I recently completed 120 hours/ 5 days long (mainly) water only
fast. It was not an easy process, but I thoroughly enjoyed that experience. I did
this fast from Dec 26th 1.30pm to Dec 31st 1.40pm
I kept track of my fast using App - Zero
Why 5 days long fast?
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This was my 2020 goal and I had failed on 2 occasions before this.
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Fat loss
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I follow intermittent fasting and most recently I started following
OMAD - One big meal a day at around noon and 23 hours of fasting every day. Fat loss journey hits a plateau at certain
point and a variation of fast is needed to break this plateau. Hence 5 days
long fast
Why Fasting
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Better metabolic health
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Improve insulin sensitivity
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Fat loss
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Wouldn’t go into details of this, but I would highly recommend reading
“The Complete Guide to Fasting – By Dr Jason Fung & Jimmy Moore”
What did I consume during the fast?
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Water
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Unflavored sparkling water
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Unflavored black coffee (No instant coffee since it has 1gm of
carbs)
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Chicken bone broth (I consumed this after 92 hours of fasting.
This is technically a cheat, but allowable cheat to stay in fat burn/ketosis)
What I learnt in the process
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Fasting is more psychological than physical. If your mind is
focused, then your body will follow along
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Our body doesn’t need to be fed 2-3 times a day for 365 days a
year to survive. We can give our body some break from time to time.
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I had more energy and constant energy level throughout the day while
fasting. I felt strong and focused while fasting.
Results and tips – Scroll to the end of the post to see results and tips if you wish to skip the details of these 120 hours.
How did it go
Day 1: Dec 26 (0-11 hours into fast)
- I had my meal around 12.30pm
- I ate about 0.5lb grilled chicken, 3/4th whole wheat pita bread (~32gm net carbs), coleslaw made from coconut mayo, and protein shake (vital protein)
- Started my fast at 1.30pm
- This day was easy since I fast for 23 hours on a regular basis
Day 2: Dec 27 (12-35 hours into fast)
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I felt good in the morning. I had my regular unflavored black coffee.
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We went out for 1.5-mile walk in the morning.
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I was a little hungry at around noon (my usual mealtime), but I
drank water and hunger suppressed
Day 3: Dec 28 (36 – 59 hours into fast)
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I felt good in the morning. I had my regular unflavored black coffee
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We made a trip to grocery store and I didn’t get hungry with all
the food around me.
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I did drink some unflavored sparkling water to suppress my hunger
after visit to grocery store.
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I didn’t feel much hunger until 4pm when my wife had her dinner. I
was about 50 hours into my fast at this point. So, I drank about 32oz (1litre)
water with unflavored electrolytes, and my hunger suppressed.
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I felt symptoms of Keto flu since my body was entering ketosis at
this point (Ketosis is state when body switches from glucose to stored body fat
as a primary source of fuel)
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I took my son to his swim class at 5.30pm. 30 mins of swimming
class kept me busy to forget that I am fasting. I felt normal during the 30
mins session.
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Rest of the evening was good, and I slept peacefully in the night
Day 4: Dec 29 (60-83 hours into fast)
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I felt the strongest on this morning despite sleeping 1 hour less
than usual. My body was already in ketosis and I was enjoying it.
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My hunger was suppressed, and I didn’t feel like eating anything.
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At noon, I had a cup of black coffee since I was going to drive
for next 4 hours
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This afternoon we drove for 4 hours and I had no trouble driving 210
miles on highways. It was tiring with my toddler son getting fussy at times,
but that would have happened even if I had loaded on food.
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I had a cup of black decaf and plenty of water in the evening.
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My energy levels were constant throughout the day. This is because
my body was utilizing stored body fat as fuel while my blood glucose levels remained
constant.
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We made a trip to local grocery store to get some baby food for my
son. I didn’t get distracted with all the food around me.
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This evening I was little distracted due to thoughts about eating Mexican
food when I break my fast on Dec 31st. This wandered my mind a lot and
I got hungry. This coupled with hotel bed and I didn’t get a good sleep in the
night. (I usually don’t sleep well on a hotel bed anyway)
Day 5: Dec 30 (84-107 hours into fast)
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I felt distracted in the morning and that casted doubts in my mind
about continuing the fast further.
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I drank water, but I still felt weak. I was feeling a little
drowsy as well and hence I decided to cheat a little bit at this point. I had a
cup of chicken bone broth. Bone broth doesn’t have any carbohydrates, so it doesn’t
kick you out of ketosis. I instantly felt good after drinking broth. I had
probably tricked my mind and feelings of hunger disappeared in a moment.
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This morning we visited a state parks and did a 90 mins walking tour
of an underground cave. I carried my son on baby carrier for a good part of
these 90 mins. I had to duck, climb steps during this tour, but I did it without
any trouble. My wife was carrying a protein bar with her – just in case if feel
dizzy and need to break my fast. But that bar remained untouched.
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Rest of the day was nice and calm. I felt strong and didn’t have
any desire to break my fast early.
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At this point I was just 16-24 hours away from my goal and that
kept me going. I had failed on previous 2 attempts, but I badly wanted to hit
my goal this time. 3rd time's the charm after all!
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Although I wasn’t feeling hungry or tired, I decided to drink 1
cup of bone broth in the evening. Decided to play it safe to get sound sleep in
the night.
Day 6: Dec 31 (108-120 hours into fast)
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I felt strong in the morning. I had a cup of black coffee.
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This was the day of drive back to home. Another 4-5 hours and 210 miles
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I felt good while driving and didn’t have any trouble staying
behind the wheel
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I finally broke my fast at 1.40pm by drinking a cup of bone broth
with a spoonful of Indian pickle. ( I wanted taste back on my tongue)
This is how I felt during those 120 hours
What I ate after the fast
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The key is to go gentle on your tummy after a long fast. Luckily
the bone broth the day before helped me ease into it
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At 1.40pm I drank bone broth to break my fast. Indian pickle (Bedekar’s)
broke my fast and not the broth.
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At 2.15pm I had a small meal 2 Keto breads
(8 gm net carbs), Hummus spread on the breads, some cholula hot sauce, and
gluten free crisp bread from trader joe’s
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At 8pm I had a large meal – 1lb (450gm) grilled chicken, Moong dal
tadka
Results of the fast:
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Weight loss – 6lb (2.72kg)
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Fat loss – Body fat % reduced by 1.2% (roughly 2lb or 0.9kg)
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Metabolic age – Reduced by 2 years (Yes – I got 2 years younger during this
fast)
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BMR – Reduced from 1791 calories to 1768 calories (BMR is calories
required for minimal body functions – without even moving your muscle)
Tips for a long fast:
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It all comes from mind, so stay focused on your goal.
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Stay busy so your mind doesn’t have time to think about food
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Period of 24-48 hours is the toughest period of the fast since
your body goes into Ketosis during this timeframe. Power through this time and
then you can sail through remainder of the fast.
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Avoid trips of grocery store. They can easily distract you
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Limit browsing on social media. There are posts about food which
can easily distract you.
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Don’t plan for the meal which you are going to eat after your
fast. This can easily distract your mind. This was the biggest reason why I
failed on previous attempts
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Minor headache, some tiredness is common on Day 2 and 3. Your body
is new to this, so it will show some signs. Just drink plenty of water.
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Stay hydrated during the fast. Dehydration makes you feel hungry.
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Your body is going through a healing it has probably never
experienced in the past, so enjoy the process!
