Week-long Fast page 8

[Char Aznable]

Cool. My Honey has been very supportive when I fast, which I was surprised by. But it turns out he really WAS listening when I explained about autophagy! I don't tell most of my friends, though. With two exceptions, I know they would freak out and start spouting CW at me. I have found the- not feeling very well today, so I'll just sip some tea- excuse to be very useful.

Haha, I work night-shift at a local hospital. I made the mistake of mentioning my fast to a couple of the nurses. It was as though I'd told them I had a bomb strapped to my chest. Their eyes grew wide and they said, in unison, "That's not good for you. Why would you do that??" I explained to them all of the research I've done into fasting, and how it is that my body's getting by. They were a little more understanding after that. I haven't bothered telling anyone else in my family for fear of them freaking out. They'll be seeing me at Christmas, so I'll likely explain it then.

[Char Aznable]

Interesting thread and good that you keep posting (both for yourself and for us).
maybe the hourlong stroll on the threadmill was pushing the limits?
You are working fulltime I understand from your posts and with the financial burden put quite some stress on yourself.

Anyhow, I wish you luck and take care of yourself!

It might've been pushing it a little, yeah. A half-hour may have been more reasonable. I'm going to go for a short walk with my family today, so hopefully I'll manage better than I did yesterday. Thanks for reading!

[Char Aznable]

Hi there!

I've been lurking around here for a while and decided I should probably start an account. I enjoy reading these kinds of threads greatly as it helps me gauge and understand my own experiences as well.

I think you are handling this very well and in a very logical manner. I deal with some of the same emotional/mental issues in regards to food as you do (probably more in common than I care to admit to myself) and I am very interested to see how your perspective/attitude towards food changes as you continue.

The longest I have fasted is about 30 hours straight, but I am currently coming up on 23 hours fasting and wish to continue to go longer as i'm currently battling a lung and sinus infection and wish to speed the recovery process as much as possible. I noticed during the last week that when I ate while being sick, the food helped me feel "good" for a moment, but it seemed to make me get "sicker" too. Digestional and more coughing, etc. Like my body had to switch focus.

After reading through all the posts on this thread I was inspired to try and make my own "Paleo-Aid" so to speak as I usually have problems with hunger pangs around the 24 hour mark and figured this might help me out as I can lay off regular food but keep my electrolytes/vitamins/etc in check.

Not trying to thread jack but thought this might be helpful to anyone who had a similar idea: I went out and bought a bag of organic lemons, limes (lower in sugar and good nutrition in them too), some natural sea salt (REAL SALT brand name), as well as some Tazo Green Ginger and Spearmint tea. I plan on doing single servings to preserve freshness as much as possible. My first batch consisted of steeping some ginger tea in a cup, cutting up a lime and squeezing all the juice into a glass, half a lemon's as well (don't want all of those sugar carbs), pouring the contents of an AOR multivitamin into the citrus juice and some sea salt (too much admittedly, will need to cut that back some for taste reasons). I then poured the tea into this mixture, added some chilled filtered water to top it off and drank it. It's actually pretty soothing/refreshing and I'm not hungry. It would probably taste better chilled/iced though for someone who is not sick.

Anyway, I really wish you the best of luck on this and hope to see more updates on your progress as you continue. Just listen to your body and be safe as you are doing now. I think you can reach your goals if you keep your head in it.

Thanks for your comment! It sounds like you know what you're doing. The Paleo-Aid has been helping me. I'll probably have a little today myself. If your longest fast is 30 hours and you're using the Paleo-Aid, I think you'll definitely be able to go longer. I'd try for 36, and if you feel well enough, perhaps longer. Don't worry about thread-jacking, haha. This thread is meant to serve as a resource, so anyone who's got anything insightful to say about fasting is welcome. I appreciate your input!

[Terry H]

Best wishes to you Char Aznable. It has been a long time since I have done an extended fast. What impressed me most about it(my intention for fasting was for spiritual purposes) was, as others have mentioned, the mental clarity: I like to compare it to a dial-up modem suddenly being upgraded to DSL, in my case, at least. I am sure that if people wd. fast, (instead of using illicit substances such as hallucinogenics ) to enhance normal waking consciousness rather than seeking an altered consciousness,, our culture wd. be much the better. I know your goal is weight loss, and you seem to be reasonable about it and your thread has attracted some reasonable people. Please continue in such a way only as long as your mental processes- and therefore your judgement, stay intact- and be willing to listen to others, esp. those who are actually present with you and not twice-removed. I now have a chronic health condition, but I am going to consider a fast if it can be done safely. Good luck.

[Char Aznable]

Thanks for your comment, Terry. There are a lot of benefits to fasting, and although my main goal is to lose weight, I would be a fool to dismiss the others. I haven't had an especially clear mind throughout the bulk of this fast, but I'm hoping that'll change!

Today's stats:
Weight: 280.2
BP: 130/73
HR:116

Pretty decent stats, methinks! Weight is still dropping and blood pressure is pretty decent. Heart rate is a little high, but any number of things might be influencing that. I've been fairly active today, and the activity might be reflected there.

Feeling better today than I have in a while. My mind is more clear and my cravings have been minimized. I went for a walk at the local mall with my family today and, as we walked laps, rounded the food court numerous times. Smelling the food was nice, but I didn't feel at all tempted to take any samples or anything. My old clothes are starting to fit a little better, which is a great motivator.

Not a whole lot to report for today! I've been trying to get better sleep and I supplemented today with lemon juice and sea salt. Going to go grocery shopping tomorrow with my wife. I'll pick up more lemons and a few little things in preparation for the end of my fast. I'm going to have some organic apple sauce to break the fast, I think. The end of the fast is still about 10 days away, but buying the applesauce now will make it a little easier for me to visualize the finish-line. On the day I break my fast, I think I'll start off with applesauce and, if my body does OK with it, I may try a few blackberries. If the applesauce and blackberries go down with no problem, I might go for a couple of almonds. Supposing that those go off without a hitch, I'll try small portions of normal fare and slowly work my way up to eating normal amounts. Hopefully, by Chrismas, I'll be eating more or less normally. Based on what I've read in other accounts, this is a pretty reasonable goal.

Post-fast, I intend to eat quite a lot for about two days. The 25th and 26th will be re-feed days and, assuming my body can handle it, I'll eat anything I please (healthy stuff, of course). I'll top off my glycogen stores and give my body a healthy bolus of calories. After that, I'll begin weight training and exercising on a daily basis and only eating when hunger naturally occurs. I suppose it'll be IF. This method seems to be more or less what others have chosen to do after extended fasts and I think, considering my past experience and success with IF, it'll suit me well and help me from regaining anything but water/nutrient weight.

I'd also like to say thank you to everyone who's posted in this thread. Your support keeps me going and makes me feel accountable! I hope you all continue to find my accounts useful!

[Jesster]

Char, you are an inspiration. I did a 16 hour fast for the first time today. I thought that was impressive. Then I read this blog.

Hats off to you. I couldn't do it!

[Char Aznable]

^ Thanks for your encouragement, Jesster. It's been rough, but worthwhile, I think. A 16 hour fast is great! Perhaps you'll try something longer next time, but even at 16 hours, there are many benefits to fasting!

It's been a rough day. I don't know if I simply overexerted myself or what, but my stomach's been a little achy. I went grocery shopping with my wife and kids and felt like a weak zombie afterward. Been thinking about throwing in the towel, to be honest. I don't think I will, but the jar of organic apple sauce in the cupboard looks better and better every minute.

To give in now would be to quit during the greatest period of fat burning (the 7-10 day mark), so I simply can't justify it. I've just got to press on. I'm going to lay down for a while before work. Maybe that'll help.

[Annlee]

Remember this is about what works for you, Char - if it ends before 23 Dec, it's still been an enormous success. Look at how much you've learned about yourself, and how much your numbers have changed!

You're a winner in my book.

[jadedgamerx]

I just want to say try to keep your emotions out of it and listen to the literal/physical self and logically sort out what the best path going forward is. If you feel weak, hurt, sick, etc for an extended period of time, it might be time to stop. If the negative emotions happen after you see/smell something that you enjoy eating usually and then dissipate it might be in your head. Just trying to keep you focused!

Do what is best for you. We're all rooting for you either way you go.

[Char Aznable]

Thanks for the support! I'm doing my best to listen to my body and not do anything drastic. There are times when I feel like giving up, but these sensations are still quite new to my body and I want to give it a little time to get used to things before I make the decision to end it. The improvements I've made have been substantial and I want to take this is far as I can. I've been going more than 7 days now! Giving up would be a shame!

Todays stats:
Weight: 278
BP: 121/78
HR: 110

Some good improvements here. Heart rate is still a little high, however I read something about that today. Body fat contains a lot of Triglycerides, and as the Triglycerides are released and broken down for energy, they can cause increases in BP and HR. Also, seeing as my body's going without food, any exertion or change in position can send my heart racing. The heightened HR seems to be a fairly common thing among fasters, so I'm not too concerned. I haven't any cardiac history, so I assume it's the Triglycerides.

My mood has been off. I'm more easily annoyed and overall my mood has been somewhat subdued. I haven't the energy for anger, but I'm more prone to sass and I'm sure my wife finds this recent change somewhat unpleasant. My face is starting to thin out; my gut is becoming less noticeable. I was thrilled to enter the 270's in weight. I'll be even more excited when I hit the 260's!

Went grocery shopping today and picked up a lot of food. It was a little hard walking through the aisles. My stomach was cramping a little and I felt somewhat nauseous. There was a little heartburn welling up, too. I slept for about two hours afterward, which helped immensely. At the grocery store, I bought a Smart Water. My wife had a coupon, so I figured I'd try it. It's OK, but I haven't seen any huge change as a result of drinking it.

Feeling pretty well as of this post. My head is clear and my body feels all right. Not sure how long it'll last. To give up now would feel like a failure. In order for me to feel as though I've made significant progress, I'll need to make it into the low 260's in weight and maintain decent vitals throughout. There's going to be some weight gain when I break this fast. I want to minimize it's effect; the longer I keep this up, the closer I'll be to my health and fitness goals at the end. I'm just trying to keep my eye on the finish line.