Flexible Fasting

 One thing that I’ve learned in incorporating fasting into my lifestyle changes is that the weekly goal of two 36 hour fasts is not a hard rule nor does it need to be. Sometimes my body is just over it at 24 hours and that’s okay. Trying to push it can cause it to become too obsessive in my thoughts, cause pain or discomfort, and intensify cravings or probability of bingeing. After fasting, there is a high probability I’ll eat two days worth of calories in one day, but I’ve also learned that that doesn’t negate the benefits of fasting. I’m experiencing better health, better moods, and more satisfaction than sticking to a calorie restrictive diet. My sleep is improving. My muscles feel stronger and I just feel lighter on my feet, more apt to break into dance or have bursts of energy or inspiration.

Today, I even worked on one of my dolls a bit more. I’ve chiseled out some clearer plans for assembling her outfit. I detailed her shoes a bit and started work on one of her arm bands. Pretty much glue tests that I hope hold but if they do, I can start to decorate the metals with gems. Jewelry can be fiddly and frustrating though so I really have to be in the right mood for that too.

As for fasting, it does have some downsides. The worst, for me, are the liquid bowel movements. On the upside, they do look like they’re keeping me cleaned out, but it also means I can neither trust a fart nor ignore the need to go for just a few minutes. There is no safely holding it in until I’m done with something. I can either gracefully go when the urge hits or risk shutting myself. There’s really no way to sugar coat this. I simply have to accept that my digestive system gets either lazy or over-efficient. Once I break the fast, there is usually at least one more liquid or semi-solid BM but after that, it’s back to being regular. It’s very likely that the sodium I drink to keep electrolytes up in the culprit, but it’s very necessary and I’ll take the down side. I’m not working in a job where this is an issue, so now is the opportunity to deal with it. Also, this is an exchange for the migraines, stomach upset, lethargy and crankiness that comes from not keeping electrolytes up. When a whole handful of side effects is eliminated in exchange for one, there’s just no contest. I am able to do more on fasting days with electrolytes maintained so I’m not completely useless those two days either. It could become an issue for my social life if I have to hide from people those two days all the time.

The only other downside I’ve found is that I have zero alcohol tolerance. It makes me feel like garbage, I don’t recover fast and it’s not worth it. I’ll be avoiding drinking alcohol as long as I’m fasting regularly like this. If I reach a point where I’m only fasting once every week or two, maybe I’ll take a drink here and there but there will be no more than that. I can’t say I’ll miss it though. I’m just not a fan of being drunk anymore; it inhibits any hope to work on anything and makes me lazy. Maybe other people can enhance their creativity or drive with it but it does nothing for me there. Mostly just makes me moody and frustrated with myself.

So I’ll be chilling through this day until I can break fast in the morning. Almost at the 24 hour mark and it’s been a decent one. I usually like to start around 7:00 but this one started last night around 8:30. Not a big deal since I’ve been sleeping in until noon most days this week since my nephews are on fall break. Still, don’t want to fall asleep before 1 AM tonight or I risk waking up early and counting down until I can eat. Much better feeling if I can wake up having cleared the full time.

I will be weighing myself in the morning too. I usually only step on the scale every two weeks. This seems to make the weight that much more satisfying or gives me an allowance if I needed to be less strict. This has to be a flexible process so I don’t like to get too laser-focused on any of the details. If I want this to be successful as a lifestyle change, maintenance will mean it can’t become something I dread. Any point of dread means it needs serious evaluation before it becomes burnout and neglect. I’ve been there and when I reach square one after long term neglect, it’s a very bitter pill to swallow. And as I’ve learned each time, what worked before may not work again. As we age and change, our bodies will demand different processes sometimes. Much easier to make small adjustments while healthy than have to slog through all the pain and frustration of starting over.