[quote]Charlemagne wrote:
[quote]Fezzik wrote:
[quote]Charlemagne wrote:
]To each his own. I used to feel the same way you did. When I was in the military there were a few times when I went without food for a couple of days. It was horrible, but that was because we were constantly moving and weren’t allowed to eat. It is much different when you make the decision to with hold food from yourself.
I also used to make sure that I ate a huge protein meal every 2-3 hours and ate big. Was I big? Yeah. Was I strong? yeah. Was I bloated, out of shape and unhealthy? Yep.
I became obsessive about eating all the time. My digestion suffered and as a result so too did my overall health.
Interestingly it wasn’t until I read a book by Ori Hofmekler called the “warrior diet” that I began to put things together. The body functions somewhat as an “on” and “off” switch. The more food you put into it (relatively speaking) the less efficient it becomes at utilizing it. Much the same way that bodybuilders are able to pack on incredible amounts of muscle after their contest. The further into a catabolic state you put the body, the greater the anabolic rebound will be.
I’ve seen guys go into Ranger school at 180lbs, come out at 135lbs, and within a month be at 190bs and noticably more muscular than when they went in.
The body needs a break from the constant eating, training, and compulsive idea of getting bigger and stronger. At least, that is just how I feel.[/quote]
Sounds like you went to one extreme with your diet, and now you’re going to the other extreme. The body doesn’t function like an on/off switch. This is really stupid. The body certainly operates in cycles though, so things like deloading weeks are a good idea. Additionally, changing your diet around for a week is also often a good idea. Do you have to fast to do that? NO. (Same reason I think the pulse-fast is a little dumb)
Look, when you fast, your body is going to be releasing a ton of hormones designed to help you survive because you are STARVING. This includes growth hormone and increases in insulin sensitivity along with fat mobilization hormones and cortisol. There’s nothing magical or mystical about it. It’s just a physiological response to a stressor and certainly can’t be considered a “healthy” thing to do.[/quote]
It is what it is. But I am nearly as strong as I was when I weighed 40lbs more. I have been following an intermittant fasting / warrior diet schedule now for 9 months and I am more vascular, dense, and cut then I have ever been. Plus I am not a slave to preparing food throughout the day and worrying about eating.
I still take in a good amount of calories but only at night time, roughly around the hours of 5pm - 10pm. I workout, go home and then slam down massive amounts of calories. It works for me, that’s all I can say, and the digestive problems are a thing of the past. Plus I don’t spend nearly as much as used to on supplements, I only use the staples now…a greens supplement, fish oil, udo’s oil, probiotic and a multi.[/quote]
If you’ve read my posts, you’ll know I like IF. However, I think going a week without food is stupid and is taking the IF thing too far. fasting IS good for you, but there’s a point of diminishing returns where more isn’t better. Fasting 16-20 hours a day is fine, but more is not better. The only people I would ever recommend to fast an entire week is obese people because they have large amounts of stored energy and it would be good for their bodies to kick start fat loss.
