Intermittent fasting & performance: The iFast clinical trial protocol

Abstract

There is increasing evidence from animal and human studies suggesting that fasting can play a role in disease prevention, weight control and longevity. However, few studies have compared exercise performances in individuals adhering to an intermittent fasting (IF) in comparison to individuals who are not. Given the rising popularity of IF we aim to investigate whether this type eating pattern will improve cardiovascular performance over a period of 12 weeks through VO 2 max measurements in participants from a Lebanese community. Additionally, we will study the variation of different health parameters, physical performance and biomarkers potentially affected by IF. Participants will be recruited from a large university community and randomized into 4 arms. Baseline information will be collected from all participants, which includes biological, physical, nutritional, medical and psychological data. Two arms will follow a time-restricted fasting diet with and without physical exercise, one arm will exercise without fasting, and one will act as a control group. Throughout the study, measurements will be repeated, and data analysis will follow to evaluate results.

Intermittent Fasting: Does It Affect Sports Performance? A Systematic Review

“…Regarding muscular strength and power, eight included studies that evaluated muscular strength through maximal strength and endurance strength tests and power through peak power (PPO) and average power (W) [ 10 , 14 , 18 , 19 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. Finally, regarding body composition and health, we included the 15 studies that evaluated any body composition variable such as body fat mass, lean mass, and anthropometric folds [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 14 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 21 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 28 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ].…”

Intermittent Fasting: Does It Affect Sports Performance? A Systematic Review

“…included the 15 studies that evaluated any body composition variable such as body fat mass, lean mass, and anthropometric folds[10][11][12][13]15,[17][18][19][20]23,[25][26][27][30][31][32][33].…”