This forum is specifically for discussions related to water fasting. Please use it to support and help one another. If you have any questions related to water fasting, here is the place to go! :)
I water fasted for 2.5 days and was happy to find that I was never hungry. That was very surpising to me. What was interesting is that I still ate dinner last night instead of continuting the fast. I read somewhere on the other site that this is a mental game--no kidding! So how do I get through that wall? I am going to start a new fast tomorrow and need to break through 3 days, which means no dinner on day 3. What do you do or think about to make it easier? I know that a lot of people have fasted for more than 10 days and I just can't get my head around that right now. But I see the benefits and would like to do this. In just the short time I did this I lost a bit of weight, saw my blood pressure come down about 10 point on both numbers, and stopped craving fried chicken.
Mari
Mari U - I am right there with you! I have recently done 2 fasts that were supposed to be 3 days each but I ended up eating dinner on the 3rd day. What's up with that? Glad I'm not the only one. I do realize that it's a mental game, and so far I have lost both times. I am planning another one at the end of this month and I am determined that i will make it the full 3 days. I believe that if I can do a few 3-day fasts successfully, that I will be able to do longer ones which is my goal. I know that when you and I make it thru the full 3 days, we will both have a huge sense of accomplishment! I hope you were successful on your next try. Let me know. And tell me how you did it.
Hi Lori: Welcome to myfastinspace. The most important thing you can do to overcome is to keep a strong and thorough fasting journal. It is crucial that, as often as possible, you sit down to write what you are thinking and feeling.
When we fast, a lot of deep, mental patterns (many of them unconscious) come to the surface. These mental patterns are attached to strong (and usually negative) emotions including anger, rage, bitterness, hatred, self-pity, hopelesness etc. Whatever emotions/thoughts we struggle with on a regularly can become amplified.
Plus, the mind has so many nuances... it is very hard to stand against this onslaught just keeping everything "up there." Writing down in detail all mental/emotional changes and REALLY spending time writing, reflecting and taking personal inventory is by far THE most powerful way to overcome the fasting challenge. 
Lori Overcash said:
Mari U - I am right there with you! I have recently done 2 fasts that were supposed to be 3 days each but I ended up eating dinner on the 3rd day. What's up with that? Glad I'm not the only one. I do realize that it's a mental game, and so far I have lost both times. I am planning another one at the end of this month and I am determined that i will make it the full 3 days. I believe that if I can do a few 3-day fasts successfully, that I will be able to do longer ones which is my goal. I know that when you and I make it thru the full 3 days, we will both have a huge sense of accomplishment! I hope you were successful on your next try. Let me know. And tell me how you did it.
Hi Lori! I am going to begin a new fast tomorrow, well, I guess it has already begun since I am not going to get a snack before bed. :) I feel like it is important to break that 3 days, but in my heart I am going to try for a 5-day water fast. I will be getting on here and reading for inspiration and fortitude so I can make it. I will be watching for you, too, and want to hear how you do on your fast.
Mari
Hello, Jenna here. How did you do, Mari? How about you, Debbie? Have you tried again? I am wondering how you all feel about choosing your days. Do you like to do short fasts (3 day approx) when you don't have to work/have a lighter schedule or do you do better timing it when your schedule is busy and you are more occupied with other things? I know everyone may be different, but I'm curious. :) I am contemplating doing a 3 day this weekend. My husband is off and he will be great about feeding our daughter while I do something else for a bit if I have to avoid the kitchen. :) I have not been able to get past 24 hrs. It is SO a mental game. I did a 23 hr fast 3 times before I got to 24 this last time! Talk about self-sabatoge. :/ Goofy. So, I would love to get through more than 24 hrs. I am off this coming Thurs. through Sunday, Mar 14th-17th. Hmmm. I guess it's Wednesday now so I'll be eating light again today and start Thurs. Anyone care to join me? :)
I've been wondering the same thing, Nikki....I'm on day 8 of fasting myself, and hoping to continiue through the rest of August. I just recently joined a new gym and hate to let that go to waste all month, but I'm not sure heavy excerise is a good idea while fasting. I seem to run out of steam quickly...and I like weight training a lot....and I know that when developing and toning your muscles, when pushing yourself, you're tearing down your muscles and rebuilding them. That being the case, protein is very important. So, since I'm not consuming any protien at the moment, I don't think it's wise. I think some light excerise and general activiy would be beneficial though.
Any thoughts or comments, Rob?
Hi Everyone,
I'm starting my fast on Monday.
My story may be a bit different than most in that I have a lot of health issues along with the weight.
I am 56 years old, weight 272 lbs and have Congestive Heart Failure, High Blood Pressure, Edema, Gout most of the time, Sleep apnea, Psoriasis, and a few more minor ailments. I have had in the past pneumonia three times, sarcoidosis and plurisy. Other than that I am great !!!!!
I did this last year for 21 days and was amazed at the health benefits. Unfortunately I fell of the turnip truck shortly after and went back to my old ways. I now know that what you do at the end of the fast is probably the most important part of the whole process. So this time will be different.
I would like to post updates every couple of days.
Question, Is their anyway of tracking muscle loss at home? I have one of those Bioimpedence scales does that reading indicate muscle loss?
Regards
Gord
I wouldnt worry much about muscle loss on a water fast Gordon. In ketosis its really a small amount. Dont exercise, just walk a couple hundred yards each day. I was also told to jump a little in place to get toxins moving out of the lymph system which has very little blood flow.
STICK with it.
Have you read Dr Furhman's book Eating and fasting for health?
Thanks for the comments and suggestions.....I really appreciate it.
With all my health problems I really need to succeed at this but.............
My doctor just informed me that I now officialy have diabetes and my reaction ????? Heck why not... Ive got lots of diseases now, why not have em all ! ( I went to get blood work last week prior to fast so that I had a data set to compare before and after. My doctors office called me Tues. to come in today.) My chloresteral is fine which is odd as it was way out last year. I have a severe vit. B-12 deficiency and my blood platelet count is way low.
I would like to ask anyone the following. Does diabetes cause complications when fasting and what about Vit-B-12 deficiency.
Day 3 of my fast.
I got off to a good start and have felt really good so far..
I haven’t noticed any lose of energy yet but I expect to get more tired through the day as time goes on. Last night I slept longer than I have for quite some time. I usually only sleep about 4 hrs a night but last night it was around 6 so I felt much better when I got up. It would be great to get that up to 7 hrs ! Having said that, I do expect to go through nights when I can’t sleep.
Since the start of my fast Sunday night I have lost 4.4 lbs to 266.8 lbs and my BP is now 134 / 78 down from my starting BP of 182 / 103. I do not put any weight into this reading. I took my BP yesterday and it was 162 / 98. We will see if it stays down over the next couple of weeks .
I don’t have much hunger now but it was bad yesterday especially around the time everyone else was eating.
Regards
Gord
First week is over and I feel great. No aches, pains, or odd feelings but I do get tired very easily now so I hop on my mini-trampoline for a couple of minutes and back to work. I have some improvement in the psoriasis as scales are not as bad. I do not notice any other improvements yet and I don’t expect to for perhaps another week or two. BP coming down as well.
My weight as of the Sept 4th was 258.8. Loss in week one -12.4 lbs
BP on Aug 29th was 182/103. Sept 4th it was 154/95
Gord
Day 12
Just cruising along now. No urge for food and drinking a lot of water.
As far as how I feel I do have very low energy and need to rest throughout the day. My mouth is always very dry and my breath is horrendous. (Can it be worse than it normally is?) My Psoriasis is improving and the biggest improvement is on my hands which is the last place I developed the disease so it should be the first area to improve. My blood pressure dropped a bit again and today I don’t seem to be as winded as in the past.
Stats at Day 12
————————————————–August 29, 2011————September 12, 2011
BMI (Body Mass Index)—————————38.9———————-35.9
BIA (Bioelectrical impedance analysis)——----55.8———————49.6
Weight ———————————————271.2——————–250.4
Waist ————————————————49”———————–47”
BP (Blood Pressure)—————————–182 / 103—————141 / 94
Probably about a quarter of the way there….My glass is quarter FULL !
Day 18 update.
A few great improvements to report today.
First, I am feeling great and am getting stronger every day. I can now tie my shoes without grunting and moaning and walk up two flights of stairs with no difficulty. My psoriasis is healing nicely with scale production almost stopped now and overall my skin feels softer. I started going for morning walks a week ago and I am now cranking it up to mornings and evenings. Each walk is about a mile. I feel great, my heart is getting stronger and stronger, I don’t get winded very often anymore. Of course I have my weak spells but they tend to pass very quickly.
My stats as of today Sept. 15, 2011
My weight is 244.4. My fast start weight was 271.2 Total loss of 26.8 lbs
My blood pressure is 136/83. BP at start of fast was 182/103
My waist is still 47 inches..(Actually that is my tummy measurement)
My BMI is 35.1. Down from 38.9
My BIA is 47.7. Down from 55.8
I have further updates, video and commentary at my blog.
Regards
Gord
I'm on day 2 of my first water fast. I was on a mostly juice diet with a little bit of raw fruits and veggies in the evening for the 19 days before this. I'm doing this for health reasons as I've been sufferring from chronic migraines for the past 6 years with the last 3 yrs. being nearly 24/7. I was also diagnosed with chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. I've gotten into a lot of debt seeing different doctors and trying to get well and my health recently got so bad that I had to stop working and take a medical leave from graduate school. I need to get well; I can't afford to be sick anymore. Since I can no longer afford doctors or medications I'm on a quest to heal myself. And since I only saw minimal relief from the juice fasting and raw food diet, I figured I probably needed a more serious clense to let my body have a chance to heal itself. I read Dr. Fuhrman's book on fasting and was inspired. My biggest question for all of you is about doing this unsupervised. Everything I read says that it's really important to do a water fast beyond 3 days supervised but I obviously can't afford that. I would like to go beyond 3 days until the migraines subside but I'm just worried it might be dangerous because it seems everywhere I turn I"m being told I need doctor supervision. What are everyone's thoughts on this? Are most of you doing this supervised or are any of you doing it without a doctor monitoring you? I really appreciate the feedback as this kind of feels like my last resort to getting well and finally being able to live my life. Happy fasting.
