Fasting means: No food!

I was reading an article earlier about the new so-called fad diet of fasting. I love this, how when the main stream media doesn't know how to diss something right off, they will refer to it as a fad. What bothered me most was the blatant mis-information pumped out there right off the bat, totally misleading and wrong information not based on any facts.

Of course, right away the many comments on the article were either from people who have incorporated fasting into their lifestyles for religious reasons, stating that it was not a fad, this has been around for thousands of years! Or from people who fast regularly and wanted to point out the many errors in the article.

Hardly a fad...my own experience with fasting started young, again it was practiced as a form of religious self-discipline in the community where I grew up. As an adult I started fasting in 2001, as part of an overall detox program and then I kept going with it for a good few months afterwards because I felt so great.

Of course the rest is history (you can read all about it in my book The Pagan Diet) and now I incorporate fasting as a matter of course in my life - regularly doing Master Cleanses, mini cleanses and fasting days or 'day on/day off' food and fast as I call it.

The one main comment I wanted to make here is the fact that the article I read mentioned eating a bowl of porridge and two salads on the fast days, then food as usual on the other days. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like fasting to me!

If you consume ANY food, you have broken your fast. Eating a very small amount of food on any given day is what I would refer to as either calorie restriction or starvation. It is not fasting or anything similar to it.

Fasting involves drinking clean (not tap) water from a well or spring, I also include clear herbal teas (not the fruit kind) throughout the day or days as you allow your digestive system a much needed break. 

There are many methods or patterns people have come up with that work for them - but the basics are all the same. No food for the duration, drink clean water and go about your normal activities as per usual. 

On my fasting days I also incorporate a workout - fasting exercise is a great way to burn fat, increase muscle mass in general and you can time these to have a meal once your activity session is finished. I have been doing really well with mixing this up because I incorporate several exercise sessions into my usual routines.

Fasting is as old as the hills and has been practiced for health or spiritual reasons for eons. It is a clean, cheap, easy way to regularize weight, body systems and to gain more energy. I personally find I am far more disciplined in myself as a result and I have fasted (Master Cleanse using a lemon drink) for up to 40 days at a time...

If you haven't tried it, you should. You have everything, including your health to gain.

Have a great day,

April

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