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Meta Board => Off Topic Fun => Topic started by: brujon on January 30, 2018, 06:53:59 PM

Title: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: brujon on January 30, 2018, 06:53:59 PM
I'm trying a 10-day fast, finishing my second day today and going into my third tomorrow. As i've read and watched, hunger seems to slowly subside and while energy seemed low today, it seems to be coming back to me now.

So i question y'all, have you tried fasting? How did it go? Would you recommend it? Also, has anyone had bad experiences with longer fasting?
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: SorO_Lost on January 30, 2018, 08:03:44 PM
I fast every time I get too sick to keep food from being expelled out of my stomach. :P

So first stage is hunger obviously. But then you hit "the wall", which is a a runner term for depleting your store of glycogen, making you feel extremely fatigued. And after that your body starts sucking down fat and other stored fuel which feels like a burst of energy compared to how you were before but the release is typically slower than consumption so it's really easy to bottom out again. And just so you know, the loss of blood sugar will impact your short term memory and unless you are perform tasks and consciously aware of your self you won't even notice it. Around that time you'll probably notice you're not hungry anymore, you've lost your appetite, and if you try to eat you won't feel like eating much. And the reason for that is because it takes energy to produce energy and since your electrolytes have plummeted your body becomes unable to correctly process large meals.

This can have long term effects if repeated and all of them negative. Your body will store more food leading to to weight gain. Your desire for sweets & carbs will sky rocket because your brain has this silly concept of wanting to stay alive. Your muscle mass will decrease as your body cannibalizes it for the protein needed to maintain more important muscles like your heart and diaphragm. But hey, you'll think food totally tastes better right? And can you think of a better way to lose twenty pounds in two weeks? But do you know the oddest trait? Malnutrition causes apathy. Like the immediate problems of fatigue, loss of libido, headaches, chills, anxiety, depression, and dizziness are totally expected and some people lump not caring into depression but still. It's like caring takes effort for some people or something.

And the worst part is it's completely meaningless. Recall that whole you'll desire to stuff your face with unhealthy food afterwards? virtually everyone that tries the 10-day juice fast regains the lost weight within a few weeks. So you torture your self and ruin your health for practically nothing. If you want more details you should discuss them, as with any other extreme dieting method, with your doctor.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: FireInTheSky on January 30, 2018, 09:48:34 PM
Not exactly related, but I had jaw surgery a year ago. Lost 16lbs. the first week, when I was basically having only a small handful of kids applesauce pouches and yogurts each day. Probably less than 700cal/day. And of course they say to increase your calorie intake after surgery, to help with the healing. But it's, unsurprisingly, hard to do that when you can't chew.

In any case, yeah, I gained it all back once I was able to actually eat for real again.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: Solo on January 31, 2018, 12:56:47 AM
I've fasted on a few occasions. Can't say I recommend going out of my way to do it.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: brujon on January 31, 2018, 03:20:42 PM
I fast every time I get too sick to keep food from being expelled out of my stomach. :P

So first stage is hunger obviously. But then you hit "the wall", which is a a runner term for depleting your store of glycogen, making you feel extremely fatigued. And after that your body starts sucking down fat and other stored fuel which feels like a burst of energy compared to how you were before but the release is typically slower than consumption so it's really easy to bottom out again. And just so you know, the loss of blood sugar will impact your short term memory and unless you are perform tasks and consciously aware of your self you won't even notice it. Around that time you'll probably notice you're not hungry anymore, you've lost your appetite, and if you try to eat you won't feel like eating much. And the reason for that is because it takes energy to produce energy and since your electrolytes have plummeted your body becomes unable to correctly process large meals.

This can have long term effects if repeated and all of them negative. Your body will store more food leading to to weight gain. Your desire for sweets & carbs will sky rocket because your brain has this silly concept of wanting to stay alive. Your muscle mass will decrease as your body cannibalizes it for the protein needed to maintain more important muscles like your heart and diaphragm. But hey, you'll think food totally tastes better right? And can you think of a better way to lose twenty pounds in two weeks? But do you know the oddest trait? Malnutrition causes apathy. Like the immediate problems of fatigue, loss of libido, headaches, chills, anxiety, depression, and dizziness are totally expected and some people lump not caring into depression but still. It's like caring takes effort for some people or something.

And the worst part is it's completely meaningless. Recall that whole you'll desire to stuff your face with unhealthy food afterwards? virtually everyone that tries the 10-day juice fast regains the lost weight within a few weeks. So you torture your self and ruin your health for practically nothing. If you want more details you should discuss them, as with any other extreme dieting method, with your doctor.

I'm not drinking juice or consuming any calories in any form during the fast. I am, however, taking multivitamins/minerals and lots of water, along with one spoonful of salt a day dissolved in a cup of water, to prevent my eletrolytes from completely plummeting - also i take 1 vitamin C tablet in the morning, and i'm making sure to get at least 8 hours of sleep every day of the fast.

What i've read/watched indicates many positive aspects of a 4+ day fast, like ketosis, and also that your Ghrelin resets, meaning, you stop having cravings at the (unhealthy) hours you used to, and can more easily condition yourself to eating on more convenient/proper hours. Some studies also indicate an increase in HGH, which is in contrast to caloric restriction. It seems like you have way more lean muscle mass loss if you go on caloric restriction diet (like a juice-only fast), than if you go completely and utterly without any calories whatsoever for an extended period of time.

I'm well aware that some muscle mass loss will be inevitable, though. I am doing light exercise to keep my muscles busy and try and prevent as much of it as i possibly can, but of course without any protein, i won't be gaining any mass, only preventing the loss of as much of it as i can.

@Solo how long did you go on your fast? What was the reason for it? Why don't you recommend it?
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: nijineko on February 02, 2018, 10:57:40 PM
I used to have a habit of fasting once a month for 12-24 hours without any food or drink (even water). I have done so since I was a teenager for decades. I've gotten out of the habit in the last few years, but was actually thinking of picking it up again.

I always found it rejuvenating and a good way to purge body, mind, and soul. The trick is more or less mindfulness. It is much more effective if you keep in mind your purpose, and, obviously, have a purpose for fasting in the first place. Personally, I would spend some of my time fasting in prayer and meditation, focusing on life, the universe, and something specific. ^^ Taking a nap in the middle doesn't hurt. lol. In any case, it's a great opportunity to practice mind over body and whatnot.

Keep in mind, however, that too frequent fasting, (or too lengthy) can actually have negative effects, so be careful and pay attention to one's health.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: brujon on February 03, 2018, 09:23:25 AM
Yeah, i actually broke my fast after 4 days because, headaches, dizziness, fogginess, and a general sense of weakness and what the hell am i doing and this is not going to end well made me realize that maybe i'm not in the best of shapes to even attempt such a long fast in the first place.

While i'm sure it's possible and may even bring benefits, i don't think my BF% is high enough that i can safely attempt a fast of more than 5 days or so.

My takeway from it is, i don't know if the fast did any good to me, or if i just felt really good to be feeling good again after feeling so shitty...

Which means, i'm probably not attempting it again. But it was fun - although different from reports from basically everyone that i know attempted it.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: Solo on February 04, 2018, 01:09:00 AM
@Solo how long did you go on your fast? What was the reason for it? Why don't you recommend it?
Either because I did not have access to food, or because of medical reasons.

I don't recommend it because it is unpleasant and doesn't offer any actual benefits, unless you want to develop self discipline or something.
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: Archon on February 04, 2018, 01:16:30 AM
@Solo how long did you go on your fast? What was the reason for it? Why don't you recommend it?
Either because I did not have access to food, or because of medical reasons.

I don't recommend it because it is unpleasant and doesn't offer any actual benefits, unless you want to develop self discipline or something.


I'm given to understand that 12-36 hour fasts, on a regular (Weekly, I think) basis, are of some benefit, and minimal harm. But that is quite a different thing. (And I'd give decent chance that medical opinion has changed on that since I last checked)
Title: Re: Does anyone have any experience fasting?
Post by: RedWarlock on February 06, 2018, 12:27:29 AM
I did Intermittent Fasting (12-16-hour fasts daily) as a weight-loss aid a couple years back. It was okay, but my diet wasn't the best overall (I was working an office job and I would resort to diner food quite often, didn't help much). Lost a bit of weight with it, but nothing outstanding, only like 10-20 pounds from my 350-ish total. (Also did keto/low-carb, same kind of results, minor loss, nothing outstanding. In contrast, last fall, I got my shit together and properly tracked my macros on a daily basis, and dropped 40+ pounds in 4 months, in combination with my ongoing major weightlifting routine.)

As I've gotten more embedded into fitness culture (fitness facebook groups, mostly), the general consensus is that most IF is just another form of calorie restriction, since you can only each so much in the limited feeding window. Most people would be better off just properly tracking their macronutrients. (Same for keto, the supposed hormonal benefits aren't significantly better than just properly balancing your nutrition and regular vitamin intake.)

36 hours is the top-end of the IF range, and those are usually only a once-a-week thing, maybe twice-weekly. Longer fasts than that don't have much in the way of scientific support (few studies, little more than anecdotal evidence in support), and the risk of damage to the system is more likely than the supposed benefits one would gain.

In short, do your homework, make sure what you're doing has some significant support, and more than just anecdotal evidence supporting it.