Prolonged fasting is hard. I’ve dabbled in 3-5 day fasts since the beginning of the new year, and had to contend with several challenges that ultimately curtail any ambitions to further the fasts.
Despite that last year’s lab results revealed abnormal kidney function as well as microscopic protein spilling into urine (along with a stern recommendation from my doctor to avoid high protein and carbonated beverages–or else she’d refer me to a nephrologist), I resolved to experiment more with long fasts to improve my insulin sensitivity and HA1C results (which in the October 2016 lab sat at 5.6–out of the pre-diabetes range).
Armed with the knowledge gleaned from The Complete Guide to Fasting, the Intensive Dietary Management website, and the recordings at FastingTalk.com, I set out to add prolonged fasts regularly to my health and fitness in 2017.
In the month of January, I was able to complete a 6 day and a 3 day fast, albeit with some difficulty. The short list of problems I encountered doing these fasts include:
- Surviving the 3 day hump (switching the body’s fuel sources)
- Hunger and appetite control throughout the fast
- Moodiness, mainly extreme sadness and anger
- Watery stools while breaking the fast
- Balancing sleep and energy expenditure while on severe calorie restriction
- Maintaining hydration
- Uncontrolled post-fast refeeds
The possible solution to some of the issues (1, 5, 7) seems to be in planning and preparation; mainly using an LCHF or a ketogenic diet to lead into and end the fast.
An answer to issue 4 that I found after listening to the podcast at FastingTalk.com was to use chia seeds to break the fast. I whipped up a recipe of coconut milk, cream and chia seeds and it seems to have relieved some of the symptoms.
I suspect issues 2 and 3 can be improved with the combo of diet AND exercise, since exercise can have a profound impact on mental state. Along with behavior modification and more planning, I hope to address 5, 6 and 7. Clearly, thinking ahead and being mindful of the challenges puts one in a position to succeed. I plan on continuously tweaking my fasting experiments with an eye toward better outcomes.