Eating Again After 3 Day Fast
I didn't consume food for three days, hither's what happened
An experiment in doing nothing and consuming nothing except water, salt and sunlight for three days.
My friend Michael messaged me asking if I was interested in doing an extended fast.
I'k due, he said.
Certain, I said.
Four days?
Three days for me, I've got a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competition coming up I'm training for.
Sounds good to me.
Last yr I did 5 days, the year before that, 4 days. This article completes the trifecta.
Disclaimer: I'm non a dr.. I write articles most and make videos of things I do. Although this documents what happened to me during 3 day water-simply fast, y'all shouldn't accept it as medical advice. Y'all're smart enough to accept your health in your ain hands.
Short version
I'grand not going to rattle off all of the benefits of fasting (weight loss, gut healing, feeling in-melody with nature, tapping out of the normal way of doing things etc).
You lot can read those elsewhere.
Then hither'south what, why, how.
- What I did: A 3 twenty-four hours (dinner to dinner 3 days afterwards) water-only fast, no coffee, no tea, no food, water and salt merely.
- Why: Fun. The only reason I do anything. Plus, a grouping of friends were doing it so I joined in. We had a grouping conversation going and it was fun to share experiences.
- How: Accept dinner on solar day zero (a smaller meal), go for a long walk the next morning (to speed up your body entering ketosis), arctic out when it'due south supposed to exist mealtime, relax, drink enough of water, pinches of salt in h2o and magnesium tablets here and at that place to forbid cramping. Realise how much you value food and meal time with others. Pause the fast 72 hours subsequently.
Let's go into the longer version. I'll practise rapid fire question style to begin then a day by day journal to finish.
Video documentary
There's a video version of this article available on YouTube.
What is a 3 day fast? What happens?
For me, a 3 day fast means no food at all. Water only. No coffee, no tea, no anything.
Water and common salt is okay because (for scientific reasons unknown) you do start to get musculus cramps the further you go along. And then the common salt helps forbid the cramps.
My approximate is considering you lot're not eating food, you're non getting electrolytes and because most water from taps is filtered, you're missing the natural minerals you lot'd discover in water.
Allow me add together sparkling water if you're feeling fancy. I was feeling fancy.
What was the hardest part of the fast?
Reverse to what you might retrieve, hunger wasn't the hardest function. Afterward 12, 16, 18 or so hours, your body begins to realise the state you lot're in and it starts to assistance you.
Throughout the whole 3 days, I never really felt hungry.
In my by fasts, I've plant one time I'm into nutritional ketosis or fasting ketosis, where the body starts to use fats (ketones) for fuel rather than carbohydrates (glucose) and are blood ketone levels are 0.5 to three.0 millimoles per litre (mmol/Fifty) things become smooth sailing.
For me, the hardest role wasn't a lack of food more so a lack of the activities you'd do around nutrient.
My favourite action in life is to eat food with people I love. I look frontwards to eating dinner with my family unit every day. So missing out on that for whatever given period of time is always a claiming.
Fasting gives yous a refreshed respect for family unit mealtime.
What was the best part of the fast?
Being in tune with nature. I can't draw information technology. Simply by 36 hours or so in, I began to relax , I experience similar my body may have started releasing hormones to brand me feel high, a manner of dealing with the state of affairs. Perhaps your trunk eating itself (autophagy) is a form of psychedelic.
Since I had plenty of spare fourth dimension due to not eating, I went for long walks each twenty-four hour period. During the afternoon walk of the 2d twenty-four hour period, my senses were turned upward, waves sounded crisper, bird songs filled my ears, greens got greener, the salt air tickled my olfactory organ.
And of course, the apprehension of nutrient.
Often in life I've found the anticipation of event to nigh if not as good as the actual event itself. And then from the fourth dimension I stopped eating to the time I broke the fast I was looking forward to eating once over again with family and friends.
What was your last repast before the fast?
Steak, onions and a glass of milk. I'd read online you generally desire to have a low carbohydrate repast, or fifty-fifty spend a few days prior eating a low carbohydrate diet earlier kick off a fast.
Why?
To speed upward the transition of your body into fasting/nutritional ketosis.
Mostly the body uses glucose (carbohydrates) every bit fuel. But when it's deprived of glucose, say during a fast or during a period of eating low carbohydrates, the trunk will start to switch to using ketones (fatty) as fuel.
The body tolerates beingness in either country, glucose burning or ketone burning. However, it'due south often the transition between either state that becomes difficult.
For instance, the reason why you might get a headache after non eating for several hours is because your body is deprived of the fuel source its used to (glucose or carbohydrates) and is now trying to switch over to another fuel source.
In my experience with extended fasts, accelerating this switch over (from carbohydrate burning to fatty called-for) is favourable.
For me, it'southward commonly a few hours or so at the end of Twenty-four hours i where the fuel source switch makes itself known through lethargy and a shorter than usual atmosphere.
What was your outset meal afterward the fast?
In an platonic earth I would've broken the fast with a repast similar to what I started information technology with (or the last meal I ate earlier I started the three day fast). Simple. Steak and salt or steak and salt and onions.
Nevertheless, since we were fasting as a group, information technology was easier to volume a eatery at a key location than get everyone to go to someone'due south place.
We went to a rib joint. Rolling in I could odour the place from a block away. Fume billowing out of the roof. Even before getting there I'd pored over the menu deciding what to get. Information technology's all most the apprehension.
I ordered ribs. Standard sauce, non spicy. And a side of coleslaw. Not besides large not too small. There were fries and other options simply I tend to avert anything fried. Though, I did end up digging into someone's leftover sweet tater chips after I'd finished the ribs and realised my gut was okay.
Some people say go easy on the fast breaker meal. And what uncomplicated means can exist upward to you lot. A singular nutrient maybe. Rice cakes on their own. Blueberries, other fruits. The thought here is because your breadbasket and gut oasis't been working over the past couple of days, they might be more susceptible to irritation. However, I've never actually had any gut issues or troubles breaking a fast then I went for the not-so-elementary combo of ribs and coleslaw.
What were your blood ketone measurements throughout the fast?
Beside the zen like feelings I become when my body enters a state of fasted ketosis, I used a claret ketone meter to be trivial more precise.
For context, the kickoff and cease times are beneath.
- Fast start: 7 July 2022 seven:30pm +/- 30 minutes
- Fast end: 10 July 2022 7:30pm +/- 30 minutes
- Twenty-four hour period 0 (day earlier starting the fast): seven July 2021
- Twenty-four hour period ane: eight July 2021
- Day 2: 9 July 2021
- Day 3: 10 July 2021
- Day four (day after breaking the fast): 11 July 2021
| Time | Measurement (mmol/L) |
|---|---|
| Day 1, 9:21 AM | Low (goose egg registered) |
| Mean solar day 1, 12:29 PM | 0.3 |
| Twenty-four hours 1, five:11 PM | 0.7 |
| Mean solar day 1, x:06 PM | 0.9 |
| Twenty-four hours ii, 10:29 AM | 2.4 |
| Solar day 2, 5:10 PM | 2.4 |
| Day iii, 9:44 AM | 2.8 |
| Twenty-four hours iii, five:xiii PM | three.0 |
| Solar day 4, viii:39 AM (after breaking fast) | 0.9 |
What was your slumber similar?
During a previous fast, I suffered from poor sleep. However, I'thou starting to think that was because I consumed caffeine (black coffee) throughout.
For the three day fast, I had no caffeine at all, no coffee, no tea. And before bed each night I took a magnesium tablet, magnesium has been shown to assistance with slumber, plus, it feels similar it works.
And then this time round I noticed no real issues to my sleep except for waking upwardly quite dehydrated which made getting out of bed harder than usual. Though, this fixed itself an hour or so after waking afterwards consuming a few spectacles of salt in water.
What was going to the toilet like without eating anything?
Number one: darker in the mornings due to dehydration overnight but returns to normal throughout the day with normal water (and salt) intake.
Number 2: uneventful.
Why do a 3-day fast?
Fun. As I said earlier, that'southward my principal reason for doing anything. Just otherwise, there are a plethora of reasons.
I'one thousand not a md nor a practicing gut health specialist. And then I tin can't offer clinical reasons, only reasons that I've experienced.
Food reset
During an extended fast, my relationship with nutrient gets reset. I miss eating with family and friends. And I realise how much the activity ways to me. I've fabricated it a point never to consume with engineering, when I eat I eat, nothing else and to spend as little time eating alone as possible.
Less fluff
At the end of a fast, I notice, although subtle my body is less puffy. My jawline is more pronounced, my abdominals are more defined. I don't know what this is. It could be less water, information technology could be less inflammation, it could exist that carbohydrates make my cells swell and inbound ketosis takes intendance of that swelling.
Shaking up routine
The terminal reason for me. Doing something you lot would've idea insane a few years ago. After multiple extended fasts, I'chiliad used to information technology at present. Simply if you'd told me a couple of years agone I'd spend 3 days without nutrient and just consuming water and salt, I'd have told you lot to get f***ed. If I can go without something as key equally food for multiple days and still role, what else can I practise?
Other valid reasons yous might consider:
- Taking your health into your own hands – This is the biggest one. There's a lot of information out there on how to improve your health. Near of information technology is BS. Only you'll never know until you try information technology yourself.
- Weight loss – I definitely lost weight during the fast, nevertheless, most of this is water weight. I've since gained in back (I'chiliad writing this article a couple of weeks after). Let'southward face it, you're not going to brand dramatic long-term changes in 3 days. Better to develop the habits of moving every day and being thoughtful about what you eat than randomly go through 3 day extended fasts.
- Gut health – You might be surprised that the human torso is pretty proficient at repairing itself. If you've got a gut issue, perhaps giving your gut a break from food all together and letting information technology do its thing for a couple of days can lead to benefits. Once more, I'k non a dr.. All the same, in my experience, if I've got a slight gut issue (rare), not eating for a while helps. Many wildlife instinctively cease eating when they become sick.
- Insubordinate – Fasting from food, from anything you'd usually consume day to day is perhaps the ultimate rebellious human activity against the full general consensus of improving a health situation by calculation more (medications, treatments, etc). Fasting is a way of avoiding iatrogenesis (an outcome introduced by a treatment which had the intention of fixing things), improval via removal.
How practice you do a 3 day fast? How much weight did you lose?
Actually doing a 3 day water-only fast is quite unproblematic. You lot don't eat food for 3 days and only consume water, salts and electrolytes.
Some will claim teas and caffeine and blackness coffee is okay. But for me, if I'm going to do something, I become all the way.
For specifics, I'll let my journal entries talk for themselves below.
Simply before that, let'due south talk about weight.
How much weight did you lot lose during the fast?
By now you know I didn't do the fast for weight loss. Once more, 3 days isn't enough time to brand lasting changes. For weight loss, habits work better than extreme events.
And since completing the fast, I've gained it all dorsum. I'm about (or even heavier since I've been lifting weights due to the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym being airtight for COVID) to where I was I started.
If you've gained it all back, why put the weight numbers hither then?
Considering weight is one of the easiest things to measure. I can't measure and tell you how I experience within but I can footstep on a calibration and show y'all what information technology says.
I weighed in naked each morning after waking and later on visiting to the toilet.
| Day | Weight | Change (from previous weight) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 77.1kg (170.0lbs) | - |
| 1 | 76.4kg (168.4lbs) | -0.7kg (ane.54lbs) |
| two | 75.2kg (165.8lbs) | -one.2kg (ii.65lbs) |
| iii | 74.4kg (164.0bs) | -0.8kg (one.8lbs) |
| 4 | 74.8kg (164.9lbs) | +0.4kg (0.9lbs) |
| thirty (ane calendar month after fast) | 77.8kg (171.5lbs) | +3.0kg (6.6lbs) |
Equally you can see, one calendar month after finishing the iii day fast, I've since gained the weight I lost back, plus a trivial bit more. However, this is consistent with what I've been doing, eating slightly more than usual and lifting weights regularly. Information technology's Winter here. Bulking flavor.
How did you feel during the 3 day fast?
Feelings are best recorded in the moment. So instead of trying to think, I'm going to re-create the periodical entries I created each day verbatim.
Day ane, July 8, 2021
- 8:30 AM weighed in at 76.4kg, xiii hours in
- ix:23 AM going for walk, blood ketones low (no measurement)
- eleven:59 AM went for 2 hour 15 minute walk to burn extra glycogen stores and push my body into ketosis, 12000ish steps, chilling, sixteen hours in, feeling fine, very zen'd out, no rush, simply being, drinking unremarkably makes me want to do something, today I'm happy just resting, going to drink some common salt water and measure ketones soon
- five:16 PM 0.7 mmol blood ketone measurement, chilled out day, did some admin work in the afternoon, starting to experience a little cold, is this from lower thyroid activity? Found a video by Thomas DeLauer on why you experience cold during a fast (it could be one fat changing to some other and burning itself instead of generating oestrus)
- 8:xviii PM went to BJJ training, grooming at most 50%, no hunger, thinking of food though, the difficult part is missing dinner with the family, possibly my top favourite activity in the world, plenty of salt and water before bed, little bit foggy simply nothing likewise outlandish
24-hour interval 2, July 9, 2021
- 9:48 AM woke upward 830ish, 75.2kg, feeling a bit busted, definitely dehydrated, piss a night colour, no trips to the bathroom nevertheless, over halfway, relaxed but no hunger, raining and then it's chill, no walk, sipping common salt and water
- 10:35 AM checked blood ketones, 2.4 mmol/50, into nutritional ketosis, dancing helps, hydration coming dorsum cheers to plentyyyy of water (4 larger spectacles)
- 11:13 AM been puttering around all morning, going to do a little flake of work, nothing likewise major just completing some things from before, had a longggggg hot shower, that gave me energy and took away some of the cold feeling
- 12:29 PM washed some reckoner work, not much, bouncing between things, drinking more h2o has helped, energy is humming along nicely, no real ups and downs yous typically get with caffeine, going to arctic out for a while and then do some reading/clean cupboard
- 3:22 PM cleaned upstairs closet, chilled out around the identify, went on an afternoon walk, sitting in nature feeling very tuned in, no feelings of hunger, very peaceful and very at residual, however I experience like if I had to exercise something strenuous, the energy would accept a little while than usual to build upwards, the warm up would have longer, though I did some piece of work earlier and concentration was in that location, senses are all turned upward
- 5:14 PM afternoon walk, chilled out, not feeling hungry, feeling connected to nature, sense of smell has turned up, I can odor everything, I thought how could I have advantage of this and bought a scented candle to enjoy, reading the Lindy newsletter in the evening, On Nutrition (role 1), specifically the parts on fasting — is the peacefulness the lack of caffeine or the lack of food? Or the more time in the day since non having food?
- 9:12 PM went to BJJ training, had a lot more energy this night, deep into ketosis, sense have gone weapons hot, my sense of smell is next level, there's a pizza store exterior jiu jitsu and let's simply say my nose was like a dog on heat
Twenty-four hour period 3, July 10, 2021
- 9:58 AM woke up about 830, slumber was pretty good through the dark, supplemented a magnesium tablet before bed along with a bit of salt in water. Hydration is really fundamental during fasting. Woke upwardly a few times through the nighttime, a little restless here and in that location, woke up to garbage truck at 6am-ish and again probably around 2am, weighed in at 74.4kg, blood ketones are 2.8mmol/Fifty
- 11:05 AM saturday reading in the sun for an 60 minutes or so, stumbled upon a chapter in Hemingway'due south A Moveable Feast — Hunger was practiced discipline, no hunger at present, feeling very relaxed, a little cold when out of the sun
- four:17 PM finished reading in the sun and and so went and had a long hot shower to warm up, that's what yous discover when you're fasting, how nature effects yous, information technology'due south windy today so anywhere outside of the sun I felt a slight chill
- Went for a long afternoon walk, 7km's or so, merely over an hour
- Chilled out during the afternoon did some research trying to discover arguments against fasting, lots of for merely what's against? The primary i seems to be stress — what defines good and bad stress? Lack of energy? Or plenty to exist and arctic?
- Was talking to a friend on the telephone before, she told me about the cookies she made… dangerous conversation to be having during an extended fast
- 9:27 PM bankrupt the fast with the coiffure, at all feeling prime, ready for bed, breakfast with family unit tomorrow, very excited
Bated from daily journal entries, I also compiled a agglomeration of recurring thoughts before breaking the fast.
Journal entry from end of fast
During the fast (and most days) I write in my journal. A conversation with myself which sometimes leads somewhere sometimes doesn't.
The below passage is from an hour or so before breaking the fast. Collected (unedited and unfiltered) thoughts of what was going on.
Last couple of hours until the 3 day fast ends
What a style to finish it off other than some writing. I write every twenty-four hour period for a reason. To collect my thoughts. To debunk things to evaluate things to explore things and about of all because it's fun.
That'southward the master reason I do anything, fun.
I've got the overnice smelling candle going again. If my senses of olfactory property are turned upwardly, why not buy a candle and reap the benefits of it?
I wanted to spend the afternoon investigating different arguments against fasting. But I wasn't actually well-nigh to detect any. Other than the commodity from Harvard which was a lilliputian scrap of the standard play:
- Intermittent fasting may maybe yous experience ill
- It may cause y'all to overeat
- Intermittent fasting may cause older adults to lose too much weight
- It may be unsafe if you're taking certain medications
These things made sense, then I idea about my ain detractors of fasting.
The main for me is stress. That'south what it's all well-nigh right. If a body role gets stressed, it gets inflamed, perhaps that's what excess fat is, it'southward the body is inflamed on a whole level and in turn the fat comes to attempt and insulate it.
Some questions I wanted to explore was whether or non fasting increased metabolic stress? But it seems briefly fasting can increase the metabolism. Just subsequently a longer menses of time information technology may cause the metabolism to dull down.
And as for the good and bad stress, what defines proficient and bad? What is stress to begin with?
If you classify stress as the lack of energy, perhaps that's what I've been experiencing. I oasis't been really wanting to get involved in whatsoever heavy duty tasks and have instead been chilling for the by 3 days, reading, writing, walking.
I'd say most of the stress for me (what method do I have of measuring the stress?) comes from the things you're not doing. As in, I'g not able to exercise ane of my favourite activities in the world and that's eat food with friends and family. But does information technology make me value the art of breaking bread with loved ones even more?
A pro: Fasting is a fashion of becoming proactive about a health situation. It's like the ultimate rebellious act from many health promoters. You're saying I'm simply going to have a interruption from everything (including something equally key every bit food) for a petty while and relax. See you on the other side.
Why fast? Why not fast?
- Stress — What is stress? Where does it come from? I'grand not hungry…. Simply I want food, I savour spending fourth dimension with family and friends and eating, what's good stress and what'due south bad stress? Is a little bit of stress every so oft a good affair, east.thou., abstaining from food to revalue it or amend a health situation
- Becoming proactive virtually a health situation – taking your health into your own easily
- Low energy – over the past few days I oasis't really felt like doing much except chilling out, though this isn't necessary a bad thing
- Iatrogenics — fasting is one course of fugitive iatrogenics (a harmful effect caused past a medical handling), if you've got some kind of gut issue going on, potentially fasting is a way to remove it, improval via removal
- Breaking a fast feels the opposite of a hangover
- You always want what yous can't have…
That'southward it. That's it I recall. A good fashion to wrap things upwardly before heading to dinner. It's going to exist a fun meal time. I'thousand excited for dinner. Excited for the food that's going to be delivered to my place tonight to.
I felt the nearly in tune with nature yesterday afternoon. Today I experience the wind has thrown me off a little bit. I'm all the same in a zen like state simply I'm ready to be done, potentially since I know the end is close. If I had set myself out on a four or v day journey and known the cease was further abroad, perhaps I'd have a unlike outlook on things.
When will I do the adjacent one? Every 6 months or so seems like a adept idea. Potentially not a three day ane either. I could experiment with smaller, 36 hour and 48 hr perchance. I think the 3 days plus takes it out of you. Information technology throws off your life a footling as well much. Maybe, peradventure not.
What would've I accept liked to have washed these 3 days?
Hmm. That's another bespeak to add together. Yous miss the things yous're not doing. As in, yous feel like yous should be doing something only y'all're not you're just chilling around. Which isn't a bad thing either. Relaxing and doing naught is a part of life equally much as doing something is a part of life.
I'g going to wear something squeamish to the restaurant. I'll make a trivial clip before going in and and so another clip later on breaking the fast.
What are the points I'd similar to talk well-nigh?
I've got a few simply I tin can't talk at length at them considering I don't know them. I can only speak from first manus feel.
Today has been a big and relaxing solar day on tour:
- reading
- walking
- writing
- ready to terminate
- excited
- sipping plenty of common salt in water
- having a magnesium tablet here and there
Time to tape a clip and and then start getting ready for dinner.
Progress photos
Every morn after weighing in (and after breaking the fast) and proverb a little jingle on camera for the video documentary I took a progress shot.
As y'all can come across, they're all in unlike lighting and all slightly different angles. I tried to continue things as consistent equally possible, fifty-fifty with the cropping, they're all unlike sizes but I tried to line the shoulders up.
Again, no meaningful changes are really going to happen in 3 days, most of the weight I lost was likely water weight. The progress photos are more and then just an easy to measure thing during the fast. And absurd to look at. I look at my face up quite often and to me, my confront and jawline on day iv is less puffy than day ane.
Resources to learn more than
While fasting I like to read and learn about fasting.
Here are some resource I found valuable.
- The Lindy Newsletter, On Diet (Office one) – The Lindy Newsletter explores the Lindy issue (things which take been around for a while tend to stay around for a while). On Diet (Part 1) explores fasting through the optics of tradition. Well-nigh all religions take some component of fasting involved.
- Why you my might experience cold during a fast video by Thomas DeLauer – When fasting for extended periods of time (xvi-18 hours+), I commonly get a deep common cold chill. I wondered why. Turns out at that place could be multiple reasons. This video helped to explain a few.
- Zero fasting app – You lot don't need an app to help you fast. Simply Zero makes it fun. I enjoyed watching the pretty counter tick down. It also offers educational material for what happens to your body during fasting.
And if y'all enjoyed this commodity, check out my other extended fast articles and videos, they're created in a similar style.
- iv mean solar day fast video, 4 solar day fast commodity
- v solar day fast video, 5 24-hour interval fast article
pritchardyesposiond62.blogspot.com
Source: https://www.mrdbourke.com/3-day-fast/
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