Starting a New Year's Fast!

(Scott Shillady) #21

@Lmalhoit, You got this, I am only 48 hours in so far, I have tons of energy. My first fast I made it to 70 hours. going for 100 this time.

#22

27 days?! Thatā€™s amazing. Iā€™m sure I have enough ahem ā€œstored energyā€ to go months, but 46 hours is as far as Iā€™ve made it do far! Iā€™m thinking of starting again snd pushing though to at least 72 hours, but Iā€™m concerned about going too long too soon. Iā€™ve been keto since early November

#23

Iā€™m at 20 hours and a little hangry but itā€™ll pass. Woot! We rock!

(Lauren Malhoit) #24

Listen to your bodyā€¦ If you start getting light headed or something like that have a little fat. If that doesnā€™t work then eat something.

#25

Hi Debby! Am I to understand you have been water fasting for that long? If so, would you mind sharing what you hope to achieve, and how long you plan to keep going? Iā€™m fascinated!

BTW, Iā€™m currently on day two of a water fast of undetermined lengthā€¦never been past seven days on water alone. Iā€™d love to see if I can go as long as you have!

(Lauren Malhoit) #26

I think Iā€™m going to stop at 72 hours. I feel pretty good actually, but I just got an interview for a new job tomorrow and want to be on my A game. Iā€™ll be having a salad at 10pm tonight.

#27

Ha! I broke at 24ā€¦I got up to make a cup of tea and ended up with coleslaw and leftover steak!
Guess I needed itā€¦woke to a 2 pound drop.

(Scott Telfer) #28

I love the feeling fasting gives me but at 70kg, 5,10 33yo male my body really starts to not like it by day threeā€¦ :frowning:

(G. Andrew Duthie) #29

You may not have enough body fat to support your basal metabolic rate. Do you know your body fat %? You can plug that in here:

That may give you an idea of whether youā€™re operating at a deficit when fasting. You might need to add some fat to compensate. I certainly found that in the first couple of days, if I didnā€™t get enough additional fat, I was cold, hungry, and lethargic by the end of the day.

(Scott Telfer) #30

Thanks for such a useful response :slight_smile: I suspect this might be the case. In the evolutionary sense I probably wouldnā€™t survive a harsh winter :confused: thanks again

(G. Andrew Duthie) #31

Starting day 5 here. Still supplementing with a bit of fat.

My BG is still excellent, and as of this morning I am down around 7 lbs from when I started. Some of that will undoubtedly come back once I start eating again, but Iā€™m very pleased with the outcome. I may call it done todayā€¦depends on how Iā€™m feeling at dinner time. Will likely go back to IF (20/4) once I complete the extended fast.

#32

Woot! Keep pounding!

#33

On day threeā€¦really dragging arse and struggling until about two hours ago. Got a sudden burst of energy and clarity. I still want to eat, but as yet donā€™t NEED to eat.

On to day fourā€¦

#34

I ended my fast after I hit 28 days (last night). My goal is to prevent T2 diabetes. Not officially pre-diabetic, but higher than Iā€™d likeā€¦A1C 5.6 or 5.7. My father is pre-diabetic and on metformen. (think i spelled that wrong). Neither of us is overweight.

Good luck with your fast! Yeah, after a certain point, it really is all mental. I had no interest at all in food until about day 25 or 26. And then it wasnā€™t that I was hungryā€¦just that I wanted to eat! And while I thought it might be an interesting challenge to do 40 days, I didnā€™t really see a need. Maybe another time. :smile:

#35

Thatā€™s incredible! I would love to know how you feltā€¦ever get weak or dizzy? How much weight did you lose? How did you break a fast that long?

(G. Andrew Duthie) #36

Dizziness could be related to low blood pressure, which can be caused by dehydration, which can happen if youā€™re not getting enough electrolytes. One sign of this is if you get dizzy when standing up quickly or otherwise changing position in a way that might cause blood to rush away from your head.

Otherwise, check your glucose. And ketones, if you can. If glucose is very low, but youā€™re not seeing much by way of ketones, than you may not be fat-adapted yet, in which case you could be experiencing hypoglycemia.

Iā€™m not a doctor, so not giving medical advice. Just sharing my experience in hopes that it helps.

(Terri) #37

Way to go, @Scatter!

#38

Iā€™m definitely fat adaptedā€¦but what I havenā€™t taken seriously enough is electrolyte balance. And I work outside in the Florida heat. Just finished making a bunch of Ketoaide for work tomorrow. Learning as I go!

(G. Andrew Duthie) #39

Do you have any problems with leg cramps? Thatā€™s another thing that usually goes along with electrolyte issues.

#40

Thx Terriā€¦still cannot quite wrap my mind around a fast of 20+ days!