Greetings, Steemians and Steemettes!
So I was looking forward to having better news today and gladly, I do. The wound looks much better after a good nights rest. I won't tempt fate today and stay clear from the shower until I got myself some new water proof patches to put on it. Or I take up @sultnpapper's offer and let him apply some super glue and hope for the best.
Tell me how you like these new designs. I really wanted to try something new for a change.
Before you start reading, please mind that I am neither a doctor nor a nutritionist and that you should properly educate yourself on the topics I am discussing here and consult an actual doctor or nutritionist about these topics before making any wild attempts yourself.
So where are we going now?
While I haven't been able to commit to any kind of exercise, the goal of getting back in shape in thirty days still remains. Yesterdays meal did a good job at being healthy, tasty and rich in nutrients. It also ended up being a slightly larger portion than anticipated, but I can handle these no problem. I also ate a little more fruit to go with it, but that is okay as well. Depending on how I feel later this day when I come back, I will take this as an opportunity to do an extended fast.
Going back 1-2 years when I started having initial experiences with the topic, I ended up fasting on a day to day basis. This quickly became a habit of sorts and I am glad that I developed it. Aside from the health benefits that come with fasting, it just makes life much more convenient. Because I only eat once a day, I have to plan time and effort for only once meal a day instead of 2-5 as I would have had otherwise. Another nice side benefit of this is that when you do make that one meal, you are making extra sure that it is either super healthy, super tasty or, in a perfect world, both.
I am glad that I managed to go with "both" yesterday.
I also have some experience with dry fasts. This topic is still highly controversial, but I already experimented with it when I was feeling comfortable about it back then as well. Overall, I seemed to have an easy time getting into it. When I say that I "only eat once a day" these days, the same applies to drinking. When I am not doing some heavy bodily work in a stuffy and dirty place with poor air conditioning that cramps up your air pipes with dust, I can easily take this comfortably.
The Job I had before this had me basically being out in the open sun for 8 hours a day, walking a lot and it never gave me trouble, on the contrary. The same is and was true for extended dry fasts. The highest I went so far has been close to four days. Reaching that day, I felt like I could hold on for longer, but decided against it because I did not want to tempt fate. I always carried some water with me in order to hydrate if necessary.
So where am I going with this?
As I said, I want to start of these 30 days of getting back into shape with a good extended fast. It's a good way to get the body into getting itself into an overall better condition. Enticing the cells to do some work, putting some of that fat I gained to good use, getting that ketosis going, it's a great experience to be have, really.
I mentioned Ketosis and the ketogenic diet a couple of times. I came in touch way after I made my first few experiences with fasting. People describe sensations like "having the keto flu" shortly after starting the diet or entering ketosis, claiming that this is natural for people who are going through this. Others claim that they are experiencing new heights of mental clarity, awareness, energy and focus. Aside from me thinking that these words are way too open to actually have any profound meaning, I never felt one way or the other.
Ketosis, ketogenic dieting never really changed me that much and that is because I already was fasting by that time.
At the end of the day, what the ketogenic diet is is a diet that simulates fasting to the body.For people who are not willing nor able to fast for whatever reason, this is of course very interesting because they are able to reap some of the benefits this way. For me already being in the process of fasting, it is still interesting because it helps me prolong and and/or deepen the effects of fasting even further.
Ever had a big meal of any sorts and felt like you could go for a nap right after?
Especially heavy food that is hard to digest has that effect on us. Whenever I ate during a break, be it at school or elsewhere, I felt basically useless right after taking a break and the hours to come afterwards felt terrible.
Fasting itself still has some advantages that ketogenic diets could never have. Digestion is something that the body still has to do. People heavily underestimate the amount of energy the body has to use in order for making this happen.
Some other benefits?
Well, there were some that I personally experienced, but I can't say if and in how far they are related.
When I started to fast for the first couple days, I found that I can get by with a little less sleep and that getting out of bed early became a bit more comfortable than before. Where I used to sleep for around 8-9 hours before, I find myself able to get by with 4-6 these days, depending on my form at the time. This may be related to just aging, I saw some statistics that showed a trend of people needing less sleep as they grew older.
Of course, I do not get old, only better
Most of the advantages I described earlier already, so there isn't much to mention aside from that. I developed a new kind of appreciation for food during the time I made my first experiences with fasting and ketosis. Imagine having not put food or water in your mouth and down your throat for about three days and then finding yourself being able to finally take a sip of water.
Trust me when I say this, this glass of water will be the most delicious thing you have ever tasted!
Ketogenic dieting made me develop an appreciation for a lot of foods that I did not enjoy at all previously. Cheese was something I could only ever eat when it was melted on a slice of pizza, aside from that, it made me sick. Nuts I found were absolutely disgusting because of their awkward consistency and their nutty flavor. The darkest of chocolates used to be a treat only for a special few people. I wasn't one of them, but these days, a piece of 95% to 99% dark chocolate is a treat that I can relish.
Taking a non-ketogenic example here, orange juice.
I love me some orange juice, it's delicious. But not all orange juices are created. A freshly pressed one is nothing but pure bliss and always brings a smile to my face. Going through a super market and seeing tetra packs filled with orange juice made out of concentrated junk meanwhile leaves me sad. It actually has a vastly different and artificial taste that I came to despise. Even though I was loving it when I was younger. These days, I could not stomach putting it into my mouth.
On the other hand, I also found myself to be much more picky about food. As I developed this sense of appreciation, I also wanted to eat food that actually pleased me, both in terms of nutritional value and taste. Processed pre-packaged food has a certain artificial taste to it that I came to despise to the point where I wasn't able to enjoy certain things that gave me a good time before.
I also started to monitor my emotions while eating food and found that I have a much more objective outlook on the topic. Food for many is a topic related to lifestyle, fulfillment and what not. But at the end of the day, it is a topic about nourishment, sustaining one-self.
After the first days of extended fasting, I was very concious of this fact which helped me go through the process of making fasting part of my personal lifestyle even to this day. This feeling of objectivity has been lost to me to some extend which lead to me saying "yes" to junk food more often than I would have otherwise, but I am looking forward to get back to that point.
Sport is of course highly beneficial for topics like these, but that is a topic for another day.
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