As I'm writing this, I'm 16 hours into a 24 hour fast.  48 hours is even better but I figured I'll keep it small.  It's hard enough trying for 24. 

Let me start out by saying I'm NOT doing this for weight loss.  I will lose weight inevitably, but that's not why I occasionally do these. I try to detox just to give my digestive system and liver a break.

I've read plenty of literature about how they don't work to lose weight because it slows down your metabolism and you go into 'starvation' mode. I agree and believe that.  When you're done, you gain it all back.  So, it's not a weight loss tool.  Plus, what you lose is mostly water.

I've even read that they're dangerous for you and can do more harm than good and all that jazz but for me, I benefit from them and always have.  So, I don't care what 'they' say.  I feel great after a solid detox.  It's liberating and breaks you, if even temporarily, from our addictions to processed, unhealthy foods.

They make me feel refreshed, clean, renewed and sharp.  My mind clears up a bit at the end of it and my body feels like I gave it a rest to regenerate.  I mean, think about how much digesting our poor systems do ALL DAY, EVERY DAY.  It's a lot.  Put it this way, by the time you're ready to eat your next meal, your system is still digesting the yesterday's breakfast!

Our ancestors didn't get 3 square meals a day so they often had to do involuntary detoxes.  Now, since the industrial revolution, we never miss a meal, leaving our systems no time to rest.  Our livers are working overtime doing what they're meant to do, removing toxins from the foods/drinks we consume.

When you take 24-48 hour breaks, our bodies can finally catch up and it leaves us totally cleaned out!  It feels great.  All you have to do is fight through just a few hunger attacks and you're in the clear.  Drink plenty of water and keep your fruit/vegetable juice to no more than 48 ounces or so per day. That's it. There's nothing to it.  Stay hydrated and feel the calm that comes while fasting. It's amazing how much time we spend planning our next meals, and eating and then talking about eating just a few hours later. It's never ending. 

And you'll find when you remove eating from your life for even just 24 hours, everything calms down. 

Google it for more info: juice fasting, detox diet, cleanse.  I encourage you to read all the different ways to fast.  Decide if it's right for you. 

Or, go rent the documentary "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead".  I've blogged about juicing before and this is pretty much the same thing. 

Besos. xoxo. Talk soon.