Intermittent Fasting in the 20:4 Rhythm – How Effective Is It?

Intermittent fasting, for example, after the 20:4 rhythm , is now part of the basic repertoire of a healthy diet for many. There is often talk of positive effects on health and effective weight loss. However, so-called intermittent fasting or short intermittent fasting is not about a kind of healing fast or a diet for rapid weight loss.

Instead, it is a form of nutrition in which daily fasting periods are integrated into the daily diet. The pounds do not tumble as quickly as with a crash diet, but this can prevent the dreaded yo-yo effect, which can benefit you in terms of weight loss in the long term. In this article, we take a look at the effects of intermittent fasting in a 20:4 rhythm on your health and how you can integrate the diet into your everyday life.

Fasting in rhythm 20 to 4

If you have already dealt with intermittent fasting, you will have noticed one thing: there are countless variants of it. Some fans of intermittent fasting only eat every other day, while others fast daily for a period of time. Intermittent fasting in a rhythm of 20 to 4 is one of the latter.

The meal time is limited to a period of four hours. The remaining 20 hours form the fasting interval in which no calories are consumed. Four hours is a relatively short time for your meals. Adequate planning is therefore recommended in order to consume all the important nutrients.

The significant advantage of this slightly more extreme form of intermittent fasting is that the eating phase is so short that your calorie intake will be significantly reduced . This, in turn, can help you reduce your body fat by being in a calorie deficit – that is, eating fewer calories than your body would need to maintain body mass. By the way, you can calculate your needs with a calorie calculator .

In addition, the 20-hour fast ensures that your insulin levels remain stable for most of the day . For example, an unnecessary increase in body fat, which can be caused by high fluctuations in blood sugar levels, is avoided. In addition, a natural process of the body is activated more strongly, during which the cells regenerate – this is called autophagy in technical terminology.

What can bring 20 hours of fasting a day

As you can see, 20:4 intermittent fasting can have some benefits. A significant part of this, as mentioned earlier, is the reduced energy consumption . This is because the calorie deficit triggers some body processes that are beneficial to your health; provided that you provide your body with sufficient micronutrients despite the reduced amount of calories ^​1 .

The calorie deficit has the greatest effect on weight loss . On the one hand , obesity and associated diseases can be effectively prevented . On the other hand, intermittent fasting can cause you to specifically reduce your body fat percentage and thus reduce existing problems ^​2,3 .

Incidentally, the calorie deficit is not only due to the limited eating time; other factors also play a role. For example, due to the reduced fluctuations in blood sugar levels , cravings are avoided. According to some studies, the general appetite also seems to be curbed ^​4 .

But other effects of intermittent fasting also have advantages. Thus, the 20-hour fasting period stimulates fat burning. Because during the time without calories, the glucose stores are gradually used up until a new process is started after about 12 hours: the body's fat reserves are now converted into ketones ^​3 . And that is exactly the physiological basis for how weight loss can be achieved with intermittent fasting .

Last but not least, the long fasting period leads to a kind of detoxification of the body . The cells can regenerate better by accelerating the body's own recycling system , autophagy – so the body is, in a way, "detoxified" ^​5 .

Who should better refrain from intermittent fasting in a 20/4 rhythm

As many advantages as intermittent fasting has to offer, there are also some limitations. Many of them only become visible when a step away from the detail towards everyday life is taken. It is clear here that some hurdles can arise with intermittent fasting , especially if it is a slightly more extreme form, such as the 20/4 rhythm.

For example, while people who live alone and have a 9-to-5 job can adjust their rhythm at will, this is not too easy for others. Sometimes the job does not allow it; for others, social aspects stand in the way. For many families, for example, dinner is an important part of (food)culture . It is therefore important to consider whether everyday family life is compatible with this diet at all.

In any case, people who have been struggling with physical or mental illness all their lives or only recently should discuss their planned dietary change with their doctor or dietician in order to avoid complications. Eating disorders, hypoglycaemia, or feeling weak, especially in older people, can result from the prolonged period of fasting.

Practical example: This is how a fasting day can look like in a 20: 4 rhythm

Now let's look at what a healthy diet in a 20:4 rhythm could look like. For most people, it will probably be most pleasant to set the four-hour window for the meal in the middle of the day. This could be from about 11 am to 3 pm.

Eating too late is not recommended in any case, as this could potentially negate the benefits on the metabolism as well as the cardiovascular system. Based on the body's natural rhythm , called the "circadian clock," eating between eight in the morning and four in the afternoon is recommended ^​6.7​ .

Thus, a late breakfast around 11 o'clock in the morning would be optimal. Those who are already at the office at that time could benefit from meal prep breakfast . Overnight oats, for example, are suitable for this, which you can prepare the day before and easily take with you to work.

Recipe: Bircher Muesli Overnight Oats

Creamy overnight oats according to the original Bircher recipe – try it now!

Preparation time 5 min.

Cook Time 3 hrs

Total time 3 hrs 5 min.

Keyword: Overnight Oats

Servings: 1

Ingredients

• 50 g Bircher Porridge
• 120 ml (vegetable) milk or water
• Some nuts of your choice , e.g. pecans or almonds
• A little apple of your choice

Preparation

• Place the Bircher Porridge in a mason jar.
• Then add 120 ml of a liquid of your choice and mix the ingredients together well.
• Place the mason jar overnight or for a minimum of 3 hours in the fridge.
• Stir the porridge mixture well again before eating.
• When your overnight oats are nice and creamy, they're ready.
• Now you can refine your overnight oats with nuts of your choice, flaxseed or chia seeds, and an apple.

Tip

If you notice that the porridge mixture is too solid, add some more liquid.

At 1 pm, you could have your usual lunch ; two hours later , there would still be time for your third and last meal of the day . It's best to eat something that provides you with energy for a long time. For example, whole grain cereals or oatmeal are suitable. A delicious porridge with healthy nuts as a topping will provide you with complex carbohydrates and healthy fatty acids that will keep you full for a long time.

Recipe: Porridge with oat bran

Porridge with oat bran is ideal for those who want to try something new.

Preparation time 5 min.

Total time 10 min.

Keyword: Oat bran

Servings: 1

Ingredients

• 60 g oat bran
• 250 ml (vegetable) milk or water

Preparation

• Boil (vegetable) milk or water in a saucepan and add oat bran.
• Reduce the heat a little and simmer for a few minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes creamy.
• Remove from the heat and let it steep for another minute.
• Depending on the desired consistency, you can still add liquid.

Tip

Refine your porridge with toppings of your choice such as fresh fruit, nuts, or seeds (such as flaxseed or chia seeds). Of course, you can also round off your porridge with a few spoons of low-fat quark. Porridge is, of course, vegetarian – but do you want to prepare it vegan? Then – as you have seen – this is easily possible with plant-based milk alternatives.

If you still get hungry in between, you can always add some water or unsweetened tea . Both have no calories and are therefore also allowed during fasting. On the other hand, there are contradictory approaches to coffee. While black coffee is taboo for some, some experts even see caffeine consumption as beneficial.

Whether you consume black coffee , i.e. without milk and sugar, is up to you. In any case, you should not exceed the recommended maximum for caffeine, which is 200 milligrams per day. In practice, this means no more than three cups of coffee per day ^​8 .

What are other common methods for intermittent fasting?

In addition to the 20:4 method, there are a variety of other variations of intermittent fasting. In most cases, you are in a constant daily rhythm and only the daily fast varies. In some variations, however, only every other day is eaten; or the amount of calories consumed on every other day is drastically reduced.

In the latter variations, there is talk of alternate day fasting. In this diet, there are two basic variants ^​9 :

Other popular variations of intermittent fasting revolve around so-called time-restricted feeding, which also includes the 20:4 rhythm. A fasting window of the same size is maintained every day; 12 hours of fasting is the minimum. Popular variations are the following ^​10 :

For intermittent fasting, it is generally recommended to take the first meal of the day in the morning . You should also not eat the last meal of the day too late, ideally not after four o'clock in the afternoon . This is justified with the circadian rhythm, i.e. the biological, "internal clock" of the body. Accordingly, food intake is brought into line with the body's natural hormone fluctuations , which seems to reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease ^​6 .

Tips for successful intermittent fasting with the 20 to 4 method

Last but not least, we would like to give you some tips for your daily diet. In the following, we have therefore compiled a list of errors in intermittent fasting that you should better avoid :

Now we have a few valuable tips to help you get even more out of intermittent fasting:

20:4 Fasting Frequently Asked Questions

Now let's take a closer look at a few questions that keep coming up.

How much do you lose at 20:4?

The weight loss during intermittent fasting depends not only on the respective fasting protocol but also on individual factors. Accordingly, the weight loss success you can achieve with intermittent fasting methods such as the 20:4 rhythm varies. In general, you can expect a weight loss of 2.5 to 9.9 percent. For a person weighing 85 kilograms, this would be about 2 to 8.5 kilograms. It is hardly possible to give more precise values, as the customer success is subject to numerous variables. Thus, the starting weight, any mental or physical illnesses, and age play a decisive role ^​12 .

How long can you fast at 20:4?

How long you can fast after the 20:4 method is up to you. Because as long as you cover your nutrient needs sufficiently, there is no reason to end the intermittent fasting. You can therefore consider intermittent fasting as a long-term dietary change if you feel comfortable with it.

What happens when you fast for 20 hours?

The processes that are set in motion by fasting are versatile and complex. A significant change is, for example, a change in energy metabolism. If you do not eat anything that contains energy for 20 hours, your body gradually converts its energy production. After the sugar circulating in the blood is slowly broken down, your body increasingly relies on the carbohydrate stores in the liver.

After some time, it now comes to the "metabolic switch", in which your body now metabolizes more fatty acids instead of carbohydrates. This usually happens after about 12 hours of fasting. This is considered to be the basis of the observed customer success of intermittent fasting ^​13 .