Fasting

Batman_

Batman_

Kingfisher
The problem I have with fasting is twofold

a) I can't sleep fasted because i'm so wired (mentally)
b) I have a distinct lack of "explosive" power during workouts, due to the lack of glucose (felt the same during keto too), also crash hard at the end of my workouts

For those reasons I really hate doing fasts that exceed 24 hrs or so (8pm-8pm is my preferred time range). And IM fasting is better, but I find doing that regularly brings the same exercise-related problems.

I usually try to fast 18-24 hrs once a week, but that's about all I can tolerate. Perhaps if I really want to shed body fat I'll have to accept my workouts won't be as intense.
 
Kid Twist

Kid Twist

 
Banned
I agree with above, just for (a) I am uncomfortable while trying to even fall asleep, and I sleep like a baby typically.
(b) is definitely true for me too; I can workout and do, but I realized that my maximal effort is definitely decreased and sets shortened

I typically go 16-8, but drink coffee, and I know that if I go a few days with much less caloric intake, it is cumulative

at least for Lent I'll be clean all the way around (fish and greens), no booze either
 
M

MusicForThePiano

Pelican
Truthfully, I believe our bodies are only meant to eat once every three days to gain complete nutritional requirements. That being said, you must be giving your body EVERYTHING during that window of nutritional intake. This forum has tackled lust, is starting to tackle pride, so help me, I'll help it tackle gluttony too! I don't recall reading any passages in the Bible or any other ancient texts that talks about a bunch of workers stopping their daily toils halfway through for a lunch break (it just slows you down), or having to supplement their diet with extracted minerals and ratios. I remember being in the wild and I ate cooked game, plus some roasted vegetables over a fire pit, and not being hungry for a day and a half, because that food was so nutrient packed I just did not need anything else. Of course drinking a ton of water, but other than that nothing until the window opens again.

Autophagy is a key component in anti-aging, or more appropriately, extremely slowed-down cellular aging. Think about it, whoever would have thought that the best way to resist the medical mafia and big pharma is to just not eat, and you'd be ten times better off.

@Batman_ the thing with fasting not helping a huge workout is, you need to eat everything the day before, and take a liquid only drink the morning of before you go in for a big lift, and you will have explosive power. Some of the best lifts I've ever had were fasting of up to 18-20 hours. Think about it, with no food in your body, your heart will not be pumping blood to the GI tract to engage the process of digestion, which raises insulin and concurrently lowers HGH. Instead there will be no digestion occurring during your lift in which all your oxygen and energy will be diverted to the muscles and tendons/joints themselves. I have three friends who swear by it now, seen one of them deadlift over 500 after a 20 hour fast.
 
NoMoreTO

NoMoreTO

Hummingbird
Catholic
This is inspiring. I am designing a Lenten fast. I have done Autophagi before.
No eating until 3pm. (All Days Except Sunday, where I will eat at 1pm or after mass)
Mondays, Wednesdays: 1 Main meal with Eggs/Fish (evening), + Vegetarian smaller Meal (3pm)
Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays: 1 Main meal with meat (evening) + vegetarian smaller meal (3pm)
Fridays: Vegetables, nuts etc only (after 3pm)
Sundays: Free Day after Mass
Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, + Possible elected chosen days in between - Full Day Fast.
Liquids: I am allowing only Coffee during the morning part of my fast, need the energy for office work. I will allow my pre sleep tea.

I was wondering if you guys think I will crash too hard or who I should prepare this next week to ease into it. I've done intermittent fasting successfully before. I made sure to keep lots of meat days and not put too many vegetarian days in because the 3pm might be tough enough, and I don't want to suddenly deprive my body of things. I will have to make a conscience effort to eat quality food for my meals.

Any tips are appreciated! Suggested Changes too
 
Hannibal

Hannibal

Pelican
Catholic
Gold Member
There is nothing wrong with one fast per week.

Before eating windows became fashionable, Brad Pilon wrote a book in 2007 about the benefits of a single 18-24 hour fast during the week. If you wanted to ramp up your fat loss you could do two of them in one week, although more than that he did not recommend.

Fasting worked well for me when it worked, although I suffered greatly from electrolyte issues because it was not common knowledge to slam salt like the Snake Diet guy recommends. Coffee, diet drinks, water, and gum were also encouraged, which does not help matters. I also worked heavy manual labor jobs, which combined with the lackluster diet (hard to plan around a 14 hour work day) contributed to a propensity towards alcoholism.

As far as autophagy, a zero carb diet will accomplish all of that and much more, as the nature of it mimics the benefits of fasting. My skin tags have nearly disappeared and I'm only 3 weeks in.
 
Kid Twist

Kid Twist

 
Banned
Hannibal said:
As far as autophagy, a zero carb diet will accomplish all of that and much more, as the nature of it mimics the benefits of fasting. My skin tags have nearly disappeared and I'm only 3 weeks in.
Click to expand...

I do window fasting and am already lean, but I love chips and coca cola, when I do eat dinners fairly frequently. I agree that zero carb will push you to the max and you will feel it. I usually eat fish and greens for Lent and will do so again. If you don't have carbs in this scenario you will feel how light and good (lacking satiety) this food goes through you --- you will be constantly hungry until you adapt, and even then you'll feel it. I think your bowels are also best healed by eating any type of green you want and fish.

We will see if I can do it. I don't think I'd be able to get by without coffee in the mornings, but I'm actually going to cut out coke, almost all carbs except for beans or lentils/peanut butter, and booze for Lent.

Let's do it boys.
 
Travola

Travola

 
Banned
Fasting, something I stumbled upon by chance.

Started with two meals a day, breakfast and lunch, or breakfast and dinner respectfully. Found it hard to fast on breakfast unless I was doing nothing strenuous for the day.

Then got down to one meal a day. At the time was working from home. Was able to start fasting two and three days at a time. Which was about the longest I could make it.

Making it more of a long term process, and adapting your body to it, gets the results.

I went from somewhere around 190-195 to 158 in about 6 months.

My biggest takeaway is cut the sugar out. Replace with fruits.
 
D

Dilated

Woodpecker
Other Christian
I’m a believer. Been doing intermittent fasting for a year now and am in the best shape of my life at 39. I think a daily 17-18 hour fast paired with vigorous weight training sessions in the last hour of fasting is key to getting lean and feeling good.

Running a consistent caloric deficit will definitely make you lose weight and the fasting facilitates that. No need to cut out carbs all together but really watch the processed sugar intake. Sugar is in EVERYTHING here in USA.

I’ve even noticed that IF has gotten rid of other ancillary maladies like heartburn. And I swear my vision has gotten BETTER. Not sure how that is possible.
 
scorpion

scorpion

Pelican
Gold Member
Has anyone been able to combine a one meal per day protocol with lifting and maintaining a muscular physique? I'd love to do OMAD for the simplicity and health benefits, but I have serious doubts about being able to consume enough calories in such a limited window to maintain my current build. Especially if I'm also mostly eating natural, unprocessed foods like beef, eggs, potatoes, rice, etc... Does your body just get used to eating absolutely enormous quantities of food in a single sitting?
 
NoMoreTO

NoMoreTO

Hummingbird
Catholic
scorpion said:
Has anyone been able to combine a one meal per day protocol with lifting and maintaining a muscular physique? I'd love to do OMAD for the simplicity and health benefits, but I have serious doubts about being able to consume enough calories in such a limited window to maintain my current build. Especially if I'm also mostly eating natural, unprocessed foods like beef, eggs, potatoes, rice, etc... Does your body just get used to eating absolutely enormous quantities of food in a single sitting?
Click to expand...

I made some very good gains a couple years ago on intermittent fasting.

I wasn't quite at OMAD, but I was down to a 4 hour window where I would eat at 1pm and 5pm.

I would recommend getting down to a small window, then doing OMAD a couple of days a week when your ready.

That said, if you go full OMAD let us know the results. I'm beginning a fast soon and wonder how it will effect my muscle weight.
 
Batman_

Batman_

Kingfisher
I tried doing a 10 mile hike while in a 24-hour fasted state to see how I'd feel. After the hike I went to a buffet and ate 3 full plates of various meats and seafoods.

I felt absolutely serene when I woke up the next day and felt no soreness whatsoever. I still feel more calm and focused since then. I'm definitely sold on this now.
 
A

Andersson

Chicken
Last time I tried doing a dry fast, I ended it after 3 days I think. It put me a bit off fasting and I will start again.

I got the motivation to try the dry fast from "snake diet" on YouTube.

Anyone else have any experience with the dry fasting?
 
kel

kel

 
Banned
I've been interested in trying a dry fast but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Three days seems like flirting with death to me, though, I wouldn't do more than a day.
 
Bitter End

Bitter End

Woodpecker
Orthodox
I enjoy the 36 hour water fast once in a while. Basically one strips about 3000 calories a day (depending on the bodyweight). Because the morning when I break the fast the body kind of resigns, appetite remains stable and I don't end up eating more than on a regular day.
 
F

forestdweller

Sparrow
I'm curious about dry fasting also. I'm not convinced the same principles apply with water as most basic functions of the body require it.. I'm no doctor however so who knows.

I'm having a very hard time getting my dad to do fasting. He's 260 with my frame (I'm 170 in good shape) yet he contests that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day, this (fasting) sounds like a dangerous diet". The cognitive dissonance is astounding which is a shame because I care for him and know it would extend his lifespan and wellbeing. I told him it's a part of Christianity and he said "they didn't have costco back then though", which I thought was funny.

He overeats to numb the pain he carries from childhood trauma that he doesn't know I know about. It's a tough spot, if someone has some insight please reply or PM. Thanks and good luck fasting! Works well for me, so much time saved. Time for God worship instead of bong worship..

EDIT: He does whatever his pillpushing doctor says, so maybe I'll send him one of those Dr. Axe or Dr. Berg videos..
 
kel

kel

 
Banned
Rather than intermittent fasting, which it sounds like you're selling him on and which I agree is a good thing, sell him on one day a week of fasting. It's simple, and simplicity rules. People will lie to themselves about any diet, so the diet needs to be difficult to lie about ("eat nothing" is pretty clear. Zero is a very unambiguous number). He's certainly gone a day without eating before - even for surgery or something like that - and you can pitch him on the idea that back in the day our species would often go for days without eating.
 
T

TheMost

 
Banned
kel said:
I've been interested in trying a dry fast but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Three days seems like flirting with death to me, though, I wouldn't do more than a day.
Click to expand...

Perhaps start with a one day dry fast, and work your way up one day at a time. Just broke my second 3 day dry fast this morning. Felt great. Dry mouth in the morning didn't feel good, but it went away during the day, I was able to speak and sing without problem. The thing about metabolic water really is true.

Also, 9 pounds of weight loss each time.

Second time I didn't take anything; the first time I took electrolytes in the form of salt, borax and epsom salts. I did water fasting years ago. Didn't have any headaches or dizziness with the dry fasting. In fact, I felt great. Dry fasting sounds scary, especially because of the fake news about dehydration. But it is easier than wet fasting, and the results are much faster.

If I do it again, I think I'll take electrolytes again, but only in dry form. My recipe for one days worth is:

1 gram of sodium tetraborate (borax)
2 grams kosher salt (it has no stabilizers or other chemicals added)
3 grams ascorbic acid (citric acid if ascorbic isn't available)
3 grams magnesium sulfate (food grade epsom salts)

The vitamin C (ascorbic acid) powder is to neutralize the saltiness and hide the bad magnesium taste.

Regular table salt has a surprising number and amount of non-salt ingredients added; ingredients I do NOT want to put in my body.

If you have it, add 2 grams of potassium citrate to the mix also.

Blend the ingredients all together, and take a pinch now and then throughout the day. If your mouth is dry, this will instantly moisten it. But dry mouth wasn't nearly the problem I thought it would be.

Broke through a fat loss plateau that had been holding me up for 3 months.
 
T

TheMost

 
Banned
To break a 3 day fast, recommend drink a bit of fluid. Personally, a beer does it. The body is in such top shape that there is no "buzz" from the beer. Then later on a bit of bone broth, or even just a good home-made soup. Then a bit later on, a potato or something. Then after that, if you want meat and eggs, go for it. It shouldn't kill you to eat whatever you want, but it can give you sharp pains in the stomach for a minute or two, so easing off the fast is the best idea. My experience may not be typical; my family lineage have strong stomachs, most people might need to ease out of a fast over a longer time period.

The purpose of the "kosher" salt is not that it is kosher, but that it is just salt, without the different stabilizers and anti-caking agents that are in regular salt.

Taking the electrolytes in dry form is nice, they are neutral in flavor (compared to taking each ingredient separately) and they instantly make your mouth flood with moisture. On eating days you can add the electrolytes to your food without hurting the flavor.

Also with the electrolytes I felt more energetic. If you take a fast beyond 3 days you definitely want to do the electrolytes, this last fast I didn't do the electrolytes and I didn't have headache or dizziness, but I didn't have the energy to work out either. The first dry fast, I ended up drinking a quarter cup per day of apple cider vinegar with the electrolytes, and I didn't have any headache, dizziness, tiredness, or weakness.

By the third day of the fast, you can operate heavy machinery, but probably shouldn't... unless you have been taking your electrolytes every day. And if you have been taking the electrolytes, then go based on how you feel.

Electrolytes. They aren't just for plants.
 
Z

Zagor

Kingfisher
What's the benefit of dry fasting instead water only fasts? What do you get from eliminating water, other than making it more difficult? I'm genuinely interested.
 
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