The upgraded vegan intermittent fasting guide

Eat real food. Lift heavy weights. And skip breakfast. 

This is how the original LeanGains methodology works. 

Swedish nutritionist Martin Berkhan created this system. It focuses on 16 hours of fasting, followed by an 8-hour eating window. 

Years ago, I wanted to have a 6-pack.

It was everything I obsessed over. After years of failing to make sustainable progress, I started using principles like energy balance and resistance training, and lo and behold, I started to make progress.

This was my pre-plant-based days before I even knew there was such a thing as ‘vegan intermittent fasting’.

Then, I came across the LeanGains method.

Studies on the 16:8 method have been limited until now. A recent study found that the LeanGains system produced results similar to those of the group that did not use intermittent fasting. 

The only difference was that the group using IF lost some body fat. They were likely in a caloric deficit of about 200 k/cal per day. In contrast, the other group didn't use IF and wasn't in a deficit. 

There were also several drawbacks in this study: 

• The group studied was younger men. Most fasting studies focus on men. It's become more well-known to the general public that extended long-term fasting can harm women’s menstrual cycles. 

• It was only for 8 weeks, so it would be interesting to see a study that lasted closer to 6 months for a longer-term view. 

With that said, the LeanGains method can still be a highly effective tool in your fitness toolkit. 

Even more so if you're a plant-fueled parent over 40 who's time-strapped and busy nonstop. 

I've lifted weights for 15 years and coached for 10. I've learned a lot about what works in fitness and what is plain nonsense. 

I'll share the key strategies to maximize fat loss and muscle retention while keeping things simple.

Consistency is the name of the game here. 

What you can sustain can become permanent. 

The all-or-nothing mindset has no place here. 

Let's dive in. 

1. The original LeanGains Method

Here's the core principles of the original LeanGains Method:

1. Lift heavy weights using reverse pyramid training.

Martin was a big fan of heavy resistance training. I agree with him on this. Martin effectively cut through fitness industry nonsense and promoted RPT. Key exercises include squats, deadlifts, presses, and chin-ups. However, this method may not suit everyone. 

The main idea of lifting heavy weights is still useful. However, tactics can vary from person to person. 

2. Use 16:8 intermittent fasting. Don't eat or drink anything with calories. 

If you're familiar with IF, then you'll recognize the principle above. When you're fasting, you don't eat anything with calories. You can have coffee or water, but any calorie-containing drink breaks your fast. This usually means anything over 40 calories. 

But it shouldn't matter. If your main goal for IF is fat loss (which is 95% of people), then have some coffee during your fast. 

I stopped drinking coffee a few years ago because of its effect on the adrenal glands. But it’s your choice. 

3. Eat high-protein meals over 2-3 meals inside of your eating window. 

This is simple. You don’t have to eat a specific number of meals in your eating window. However, Martin found that 3 square meals worked best for his clients. It'll probably work out similarly for you. 

4. Train earlier if you can. Don’t train on an empty stomach. Use EAAs before and after your workout to help keep your muscles. If you train later in the day, eat afterward. 

This is personal. Some people prefer to train earlier in the day. I do. From my experience, clients who trained earlier in the day stayed more consistent for longer. 

With that said, there's nothing wrong with training later in the day. 

If you do train earlier in the morning during your fast, Martin suggests having EAA's before and after. If you train late in the day, have a post-meal afterward. 

I’ll share my thoughts on EAA’s further below.

(Warning: you won’t need to spend your cash on buying more supplements)

5. Cycle calories and macros on training and non-training days. 

This requires more nuance, which isn't great for most people (I'll explain below). You cycle your calories and macros. Eat more on training days and less on rest days. 

6. It usually takes 3-7 days for your body to get used to fasting periods. Hunger pangs are normal until then. 

Like anything psychological, it takes time for your body (and mind) to adjust to a new protocol. Once it does, it becomes much easier to work from. 

2. The real fitness levers for body transformation

Lean gains became popular for losing fat while keeping muscle.

However, a few caveats matter. 

The first is the elephant in the room: 

While this may seem obvious, it unfortunately is not. 

In the fitness world full of fakes and myths, you'll find many who believe that intermittent fasting (IF) alone can help them lose body fat and get lean quickly. 

But negative energy balance (caloric deficit) remains the main driver of fat loss. 

It always has and always will be. 

Without an intelligent deficit that considers your age, height, gender, weight, goals, and activity levels, you’ll be throwing darts blindfolded. 

To be clear, IF is a tactic. It's not the main strategy. 

It can be a great tactic when used correctly with the right strategies. However, like all great tactics and strategies, context is king. 

Using blanket terms like IF and saying it's great for men and women (it's not) is a fast recipe for causing more harm than good. 

Fat loss happens from eating less (e.g., caloric deficit). 

Muscle retention and/or muscle building come from heavy resistance training. 

Berkhans's no-nonsense approach to RPT training is effective, but it doesn't suit everyone. 

In fact, for people with injuries or existing training concerns, it could be unsafe. 

Almost every client I’ve coached has benefited greatly from lifting heavy with the right exercise dosage, except on rare occasions. 

I once trained a client who didn't have half of his pectoralis major muscle. Despite this, we worked hard, and he ended up lifting 40 lb dumbbells in each arm. 

The human body is a miraculous and wonderful organism. 

The right exercise dosage is crucial for smart exercise programming. 

Less is more when you're doing the right things. 

Lifting heavy weights sends signals to your body. This affects your muscle tissue, connective tissue, and skeleton. 

The signal is clear:

"I'm under heavy weights, so as a defense, I’ll double down. I’ll break down existing muscle fibers to build more and be stronger the next time this happens." 

I may not love cardio fests as much as I did 15 years ago, but strength and conditioning are still key to training. 

• Lift weights to build muscle and get stronger. 

• Eat less to drop body fat. 

• Do cardio for heart health and longevity.

This leads us to majors vs minors. 

3. Don't major in the minors

The Leangains guide gained momentum because it simplified fitness for many people. 

In other ways, it also confused people. 

Many in fitness seek the next shiny solution, often overlooking the bigger picture. 

Don't major in the minors. 

The cost is higher the more you don't know. 

It's why I believe education is the simplest path to lifelong health. 

When you educate yourself, you reclaim your power. 

You can't be fooled by the health and fitness industry anymore. 

IF is a great tactic, generally speaking. 

Contextually, there's more nuance when it comes to men vs. women. 

When it comes to sex differences, active women are not small men (quoting Dr. Stacey Sims). 

There isn’t enough long-term research on how fasting affects women. Many women share their success with intermittent fasting (IF) online. However, others struggle. Some lose their periods or even risk early menopause from long fasts. 

While there's less risk once you're outside of childbearing years, I’d still be cautious with fasting as a woman. 

Again, if you're male, the risks are essentially low to zero based on the long-term studies. 

In fact, many of the fasting benefits that are found with IF for men are sometimes detrimental to women. 

A good example is neuropeptides. 

Neuropeptides play a key role in reproductive health. They help regulate sex hormones, appetite, body composition, and blood sugar levels. 

Neuropeptide Y, which boosts appetite, is lower in women at rest and under low stress. However, it rises more in women than in men during low food intake. 

So context is key when using a nutrition tactic like IF for women. 

The LeanGains Method made some things complicated, like high- and low-calorie days, RPT training, and EAA's. However, it did simplify these aspects:

• Meal planning

• Eating times

• Meal prep

These 3 alone have helped 1000's of people succeed using the LeanGains Method. 

It's a reminder of why less is more, especially when you're already time-strapped. 

As a father, husband, and self-employed for the past 8 years, I've felt the pull of constraints every day with less time available. 

It's why systems will beat goals every time.  

But I have to confess. 

I used the LeanGains Method myself back in 2020-2021. 

As I mentioned, it's a powerful system if you use it correctly and in the right context. 

But I'll also admit: if I'd used the LG Method on my own, I probably would have messed things up. Fortunately, I worked with Dr. Cody Haun, who guided me through my first men's physique bodybuilding show. 

I dropped 30 pounds of body fat and got down to around 5-6% body fat.

The 16:8 tactic was a big part of my success. 

Easy meal planning. Fewer meals. Less thinking. 

All these contributed to my success. 

But if you major in the minors, you'll think the 16:8 approach is the key to fat loss. 

It's not. A caloric deficit drives success. 

For me, it simplified my meals, eating times, and meal prep. 

I still had to follow the main rules of body transformation. This meant keeping a negative energy balance (deficit). 

When you combine a winning strategy with highly effective tactics, the results can be stunning. 

But context needs to be top of mind. 

If someone has eating disorders or is in her childbearing years, then IF might not be the best choice. 

It could actually be harmful. 

Discernment is what's missing in the health world. 

The ability to see clearly and make the correct decision based on the information presented. 

You can't see clearly when everyone is shouting in your face. 

It always comes back to education (knowledge), then insight (self-knowledge). 

4. Simple beats complex every day

Simple systems beat complex tactics every day. 

Here's a few things I would revise with the LeanGains Method.

• Skip the high- and low-calorie/macro days. Keep it simple: eat the same amount each day. 

• First, set up your caloric deficit for fat loss. Then, check if the 16:8 approach fits your schedule and lifestyle. Just because something sounds good doesn't mean you need to do it. 

• Use heavy resistance training, but don't feel obligated to use only reverse pyramid training. Lift heavy weights 3-4 times a week. Focus on major muscle groups with big compound lifts. Add secondary lifts for smaller muscles. Keep workouts high-volume and low-variety. 

• Use protein powder instead of EAA's (essential amino acids). Save yourself the extra money and use a mix of pea and rice protein (70:30 ratio) if you're plant-fueled to get the same benefits as whey protein. 

That's it. 

The problem with nuances is that most people screw things up when left to their own devices. 

The detached manipulator, or Trickster, from Jungian psychology stops us all. 

Make a decision now. Don’t let decision fatigue and analysis paralysis hold you back.

Write this down immediately. 

Now, let's talk about the upgraded version of the LeanGains Method using Dr. Greger's famous chronobiology rule. 

Food timing meets IF. 

Let’s dive in.

5. Chronobiology meets LeanGains

Dr. Greger popularized the term "chronobiology" several years ago. 

Food timing, which is a big theme of this article, pairs nicely with Greger's quote below: 

"Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper."

Eating bigger meals earlier in the day means your body is more likely to use those calories for energy. If you eat later, it may be more likely to store them as future fat tissue.

Again, this isn't 100% guaranteed, but the research is certainly compelling enough to make a strong case for eating your bigger meals earlier in the day.  

In the past, I would have scoffed at this tactic. 

The way I saw things: a calorie is a calorie is a calorie. 

But that's not true. 

100 calories of apples vs. 100 calories of a donut is not the same. 

Energy can be equal yet still unequal. If that makes sense. 

It's the same with chronobiology. Many studies, such as this one and this one, highlight the importance of meal timing, especially over longer periods. 

One study in particular was quite interesting. 

Researchers divided women into 2 groups and assigned each the same number of calories. 

The first group was given a 700-calorie breakfast, a 500-calorie lunch, and a 200-calorie dinner. The second group was given the opposite: 200 calories for breakfast, 500 calories for lunch, and 700 calories for dinner. 

A calorie is a calorie, right?

Since they both ate the same number of calories, they should have both lost the same amount of weight... right?

It turns out that's not the way chronobiology works. 

Group 1, which focused on breakfast, lost 19 pounds and 2 extra inches from their waist. In contrast, Group 2, which prioritized dinner, dropped only 8 pounds. Both groups consumed the same number of calories. 

11 pounds of extra body fat loss while eating the same amount of calories. 

That's the power of food timing. 

Eating smaller meals later in the day can help with body composition. It can also promote fat loss without cutting overall calories. This eating pattern can also support overall health and longevity.

A regular eating cadence, with larger meals earlier in the day, can also support nighttime sleep quality. 

So, how does chronobiology work with LeanGains?

Combine them both for the best benefits.

I call this the ChronoShred Method. 

It's built holistically to combine the best aspects of chronobiology paired with the best aspects of the LeanGains Method. 

Absorb what's useful. Discard what's not. Add in what's uniquely your own. 

Let's break down how to combine the two systems simply and sustainably. 

6. Putting it all together

LeanGains, on its own, is a solid system.

Although I disagree with some of Martin's points, his original system is a good framework overall. 

Here's how the ChronoShred Method works: 

• Fast for 12-16 hours (be cautious with fasting if you're a woman)

• Start your fast 4 hours before bedtime (e.g., 6 pm) and break your fast by 6 am - 10 am the following day

• Have your biggest meals earlier in the day, for breakfast and lunch

• Aim to have your smallest meal for dinner

• Train earlier in the day (if possible) and have breakfast or lunch afterward. This helps with nutrient partitioning and improves body composition. Your body is ready to rebuild muscle after a workout. A larger meal supports this process. 

• For lifting, still use heavy resistance training built intelligently over time. Keep 1-3 reps in reserve; as you get deeper into your training cycle, you'll have fewer reps left in your tank. 

• For fat loss, you'll still need a smart caloric deficit paired with sufficient protein intake. The deficit drives fat loss. Protein helps prevent muscle loss during a fat-loss phase. Lifting weights signals your body to break down tissue and potentially build a small amount while cutting body fat. 

Don't expect major muscle gains when losing weight. However, if you haven't lifted in a while or have never lifted, you might see some minor gains. 

There's no need to cycle calories or macros using this method. You're essentially fasting overnight. This helps you eat less later in the day. As a result, it can improve your long-term sleep quality. 

The ChronoShred Method isn't difficult. 

I've done my best to hack away at the unessential parts of other methods, creating a simple system you can use for life. 

While the CS Method is powerful for fat loss, it's also equally great for health benefits, especially with the smaller meals later in the day. 

Here's an example day using the CS Method:

Eat from 10 am - 6 pm

10 am: Big breakfast

1 pm: Snack (if needed)

2 pm: Medium lunch

4 pm: Snack (if needed)

6 pm: Light dinner

Sleep could then be 10 pm-6 am. 

If you work out before you eat breakfast? Add a protein shake with a banana 30-60 minutes before you lift. 

Workout later in the day? 

Aim to have one meal post-workout. 

Some of you may benefit from a more grazing approach using the snacks above. This might complicate things for those with busy schedules and little time to cook, especially if you don’t work from home. 

If that's the case, skip the snacks. 

For women, I've found snacks, especially healthy carbs and plant protein, to be helpful in stabilizing blood sugar levels. 

This can help men too. 

As a side note, our brains consume 20% of our calories, especially during more demanding tasks like thinking, creative work, and writing (like this).

So a steady stream of healthy carbs can be helpful. 

For women, a 12-hour fast is generally safe. However, consult your doctor if you're unsure. This is especially important if you're pregnant, planning to conceive, or have concerns about fasting. 

Obviously, nothing written on this site is medical advice and should always be consulted with the correct professional. 

For men, you can see how your body responds to fasting for longer than 12 hours. 

A 10 a.m. breakfast start isn’t unreasonable. It gives you an 8-hour eating window. This helps condense your meals, making your calorie deficit more manageable. Plus, it reduces the effort needed for meal planning. 

Outside of fat-loss phases, this method can be a phenomenal way to live for its health benefits. 

• Less meal planning

• Easier weight maintenance and body composition

• Better sleep quality

• Less work on your digestive system during fasting

The ChronoShred Method effectively blends chronobiology science with the straightforward LeanGains Method. 

It's your new secret weapon for creating lifelong health and simple fat-loss results in minimal time. 

I've been personally using this method over the past year and have seen terrific results while improving my health. 

Test this out if you're curious about creating a simple fat-loss system that works in minimal time. 

Remember to use the main fitness principles: 

• For fat loss, you still need to create a caloric deficit. Do this first to avoid frustration later on. Metabolic adaptation is a thing, so be mindful of your body adapting to your exercise and nutrition over extended periods. 

• To retain muscle during weight-loss (fat-loss) phases, you need to lift weights (aka strength training). Without this, you'll drop muscle and fat tissue (with muscle going first). 3-4 times a week is a good frequency to get enough stimulus for your muscle groups. 

• Get enough protein. During fat loss, aim for at least 0.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. If you're concerned about losing muscle, you can increase this to 1.0-1.2 grams per pound of body weight. 

• Aim for 7-9 hours of good sleep each night. Keep your stress level below a 5 out of 10. Also, try to walk at least 7,000 steps daily. Drink at least 1/2 of your body weight in ounces of water daily. 

If you've got the main principles down, then using the CS Method will be like adding gasoline to the fire. 

But don't confuse the gasoline FOR the fire. 

The fire comes first. Then, pour on the gasoline. 

The best tactics in the world won't last without the right strategies. 

Start with the principles first, then get tactical. 

If you try out the ChronoShred Method, let me know, and I'm curious to hear how it works for you. 

Focus on the fundamentals first.

That’s the key to winning in your health.