Fasting

[merveilles]

Are there any benefits of fasting? I've heard a few good things about it but I don't know very much. I'm thinking of going on a 3 or 5 day fast..

[Dimond]

Yep, tons. Juice Feasting is especially good. The best thing is to do a lot of research first to make sure you do it correctly and also find the right fast for you. It's also good to start slowly to see how you respond.

[ginkgo]

If you fast I cannot guarantee you that you will be able to bring the dead back to life, walk on water or that God will give you His commandments, but this did happen with 2 famous Jews, Jesus and Moses.

You can get many benefits from fasting, from the lemonade diet or from juice fasting. This site has quotes about fasting from 19 different medical doctors. Note that this is different than the Muslim fasting for Ramadan. With that fast, they refrain from food, drink and hurting others during the day, but at night, to use slang, all bets are off. In other words, at night they can do the above as much as they want.

[merveilles]

I decided to go with a water fast for at least 5 days, then a juice fast for a couple days (I read somewhere that going back to juice after water makes it easier to go back to food?).

So far I'm about 30 hours into this.. I'm feeling fine, except for it seems I've had a constant slight headache for a while now. It's been surprisingly easy so far. I thought I would feel hungry by now. I'm staying out of the kitchen though unless I need to get more water..

[Dimond]

Yes, juices are good to start with in breaking a water fast. To break the juice fast, make sure you stick with light eating like fruit, very light salad w/lemon juice and few ingredients, etc. and chew well. By that first evening or the next day, you can add some slightly heavier foods.

[merveilles]

I'm about 46 hours into this now. I've never gone this long without food, but it's been so easy.. I read that it's miserable in the beginning for obese people, so maybe that's why. I'm at a healthy weight, and the last time I checked, a healthy body fat percentage. My headache has sort of gone away, but I now feel light headed. My body feels so light.. When I walk around it's really weird. It's like I'm dreaming, swimming, but just walking at the same time.. My heart is aching though, like I have heart burn or something. Is that normal?

I've been reading a lot about this, and I'm thinking of doing this for 10 days..

[CroMagna]

You should be drinking distilled water like Smart Water and you shouldn't be doing this if you're on any medication.

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by CroMagna

You should be drinking distilled water like Smart Water and you shouldn't be doing this if you're on any medication.

I'm not on any medication. I don't have any problems at all.

[merveilles]

(I wonder if anyone finds my updates interesting?)
I'm 58 hours into this now, and going to bed soon.. Today has been a little harder than yesterday. Physical hunger is barely noticeable, but it's almost like I miss eating. I wonder if I'm going through food withdrawals? My headache is back, and my eyes have been very sensitive to light today.. I've been gloomy most of the day..

[ginkgo]

Originally Posted by merveilles

I'm about 46 hours into this now. I've never gone this long without food, but it's been so easy.. I read that it's miserable in the beginning for obese people, so maybe that's why. I'm at a healthy weight, and the last time I checked, a healthy body fat percentage. My headache has sort of gone away, but I now feel light headed. My body feels so light.. When I walk around it's really weird. It's like I'm dreaming, swimming, but just walking at the same time.. My heart is aching though, like I have heart burn or something. Is that normal?

I've been reading a lot about this, and I'm thinking of doing this for 10 days..

It depends on what you eat before fasting. Try this experiment. Before a fast eat a lot of unhealthy food like ice cream, cake, fried foods and lots of salty junk food like pretzels and chips. Then you may notice a lot of sick feelings during the first 5 days of the fast.

[FazK]

Fasting is really great for your body. It will make you feel really great because it helps all the toxins to drain out your body. It doesn't even have to be for that long. You could go on a 48 hour juice fast and would still see great benefits

[vinylfire]

So,I'm still not sure on this...Which is best to detoxify and repair the body? Water fasting, juice fasting or that lemonade thing and what is the optimal period of time to undergo a more or less complete healing and rejuvenation?

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by vinylfire

So,I'm still not sure on this...Which is best to detoxify and repair the body? Water fasting, juice fasting or that lemonade thing and what is the optimal period of time to undergo a more or less complete healing and rejuvenation?

I'm not an expert, and this is my first time trying this, but from what I've read, water fasts are the fastest way to detoxify, and that 10 days are a good amount of time. But from what I've read from people fasting for much longer, they didn't really feel the benefits until after 10 days. I'm thinking I might do this longer next time, but for now I'm just sticking to 7-10 days..

[andrew112]

Originally Posted by ginkgo

If you fast I cannot guarantee you that you will be able to bring the dead back to life, walk on water or that God will give you His commandments, but this did happen with 2 famous Jews, Jesus and Moses.

The only difference is that when they fasted, they were outside in the wilderness with nothing at all. They were not in the comforts of their own home or anything.

[vinylfire]

Originally Posted by merveilles

I'm not an expert, and this is my first time trying this, but from what I've read, water fasts are the fastest way to detoxify, and that 10 days are a good amount of time. But from what I've read from people fasting for much longer, they didn't really feel the benefits until after 10 days. I'm thinking I might do this longer next time, but for now I'm just sticking to 7-10 days..

Thanks

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by vinylfire

Thanks

You're welcome

[merveilles]

I'm 75 hours into this now.. It's crazy Today has stayed gloomy. I really just want this to be over with so I can start eating again. (I miss food!) It's hard to be patient. I decided I'm going to finish this though, so I'm just going to have to wait it out and hope it will become more bearable..

[vinylfire]

Originally Posted by merveilles

I'm 75 hours into this now.. It's crazy Today has stayed gloomy. I really just want this to be over with so I can start eating again. (I miss food!) It's hard to be patient. I decided I'm going to finish this though, so I'm just going to have to wait it out and hope it will become more bearable..

Hey, you have the rest of your life to eat and to stuff ur face with anything u want. This is just ONE week of your life. Stick it out. Then you'll be able to know for yourself whether or not it is the miracle that some say it is. And if it is, then you will experience the miracle!!! Be strong. Now that ur not using that time to eat, prepare meals,think about what to eat, redirect that focus. Think about yourself,the person you want to be, set goals for your life, listen to inspiring audios etc. But avoid tv. Can be too stimulating fornow. Take this time to re-new yourself.Then u will find a week hardly enough time!

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by vinylfire

Hey, you have the rest of your life to eat and to stuff ur face with anything u want. This is just ONE week of your life. Stick it out. Then you'll be able to know for yourself whether or not it is the miracle that some say it is. And if it is, then you will experience the miracle!!! Be strong. Now that ur not using that time to eat, prepare meals,think about what to eat, redirect that focus. Think about yourself,the person you want to be, set goals for your life, listen to inspiring audios etc. But avoid tv. Can be too stimulating fornow. Take this time to re-new yourself.Then u will find a week hardly enough time!

Thanks for the advice I'm not sure how I'm going to feel when this is over. But if I do start to feel more healthy than I did I might try doing this twice a year or something..

[merveilles]

I'm about 93 hours into this now.. In a few more hours it will officially be day 5 I'm still not completely decided between 7 and 10 days, but I'll probably go for 10 days..

Getting out of bed this morning wasn't too hard, but walking around was. On the first few days my body felt so light. When I was laying down I was unaware I even had a body.. Now I feel a lot heavier.. I feel like exhaustion is weighing me down. My legs hurt in the morning but stretching helps. I'm going to start stretching before bed too. What else helps so my legs don't feel so sore?

I'm living with my family right now, and last night they bought these amazing looking chocolate chip cookies. I tried to just sit and stare and imagine how wonderful it would be to eat them. That usually helps to end cravings, because then it's almost like I actually did eat one. But last night I was too worn out to even care. Am I going to start having more energy soon?

I'm trying to read about fasting everyday. It helps me stay focused on why I'm doing this, and it makes time go by faster. I don't think I've ever gotten a canker sore before, but supposedly it's a lot easier while water fasting? I've been rinsing my mouth out with water and sea salt twice a day. Is that enough? I have so many questions today..

[merveilles]

My stomach is growling but I can't think of anything I want to eat. I can think of the cookies and bagels in the kitchen (my old weaknesses), and I feel like, "meh, I don't care.." This is crazy! The first few days I would randomly get cravings every couple hours. I'm almost afraid I won't enjoy food as much as I used to by the time this is over.

[Fullcrum]

Sounds to me like you have an intense emotional addiction to food.

It's awesome that you are becoming aware of the emotions you feel when you think about food, and also noticing how they are not signs of true hunger but of an addiction.

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by Fullcrum

Sounds to me like you have an intense emotional addiction to food.

It's awesome that you are becoming aware of the emotions you feel when you think about food, and also noticing how they are not signs of true hunger but of an addiction.

Maybe, I've been wondering lately if this is similar to what drug addicts go through when they quit. I've always loved food though, even when I was a little kid. I don't think that by itself could be called an addiction could it (just wondering)? I've always been a little amazed that I've never been overweight. I think water fasting a couple times a year will prevent it from ever happening..

[Fullcrum]

What I mean is, it seems you eat food to placate certain negative emotions. As in, instead of eating when you feel true hunger (which is felt in the sternum and the chest), your feeling of hunger probably comes from the stomach area. You feel conflicted when deciding whether or not to eat at any given time, and you feel guilty after eating food.

Those without an emotional addiction to food comment that they can go for many hours (ten or more) without food, forget to eat, feel awesome, and not feel they were missing out when they do get to eat food. I know raw foodists often experience this.

It's not a judgment on you. Most people are emotional eaters. They have no self-control, and there is an emotional "black-hole" that must be filled with food.

The way out of this is simple. Become more present in your daily life. Become especially present when eating food. The way I like to put it is "Eat for the good feeling in your body, not taste."

Now if you're trying to gain muscle mass or do athletics, that's a different story entirely. Eat all you want (of the good stuff anyway)

Hope this helps.

[vinylfire]

Hey there...good to see ur still going strong. Most people are addicted to food and rarely eat out of genuine physical hunger..so that's not such a big deal. About your heavy, yukky feeling - maybe try an enema. When was the last time you had a bowel movement? That may help.

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by Fullcrum

What I mean is, it seems you eat food to placate certain negative emotions. As in, instead of eating when you feel true hunger (which is felt in the sternum and the chest), your feeling of hunger probably comes from the stomach area. You feel conflicted when deciding whether or not to eat at any given time, and you feel guilty after eating food.

Those without an emotional addiction to food comment that they can go for many hours (ten or more) without food, forget to eat, feel awesome, and not feel they were missing out when they do get to eat food. I know raw foodists often experience this.

It's not a judgment on you. Most people are emotional eaters. They have no self-control, and there is an emotional "black-hole" that must be filled with food.

The way out of this is simple. Become more present in your daily life. Become especially present when eating food. The way I like to put it is "Eat for the good feeling in your body, not taste."

Now if you're trying to gain muscle mass or do athletics, that's a different story entirely. Eat all you want (of the good stuff anyway)

Hope this helps.

I don't think I'm that bad.. I just really like food. I think that can be different than eating out of negative emotions.
But, I have kind of abused food the last couple months. I went through a really stressful period and kind of just ate to feel relaxed. I'm hoping this water fast will get me back to normal.. Like.. organized, motivated, disciplined, and get me back to my normal weight since I gained a little during that period.

[merveilles]

Originally Posted by vinylfire

Hey there...good to see ur still going strong. Most people are addicted to food and rarely eat out of genuine physical hunger..so that's not such a big deal. About your heavy, yukky feeling - maybe try an enema. When was the last time you had a bowel movement? That may help.

It's a relief I'm past the halfway point today! I really dislike the idea of enemas so I haven't tried one, but I might have to if I decide to do a longer fast eventually.. I hope this wasn't too terrible, but I actually took a laxative a few days ago since my stomach is too empty for anything to happen on its own.

[merveilles]

Day 6, I'm 123 hours into this! 117 left
I'm feeling alright today.. not as weak. Not as miserable either, but I'm not sure why. Maybe because I'm past halfway now. I'm really looking forward to this being over and getting on with my life..

[merveilles]

Day 8. I'm almost finished!
I noticed something interesting yesterday. I went with my friend to a grocery store, and we walked through isles of food. Even with my stomach growling I felt so uninterested in all of the food. When I get stressed out I might automatically think of eating, but now I feel like I can see even more clearly that what I really want is to relax.. It will be interesting to see what happens in a month from now..


I need some advice for breaking my fast. After 10 days of water fasting, I'm thinking the first day I'll just drink juice diluted with water. Then on days 2 and 3 just juice. Then days 4-7 only juice, fruits, and vegetables. Afterward I'll slowly start adding other foods, but I'm going to go very slowly. Like stick to low amounts of calories and slowly increase them so I don't regain any weight. Does this sound good??

[Dimond]

Yes, breaking the fast gradually like that is perfect.

Today's my last day of my fasting. 9 days liquid, 8 of them juice. Though tomorrow may be mostly liquid too. I actually wasn't really interested in other food, which was interesting considering I had one of my favorite fruits around. I was very committed to sticking with it. I already was eating pretty simply & healthy, but way too much food. Now I look forward to eating correctly.

Go us!