So....water fasting for 10 days. Any stories?

fasting
(I Am Sandy Cheeks) #1

Hey y’all, I’m new to this site and I literally just failed (I made it to day 3) at a 10 day fast. I have always been able to fast for short periods of time but I’m never able to make it past the third day. I would love to start again on Sunday just to give my body some time to lead into it. I tried to do it cold turkey and that didn’t work out.

I would love to hear y’all’s stories or if you wanna join my challenge then feel free. We can motivate each other :blush:

Edit: I am or at least I was in Ketosis. My issue with not being able to make it past day 3 is simply boredom. I tend to eat when I’m bored. I kind of just missed the eating process lol…I hope I’m making sense.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #2

Welcome @I_am_Sandy_Cheeks I’m no fasting expert and likely those who are will reply more fully.

You don’t say whether you’re already in ketosis or not. That’s relevant. If not, my only suggestion is taper off on the carbs for a few days before starting your fast. That will help cut your ‘third day carb hunger monster’ down to size a bit. Once you get past that, it’s a much easier time.

If you are already in ketosis, then your third day monster is something else. I will leave it to the experts to help. :thinking:

#3

Truly before Keto I did some longer water fasts and it was always the first 3 days that were the absolute hardest, after that hunger disappeared and I lost all interest in food. If it’s boredom and not hunger then maybe before trying again have a plan to keep yourself busy, maybe a special fasting project?

(Jody) #4

Why a 10 day? Just to see if you can do it? Alternate day fasting can be just as good as extended per Megan at IDM.

(Karim Wassef) #5

  1. I recommend doing a 4 day.

  2. Fasting is very much mental in my experience and if boredom is you day 3 wall, then plan something that takes you out of your routine on day 3. Go for a hike, for example. Go to the zoo, aquarium, or a local gym. Or go shopping for clothes…

Each day on a fast is its special achievement. I usually feel my best on day 3. Day 2 is not so good. But once you get to day 4, then 5 becomes the next goal.

  1. Fast with a friend. It can be someone local or online, but social support is important so find a fasting buddy.

  2. Cook for the feast. I get the boredom, but I would usually align it with my goal. For example, I would cook knowing that I can’t even taste what I’m making but getting it ready for the day I will eat. It doesn’t work as well after 14 days, but it should get you to 4 and 5.

Oh! And congrats on getting to day 3! Day 4 would be 33% longer than your personal record.

(Robert C) #6

My story is that I would break a 10-day fast into two 5-day fasts.

For me, after day 5 I start having intolerable sleep issues (5-day happens to be intentionally conservative - it really kicks in somewhere between days 7 and 10).

I become hyper-vigilant and find it difficult to get to sleep and stay asleep (sort of ruining the benefits of the fast). I have pressed on for longer but, then required a much longer recovery period. Getting over several back-to-back nights of less than 4 hours of sleep is no joke.

Specifically, I guess I would suggest fasting Monday to Friday - refeed (Keto - and a proper refeed) over the weekend and then fast the following Monday to Friday.

Per @Jody2 above, 20 days of ADF is about the same (if you truly do not eat on the alternate days - not the low calorie version of ADF that is sometimes described on the Internet).

(Jody) #7

Robert, I definitely do black coffee, salty water fasting 99.9% of the time. Combining that w/low carb has been a power house in my blood sugars decreasing.

(Doug) #8

Welcome, Sandy. :slightly_smiling_face:

Making total sense - yes, this is often the deal. 10 days is my longest fast within about 25 fasts over the past 2 years. Most have been 3 to 6 days. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten to ‘true hunger’ - it’s always that fasting ends because I got bored, had food cravings, something came up socially that was too tempting, etc.

Still have at least 90 lbs. of fat to lose - usually feed good or at least “okay” when fasting. Many people find it’s hardest around 18 hours, for many others it’s the second day. Salt and other electrolytes - I rarely notice the difference. A very few times I’ve thought it made me feel better, but feelings/hunger/energy go up and down on their own throughout the day; not sure if I get a placebo effect or not.

On the positive side, I get real motivation from knowing that I’m doing something really good for myself. To generalize, I see the first day as emptying out the stomach and small intestine, and getting to work on our stored glycogen and having blood sugar begin to decline. The second day finishes up on totally getting out of the “fed state,” now we’ve got autophagy on the rise, insulin going down, glucagon going up - these are good things indeed. When I get through the third day, I feel a given fast is a success - I’ve spent some time in an excellent zone.

(I Am Sandy Cheeks) #9

You know that saying “eyes bigger than your stomach”…well that’s basically me. I honestly be eating cause I can or bored and I don’t even be hungry. I’m trying to stop that and also jump start my weightloss journey.

#10

I did a couple of 24 hour fasts, a 36 hour, and then hubby decided to join in. We basically challenged each other to make it through 5 days, and we did.
Morning coffee…a must for both of us. Otherwise massive headaches ensue.
Water. Water. Water.
1 Cup of homemade salted chicken broth at lunch
water. water.water.
1 Cup of the broth, or green tea for dinner.
water water water.
Felt a little bit lethargic from time to time during the first days, give or take a few hours. Somewhere inside of day 4, I felt FABULOUS. Massive energy burst. Day 5 I was bouncing around like the energizer bunny, but started feeling unwell that evening. So, hubby and I made it through, and ate a really late dinner.
I’d not recommend doing a 10 day fast right off the bat. I am in full agreement with @RobC Do a couple of 5 day fast broken up by the weekend.

Most days, I do IF 18:6. Some of those days end up being OMAD. Not sure if I am entirely fat adapted, but, once I work up the gumption to do it, I think I could handle another 5 or 7 day fast pretty easily. You have to work your way up to it, though.
HTH.

(Jody) #11

Yes, that’s a big part of the process, finding yourself in the kitchen… I ask myself “are you hungry…no? then why are you in there?” LOL

I journal a LOT