The Health Benefits of Fasting

People if you take in any calories whatsoever it is not a fast!

Could anyone inform me on the notion of instead of fasting for an extended amount of time (say, fasting for 15-40 days), fasting for two days a week consistantly? Would the benefits be relatively similar?

Great article and good explanation on how fasting does what it does. I conducted my first fast after enduring a very frustrating four years of ill health after living in a third world country. I was very sick with chronic fatigue, brain fog, was quite thin and couldn't work. I had no energy no matter what I ate, so after reading a book on fasting I decided to stop eating and try to heal my body. The fast lasted 4 weeks (28 days) when all I did was drink water and grapefruit juice, which kept my bowels moving out the toxins. I had thought I was going to go longer, but at the end of the four weeks my head cleared up and I felt the energy coming back into my body so I decided I could stop. At the time I had no money and was living alone in a small rented camper in the middle of a farmer's apple orchard. I didn't have a lot of options and doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong and told me that there was nothing they could do for me. Following the fast I began to gain weight, got a decent job and got my life back from a miserable and seemingly hopeless situation.

It was interesting to read your experiences via such a wonderful article of yours.

I feel the best way to start a fasting program is to do it gradually in stages. I initially did one day, then 3, and then worked my way up to 14days over the period of a year and some change. My next goal is 21 days (on day 5 of that now). Sometimes you may fail. I broke my fast a couple times during that period. I find it gets easier and easier to initiate the more times you have done it. It seems as though your body conditions itself for the fast.

The first time I went on a multi-day fast (4 days) the second day was murder!! You know things are bad when you start fantasizing/dreaming about food!! I love to cook and I would look up food and recipies on the internet. It was a really rough but I made it through. The next day forward, I was fine. The desire was never that acute again. I also notice the food I eat prior to the fast makes a big difference in my body’s reaction to going on the fast. I am sure it will be different for everyone.
In my case, I notice eating sweet potatoes, greens, w/a small serving of protein for 2-3 days prior to the fast made entering it much easier as opposed to a typical high protein, carb, and fat diet. Again, I went through periodic rough periods, e.g. when at work they ordered pizza and subs for my office over an entire week!! (I will have to admit, that I got two slices and froze them to eat later when I was off my fast).

You also need to plan on coming off the fast and in many ways this is more important and can be more dangerous than the fast itself. For several days after breaking the fast, I only eat this all fruit sauce (like applesauce but w/bananas or mango etc.) and/or watermelon. When I completed my 14day fast, I was on this high water content food for several days and at the last minute had to take a client out to dinner. I tried to moderate my food intake but ate some fried chicken tenders, seafood dip for appetizer, fries and coleslaw. Big mistake, I managed to make it out and get home w/out embarrassing myself but I turned into a gas factory!! I am not kidding when I say this. It was ridiculous. I could have filled a small blimp with the way my system was working! So I know now, not to fool around when it comes to breaking my fast. I also now include probiotics, that I mix into the fruit sauce when I am breaking a fast.

In terms of the benefits, I have noticed a shoulder that I injured playing golf heal very quickly. Obviously weight loss. I usually go through a period of lethargy around day 3 or 4 and it usually comes out of nowhere. After that period, I am good. The first time I went on a fast, I was wasted for several days and felt like I could barely make it, just walking into my office so if you are a first timer, I would make sure you don’t have anything planned and can rest if needed. Now that I have done several fasts, I find starting during a work week is easier for me as I am usually so busy throughout the day (I am in IT), that it is easy to forget about food for awhile. Well that is my 2 cents. Good luck!!

Hi,

I would like to fast for the first time ever and was wondering more about the actual ground rules. I've read some people saying they've gone 40-50 days but yet they leave out too much detail. If you give a story, provide everything you did (ate, drank,did, exercise, etc) to help others, otherwise it's a waste of the readers time as we learn nothing from you or your experience.

Was it water only? Did you eat anything (at all)? Did you take vitamins? Can anyone fasting take vitamins (should we not?)? Are we supposed to exercise or be completely relaxed throughout the process? Can we consume heart protection specific vitamins like Omoege3 pills? Can drinking water and tea really be any different then drinking just water alone? Plain naturally decaf tea has no calories, no carbs, no anything really, but is high in antioxidants which seem like they'd help the process, not hinder it!

Why not promote drinking decaf tea with water too?

I really want to start a 14-15 day fast of only water and tea and wish there was more ground rules that are provided on sites like this for beginners. If you provide the benefits, be accurate and provide the specifics!

An excellent book on fasting that was written in the 60's is "Therapeutic Fasting" by Arnold De Vries. You can buy a used copy on Amazon. It covers forms of fasting, history of fasting, safety, efficiency and symptoms of the fast, psychological reactions to fasting and how to properly break the fast.

If you want to have the most health benefits from fasting (ie, ridding your body of disease, tumors, toxins, pathogens, etc.) then you should go on a straight water fast - no teas, honey, fruit juice, vegetable broths, spirulina, lemon juice, etc.

By the way Roxanne, the author of this book states that your tongue will be coated the whole time you are fasting which is a sign that toxins and other pathogens are being released. At some point during the fast (it could be up to 40 days or more - less for some more for others) your tongue will clear up and your natural hunger will return and that is when your body has completed healing itself. If you continue beyond this point you risk putting your body into starvation mode where it will start breaking down it's own muscle and organ tissue to survive. But prior to this point there is no need to worry about starvation. Your body is in a state of ketosis and is burning it's adipose (fat) tissue for energy. People with very little fat obviously will be done with a fast sooner than someone with more fat to burn.

My husband and I are starting our water fast this week and are hoping to make it to the completion of the fast, however long it takes. Per the above book, great care must be taken in ending a fast especially of this length. People have actually died from breaking a fast improperly (the book references a guy who ate a beef sandwich after a 40 day water fast and died due to the food getting impacted in his gut). Without going into too much detail a basic rule of thumb is for every 4 to 6 days of a water fast, do one day of a juice diet. So if you water fasted for 30 days, break the fast with 5 days of fruit and veggie juice. Swill it around in your mouth before drinking it to get the enzymes activated to help with digestion. After the juice diet incorporate raw fruits and vegetables starting with small meals and slowly transitioning to larger meals, always remembering to chew the food well. Best wishes if you decide to try the water fast!

Hi, I have read your story , which was quite touching, So interesting to read of everyone's spiritual, emotional and physical journeys with food and weight.i suggest you to drink water maximum as u can.i really like your concept.Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated. Thankyou