This Foodie Has Been Fasting... and You Should, Too.

Enjoying my daily hot water, lemon, ACV & cayenne pepper drink before breaking my fast

I've been wanting to write this post for a while, but I wanted to make sure I got it right.  I'm writing this post in my own voice; in my own words.  I'm not a doctor or licensed nutritionist...  I don't have a PhD...  but I have taken the time to educate myself by reading and watching countless articles and videos on the subject of intermittent and prolonged fasting and after experiencing both types of fasting myself, I feel like telling anyone who will listen about it because it has made me feel THAT good.  

I wanted to write this post for several reasons:

• To share how I've recently lost some additional weight and lowered my body fat percentage
• To share the health benefits of fasting, both physical and mental
• To help educate and calm the fears of some friends and family that have shown concern over what to them seemed like sudden and extreme weight loss
• To share MY experience with fasting and how amazing it continues to make me feel
• To hopefully get more people on the fasting bandwagon and on their way to improving their health and lives because I truly believe it does

"Wait a minute... what??  You?  The lover of all things food... the girl that loves to cook and loves to eat even more... the FOOD BLOGGER??  You're fasting??"

I know, right?  I never thought I'd do such a thing either, believe me.  Why would someone that loves food so much choose to go without it for extended periods of time?  Well, it turns out it's not only just about the easiest "diet" in the world, but it's also extremely healthy for you.

I put diet in quotes because it's not a diet at all; it's a lifestyle.  Ugh, isn't it annoying when people say that when they're talking about losing weight?  But really, it is.  Fasting isn't a diet...  it's a tool.  Not only for weight loss and burning body fat, but to improve your health and strengthen your immune system.  It's a healing tool.  It's an energy creator.  It's a mood lifter!  :-)   

Sure... I began intermittent fasting to lose that last bit of weight I wanted to lose to look the way I wanted to look in the mirror...  and I still do it for that reason, but I more importantly do it for the way it makes me feel inside and look on the outside.  I feel energized, much more focused, happy, calm, and just overall much better than I have ever felt in my life.  

What is intermittent fasting?  

Basically, it's an eating pattern involving not taking in calories for an extended period of time, typically 12 hours or longer.

One of the most popular versions of intermittent fasting is the 16:8, which means fasting for 16 hours, then eating within an 8 hour window.  

So what does intermittent fasting do for your body?  

Ok so here's a little science that I grabbed from this study to help explain.  After fasting for longer than 12 hours, you essentially "flip the metabolic switch".  When this happens, the body shifts from the utilization of glucose from glycogenolysis to fatty acids and fatty acid-derived ketones.  

The metabolic switch typically occurs between 12 to 36 hours after cessation of food consumption depending on the liver glycogen content at the beginning of the fast, and on the amount of the individual’s energy expenditure/exercise during the fast.

So in other words, fasting helps you train your body to burn FAT.  Who doesn't want to do that?  

According to that same study, for IF (intermittent fasting) studies involving TRF (time restricted feeding), defined as fasting for periods of at least 12 hours but less than 24 hours, three of the four eligible studies reported significant reductions in body weight and fat mass. No significant changes in lean mass were reported for any study, which suggests the observed weight losses were primarily comprised of body fat.  

So no... fasting does not eat away at your muscle mass.  You would have to get SO low in body fat for that to even begin to occur.  Fasting is burning what you don't want as much of...  FAT.  As a result, it improves your body composition, improving the way you look and feel.  

There is so much more science and interesting facts about why fasting is so good for you and since you're reading this on my food blog... I'm not going to publish pages and pages of that info here.  However, I do highly suggest doing a little Googling and learn more about the benefits of intermittent fasting.  

Also, check out Thomas DeLauer's YouTube channel to learn TONS of information on the subject.  He is a wealth of knowledge and one of my favorite sources of information on the subject.  He explains the science in a way that is easy to understand.  He's also a huge proponent of the Ketogenic diet, which I follow most of the time when I do eat to continue burning fat round the clock.

So what's my chosen version of IF?

I find that a longer 20-22 hour fast followed by eating OMAD (one meal a day) works best for me.  As a foodie and lover of cooking, because I'm eating all my calories in one meal, I'm able to prepare and enjoy a larger more satisfying meal.  Eating this way almost guarantees that I keep my calories down since it's pretty hard to eat a ton of calories in one meal.  

So my daily routine (most days) includes waking up and not eating all day... instead I drink water, black coffee, or black tea throughout the day and fill the time that I would normally use to eat with being more productive at work or sometimes going for a walk and just enjoying some me time before getting back to work.  After work I get a workout in...  fasted.  

After I get home, it's time to eat and boy do I enjoy that time of the day.  LOL  Before I break my fast, I like to have a drink concoction of water (hot or cold), lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and cayenne pepper.  I have grown to love this lemony, tangy hot drink and it's great for my gut.  After about an hour after eating, I go to bed and start my fasting all over again.

When I do eat, I choose, for the most part, to eat "keto", aka following the Ketogenic Diet, which is a high protein, high fat, really low carb diet.  

You might wonder, "Do you feel super hungry and sluggish at work because you're starving?"

The answer is no.  Sure, the first day or two took a little getting used to.  My body was used to eating it's first meal every day around 12:30pm, so changing that routine made me feel hungry in the early afternoon, but I found if I kept myself hydrated and switched off between drinking my hot and cold drinks, my hunger pangs went away after about 15 minutes.  Now my body is used to this schedule and I rarely feel hungry for more than a few minutes here and there and that's usually only when I smell a co-worker's delicious lunch nearby.  That's when I grab my hot tea or coffee and enjoy that as if it's my hot meal.  

You might also wonder, "How can you possibly workout without eating all day long?  Don't you feel like passing out?"

The answer to that is also no, but I thought the same thing the first time I decided to try going to a spin class after fasting all day.  I was so afraid I was going to pass out on the bike, but I just took it slow at first and listened to my body during the workout.  The crazy thing was, I actually felt like I had more energy and I felt lighter on the bike, so I pushed harder and harder and burned more calories (according to my stats after) in that class that I ever have!  Another thing I learned is if you are hungry... go workout.  Working out is an appetite suppressant.  Not sure why, but getting your heart rate up and a good sweat going and hydrating with your water the whole time kills my appetite and I don't need to eat again until at least an hour after I'm finished.  Sometimes I do, but I don't have the burning need to.

On Day 3 of my 69 hour water fast

Thinking that you need to eat at certain times of the day each day really is all in your head.  I have found that by changing up my routine in this way, I now enjoy:

• Having more time in my day at work to get everything I need to do accomplished
• Saving money on buying breakfast/lunch every day
• More energy and a more alert and focused feeling during the day
• Weight loss - duh, this part is awesome (about 1-3 lbs a week)
• A stronger immune system and a healthier feeling all over
• Better hair and skin

I've been following an intermittent fasting way of eating for several months now and I have never felt so good.

Over the course of a few months, I was able to significantly reduce my body fat percentage

What about prolonged fasting?

So here's something else I NEVER thought I would do... go ALL weekend without eating.  About a month ago, I completed a 69-hour water fast (meaning that I did not take in any calories the entire time and only drank water, black coffee, and black tea to keep hydrated).  

The health benefits only INCREASE when you fast for longer periods of time.  According to Dr. Eric Berg DC on YouTube, another good source of information on the subject, here are some of the many benefits of prolonged fasting:

• Regrows brain cells
• Increases mitochondria (the energy factories of the body)
• Induces autophagy (when the body actually recycles old damaged proteins and builds new tissue... it's like defragging your body!)
• Enhances stem cell production
• Decreases inflammation
• Decreases tumor growth
• Increases antioxidants
• Helps cell resistance to stress

After learning more and more about prolonged fasting and knowing that I was easily able to intermittent fast, I started to consider trying it.  Shortly after having that thought I caught a bit of a cold and I thought, "Ok, I'm gonna put all this data to the test.  I'm going to get rid of this cold through fasting."  So I set out to fast for at least 48 hours.  I completed that amount of fasting hours fairly easily, even working out every day doing cardio for an hour.  So I decided to go a bit longer since it was Saturday night and I knew I had all Sunday to continue fasting.  I made it to hour 69 and decided I was finally ready to eat, but honestly I could have gone even longer.  I really just like eating.  LOL

Here's what shocked me during this extended fast:

• I never felt weak and was able to work out EVERY day and feel progressively STRONGER each day during my workouts.
• I was so AWAKE.  I wouldn't go to bed until 3 or 4am every night and even then I really didn't need to sleep, I just chose to.  I wasn't wired and I didn't feel tired.  I was just AWAKE.  
• I felt so GOOD.  Each day I felt so good inside and each day I saw my body change and I liked what I saw.  
• I felt so proud of myself for pushing past my usual mental hangups and finding out just how strong my willpower is.  I found out that I could do something that I never thought I could do and while doing it, I was actually resetting my immune system.  I was doing something great for my body.

So there it is... my experiences so far with fasting.  I am still doing it most days, sometimes going one full day on and then one off (alternate day fasting) and other days I just eat normally throughout the day if I feel that's what my body or mind wants that day.

If you know me and want to learn more, I'm happy to chat about it.  As for here on FOODIE, you can expect to see more occasional fitness posts as I'm working hard to continue to lower my body fat and now build lean muscle.  You'll also be seeing more low-carb recipes and just overall healthy meal ideas.  But hey, there will still be some fun food mixed in there as well because a girl needs her cheat day here and there, ok?

That's it for now, kids.  I hope this post wasn't too long and boring.  Take care.  Good vibes to you all.

-Tara Lynn