Ahh the crazy things I try when my Functional Medicine Doctor says, “Hey, how about we try this?”
Throughout my functional medicine journey, I’ve done some things that other have labeled as “crazy”. I frequently hear word like “I could never do that!, “Why would you do that?”, or my favorite “I won’t do that!”.
Our brains are amazing things. Simply by changing your perspective, whether it is by choice or being to a point of no other decision, our brains can either make the task easy or hard. One of my favorite songs by the band Sister Hazel, is “Change your Mind“. The song is about perspective and how if we simply change the way we think about things, the better life is. My friends, if there is one thing I’ve learned while trying to heal my body, it is all about perspective.
Where am I going with this? Well, when Dr. J, my Functional Medicine Doctor, suggested a 3-day water fast to see how my body would respond, I was in. It is all about perspective. And why 3 days, rather than 24-hours or some other number? Our gut linings take 3 days to repair itself, so the concept was to not irritate mine for 3 days and see how I would feel.
I had also just finished listening to the book, The Obesity Code, by Dr. Jason Fung and was intrigued by the concept. Dr. Fung has a lot of great insight and concepts in the book that made complete sense. My two favorite tips:
1) Do your fast on days when you can keep busy. For me, this meant during the week so I could simply work to keep me distracted.
2) Do not make a big deal out of it. Very few people knew about the fast until it was over.
How did it go?
Fasting is 100% a mind game. If you think you can do it, you will. If you think you can’t you won’t.
I had been doing Robb Wolf‘s Keto Masterclass for about 10 days so I was on my way to being fat adapted. I would never had tried this coming off the standard American high carb diet. I’m convinced it would have been way more difficult.
Hydration is super important, as is the water you put in. I was very thankful for my Zija Morclear Water filter to have very yummy water. I also added some trace minerals to make sure my body was still getting nutrients.
As a bonus I could have my 3 favorite types of water – cold, hot or room temperature. That’s it – not additions or infusions – just water.
Over the 3 days, I was only “really” hungry a few times. I just downed a bunch of water and the feeling went away and just convinced my brain it was enough.
By day 3, I felt amazing. Clean, light, energized!
To end the fast, Dr. J recommended a keto-type meal like salmon and mashed cauliflower. It was … A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!
Will I do it again? Absolutely!