I just ended a 66 hour fast my longest ever. The fast was going great until the night before when I foolishly took my normal magnesium supplement before bed 400MG. Normally that doesn’t affect me. But last night 50+ hours in and lookout, a mini colonoscopy prep for me. I ended up not sleeping that well, and felt pretty poor all day when I decided to eat. I broke the fast with a relatively small salad, some cheese and some asparagus drenched in butter. I was planning on a steak tonight but I’ve been in the bathroom most of the afternoon. I’m 67 first went low carb in 2012 went from around 215 to 170. Stayed there for a while, went off, gained 15, went back in 2019, this time with intermittent fasting went down to the low 150’s and again went off when the pandemic started, I retired, moved and ended up gaining 25 pounds. Restarted I believe true keto this time, I found the 2 dudes podcast a huge support, I used to listen to Mondays, and Run As so I knew of Carl. So I know I messed up, any suggestions on how to end a fast? What and how much to eat.
Post fast blues
Oh, good old magnesium!!! You should have run in and demanded a colonoscopy stat! (It’s amazing how much food is still in your system after days of fasting, isn’t it?) I have learned exactly how much to use on a daily basis to stay in the happy medium bathroom zone. It’s a game changer, plus prevents my nightly muscle cramps.
Go here… these are your people…. They will have your answers. And good luck…
https://www.ketogenicforums.com/c/fast/ef
Thank you! I’m a noob at any kind of extended fasting, but I do intend to fast again in a few weeks. I was surprised how fast my ketone rose (1.4 last week to 3.4 today). And I lost close to 5 pounds since last week.
Welcome to this forum @whiplash55 Mark.
I hope you remember to avoid the magnesium supplement on an empty tum for the next extended fast.
Don’t be surprised if you have a bit of a bounce back on weight after your rapid clear out, once you start eating again.
The magnesium itself might not have been the culprit? Just so you know… You mentioned this was your longest Fast, and yep, Fast themselves can be a funny thing when breaking one. There are sometimes set timeframes that will cause bathroom issues when you go beyond it and then break, and then, it can basically happen anytime to be honest. The mention of eating a small salad is usually a good one, and there are some other things too, but basically done in a small amount to jumpstart the system after not providing it food for a while. So you may have to try different things to see what works best for you. And there are some that are known as notoriously infamous for causing one stomach dumps, such as Eggs, Nuts, just to name a few. (Though they don’t affect everyone this way, they do for a lot of folks, so they are something we mention here) Along with the other links provided, you can also check in the monthly IF/EF threads we do each month. I will post the link for this months below if it’s helpful… And they are labeled the same each month, with the new month added in front.
Thanks for your help, very much appreciated. The good news is I feel great today, I haven’t eaten yet and have no hunger. I will eat tonight as I had been before the fast, usually eating between 4 and 8PM.
Every long term fast I’ve done has ended in the bathroom for a lot of time. That’s why I end them by noon at the latest, and don’t end them in the evening.
I plan to avoid the scale for a week, which is my normal "weigh in " schedule. Today 1 day after I feel great.