Three Day Fast – How I’m Starting The Lenten Season
So, I’m fasting. I have decided for Lent, I would start it with a three day fast
Why Do A Fast?
First a little background. A couple of years ago, I was driving home on a Monday afternoon and my stomach didn’t feel right. At almost any other time, I wouldn’t give something like that a second thought. But an hour or two later, I started to throw up. Not good. As much as I hate “adulting,” I figured I should call the doctor.
When he saw me the next day, he asked me if I would be up to “giving my stomach a rest for a couple of days?”. What do you mean? He meant fasting. He wanted to see if my stomach would calm down by doing that. He’s the doctor, so I said OK.
I’m a firm believer that you can do just about anything you set your mind to. It’s mind over matter. So off I went on this fast.
I have to admit, when it was over, and in the end, it was actually three days of fasting, I FELT GREAT! There was little to no inflammation. Yes, I’d lost a couple of pounds, but I figured that was temporary, and it was. I was so surprised by the results, I promised myself that I would do it again. Maybe it would become in some way a part of my routine.
Another Three Day Fast
Fast forward two years and I never really did do another long term fast. I sort of organically fast because of my schedule. Doing a morning show means I don’t eat breakfast. By the time I get to lunch, it’s afternoon and I’ll have dinner around 7pm. So there really no food between 7:30pm and noon the next day. Look at me, intermittent fasting. Who knew?
Which brings me to now. I decided that I would use the start of the Lenten season to fast once again. Let’s do three days again and see how we feel after that.
I will say this. It was true two years ago and it’s still true today. The HARDEST day of a three day fast is THE FIRST DAY. It’s always on your mind. Maybe there are headaches from having less caffeine? All you can think about on that first day is the food everyone else is having and the food you aren’t having. But then, at some point, most of that goes away. You stop feeling hungry. You’re body is beginning to kick in. You’re not even thinking about it anymore. As I write this, we’re not at that point yet. It’s still day one. There are still “withdrawals” of various things. I’ve just got to power through this. A nap will help. Preparing dinner for her tonight will not. But I’ll get through it.
Should You Try Fasting?
Have you ever tried this? If you think you can “stomach” it, and many can’t, you might want to consider it. I should say, you should consult your doctor before beginning anything like this. Since mine recommended doing this a couple of years ago, I figure he’d be fine with me doing it now.
If you do attempt it, please, let me know how you did. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.
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