Any fasters here?

[QuarterMillionMan]

I've started out small about 1 month ago eating 2 meals a day. Yesterday was my first 1 meal a day. Working my way up to eventually to 0 meals in 2 days or more. Not trying to lose weight. I'm 5' - 7", 138 lbs. Saving a lot of money on food but not my intention to save money on food. Doing it for the health benefits and to detox from all the processed junk foods. Anyone else here fasting? I'm not diabetic but yesterday upon waking my blood sugar was 95, then 12 hours later after not eating it was 85. I wish that I could test my cholesterol levels too. My blood pressure was good at 125/81. Our 2 greatest assets are our health & time and with good health we have more time. You can have all the money in the world but without health or time, money is useless.

[jayk2k3]

I will just say be careful and don’t overdo it. I do like 12hr fast, I’m 180, 5"5 I have lost a little bit of weight, but more important my blood pressure and cholesterol both came down by a lot. When I was young, I used to feel very dizzy sometimes, I thought it was because I haven’t eaten that day, but in reality, it was because I was drinking sodas all day. I mean 64oz big gulps, no breakfast or lunch.

[kork13]

I've been doing some flavor of intermittent fasting for years. Partly, it’s just matched my lifestyle — I’ve just never been one to have breakfast very often, effectively an automatic 16/8 pattern of fasting. Partly it’s been out of convenience — sometimes I’ll just not bother with bringing a lunch to work, or going out for lunch, effectively becoming a ~22hr/OMAD fast.

OMAD is really pretty comfortable for me, and it’s my normal pattern during the work week … on weekends, I’ll generally loosen up & often have lunch. I’ve done a few days of 48-hr fasts to see what it’s like (really not bad, as long as I can get past dinner on the first day), and at some point, I’ll likely try going up to 72 hrs.

There’s some good research showing the biophysical benefits of extended fasting (24+ hrs), as long as you’re still drinking appropriate levels of water. Better blood glucose stability, increased testosterone & HGH levels, and more effective autophagy (repair/replacement of old/damaged cells in the body) are the ones that immediately come to mind. Plus of course, it’s easier to eat fewer calories when you’re only eating OMAD, or whatever. Pair that with an effective workout program, and it can be a relatively easy way to trim down over time. Some folks are afraid that you’ll lose muscle mass by fasting regularly … but if you’re eating right & working out regularly, it’s really not a problem at all.

BL: I’m a fan.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Good job kork. During times that I'm not eating, I drink lots of water and drink ice coffee black with no sugar and no cream or iced tea with lemon (no sugar). I know adding sugar would negate the fasting benefits. Oh and 2 or 3 times a day I'll add a pinch of Celtic sea salt on my tongue to suck on. It sort of helps on my craving for food. Before starting on my fasting regimen breakfast would be an avocado w/non-fat Lactaid milk and black coffee, for lunch a fruit smoothie (my blood sugar must have spiked big time), dinner chicken or pork or steak w/potato and veggies. Now I see why the next morning when I test my blood sugar it would be 115.

[ua_guy]

It's not something I've done intentionally on a schedule. I consider fasting to be another fad, and it appears to be built on reducing calorie intake which is not a new concept. I don't see a need to "detox" if one isn't putting garbage in their body in the first place? I think many of the benefits can be achieved in different and maybe healthier ways. Fasting is something I see "advertised" in fake news a lot, you know, live until 120 if you just do this! - So I think it's important to separate the snake oil from the real benefits of normal, healthy habits here.

[QuarterMillionMan]

You might think you're eating healthy but unless you're buying all organic (ie, not GMO, or foods sprayed w/chemicals, etc), or cooking your own meals (ie, not using seed oils, margarine, Crisco, etc), or eating pastas (enriched flour), rice (arsenic), breads, cereals which are highly processed foods, etc. I'll stick with my fasting and eating less poisons. Sodas & juices must be the worst with all that sugar. I admit that I used to drink 1 can of Coke a day, then switched to diet Coke thinking it's better then the artificial sweetens study on mice came out, then I said forget sodas all together. Or orange juice w/breakfast. No wonder my blood sugar levels was sky high. Detox is a much better strategy for me. The food industry wants us to be addicted to their sugary, salty, and high in fat foods (ie, McDonald's, Starbucks, etc). Profits at all costs. Don't even get me started on the Healthcare industry, lol.

[ua_guy]

We have a lot of control over choosing what foods we eat, how they are prepared, and the ability to avoid foods that aren't prepared to our liking. I'm not saying fasting is wrong, but I think there is a lot of work to be done with overall diet and habits before fasting wrt to eating and living healthy. Fasting alone probably has a really limited effect if all the patient is doing is spreading out time between eating/drinking garbage. If you're not, and it's really working for you, that's great!

I also kicked Diet Coke to the curb a few years ago, same time I nixed alcohol. I can't promise I'll never go back to either one, but getting rid of both and also limiting and timing my caffeine intake through other liquids was immensely powerful. That's not a position I'm willing to give up right now, even though I love a Cuba Libre at a bar, or just a can of ice cold Diet Coke.

[bjl584]

Not fasting, but I cut out most processed sugar, alcohol, and carbs and have been eating lean protein and fresh vegetables.
I feel great and I lost a little weight too.

[myrdale]

I've done water fasting in the past. No food, no juices, not even chewing gum. Nothing but water. I've done a few three and five day fast, and I've completed one ten day fast.

I have a coworker who is Muslim. He fast for Ramadan annually. They eat and drink nothing from sun rise to sun set. But they can eat and drink as much as they can hold over night.

I have another coworker who only eats a couple of meals a week from what I understand. He appears to be a healthy form of skinny, no muscles though. Of course he likes to schedule meeting at noon.

[myrdale]

It's not something I've done intentionally on a schedule. I consider fasting to be another fad, and it appears to be built on reducing calorie intake which is not a new concept. I don't see a need to "detox" if one isn't putting garbage in their body in the first place? I think many of the benefits can be achieved in different and maybe healthier ways. Fasting is something I see "advertised" in fake news a lot, you know, live until 120 if you just do this! - So I think it's important to separate the snake oil from the real benefits of normal, healthy habits here.

We didn't evolve eating three meals a day with snacks. For our distant ancestors wondering the plains, a couple meals a week may have been good.

If fasting is a "fad" its lasted for well over 2000 years.

Unless your a vegan growing your own food, good luck on not having some form of contaminates in the foods you eat. Studies on honey bee wax comb found pesticides and herbicides in 100% of all samples tested across the country. Microplastics are present in fish. You might be surprised to what is even present in rain water. It is the world we now live in.

I can attest first hand that I feel better while fasting. It just isn't a practice I see as sustainable.

[ua_guy]

We didn't evolve eating three meals a day with snacks. For our distant ancestors wondering the plains, a couple meals a week may have been good.

If fasting is a "fad" its lasted for well over 2000 years.

Unless your a vegan growing your own food, good luck on not having some form of contaminates in the foods you eat. Studies on honey bee wax comb found pesticides and herbicides in 100% of all samples tested across the country. Microplastics are present in fish. You might be surprised to what is even present in rain water. It is the world we now live in.

I can attest first hand that I feel better while fasting. It just isn't a practice I see as sustainable.

You're missing the point, as usual.

Intermittent fasting is currently a pop culture trend. People are newly trying it because they hear about it. OP is a prime example. I'm not talking about evolutionary history, but since you are, there are a lot of things we've discarded along the way while significantly improving our lifespans.

Nowhere have I mentioned pesticides or microplastics. But since you did, if you think fasting "detoxes" you from that stuff, what if the half life of a good portion of that stuff was days, weeks, months - mostly longer than people are willing/able to fast. Fasting is really only spacing out the period between consumption of those things. I don't think those things are easily eliminated from most food or water sources, and I wasn't recommending people think otherwise?

If it works for you, great.

[myrdale]

In addition to fasting, you may be interested in looking into fiber supplements. Psyllium husk fiber is what I've used in the past. It bulks everything up and gets the train out of the station on time. The taste is a little bland, so I'll usually use a few drops of some water flavor (artificial sweetener's and dyes).

It really scrubs the pipes.

[myrdale]

You're missing the point, as usual.

Because adding "as usual" is a nice little jab. Again get off your high horse.

Intermittent fasting is currently a pop culture trend. People are newly trying it because they hear about it. OP is a prime example.

Doesn't matter how many times you say fasting is a fad or a trend, it's older than the Bible. QuarterMillionMan is attempting to improve his health. Rather than being supportive you see the need to claim he is on some "pop culture trend".

I'm not talking about evolutionary history, but since you are, there are a lot of things we've discarded along the way while significantly improving our lifespans.

A straw man argument with out an actual straw man.

I don't see a need to "detox" if one isn't putting garbage in their body in the first place?

and

Nowhere have I mentioned pesticides or microplastics. But since you did, if you think fasting "detoxes" you from that stuff, what if the half life of a good portion of that stuff was days, weeks, months - mostly longer than people are willing/able to fast.

My point is we are all putting garbage into your systems on a daily basis. If you're buying produce it has pesticides. If you buy fish there are microplastics. I did not state anything about detoxing removing these from your body. I only stated they are in all of our diets, yours included.

Fasting is really only spacing out the period between consumption of those things. I don't think those things are easily eliminated from most food or water sources, and I wasn't recommending people think otherwise?

I don't disagree, and that was my point.

[anhtuvp]

Yeah, I’ve been experimenting with fasting too. Started with 16:8, then worked up to 24-36 hour fasts now and then. Not for weight loss either, just felt like my body needed a reset from all the snacking and processed crap.

[ua_guy]

In addition to fasting, you may be interested in looking into fiber supplements. Psyllium husk fiber is what I've used in the past. It bulks everything up and gets the train out of the station on time. The taste is a little bland, so I'll usually use a few drops of some water flavor (artificial sweetener's and dyes).

It really scrubs the pipes.

Why not just eat a diet high in fiber? Or are you so full of it that you need to take supplements for it?