MY WATER FAST JOURNEY
Fasting, a method of restricting food intake, has been practiced for thousands of years.
Water fasting is a fast where you do not consume anything but water. It has many benefits
Here are a few reasons why people try water fasting:
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Religious or spiritual reasons
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For detoxing
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For its health benefits
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Preparing for a medical procedure
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To lose weight
How Do You Water Fast?
There are no scientific guidelines on how to start water fasting.
However, there are several groups of people who should not water fast without medical supervision.
This includes people with gout, diabetes (types 1 and 2), chronic kidney disease, eating disorders, pregnant women and children.
How long do you do a fast? I will say listen to your body, or if you have never done one and are afraid to do one...do it with medical supervision.
I’m going to start my detox with water fasting, then I will move into juice and then to some smoothies and finally raw fruit and veggies. But for now, this part of my journey will be just water. THERE ARE SO MANY benefits in terms of longevity and repair on a cellular level.
Like anything, you have to be careful and it’s always best to check with your primary healthcare provider before you attempt to go days without food, just water.
I 'm going to continue to update you here each day on how it’s going and how I feel on this water fast. How long I will be doing it will all depend on how my body feels during my fast.
I also believe in listening to your body and not pushing if you cannot do it. Your body will tell you how it feels. (Do not be mistaken by the first few days of detoxing in comparison to day 10 where your body has had enough). I can tell you it won't be pretty. Again, it all depends on how you have been eating or drinking and how often you detox. Some have easy first days and some have some nasty first days.
But I am excited to start this journey on my new fast and hopefully feel gratitude and have a deeper connection to my body and soul
DAY 5...SOLID AS A ROCK!
Solid as a rock, they say! Day 5 and still going strong. Unfortunately, not sure if I will be able to go past this point. Not because I can't but because I have an unexpected hike scheduled and I don't think I can refuse that hike, there is nothing more beautiful than being one with nature like my daughter Erika says!
But I know if I do decide to stop this fast, I will for sure do a new one soon, and record it for myself and for all of you.
I believe that we should all do intermittent fasts, even if it's a small one. One day a week or a day every two weeks. Fasting is very beneficial for us. It gives your body that rest it desperately needs.
You will be so surprised how much work is involved in eating. The body works so hard to simply digest food. This is why when we do a juice or water fast, people start to notice their body starts to heal. The body will be able to send all that energy that is used to digest, towards fixing problems in our bodies. So fasting is a good thing, let it be with fresh juice, or going a step further and doing a water fast.
The water fasts I usually do are 7 days. I know I can go 7 maybe even more with this fast if I would continue. but now I am stuck weighing in one hand a water fast and in the other hand a beautiful scenic hike. Humm what should I do is the question?
I know I can always pick up that water fast again soon.
If anyone knows me well, he or she knows I am always doing a fast...at least every 4 months.
For now, I shall end this post saying I feel fantastic and tomorrow is another day. We shall see. Who knows? Maybe I can do a smaller hike and do it on plenty of water :D We shall see.
I will listen to my body, it will tell me if I should stop.
DAY 4...I CAN SEE CLEARER NOW!
I can't even start to explain how I feel today. I feel amazing! If I could compare yesterday and today, I would say it's like day and night. I woke up earlier than I normally do, and everything I did was with no effort at all.
My energy is so high and my mind is getting clear as the day goes by. There is so much I want to do today, but there isn't enough time in a day! I want to go hiking! Yes, you heard me right… I do want to go hiking! You might say how can you do that if you are living on water?? I have enough energy to do so today. We shall see if I do go, and if I do I will edit this post with more info.
Overall, I feel refreshed and uplifted. Now if we can feel like this every day wouldn't that be fantastic!? I can feel the cleanse happening to my body.
DAY 3...BLAH
I have arrived at day 3! What can I say? The energy is a little low today. I have been working all day up to now (later in the evening) which kept my mind in check so I wouldn't think of food. I know this fast is good for me, but I just had to remind myself today. I guess all those ice creams and chocolates are reminding me I should clean up my eating act lol. The good thing is I know my body is purging from all the nasties.
Junk foods, pesticides on food, along with a bunch of other toxins my body collected on the way. Drinking all this water just flushes everything out, and today no headaches. I made sure to drink plenty!
So I will keep this one short like my mood lol. So remember if you are afraid to do a fast make sure you have supervision. Listen to your body and you will know when it's had enough fasting.
Knowing that tomorrow will be a lot easier for me, I bid you goodnight until then <3
DAY 2... MOVING FORWARD
Day 2 and I love the feeling I get when I do a fast, let it be juice or water. Waking up is just so easy, and I tend to wake up even earlier than I normally do, and if you have stairs in the house they are effortless to go up or down. As the days go by you feel lighter and lighter...just like a feather! I know it's only day 2, and because I am always so careful about what I put in my mouth, my fast is not so hard to deal with. But if you haven't ever fasted, and eat too many processed foods, I am sure your first days will be a little challenging. Such as cravings, headaches, sore skin ( flu-like symptoms ), etc.. I only listed a few, but there are more symptoms of detoxing. The more you practice the art of fasting and eating a cleaner diet. it will get easier...I promise you!
If you have never experienced fasting, I will not lie to you, it will be challenging. So dig deep and muster all the strength you can because If I can do it you can too. And who says you have to do a long fast? If you have never done any try a one or two days fast and work from that. I am excited to do one again and I am not feeling so bad. A little headache ( nothing I couldn't handle ) last night, but only because I think I should have had more water.
So come back later on and I will update my day for you and let you know how I feel throughout the day on my day two of only water!!!
update evening:
Man oh man did I have cravings this afternoon!!! The morning was fine till the afternoon came along, I was making a new burger recipe and all I wanted to do was stop my fast and dig in! I know this happens all the time so I resisted, but all I could think of is all the cherries in the house, the beautiful chanterelles we foraged waiting for me to cook up in some garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper and how they taste so so so good and buttery. Yes, the cravings were strong, but I did good.
I could have done without a headache, but I knew that would happen if I didn't drink enough water. Note to self...more water.
Overall the day is almost done and happy to go onto day 3, and I know that every day that goes by will get easier.
DAY 1... EXCITED
Day one of my water fasting! If you know me, you will know I try to do a juice-fast as often as I can. I would say every 4 months I try to do a fast so my body can detoxify and start rehealing. Before I do a juice fast I start with a water fast for 5 days. I will see if I can go longer than 5 and keep you updated on how I feel each day with the good and the bad, and how much activity I do during the day.
What I am most excited about is reconnecting to my body and soul. There is nothing more beautiful than being on a water fast and connecting to your body and soul. Everything heightens; the sounds and smells around you are that much stronger. I remember saying to my daughter I know what the neighbors are cooking :). You connect to your body in ways you never even bother to notice in everyday living. It is just such a beautiful experience.
And I am also very excited to heal my body. I just turned 61 on July 14th and I know that it's important to take care of ourselves. We only have this one body and it's important to take care of it. So, with all of that said, here we go! Day one and I am excited to start this journey!!!