There’s something appealing about taking up fasting again. I laid awake at my normal lay awake time last night (2.45am to at least 3.30am) contemplating taking up fasting. Not the hardcore fasting where you go for days on end. I’ve already proved to myself that I have that kind of willpower that it takes to pull that off. I lasted 7 days, or maybe it was 10 — I forget — when I was much younger. I actually needed to will myself to get back into eating after that period of time, whichever duration it was.
No, what I’m talking about is something closer to intermittent fasting. I haven’t thought out the details, but I can see limited fasting as a mental and spiritual exercise. Besides, I’m starting to have a hate side of the love/hate relationship with food emerge again.
Or maybe it was the thinking about that summer and autumn in Seattle before returning to Minnesota. Those days, I had to remind myself to eat. Some days I didn’t bother. I was definitely on a “I hate food” binge at the time. Coffee was good. I drank a river of coffee during that time. Smoked quite a few smokes too.
That was all fine and dandy when it was just me living out on my own, but the family would worry about my mental state and health if I approached things that way now, so it would be better to just limit and eliminate some of my food consumption rather than all-out, hardcore fasting.
I’m not sure what I would want to accomplish. I’ve got my eigengrau moods that come more often than they go. And it wouldn’t hurt to rewild my spirit a bit. A touch of hunger has a way of bringing out the feral.
Maybe I can fast out the funk?
There, a title for this post — catchy and topical. Just the kind of thing SEO managers love.
Have you fasted? Any particular reason for doing so if you have? Do you think it is weird and unhealthy? Comment away!
31 responses to “Fasting Out the Funk”
If you do this, let us know if it worked. Fasting out the funk sounds interesting.
Heh. I’ve got to think a bit more on it — I was shooting from the hip here, but it is a serious consideration upon my second waking at 5.20am and has been on my mind since. I’ve fasted several different ways in the past, so I just have to figure out what will work best. I’ll let you know what I come up with. Thanks!
I’m very cautious about fasting ‘cause I get angry and hostile when I’m hungry.
There’s a stage where that goes away — fairly early on in the process after you body starts to find other sources of calories (e.g. fat conversion). Usually around early on in day two for me. Everyone is different though. Drinking lots of water helps. And I mean lots.
💪🏻
Sorry but I had to chuckle at this comment. I get angry and hostile too haha
🤭
I love intermittent fasting. I plan to return to it when my baby is weened. I’d intermittent fast all the week days and then the weekend I’d catch up on some calories as I felt to. It really takes the pressure off from having to eat all the time. Fasting helps the body in that its not spending energy digesting food and I felt lighter, cleaner, and freer. It did highlight needing those weekend calories though because grounding and at times I did feel weakness. I lit up spiritually from fasting which is my bread and water, so to speak. I could transmute emotions so much better too and felt them more purely. Find your balance with it and it is great.
Yeah, I think I’ll be approaching it from the intermittent side rather than wholesale fasting. I just have to figure out what kind of split I’m looking at and for how long. Maybe toss in some longer periods between splits to mix it up.
What age range are you with the kiddo? Are you getting sleep yet, or still up most of the night?
She’s four months. Still up half the night but I get four hours sleep now and then four more once husband is able to relieve me. Yeah, you can play with it a lot. It’s very adaptable.
That can be a fun age. My twins were still keeping me up most of the night at that age (they took turns… OF COURSE), but they were fun as hell to watch as they discovered the world. Of course, getting them to sleep all night was even better. 😂
Their older sister liked to sleep. Or it just seemed that way because she was as singleton.
Twins!? And an older sister to boot!
Siblings are so fun. I love teaching her and watching her discover everything. She’ll be my only babe. I had a NDE when I had her and am older so, I’d rather be here for her than put my body through it again.
Yeah, I don’t blame you. Better to avoid the risk, your peanut will need you.
I have to inform people that twins are not 2x the work like most think. It was more like 4x the work and a third of the sleep. 🤣
Love my girls but never again. They’re still cool now that they are older. Cooler in some respects.
That’s my thinking too. Better to avoid a predictable doom rather than temp it. She is a gift unexpected. I’m happy I had a babe at all. I can’t even imagine, while I can feel it’s true that two would be like four babes, especially without sleep. I just so look forward to all her years.
I love that! That they are cooler in some respects. Grown and individuals, own everything. I love learning her and seeing her personality develope.
It’s a good idea. We love to at and drink, but don’t feel too good when we’ve indulged – so every other day is a detox day. Not exactly fasting, but a day of minimal, low-calorie eating with no alcohol. It does the digestive system good, helps keep the weight down and ensures a good night’s sleep (which is about 4 – 6 hours in my case). It’s a good feeling, so go for it if you’re keen. 🙂
I’m leaning towards a daily 18:6 hour split at the moment with caloric restriction and possibly one 24 hr fast a week if the ease in phase goes well. But yeah, it helps clear out more than the body. I need the mental and physical reset.
I’d live that way if I didn’t like food and drink so much, it’s a good feeling. 🙂
Absolutely understand.
I have fasted many times, and many different types, for multiple reasons. Sometimes spiritual and sometimes physical. My longest fast was 42 days. I have fasted from addictives such as coffee, from all but raw food, and all food. I have done water-only, juice-only, and liquid only. It all just depends on the reasoning. I find the best fasts last beyond that 3-4 day mark (the hardest two days in a fast), usually around 7-8 days.
Agreed. Somewhere between the second and fourth day is when your stomach says, welp, no point in complaining… Might as well eat myself… 😂
I like the idea of intermittent fasting. Usually I finish eating before 7:00pm and don’t eat again till the next morning. I know there’s folks that go longer. But it seems to work for me.
That’s close to what I was thinking (longer), mixed with a longer spell once a week or so of 24 hrs fast or maybe skipping a day so that it ends up being closer to 40 hours between meals. Start slow, then kick it up a notch…
It’s something I’m interested in looking more into. I like your idea of easing into it.
Higher chance of success?
I think so. Sometimes it’s just getting the routine set. And from there trying more.
I like the idea of this too. I try not to eat after 6pm. So, more of an 16/8 fast.
See… I definitely need to do a better job of that. I’m hoping that forcing myself to focus on a change will make it happen.
Sounds like a great idea.
Mostly I drink tea and cry. And it’s not tea.😉
Used to do that. Well, not the crying part. I forgot how to do that for a while.
Hope you got it back. As we gentlemen get older, there’s an upwelling of emotion that can get us. We noticed it in my father. He would suddenly just be overcome in company, to the point of not being able to hold back a sob. I found an explanation in Proust, though I can’t find it again—it’s actually sort of narcissistic; it comes from the realization that others are feeling the same emotions, that the ‘groupthink’ is on target.
It’s not easy for me. Songs like “Round here” get me choked up. Watching Valmont’s death scene away has me bawling. Things like that.
On my own? Almost never. I need a trigger. It was highly discouraged and I was mocked incessantly by family, adults, and classmates for being “too sensitive.”