I was recently asked a great question by a client: “what do you wish you’d known at the beginning of your fasting journey?”
So it got me thinking. Six years into my fasting journey, here’s 5 things I wish I’d known at the start:
You don’t have to do Extended Fasting
I remember being shocked to see people fasting for days or even weeks!
As I spent time in the fasting communities, I got the idea that Extended Fasting was somehow superior to Intermittent Fasting.
I thought that people who did those long fasts were stronger than me, and I felt like I had to do it, too.
But when I tried Extended Fasting, it didn’t work for me.
I could do it, I fasted once for two weeks. But my body would not let go of one pound.
Yet when I did Intermittent Fasting, the weight dropped consistently.
Eventually I came to understand that you don’t have to do those long fasts to get results.
And to be clear, I’m not saying you shouldn’t do Extended Fasting. In our FB group, we support Extended Fasting.
Many people who are very obese or have severe metabolic disease need to get some longer fasting in.
What I am saying is that most people can still lose weight and get healthy with Intermittent Fasting.
Any fasting is good fasting. Do what works for you on your fasting journey.
Consistency is more important than perfection
We get so caught up in making sure we do everything “perfectly”.
And let’s face it, things don’t always go exactly to plan.
Sometimes we slip. Sometimes we don’t even finish the fast.
And the tendency is to then think we might as well quit.
But as long as we are consistent, fasting will work, even when we have those off days.
Not to stress over the scales
One of the biggest lessons I had to learn was not to worry so much about the scales.
You have to understand that fat and weight are not the same thing.
Your weight can fluctuate by as much as three or four pounds a day, up or down.
The scales cannot possibly reflect all the good things that are happening in your body when you fast.
And it can really play mind games with you when the scales aren’t cooperating.
If you must weigh yourself, try to check the scales only once a week.
I suggest that you also take measurements and check those. Sometimes you will lose inches when the scales aren’t budging.
To know that hunger is okay
Fasting became so much easier for me when I made peace with hunger.
Hunger is only a feeling, like any other feeling. And it doesn’t have to be a bad feeling.
It’s what we decide it is.
Unfortunately, most of us have associated hunger with very negative emotions.
Try to remind yourself that hunger is just a habit.
Your body is used to getting food at certain times of the day.
When that food doesn’t come, your brain is going to remind you that it’s time to eat.
You can also start to look at hunger signals as signs that you are burning fat.
Insulin has dropped, glucagon has increased, and you are in fat burning mode!
Let that encourage you to keep going.
Fasting is a lifestyle
When I first came to fasting, I thought of it as another diet. One more thing I could try in my attempts to lose weight.
I lost some initial weight, and was thrilled, but then I went back to eating around the clock.
This will not work.
You have to understand the human body was not designed to constantly be having insulin spikes.
This is why fasting is so effective, because it returns us to a more natural state where we cycle between periods of fasting followed by periods of feasting.
Fasting is not a diet, it’s a return to a healthy relationship with food.
It’s a lifestyle change, and you really need to think of it that way.
Once you’ve reached your goal weight, you’ll want to find a fasting schedule that keeps you there.
What I know now
None of us know everything. We’re always learning.
But the one thing I do know is that fasting is good for you!
Whether you practice Extended Fasting or Intermittent Fasting, one thing’s for sure, you can lose fat and improve your health and wellbeing at the same time.
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.
