OMAD a lifestyle approach
There is an apparent consensus about OMAD (one meal a day) among us users: They experience more energy than they ever felt before. For this, there is an obvious scientific explanation which validates OMAD as more than a weight control regimen. OMAD is a lifestyle approach with multiple benefits that would result in good health, longevity, and physical stamina.
Shortly after I started my own regimen back in 2009, I noticed an increase in stamina. In fact, I began to crave my workouts, so I increased the duration and demand of my routines. Never before in my life did I enjoy working out before I started OMAD. I thought I was motivated by my initially rapid decline in body weight. It could not be just the fasting alone, I thought. It had to be the fact that I was lighter. It had to be the fact that I was eating fewer calories compared when having 3 meals. Whatever the explanation might have been, I began doing pushups and weight lifting to increase the calorie burning that seems to be working well. My only issue with my regimen was that I was not losing fast enough! So at times, I felt I needed to increase my physical stamina.
It was not the pushups
The pyramid approach to doing pushups surprised and delighted me. Never in my life, I would have imagined myself capable of doing hundreds of pushups in a daily routine. Further, I thought that my pushups kept me in high spirits and motivation to push the limits of endurance and intensity. In fact, the pushup pyramid approach is a variation of HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) which has been shown to have benefits on body weight loss, among other benefits. During this period, I kept telling my wife all about doing pushups and how beneficial it was because it made me feel great.
Only more recently, and almost by accident, I began to learn about intermittent fasting and OMAD in particular. Yes, I was an OMAD user for years, before I learned that it was “a thing”. With this knowledge came the understanding of the physiology involved in losing weight and increased in stamina. So here it is, the scientific explanation:
How does OMAD increase stamina
There are several reasons, so let’s discuss them one by one.
- 1. OMAD reduces sugar addiction. Sugar and carbohydrates make you sluggish and less inclined to exercise. This might be why obese people, like I was, prefer the couch over the track
- 2. OMAD reduces daily Insulin secretion. Insulin spikes every time we eat. The spike is larger with the carbohydrate content of the meal (or snack), and what is worse, it keeps us hungry for more food.
- 3. OMAD and exercise before breaking fast deplete blood glucose and glycogen stores. Consequently, our bodies begin to make use of our body fat stores for energy. Lipid metabolism is far more efficient in using energy. In essence, we train our bodies to use this inexhaustible source of energy deposited around our waist.
- 4. Low insulin levels with OMAD encourages the production of Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and Testosterone. Both these hormones favor the growth of our muscular tissues, which in turn increases our stamina and energy burning capacity.
OMAD users develop more stamina
Is it any wonder we get a more energetic body when all we can muster before was to go from the dining room to the couch? Armed with this knowledge, we can change our lives. I have seen the same effect in my wife, which recently adopted OMAD and now keeps me behind when we hike and challenges me in the tennis court like never before. My younger brother claims to be able to hike like he has not done since he was in his teens and twenties. I was never was an athlete, not anywhere near that. However, OMAD has made me a different person, so I have no plans to change what I consider to be my new lifestyle. I prefer to keep this energy, I just love it!
