Intermitant Fasting

[Cassia]

Today I'm going to put together a menu outline of things that I enjoy eating, working out an average calorie needed, base it on mostly nutrient dense foods and then work it into a one-meal-a-day food plan. The idea is to have as much time where the digestive system is resting so the healing system has as much time as possible for working on other areas.] while not starving oneself. From what I've read it's a very healthy system of eating.

 

[Josiah]

When I skip breakfast or lunch (usually out of near necessity), I MORE than make up for it at the next meal because I'm HUNGRY! I consume fewer calories (and generally eat healthier) if I ate 3 good meals a day. Just me.


IMO, "fasting" is stopping ANYTHING that seems to be taking too much of our energy, attention, focus that could be spent on better spiritual things. EXAMPLE: Years ago, I would spend HOURS on facebook. I mean HOURS. I was still in school at the time and realized this was ROBBING me of time/energy I should be spending on school. And I no longer seemed to have time for much personal devotion or Bible reading or prayer, those got rushed to I could sign on. So, one Lent, I gave up facebook. It was only for 40 days and I was sure I could do that for that length of time. And I replaced that time (well, some of it) with Bible reading, devotions, prayer .... and studies. I suffered from withdrawals for awhile, LOL, but by the end of the 40 days - I not only didn't miss it but found I really enjoyed the things I replaced it with - and benefited far more. I ended up cancelled my facebook page (I don't have one..... I may be the only "Twenty Something" person on the planet without a facebook page!! I tell everyone I don't have one and so they need to email me invites and stuff like that. I think that's what fasting is..... and what it CAN do.



- Josiah

 

[Cassia]

When I skip breakfast or lunch (usually out of near necessity), I MORE than make up for it at the next meal because I'm HUNGRY! I consume fewer calories (and generally eat healthier) if I ate 3 good meals a day. Just me.

My point of contention with that (and this is just a discipline for me, I don't recommend it to anyone who has not researched it) is the digestive system has first priority over any other of the body's systems. As long as there is food to digest there is no healing taking place. So to discipline self to 'fasting' the digestive is freeing up time for the unconscience things that the body is equipted to handle if it's not being blocked from doing so as overeating will do. 3 meals a day spaced properly with no snacks and food properly combined should leave time between digestions to afford a few hours of cleansing a day. But it's usually not digestable at all when starches and protein combinations are the norm (alkaline and acid digestive jcs cancel each other out so the food rots in the stomach and takes days to get thru the system)

IMO, "fasting" is stopping ANYTHING that seems to be taking too much of our energy, attention, focus that could be spent on better spiritual things. EXAMPLE: Years ago, I would spend HOURS on facebook. I mean HOURS. I was still in school at the time and realized this was ROBBING me of time/energy I should be spending on school. And I no longer seemed to have time for much personal devotion or Bible reading or prayer, those got rushed to I could sign on. So, one Lent, I gave up facebook. It was only for 40 days and I was sure I could do that for that length of time. And I replaced that time (well, some of it) with Bible reading, devotions, prayer .... and studies. I suffered from withdrawals for awhile, LOL, but by the end of the 40 days - I not only didn't miss it but found I really enjoyed the things I replaced it with - and benefited far more. I ended up cancelled my facebook page (I don't have one..... I may be the only "Twenty Something" person on the planet without a facebook page!! I tell everyone I don't have one and so they need to email me invites and stuff like that. I think that's what fasting is..... and what it CAN do.

- Josiah

I don't spend time on social media much either. Most of my time is divided between spiritual studies and nutrition, both of which have been main interests for decades.

 

[Cassia]

Today I'm going to start it off with a feast at the local Mexican restaurant before picking up groceries for the next 3 days. I'll be picking up yams, kale, avacodos, olives, eggs, red peppers, black beans and I need to get some nutritional yeast for a nooch sauce for the beans and some balsamic for the kale.

(I have the worst willpower in the world so I'll let ya know if this works)

It's not the knowing it's the doing

 

[Lamb]

Mmm Mexican feast. I just finished eating 2 tacos for lunch

I can't fast really because I used to have an eating disorder and my body doesn't want to starve ever again. Even sleeping at night my stomach lets me know it wants food.

 

[Cassia]

Mmm Mexican feast. I just finished eating 2 tacos for lunch

I can't fast really because I used to have an eating disorder and my body doesn't want to starve ever again. Even sleeping at night my stomach lets me know it wants food.

Often what people think of as hunger pangs and growling for food are actually the process of digestion not yet completed. For instance it's almost 10:30 am here and my stomach is making all kinds of weird noises. But I know my stomach is full of things undigested from yesterday because of all the junkfood I ate plus how weighted down it feels right now. Despite all the growlings I don't feel hungry. Rather sick in fact, probably because of the massive sugar consumption last night in the form of raisen/apple pie filling that I consumed before bed. To eat anything right now would just pile good onto bad to further the digestion time. In other words there is no break from any fast because what should have been a nightime fast never happened. The worst thing I could do right now is eat before the previous has digested.

But the mexican food you had at lunch has set my cravings for some delayed gratifications ... :high5:.

 

[psalms 91]

My understanding is that digestion takes place fully in about 8 hours

 

[Cassia]

My understanding is that digestion takes place fully in about 8 hours

Starting from a completely empty stomach fruit will only take 1/2 hr, vegetable dish 2 hrs, starch with no protein takes 3 hrs, a protein meal with no starch takes 4-5 hrs and a meal that combines starch and protein takes up to 8 hrs. That's assuming that nothing else is ingested in those hrs.
The scientific evaluation of digestion is that of dividing the 24 hrs into 3 sections. Assimulation, appropriation and elimination. So the first 8 hr is eating (ie: the first meal at 8am and the last at 4) leaving 16 hrs for digestion to complete itself. Then it begins again the next day, but leaves no time at all for healing because the digestion cycle is given 1st priority.

 

[Lamb]

Often what people think of as hunger pangs and growling for food are actually the process of digestion not yet completed. For instance it's almost 10:30 am here and my stomach is making all kinds of weird noises. But I know my stomach is full of things undigested from yesterday because of all the junkfood I ate plus how weighted down it feels right now. Despite all the growlings I don't feel hungry. Rather sick in fact, probably because of the massive sugar consumption last night in the form of raisen/apple pie filling that I consumed before bed. To eat anything right now would just pile good onto bad to further the digestion time. In other words there is no break from any fast because what should have been a nightime fast never happened. The worst thing I could do right now is eat before the previous has digested.

But the mexican food you had at lunch has set my cravings for some delayed gratifications ... :high5:.

Oh, for me it's more than hunger pangs that happens.

I find if I have a craving for something specific that I'll eat everything else trying to stop the craving but it never works. I've learned to give in to the craving since I don't get them too often. Unless it's pizza

I have read that if you eat a certain food over a period of time will cause your body to be more efficient at digesting it. This link is pretty interesting in describing how changing a dog's diet (I know it's not a human experiment and could be different) causes changes in digestion:
http://soilandhealth.org/wp-content...cat/020126shelton.orthotrophy/020126.ch19.htm

Most people have difficulty digesting spinach unless it's consistently in the diet and then the body can process it more efficiently. (this is in the link along with a few other tidbits)

 

[Cassia]

Oh, for me it's more than hunger pangs that happens.

I find if I have a craving for something specific that I'll eat everything else trying to stop the craving but it never works. I've learned to give in to the craving since I don't get them too often. Unless it's pizza

I have read that if you eat a certain food over a period of time will cause your body to be more efficient at digesting it. This link is pretty interesting in describing how changing a dog's diet (I know it's not a human experiment and could be different) causes changes in digestion:
http://soilandhealth.org/wp-content...cat/020126shelton.orthotrophy/020126.ch19.htm

Most people have difficulty digesting spinach unless it's consistently in the diet and then the body can process it more efficiently. (this is in the link along with a few other tidbits)

It's interesting that you provided a link from Natural Hygiene Society because that's what I studied during the 90's. Sheldon was one of the founders. Their research, during the 1800's, was deemed not a science by the bloodletters of the time (medical profession) and the universities shut down so that even today a degree after studying all that can be studied in that area isn't possible. Clean air, whole foods and sunshine is not a science.

It is easier to digest a food that is eaten repeatedly but in the case of spinach it has an acidic enzyme that is hard to digest in raw form.

I actually got thru yesterday quite well, not feeling hungry yet and have lost 1 1/2 lbs to boot. Not bad for a first try I'd say. But was feeling very lathargic after that huge meal. I may have to go to 2 meals per day within a 4hr window.
Healthwise I just feel I need to do something other than fasting to get to feeling healthy again. A spring cleaning.

 

[Lamb]

It's interesting that you provided a link from Natural Hygiene Society because that's what I studied during the 90's. Sheldon was one of the founders. Their research, during the 1800's, was deemed not a science by the bloodletters of the time (medical profession) and the universities shut down so that even today a degree after studying all that can be studied in that area isn't possible. Clean air, whole foods and sunshine is not a science.

It is easier to digest a food that is eaten repeatedly but in the case of spinach it has an acidic enzyme that is hard to digest in raw form.

I actually got thru yesterday quite well, not feeling hungry yet and have lost 1 1/2 lbs to boot. Not bad for a first try I'd say. But was feeling very lathargic after that huge meal. I may have to go to 2 meals per day within a 4hr window.
Healthwise I just feel I need to do something other than fasting to get to feeling healthy again. A spring cleaning.

If it works for you then go for it Keep track though in case it drains you more than it gives you energy. I love hiking so that's my thing to keep me going. I used to do cycling (75-100 miles a week) and miss it but it's too dangerous where I live.

 

[Cassia]

Scientifically the realm of health has been reduced to micromechanics of the body, tissue, cells, DNA etc as if the physical form orbits in it's own self-confining cosmos. The obsession with scientific methods seems very singular in vision.

On the Greek island of Coss during the 5th century BC a sanctuary created by Hippocrates catered to the guests with soft breezes and the ebb and flow of the sea. A person recovered as the integrity of nature was allowed to reassert itself. The guests task was to realign with the positive forces within and without.

Like the digestion that needs a break from it's duties and food ceased from for awhile so must the whole anatomy must stop long enough to turn inside and listen to intuition tell us the area of dis-ease. An inner voice of unbiased authority that our human body is equipted with that wants what is best and will tell us how to proceed. Illness is often our learning tool that needs great compassion, no judgement and no blame. *If it is true gold one need not be afraid of the furnace*

So back to eating regular within the 8 hr window and feel much better for having done the intermitant fasting.