Famished Til Friday: 1

So we are water fasting! Or you are restricting. Either way, you're changing your habits these next few days to see some results for...
don dondon.

Famished Friday.

Loving it and I'm glad that several of you are interested in joining me. Anyone else just holler!!

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I'm normally not one to post "tips and tricks" kinds of things (other than really superfluous natured ones) on my blog for several reasons: 1) I enjoy writing more about my experiences and more importantly about my observations in my surrounding world 2) You can't teach this shit! 3) Sometimes a Jimminy Cricket voice gets preachy in my head telling me that people are reading this who may not be safe or will just make me feel guilty.

But, all those things aside, I think today #2 wins out and I'll be talking about what makes a successful water fast (read: for me).

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*Probably the most important aspect is your mindset going into it. This is completely organic. I fail more fasts than I succeed at and it's all because I didn't have the right motivating "walk-to-the-end-of-the-earth-and-stare-hell-in-the-face-to-laugh" kind of kickass mood that's almost scary. The more you fast, the more you'll be able to recognize these moods and when they strike so you can take advantage of them.

*The first two days will be the hardest. But you won't be super exhausted. Yet. So if you have any say in when you start the fast, try and start when you know you'll be super busy. Like so busy food is going to be something you were going to have to plan for (classes, work, meetings, etc). You can still go to the gym these days if you want. I usually stop after the 2nd day and just try to remain active because it doesn't seem to make much of a difference except make me exhausted.

*If you don't like water. Cheat. Sometimes I drink water with Crystal Light, and I just don't use as much as I normally would. This might help as well if a craving hits. I'm not afraid of the artificial sweeteners because, well, I'm doing worse things to my body right now.

*KEEP A BOTTLE WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES. Always. I keep a glass 20oz Sobe bottle (because I'm cheap and I can just throw it away when it gets gross and buy a new drink!). This should and will be your best friend. The first thing and last thing you should do every day is take a sip of water. While I fast, I drink my water differently. Little sips all the time. Every time I walk past a restaurant, smell food, get a craving... even if I am not thirsty, I take a sip. It helps. Trust me. Try and drink at least 80-100oz a day.

*I'm all about the self-hate punishment kind of talk... but this doesn't help right now. Focus on the pleasures that come with the fast, not what you are giving up by fasting. Feeling empty, knowing that you're shrinking, that weird euphoric/high feeling that ebbs and flows. If you do start getting bad cravings, the ana quotes help me as silly as some of them are. My favorites to resist breaking a fast:

"Don't give up what you want the most, for what you want at the moment."
"Craving is only a feeling."
"If I eat something, I eat everything, so I eat nothing."

*When I first started fasting, I found [Anaregzig] to be THE best motivation. She doesn't post anymore... but she's a mix of caustic, but boldly honest that makes me want to do better. Read some of her backlogged posts if you need some artificial boosting to fast.

*Start out small and work your way up, but give yourself a date you're stopping. I think we're extra hard on ourselves when we don't meet a goal so it's better to be realistic when you're fasting so you can continue to have successful ones in the future.

*It's normal to feel weak, tired, and maybe a little nauseated. You shouldn't be vomiting or feel extremely sick. Listen to your body and stop your fast instead of prolonging a bad one. Medications won't sit well with an empty empty stomach anyway. But keep some antacids handy and take your vitamins if you want (you can break them up so they won't make you feel sick).

*Try and enjoy it.

*Breaking the fast. There's a lot of conflicting info out there. Personally, I don't go long enough that it's a big problem (in terms of nausea) but I break my fasts with something not acidic, preferably vegetables. Eat slowly. This is a time to break bad eating habits. I move up to fruits, and later fruits and veggies that are acidic. I wait as long as possible before incorporating protein and grains. This is a great time for bullion cube soup!

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I'd love to hear things that make for a successful fast for all my readers, both those of you doing FF with me and everyone else as well! If it were up to me, I'd make a secret website: thisiswhyyourefasting.com because I'm so sick of all the stupid fasting information online (I don't even want to get into how dumb the colon cleansing sites are). But, I feel I can talk about this because you've gotta have a pretty strong resolve to successfully fast in the first place... and I like to think I know my followers :)