24 hour fast

Jacole18

I have always wondered what the benefits of a 24 hour fast are? TIA

gel91

I'm curious too

smithy85

Not much I would say you'd be starving! No ecersice on that day...Slow metabolism, sleepy...irritable

queenhiphop

Not much I would say you'd be starving! No ecersice on that day...Slow metabolism, sleepy...irritable

Metabolism takes days and days and days of fasting to slow down

Research it

Fasting is good if you need to detox

freckledrats

I don't necessarily subscribe to it (though I have in the past, with actual success, though no telling how much lean tissue I gave up instead of fat), but here's the idea behind it: http://www.everydiet.org/diet/eat-stop-eat-24-hour-fast

bathsheba_c

I did a 25 hour fast on Saturday-Sunday (religious reasons). Fasting sucks. Basically, you spend the whole day being draggy and groggy with a growling stomach. If you are like me, you start feeling cold at around hour 20. When you start eating again, you have to be careful and eat slowly so you don't have a huge stomachache.

And don't expect to see any results; I stepped on the scale the day before and the day after, and I gained a pound. I'm sure it's water weight, but still.

puffidredz

Basically, you spend the whole day being draggy and groggy with a growling stomach. If you are like me, you start feeling cold at around hour 20.

^this
is what fasting for ramadan does to me

bathsheba_c

Ramadan kareem!

rml_16

Not much I would say you'd be starving! No ecersice on that day...Slow metabolism, sleepy...irritable

Metabolism takes days and days and days of fasting to slow down

Research it

Fasting is good if you need to detox

If you have functioning liver and kidneys, you don't need to detox. And if you don't, a fast isn't going to do anything for you.

BeautyFromPain

Not much I would say you'd be starving! No ecersice on that day...Slow metabolism, sleepy...irritable

Metabolism takes days and days and days of fasting to slow down

Research it

Fasting is good if you need to detox

If you have functioning liver and kidneys, you don't need to detox. And if you don't, a fast isn't going to do anything for you.

iris8pie

when Ive tried it in the past Ive loved it. You'll definitely detox and lose a pound and the next day your cravings are minimized.

lisaisso

please look into intermittent fasting (either google or there's an IF group on MFP) like my faves are EatStopEat and Leangains for accurate data.
i exercise on 24s and have a TON of energy..
i usually do dinner to dinner, and the 'point' of ESE is to do 1-2 24's a week to have the calorie deficit instead of breaking it down over 7 days.. as long as you break the fast with 'normal' dinner/calorie amounts..
i love IF, i try to do 1 24h a week, with everyday fasting of 16/8 LG style..
IF gives me appetite control, unbelievable focus, a kind of nutrition recharge, energy, etc.. i feel like i'm in control of my eating instead of eating in control of me..

jamers3111

My fiance practices "intermittent fasting" and he swears by it. Basically you only allow yourself a specific number of hours of day to eat. He does 8hrs of eating and 16hrs of "fasting". So from 12noon-8pm he eats... I can't do this because I'm an avid runner and sometimes run 2x a day but he's a Crossfitter and swears by it.

SocWkrBee

I don't know about a 24 hour fast, but sometimes I will not eat until dinner time. I only do this when my tummy needs a reset. I'm not talking about a detox. Sometimes, I just need some time to allow my body a chance to move things along without adding anything extra to the mix. It don't do it for weighloss purposes either.

HelloSweetie4

Can you still drink water while you're doing a 24 hour fast?

lisaisso

yes, actually a ton of water.. coffee, green tea, diet coke, no cal things, or less than 30-40 calories consumed..
i usually always have creamer in my coffee tho :glasses: cuz i rebel like that...

bathsheba_c

Good lord, I hope you can drink water during a fast. I can't and it's pretty darn brutal. Nothing like waking up thirsty and knowing you have another 12 hours to go until you can drink something...

Also, detoxing your body is not a thing. You have organs to do that for you.

suziecue66

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/684702-who-s-doing-if-intermittent-fasting

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/66-intermittent-fasting

freckledrats

When I've done it in the past, I would just have water and diet soda, because addiction. It's probably better sans soda :P

I usually noticed weight loss, but that's probably from a lack of food weight in the body more than actual fat loss. 24 hours is a maximum of 2000 calories burned, give or take your TDEE, which isn't even a pound.

There's been a lot of research on fasting and the general consensus in the medical community is that 24 hours isn't enough to cause any damage. That's about the only consensus there is, however. Some doctors will say that since your intestines need less of your total energy, your body can devote resources to repairing more damage elsewhere in the body.

Maybe it's true? Maybe it's not? Either way, I would say if you try this, once every week, max.

The main things I liked about it were the feeling that I was more in control of cravings (because I had just gone a day refusing all food, it was easier to refuse just a little bad food later), the immediate drop on the scale, and maybe my body really was repairing damage. The things I hated were feeling hungry and deprived. I didn't really lose energy, though. 24 hours isn't really enough to suffer a serious drop in energy unless you have already deprived yourself for other reasons prior to the fast. If you eat a low calorie diet every day and then do a fast? Yeah, you might have some energy issues.

DizzyLinds

I've done two 24 hour fasts now. How many days is recommended between each fast?

DrMAvDPhD

Metabolism takes days and days and days of fasting to slow down

Research it

Fasting is good if you need to detox

Detox yourself of what, exactly? Your digestive and endocrine systems will not change their behavior in 24 hours either.

DanaDark

No benefit. It will usually cause a bit of over eating the previous and following says, minimizing the caloric loss for the week.

Additionally, the effect it will have on your mood and energy levels will be significant.

Truthfully, there is no silver bullet.

DizzyLinds

No benefit. It will usually cause a bit of over eating the previous and following says, minimizing the caloric loss for the week.

Additionally, the effect it will have on your mood and energy levels will be significant.

Truthfully, there is no silver bullet.

I must admit, since doing two 24 hour fasts, I've felt less ravenous for food than when I eat normally. I've been able to function ok by drinking lots of water and keeping busy.

Toumani

If you've got the time, give this article a read:

http://www.leangains.com/2010/03/intermittent-fasting-set-point-and.html

It's about inermittent fasting (this guy recommends 16 hours instead of 24) and its effects on leptin levels. He also provides more reading in some links. If you do a little extra reading, it really gives you an understanding of how intermittent fasting works.

(PS. This BS about "instant" starvation mode after a short period of fasting makes me want to throw the computer out of the window!) :explode:

DanaDark

No benefit. It will usually cause a bit of over eating the previous and following says, minimizing the caloric loss for the week.

Additionally, the effect it will have on your mood and energy levels will be significant.

Truthfully, there is no silver bullet.

I must admit, since doing two 24 hour fasts, I've felt less ravenous for food than when I eat normally. I've been able to function ok by drinking lots of water and keeping busy.

Many people experience similar to this. After not eating for a while, they suddenly not feel hungry.

Issue with a 24hr fast is that daily energy expenditure shoots down incredibly. Without the daily nutrition, the body simply does not perform as many tasks as it normally would. It will also pull protein from your muscles to do some vital tasks, thus reducing muscle strength/size.

Overall, the calories used a day under a 24hr fast would probably be around 50% of normal. So, you're not really getting the bang for your buck as most would assume.

DanaDark

If you've got the time, give this article a read:

http://www.leangains.com/2010/03/intermittent-fasting-set-point-and.html

It's about inermittent fasting (this guy recommends 16 hours instead of 24) and its effects on leptin levels. He also provides more reading in some links. If you do a little extra reading, it really gives you an understanding of how intermittent fasting works.

(PS. This BS about "instant" starvation mode after a short period of fasting makes me want to throw the computer out of the window!) :explode:

Aye, no insta-starvation!

I am a fan of Intermittent fasting. I think its a pretty decent system. Is usually how I roll anyway. 8hrs sleep, 6hrs before my first meal, last meal 2 to 3hrs before bed. I definitely recommend it to people.

PrncessBre

please look into intermittent fasting (either google or there's an IF group on MFP) like my faves are EatStopEat and Leangains for accurate data.
i exercise on 24s and have a TON of energy..
i usually do dinner to dinner, and the 'point' of ESE is to do 1-2 24's a week to have the calorie deficit instead of breaking it down over 7 days.. as long as you break the fast with 'normal' dinner/calorie amounts..
i love IF, i try to do 1 24h a week, with everyday fasting of 16/8 LG style..
IF gives me appetite control, unbelievable focus, a kind of nutrition recharge, energy, etc.. i feel like i'm in control of my eating instead of eating in control of me..

^^^This

DizzyLinds

No benefit. It will usually cause a bit of over eating the previous and following says, minimizing the caloric loss for the week.

Additionally, the effect it will have on your mood and energy levels will be significant.

Truthfully, there is no silver bullet.

I must admit, since doing two 24 hour fasts, I've felt less ravenous for food than when I eat normally. I've been able to function ok by drinking lots of water and keeping busy.

Many people experience similar to this. After not eating for a while, they suddenly not feel hungry.

Issue with a 24hr fast is that daily energy expenditure shoots down incredibly. Without the daily nutrition, the body simply does not perform as many tasks as it normally would. It will also pull protein from your muscles to do some vital tasks, thus reducing muscle strength/size.

Overall, the calories used a day under a 24hr fast would probably be around 50% of normal. So, you're not really getting the bang for your buck as most would assume.

As advised by my PT, if I do a 24 hour fast, chill out, sleep and rest!

suziecue66

No benefit. It will usually cause a bit of over eating the previous and following says, minimizing the caloric loss for the week.

Additionally, the effect it will have on your mood and energy levels will be significant.

Truthfully, there is no silver bullet.

Its just another helpful tool, with lots of benefits.

Awkward30

The key with a fast is that you should still be getting the same WEEKLY deficit. Hypothetically, you burn 2000 cals a day, so you will burn 14000 cals a week. To lose 1 lb a week, you want a weekly deficit of 3500, so you should eat 10500/week. This can be accomplished with 7 days of 10500/7=1500 cals/day or 6 days of 10500/6=1750 cals/day.

For me, the leangains style of eating complimented my natural hunger schedule. I also did a 36 hour fast and I felt fine for the 24 hours, just felt icky when I got to 36. Just make sure you don't use it as a way to eat too few calories, that's not healthy!

KF500T

I love the 24 hour fast. I've suffered from an undiagnosed gluten allergy for years and its caused tons of damage. Fasting for 24 hours once a week has helped me so much in regards to my digestive issues (along with not eating gluten, obviously) and it actually gives me more energy.