Bone Broth and Intermittent Fasting: What Australians Should Know

Intermittent fasting has moved from a niche wellness trend into a household routine across Australia. In Bondi, Fitzroy, and Fortitude Valley, you will find gym-goers timing their first meal to coincide with brunch crowds in Paddington or along Gertrude Street. The 16:8 protocol, where you eat within an eight-hour window and fast for sixteen, dominates conversations in Bondi Pilates studios and Melbourne's CrossFit boxes alike. With so many Australians practising some form of time-restricted eating, the question of what you can and cannot consume during the fasting window comes up constantly.

Bone broth has quietly become the unofficial sidekick of the intermittent fasting movement. It is warm, savoury, easy to prepare, and stocked on the shelves of every major supermarket chain from Coles to Woolworths. The catch is that it contains protein, fat, and a small number of calories, which makes some fasters nervous. So can you actually drink bone broth while intermittent fasting without breaking the rules of your chosen protocol?

The short answer is yes, in most cases, and there are good reasons why many practitioners actively encourage it. This article explains how bone broth fits into different fasting methods, what the science says about its effect on autophagy and metabolism, and how to use it to support your goals rather than undermine them.

How bone broth interacts with your fast

Strict purists define a fast as the consumption of water and nothing else. Anything with calories, including a single teaspoon of honey in your black coffee, is said to break the fast. By that strict definition, plain bone broth would technically end your fast because it contains roughly forty calories per cup along with protein and fat.

Most people who practise intermittent fasting for weight loss or metabolic health, however, follow a more flexible interpretation. The goal is usually to keep insulin low, reduce snacking, and allow the body to tap into stored fat for fuel. A small serving of bone broth, between one hundred and two hundred millilitres, will not meaningfully raise insulin or stop fat burning. Many Australian nutritionists and the practitioners who run programs under brands such as Dr. Kellyann's Bone Broth Diet treat it as a fasting-friendly beverage because it supports the goals of the fast rather than working against them.

This is also why the distinction between fasting for autophagy research and fasting for weight loss matters. If you are undertaking a multi-day water fast under medical supervision for longevity research, bone broth is not appropriate. If you are doing 16:8 or 18:6 to lose a few kilos before summer in Manly or to fit into a special outfit, a daily cup of bone broth can be a valuable tool rather than a rule-breaker.

Why bone broth is popular among fasters

The science behind bone broth during a fast is more about what it replaces than what it adds. Extended fasting windows often leave people feeling light-headed, irritable, or "hangry", particularly during the late afternoon slump when most Australians reach for a coffee or a snack. Bone broth delivers electrolytes, primarily sodium, potassium, and magnesium, that are flushed out during the early hours of a fast. Replenishing them can reduce headaches, brain fog, and the muscle cramps that plague people who try to push through a sixteen-hour stretch without support.

The amino acid profile also matters. Glycine and proline, both abundant in slowly simmered bone broth, support gut lining integrity and joint comfort. For Australians training at F45 or running the Tan in Melbourne each morning, joint recovery is a real concern. Drinking bone broth during a fast can make the entire window feel more sustainable, which means you are more likely to stick with the protocol week after week.

Finally, bone broth acts as a psychological anchor. The ritual of warming a cup in the morning, before the gym or before the household wakes up, creates a sense of routine that plain water cannot match. Behavioural consistency is the single biggest predictor of long-term fasting success, and anything that supports the habit should be welcome.

Choosing the right broth for your window

Not every bone broth behaves the same way inside a fasting window. The aisle at your local IGA in Adelaide or Harris Farm in Sydney can be confusing, and the rules under the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code require manufacturers to list protein, fat, and carbohydrate content on the label, so reading the nutrition panel is essential before you commit to a brand.

Broth type	Calories per 250 ml	Protein	Fasting suitability
Homemade chicken bone broth, skimmed	40 to 60	9 to 11 g	High
Ready-made bone broth, plain	50 to 80	10 to 12 g	High
Bone broth with added vegetables	60 to 90	8 to 10 g	Moderate
Broth-based soups or meal pots	150 to 300	6 to 8 g	Low
Bone broth coffee or fat-burner blends	30 to 50	8 to 10 g	Moderate to high

Look for a product that lists only bones, water, and perhaps a small amount of apple cider vinegar or herbs. Avoid options with added sugars, starches, or vegetable oils that sneak into mass-market brands. If you are shopping in a major Australian supermarket chain, the refrigerated section almost always outperforms the long-life cartons in terms of ingredient quality.

Timing your bone broth during the fast

How you time your cup matters more than people realise. Drinking bone broth at the very start of your fasting window, around the time your last meal ends, gives your body a gentle bridge and reduces late-night cravings. Drinking it at the very end of your fasting window, just before breaking the fast with a full meal, prepares your stomach and provides a steady stream of amino acids that support recovery.

Avoid sipping bone broth throughout the entire fasting window. While a single cup is unlikely to break the metabolic benefits of the fast, constant exposure to protein signals can keep insulin mildly elevated and reduce some of the deeper benefits people chase with longer protocols. One to two small cups per day, deliberately timed, is the sweet spot.

Australians who train early should consider drinking their bone broth post-workout during the fasting window. After a hard F45 session at six in the morning, your body is primed to absorb the collagen, glutamine, and electrolytes, and the small calorie load will not interfere with fat-burning goals for the rest of the day.

Putting bone broth into practice

Putting it all together requires a few practical adjustments that make bone broth a sustainable part of any fasting lifestyle. Sourcing quality broth matters more than any other decision you make along the way, because the better the ingredients, the better the results.

Australian butchers and farmers' markets offer exceptional options, and the rising interest in nose-to-tail eating has made bones more affordable and accessible than ever. If you prefer convenience, refrigerated broths at Harris Farm, select Coles Local stores, and independent grocers typically outperform shelf-stable cartons on taste and nutrition. Reading the ingredients list takes thirty seconds and pays off in the quality of your fast.

Once you have a reliable source, focus on consistency. The Australians who see the best results are not the ones who obsess over calorie counts but the ones who build a simple, repeatable routine they can follow for months on end.

• Choose a broth with fewer than fifty calories per hundred millilitres whenever possible
• Sip it slowly rather than gulping it down as a meal replacement
• Add a pinch of sea salt if you experience headaches or dizziness during longer fasts
• Stick to plain or herb-based flavours, avoiding anything labelled as a soup or meal pot
• Buy in bulk from butchers at Prahran Market or the Queen Victoria Market to save money
• Prepare your own on weekends and freeze in single-serve containers for busy weekdays
• Review the terms of service before signing up for any structured fasting or diet program

Bring the bone broth diet into your fasting routine today. The 21-day program outlined in Dr. Kellyann's Bone Broth Diet pairs perfectly with a 16:8 or 18:6 protocol, giving you clear meal plans, recipes, and shopping lists designed for Australian kitchens. Head to the official site, claim your copy of the book, and discover why thousands of Australians are using bone broth to make their fasts easier, their results faster, and their journey far more sustainable.