Weight Loss Program

You may have been told that fasting is not a safe or healthy thing to do. I have been told the same thing and it scared me away from ever trying a fast. However, there have been studies showing, if done properly, a fast can work to your advantage in more ways than one to help and improve your diet and workout routines.

Studies show fasting

• helps you lift more weight
• makes your muscles look more cut and defined
• helps with chronic fatigue syndrome and hypoglycemia

Mary’s story

The study was done on a woman (I’ll call her Mary) who wanted to lose some fat. So her trainer put her on a fasting program that consisted of only vegetable juice. During the first week of her program she lost muscle, but after two more weeks of eating and working out, her muscles came back more cut than before.

After a week of fasting on only juice, she switched to a diet that consisted of raw vegetable and fruits. Within only about 3 weeks after the fast she was lifting two times more what she was lifting before she started her fast. She was able to maintain this weight for at least a year.

When I first read this article, I thought these people were crazy! Seriously? This goes completely against everything I ever heard. Wasn’t Mary depleting herself of vital nutrients when she fasted? How could this make her stronger? Isn’t it the protein in the food she eats that helps her build muscle when combined with a weight training program? This really raised a lot of questions for me. But I kept reading, because I wanted to know what happened with her.

Definition of fasting :

Abstinence from all food and drink except water for a prescribed period of time.

Doctors that have supervised fasters at a health resort and spa have stated that during a fast, your body will seek to conserve energy by slowing it’s metabolism. (exactly what I have heard) and your body will then become more efficient on less food. So your body is primed to gain weight if you resume your unhealthy eating habits after the fast.

If you fast, then binge, you can gain all the fat back. But if you fast and move onto a healthy diet, you can keep the weight off. During a 10 to 14 day period, Doctors at a university found this out when working with 900 obese patients. When the patients lost their weight, they kept their weight off, and continued to lose even more weight by staying on a low calorie diet, exercising more and fasting for a day whenever necessary.

The doctors did say, I’m happy to hear, if you are prone to eating disorders this was not the way to go. So you should not fast unless in a supervised facility if you have any food addiction problems.

Back to Mary’s story

After Mary ended her fast she went on a healthy eating plan and was able to keep the weight off. She said, since being on her fast, it not only helped her body look better but it also made it easier to drop all unhealthy foods. She no longer had the cravings for salty and sugary foods since the fasting helped to clear her taste buds.

Fasting Facts

• Fasting helps to cure the temptation to eat some unhealthy foods
• Since fasting can help to clear your taste buds, it also can help you to kick the smoking and drinking habits
• Fasting helps expel toxins that can make us sick
• Doctors have seen cysts and tumors dissolve after fasts

Signs you might benefit from a fast:

• Thick coating on your tongue
• Constipation
• Bloating and bad breath
• Waking up feeling foggy and sluggish
• Unable to concentrate or remember things you used to remember
• You’re congested and wiped out

If you fast, you free up your body to discharge longstanding toxins through normal sweat and urine. Experts say to take a 36-hour water fast to nip them in the bud, and save you from colds, sinus congestion, joint pains, and headaches.

Mary said she suffered from chronic fatigue syndrome for about 2 years. She tried herbs and chiropractic care and while they did help, she still had to take naps in the afternoon and sleep for 12 to 14 hours a night. Mary said fasting helped her tremendously by getting over the fatigue and finally being able to get by with the normal 8 hours of sleep a night.

This was an interesting article and it convinced me enough to give it a try. I can’t wait to see if it helps me in the way it helped Mary.

Mary ended her article with these tips:

To start your fast:

1. Day 1 Drop the protein from your normal diet.
2. day 2 Drop the oils (such as nuts).
3. day 3 Eat only fruit and nonstarchy vegetables
4. day 4 Launch your fast

To break your fast:

1. Day 1 Eat fruits and nonstarchy vegetables
2. Day 2 Add whole grains, potatoes, legumes and other starches
3. Day 3 Tack on oils (like butter and nuts)
4. Day 4 Include your beans, cheese and other proteins.

Consult your doctor before you fast and when breaking a fast