Water Fasting is an alternative to Benefits Without Discomfort, discover how this practice can be useful in the fight for a healthy diet.

Additionally, you can initiate autophagy, a body cleansing process. It can also start to reverse degenerative diseases associated with low-grade chronic inflammation, such as cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and dementia.

 

Fasting can act as a metabolic reset and a cleanse, where you begin to reverse all these conditions.

 

Typically, fasting means you only drink water and eat nothing else.

However, I want to talk about how you can fast and eat at the same time, adopting a specific way of eating. This way, you can mimic fasting and get the same benefits. If you eat this way for five days, you can get the same benefits as a three-day water fast.

                                  

This means you can still reduce insulin levels, which helps reverse insulin resistance. You can also initiate autophagy, a process where, when protein is scarce, the body becomes very efficient at recycling waste.

It starts scavenging every corner to find protein waste, such as bacteria, viruses, damaged cells, and misfolded proteins. When you reduce protein intake, the body has to find these things, functioning as a very powerful cleanse.

Just like fasting, this practice can provide weight loss, but the main focus is on the cleansing that occurs. You begin to reverse metabolic problems, which helps you lose weight in the future and also provides a great cleanse.

Regarding strict fasting, I am not opposed to it at all; I just want you to keep your options open. If you have difficulties with prolonged water fasting, this approach can be an excellent alternative to consider.

 

Water Fasting and Alternatives for Benefits Without Discomfort

Water fasting works for many people. If you are one of those who can do it without much discomfort or even enjoy it, then keep doing it. Even so, keep your options open to experiment and get some variety.

The biggest reason to consider this simulated diet is that many people have difficulty fasting with only water because we are all different. It could be due to genetic differences or differences in our gut flora, as the bacteria in our gut provide many signals about inflammation, hunger, and insulin resistance. We are not all the same.

Some people do not feel well when they try a water fast. They might be fine for 16 hours, but after that, they start to feel weak, very hungry to the point of not functioning well, or they may feel dizzy, weak, or nauseous. In other words, they simply do not do well on water fasting.

 

If you want to eat a specific way to still get the benefits of fasting, the rules are very simple:

1. Consume less than 50% of your normal calories.

2. Keep your protein between 15 and 20 grams per day. Fifteen grams would be for a smaller person and 20 grams would be for a slightly larger person.

3. Opt for low-carb. Although not essential, low-carb makes it easier and enhances the benefits 

Let me give you an example of what I did on one of those five days:

 

First Meal: Soup and Salad

·         50 grams of lettuce

·         50 grams of tomato

·         25 grams of cucumber

·         50 grams of bell pepper

·         25 grams of onion

·         2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

·         Store-bought vegetable soup with 2.3 grams of fat

·        So far, we basically have traces of fat, the goal is to have healthy fat for our well-being, such as extra virgin olive oil in that salad. Adding it all up, there were about 30 grams of fat in that first meal.

Nutritional Analysi 

·         Protein: The soup had 4.5 grams of protein, totaling 6.12 grams of protein in this first meal.

·         Carbs: Very low, with half a gram or one gram each, except for the soup which contained some vegetables. Altogether, there were 20 grams of carbohydrates.

·         Calories:Very low until the olive oil and a bit more from the soup, totaling about 380 calories.

SecondMeal: Stir-Fry

I prepared a stir-fry with leeks, onions, cauliflower, asparagus, avocado, and a bit of sweet potato as a side. If you're really trying to consume low carbs, you can cut out the sweet potato and do something else, like more asparagus or avocado. I seasoned it with salt, pepper, and a bit of curry, and cooked it in extra virgin olive oil.

Simulated Fasting Diet: Details and Benefits

Water fasting works for many people. If you can do it without much discomfort or even enjoy it, continue! However, it's important to keep your options open to experiment and get some variety.

 

Basic Rules of the Simulated Fasting Diet

1. Consume less than 50% of your normal calories.

2. Keep protein intake between 15 and 20 grams per day. Fifteen grams for a smaller person and 20 grams for a larger person.

3. Opt for low-carb. Although not essential, it makes it easier and enhances the benefits.

 

Meal Exampl

First Meal: Soup and Salad

50 grams of lettuce

50 grams of tomato

25 grams of cucumber

50 grams of bell pepper

25 grams of onion

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Store-bought vegetable soup with 2.3 grams of fat

 

Nutritional Analysi

·         Fat: 30 grams

·         Protein: 6.12 grams

·         Carbs: 20 grams

·         Calories: 380 calories

Second Meal: Stir-Fry

·         Leeks: 15 calories

·         Onion: 29 calories

·         Cauliflower: 45 calories

·         Asparagus: 7 calories

·         Avocado: 70 calories

·         Sweet potato: 69 calories

·         Olive oil: 256 calories

 

Nutritional Analysis

·         Fat: 36 grams

·         Protein: 8.4 grams

·         Carbs: 32.3 grams

·         Calories: 486 calories

Daily Total

·         Fat: 66 grams

·         Protein: 15 grams

·         Carbs: 52 grams

·         Calories: 867 calorie 

Macros

·         Fat: 69%

·         Protein: 7%

·         Carbs: 24%

 

Considerations and Recommendations

The main difficulty in selecting foods for this diet that mimics fasting is finding foods low in protein. Many things we normally eat are high in protein, so you can't just eat less of what you usually do

Normally, protein is very important, and we want to consume a significant amount of high-quality protein every day to rebuild the body. But the goal here is to mimic fasting. Keeping protein super low for a few days won't harm you.

 

Foods to Avoid

·         Animal products: They are high in protein.

·         Bone broth: A single serving can contain 8 to 10 grams of protein.

·         Legumes: Beans, lentils, and peas are high in protein.

·         Eggs, dairy, nuts, and seeds: Make it difficult to maintain low protein levels.

 

Permitted Foods

·         Leafy greens: In almost unlimited quantities.

·         Non-starchy vegetables: Can be consumed in large amounts.

·         Some tubers: Sweet potatoes, rutabaga, celery root, parsnips, etc.

·         Extra virgin olive oil: For most of the fat and calories, limited to four to five tablespoons per day.

 

Alternatives to Water Fasting: Simulated Diet and Pre-packaged Kits

Water fasting, including simulated diets and pre-packaged diet kits that mimic fasting, can offer the same benefits as prolonged water fasting with less discomfort and more convenience.

 

Resources and Recipes

There are many online resources to find recipes that fit a simulated fasting diet. If you've watched my videos, you know how to recognize good and real food and avoid unwanted ingredients. Online recipes can be a great source of inspiration to keep variety in your diet while pursuing the benefits of fasting.

Pre-packaged Diet Kit 

Another option is to buy a pre-packaged diet kit that mimics fasting. These kits are extremely convenient and cost about $200. Although it's a significant investment, you won't spend money on other food for five days. However, I wouldn't recommend getting this kit unless absolutely necessary. If you have some cooking skills and time to prepare your own meals, you'll be better off.

 

Composition of the Kits

These kits usually don't contain many vegetables, besides some dried bits in the soup mixes. They contain a lot of starch to thicken the soups and consist mainly of soup mixes, crackers, and meal bars sweetened with chicory root.

If you suffer from dysbiosis or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, you may experience a lot of bloating when consuming these products.

 

How the Kits Work

Despite the limitations, these kits work. They have been carefully formulated, with all the numbers, grams, and macros adjusted. This means you don't need to measure or cook, minimizing the risk of deviating from the guidelines. These kits can lead you to ketosis and autophagy, although they contain more carbohydrates than the diet I proposed. Comparing the macros:

·         My Diet: 69% fat, 7% protein, and 24% carbohydrates.

·         Pre-packaged Kits: 37% fat, 10% protein, and over 50% carbohydrates.

These kits work in a precise and pre-planned manner, but I believe that if you know how to cook and have patience, you'll be better off.

 

Advantages of Cooking Your Own Meals

By preparing your own meals, you can eat plenty of salads and get a lot of fiber, reducing the amount of carbohydrates. This allows you to get some good fat and much more fiber and volume to keep you full.

If you do well on a three-day water fast, there might be no reason to try the simulated diet. However, if you have difficulties fasting for more than a day, the simulated diet can help.

Frequency of the Simulated Diet

You can adopt this diet once a quarter for maintenance and disease prevention, getting good autophagy and prevention. If you are reversing a condition like type 2 diabetes or insulin resistance, you can do it more frequently, perhaps even once a month.

Even if you do it only once a quarter or twice a year, it's easy to get the hang of it and dedicate a day or two here and there. Instead of eating your usual meals, cut back a little, maybe one day a week or two days a month, according to your needs and what makes you feel good.

 Conclusion

Water fasting can be effective for many people, but not everyone adapts well to it. Adopting a diet that simulates the benefits of fasting can be an excellent alternative for those who encounter difficulties.

By following the rules of reducing calories, controlling protein intake, and opting for low carbs, you can gain many of the benefits of a water fast without the associated discomfort.