There are many benefits to fasting and if you’re interested in those just Google “Benefits of Fasting”. The reason I got into fasting is that I wanted to burn off the extra body fat while also increasing HGH. Studies have shown that 24-72 hours of fasting can increase levels of human growth hormone (HGH), this hormone plays a role in growth, metabolism, weight loss and muscle strength, and if you can boost HGH naturally, WHY NOT, right?
I know some of you guys reading this could be less interested in the HGH portion but what if I told you that it could also delay aging and extend your life? There have been some studies done on rats where they were fed every other day, and these rats lived 83% longer than the rats that ate every day (Goodrick, Ingram, Reynolds, Freeman, & Cider 1982). This got me thinking about fasting and how it could benefit me in the long term. Fasting, it cost you nothing, gets you jacked, and helps you live longer, why not give it a shot. Armed with just a vague idea of my goal, I decided to see if I could last 72 hours, and journal my thoughts as the days go by:
Day 1:
7:30 PM - Ate a normal dinner. Nothing Special a big ass bowl of spaghetti, two apples, coconut crème pie, and two glasses of wine.
10:00 PM – Bedtime
4:30 AM – Wake, feeling fine. Make a cup of Vietnamese instant Coffee.
5:00 AM – Goof of on the internet, check emails. Everything is normal.
5:15 AM - Poop time 😉
6:30 AM - Gym; road the spin bike for 1 hour feeling good, lifted for 1 hr, and hung out in the sauna
10:30 AM – Feeling hungry, but nothing bad.
1:00 PM – Stomach making noises. Hunger comes in waves but then goes away. Noticing I have lots of free time since I skipped lunch.
6:00 PM – 10KM Run, everything was fine. Felt pretty good, not hungry at all.
7:30 PM – Making Kate dinner. No problems. But the day seems to drag on slowly. Watch Kate eat, while I had some green tea. No stomach pains.
24 Hours Complete
Day 2:
4:30 AM – Could wait to wake up, and make some coffee. Drank two cups.
5:15 AM - POOP TIME??? Crazy, I had to poop.
6:30 AM – Took a pre-workout before heading to the gym. I walked on the treadmill, did a 10 min warm-up and pumped out a chess routine. Felt slow, and didn’t go very heavy. 205lbs on the bench for 8 reps before getting tired. 20 mins in the sauna were torture. I checked my weight on the scale and was down 10 lbs. from a starting weight of 167 to 157.
10:30 AM -went over to Airbnb to check out guests and clean. I’m not hungry anymore, but I’m moving very slow. According to some articles online at this point, I’m supposed to feel euphoric. Umm, NOPE! Feeling tired.
11:00 AM – FUCK time is moving so slow!
11:05 AM - Felt like hours since I looked at my watch last.
12:00 AM - Where am I?
1:00 PM – I need a nap
4:00 PM- Peeled myself from the couch to go for my daily run. Not hungry but feeling like ass.
5:30 PM – Got back from my 10 km. That took me 1hr 30. I had to walk a few times. Weighted me again, this time coming in at 150lbs
7:30 PM - Watched Kate eat. Wanting to punch my wife in the face.
48 Hours Complete
Day 3:
4:30 AM – Wake time, excited for coffee. Feeling full of energy.
5:15 AM – No need to poop today. Feeling light on my feet. Checked the scale at 147lbs
6:30 AM – Went to the gym and did a light back workout, and then sat in the sauna. I’m feeling pretty good.
7:00 AM – Thinking about tonight’s meal, but I feel fine, not hungry. No strange pains. Time feels like it's going by super slow.
8:00 AM – Thinking about dinner. FUCK…TIME IS GOING SLOW, going to cut out of the gym.
9:00 AM – Home now watching YouTube about Thailand and its food.
9:15 AM - I hate YouTube.
9:30 AM – Check the scale. Still 147 lbs.
10:00 AM – Back on YouTube.
10:12 AM - Thinking about Korean for dinner. There is this nice all you can eat place in Plano…. AHHH TIME IS GOING SLOW!
10:13 AM- Where I am? NAP TIME MAYBE? Green tea first.
10:14 AM- Let me check the scale again, 147lbs ……duh …
12:00 PM- woke up from a nap by a scary dream. DUDE still 7 hrs. to go!
4:00 PM- 5km walk. I didn’t have the motivation to run.
6:30 PM – Making dinner. Hoping Kate gets home early so we can eat!
7:30 PM – MADE IT!
72 Hours Complete
Summary:
Fasting is not pleasant at all. I call BS on anyone that claims it clears up their brain fog, and they have more energy. Only the first day was nice. My workouts hurt, my running was slow, and my days were long. Would I do it again? Sure, if I need to, but 72 hours is a bit too long. I think I could have accomplished the same thing in 24 hours. What did I learn? Hunger comes in waves, and it's not really that bad. After the second day, you stop becoming hungry, but you think about food all the time. I did lose weight and dropped 2% bodyfat. Would I recommend it, YES, it seems the benefits are well worth the suffering.
Resources
Hartman, M L, et al. “Augmented Growth Hormone (GH) Secretory Burst Frequency and Amplitude Mediate Enhanced GH Secretion during a Two-Day Fast in Normal Men.” The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 1992, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1548337.
Goodrick, C L, et al. “Effects of Intermittent Feeding upon Growth and Life Span in Rats.” Gerontology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1982, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7117847.