Reverend Ken's Blog: November 25, 2011: Post 319 (Day 328)

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Today's Weight: 210.0 lbs
Yesterday's Weight: 205.2 lbs
Net Loss/Gain: + 4.8 lbs

Daily weight from October 1, 2011. Note: November 4-13 weights are estimated.

Daily weight from January 1, 2011.
Note: January 1-5 and November 4-13 weights are estimated.

Well, I really did pack it on(!) in what was an unusually short feeding window (11am-6pm), especially for a cheat day. Today is the first of what I am planning to make regular twice-weekly 24-hour fasts. Intermittent fasts.

I read the e-book 'Eat Stop Eat' by Brad Pilon this past Wednesday night (there's a comment about intermittent fasts in my Daily Comment from that day, November 23rd). I was surprised to find out how much I did not know about fasting, and how much I did know that was actually wrong.

Anyway, it certainly looks like intermittent fasting is a positive, healthy thing to do, especially as I now understand that, done right, on a 24-hour fast, you don't actually go a "whole" day without eating. 24 hours is enough time to go from a fed to a fasted state, and optimal in that that the body does not go into starvation mode and start storing fat and/or cannibalizing muscle tissue.

Here's how my 24-hour fast works: I stop eating after dinner (my pre-fast meal). Then, next day, I eat nothing until dinner (which starts after the time I finished dinner the day before). Today, that means I ate dinner at 7pm. During the fast, I drink water and black coffee, and that and my twice-daily (multi-medicine/herbs/vitamins/supplements) pill-fests - there are some calories there, maybe 10 total - is all my dietary input until I have a regular dinner 24 hours later. Thus, I fast for 24 hours, and only 24 hours, and skip only two meals. If I went the whole day without eating, skipping 3 meals, the fast would last for about 38 hours. That is too long, and would have some negative consequences mitigating the good that a fast does.

Going forward, I am considering doing a 24-hour fast Sundays and Wednesdays, and I will start that schedule by fasting again next Wednesday.

Daily Comment

Today is Black Friday, and I do not have the day off, for the first time in memory. It makes my fasting easier, though. I am also on a 'spending fast' today, staying away from all brick-and-mortar and online stores. At a time when I am trying to reduce the number and volume of my possessions, this day is anathema to me.

I had my first Physical Therapy session tonight, (and I will have to spend a co-pay, otherwise I wouldn't be spending any money at all today), which was mostly evaluative, with a little exercise. I set up a schedule for three sessions a week for the next three weeks. I will probably go for more after that (the prescription is for 6 weeks, but there's Christmas and New Year's to work around...

Food Log

Breakfast
Skipped.

Lunch
Skipped.

Dinner