Ok, so I've been reading a lot about doing fasts and I've successfully done 2 24h IFs losing, and keeping off, 2 lbs each time. I'm thinking about attempting a water fast this week for a period of 48 hours. I intend to drink maybe 2-3 glasses of juice and a glass of skim milk each day to get SOME nutrients into me on those days.
I know some of it will be weight lost from my stomach emptying, but I want to try and detox my body and see if it helps "kickstart" a drop again.
Anyone have any tips/experiences with water fasts?
I have done a water fast for 48 hours, nothing but water. It wasn't too difficult as I was determined to do it. Didn't lose much weight, though and quickly regained it. A pound or two only and it came right back.
I have succesfully done a 21 day water fast...I drank water with pure squeezed lemon juice in it to flavour it and provide a few vitamins..I also did a salt water intestinal flush the first day to rid my body of excess waste.
My advice: Drink lots of water...add a little salt into it sometimes so that your body keeps the electrolytes balanced. Dont drink acidic juice... You may need to take a laxative tea to help rid your body of whaste since your not moving it along with food. Expect to be hungry..its going to happen...
As far as weight loss goes...its not really going to help you that much... You will lose water weight as you will be peeing lots and retaining little... As far as fat loss goes, you cant see an improvement in such a short amount of time.
My suggestion is: If you want to do a " cleanse" then you should try the lemonade diet approach...Its lemon water mixed with dark grade maple syrup and Cayan pepper. It helps to detoxify the bloodstream. It also gives you some minerals and vitamins through the maple syrup and lemon... Its more effective then just drinking juice and milk. Google it...Be forewarned, its not for weight loss necessarily.
I did a 4 day water fast in May of this year. I lost 9.5 pounds in those 4 days but I'm sure it was water weight as I wasn't eating healthy before I started. I did not keep those pounds off because I didn't implement a healthy eating plan after the fast. I did it moreso to see if I could actually handle it and to make plans for longer ones in the future for when I was serious about reaping the health benefits from it. Now that I'm back on track with my health goals, I plan to do a 7 day water fast starting September 3rd. I think the water you drink is important. I drank spring water which naturally has minerals and sodium in it so it really kept me balanced. I agree that the fast should not be attempted for weight loss alone. I want the amazing health and detox benefits that come from water fasting. Let us know if you decide to try it!
I would stick to 2 24 hr fasts per week and keep up with IF. Going longer than 24 hours could possibily slow down your metabolism so you lose/burn less fat. Just my opinion. I really don't think a longer water fast will help at all with weight loss and detox is a myth.
Your opinion is definitely respected. I'd say to the poster to do your own research and decide for yourself. There are some that truly believe in the miraculous benefits of water fasting (including detoxing your body) and there are some that share the same opinions as kelley. It's up to you to decide what you believe will be best for you. Research is important too because you gain an understanding of how the process works and how it affects your body and you're not just going off someone elses opinion that may not be well researched. Let us know!
Last edited by angieand2girls; 07-17-2012 at 11:57 AM.
The only time I've done a water fast was when I had to have a colonoscopy, and I thought: what a great way to clear out my system, detox, and start new. However, for me, the hunger was uncontrollable for a few days following the fast, so I know that doing any more water fasts would be bad for my weight loss and unsustainable.
That's not to say what I experienced is true for everyone, just letting you know that if you find yourself super hungry later it's not your fault, it happens to some people!~
I posted what I posted b/c I have researched IF (a lot!) and most of the fat loss benefits are aquired from 18-24 hours of fasting. I have also done other research. Good luck to you!
Along with a friend, I tried a water fast many years ago and it lead to extreme hunger after. That was my experience.
There's a LOT of information out there on water fasting that provides soooo much varying information. Some research will say one thing, some another. For example, I've seen research that has said that when fasting, you don't get fat loss benefits until AFTER 2-3 days when all your immediate reserves are used up and then your body starts using it's stored reserves for fuel and energy requirements (which is fat), so you won't burn any real fat until after 2-3 days. The thing is, you have to decide what is best for you. Which version of research most appeals to you? What makes sense to you? There is ALWAYS going to be research to the contrary of one's findings. That's the great thing. Decide what you think is best for you. One variation may be horrible for one person but great for another.
Last edited by angieand2girls; 07-18-2012 at 01:18 PM.
I have done a 8 day water only fast and there was a day in there where I could barely lift my arms up in the shower to wash my hair I was so weak but I knew that would happen most of the time I spent laying down and taking it easy. I read after I ended if I woulda kept going past the 8 days my energy would of balanced out and I would have had more energy again but I broke and ate something because I was so hungry. It also gets hard to drink water after that amount of time because it just gets sickening like you dont want to drink it anymore and kinda has a metallic taste like they say. After my fast I didn't stick to the good eating plan and gained the weight back pretty fast also but that was my own fault for not eating healthy afterwards I think I lost about 20 lbs in those 8 days but thats probably because I was so overweight and water weight and stomach and bowels being empty I also did the salt water flush while doing that water fast.
I think I did another 5 day fast another time as well each time I don't keep a healthy eating plan after like I plan to because the hungry makes you go crazy.
But with that said I am on my first day of another water fast today I am going for a month this time or however long I can stand it. And I am really going to make sure I eat only veggies and fruit after this one because I'm sure you would keep the weight loss benefits if you can just control yourself afterwards and not eat bad.
It's also dangerous to eat bad after a long fast like that cuz you can lock up your bowels they need to be eased back into working gently. So just juice diet after your fast is best for a while then add in some fruit then some veggies for about a week at a time with each hopefully I can stick to that this time.
Water Fasting?
