First fast was 38 days... wonder how I will do this time ;)

(Beth) #21

How’s it going for you?
I really really really really really wanted to eat tonight. Purely mental. I resented everyone else having pizza and hot wings.
I drank my broth and pouted at my desk instead. Thankfully I had tons of work to do which distracted me.
Now I am going home. Often that is a hard time for me, resisting the urge to snack at night. But I feel like if I could make it through tonight, no way I’m going to ruin it when I get home!!!

#22

Nothing more heart wrenching than a loved one truly caring about you.

I’m here for you.

(Mike Ratcliffe) #23

Yes, I also find it hard sometimes. When you feel hungry just drink some water and it helps you feel better.

I also found it hard today sitting watching my family eat tonight… my three 5-year-olds crowded around me at the table waving pieces of chicken and ham right under my nose to tease me.

I embraced the situation and chose to get a good sniff of that food and a great sniff of the scrambled egg with bacon that was on the table. It’s my way of telling my body that I am in control.

When you feel hungry it is an opportunity to evaluate your relationship with hunger. Ask yourself why you would normally eat that food. Is it because it looks nice or because you are bored? Is it the smell?

If you do this you can continue after your fast and ask yourself do I really need that food? Am I really hungry or is it something else?

I know I need to lose a heckovalotta weight to feel healthy again. I need to do it for myself and my family so I can’t give in and eat.

There are dangers to fasting for very long periods so I will break it into bite-sized chunks. I am not sure whether to do 28 days or 40… I will see how I feel. I will then feast for a couple of weeks and fast again.

At this point I am starting to feel better and healthier despite my whole family including myself having a virus. For me diarrhea is always part of fasting but my whole family have it. To be honest, it is not poop when you are fasting, it is just bile and water… I should probably drink less.

(Beth) #24

When you feel hungry it is an opportunity to evaluate your relationship with hunger. Ask yourself why you would normally eat that food. Is it because it looks nice or because you are bored? Is it the smell?>

If you do this you can continue after your fast and ask yourself do I really need that food? Am I really hungry or is it something else?

I know I need to lose a heckovalotta weight to feel healthy again. I need to do it for myself and my family so I can’t give in and eat.

Thank you for this. These are a couple of terrific points that I need to spend more time considering. I really want to change my relationship with food. I am in this situation because I leaned on food as a crutch.

And I really appreciate the thought of my love for my family as motivation. That really helps, thank you.

I love that you have three five-year-old boys! That must be a constant adventure!

(Mike Ratcliffe) #25

Day 10

I love that you have three five-year-old boys! That must be a constant adventure!

Yup… they defo keep us busy but I love them to bits.

We are all still sick in my family but I am still fasting and hoping it clears up soon.

Did groceries today because of everyone being sick and was very close to either throwing up or blacking out but my whole family feel that way so it is 100% the virus.

Anyhow, glad you are feeling better.

(Beth) #26

I am asking myself the questions. Trying to stay out of the bacon. Lol!

(Beth) #27

How’s it going? You guys getting better yet?
Electrolytes, coffee and salt here today.
Feeling fine, a little tired today. Makes me grateful for the black coffee!

(Mike Ratcliffe) #28

Day 12

How’s it going? You guys getting better yet?

Yes, feeling much better today.

I managed to stick to the 2.2 Litres of water yesterday and had much less diarrhea but maybe I will up it to 3 litres… I’ll see how it goes.

On the whole I am feeling okay. On my previous fast it was probably around day 16 that I started to have more energy so I am not super surprised that I aren’t turning somersaults yet.

Mentally I am feeling sharp, which is good… at the same time I need to focus because of my work and that does take a little extra effort.

Looking forward to a good day today!

(Mike Ratcliffe) #29

Day 13

I can’t believe it… my wife has invited guests over for dinner tomorrow so I need to end my fast today and continue in a couple of days.

I think we should be flexible like that although I feel a little disappointed.

My cunning plan is to look for a decent, filling Keto meal and cook it for my whole family. That way I should be able to go straight back into the fasted state within a day or two.

So I guess it is nuts and olives for a few hours then something from my recipe book.

(icky) #30

Haha, LIFE being it’s usual complicated self, huh? :smile:

Are these good friends? If so, I’d keep fasting.

I’d make sure I’m not a spoil-sport about dinner and sit there with them and have a wonderful time and talk to them about this amazing fasting thing you’re doing :blush: and have a giggle together about your wife inviting guests during your fast!

If they are not friends then fair enough, it could be weird/ uncomfortable…

(Mike Ratcliffe) #31

Yeah, they are not close friends at all… of course, if they were close friends it wouldn’t be a problem.

Meh, it will only be a couple of days so I am not that bothered.

My wife wants us to have Raclette (a Swiss meal) that involves lots of melted cheese that is melted in a grill that sits on the table right in front of you so at least that meal is easy… I am sure I can find plenty of keto friendly things to pour it over.

(icky) #32

Cool - make sure you only have a small portion at first - after 13 days of fasting your entire digestive tract (stomach, bowels) will be “switched off”. Eating nuts and olives in the hours before the meal to ease back into things sounds good :+1:t3:

Still, go easy on the serving size with a meal like Raclette - if they are not good friends, then you don’t want to have stomach and bowel issues while they are there either :smile:

(Mike Ratcliffe) #33

Good advice.

I remember the first time I ate Fondue I didn’t know when to stop… I felt like I had rocks in my stomach.

(Beth) #34

Sounds fun. Enjoy your feast. I’m fasting on.
My neighborhood block held a parade and party today for the 4th. I had fun but left after being pressured to eat for the third time from the big potluck buffet. Plus I have to work on the holiday, so that makes it pretty easy to distract myself.
With olives, nuts & sauerkraut I had no trouble eating a big meal a few hours later, but I didn’t include dairy. Good luck, hope it goes smoothly. Lots of fat helps me get right back into fasting pretty easily. Digestive enzymes taken with food also help if you happen to have any.

(Ann Redfern) #35

I’m super impressed at how long everyone is able to fast. I’ve been doing OMAD for about 3 weeks now and decided to try a longer fast. I was aiming for 4 days but have crumpled at 40 hours after my husband cooked bacon and eggs!!! I was wondering whether it is normal to feel quite unwell after you break your fast. I broke it with a small amount of cheese and olives initially and then about half an hour later had a bowl of veggies with bog sauce. I now fell quite unwell and appear to have an alien inhabiting my innards (really quite disturbing sounds are coming from my stomach). I think I stayed pretty hydrated (water, decaf coffee, bone broth with salt and magnesium/electrolytes). I’d be grateful for any advice on how to improve the experience.

(Beth) #36

What in the world is bog sauce?
Is it out of the ordinary for you? Or spicy?
I love spicy but it doesn’t love me on or just after a fast.

The noises happen to me too. I read that it’s generally normal digestion sounds of your system starting up again throughout your digestive tract.

I feel unwell if I overdo portion sizes, or mix too many different foods too soon. I start with olives and/or sauerkraut. A while later I eat about half a usual portion of meat with some fat like mayo (just because I love mayo). If it’s been a short fast of 2-4 days I can add a cooked veggie with fat, like broccoli or spinach & butter, or cauliflower & pesto. But I feel best if I wait a while after the meat meal to add the veggie, for example wait a few hours, then have meat/veggie/fat at the next meal.

I find I have to eat smaller portions and not stuff myself, or it feels like it takes forever to digest my food, which is uncomfortable, and keeps me from getting hungry for another whole day at least. I also have to resist the urge to have a little bit of several different things because I miss the taste of them. It’s easy to stuff myself that way too.

I try to remember to take digestive enzymes to start those first few meals and they really seem to help facilitate digestion and alleviate discomfort.

I also worked up to fasting this long over several months. I started with 16:8, then 20:4, then 24
hours, 36, 48, etc. You did great with 40 hours.

(icky) #37

Where I live, “spag bog” = spaghetti bolognese

Dunno what it means where Ann lives :smile:

And yeah, feeling sick after ending a fast means you overdid the portion sizes, Ann.

You need to start re-eating reeeeeeeeeeal slow and gentle. Food on the first day may need to be minimal, if you are very sensitive to this.

(Ann Redfern) #38

Thanks Beth. Bog sauce - short for bolognese sauce (might be a bit of an Australian slang term), so not spicy and the version that I made was pretty plain. I did have it with quite a few veggies though so that well may be the problem. Smaller serves is also a good suggestion. I did think my serve was fairly modest but i’ve been so full since so it probably was too much. Thanks for your advice particularly about building up to the longer fasts! They seem a bit out of reach at the moment. I’m still happy with what I’ve been doing and achieved so far - between keto and fasting i’m feeling much better and the weight is creeping off ever so slowly. Soooo slowly. :blush:

(Ann Redfern) #39

Yup - correct on the sauce. Looks like the serve size and veggies might be the culprit.

(Beth) #40

How did the party go?