I had a question for people here who do long fasting periods. I see a lot of people here regularly going over a week or two, sometimes even a month of fasting! And was curious as to why you would feel like you need that long of a fast when you can steadily lose weight with OMAD or even 18:6. Is it due to plateaus or something? I’ve lost a considerable amount of weight with OMAD already and having that mindset where I know at the end of each day, I have some food to look forward to always keeps me in high spirits. What are some of your own guy’s reasoning for going much longer?
I do longer fasts because I can’t eat enough in a limited eating window, so I’d rather get the other benefits of a longer fast while I’m at it.
Also, I think only a small fraction of those people who post that they’re starting long fasts like 21, 30 days etc. actually go through with it. I follow the ones that say they’re starting them just out of curiosity, and most of them either delete that post a couple of days later or never mention the fast again!
I like doing 4 day fasts because in addition to lose weight I need to improve my health markers. During the initial stages of fasting insulin and blood glucose levels fall but remain in the normal range, maintained by the breakdown of first glycogen but later by gluconeogenesis. It takes several days for insulin and glucose to really tank, and regularly lowering insulin levels is what leads to improved insulin sensitivity. Lowering insulin also have an effect on excess salt retention in the kidneys without affecting retention of electrolytes. This helps improve blood pressure.
Then there is the raise in adrenaline and human growth hormone that only occurs after 4 days or so, not to mention deep autophagy that doesn’t kick in as well during shorter fasts.
I typically do 72s because I’ve got a ton of weight to lose. When I get closer to my goal weight, i’ll probably drop down to 48s.
Right now I’m in the middle of a 6 day, because I had to miss my regular 3-day fast due to a guest over for vacation, so I’m making up lost ground. This is the longest fast I’ve been on.
I’m about to end day 2 of a 10 day fast. The impetus for me to fast was weight loss. But I noticed I haven’t been hungry at all over the last 2 days. Getting past the first 24 hours was tough because of habits, desire for flavor, unhealthy triggers to eat, but never because I felt hungry. I’ve messed up my relationship to food in the overeating, eat whatever and whenever I want variety. Unexpectedly, the fast is helping me see through that dependency to what food is supposed to be for. The weight loss is just a perk at this point. Thanks to all you good people here for the support!
Edit: Just realized my first sentence might be confusing. I’m not ending my fast, I’m just crossing the 48 hour mark going into day 3 lol
I did 72hr fast last week just to feel how the full fledged ketosis feels. And I tell you I did not want to eat after 72hrs because i was more active and less tired, but I did eat because I want to take stairs not the elevator :) For now I won’t go more than 72hrs but surely will go for 1wk in near future.
> why you would feel like you need that long of a fast
I like eating. Even when I eat Keto, I have trouble eating 500 calories fewer per day each week for months at a time, just to lose 1 lbs per week. Invariably, I slip up, eat too much, and I just stay perpetually 20 to 30 lbs away from my goal weight.
A 10-day fast is much more successful for me. I lose 1.0 to 1.5 pounds per day. I can usually lose 12 pounds in that period and gain back only 4 lbs (Net loss of 8 lbs in 10 days.)
Right now, I’m around 15 to 20 pounds away from my goal weight. I’ll be starting another 10 day fast sometime in the next week or two. That should put me around 7- 12 lbs away from my goal weight.
The only reason I don’t go longer than 10 days is that it is terribly boring to not eat for 10 days straight.
I’m doing something like a 2MAW. I fast Mon-Fri and eat a little on Sat and a meal on Sunday. It’s the best way I’ve found to keep my BG under control mostly without meds and I need to lose weight. I wouldn’t call it ‘fun’. As the weight comes off, it should be easier to control BG and I’ll slowly start a more frequent eating routine. I would never recommend it.
Because once I’m past hour 72 or so, there’s not anywhere near as much hunger as there was before then. The part before that tends to be the worst, so if I can make it over that hump, why not keep going?
For me personally, when I do a longer fast, it’s much more about mental stamina/endurance. In other words, if my weight plateaus or something, doing a 72+ hour fast isn’t my go to strategy but if I need to reflect on something in my life, fasting really helps. I like the overall stillness and zen feeling I get when I do these longer fasts and I feel “light” in a much more abstract sense. To me, OMAD and IF are just weight loss tools but longer fasts have a greater meaning.
I feel like it’s kind of like running. Sure, running can help you get in shape but most people running marathons are not doing it strictly for fitness.
OMAD and 16:8 end up setting off my hunger monster. It’s easier for me to just not eat for 2-3 days as opposed to having the willpower to eat OMAD every day. My flair says I vary my fasts, as back to back 72s(+) can be exhausting. But, in the end, it’s multi day fasts which help me lose weight.
I like 5-8 day fasts for a few reasons! To keep my blood sugar in check (was pre-diabetic after gestational diabetes). I love how I feel after the third day… it’s effortless, no thoughts of food at all, in a great mood and lots of energy, and my sleep is deep. Finally, the weight loss! I do OMAD keto/carnivore usually and lose hardly anything, even if I eat very little. With a 7 day fast I know I’ll lose around 3-4lbs after the refeed.
I’ve done a couple of 5-7 day fasts. For me it was mostly about the experience. I wanted to know if it was hard to keep up, what my day would be like, energy levels, etc.
I also read about long lasting benefits of extended fasts, which kind of made sense to me although I don’t feel so confident about them that I would try to convince anyone else about it.
i’ve done 2 three day fasts and am currently starting what I hope will be a 5-7 day fast (likely 5 if I’m lucky lol) … i am one of the ppl who gets energy and feeling awesome by day 3 (i’m already in ketosis cuz i do low carb regularly so when i start so those first 3 days i dont feel bad either, just not like amazing and i’m thinking about food more) …. by day 3 i feel a real reduction in inflammation which is really great for me as I’m only 31 but just got diagnosed with mild arthritis in my knee which has meant i havent been able to jog for the last 3 years. on my last 3 day fast on the 3rd day was the first time i felt like my knee wasnt hurting so much that i could try jogging again. i could only do it in a carpeted room with no shoes on, but i’ve gotten to where i can no jog every other day with no shoes on and on carpet and it’s such a boon for my mental health (was still walking tons & doing yoga and the occasional hike but i love love love jogging) … so for me longer fasts help you reset your weight, insulin sensitivity (if you havent read The Obesity Code or anything by Dr. Jason Fung I highly recommend it), and for me what is the best is the feeling of lightness in my joints. i also have tested positive for being more likely to develop alzheimers according to 23andme and my grandfather died of it, so i want to do extended fasts to basically clean out all the bad proteins in my brain which isn’t going to happen with OMAD (i mostly do OMAD now if im not extended fasting as i dont feel much hunger during day) i am going to supplement this time with Reset+ for extended fasting but in the past i’ve just drank water with some salt in it to make sure i’m getting my electrolytes. also drinking apple cider vinegar in water and tea all day helps me feel nourished. hopefully will have more to share after i finish my 5-7 day fast :)
I went on an 80 day veggie juice fast back when the fat, sick and nearly dead movie came out on Netflix a few years back I went from 220 to 150 pounds, the reason was to lose weight and with intense cardio/juice fast, I did…fast forward to today I’m 220 pounds again (35 F 5’9)this time I’m doing OMAD and gym classes every morning..it’s my second go I’ve learned so much, this time I will keep it off!