Vegan Intermittent Fasting: Lose Weight, Reduce Inflammation, and Live Longer - The 16:8 Way - With over 100 Plant-Powered Recipes to Keep You Fuller Longer: ... Recipes to Keep You Fuller Longer

by Petra Bracht

This complete vegan guide to 16:8 fasting offers tried and true strategies to living healthier—and longer

Intermittent fasting is one of the easiest ways to achieve better health—period. But for those of us who follow a vegan diet, finding the balance between plant-based eating and intermittent fasting can prove challenging.In Vegan Intermittent Fasting, groundbreaking doctor Petra Bracht and recipe developer Mira Flatt share their completely plant-based program. You’ll unlock all the benefits of fasting while still eating the foods you love (without feeling hungry).Evidence-based 16:8 Eat 2 or 3 times over 8 hours (say, 11:00 am to 7:00 pm), then fast for 16 hours (including time spent asleep, of course).A complete guide to the first 14 Delicious recipes for every meal, plus a comprehensive shopping list, make it easy to adapt your lifestyle.Guided You’ll boost your fasting plan’s effectiveness while building endurance, power, muscle control, and flexibility.Vegan intermittent fasting is an easy and sustainable way to improve your whole-body well-being.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Food, Cookbooks

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 22, 2020

Reviews

[Amanda Rahimian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t do this often with cookbooks but I actually read this one cover to cover. My husband looked over and exclaimed “are you reading recipes for FUN?” 😆 Anyways, I’m torn about this book. There were many positives but then a few major drawbacks for me. I’d rate this book a solid 3.5 ⭐️.

Firstly, I love that this book provides daily exercises you can (and should) do in order to fix most major body pain. Amazing! Another plus- the food looks yummy and pretty simple. Following the plan will definitely get you eating whole plant foods which is ideal! And finally, the information section at the beginning of the book had some interesting facts.

Now moving on to the negatives: firstly, none of the recipes look nearly filling enough. To cook for my husband, toddler, and myself, I would probably have to do quadruple batches. That’s fine and doable but then with the plan, you are cooking something vastly different for every meal on every single day! I already spend a lot of time cooking and that’s with oatmeal every breakfast and usually leftovers every lunch. I’m not sure where I’d find the time to realistically follow the 14-day plan proposed in this book. Secondly, there is a lot of misinformation in this book. Dr. Valter Longo, the leading expert in this field, states that the actual term is actually “time restricted eating”, not intermittent fasting. Anything less than 24 hours is not actually fasting and this is therefore a misleading terminology and title for the book. He also states that it is not healthy to restrict food for more than about 12 hours at a time on a regular basis. It could lead to some serious health complications such as gallstone formation and even removal of the gallbladder. Also higher rates of cancer and cardiovascular disease are problematic when abstaining from food for periods longer than 12 hours. He recommends a 12 hour window for time restricted eating to be the most optimal. The ironic thing about all of Dr. Longo’s recommendations is that the author specifically references him in the book for the leading expert he is in the field. Another irony in the book is with oil. The author specifically states that drastically reducing or eliminating meat, dairy, and oil from your diet is the healthiest possible way to eat and will significantly decrease risk of disease, but then a large portion of the recipes in this book contain oil, and even a lot of oil. I can easily cut sauté oil out of a recipe but I tend to skip cookbooks when they call for measurements in cup ratios in dressings and sauces and such. Many of the recipes here are plain veggies or salads topped with a 1/4 cup or more of oil as a dressing.

I still haven’t decided if I will actually keep this book or return it yet. I’m leaning towards keeping it and then modifying the meal plan, eliminating the oil in each recipe, and restricting food for 12 hours rather than 16... It’s a lot of tweaks to make this cookbook work for my family but the recipes do look tasty and much more healthful than many vegan cookbooks on the market. I’m always looking for ways to increase vegetable intake, even as a whole food plant based vegan for almost 5 years!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to start the new year. I have been eating a plant based diet for over a year and fasting for over 10 years. I agree with the author about “everyone” finally catching up to the ideas and benefits of fasting. Finally! This has:
• 77 plant based recipes
• 14 day program with everything from why we’re doing it, when we’re doing it and how we’re doing it.
• 14 day shopping list.
The book explains all the different types of fasting. When fasting was first recorded in history and all the health benefits. I found this part very informative.
Types of fasting in this book are:
• Long term- 42 days
• Therapeutic 5-7 days
• Juice
• Intermittent
Benefits talked about:
• Lowers cholesterol
• Stimulates anti-aging properties
• Normalizes blood sugar levels
• Retards cancer cells
• Aids in hormonal balance
There is well explained pictures of the various exercises and many of the food recipes.
I really loved this and if you’re looking for a great resource for plant based and fasting, then I highly recommend this.
I’m definitely going to get my own physical copy of this for my family.

Thank you The Experiment Publisher via Netgalley for this ARC. I’ve voluntarily given my honest review.

[Renee McCallion · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first 60 pages is all education. I have been vegan for almost 5 years and learned a great deal about the science behind whole foods, ketons, insulin, arginine, the autophagy process, as well as other aspects our bodies go through when digesting & fasting. She also does a great job describing what happens to our bodies when animal products are consumed.
Following the stretches and movement section, there are about 10 pages worth of help to get started and how to accommodate varying schedules to incorporate fasting. A grocery list is also provided to get started.
I began easing myself into intermittent fasting and trying the recipes listed in this book; I’ve already noticed a decrease in hunger sensations and noticed mood boosts. I borrowed this one from the library but have decided to purchase it for reference and recipes.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an extremely detailed book about vegan fasting. From outlining different types of fasting, to its benefits, to different health woes, to suggested exercises, to grocery lists, to recipes! There is so much included here. While I don't necessarily agree with multiple day fasts or juice fasts and some of the other tactics listed in this book, I appreciate that the authors of this book are relatively understanding and forgiving and suggest these lifestyle changes as steps towards a healthier lifestyle rather than mandates. (I was also pleased to see that I already follow a lot of their suggested practices!)

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Vegan Intermittent Fasting is an interesting and accessible guide to 16:8 fasting with a plant based diet written and presented by Dr. Petra Bracht and Mira Flatt. Originally released in 2018 in German, this English translation from Workman Publishing on The Experiment imprint is 288 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.

Most everyone understands (often from personal experience) that our bodies have different nutritional needs at different stages of our lives and that our metabolisms function differently at different times of day. I would say the majority of readers have experienced the sluggishness that comes after a very late night (possibly with the additional intake of alcohol) when a 4am trip to Taco Bell seems like a great idea. This book explains how our bodies need different fuel at different times of day, and more importantly how to use those metabolic differences to feel better, reduce inflammation, and lose weight.

The author has an accessible and easy to understand style of writing. There is a lot of common sense knowledge borne of long experience with nutritional medicine contained here. That the author is enthusiastic and knowledgeable is clear. As a scientist, I was admittedly uncomfortable occasionally with the enthusiastic disparagement of the scientific community as a whole (yes, we're hidebound and take ages to test and retest before changing our opinions, but that comes from a place of caution and safety). With that being said, the general consensus *does* seem to be shifting with every piece of corroborative evidence that avoiding eating when we "should" be sleeping does support metabolic health and wellness.

The book has a logical layout with an easy-to-read format. The book is split into parts: an expository section on intermittent fasting (at night in a 16:8 pattern), why it makes sense, what benefits can be gained, and what the metabolic reasoning is.

The second section includes a quick start program with 14 days of exercises (which even I could manage - and I'm not very physically fit), meal structures, meal plans, and shopping lists. The food is (obviously) vegan friendly. Ingredients will be readily available from most moderately well stocked grocery stores. The recipes are varied and appealing with a distinct variety of textures and colors (it's not just all green smoothies). One practical drawback of this section was that the quick-start recipes for the two week plan do NOT have direct links from the table list to the recipes themselves. I found myself flipping back and forth constantly. (Note: I received an early e-galley for review, this may well have been corrected in the final release copy).

The third section contains vegan recipes for maintenance arranged by meal: breakfasts, lunches, dinners, dessert. Recipes contain a brief description, nutritional info (calories, protein, fat, carbs), servings, and prep time. Recipe ingredients are listed bullet style in a sidebar list with American standard and metric measurements included (yay!). The step by step cooking directions are numbered sequentially and are clear and easy to follow.

The photography throughout the book is very high quality and serving suggestions are attractive and appropriate. The photography was one of the highlights of the book for me. By my rough estimate all (or nearly all) of the recipes are accompanied by clear photos. Exercise tutorials are also well photographed and easy to follow.

The notes and resources for further reading will provide hours of more in-depth background. The authors have also included a cross referenced index, recipe index, and short bio.

This would make a good selection for library acquisition, vegan eating enthusiasts, people looking for supportive and sensible weight loss ideas, or for the home library. The proselytizing is a bit distracting, but not a deal-breaker. In fact the author is most likely correct in her assertions.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

[Simone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you, Netgalley, for a complimentary copy of this book! The opinion below is entirely my own.

Puh, there was a lot of information in this book!! Petra Bracht has a nice way of explaining it all the medical concepts to a layperson. However, I was still a little overwhelmed with the sheer amount of information. I love that this book includes not only the information regarding the body, the benefits of intermittent fasting, and the importance of the 8:16 concept, but also exercises (with photos and explanations of the exercises) and a detailed 14-Day Plan with recipes and exercises to get started with intermittent fasting. I love books with recipes that contain photos of the finished dish. This book does have many recipes--in addition to those in the 14-Day Plan-- with photos and to be honest I got a bit hungry ;-) As for the recipes themselves (and given the fact that I have tried plant-based eating before, I can say that I would definitely modify some of the recipes, but that is the wonderful thing about this way of eating. You can be creative with ingredients. There are no limits to your imagination and experimentation. Overall, a really interesting book!

[Helena#bookdreamer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Excellent cook book with plenty of information on fasting and the benefits to the body. Will definitely be trying this for weight loss and maintaining a good balance with food.

[Curi A · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to read this book and then was disappointed that it was only 1/4 book reading 3/4 recipes. I don’t need recipes I’m already vegan I needed more in-depth info on fasting as a vegan. I wanted to
Figure out how to execute the fasting aspect as vegan is hard to get enough calories and to possibly lose weight or not be overly fatigued or be malnourished. Everything was really vague and not to the depth that a normal intermittent fast book would be. There is no scheduled or anything just telling you to start with 12-16 hours of fasting and doesnt help with really anything else. Only benefit is it explained the benefits for many diagnoses but really it was not what I wanted in a book that is telling people they should fast as vegans. I was just disappointed overall and wanted to intermittent fast as a vegan and waited for this book for months from the library but not sure if this book pushed me over the edge to actually decide to do it.

[Anna Sephton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find the messages in this book quite problematic. Many of the ‘menus’ in the 14 day plan add up to less than 1000 calories. If you followed this plan, you would undoubtedly lose weight but I think it would from calorie restriction, not fasting. She also says how important it is to have a protein packed dinner (agreed), however, many of the final meal of the day recipes are a low calorie, low protein salad. Day one is crudités and guacamole!! Hardly protein rich or filling. The ‘lunch’ meals are more filling. Perhaps these are meant to be the ‘dinners’?
She talks about raw vegetables being not easily digestible late at night, yet suggests many raw vegetables for the final meal as well.
On the plus side, the exercise routines seem good. The first half of the book explaining the health benefits of 16:8 are interesting and easy to read.

[Chandler Ichikawa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not enough cited medical studies, honestly feels like more of the authors opinion rather than scientifically backed information. Too much vegan propaganda. Authors goes from saying things like she’s the last person who would force anyone to eat vegan, to in the next paragraph asking readers to imagine eating their dog. One, not a very well thought out argument. Two, what the fuck? Also pushing for organic produce, which I agree, but also no commentary on how privileged you have to be to afford and source organic foods. This book is incredibly tone deaf with an author who seems to really enjoy feeling like she knows what’s best. Wanted to rate it a 1, but giving it a 2 for decent recipes.

[Cherstin Haga · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really well-thought-out book that includes science (in easy-to-understand language) as well as exercises, a shopping list, a 14-day recipe plan (with color pictures of completed recipes) as well as an additional 75 recipes to add in once you finish the 14 days.

For a beginner, there is not a better book out there to explain the medicine behind fasting as well as providing exercises and a complete daily breakdown of food, exercise, etc.

It’s a great road map and simplifies the whole process to make it easy. The shopping list is the clincher: I love it. Highly recommend!

[Pinky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Already do intermittent fasting and can't wait to try the 14-day plan outlined in this book. Like that there are suggested exercises to warm-up and pictures to show the steps. Excited to try the Turmeric Curry with Rice Noodles, the Lentil-Chocolate Chili, and the Chickpea Protein Bowl recipes. I do wish there were some more low-carb and high-protein recipes, as a lot of the recipes were carb-heavy.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the way she laid out all of the science that was really understandable. She is very optimistic and also recognizes that doctors do not get a lot of education in nutrition and don’t have to in their continuing practice. The recipes looked good but I would have to try the suggestions to see if they would be fulfilling

[Polly Krize · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Fasting in conjunction with a plant-based diet is presented here as a healthy lifestyle combined with exercise, juice fasts, etc. Well worth reading.

[Khanh Vu Kieu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Except for a good list of recipes at the end, other sections are bland, information provided is not scientifically quoted/ proven, unclear in terms of medical knowledge.

This is not a worth- reading book if you are searching for a deep understanding of intermittent fasting diet.

[Dru · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned a lot about Intermittent Fasting but still have a lot of questions. Recipes look incredible and I plan on trying quite a few of them!

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good insights. I think that any whole food plant-based diet will improve health, but intermittent fasting adds further benefits.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The recipes in here are very tasty and filling. This surprised me! The Exercises are complimentary as well. I’ve been following both almost 100% and feel great! Though I find many contradictions between the author’s scientific and medical advisements in the text compared to the recipes in the 14-day plan. I don’t recall ever reading every page of a cookbook like this one. It’s definitely well worth the read and patience in trying vegan intermittent fasting with a healthy discernment for the congruence between the science and practice!

[Rachel Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little on the hippie Dippie side for me, but still good. I also tried out some of the recipes and they were delicious and perfectly satisfying. The information is easy to digest (pun intended) and the meal plan is simple enough to modify and follow.