Second 24-hour fast day–let’s do this!

I decided to start my day with a super-charged cup of joe famously known as Bulletproof Coffee. Have you heard of this? Popularized by keto folks, this is not your regular cuppa. Though the recipes vary a bit, Bulletproof Coffee is essentially a cup of strong coffee that’s been blended with heavy cream, clarified butter, coconut oil, and MCT (medium-chain triglyceride) oil, or any combination thereof. While it is not low in calories by any means, it does check the boxes for those following a liquid and/or fat fast and is meant to get someone through those challenging days when your regular java just won’t cut it.

In honor of June’s Diet of the Month, The Complete Guide to Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day, and Extended Fasting by Jason Fung, MD and Jimmy Moore, I decided to test out the version found in their recipe section, which combines 1 cup of coffee with 1-2 tablespoons heavy cream, 1-2 tablespoons butter or ghee (clarified butter), and 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil. I went with the lesser amount of each of those high-fat additions, gave it a good whisking with my Aerolatte, and took a swig.

Oh my word. I know some people are nuts about this stuff but I about gagged on it! Mind you, I am both picky and simple when it comes to my coffee. Just a plain cup with a bit of half and half. For lattes, just give me a plain double. No sugar. No syrups. No whip. Nothing fancy. So I might be the last person who should be reviewing coffee drinks. But seriously. No way. On a more positive note, my husband liked it fine and was willing to drink about half a cup.

Okay, enough of that. Let’s get on with the rest of the day, shall we?

Breakfast: Skipped. Tried Bulletproof Coffee but did not like it. Went with my regular cup with half and half.

Lunch: Skipped. Feeling really hungry and just generally lousy. I had a cup of the pho broth with fresh herbs, which helps for sure.

Afternoon: I was feeling so shaky and fuzzy-headed that I decided to eat around 2:00. I had a chicken apple sausage, half an apple with peanut butter, and a partial serving of Triscuit Thin Crisps.

Dinner: Grilled cheeseburger on a whole wheat bun and mixed green salad with thousand island dressing.

This second fasting day was tough. Adding to the difficulty, however, was the fact that I decided to do one of my regular weight lifting workouts despite the fact that I was fasting.

One of the claims made by Fung in The Complete Guide to Fasting is that while fasting, individuals can still have great workouts and even better energy levels. His rationale is that, when in a food-deprived state, the body has developed natural responses that allow a person to be a better hunter/gatherer and that humans would not have survived famines and other hard times were this not the case. Regardless of whether or not this is true, I certainly did not experience such benefits in my own training and energy levels today. I would say my legs felt weaker while performing squats and I was pretty much worn out for the rest of the day.

As for my nutritional intake for the day, I landed at 1176 calories, 46% from fat, 33% from carbohydrate, and 21% from protein. Typical of this fasting regimen, I continue to consume an amount of calories that would most certainly result in weight loss over time. My fat intake continues to be high with a low percentage from carbs. Oddly enough, however, my weight was up 1 pound today, for a total net loss of 1.8 pounds. Still nothing to sniff at as the week is not yet over and I’ve lost over 1% of my body weight.

We’re getting close to the end of our week-long experience with The Complete Guide to Fasting and it has certainly been eye-opening. I will finish out the week with one more day following the 6:18 eating/fasting schedule and one last 24-hour fast. Tomorrow I will be sharing a recipe for Cheesy Cauliflower that promises to be both tasty and satisfying when Mac n’ Cheese is off the menu–we shall see!!

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