<aside> <img src="/icons/light-bulb_blue.svg" alt="/icons/light-bulb_blue.svg" width="40px" /> How to take it that one step further...

Get super spongey

Fasting alone increases insulin sensitivity, meaning you’re more sensitive to the nutrients you take in. Exercising also increases insulin sensitivity, and so too does dark chocolate!

Consuming dark chocolate in your post workout meal “turns your muscles into giant sponges that will absorb and use anything and everything you give them.” – an extract from Ross Edgley’s ‘The World’s Fittest Book’.[39]

So, should you consume dark chocolate in your post workout meal, you’ll already be pretty spongey.

Should you work out at the end of your fast following up with this post workout meal, now we’re getting super spongey!

Apple extender

A personal favourite of mine, especially when on a cut... when the time comes to break your fast, break it with an apple.

An apple will replenish the glycogen stores in your liver and give you a feeling of fullness to extend your fast, with its high fibre content.

This may give you just what you need to string out your fast for an hour or two.

You can also combine it with some dark chocolate to increase insulin sensitivity and supply a boost of caffeine!

For those seeking a calorie deficit, this can be an especially great option.

Extended fasting

Extended fasting covers fasts greater than 24 hours long.

Although it requires a different approach to intermittent fasting, a lot of the key information carries over into longer fasts.

See Extended Fasting 60h+ (My Strategy) for my full strategy

</aside>