On the "Fast" Track

 Today I decided to do a cleanse/fast type thing, hoping to balance out the horrid week of eating I had. As you can see, I gained a little weight. I'm very disappointed in myself and worried about the short amount of time I have left this summer to look my best.

Basically, I only took in about 800 calories and I burned about 400. [DON'T DO THIS. I'M NOT A DOCTOR.] I would never recommend this as an everyday system for weight loss, because that's unhealthy and hard to maintain and bordering on anorexia. BAD.

But, I read that one-day fasts can be beneficial because they help you drop excess weight more safely than starving yourself for long amounts of time. If you consistently don't eat enough, your metabolism slows down. And, although you would lose weight, as soon as you started eating normally again, you'd gain it back.

Here's a great article about the health benefits of intermittent fasting. According to the author, who is a doctor, fasting helps our bodies clear out unnecessary waste, improves brain power, and fights harmful diseases like cancer and diabetes. Who knew abstaining from food every once in a while could be so shockingly healthy? (Please note the following warning from the article: "I don't recommend IF for everyone. Children under 18 should not fast, nor should diabetics, nor pregnant or lactating women. Some health conditions -- such as severe gastrointestinal reflux disease, or GERD -- are easier to manage when food intake is more regular.")

I've also read that shifting your calorie intake on a regular basis (For example: eating 1300 calories Monday, 1500 Tuesday, and 1250 Wednesday) can boost your metabolism by preventing it from "getting too comfortable" with one specific caloric intake. This is the same with exercise. If you do 100 crunches every day, it may not be as effective as doing 20 reps of a different type of ab exercise each day.

All of that said, I didn't really "fast" today because I did take in 800 calories. The only real meal I ate was dinner, but other than that I just had a banana, green tea, and some rice cakes. We'll call it a "baby fast."

If I ever feel like I need a cleanse, I will definitely try a full-out fast next time. Comment and let me know if you have any experience with cleanses or fasts!

Hope you enjoyed the post. Just some food for thought. Or, eh, lack of food...for thought...? ;)

-Ellen