A Quick Guide to Fasting
Nov 5 · 2 min read

After completing multiple extended water fasts (the longest being 7 days), I’ve come up with some tips that can benefit anyone embarking on a fast.
- Stay hydrated — you typically consume 30% of your required H2O from your food. Since you aren’t eating food, the water needs to be made up elsewhere. Also, your body is flushing out a lot of toxins, and needs extra water for that. Something that keeps my mouth busy and allows me to track my water consumption is to slice a large, juicy lemon into eight segments, and squeeze one segment into every 16oz of water I drink. I end up drinking a lot more, and it’s delicious. Lemon juice also alkalizes the body. I’ll keep a 1500ml bottle of water at my desk, and use it to refill my glass so I’m not walking to the sink every 20 minutes.
- Stay warm — your body is conserving energy and isn’t burning as much to warm you. Wear cozy jackets/sweaters, and keep your neck warm with a scarf or neck warmer. Drinking hot tea also helps.
- Recognize your hunger cycles — The average human tends to get hungry in four hour cycles. Also, based on your routine, your body is accustomed to eating at certain times, and expects to eat at these times. When the hunger pangs come around, treat yo’self to some sparkling water, and take a stroll far away from your coworkers’ food smells. You’ll start to notice the rise and fall of the hunger pangs as simply being patterns you can choose to ignore.
- Consider Taking Electrolytes — If you are feeling dizzy or light headed, try taking some electrolytes. Sodium raises your blood pressure, which can help with this. I use Hi-Lite, and have been so satisfied with its quality I haven’t tried many others. If looking into other brands, ensure they don’t contain sugar. Alternatively, munching on some salt flakes can be surprisingly delightful while fasting.
- Communicate with your Body — Especially when I’m feeling the hunger, I like to take a quiet moment, and spare a few thoughts to communicate to my body what we’re doing. I’ll acknowledge it is hungry, and remind it we aren’t eating today. Usually it listens, and the pangs go away.
- Check in with Yourself — You don’t have to suffer through this! There is a big difference between feeling hungry and feeling bad. If you don’t feel well — stop. Always keep in mind that fasting is for your health.
Happy Fasting!
