The weight loss journey is no walk in the park.
And fasting isn’t always easy. Some days it’s a struggle.
Those days are when you need something powerful to help you push through.
And that something is your why.
Why do you want to fast?
This is one of the first questions you need to ask yourself. Your why is so important!
Knowing why you are doing this is going to empower you and keep you focused.
It’s going to keep you going when you want to quit.
Your why also serves as a destination.
If you don’t know where you’re going and why, you’re going to be more tempted to turn around and go back.
But your why needs to be important.
Weight loss might not be a strong enough why
Your goal and your why are not the same thing.
Most people come to fasting for weight loss. And that’s great! It will definitely work.
But is that a strong enough why?
Is it going to be enough to keep you motivated when the hunger and cravings hit?
Does your why mean more to you than those cravings?
I want to lose 20 pounds so I can fit into my favorite bathing suit is a great goal, but is it a strong enough why?
How to make your why stronger
First, go ahead and answer the question for yourself: Why am I doing this? Why do I want to fast?
Write down your answer.
Once you have your answer, ask yourself if it’s important enough to you?
Is it going to be more important than food?
If not, you have some work to do.
Keep your why, but go deeper with it
You might need to go several layers deeper before you find a strong enough why.
Here’s an example: Let’s say your initial why is the aforementioned needing to lose 20 pounds for that bathing suit.
If this is a strong enough reason for you, great.
But be super honest with yourself.
If it’s not enough, ask yourself now, why do I want to fit into that bathing suit?
Maybe your answer looks something like, Because I want to feel good about myself.
Okay, why do you want to feel good about yourself?
Get the idea? Keep going until you land on a why that resonates deeply with you.
Let’s do another one.
What if your why is, I want to fast so that I can improve my metabolic health. That’s a strong why!
But even that might not be enough.
So why do you want to improve your metabolic health?
Dig into that until you find that why that is going to keep you committed when the going gets tough.
Find the why that means more to you than food or cravings.
When you find your strong why, write it down and keep it somewhere that you can see it every day.
Extended Fasting and your why
If you’ve decided to do Extended Fasting, rather than Intermittent Fasting, you’ll need to know why.
Why Extended Fasting? Why do you want to fast for 14 days or 30 days? Versus doing Intermittent Fasting?
You need a really good reason to do Extended Fasting.
Doing it because everyone else is doing it is not a good enough reason.
Fasting isn’t a competition. You don’t have to outdo someone else.
Because the thing is, Intermittent Fasting will get you the weight loss and it will improve your health.
So why fast for weeks or months when you could do Intermittent Fasting and get the same kind of results?
I’m not trying to discourage anyone from Extended Fasting.
I support Extended Fasting and have coached many clients through 30 day fasts.
But what I want you to understand is that you’re going to need a really good reason that you’re doing this.
If you can’t find a good enough reason for doing Extended Fasting, I suggest that you stick with Intermittent Fasting.
Arm yourself with a strong why
Your why is one of the most powerful tools you have. It can get you through the toughest days.
Don’t fast without it!
Author: Roo Black
Roo is a fasting coach with over 5 years of experience. She leads the admin team of the Official Fasting for Weight Loss Facebook group – one of the largest fasting communities on social media with over 125,000 members. We highly recommend this group for anyone who is looking for fasting advice or coaching.
