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Q's about the fasting high

Couple of questions about that ‘fasting high’ I hear people talking about so much…

  1. First of all, what’s the technical term for it? I’ve heard it called ‘deep ketosis’ here but wasn’t sure what it’s really supposed to be called.
  2. What’s the scientific explanation for it? Why should your body relying on your own fat stores suddenly create such mental clarity?
  3. What’s the accepted timeframe that one should expect it to begin, and how long does it last?

BTW I’m at 37 hours of my first extended fast and feeling pretty good! Special thanks to this community, which has provided very critical information and motivation.

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Answer

I was looking forward to it. I’m on my first prolonged fast, day 5 of 7. Last night was hard. I’ve had a way elevated mood the whole time but not a lot of energy and brain fog. Maybe it’s just because my body isn’t used to it and I was a carb glutton over the holidays.

Answer

I’m also 37 hours into my first fast of 2023 and I feel great! I’ve always assumed the fasting high was from your body not having to waste energy digesting food. Your entire torso is basically decided to that process and I’d think it takes a lot of energy. Especially since we all eat way more than we should, and our bodies spend a lot of energy processing food so it can be eliminted or stored. Since you’re not eating you get all that energy back and your body is working in light duty mode only having to process as much fat as you need for current operation.

I have another guess about how this works and how to accelerate it. I can do intense workouts while fasted. Deadlifts, squats and long cardio sessions like a 20mile bike ride. Pushing yourself a bit to workout while fasted also excercises your body’s fat to energy mechanism to work harder and it becomes better at its job. Under normal eating cycles you have a glut of carbs and sugar to use for energy so your fat processor doesn’t get used much. Exercising this mechanism makes it more efficient and if it is working optimally during a fast it will easily convert your fat to energy without using more energy. This frees up that energy and gives you the mental clarity.

You’re like a perfectly tuned engine. Not running rich and not running lean.

Just a guess on my part. Have a nice day

Answer

#1. I don’t know the technical term.

#2. I’ve attributed it to your body’s release of noradrenaline. Basically your brain is saying “go find us some food!” Mental energy tends to be good during this time. Also, your metabolic rate goes up as your body revs up to find food. The increase in metabolic rate is for the first couple of days of a fast. By day 4, it’s coming back down (but is still above baseline).

#3. I haven’t tracked it. Thinking back, 36 to 48 hours?

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