OMAD: 4 Questions about OMAD from beginners
Is One Meal a Day safe? Would I gain the weight lost if I stop my OMAD regimen?
Would I be hungry all the time? Isn’t breakfast the most important meal of the day? These are common questions that plague those who have seen the results in others and want to start OMAD regimen. In this video I will address these common questions, so stick around, you don’t want to miss anything.
Hello Everyone, this is Juan Sarmiento. I started my OMAD regimen in 2009. I have experienced it longer than most, including a period when I returned to 3 meals a day. Then in early 2018, I went back to OMAD as I discover the many benefits of this lifestyle. That is, One meal a day, every day of my life. Only recently has the literature on the subject of intermittent fasting exploded. Before that, I never knew why it worked, I just knew it did with little or no effort in my part. As a scientist, I discover that there is a scientific explanation to my transformation.
So let’s cover the 4 most common questions about OMAD from my perspective, as a long-time OMADer. But before I do that, please give this video a like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. And don’t forget to click on the bell, so you won’t miss anything.
1. Am I going to be hungry all the time?
OMAD is not a calorie restrictive diet, unless you choose it to be. In fact, it is recommended that you eat to satiety in your OMAD and don’t count calories. Curiously, our hunger comes in waves. They come at about the 30 min before the time we normally eat our meals. This is because the appetite hormone, Ghrelin, is secreted at these particular times as if controlled by our internal clock. This means that as we fast, our appetite does NOT progressively increase with time. If we resist the inclination to eat when we feel this “hunger”, it eventually goes away until the next meal time arrives. Our job is to get to the OMAD routine as soon as possible. Thus, Ghrelin ends up being secreted only once a day. Eating at the same time every day means that you will only feel hungry once a day.
To achieve this rhythm you may decide to go into OMAD from the start. It may be hard for the first few days, but try to maintain it for 21 days. In this short time, you will be in the habit and OMAD will be your new lifestyle. However, if you find it difficult you may start by skipping breakfast and then have your dinner a little earlier every day. Then you will get to the 18:6 approach from which OMAD becomes very easy. I believe that the alternative day fasting, for example, would be a lot more difficult. This would be because Ghrelin will always be secreted as many times as you eat in the feeding day. So you never make the transition to a single hungry time a day. Once adapted, hunger as you know it now, will become a thing of the past.
2. How could one workout without having breakfast?
This is my favorite because, even as a young man, I was never too keen on breakfast. But would we have enough energy to get through the day if we miss breakfast? Back in my mid 30’s, I was getting in shape by waking up early (5 am) and workout for 1 hour. Breakfast was really optional for me. I was onto something, but unfortunately my job conditions and locations changed and I stopped. Since 2009, with OMAD, I have been doing my workout in the early morning with an empty stomach. My performance has been unexpectedly great for me, especially in my fasted workout. The reason is that the growth hormone is inhibited by insulin, which is secreted when we eat. Growth hormone mobilizes body fat for energy and promotes glucose production from fatty acids in the liver. The liver makes us breakfast.
When we have breakfast, we are discouraging the production of growth hormone. This hormone is very important for our stamina and muscle hypertrophy. Since I started OMAD, I did not know why but I notice an increase in my physical fitness. I always thought that it was my pushup pyramid routine, but that is only partially true. Incidentally, growth hormone promotes the mobilization of fat. The generated fatty acids go to the liver where they are metabolized into ketone bodies. These ketones are the preferred form of energy for the brain, heart and muscles. Incidentally, growth hormone promotes the mobilization of fat. I skip breakfast and have my OMAD in the late morning. By the next morning, I have forced my your body to use up my glucose reserves and start mobilizing fat. We do not want to depend on glucose from our food for energy.
3. Is OMAD safe?
OMAD has been at the center of my lifestyle for 10 years. I have been doing it for consecutive days, first between 2009 and 2014 and from early 2018 until now. I have experienced no adverse effects as a direct result of my regimen. The only possible exception is that I developed gallstones in Feb. 2013, after losing much of my weight. Gallstones are associated with rapid weight loss, not just with fasting. Anyone losing lots of weight should consult their doctors. In 2013, I experienced reflective pain in my shoulder, which was not diagnosed properly. It may well be that gallstones can be prevented with sufficient fat in the diet. Please consult your doctor if you experience abdominal or shoulder pains for no apparent reason.
Other than the gallstones, my health and physical fitness have never been better, even compared to my 20’s or 30’s. I have only recently visited my doctor for a regular check up and found me in excellent health. The question of safety should be turned around and asked: is the routine of eating three meals a day safe? Considering the prevalence of diabetes and obesity in people my age, why is fasting not prescribed as a preventive measure? Keeping our insulin levels high has resulted in an obesity and diabetes epidemic in recent decades. The alternative to OMAD is simply not healthy, with or without caloric restriction.
4. Would I lose muscle mass on OMAD?
If you do it correctly, you should gain muscle mass, thanks to the secretion of Growth Hormone. To ensure that this is the case, follow this 4 basic recommendations:
Go to sleep on an empty stomach.
Do your workout in the morning, before consuming any food.
Do your workout as a high intensity interval training.
Eat adequate amounts of protein in your one meal.
With these steps you will encourage growth hormone secretion, which helps using your own body fat for energy. Fasted High intensity interval training will induce autophagy. Together with an adequate protein diet, you will encourage the healthy renewal of muscle fibers and muscle hypertrophy. Our growth hormone will help mobilize fat for Gluconeogenesis and protect your muscle mass. Then, after your meal, growth hormone will contribute to your muscle hypertrophy. A diet with sufficient amount of protein will help with muscle anabolism and a good exercise routine will stimulate muscle maintenance and growth. Fasted exercise will contribute to autophagy, will remove unwanted proteins and organelles out of your muscle fibers.
If you have a question about OMAD that have not been answer, please leave it in the comments below. Those questions of general interest might make it to the next video, so don’t hesitate to post you question. Over the years I have found many surprises in the scientific literature about OMAD. I will keep you up-to-date with these videos about the developments in science about OMAD.
Want to see my transformation over the years? Go to this link:
