Fasting questions page

[polos26]

Ok so after reading all 5 parts of the fasting articles recentrly posted by Mark I decided to give it a more serious try. I have basically being in plateau since end of January and have not been able to shed the last few layers of fat that still cover my upper arms/ thighs and belly.

I have 2 concerns/questions

1. Is there some sort of planing that should be done prior to the fast? Say that I want to fast every morning and have a leangains/fast 5 window style eating structure. What should I make sure I include in my last meal? I am asking this because I am in fasted state right now and feel SOOOO hungry. My stomach is making noises that are so loud! I guess the better question is, should I be feeling hungry or is that a bad sign?

2. I had the 'great idea' of making some green tea in hopes that it would curve my apetite and calm the hunger pangs but instead I feel nauseous now.

I don't know if this matters at this point but just fyi. I went primal in November so I'm fairly new and I was definitely an every 3 hour eater. I did this mostly because if I didn't eat I got light headed, head aches, nausea, and turned into a complete b***c if i didn't eat. I am down to a light breakfast of one hardboiled egg (durring the week) lunch and dinner now that Im primal, and on a lot of days I also have late night dessert/snack which is usually chocolate and berries. (which i plan on cutting out for the most part)

Thanks!

[StackingPlates]

If the idea of fasting is consuming your every waking thought then it will become much more difficult to succeed. Fast on days where you have activities keeping your body and mind occupied. This is even more important when you first start since fasting is such a change from what your body is used to.

Hunger is completely normal but realize it is your mind that is "telling" your body that you are hungry due to hormonal stimuli. In most cases, this will go away after awhile and you will realize no additional hunger pangs. For woman, try to achieve 14-16 hours but don't feel like you've failed if you can't get there on your first attempt(s).

Slow absorbing nutrients can be beneficial to consume as part of your last meal. Certain proteins (think casein) and saturated fats are great for this. Anecdotal, I've even found that broccoli and cauliflower fill me up and keep me satiated for a long time....

[polos26]

oK. Thanks. I am definitely going to slow start and build up to a shorter eating window. I have a container of casein that is alsmot brand new, purchased prior to going primal that I stopped using b/c I thought i read here somewhere that casein was not primal, am I wrong?

[Insane Grok]

yes you will feel hungry, but the more you think/stress over it the worse it will seem. when i fast now i still get hungry around lunch time, but if i get busy doing something else then its gone before i know it.

try some 12-18 hour fast, and don't worry about what you eat in your window, eat til you are satiated, eat good foods...and try fasting on days you aren't very hungry.

i did have to force myself to fast for the first 2 weeks (only did it one day each week for 24hours) and now i don't think about it or worry with it. its just something i do now.

relax, thats the best thing you can do

[StackingPlates]

I thought i read here somewhere that casein was not primal, am I wrong?

Although I realize you are gung ho about this "primal" thing, I would urge you to relax a bit and focus on success. Success is more important than worrying about whether a specific type of protein is "primal" or not

[polos26]

OK. good to know. I will do a casein shake before bedtime and see how that goes for the rest of the week.

Not to sound ignorant, but it seems like there is a fine line between a lot of the stuff we do here and other things that are consider not healthy, for example:

-being primal and doing the atkins diet, im not too familiar with atkins but when I have told some people about what my diet consists of their response is "oh, your doing atkins"
-fasting and anorexia, again, pleease done shoot me but I am just trying to be prepared for when the question is asked and the eyebrows are being raised about having only one or two meals a day..

Thanks!

[StackingPlates]

Both Atkins and Paleo have fundamental flaws but the goals are similar (caloric deficits via low carb methodologies).

Check out Brad Pilon's "EatStopEat" and Martin Berkhan's "LeanGains" websites. Both have excellent reference materials on the potential fasting benefits.

[smartierthanthou]

I would second the 'relax' part.

I've also found that green tea makes me a bit hungry and nauseous when I'm fasting. I think it's the ECGG or something, but I skip it until after I have had food. Oolong actually decreases my hunger - maybe try that?
Getting started on fasting took me some time but now it's mindless - I just don't eat until after 3pm.
I also find that eating ANYTHING at all will increase the sensation of hunger, so maybe skip the hard boiled egg for breakfast? I have also used the Bulletproof coffee to extend a fast comfortably without problems or decreased weight loss.

As to the difference between Atkins and Primal - those fine lines make all the difference :-) Primal is about avoiding toxins and eating high quality whole foods. Plenty of Primals feel best eating lots of carbs and that is perfectly appropriate.

Fasting and anorexia? I wouldn't get defensive about that in the slightest. I eat more calories than I ever did CW style and have a healthy weight and great muscle tone now. Maybe challenge them to an arm wrestle?

I raise my eyebrows at the logic of SAD - go on eating 100 calorie packs of granola bars, sweetened fat free yogurt, Special K, 'light' bread sandwiches filled with cellulose, light Miracle Whip, diet turkey, and fat free cheese washed down with a diet soda... see where it gets you.
I've just replaced grains with more vegetables - everyone knows that vegetables are good for you, right?

[polos26]

Thanks everyone for your input! I actually didn't cave in this morning (after the nausea I thought I may have to) I just drank some water and the feeling went away, its now 1pm and I think I am ready to eat. But for the last 3 hours I did feel good and energetic, hope to see some changes in body composition soon!

[Sabine]

In regards to telling people/answering questions I would say- don't tell anyone beyond your in the house family(if you are doing an extended fast) and if someone asks why you aren't eating at the present moment say you're full/not hungry right now, just ate, had something that upset your tummy last meal and so you are 'resting'.

Yes, lie. Not in the sense that what you are doing is wrong, but because there is too much CW ridiculousness wrapped up with fasting and you don't need to be going into the whole spiel any time someone is just expressing some casual curiosity. Consider it a 'social lie', something to make the day go smoothly, on a par with, 'no, I don't mind waiting', when really you are going out of your mind wondering why people can't just be ready when they say they will.