You probably know all the benefits of fasting, from weight loss, fat burning, digestion health and anti-inflammatory properties to mental focus, several studies have proved it. Despite all the research, one question still remains unclear and brought you here for an answer: Do Athletic Greens break a fast?
We understand your concern! The world of intermittent fasting can be overwhelming to navigate, particularly when there is a lot of information and misconceptions out there to try and interpret.
According to research, fasting includes water-only or appetite suppressing, minimal calories drinks like black coffee, or tea (no sugar, no milk), but no food for maximum benefits. This being said, Athletic Greens is a vitamin and mineral packed nutritional supplement that contains 50 Kcal/ serving, which likely breaks a strict fast.
While Athletic Greens might challenge the fasting norm, it might not diminish all the benefits of it and can be integrated into your fasting routine. The decision ultimately rests on your fasting philosophy, goals, and the flexibility you afford within your regimen.
We are about to give in-depth details about what fasting is, what could mess it up, and the big question about Athletic Greens. By the end, you’ll have the info you need to decide if they fit into your fasting plan.
Table of Contents
What is Fasting?
Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern where you restrict or minimize food for a certain amount of hours or even days. It is hard to keep up with all the IF methods out there, but here are some popular ones:
- Daily time-restricted feeding (such as eating only during a six-hour window),
- Intermittent fasting, when you eat during a specific period of time, like 5:2( 2 days fast, 5 days normal eating), 16/8 (fast for 16 and eat for 8)
- Long duration fasts of 48 hours or 24-hour fasts.
- Periodic fasting where you restrict calories for multiple consecutive days, such as 5 days in a row once a month, and unrestricted on all other days.
- Dirty fasting allows food and calories between 50-100.
These fasting types all have their own sets of rules, which explains why we have said Athletic Greens can fit into your fasting routine, even if they are considered to be breaking fast. While traditional, strict fasting methods RESTRICT all calories, others like dirty fasting allows you to fast with more flexibility. Which one you opt for may depend whether you do it for medical reasons, weight loss, overall well being or other.
If you want to drop some weight, you can simply include a serving of Athletic Greens into your routine and still lose weight and experience other benefits of fasting. You just need to watch the quantity! Also, don’t use fasting as a reason to binge eat or processed food the rest of the day, but try to remain healthy.
Always consult with a doctor or health professional before proceeding with fasting, especially if you have medical conditions that need medical advise.
What Breaks A Fast?
Breaking a fast occurs when we eat after a prolonged period without consuming calories. This typically happens with breakfast, giving rise to the term “BREAK fast”. According to Benjamin Horne, a genetic epidemiologist, any calorie consumption will break fast, including Athletic Greens.
High-calorie supplements or food (50+) can break the body’s fasting state by triggering digestion and insulin release, disrupting the reliance on stored energy reserves during fasting.
When your body is in a fasted state, it utilizes fat for energy when carbohydrates are not available. This is what can aid with weight loss, and the likely reduced calorie intake! It also prompts the physiological change of decreasing insulin in the body, which ultimately reduces the conversion of glucose to stored glycogen.Consuming calories, even small amounts, interrupts this process, impacting insulin levels, metabolic pathways and you fast. No different with Athletic Greens.
Understanding the Impact of Calories on Fasting
The nutrient and calorie content matter, too. A higher calorie, protein and carb will determine how much what you eat or drink triggers the body’s insulin responses and disrupts fasting by signaling energy usage. Means higher the ‘energy’ you consume, the higher its effect is.
That’s why zero-calorie drinks, black coffee and plain tea are safe to drink in most cases, as they cause minimal metabolic changes, making them more compatible with fasting. There is an exception, zero-calorie sweeteners.
While they do not contain calories–so technically won’t break a fast–, they do impact gut balance and appetite control. Both of these can affect the benefits of a fast. That’s because the sweetness can enhance GLP-1 receptors in the tongue, which in turn stimulates insulin release.
A common misconception that surrounds the idea of breaking a fast is that any caloric intake will completely disrupt the benefits achieved from fasting. This is not necessarily true! Some small portion, low-caloric foods that are low in carbohydrates, high in fat, and moderate in protein will still allow you to reap the benefits of fasting.
There’s a misconception that store-bought supplements or multivitamins don’t affect fasting. However, some contain sugar or calories, potentially breaking a fast. Be cautious, as even pure vitamins, often in gummy form, can contain sugar, affecting your fasting state.
Athletic Greens, with moderate carbs and low fat and protein content, may align with dirty fasting. However, for strict fasting, they have a more significant metabolic impact compared to tea or coffee. Which means they will break a strict fast.
Read the nutrient content of Athletic Greens below to understand it better.
Nutritional Content of Athletic Greens
Athletic Greens is a low-calorie supplement/drink that contains a combination of diet-friendly ingredients. It has an extensive list of ‘superfoods’ in it such as spirulina, which is extremely popular on the health product market.
The daily value percentages (DV) of macronutrients in Athletic Greens are relatively low.
However, when looking at the micronutrient list on the package, we can see it is jam-packed with vitamins and minerals such as vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin B12, and zinc. This is ultimately what makes the product a ‘nutrient-rich’ way to start your day!
Here is an overview of the product’s nutritional content.
| Nutrient | Amount per Serving (1 scoop) | Percent Daily Value (%DV) |
| Calories | 50 kcal | DV not established |
| Carbohydrate | 6 g | 2% |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g | 7% |
| Total Sugars | < 1 g | DV not established |
| Protein | 2 g | 4% |
| Nutrient dense and ExtractsHerbs and Antioxidants | 2732 mg | DV not established |
| Alkaline, Nutrient-Dense RawSuperfood Complex | 7388 mg | DV not established |
| Digestive Enzyme & SuperMushroom complex | 154 mg | DV not established |
| Dairy Free Probiotics 7.2Billion CFU | 38 mg | DV not established |
Do Athletic Greens Break fast?
Looking at the nutritional breakdown of Athletic Greens, it is fair to say that yes, the supplement will break your fast! Obviously, the calories that it contains are the main contributor to this conclusion – because as we know, any calories will technically break a fast!
However, there are other components to the product that also suggest it will break fast.
As we’ve learned, some low-carb, high fat and moderate protein food might not break fast, or have less impact on your body’s fasting state. Yet, Athletic greens contain 6g of carbs, its lack of fat and pretty low on protein. So, for strict fasting, it might not be the best choice!
It also contains natural sweeteners, such as stevia, which can disrupt the insulin levels achieved by fasting. Watch out! A lot of ingredients are listed as zero-calorie nutrients, like vitamins and minerals; but any added nutrients, carbs or protein can impact your fast!
All in all, Athletic Greens will break fast! With that said, it does not need to be taken out of your daily routine. Simply take Athletic Greens as soon as your fasting window ends (it is best taken on an empty stomach for optimal nutrient absorption).
If you are under a medically prescribed fast, check with your healthcare provider to see if it is still suitable to take it during your fasting window!