Fasting: The Psychological Struggle is REAL!

(Duncan Kerridge) #21

Yep I still get that 18hr hunger on the first day, I usually go for a long walk if I feel it coming.

(Leslie) #22

Very interesting. You’re right it was another fleeting hunger pang/ wave that came and went.

Now I feel… stoned almost. Carefree, ‘light’, heightened senses and almost calm and sedated. It’s weird and cool at the same time. I walked down to the beach to lay in the sun and soak in some rays and relax/ nap/ meditate/ listen to podcasts and enjoy this feeling of sedation-- it’s a nice, gentle reprieve from the constant food thoughts.

(Doug) #23

Good description, Leslie. :slightly_smiling_face: I think that’s a really good part of fasting. Have never really felt “powerful” or truly “energetic” as some people described, but there certainly is that sense of lightness.

(Leslie) #24

Yea. Was reading some on the fasting Reddit forums and while I think some of the claims are overrated (maybe the scientist/ pre- med in me) but I’m sure this lightness is surely due to hormonal fluctuations or metabolic adjustment. Either way I welcome the sensation.

(Tim W) #25

It depends.

Going into a long fast having eaten keto/low carb, I don’t experience my change in the first 3-4 days, it’s such a variable situation based on activity level, pre-fast carbs etc.

I have noticed that having alcohol the day before a fast is a mistake, hardest long fast I ever did followed a few Sunday afternoon beers, the next week was hell.

As others have said, the “true hunger” is probably to come. Best of luck to you, the process gets easier the more you do it. One tip though, take a break from this site and the reddit forums and do your best to forget you are fasting, it will help the time go by (just got back from hiking/halloween shopping with the family, made the first half of the day go by real fast).

(Leslie) #26

Honestly, the part about getting off the Forums & Reddit was the best of all the advice.

I completed my fast at 37hours, and broke it with a butter coffee with a half tablespoon of dark cocoa.

Sicilian salad then maybe a light meal in a few hours then honestly probably fasting again.

#27

If it’s a feasting day I usually eat “breakfast” around noon or later with little hunger in the morning, if it’s a fasting day I think about food at least hourly from about 5am onward. The mental struggle is real. Just gotta get through it one hunger pang at a time, one hour at a time, one day at a time. It gets easier each time I think, and overthinking it becomes more of a non-issue. Be confident in your decision to fast, listen to your body, and don’t tell people what you are up to unless you absolutely have to. Good luck!

(Leslie) #28

I LOVE the concept of the feast-or-famine model, and it actually fits well with my true hunger patterns. I really love feast days lol. I know it’s going to take an adjustment period however I think I’ll be fine and in a routine in no home.

“Stretching my fasting muscles” hahaha. Didn’t Jimmy say that?

(mwall) #29

I’ve learned the unsweetened flavored Seltzer waters like deer Park ReAlLy help me quiet any gurgling and pass a hunger wave in addition to nibbling salt rocks.

(Nathanael Schulte) #30

I know this one for sure. I think really helps to have a clear motivation and determination set in place, and I think you almost have to view it as a battle sometimes. You can do all the physical things right and the body / mind still wants to have the food. It definitely takes time and practice. The body is smart and definitely shouldn’t be mistreated, but I’m convinced it’s meant to be your servant, not your master and shouldn’t always get its way. It doesn’t always clearly know what’s good for you.

(Tim W) #31

Great points Nathanael,

In my opinion, the body will always do it’s best to conserve energy etc in a restrictive manner in order to ensure life and the passing on of genes. We could do more but our nature is to be “conservative” with our assets, requiring us to “push through” those times that the body would rather not support. I’m sure there is a more technical way of saying that, I’ll have to work on it for clarity.

(Alicia Warren) #32

I’ve been learning to fast for the last 18 months. And this is what I’ve learned. Jason Fung’s books have really motivated me. They motivate me by creating a mental model of what I’m trying to do, and how to do it. High insulin levels are the villain, (it makes you feel hungry) and I’m in a battle to bring my insulin down. Fasting combined with LCHF eating/feasting is the primary weapon at my disposal, but exercise, stress reduction, plenty of sleep are also important. We talk about the psychological struggle but the drive to eat is really our deranged hormones doing the talking via the brain. I somehow find it useful to see it as my warped hormones betraying me rather than my brain betraying me. I think this is because the mental model of “mind over matter” or “just control your thoughts” makes us feel that we are somehow responsible for any inability to control our drive to eat, but thinking of it as a physical/chemical process that I am battling takes away the guilt and Jason Fung’s advice provides the tools to use in that battle to bring the hunger hormones under control.
At the more basic level I cope by drinking plenty (salty chicken stock/broth, in between black coffee and jasmine green tea). Occasionally rather than give in entirely to hunger, I will have a little fat (a tablespoon of butter or some cream in my coffee) to get through a few more hours. To create a lengthy distraction at dinner time (which I find the most difficult time to get past) I sometimes go to a movie. I find 24 hrs not too hard, but Day 2 is difficult. I have not yet made it past 48 hours. I believe it gets easier if you can get to Day 3. Ideally I would like to have a routine of not eating for 48 hrs every week (or at least most weeks). In reality I have had some long breaks from fasting when I lack focus due to too much else to deal with. My measures of fasting success are primarily my HbA1c, fasting insulin and fasting glucose. The latter 2 measures allow me to work out my HOMA-IR. My BMI is 22.5 so weight is less of an issue for me now than my metabolic markers.

(Becky) #33

Yes! The pink salt crated an “accidental” 48 hour fast for me. I struggle with fasting generally. I was taking pink salt on the tongue with every 16 oz of water to try and reduce tendinitis inflammation. My oven was in pieces awaiting a repair and Saturday morning, I decided to get two rounds of salt and water in while I figured out how to prepare a meal…it’s Sunday night! 48 hour fast! I broke my plateau and lost 7 lbs!