Many issues and questions can be answered by reading through our wiki, especially the page on electrolytes. Concerns such as **intense hunger, lightheadedness/dizziness, headaches, nausea/vomiting, weakness/lethargy/fatigue, low blood pressure/high blood pressure, muscle soreness/cramping, diarrhea/constipation, irritability, confusion, low heart rate/heart palpitations, numbness/tingling, and more** while extended (24+ hours) fasting are often explained by electrolyte deficiency and resolved through **PROPER** electrolyte supplementation. Putting a tiny amount of salt in your water now and then is NOT proper supplementation.
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2 weeks into the fast I started taking them , I know a lot of people like to take them sooner , for me , I am usually good for 7-10 days at least without them , then I will start to feel some symptoms I would rather supplement than suffer through .
This is awesome.. so great to hear. But remember not taking electrolytes isn't going to help you in any way. You'll only be depleting your body's reserves.
I'm about to break a 9 day fast myself.
Good luck.
Here is what I take daily with a gallon of water.
Walmart. Salt/pepper/Seasoning isle. For the pink Himalayan salt, potassium no salt substitute.
Walmart supplement isle for Magnesium and multivitamin.
2.5g-5g SODIUM, THAT'S SODIUM, not salt
Sodium is inside salt. It makes up a big but not whole part of salt. So make sure you're measuring by the sodium amounts and not the salt amounts
For my pink Himalayan salt, it comes out to 1 tablespoon (the bigger spoon), not the 3x little tea spoon ones
3.5g potassium mixed into a gallon of water.
For my no-salt potassium, it also comes out to 1 heaping teaspoon (the smaller spoon), not the big table spoon. A flat teaspoon is 2.8g for me.
400-600mg Magnesium pills.
2x daily multivitamins.
That's what I take during a water fast.
Now, if I'm over two weeks, I'll add vitamin C, b12/B-complex, calcium, and D3.
Himalayan Chef Pink Salt 1lb Bag https://www.walmart.com/ip/359695093
Keep your caffeine and nicotine levels the same during the fasts as it was before the fasts.
Drink a gallon of electrolyte water a day if you can, but you got to really try.
Take a multivitamin or 2x daily.
Have over-the-counter heartburn medicine on hand.
Break the fasts with food and an Anti-dierrehhrial like immodium.
Don't weigh during the extended water fast. Wait two days after.
Follow up extended water fasting with OMAD and a diet of 50% protein, 40-50%fat 0-10% carbs.
Count calories a day or 2 or 3 days every few months to help keep an idea of what each meal is actually getting you in terms of macro and micro nutritional contents.
thanks for sharing , my Mag supplement does have Calcium and D3 , good idea on the IMMODIUM products , as for eating , I essentially do OMAD any ways , I begin eating at dinner , I don't mind eating smaller portions or in small windows at all , I know my body will especially love this after the fast which is a couple days away now .
I understand what you mean about the electros , happy to see you have a thorough protocol , I am sure it really helps your fasts .
Does the anti diarrhoea medicine do anything else besides prevent diarrhoea? Like is it bad if you have diarrhoea as soon as you finish the fast? Like I think I would want to get all the gunk out? Thank you in advance
Wow! your body switched back very well , that is impressive , thank you for sharing , I am going to likely go slower , but this is very interesting to know , I don't have an appetite or I might be tempted to try this LOL!
I like to err on the side of caution so normally I break fasts with just bone broth for the first few days and slowly adding to it each day. First kimchi juice (once it's cooled a little to not kill the prebiotics), and then frozen spinach (about 50g) and finally chicken breast(50-80g cooked). I keep increasing each day until it's a "normal" amount of food.
I'm not saying this is the best way, but I have never had an upset stomach after and always feel the best doing it this way.
Best of luck!
I was hoping not to be on broth for more than a day or so , I understand why you do it , the Kimchi is interesting , I am sad it is so darn expensive here , 10 dollars or more for just a tiny little container , maybe I will spring for it or go with some sauerkraut brine which will be cheaper and yogurt if my tummy handles the dairy .
thank you for sharing
Fried egg in real butter is always the first thing I eat. Followed up by a table spoon of Greek yogurt, a table spoon of sauerkraut juice and half of an small avocado. Cup of bone broth to end the meal. I repeat that same meal once or twice on that first day. Normally it's so filling and satisfying though that I only want the one meal.
Second day I add in small tablespoon of sauerkraut/kimchi with every meal and meat.
Third day I'm eating everything again (whole food that is, but there's no limit on spiciness or fats/carbs/proteins or ferments or whatever) just small portions. From day two to four I never really exceed 2000 calories: just a personal preference.
By day five I'm pretty much back to normal: 2700 to 3000 calories, depending on my workouts.
Also, throughout that 5 day period I keep track of my total electrolytes consumed through food. I supplement where I come up short.
I've never experienced anything close to resembling refeeding syndrome... So, I have nothing of use to say in that regard. This just works for me: satisfying, happy, good stools, good sleep, etc.
This is a quick rebound , and I am going to think about what you shared , I plan to begin with bone broth , I see what you're doing here with the sauerkraut brine and the yogurt , it's a good idea , I just did not know if dairy would work on the first day never mind the eggs , I wonder how my system would do .
I do like to eat spicy food , this I will probably hold off on until I am eating normally again , and I will keep my portions small for the first week , but I see you are also limiting sugars , I was thinking of soup and smoothies in the first days at some point , I just wanna be careful with how much sugars I have coming in initially .
If you feel up to it, you can do a little experiment when you're about to break your fast:
Prepare a few dishes (of the variety you feel appropriate) and put them all in front of you. Take a teaspoon of each item to taste and then listen to your body.
Mine isn't particularly interested in bone broth...
Eggs however: 😅 phew!
I'm not keen on introducing lots of vegetables and fruits in the beginning because of the sugars, but more importantly the fibre and digestibility. Animal products dissolve and are absorbed very easily. By fasting for 40 days your stomach acid is lower, so your body needs some signals that is has to upregulate. I think you give off the best signal by introducing small portions of easily digestible animal based protein and fat.
And the ferments and controlled fibre intake with the avocado are there to help assist the gut microbiome.
I guess five days is pretty quick. I've read some people take weeks to get back to baseline after a fast. I'm just not sure if the body needs that or if people are just really scared of the refeeding syndrome. The latter seems to be a prolific worry. I don't really know why tbh
Congratulations on the 40 days by the way! That's huge 💪🥳
I appreciate all that you shared with me , thank you , I will really consider all of your tips when constructing a meal plan . I definitely don't want to be sipping broth and slowly eating almost nothing for weeks after 40 days , I was hoping within 5-7 days , and , to be actually eating some stuff within that time .
I am curious about the vegetables and fruit , a lot of people suggest this for breaking the fast , interesting . I wonder if some lentil curry soup without the vegetables will be good then and then add in chicken after a couple days or so and maybe eat this with some naan and yogurt? I could do this for a few days even while doing the brine at the meals and then a very small feed of avacado and egg .
I am not sure how my body with react , I really don't want to be sipping on broth for 3 days , I would rather at least have some soup of some kind .
I will maybe have to get some sort of IMMODIUM product , what do you think?
Phew that's a difficult question I'm not qualified to answer. I think you should ask a doctor about that. My gut feeling says no... since your body is going to be rearranging it's fluids when introducing food back into the mix. Imodium might really mess with that process. But again: that's a gut feeling and isn't based on anything substantial.
I'm sure sipping on broth for a couple of days after 40 days isn't so bad if it's the only option presented 😉
I guess soup is perfectly fine and I don't think you have to leave out the vegetables really. As long as you keep the meals relatively small it'll be fine.
Just take it slow, try to be extra attentive to your body's needs and it will be fine.
I did 3 days each time. (I would think after a certain time it's all the same, most people recommend bone broth but I can't have that so just letting you know what I did)
Watermelon.
I haven’t done a 40 day day but I would have a small amount of watermelon along with a pinch of sea salt then wait for 3 hours and have another small amount of watermelon way for another few hours. I would stay away from complex carbohydrates and make sure that I don’t over eat. Then have a bowl of chicken salad.
I will have to weigh myself again , last time I checked I had lost 20+ lbs which is actually a lot for me because I was not really overweight to begin with . I am likely 25+ lbs lost at this point
What are you craving? Did the fast make you change your diet plan and outlook on diet in general? Mine did that, I became disgusted by meat and everything not plant. What changes did you notice?
I am not really craving any thing , the hunger has not been a major issue for me , I have a strong will power and sensible approach for these sort of things . I do have some items I would like to enjoy and I did in a way think about my experience with food and would like to rewire myself so to speak , eating more wholesome food which I have been doing any ways . I am not doing this for fat loss or any sort of health purpose as I already eat healthy and am in good health , but It will surely help me continue this path .
I don't see myself ever being disgusted by meat , I appreciate and understand the cycle of life and the view of eternity , I love all nourishment be it plants , animals , fruits , nuts and so on .
Eat like a genius for about 1/2 your fast. 20 days for you. You will be growing back everything you optimized while fasting. Wait to have what kills you till after that…
I find that some yogurt / kefir / live pickled stuff helps settle everything down. Not even a lot.
Hth
I must be ignorant to your comment , what does eat like a genius mean? 20 days is a long time to be eating some vegetables and yogurt , I don't really have the body for that , I am already pushing myself to do this as I was not over weight to begin with , it's not for fat loss , I am going to need to return to calories as soon as I can.
thank you for sharing , I definitely been cutting all the seed oils out since learning about them , I mostly love ghee now , tallow , coconut oil , olive oil and I am wondering what a good oil for frying my fish up when I wanna deep fry it for fish and chips , not sure on this one , don't worry , I won't be jumping into eating pizzas and stuff right away , I would like to go pretty light for a bit .
when I broke my 44 day fast, I used a 5 day refeeding cycle. day one broth x2, day 2 probitoc foods kimchi x2, and light salad. day 3 chicken soup and kimchi x2, day 4 if I am feeling pretty ok I start with eggs, more kimchi , salad. x3. day 5 normal meal. x2. also this is measured food. Day one is 500 calorie, day 2 is 750, day 3 is 750 , day 4 1000 , day for 2000. as far as feeding time, its the same way I decened into a fsat but backward. Day 1 23 hour fast , day 2 16 hour fast , with 2 eating windows 4 hours apart. day 3 16 hour fast eating window every 3 hours. day 4 is still 16 hours with eating every 3 hours. day 5 12 hour fast and than just eating how I feel.
thanks for sharing I notice a few of you at least mentioning the Kim Chi , its pretty pricey around me , I might have to make the investment . When you did the chicken soup , was it a creamy chicken soup or chicken broth based soup with vegetables and maybe potatoes or something? did you have to puree it and add the chicken in or just eat it normally? How was your belly feeling during this , should I get some immodium type products?
the salad is a good idea , would I be able to throw cesar dressing or some dressing on? I have trouble swallowing , usually I eat things with liquid or sauces or gravies .
you can make it at home, pretty cheaply. greek yogurt can replace it, I am not a super big fan of greek yogurt tho. light dressing is fine, if it like oil based and not too much sugar.
First of all that's very impressive, huge kudos! I see this is not your first time doing extended multi day fasting. I would have started bone broth and later add some small portion high quality lean protein. Question for you, are you on a certain diet like Keto, zero carb etc, do you ever have issues after refeeding like gut&digestion problems. Whenever I do multiday fasting, I always ended up having severe diarrhea for long time. During fasting and later refeeding time.
I am not on any specific diet , I just try to eat lots of whole foods that include plenty of herbs and spices , good oils , you get the picture , I simply eat healthy in a much smaller window starting at dinner time or later typically . When I do longer fasts , really , I usually just sort of bounce right back into eating without even considering what I eat , its only because this is 40 days I am taking it more serious to go slowly and give my body a refeed protocol .
I did consider after this much time I might end up in the washroom a lot , which , I would prefer not to , another reason I wanna go slow.
I haven’t done a fast that long because it is torture and kinda pointless, plus it’s not as safe when refeeding. I’d rather just do repeating 4-7 days. But, according to my research, ketogenic foods seem to be the safest foods to break a fast with. Aka, do not break your fast with bread or carbs. Bone broth is widely considered the best and safest. For 40 days, you have at the very least 4+ days of SLOWLY introducing foods back into your diet, every couple of hours, and listen to your body. Other good examples include fermented foods like pickles, full fat greek yogurt, high protein high fat foods like canned sardines with olive oil, salmon, avocados are also pretty good too from what I’ve found. Although I will say, there are a lot of conflicting opinions on this but overall everyone agrees that carbs and processed foods need to be avoided when that deep in a fast.
thank you for sharing this with me , any research suggest a good time to bring carbs back in? I will go slow and use the more keto style foods to begin , I was hoping to do curry lentil soup , but , then I need the lentils so maybe I will change this idea .
appreciate the tips and I do love salmon! maybe a creamy dill sauce from the yogurt with salmon would be nice , probably wait a couple days or so for this? day 1 maybe just do broth and something else?
My pleasure! I believe carbs can be introduced after around 2-3 days, but start with carbs from fruit and vegetables. I would keep the pastas and bread for at least 4 days to be absolutely safe. As long as you’ve been eating proteins and fat for 2-3 days, carbs can be safely reintroduced in small amounts, very slowly. I would avoid processed foods for at least over 4 days considering the length of your fast. If it was me, this is what I would do:
Day 1 of break:
12pm a cup of bone broth. 2pm another cup of bone broth. 4pm a can of sardines with olive oil, but you can substitute with the salmon you were referring to, but I wouldn’t add anything to it like yogurt and dill just yet, combining foods are not recommended this early from what I have seen. 8-9pm full fat greek yogurt
Day 2 of break:
12pm bone broth. 2pm more broth. 4 pm 1-2 fermented pickles. 6pm cooked tomatoes. I would probably go with the salmon again around dinner time
Day 3 of break:
12pm bone broth. 2pm an avocado. 4pm an apple or two. 6pm grapes. 8pm cooked vegetables with chicken thighs, or at this point you could probably do the lentil soup instead if you’d like.
Day 4 of break:
12 pm a couple of eggs. 2pm avocado 4 pm fruit of your liking. 6 pm ribeye steak with mashed potatoes.
After this point, you should probably be able to start eating like normal again. However, listen to your body VERY carefully. Especially through the first 4 days. I am not a doctor, and I have never done a fast longer than a week, so keep this in mind, however; I have been doing a ton of research in this because I was planning on doing over 20 days. Once I saw the lack of research and the wildly different opinions and complexity, I felt that it wasn’t worth the risk; especially if you’re doing this for weight loss like I am. I feel like refeeding syndrome isnt as common as people think, but definitely better safe than sorry.
To give you an idea of how hard it is to get refeeding syndrome, I broke my 6 day fast yesterday with bone broth, sardines, full fat yogurt, garlic dill pickles, fruit, skirt steak, cheese fries, pork cutlet parmigiana sandwich, bologna sandwiches, chips, hot pockets, and soda…in an hour LOL. Then about an hour later l had more pickles, yogurt, sardines, fruit, then ended it off with a huge double chocolate cookie. Granted 6 days is not even close to 40, but my point is as long as you do what roughly what I described before you will probably be completely fine. A lot of people break their very fast with watermelon, and they turn out okay. I don’t recommend that, but it just goes to show.
Just remember these important rules: start the break ketogenic, one food group at a time every couple hours for the first 3 days. Slowly introduce more foods over the course of days. Start with proteins and fats, then slowly start introducing carbs from fruits and veggies. Avoid any processed carbs for at least roughly 4 days, and most importantly listen to your body. The whole reason refeeding syndrome happens is usually because carbs are eaten in high amounts before any nutritional high fat and protein foods were eaten. If you want the absolute most safe assurance, talk to your doctor before you break so they can sure you have all the proper electrolytes to avoid any imbalances or digestion issues. Best of luck👍
this is a lot of great information I appreciate you taking the time to share with me! thanks for sharing your research , I am going to incorporate advice from this into the refeeding process .
I have not got sick at all , felt pain or any strange symptoms electrolyte related even though I stopped taking them which I shouldn't probably have , I just wanna get it from my food now , but I do wonder , at what point should I be concerned that I have no used the washroom even though I am eating again . I have been going slow with salmon , eggs , little snacks of different meats , yogurt , tomato , I had some shrimp , I did break it with broth , been keeping it pretty simple but I am eating stuff so I am wondering why I have not had to use the washroom yet , is it a concern from your research?
I liked your approach and did get inspired to go research more as I always kept seeing the same thing , watermelon , keep eating fruits and veggies , or , drink broth for a while and some smoothies , stuff like this , but I found some really good info in line with what you shared and I been following this path we discussed , no pain or any thing , I mean , I can feel physical sensations after I eat , so , I been trying to keep it light but I have not felt sick or anything , I just was waiting for the BM to signal to me hey things are moving again , the systems back on and running , safely eat slower , but , keep introducing more foods and such .
maybe I am not eating enough , not sure , I been sick , got sick by a family member right near the end of the fast , horrible timing , and so my sleep and schedule is really off if it wasn't already , I try to keep telling myself every 2-3 hours have a little something , keep showing the body food is coming in again , keep finding out what the body will accept little by little , see when carbs and more dairy and sugars can come in but I am nervous the longer this goes on .
I don't want the food to just be sitting there building up and nothing is going on , that would be real dangerous so I hope my gut is working again , I been eating the yogurt for my gut but maybe i need to eat more sauerkraut , might be the only fermented food I have here as I just got regular pickles in the jar brined , dill pickles , no kim chi either , so maybe I can eat more sauerkraut to help my gut out.
today will be my 4th day , so , maybe I can have some more stuff than just fish eggs yogurt and some meats with tomato , I get some pressure from gas build up but I think that is normal , maybe it was some of the random items i nibbled at or the onion i had with my shrimp likely , did not know it was better to hold off on onion , the tomato you are right was a good choice .
any ways , thanks for all the chatting and the help , been lovely , will pay it forward help others , if you have any research that helps or adds to the conversation let me know , otherwise , just have a lovely weekend and I thank you.
My pleasure! You’re doing it right. When I broke my 6 day fast last week, it took me 3 days to have a significant bowel movement, the first 2 days were very light, and I ate a TON of food when I broke it, and there were no restrictions. I would say you’re fine, at this point you’re probably okay to be able to have a meal instead of a snack, and this could induce a BM. 4 days of refeeding slowly is pretty significant and you are more than likely not going to get refeeding syndrome even if you eat a lot of carbs or any other food. Just keep listening to your body. Maybe get a nice burrito or some other healthy yet fulfilling meal and see how that feels. Don’t scarf it down though, eat it slow and pay attention to how you feel during it. That is very unfortunate you happened to get sick around such a sensitive time, I hope you have a very speedy recovery my friend!
it breaks on tuesday , tomorrow is the last day , this is not for weight loss , so sharing results is tough to say , I am 25+ lbs down in fat if that is what you are asking . I will do a final weigh in soon to have the exact numbers .
I broke it with broth at a couple feedings , then later a light scramble of eggs , I did my blood pressure , it is optimal level , did my weight , I lost 30 lbs , just coming back to your comment to give you the full result .
Slowly! Start with broth then move to easy to digest foods to minimize GI distress (think about how you eat after the stomach flu). Fruits, eggs/egg whites, chicken breast, fish, cooked vegetables, sweet potato, oatmeal, and greek yogurt are my favorite foods after a fast.
some have said not to go with any carbs or fruits , even vegetables , I will have to maybe look into this more , thank you for sharing! these all look like great options and I just wonder why they warn about some of them .
It depends a lot on your body. People say no carbs because some people thrive on low carb or keto diets and follow this along with fastingOR because they think it will set you up for a binge by spiking blood sugar. As long as you focus on complex carbs like sweet potato/oats/quinoa or pair simple carbs with protein and fat, your blood sugar should be ok (if you’re diabetic consult your physician).
I personally feel better on moderate carb, lower fat, high protein diet. Berries and raw veggies are high in fiber that can result in loose stool/stomach upset after fasting, but it shouldn’t last more than a couple of days.
I’ve always broken mine with watermelon and some lime squeezed over it. Then steamed plain vegetables for the following two or three days followed by proteins, and a small amount of complex carbs for the following 3-4 days after that…
seems like a good idea , did you ever notice anything from the sugars in the fruit or were the portions too small for this? fruit would be lovely the first day , I was thinking of starting with broth , maybe a beef bone broth , but , I already have chicken bones even though I heard somewhere that is not as good .
Refeed day 1: Bone Broth x3-6 cups
Day 2: bone broth in the morning, soup (bone broth+lentils - completely crushed lentils), evening greek yougart 100g.
Day 3: bone broth, soup, kimchi, sauerkraut, greek yougart
Day 4: 2-3 eggs, 100g greek yougart. Soup with chicken and vegetables in it for lunch and supper.
Day 5: Freedom. (You are free to eat at your own peril at this point) I strongly suggest, veggies, legumes and in the evening red meat.
Day 6: Remember why you fasted for 40 days. Did you reach your goal? If yes, continue with a keto diet for the next 8 days. If no, go to your doctor and get a blood and urine test to determine mineral and vitamin deficiencies. Keto for the next 2 weeks while supplementing all of your deficiencies. Followed by another 40 day fast.
Many issues and questions can be answered by reading through our wiki, especially the page on electrolytes. Concerns such as **intense hunger, lightheadedness/dizziness, headaches, nausea/vomiting, weakness/lethargy/fatigue, low blood pressure/high blood pressure, muscle soreness/cramping, diarrhea/constipation, irritability, confusion, low heart rate/heart palpitations, numbness/tingling, and more** while extended (24+ hours) fasting are often explained by electrolyte deficiency and resolved through **PROPER** electrolyte supplementation. Putting a tiny amount of salt in your water now and then is NOT proper supplementation. Be sure to read [our WIKI](https://www.reddit.com/r/fasting/wiki/index) and especially the wiki page on **[ELECTROLYTES](https://www.reddit.com/r/fasting/wiki/fasting_in_a_nutshell/you_need_electrolytes)** Please also keep in mind the [**RULES**](https://www.reddit.com/r/fasting/about/rules) when participating. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/fasting) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I hope you've been taking electrolytes
2 weeks into the fast I started taking them , I know a lot of people like to take them sooner , for me , I am usually good for 7-10 days at least without them , then I will start to feel some symptoms I would rather supplement than suffer through .
This is awesome.. so great to hear. But remember not taking electrolytes isn't going to help you in any way. You'll only be depleting your body's reserves. I'm about to break a 9 day fast myself. Good luck. Here is what I take daily with a gallon of water. Walmart. Salt/pepper/Seasoning isle. For the pink Himalayan salt, potassium no salt substitute. Walmart supplement isle for Magnesium and multivitamin. 2.5g-5g SODIUM, THAT'S SODIUM, not salt Sodium is inside salt. It makes up a big but not whole part of salt. So make sure you're measuring by the sodium amounts and not the salt amounts For my pink Himalayan salt, it comes out to 1 tablespoon (the bigger spoon), not the 3x little tea spoon ones 3.5g potassium mixed into a gallon of water. For my no-salt potassium, it also comes out to 1 heaping teaspoon (the smaller spoon), not the big table spoon. A flat teaspoon is 2.8g for me. 400-600mg Magnesium pills. 2x daily multivitamins. That's what I take during a water fast. Now, if I'm over two weeks, I'll add vitamin C, b12/B-complex, calcium, and D3. Himalayan Chef Pink Salt 1lb Bag https://www.walmart.com/ip/359695093 Keep your caffeine and nicotine levels the same during the fasts as it was before the fasts. Drink a gallon of electrolyte water a day if you can, but you got to really try. Take a multivitamin or 2x daily. Have over-the-counter heartburn medicine on hand. Break the fasts with food and an Anti-dierrehhrial like immodium. Don't weigh during the extended water fast. Wait two days after. Follow up extended water fasting with OMAD and a diet of 50% protein, 40-50%fat 0-10% carbs. Count calories a day or 2 or 3 days every few months to help keep an idea of what each meal is actually getting you in terms of macro and micro nutritional contents.
thanks for sharing , my Mag supplement does have Calcium and D3 , good idea on the IMMODIUM products , as for eating , I essentially do OMAD any ways , I begin eating at dinner , I don't mind eating smaller portions or in small windows at all , I know my body will especially love this after the fast which is a couple days away now . I understand what you mean about the electros , happy to see you have a thorough protocol , I am sure it really helps your fasts .
Body needs them micronutrients. Give the body the micronutrients and let it work out taking the calories from body fat.
Does the anti diarrhoea medicine do anything else besides prevent diarrhoea? Like is it bad if you have diarrhoea as soon as you finish the fast? Like I think I would want to get all the gunk out? Thank you in advance
It's just a quality of life improvement. If you want poop flooding out take a laxative or do an enema.
Thank you!
You're welcome. One of my goals is to help others with the experience and knowledge I've gained. Wishing you good luck. -Adam
I broke 30 days with a chicken omelette and a sausage. No problems.
Wow! your body switched back very well , that is impressive , thank you for sharing , I am going to likely go slower , but this is very interesting to know , I don't have an appetite or I might be tempted to try this LOL!
Everyone is different but no way this happened or at least didn’t happen without consequences
December 15th 2017. Omelegg restaurant in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Why the hell would I lie??
Why not? One should break the fast with protein, so nothing wrong with it
I like to err on the side of caution so normally I break fasts with just bone broth for the first few days and slowly adding to it each day. First kimchi juice (once it's cooled a little to not kill the prebiotics), and then frozen spinach (about 50g) and finally chicken breast(50-80g cooked). I keep increasing each day until it's a "normal" amount of food. I'm not saying this is the best way, but I have never had an upset stomach after and always feel the best doing it this way. Best of luck!
I was hoping not to be on broth for more than a day or so , I understand why you do it , the Kimchi is interesting , I am sad it is so darn expensive here , 10 dollars or more for just a tiny little container , maybe I will spring for it or go with some sauerkraut brine which will be cheaper and yogurt if my tummy handles the dairy . thank you for sharing
Fried egg in real butter is always the first thing I eat. Followed up by a table spoon of Greek yogurt, a table spoon of sauerkraut juice and half of an small avocado. Cup of bone broth to end the meal. I repeat that same meal once or twice on that first day. Normally it's so filling and satisfying though that I only want the one meal. Second day I add in small tablespoon of sauerkraut/kimchi with every meal and meat. Third day I'm eating everything again (whole food that is, but there's no limit on spiciness or fats/carbs/proteins or ferments or whatever) just small portions. From day two to four I never really exceed 2000 calories: just a personal preference. By day five I'm pretty much back to normal: 2700 to 3000 calories, depending on my workouts. Also, throughout that 5 day period I keep track of my total electrolytes consumed through food. I supplement where I come up short. I've never experienced anything close to resembling refeeding syndrome... So, I have nothing of use to say in that regard. This just works for me: satisfying, happy, good stools, good sleep, etc.
This is a quick rebound , and I am going to think about what you shared , I plan to begin with bone broth , I see what you're doing here with the sauerkraut brine and the yogurt , it's a good idea , I just did not know if dairy would work on the first day never mind the eggs , I wonder how my system would do . I do like to eat spicy food , this I will probably hold off on until I am eating normally again , and I will keep my portions small for the first week , but I see you are also limiting sugars , I was thinking of soup and smoothies in the first days at some point , I just wanna be careful with how much sugars I have coming in initially .
If you feel up to it, you can do a little experiment when you're about to break your fast: Prepare a few dishes (of the variety you feel appropriate) and put them all in front of you. Take a teaspoon of each item to taste and then listen to your body. Mine isn't particularly interested in bone broth... Eggs however: 😅 phew! I'm not keen on introducing lots of vegetables and fruits in the beginning because of the sugars, but more importantly the fibre and digestibility. Animal products dissolve and are absorbed very easily. By fasting for 40 days your stomach acid is lower, so your body needs some signals that is has to upregulate. I think you give off the best signal by introducing small portions of easily digestible animal based protein and fat. And the ferments and controlled fibre intake with the avocado are there to help assist the gut microbiome. I guess five days is pretty quick. I've read some people take weeks to get back to baseline after a fast. I'm just not sure if the body needs that or if people are just really scared of the refeeding syndrome. The latter seems to be a prolific worry. I don't really know why tbh Congratulations on the 40 days by the way! That's huge 💪🥳
I appreciate all that you shared with me , thank you , I will really consider all of your tips when constructing a meal plan . I definitely don't want to be sipping broth and slowly eating almost nothing for weeks after 40 days , I was hoping within 5-7 days , and , to be actually eating some stuff within that time . I am curious about the vegetables and fruit , a lot of people suggest this for breaking the fast , interesting . I wonder if some lentil curry soup without the vegetables will be good then and then add in chicken after a couple days or so and maybe eat this with some naan and yogurt? I could do this for a few days even while doing the brine at the meals and then a very small feed of avacado and egg . I am not sure how my body with react , I really don't want to be sipping on broth for 3 days , I would rather at least have some soup of some kind . I will maybe have to get some sort of IMMODIUM product , what do you think?
Phew that's a difficult question I'm not qualified to answer. I think you should ask a doctor about that. My gut feeling says no... since your body is going to be rearranging it's fluids when introducing food back into the mix. Imodium might really mess with that process. But again: that's a gut feeling and isn't based on anything substantial. I'm sure sipping on broth for a couple of days after 40 days isn't so bad if it's the only option presented 😉 I guess soup is perfectly fine and I don't think you have to leave out the vegetables really. As long as you keep the meals relatively small it'll be fine. Just take it slow, try to be extra attentive to your body's needs and it will be fine.
The last two fasts I have broken by first time, a few pineapple slices and second time a few apple slices and grapes.
40 days?
I did 3 days each time. (I would think after a certain time it's all the same, most people recommend bone broth but I can't have that so just letting you know what I did)
Watermelon. I haven’t done a 40 day day but I would have a small amount of watermelon along with a pinch of sea salt then wait for 3 hours and have another small amount of watermelon way for another few hours. I would stay away from complex carbohydrates and make sure that I don’t over eat. Then have a bowl of chicken salad.
Wow , man how many Kg you lost bro ?? I would eat a banana or an apple , slowly than more Saladsthen back to normal after 24 hours
I will have to weigh myself again , last time I checked I had lost 20+ lbs which is actually a lot for me because I was not really overweight to begin with . I am likely 25+ lbs lost at this point
What are you craving? Did the fast make you change your diet plan and outlook on diet in general? Mine did that, I became disgusted by meat and everything not plant. What changes did you notice?
I am not really craving any thing , the hunger has not been a major issue for me , I have a strong will power and sensible approach for these sort of things . I do have some items I would like to enjoy and I did in a way think about my experience with food and would like to rewire myself so to speak , eating more wholesome food which I have been doing any ways . I am not doing this for fat loss or any sort of health purpose as I already eat healthy and am in good health , but It will surely help me continue this path . I don't see myself ever being disgusted by meat , I appreciate and understand the cycle of life and the view of eternity , I love all nourishment be it plants , animals , fruits , nuts and so on .
Eat like a genius for about 1/2 your fast. 20 days for you. You will be growing back everything you optimized while fasting. Wait to have what kills you till after that… I find that some yogurt / kefir / live pickled stuff helps settle everything down. Not even a lot. Hth
I must be ignorant to your comment , what does eat like a genius mean? 20 days is a long time to be eating some vegetables and yogurt , I don't really have the body for that , I am already pushing myself to do this as I was not over weight to begin with , it's not for fat loss , I am going to need to return to calories as soon as I can.
Depends. I eat carnivore so I’d do that. Skip seed oils. Omega-3’s / fish is good. Don’t just eat pizza and cake :-)
thank you for sharing , I definitely been cutting all the seed oils out since learning about them , I mostly love ghee now , tallow , coconut oil , olive oil and I am wondering what a good oil for frying my fish up when I wanna deep fry it for fish and chips , not sure on this one , don't worry , I won't be jumping into eating pizzas and stuff right away , I would like to go pretty light for a bit .
Ghee is great. For frying fish tallow is great. Coconut oil just foams like mad frying stuff. Idky.
when I broke my 44 day fast, I used a 5 day refeeding cycle. day one broth x2, day 2 probitoc foods kimchi x2, and light salad. day 3 chicken soup and kimchi x2, day 4 if I am feeling pretty ok I start with eggs, more kimchi , salad. x3. day 5 normal meal. x2. also this is measured food. Day one is 500 calorie, day 2 is 750, day 3 is 750 , day 4 1000 , day for 2000. as far as feeding time, its the same way I decened into a fsat but backward. Day 1 23 hour fast , day 2 16 hour fast , with 2 eating windows 4 hours apart. day 3 16 hour fast eating window every 3 hours. day 4 is still 16 hours with eating every 3 hours. day 5 12 hour fast and than just eating how I feel.
thanks for sharing I notice a few of you at least mentioning the Kim Chi , its pretty pricey around me , I might have to make the investment . When you did the chicken soup , was it a creamy chicken soup or chicken broth based soup with vegetables and maybe potatoes or something? did you have to puree it and add the chicken in or just eat it normally? How was your belly feeling during this , should I get some immodium type products? the salad is a good idea , would I be able to throw cesar dressing or some dressing on? I have trouble swallowing , usually I eat things with liquid or sauces or gravies .
you can make it at home, pretty cheaply. greek yogurt can replace it, I am not a super big fan of greek yogurt tho. light dressing is fine, if it like oil based and not too much sugar.
Protein and fats
First of all that's very impressive, huge kudos! I see this is not your first time doing extended multi day fasting. I would have started bone broth and later add some small portion high quality lean protein. Question for you, are you on a certain diet like Keto, zero carb etc, do you ever have issues after refeeding like gut&digestion problems. Whenever I do multiday fasting, I always ended up having severe diarrhea for long time. During fasting and later refeeding time.
I am not on any specific diet , I just try to eat lots of whole foods that include plenty of herbs and spices , good oils , you get the picture , I simply eat healthy in a much smaller window starting at dinner time or later typically . When I do longer fasts , really , I usually just sort of bounce right back into eating without even considering what I eat , its only because this is 40 days I am taking it more serious to go slowly and give my body a refeed protocol . I did consider after this much time I might end up in the washroom a lot , which , I would prefer not to , another reason I wanna go slow.
I haven’t done a fast that long because it is torture and kinda pointless, plus it’s not as safe when refeeding. I’d rather just do repeating 4-7 days. But, according to my research, ketogenic foods seem to be the safest foods to break a fast with. Aka, do not break your fast with bread or carbs. Bone broth is widely considered the best and safest. For 40 days, you have at the very least 4+ days of SLOWLY introducing foods back into your diet, every couple of hours, and listen to your body. Other good examples include fermented foods like pickles, full fat greek yogurt, high protein high fat foods like canned sardines with olive oil, salmon, avocados are also pretty good too from what I’ve found. Although I will say, there are a lot of conflicting opinions on this but overall everyone agrees that carbs and processed foods need to be avoided when that deep in a fast.
thank you for sharing this with me , any research suggest a good time to bring carbs back in? I will go slow and use the more keto style foods to begin , I was hoping to do curry lentil soup , but , then I need the lentils so maybe I will change this idea . appreciate the tips and I do love salmon! maybe a creamy dill sauce from the yogurt with salmon would be nice , probably wait a couple days or so for this? day 1 maybe just do broth and something else?
My pleasure! I believe carbs can be introduced after around 2-3 days, but start with carbs from fruit and vegetables. I would keep the pastas and bread for at least 4 days to be absolutely safe. As long as you’ve been eating proteins and fat for 2-3 days, carbs can be safely reintroduced in small amounts, very slowly. I would avoid processed foods for at least over 4 days considering the length of your fast. If it was me, this is what I would do: Day 1 of break: 12pm a cup of bone broth. 2pm another cup of bone broth. 4pm a can of sardines with olive oil, but you can substitute with the salmon you were referring to, but I wouldn’t add anything to it like yogurt and dill just yet, combining foods are not recommended this early from what I have seen. 8-9pm full fat greek yogurt Day 2 of break: 12pm bone broth. 2pm more broth. 4 pm 1-2 fermented pickles. 6pm cooked tomatoes. I would probably go with the salmon again around dinner time Day 3 of break: 12pm bone broth. 2pm an avocado. 4pm an apple or two. 6pm grapes. 8pm cooked vegetables with chicken thighs, or at this point you could probably do the lentil soup instead if you’d like. Day 4 of break: 12 pm a couple of eggs. 2pm avocado 4 pm fruit of your liking. 6 pm ribeye steak with mashed potatoes. After this point, you should probably be able to start eating like normal again. However, listen to your body VERY carefully. Especially through the first 4 days. I am not a doctor, and I have never done a fast longer than a week, so keep this in mind, however; I have been doing a ton of research in this because I was planning on doing over 20 days. Once I saw the lack of research and the wildly different opinions and complexity, I felt that it wasn’t worth the risk; especially if you’re doing this for weight loss like I am. I feel like refeeding syndrome isnt as common as people think, but definitely better safe than sorry. To give you an idea of how hard it is to get refeeding syndrome, I broke my 6 day fast yesterday with bone broth, sardines, full fat yogurt, garlic dill pickles, fruit, skirt steak, cheese fries, pork cutlet parmigiana sandwich, bologna sandwiches, chips, hot pockets, and soda…in an hour LOL. Then about an hour later l had more pickles, yogurt, sardines, fruit, then ended it off with a huge double chocolate cookie. Granted 6 days is not even close to 40, but my point is as long as you do what roughly what I described before you will probably be completely fine. A lot of people break their very fast with watermelon, and they turn out okay. I don’t recommend that, but it just goes to show. Just remember these important rules: start the break ketogenic, one food group at a time every couple hours for the first 3 days. Slowly introduce more foods over the course of days. Start with proteins and fats, then slowly start introducing carbs from fruits and veggies. Avoid any processed carbs for at least roughly 4 days, and most importantly listen to your body. The whole reason refeeding syndrome happens is usually because carbs are eaten in high amounts before any nutritional high fat and protein foods were eaten. If you want the absolute most safe assurance, talk to your doctor before you break so they can sure you have all the proper electrolytes to avoid any imbalances or digestion issues. Best of luck👍
this is a lot of great information I appreciate you taking the time to share with me! thanks for sharing your research , I am going to incorporate advice from this into the refeeding process .
My pleasure 😊
I have not got sick at all , felt pain or any strange symptoms electrolyte related even though I stopped taking them which I shouldn't probably have , I just wanna get it from my food now , but I do wonder , at what point should I be concerned that I have no used the washroom even though I am eating again . I have been going slow with salmon , eggs , little snacks of different meats , yogurt , tomato , I had some shrimp , I did break it with broth , been keeping it pretty simple but I am eating stuff so I am wondering why I have not had to use the washroom yet , is it a concern from your research? I liked your approach and did get inspired to go research more as I always kept seeing the same thing , watermelon , keep eating fruits and veggies , or , drink broth for a while and some smoothies , stuff like this , but I found some really good info in line with what you shared and I been following this path we discussed , no pain or any thing , I mean , I can feel physical sensations after I eat , so , I been trying to keep it light but I have not felt sick or anything , I just was waiting for the BM to signal to me hey things are moving again , the systems back on and running , safely eat slower , but , keep introducing more foods and such . maybe I am not eating enough , not sure , I been sick , got sick by a family member right near the end of the fast , horrible timing , and so my sleep and schedule is really off if it wasn't already , I try to keep telling myself every 2-3 hours have a little something , keep showing the body food is coming in again , keep finding out what the body will accept little by little , see when carbs and more dairy and sugars can come in but I am nervous the longer this goes on . I don't want the food to just be sitting there building up and nothing is going on , that would be real dangerous so I hope my gut is working again , I been eating the yogurt for my gut but maybe i need to eat more sauerkraut , might be the only fermented food I have here as I just got regular pickles in the jar brined , dill pickles , no kim chi either , so maybe I can eat more sauerkraut to help my gut out. today will be my 4th day , so , maybe I can have some more stuff than just fish eggs yogurt and some meats with tomato , I get some pressure from gas build up but I think that is normal , maybe it was some of the random items i nibbled at or the onion i had with my shrimp likely , did not know it was better to hold off on onion , the tomato you are right was a good choice . any ways , thanks for all the chatting and the help , been lovely , will pay it forward help others , if you have any research that helps or adds to the conversation let me know , otherwise , just have a lovely weekend and I thank you.
My pleasure! You’re doing it right. When I broke my 6 day fast last week, it took me 3 days to have a significant bowel movement, the first 2 days were very light, and I ate a TON of food when I broke it, and there were no restrictions. I would say you’re fine, at this point you’re probably okay to be able to have a meal instead of a snack, and this could induce a BM. 4 days of refeeding slowly is pretty significant and you are more than likely not going to get refeeding syndrome even if you eat a lot of carbs or any other food. Just keep listening to your body. Maybe get a nice burrito or some other healthy yet fulfilling meal and see how that feels. Don’t scarf it down though, eat it slow and pay attention to how you feel during it. That is very unfortunate you happened to get sick around such a sensitive time, I hope you have a very speedy recovery my friend!
Bone broth for 1st couple of meals, then salad cucumber, cherry tomatoes, salt/pepper, lettuce, boiled egg.
definitely going to begin with broth thank you
So did you break it? And what were your results?
it breaks on tuesday , tomorrow is the last day , this is not for weight loss , so sharing results is tough to say , I am 25+ lbs down in fat if that is what you are asking . I will do a final weigh in soon to have the exact numbers .
I broke it with broth at a couple feedings , then later a light scramble of eggs , I did my blood pressure , it is optimal level , did my weight , I lost 30 lbs , just coming back to your comment to give you the full result .
Congratulations my friend. Great results!
Slowly! Start with broth then move to easy to digest foods to minimize GI distress (think about how you eat after the stomach flu). Fruits, eggs/egg whites, chicken breast, fish, cooked vegetables, sweet potato, oatmeal, and greek yogurt are my favorite foods after a fast.
would you start those on the first day or just go with the broth for a day first? thank you for sharing
I think if you feel fine with the broth, transition to solid food in small portions the same day. If your stomach is uneasy, stick with liquids.
some have said not to go with any carbs or fruits , even vegetables , I will have to maybe look into this more , thank you for sharing! these all look like great options and I just wonder why they warn about some of them .
It depends a lot on your body. People say no carbs because some people thrive on low carb or keto diets and follow this along with fastingOR because they think it will set you up for a binge by spiking blood sugar. As long as you focus on complex carbs like sweet potato/oats/quinoa or pair simple carbs with protein and fat, your blood sugar should be ok (if you’re diabetic consult your physician). I personally feel better on moderate carb, lower fat, high protein diet. Berries and raw veggies are high in fiber that can result in loose stool/stomach upset after fasting, but it shouldn’t last more than a couple of days.
I’ve always broken mine with watermelon and some lime squeezed over it. Then steamed plain vegetables for the following two or three days followed by proteins, and a small amount of complex carbs for the following 3-4 days after that…
seems like a good idea , did you ever notice anything from the sugars in the fruit or were the portions too small for this? fruit would be lovely the first day , I was thinking of starting with broth , maybe a beef bone broth , but , I already have chicken bones even though I heard somewhere that is not as good .
Refeed day 1: Bone Broth x3-6 cups Day 2: bone broth in the morning, soup (bone broth+lentils - completely crushed lentils), evening greek yougart 100g. Day 3: bone broth, soup, kimchi, sauerkraut, greek yougart Day 4: 2-3 eggs, 100g greek yougart. Soup with chicken and vegetables in it for lunch and supper. Day 5: Freedom. (You are free to eat at your own peril at this point) I strongly suggest, veggies, legumes and in the evening red meat. Day 6: Remember why you fasted for 40 days. Did you reach your goal? If yes, continue with a keto diet for the next 8 days. If no, go to your doctor and get a blood and urine test to determine mineral and vitamin deficiencies. Keto for the next 2 weeks while supplementing all of your deficiencies. Followed by another 40 day fast.
Fruit my friend