Category: FOOD / DIET

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Extended Fasting: Why I Ate Nothing for 3 Days & How It Felt

Photo by Michael Oeser

Experiment: Do a 3-Day Water Fast (consume nothing but water, black coffee, and unsweetened tea)

Disclaimer: I’m still not a doctor. While I do recommend trying some of my experiments like this if they make sense for you, none of this should be taken as medical advice. Any action you take based on the information presented here is at your own risk…

Ok, so why…

  • Like most humans, I ate/drank more and different things than I usually do over the holidays. Fasting is a great way to clean house in your digestive system and reset your eating habits.
  • This also meets my two requirements for an experiment: 1) I believe it can make me a better person… or at the very least teach me something worthwhile and 2) it’s challenging enough to scare me a little.
  • I came across far more benefits than anticipated in my research. Here are 10 of the most compelling short-term benefits, which are often the sexy hooks that get us into fasting:
    1. It’s a Time and Money Saver
    2. It’s Simple to Try
    3. Productivity Gains (yes, please!)… for bonus gains, try this technique
    4. Reduce Your Addiction to Food
      • Hunger is more a psychological response than anything else. The hormone that activates your hunger gremlin is appropriately called ghrelin.
      • It comes and goes cyclically with our daily eating routines, much like melatonin comes and goes with our daily sleep routines.
      • Fasting throws a wrench in ghrelin’s cogs, much like exposing a gremlin to sunlight. Do this enough and it stops. No more addiction to food. You’ll still enjoy eating, just on your own terms. Without all the ghrelin gremlin chatter.
    5. Get Well Sooner
      • When we are sick, we do not typically feel as hungry. This is our body’s triage plea: give me a break so I can tend to what matters most right now.
    6. Dump the Extra Junk Out Yo’ Trunk
      • Our digestive systems have been working hard our entire lives. They can use a break and take the chance to clean out the extra crap that has accumulated over the years.
      • Sages like Aristotle, Socrates, and Hippocrates practiced fasting for its professed purification and healing abilities.
    7. Upgrade Yourself
      • After 16 hours of fasting, autophagy begins. Translating to “eating yourself” in Latin, your body is finding and consuming broken and old cells. This is good.
      • When those junky cells are left to accumulate, they can lead to degenerative diseases like cancer or Alzheimer’s over time. Eating them is thought to reduce incidence of these diseases. Your body grows new cells to replace the old ones, giving you an upgrade from the inside out.
    8. Easier Travel
      • Once you beat hunger addiction, you won’t get hangry and throw a toddler-like tantrum if the planes, trains, and automobiles don’t have Biscoff cookies for you.
      • You also don’t have to plan your trip rigidly around mealtimes.
    9. Fall in Love with Food Again
      • For many people who do prolonged fasts, the first taste of food again is incredible. I’m looking forward to that moment!
    10. Spread the Movement
      • Since most businesses stand to benefit from increased—not reduced—consumption, don’t expect to see them advertising fasting. It’s our job to spread the word about it, and the best way to do this is through our actions.
  • Now here are the true reasons you should practice fasting… the long-term bennies:
    • Boost your metabolism (& shed excess weight)
    • Cancer prevention and chemotherapy effectiveness
    • Prevent onset of type 2 diabetes (or reverse it for those who have it)
    • Better blood sugar control
    • Relieves inflammation
    • Gain greater awareness of your eating habits and appreciation for food
    • Can clear up your skin (as long as you stay hydrated – you better drink that water)
    • Helps you live longer

Uh oh…

  • The most I have gone without eating is 24 hours, so I’m just trying to do that again… 3 times, consecutively, with no breaks. No big deal.
  • Some people who have done extended fasts report being so wired at times that they find it hard to sleep. Yikes. This is likely due to the body switching into ketosis—fat-burning mode—but may be a bit unsettling nonetheless.
  • No free samples at Trader Joe’s… I kid. That is definitely not happening right now. Remember those days though.

About that…

  • Won’t I starve? You won’t starve. We all have reserves of fat, 34 pounds for the average human. Since each pound represents 3,500 calories, or nearly 2 days of food, we have plenty of built-in “snacks” for our body to consume for a while without eating.
  • In fact, the world record for the longest fast ever is 382 days!
  • According to Dr. Fung, author of The Complete Guide to Fasting, “Fasting is running for health. Starving if running because a lion’s chasing you.”

I betcha…

  • Based on what I read, I am expecting Day 2 to be the hardest. Most people say it gets much easier after that point, roughly when your body switches from burning glucose to fat, which we have far more of readily available.
  • I am expecting to have some periods of low energy as well as periods of high energy and productivity.

The Last Supper (Pre-Fast Meal):

  • For my last meal at 5:30pm on a Thurs evening, I enjoyed a large but light arugula salad with olive oil, red wine vinegar, some pistachios, and half an avocado. Note it was intentionally very low carb to help my body reach ketosis—and thus make me feel much better—sooner in the fast.
    • You feel better because your mind and body don’t have to work to find glucose to burn for energy and instead use available ketones, an alternative source of fuel that the liver produces from your body’s fat.

First 24 hours (Thurs eve – Fri eve):

  • Day 1 was not too tough, though this was never the part that concerned me.
  • I slept great Thursday night, as expected, given I was only a few hours into the fast at that point – nothing for my body to have even registered yet.
  • On Friday morning, I had unsweetened coffee… not my fave, but better than I remembered it being from my month of No Sweetener. I sprinkled in some cinnamon and sea salt for a little flavor enhancement.
  • I also took 2 salt pills—I like Salt Stick brand—and ½ tsp Trace Minerals drops, recommended by a friend to maintain electrolyte balance during the fast. In the evening, I took 2 more Salt Stick pills to maintain electrolytes and retain water better.
    • Quick note: While it’d be awesome to get paid for my brand recommendations, I have no current affiliations with any of them. They have just worked for me.
  • I did a rigorous strength training workout and didn’t feel I was lacking any energy to do so. Counterintuitively, I often feel more energy to work out after a shorter-term fast, which this has been so far. I don’t plan to do strenuous activity during hours 24-72.
  • Hunger came in a few times during this 1st 24 hours as if it was a little phone notification, reminding me “Hey, we usually eat now. Do you wanna do that?” But just like a phone notification, it was easily dismissible.
  • I accomplished more at work without spending any time cooking, eating meals, or having any snack breaks.

Hours 24-48 (Fri eve – Sat eve):

  • Brrrrr… I normally run cold during the day and heat up at night. However, my body temperature is running lower at all times now, as I find myself bundling up more during the day and actually using a blanket at night. And I’m usually a just-undies-and-a-single-sheet kind of sleeper, even in the winter.
  • I slept wonderfully again. Hoping the trend continues during the final night.
  • Woke up very thirsty Saturday morning. Will repeat my electrolyte protocol and aim to get in a little more water today.
  • My typical morning routine includes a 2-minute HRV (Heartrate Variability) reading using the free Elite HRV app. This morning my HRV was very low, indicating elevated sympathetic activity in my body.
    • This is expected since it is the body’s involuntary response to dangerous or stressful situations, i.e., when it thinks you cannot find food.
    • A flood of hormones kicks in to boost your alertness. For this reason, I’m feeling greater mental clarity than usual.
    • At the same time, it’s a good indication I should take it easy, as planned, and not do any substantial exercising today.
  • My nose feels clearer and more powerful.
    • My sense of smell is heightened, maybe more than necessary. I can smell our dog’s breath better, as well as my own. (Shame!) Less than ideal breath is a side effect of extended fasting.
    • It is refreshing to wake up and be able to take deep, clear breaths 1st thing in the morning though. Stuffiness be gone.

In general, I feel a heightened awareness… of my body, mind, and surroundings. There is something very primal about the feeling.

  • Occasionally, I feel slightly lightheaded but nothing concerning.
  • I felt a little meh in late morning and went on a long, sunny walk outside—another tip from a friend. This made me feel wonderful and gave me a chance to catch on the phone with my family—a great way to spend some of the extra time you have.
  • Around midday when I typically feel that circadian rhythm slump—on top of lagging a bit while digesting lunch—I felt supercharged today.
    • I didn’t even need the 15-20min siesta power nap I take religiously after lunch.
  • I’m drinking lots of water and loving naturally flavored sparkling water (zero calories) as a means to mix it up. Squeezing in a little lemon or lime juice is fair game too and is helping jazz up my agua.

Hours 48-72 hours (Sat eve – Sun eve):

  •  Phew… Slept great again. This was a big relief because this was the night some bloggers had expressed trouble sleeping due to their elevated heart rate and racing mind.
    • I fortunately did not have these issues.
    • When I did my morning HRV check, my heartrate was 30% higher than usual. Not an issue though, as I otherwise didn’t notice it.
    • Went for a hike with my husband Will, cousin Jessie, and our dogs. It was a bit hillier than expected, so I felt a little hungry afterward. Some tea helped handle that though.
      • This was the first time I enjoyed green tea without any almond milk or sweetener.
      • Also, Will was a great partner and joined me for the final day of the fast—especially nice since I didn’t have to see or smell his tasty food.
  • It really does get easier after you’ve hit a certain point in the fast—which I clearly have based on my energy levels and heart rate—when your body kicks into fat-burning ketosis.
    • You would think hunger would grow linearly or even exponentially as the fast progresses. In contrast, the strength of the little hunger waves that come and go has diminished.
    • In the same vein, while there can still be challenging moments, the practice of fasting gets easier once you get some initial experience. When you disrupt your hormonally driven hunger patterns, your body adjusts, and the hangry pangs lessen. Once you’ve tried and succeeded, you gain the mental confidence that you can do it again whenever you want to.
  • Woo hoo – I made it! Admittedly, I have been counting down the hours, mostly because I started to miss the enjoyment of eating food. I was so focused on what I was working on at the time though that I blew past 72 hours before realizing it!

Before & After…

I lost 4.2 pounds, from 140.6 to 136.4.

The Aftermath: beyond 72 hours:

  • Surprisingly, I wasn’t super hungry at the end… certainly not starving. I could have easily gone another day if I wanted to.
  • In no rush, 24 minutes after I hit 72 hours, I started slow and savored some delicious Trader Joe’s grass-fed organic beef broth. Just 100 calories but full of flavor and very satisfying.
    • I would recommend starting with this or, for vegetarians, miso soup.
  • Two hours later, I consumed a spinach salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar, cucumbers, roasted pecans, some avocado, and nutritional yeast, followed by a square of dark chocolate.
    • I truly appreciated the food and process of eating more than usual. The flavors were a little bolder and brighter, or in the case of the chocolate, more complex.
  • The rule of thumb for refeeding after a longer fast (24 hours+) is to ease back into your normal eating patterns over a period equal to ½ your fast, i.e., a 1.5-day recovery period for my 3-day fast.
    • This means starting by eating about ½ as much as you’d normally eat in a meal and then building back up to your normal intake over the course of this period.
    • There are also a few things to avoid in order to be gentle to your digestive system, which is being kickstarted back up:
      • Cruciferous veggies (e.g., broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale)
      • Lots of carbs (especially processed ones)
      • Lots of meat (some is fine – just don’t go crazy with it right away)
      • Beans
      • Alcohol
      • Dairy
    • Some recommended foods: some chicken or fish, spinach, cucumbers, bell peppers, walnuts, macadamia nuts, some sweet potatoes or squash, blueberries, dark chocolate.
    • It is a quite an interesting sensation to literally feel your digestive system booting up again. I followed these tips and had a smooth recovery.
  • The body and mind reset from the fast have lingered for days after I started eating again. My mind feels clearer and sharper and my energy level consistently better than it had been pre-fast.
  • While it wasn’t the main driver for me, I did lose 4.2 pounds, from 140.6 to 136.4. Typically, most of this returns as water weight, as you start refeeding and the sodium in food helps you retain more water. Not to mention, many foods like fruits and veggies contain water in them.
    • On average, the amount lost that stays off is 0.5 pound/day.

Where I Failed…

  • I had some Teeccino (caffeine-free coffee-flavored herbal tea) that I’d picked up during my No Coffee for 2 Months experiment. I wanted a little more after my morning coffee on Day 3 but didn’t want to go crazy on the caffeine—especially with my heart rate up a bit—so figured this would be a good solution. As I was finishing the glass, something in my subconscious urged me to confirm that there aren’t any calories in this. But to my disappointment, there are 15 calories in it. Fortunately, this was not enough to ruin my fast, but I’m just glad it wasn’t any higher and will keep this in mind for future fasts.

Where I Won…

  • I ate very low carbs during the day leading up to my fast. I believe this, along with burning up remaining glycogen via my Day 1 strength workout and my Day 2 80-minute walk, helped me reach ketosis faster. This improved the way I felt from midday Day 2 forward.
  • The mineral/electrolyte supplements I used seemed to work, as I avoided some of the physical challenges some others have had during a 3-day fast, likely because they were electrolyte deficient.

What Surprised Me…

  • Not eating made black coffee taste better.
    • Based on my No Sweetener experiment, it became clear to me that black coffee was something I could endure but not really appreciate. I normally add a splash of almond milk and a mini dump truck of organic stevia.
    • Day 1 the black coffee was better than I anticipated. Day 2 it became moderately enjoyable. And Day 3, to reward myself I enjoyed a black coffee from Peets that tasted delicious, something I’d never enjoyed before without sweetener.
    • Perhaps it was because my taste buds were so excited for any flavor beyond water. Or maybe it was thanks to my heightened senses of smell, and thus, flavor.
  • I expected the magnitude and frequency of discomfort to be much higher throughout the fast than they were. I didn’t have nearly as many bouts of low energy as expected. It helped that I read a bunch beforehand to avoid the mistakes others have made. I’m grateful to them all for sharing these!

Whoomp, there it is…

  • Since it was relatively easy and I felt great nearly the entire time, I would absolutely repeat this.
    • I’m excited as it feels like I’ve unlocked another tool that can be incorporated into my long-term habits for increasing my immune function, productivity, and longevity.
    • I’m going to plan on doing this 1-2 more times this year and see where I want to go from there.
  • I highly recommend a crawl-walk-run approach. Start with Intermittent Fasting first, and then try a 24-hour fast or two, before attempting a 3-day fast. Much like in motor development, or training with a 5K before jumping to a marathon, the mental and physical conditioning will make the 3-day fast far more enjoyable.
  • I also recommend using LIFE Fasting, a free, easy-to-use app to track your fast for you.

Thanks for reading! Please leave me a comment with any feedback and/or what you think my next experiment should be.

Did you dig this experiment?

Re(Sources):

https://www.austinrileygray.com/blog/3-day-fast-results

https://ideapod.com/3-day-72-hour-water-fast/

https://www.whitneyerd.com/2020/01/i-did-a-3-day-water-fast-the-how-why-tips.html

https://superhumanacademy.com/podcast/3-day-fast/

https://www.theunconventionalroute.com/3-day-fast/

https://www.theunconventionalroute.com/prolonged-fasting-benefits/

https://www.theunconventionalroute.com/water-fasting-tips/

7 DAY WATER FAST – NO FOOD FOR A WEEK (Before & After)

https://www.ryanandalex.com/3-day-fast/

https://www.hoylesfitness.com/weight-loss-and-nutrition/i-did-a-3-day-fast-heres-a-detailed-account-of-what-happened/

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No Sweetener

Photo: C. Drying

Experiment: Give Up All Sweeteners for a Month

Ok, so why…

  • Here’s the (sweet) T. I currently use stevia or monk fruit extracts 3-5 times every day. In the past, I’ve given up alcohol and caffeine for long enough stretches to prove to myself that I can at any point. Sweeteners are the one other extraneous thing I consume daily that I wince at the thought of giving up. This is how I know it’s the right choice for an experiment.
  • Stevia and monk fruit are both natural extracts that have been used for centuries, originating from South America and Southeast Asia, respectively. However, while generally considered safe for consumption, little research currently exists about the long-term usage and side effects of commercial sweeteners containing these plant-based extracts. So even though I plan to continue using them after this period, I like the idea of reducing my consumption until more research about them emerges.
  • Like some of my past challenges, especially giving up caffeine and starting keto, this one is daunting. I’m a kinda nervous about it. But I’ve found that when I am scared about doing something, it’s usually worthwhile.
  • Little challenges like this over time help me strengthen my discipline muscles. When I return to using sweeteners, you know what else I’m expecting to find in my beverages?Gratitude… and relief.

Uh oh…

  • I’m betting my creamy keto coffee* will be fine, but my regular coffee in the afternoon with no sweetener is gon’ be rough.
  • My afternoon apple cider vinegar drink will be rough.
  • My evening keto hot chocolate may be rough.
  • My potassium citrate supplement—a powder electrolyte supplement I take while doing keto—will be nose-plug-and-chug bad.
  • No more using monk fruit to make tasty, sugar-free cocktails like my naturally sweetened versions of the Old Fashioned and Margarita.

About that…

  • *Keto coffee is a rich, high-fat concoction that helps you become a fat-burning machine as part of the ketogenic diet. It’s also an uber decadent morning indulgence with coconut cream (thicker than coconut milk), coconut oil, and ghee (clarified butter). I also add collagen powder, cinnamon, a lil sea salt, and some stevia. Needless to say, it’ll be nice to cut one ingredient out of this list for a while.
  • While I can enjoy things that already contain a small amount of sugar/sweetener, e.g. White Claw, I won’t go crazy with these.
    • I’m trying to build willpower and reduce dependency on sweeteners—particularly in beverages—not trying to be a total asshole to myself.
    • We tried Trader Joe’s Kyla hard kombucha this month and dare I say that just may be our new replacement for White Claw! Sorry, girl.

I betcha…

  • Like coffee and alcohol, I’m 99.9% sure I will want to resume using sweeteners after this month.

My hopeful expectation is that I will adapt and need not dump small truckloads of stevia into my coffee anymore.

Week 1-2: The Struggle is Real…

  • The coffee tastes flat—even my beloved keto coffee. It’s like what I imagine fries without any salt taste like. Flat and meh.
  • My joyless plain afternoon coffee almost makes me want to just take caffeine pills instead, a la Jessie Spano. But we all know how that worked out (yikes)…
Im So Excited Saved By The Bell GIF
  • Almond or coconut milk, natural flavor extracts (e.g. peppermint, orange, rum), pumpkin spice seasoning, and sea salt all help make this a bit more tolerable.
  • While my daily beverages don’t taste wonderful, the implementation could not be simpler. As I do whenever I’m giving something up for a period, I say to myself, “Self, I am not a person who uses sweetener right now” at the beginning of the month. This simple internalization is all it takes.
    • The lesson I keep learning through these experiments and in life in general:

Dread lives only in your head… and only when it’s fed.

Week 3-4: Sweet Surrender…

  • Drinking beverages like coffee without sweetener feels similar to having a reduced sense of smell, like when you have a cold. The general flavor is there; it’s just a bit less satisfying.
  • By week 3 though, I started to appreciate the natural flavor of coffee more.
  • Temperature matters. Similar to how a warm rosé or white wine is a travesty, one should not subject themselves to cold, bitter coffee. It tastes much better to me when adequately warm, especially without the support of sweetener to prop it up.
  • Adding some cacao powder and orange extract became my favorite alternative. Terry’s Chocolate Orange vibes, anyone?

Where I Failed…

  • That cute thought about simplifying my beverage prep by cutting out the step of sweetening coffee, keto hot chocolate, etc. did not pan out. I found myself spending at least as much time trying to add other natural ingredients (e.g. peppermint extract, vanilla extract, cinnamon) to make it less offensive to my taste buds.
  • I stopped making my keto hot chocolate altogether because it was so dismal unsweetened.

Where I Won…

  • The winning combo I found to make coffee great again—or acceptable, at least—is a splash of almond milk, a few drops of peppermint extract, and a tablespoon of cacao powder. Mix it up, don’t think too much, and enjoy the minty hot chocolate sensations.

What Surprised Me…

  • I typically have an ACV (apple cider vinegar) drink in the afternoon. In addition to ACV, this health elixir includes lemon or lime juice, flavored sparkling water, and normally some sweetener to balance out the acidity. Surprisingly, this beverage was far easier to drink without my normal stevia than expected. The palatability ranges a bit depending on the sparkling water brand and flavor. The winners have been Trader Joe’s pineapple-flavored sparkling water and La Croix Mango.

Whoomp, there it is…

  • The first day after this experiment, I put on some Ariana Grande sweetener and celebrated!
  • Fortunately, I added just 1/3 as much stevia as I used to add, and my taste buds still rejoiced. That was plenty to make it way more satisfying… so I’d say this experiment was successful. (Yes, I’m a grande Ariana fan.)

Thanks for reading! Please leave me a comment with any feedback and/or what you think my next experiment should be:

  1. Daily Journaling
  2. Daily Affirmations, e.g. writing out by hand a mantra 15x/day
  3. Read 20 minutes everyday
  4. Breathwork, e.g. Wim Hof Technique
  5. Your suggestion?

Re(Sources):

https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/monk-fruit-vs-stevia

https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/stevia-side-effects

https://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/a19546604/monk-fruit-sweetener/

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It’s Keto, Sis!

Photo by Brooke Lark

Experiment: Follow keto diet for at least 1 month. No cheat days.

What is this keto business, anyway?

The purpose of the ketogenic diet (aka “keto”) is achieving ketosis, a natural metabolic state in which your body doesn’t have enough carbs to use for energy so instead burns fat. Your liver turns this fat into ketones, an acid, that it sends to your bloodstream for energy. The way to achieve this fat-burning state is via a very low-carb, high-fat diet. Note the focus is not on restricting calories, just carbohydrates.

When you eat less than 50 grams of net carbs (Total Carbs – Fiber) per day, your body depletes its typical fuel—blood sugar—and breaks down fat and protein for energy. It can take 3-14 days to reach ketosis depending on your level of carb restriction and how your body reacts. My no-cheat-day policy will ensure I reach and remain in ketosis for the duration of the month.

Ok, so why…

  • This falls under the category of experiments that I’ve been thinking about but intimidated by for a while now.
  • The potential bennies are ample:
    • Reduced inflammation – as someone who often gets leg cramps, this is a key motivator for me
    • Enhanced cognitive functioning – you can get more out of that beautiful brain of yours
    • Increased energy throughout the day
    • Better sleep
    • Weight loss – While not a personal intention for this experiment, it has been shown to produce over 2x the weight loss vs. a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet.
    • Improved endurance performance, e.g. running and cycling, by raising your muscle-to-fat ratio and the amount of oxygen your body can use when working hard
    • Longevity – in part due to preventing or treating some of the conditions below
    • Other conditions the diet helps to treat:
      • Heart disease
      • Alzheimer’s disease
      • Cancer
      • Metabolic syndrome
      • Type 2 diabetes
      • Parkinson’s disease
      • Sleep disorders
      • Acne
      • Epilepsy
      • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Uh oh…

  • Some of my favorite foods, which I normally consume on the daily—sweet potatoes, Fuji apples, popcorn—and beverages—kombucha, coconut water—are Gone Girl from this diet. Byeee!
  • We’ll see, but this could be annoying to navigate at parties and dinners with friends.
  • Side effects? The “keto flu”… this is not an actual sickness but a state of flu-like symptoms that occurs while your body is shifting from a carb processor to a fat processor. It can include lower energy, muscle cramps, bad breath and irritability.
    • However, this can be prevented or alleviated by consuming extra electrolytes… more on this to come.

About that…

  • So, is this a new, postmillennial fad? Nerp. The ketogenic diet was developed in the 1920s as a treatment for epileptics who didn’t respond to drug treatment. The treatment proved to be highly effective. The other benefits above were found later.
  • My husband and a good friend of ours both started this diet as well, shortly before I did, which has been helpful in collecting and sharing info and supporting each other through the shift.
  • Alcohol is ok in moderation [audible sigh of relief]. To be clear, regular beer is not ok, but that’s cool with me. (Light beer is ok at 3-4g carbs but it’s also light beer.) Thankfully, a glass or two of wine is fine, weighing in at 2-4g carbs/glass. Hard liquor is the best because it’s carb-free. Just be sure to use a low/no-carb mixer like soda water or naturally sweetened, sugar-free tonic or soda. Zevia, for example, is a tasty soda brand sweetened with plant-based stevia and comes in a variety of familiar flavors. Or enjoy it on the rocks!

I betcha…

  • This is not going to be as hard as it seems for me since 1) you can still have coffee and certain types of alcohol and 2) it will mainly involve removing a few key foods and adding lots of tasty fat to my diet, like Macadamia nuts, (even more) avocado, and ghee, oh my!
  • I’m thinking and hoping I can stick with this one going forward, perhaps with some cheat days built in (post experiment) to help with longer-term compliance.

DO try this at home…

  • Here is a primer on how to get started, with specific recommendations on what to eat during your first week: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z15Z1-Og_pg. This video greatly simplifies what to do for the first couple weeks.
  • It helps greatly if you can prepare most of your meals for the week at home in batches.
  • Mexican and Mediterranean restaurants also often have great options.
    • Chipotle is a godsend—in general but especially for the keto diet. You can copy this order for a delicious, filling meal with only 12g Net Carbs. It’s tastier than my normal order, with all the good stuff and no filler:
      • Chipotle Salad Bowl (no dressing—it’s just not needed and adds carbs):
        • Chicken
        • Fajita veggies
        • Fresh Tomato Salsa
        • Sour Cream
        • Guac
        • Optional: Chipotle Tabasco sauce
        • Fat 38g, Protein 38g, Carbs 22g (Fiber 10g) –> Net Carbs 12g
  • Find an accountability buddy. Share this info with a friend or partner you’d like to join you in test running the diet. It has been wonderful having friends and my husband doing it too. Then, you won’t be the only crazy one asking the restaurant to ditch the bun and swaddle your turkey burger in lettuce.

DON’T try this at home…

  • …until checking with your doctor [obligatory disclaimer], particularly if you are diabetic, obese, or have a heart condition or high blood pressure.

Week 1-2 Notes…

  • As expected, it was not hard to adjust to the new diet as eating tons of fat is fun and satiating.
  • My morning coffee feels mind-blowingly decadent with ghee (clarified butter), coconut oil, and coconut cream added.
  • No cravings for either carbs or sugar. This was a big pleasant surprise. I don’t miss what I’ve cut out because what I am able to eat is so satisfying.
    • Doing this post-holidays was convenient too since many people are also experiencing a post-holidays sugar hangover and there’s an unspoken agreement to make/buy/push fewer sweets than in the celebratory months of Oct/Nov/Dec.
  • I experienced some of the keto flu symptoms during week 2. I was a bit sluggish, had some muscle cramps, and was less interested in socializing at times—which is saying a lot since I work from home and often crave these opportunities.
    • Electrolytes in the form of Salt Stick pills and nuun tablets were quite effective in quickly lifting the physical and mental fatigue though, making me feel much better.

Week 3-4 Notes…

  • I’m completely out of the woods on the short-lived “keto flu” and am feeling the sweet benefit of reduced inflammation, i.e. my legs don’t feel like they’ve spent the night being pummeled by American Gladiators like they used to.
  • I got a massage this week too and it was oddly refreshing to let the masseuse know my legs weren’t too bad for once. He noticed a difference in my back too, saying it used to “feel like a marble slab” but has loosened up a bit.
  • Yas, my skin and hair are looking good… thanks for noticing. I have been using a scoop of collagen in my morning coffee, which likely helps, but I think the diet is the main contributor. All that coconut oil and ghee is doing its thing, while sugar and wheat are no longer doing theirs.
  • I regularly feel a cognitive lift, able to focus more clearly throughout the day.
  • There are a few ways to test ketone levels. The quickest, easiest, and cheapest is via urine strips. Sexy, I know. Here are the ones I used. While less precise than blood or breath testing, they are a good indicator of whether you’ve achieved ketosis. According to my daily testing over the past month, I have – woo hoo!
  • While your options are certainly limited at parties and restaurants, I’ve found that deciding between 2 potential menu options—or maybe 3-4 with slight modifications—vs. 18+ options can help in deciding faster and with reduced risk of buyer’s remorse.

Whoomp, There It is…

  • Wow, in hindsight this big change I dreaded was not actually that big of a change at all. And I feel multiple benefits.
  • I’m going to renew this experiment indefinitely.
    • In fact, at the time of this post, I’ve already surpassed the 6-week mark with no off days.
    • I may tinker with returning to Intermittent Fasting in tandem with this new diet, as the two are compatible and have some similar goals and benefits.
    • I’ll also play with switching to 1-2 days of non-keto with the aim of staying in ketosis for the rest of the week. This could help with long-term sustainability and allowing for some social exceptions that don’t derail the whole plan.
  • The benefits outweigh the costs too handily for me to quit this experiment in the near future.

I’ll leave you with a quote I heard that resonated with me, particularly around this experiment:

                “It always impossible until it’s done.” -Nelson Mandela

Thanks for reading! Please leave me a comment with any feedback and/or what you think my next experiment should be:

  1. Daily Affirmations, e.g. writing out by hand a mantra 15x/day
  2. CrossFit 2-3x/week
  3. Guided Breathwork
  4. Daily Acts of Kindness
  5. Your suggestion?

(Re)Sources: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/what-is-ketosis https://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slideshow-ketogenic-diet https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-signs-and-symptoms-of-ketosis#section4  
https://www.ruled.me/how-to-know-you-are-in-ketosis/  
https://perfectketo.com/guide/ultimate-start-guide-ketogenic-diet/#What_Is_the_Ketogenic_Diet  

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Buzz Cut Results… What Happened When I Had 0 Coffee for 2 Months?!

It was easier than I’d ever imagined… but not permanent (duh).

Week 1-4 Notes:

  • Switching from my 1-2 cups of coffee/day to just a cup of green tea or yerba mate in the morning was not nearly hard as anticipated… so much so that I reduced the weaning period to just 1 week.
  • I discovered here that there is a supplement you can take to greatly reduce the effects of caffeine withdrawal. Phenylalanine is a simple and inexpensive amino acid supplement that can help. Here’s how:
    • In short, chronic caffeine usage depletes the brain’s stores of tyrosine and phenylalanine, amino acids that aid in dopamine and adrenaline production. Supplementing with either can make recovery quicker and easier.
    • Phenylalanine is likely more effective than tyrosine because tyrosine is synthesized from phenylalanine but not vice versa.
    • I started using this just after week 1, when I shifted from green tea to herbal tea (i.e. no caffeine) and I felt it helped make the transition smoother. To determine just how much it helped, I’d have to do this all again without the supplement, and I’m going to take a hard pass on that for now, thank you.
    • The one thing I would change: I would have bought and started using Phenylalanine sooner, i.e. during the first weaning week. While the 1st couple days of the coffee-to-tea switch were not too bad—just a slight dragging—they might have been even better with the phenylalanine supplement.

  • The 2nd key strategy I’d read about and used was changing my morning habit. Psychologists and behavior economists agree it’s easier to change a habit than to break it. This was my experience too. By switching 1st to green tea and then to herbal tea, I maintained my satisfyingly warm and aromatic morning indulgence, just with a fun new flavor profile:
    • Naturally, I took this as an opportunity to sample the full Trader Joe’s herbal tea selection.
    • My top pick: Yogi Ginger Tea. It smells and tastes warm and delicious, with ample ginger spice.
    • As an added benefit—especially helpful when giving up coffee—it aids in digestion so, you know, it keeps other important daily habits on track too.
    • Want something a little less gingery? Try TJ’s lively, fruity, and herbaceous Red Refresh tea or their Organic Detox Cleansing Blend, which is much tastier than it sounds.
    • Much like with coffee, I’d occasionally spice it up with some cacao powder, cinnamon, or vanilla extract. Cacao is known to have similar mood-boosting properties to coffee, without all the caffeine. (Some cacao or cocoa powders have trace amounts of caffeine but not enough to really register.)
  • Side note: I actually got a buzzcut during this 1st month… keeping it cool for the summer, okkurrr?

Week 5-8 Notes:

  • I still occasionally get what feels like mid-afternoon narcolepsy but overall, I experience fewer peaks and valleys, with a more even-keeled, sustained energy. I also fine myself a little less nervous, less prone to getting “on edge.” So, the effect of caffeine is basically the opposite of the edge-softening effect of CBD oil. Maybe a combo of the two would work well…
  • While I’m fortunate enough to be a good sleeper—till we have kids, at least—I undoubtedly fall asleep quickly more consistently than before this experiment. I bet it was the semi-regular afternoon cup and its half-life that was keeping me up at times.
  • It can feel tough to not have the “safety net” of caffeine if I’ve stayed up a little too late or made a little too much progress on a good bottle o’ wine. Because of this though, I’ve been better about getting to bed on time and not drinking too much… except maybe during SF Pride, but that’s day-drinking, so we’re good, right?
  • There’s something psychologically satisfying when you’ve had a productive day, morning, or even hour that was purely fueled by your own inherent focus and ambition, completely unaided by that magical brown elixir we’ve grown so fond of.
  • On weekends, I wistfully glance at passersby clutching coffee concoctions and have a mixed reaction. On the one hand, I acknowledge that I’ve moved on from my daily Joe, like an amicable ex that’s just not part of my regular life anymore. On the other, part of me remembers how good it can be—it wasn’t that long ago that I was holding, smelling, and savoring its richness as it touched my lips. Between this and the fact that I’d been literally counting down the days left in month 2, I know this is just temporary… not the end for me and my sweet coffee.

Whoomp, there it is…

  • TBD whether I go back to drinking it each morning or just when I “need” or want to enjoy it, i.e. as a productivity tool or a special treat but not a daily ritual.
  • Does 2 months without caffeine sound crazy to you? It did to me before this experiment. The good news is you don’t need to give it up for 2 months to get over a caffeine addiction. You can reset your tolerance in about 9 days. You could do this within the span of a long vacation. Check the links below for more info.

Thanks for reading! Please leave me a comment with any feedback and/or what you think my next experiment should be:

  1. Sensory Deprivation Therapy (Float Tank) 1x/week
  2. Slow Carb Diet (from The 4-Hour Body)
  3. CrossFit 3x/week
  4. Daily Journaling
  5. Guided Breathwork
  6. Cryotherapy
  7. Your suggestion?

References:

https://medium.com/better-humans/how-to-quit-caffeine-in-one-week-e041892698ec

https://addictionresource.com/addiction/caffeine-addiction/

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Buzz Cut… I’m Giving Up Coffee for 2 Months!

The T on Caffeine:

  • 90% of the world’s population consumes a meal or drink that has some caffeine in it every day.
  • 70% of caffeine is consumed as coffee.
  • America is the largest consumer of coffee (followed by Brazil), with over half of American adults drinking it daily.
  • The physical effects of caffeine we experience are mainly due to the placebo effect.

Experiment: No coffee for 2 months… after an initial two-week weaning period, no caffeine of any form for the remaining 6 weeks (aside from trace amounts in dark chocolate… let’s not get crazy now).

I’m moderately terrified of this challenge, a sign of its worthiness. I have given up meat, dairy, dessert/sweets, alcohol, TV, breakfast, “adult activities,” and social media for periods of time before. Each had its challenges, but none intimidated me the way giving up caffeine does. I’ve thought about giving it up for years but have never pulled the “drip” cord.

Ok, so why…

  • The people have spoken. Thanks to all who suggested I take on this experiment next… we’ll see how thankful I feel when it starts, haha.
  • I’ve become caffeine dependent, even if it’s largely mental, and would prefer to not let any substance hold that much control over my behavior. While I only have 1-2 cups a day, the thought of not having that first cup in the morning is like the thought of not putting on any clothes in the morning. I could do that when I’m working from home and shut all the window shades and maybe it would feel briefly liberating but a) it would be cold—at least in the morning/evening, b) it wouldn’t be super comfortable on furniture, and c) why? The mere discomfort with the thought of giving up caffeine is motivation enough to try grinding it out.
  • This challenge falls right in the Goldilocks zone of personal growth… Tackle something too vast in scope and you can feel helpless and overwhelmed. Tackle something too easy and there’s no real sense of accomplishment or growth. Finding goals in the optimal zone—challenging yet achievable—can be a great source of happiness.

Uh oh…

  • Another reason I haven’t tried to cut the morning buzz yet is productivity. Coffee in the morning feels like my own little fairy work-mother, at its worst clearing away the morning brain fog—and sometimes crankiness—and at its best giving me that glorious, let’s-f’n-go I-can-do-anything-right-now feeling. None of the other indulgences I’ve given up before could have a negative impact on my work, and many benefitted it. Hence my wariness to pull the plug on the electric kettle. But I plan to be a father in the near future (hopefully next year) and the challenge of reduced sleep that parenting a newborn produces will be greater if anything. In fact, this experiment seems like good initial training for that new challenge.
  • Another concern: with Intermittent Fasting, I look forward even more to my morning cup of coffee. Even though I wait 60-90 minutes after I wake to enjoy my first hot cup o’ brew (Why? See this 2-minute clip from one of my favorite authors, Dan Pink), it is often among the 1st things I think about in the morning. How will I cope with this… perhaps herbal tea or some other new reward/indulgence as a replacement?

About that…

Two months… why so long? As my cousin pointed out, it takes some time for your body to adjust to the removal of caffeine from the system. To set myself up for success, I will be phasing caffeine out like an awesome t-shirt you don’t want to admit has stains in it—maybe from coffee? Meta. The first two weeks I’ll be sipping on some green tea or yerba mate–each of which has just 30-40mg of caffeine via tea bags, as a weening period. After that, it’ll be all caffeine-free herbal all the time, baby.

Let’s be clear… practicing discipline builds inner strength and can teach us to want less, which can make it easier to be happy. The less you feel you need to be happy, the happier you are with what you have. However, the goal is not to punish myself or remove something that brings me joy. In other words, the intention is not to give up drinking coffee forever. The goal is to change my relationship with caffeine, i.e. maintain the joy I get from the experience of drinking a warm, rich cup of coffee without the daily caffeine dependency.

I betcha…

After experiencing an initial dip in energy, I’m wondering if this will improve my overall energy. This is my hypothesis and my hope. I’m envisioning a graph showing time without caffeine on the horizontal axis, energy on the vertical axis, and a line resembling a Nike swoosh that eventually flattens out, but we’ll see soon enough… here we go!

References:

https://medium.com/better-humans/how-to-quit-caffeine-in-one-week-e041892698ec

https://addictionresource.com/addiction/caffeine-addiction/

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Breaking Up with Breakfast: My Experience with Intermittent Fasting

Experiment: Only Eating 8-10 out of 24 Hours a Day

Intermittent Fasting… it sounds kind of like sporadic self-torture… and it is! I kid, but it does take a little adjusting to.

Ok, so why… bother restricting your eating to 8-10 hours a day? There are many health benefits to Intermittent Fasting (IF), such as:

  1. Reduced insulin levels, which aids in fat burning
  2. Increased level of human growth hormone, supporting muscle development
  3. Cellular repair and immune system support
  4. Reduced inflammation in the body
  5. Potential benefits for heart health and cancer prevention
  6. Good for your brain and may help prevent Alzheimer’s disease
  7. May help you live longer

Uh oh… I luuurv breakfast. I eat eggs scrambled with assorted veggies, herbs, and savory nutritional yeast every day (check out some of my favorite eggy dishes here). Since the most straightforward way to implement IF is to skip breakfast, I’m going to have to reconcile how to give up this joyous part of my day.

About that… I’ve also adopted a grazer diet for years, eating small frequent meals and snacks throughout my waking hours. I had previously heard this was the best way to keep the caloric oven constantly burning and maintain steady energy levels. Without my regular feedings, will I shut down like a neglected wind-up toy? Will my energy levels be low until I eat and then low again because my stomach is digesting a significantly larger meal than it is used to?

I betcha… This experiment is simple in theory but will be challenging in practice. I expect my body will adjust after the first week or two and hopefully my energy levels will improve. I do think I’ll like the indulgent feeling of getting to eat all my day’s food in a shorter window though… like a post-fast Fat Tuesday every day but without the weight gain.

Week 1-2 Notes:

  • The first day was surprisingly easy; it may have helped that I’d had a big dinner the night before. Aside from my stomach’s occasional hunger yelps in the mornings, my body continued to feel good the 1st couple of days. I noticed I was slightly irritable but more aware. While I missed my breakfast routine, I enjoyed having some extra time in the AM for personal work and reflection (an ideal time to meditate) and not having that post-breakfast slump I’d attempt to combat with coffee.
  • The first real challenges came with a couple morning workouts. I’ve always been told—and practiced—that you need some energy in your system before working out and to recover with healthy carbs and protein after. Several IF practitioners advocate just consuming some BCAAs (branched chain amino acids) to help with protein synthesis until your first meal of the day. I’ve just ordered some capsules, so we’ll see!
  • Who says I can’t have “breakfast” foods for lunch, the time when I’m literally breaking my fast? Not a damn person. Besides, breakfast time is just an intangible idea we’ve all agreed to believe in… so I’m breaking up with this belief and eating whatever I please, starting at noon. I’m not alone, after all; LA restauranteurs decided years ago that brunch goes till 4pm. Game on, afternoon eggs!

Week 3-4 Notes:

  • My body has adjusted. The slight irritability from the 1st few days is gone. Some days I still aggressively check the clock, especially around 11am, but others I get into a rhythm with whatever I’m working on and realize it’s 1 or 2pm before I eat.

via GIPHY

  • In addition to having more time in the morning, without cooking or eating breakfast, I’ve been feeling a supercharged level of alertness that has led to greater productivity while I’m fasting. The impact was less noticeable in the afternoon, though I found my normal afternoon circadian slump hasn’t been hitting me as hard or often.
  • While weight loss has not been a goal for me and I haven’t been restricting the number of calories I eat during the “feeding window”—that phrase makes me feel like a farm animal—I’ve noticed a clear leaning out of my body, which appears to be a conversion from fat to muscle. I say this because I haven’t lost weight and have increased muscle definition. The BCAA capsules I’ve been taking pre/post-morning workouts may be helping here, as they aid in synthesizing protein, promoting muscle growth and speeding recovery.

Whoomp, there it is…

  • Energy level impact: While my afternoon energy levels improved only slightly during this period, my morning energy levels and feeling of alertness and productivity increased greatly while I was fasting. I’ve had a taste of supercharged mornings, so… sorry breakfast, but I’m not coming back anytime soon.
  • I like the simplicity of having one less meal to prepare and the way my body looks and feels too.
  • This experiment is being renewed indefinitely!

References:
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-health-benefits-of-intermittent-fasting
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/intermittent-fasting-surprising-update-2018062914156

Drop me a line with any feedback. Also, please leave me a comment with what you think my next experiment should be:

  1. CrossFit 3x/week
  2. Sensory Deprivation Therapy (Float Tank) 1x/week
  3. Give Up Caffeine for a month
  4. Guided Breathwork
  5. Daily Journaling
  6. Cryotherapy
  7. Your suggestion?
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Experiment: Same 7 Meals for 7 Weeks!

Ok, so why… Like several of the experiments I’m considering, this aims to cut a little time, stress, and money out of the equation. I’ve crafted 7 of my favorite meals that are also healthy and can be prepped in less than 30 minutes. By limiting the number of ingredients, cooking tools, and recipes I’m using, every meal will require a little less thought and effort. That means more time for other priorities, like wine tasting and posting adorable Instagram stories of our beautiful and weird dog Zara.

Uh oh… I tend to sample everything interesting on a restaurant’s menu before repeating. As a lover of discovering new flavors and foods, I am really hoping I don’t get bored by restricting my options. Also, even simple recipes require some planning so that you have all of ingredients you need—and they haven’t gone bad—when you’re ready to make a meal. Will sticking to set ingredients cause more work than my current “kitchen sink stir fry” approach?

About that… I will continue to eat a couple meals out with friends each week, so the 7 below will account for ~90% of my meals. Also, I’m a grazer—I eat smaller meals with snacks interspersed—so I’ll have a set list of snacks below for midday munchies.

I betcha… Since these foods represent a large subset of my current diet, this should be an easy way to simplify things, not to mention cut out nearly all dairy, grains, and processed foods at the same time. If it doesn’t make me crazy, I may want to continue this going forward.

 

The Meals:

1)      Eggs with coconut oil, onions, mushrooms, refried pinto beans, avocado, Herbs de Provence

2)      Jumbo shrimp stir-fried in ghee (or coconut oil), with broccoli, peas, black beans, curry powder

3)      Baked Salmon marinated in EVOO, Dijon, lemon & cayenne with sweet potato & roasted garlic

4)      Tempeh in coconut oil with green beans, red bell pepper, refried black beans & smoked paprika

5)      Spinach salad with EVOO, red wine vinegar, avocado, nutritional yeast and Turkey Meatballs (click for quick, easy recipe)

6)      Eggs in grapeseed oil, black olives, tomatoes, spinach, black beans, avocado, Ancho/Ghost chili pepper

7)      TJs Veggie medley and cauliflower in grapeseed oil, with green olives, nutritional yeast, basil, garlic powder

Add sea salt and black pepper to all. Optional adds: nutritional yeast and cayenne (where not indicated).

 

Curated Snack Selections:

1)      1st thing each morning: 1 scoop protein powder + creatine + almond milk

2)      Sliced Apple with nut butter OR Half banana with handful of nuts

3)      Persian Cucumbers with eggplant hummus

4)      Red bell pepper slices with Tahini

5)      Sweet potato (medium)

6)      Kombucha or pressed green juice

7)      Olive oil-popped popcorn with nutritional yeast and Chili Lime seasoning

8)      1 square dark chocolate (70%+ cacao), washed down with unsweetened vanilla almond milk (Do yourself a favor and try Whole Foods’ 365 version of this almond milk if you haven’t!)

 

Week 1-3 Notes:

  • Grocery shopping became simpler and faster. Walk in like a boss with the list ready to go and little room for deviation from the plan and you’ll be done in no time. This is especially helpful for me, since I work in consumer goods and have always been fascinated by product assortment, innovation, and seeing how many thimble cups of free coffee I can squeeze into one Trader Joe’s trip. Plus, half the staff at my TJs knows me by name, and vice versa.
  • Batching food prep—making 3-4 servings of each meal to be spread throughout the week—also keeps things easy like Sunday morning. In fact, that’s a great time to do a bulk of the prep.
  • At mealtime, I just have to pick from 1 of 7 options—fewer really since during most of the week I’ll already have prepared some of the meals—vs. a spiraling vortex of options. This means less mental RAM required at mealtime. Hooray! Prioritizing any dish that has an ingredient that might go bad sooner, e.g. ground turkey, can help expedite the decision-making too.

 

Week 4-7 Notes:

  • My compliance ain’t perfect but it ain’t bad either. I may szush up—I’ll be using this phrase until Jonathan from Queer Eye trademarks it, thank you—my food with some Sriracha here or there, but a few minor exceptions like this are expected. (Sriracha also helps when food becomes dry from reheating.)
  • I’m experiencing the benefits of time and mental savings as I can go into auto-pilot at meal time, referring to my super handy saved email to myself with all the meal options or just reheating one of my premade dishes.
  • A chink in my armor: free food. Few things are more grating than blatant food waste and few more gratifying than free food, especially when it’s healthful food that I enjoy. Social meals can spill over into leftovers. As long as these don’t take me too far off course though, my practical and socially conscious principles of avoiding food waste transcend the boundaries of the experiment.
  • I’m no doctor but I’m pretty sure dry, overcooked fish leads to depression. Here’s how I overcame this blunder to make the most moist mustard-marinated salmon I could muster: Be generous with the oil! Also, cook at a higher temperature for less time to prevent it from drying out, e.g. ~12mins at 450° in my oven. Fish internal temp should reach but not greatly exceed 145° at the thickest part.

 

Whoomp, there it is…

  • This has been great. In addition to simplifying things in the kitchen, I’ve felt a bit healthier, with a little more energy and better sleep. I bet the foods I picked—mostly veggies, proteins, and healthy fats and minimal processed food had a direct contribution to this and I’m sold.
    • In full disclosure, I’ve also started taking a couple supplements recently—magnesium for general health and to prevent muscle cramping and lithium for cognitive function and mood boosting. Ugh, the challenges of being a self-development tinkerer. It’s tough to create completely controlled experiments. While these supplements may have had an impact too though, I attribute the benefits primarily to the 7 magic meals.
  • That said, I plan to continue this regimen for the foreseeable future, with a few tweaks to the ingredients every 4-6 weeks to keep things interesting. I’ve been at it for over 7 weeks now, with one menu shakeup so far.
  • Feel free to use this for an experiment of your own. You can copy the recipes above, making some swaps, e.g. snap peas or shredded Brussels sprouts for broccoli, to “do you.” I highly recommend emailing yourself the list of recipes or keeping them in an app like Google Note for easy reference.

 

Drop me a line with any feedback. Thanks for reading!

Grayscaling