bench press, and deadlift by using Eat Stop Eat, which is a 24-hour fast.

Check out these links for more information:

Martin Berkhan and Intermittent Fasting: Interview by Leigh Peele

Intermittent Fasting 101 by John Romaniello.

Eat Blog Eat by Brad Pilon, the creator of Eat Stop Eat

Experiments with Intermittent Fasting by Dr. John Berardi, a detailed guide behind the science and mechanics of fasting

Intermittent Fasting 101 – How to Start Burning Fat by Mike O’Donnell

Intermittent Fasting Seminar by Dr. John Berardi. Watch all parts.

Don’t try intermittent fasting without doing research to make sure this is right for you. I tried it recently, enjoyed the benefits, and wanted to provide some information about how it works. Enjoy!

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