Feeling tired and weak?
Perhaps you were buried in your workload and didn’t notice the time.
You look at the clock and what?!?
It’s 4 hours passed your lunch time!
And you remember that you haven’t eaten anything since last night because you were
too tired to make anything and just went to bed.
You make the excuse to yourself that you’re on a diet anyway, and this is a good way to
accelerate it.
Stop right there.
The reality is, it’s a big NO!
Intermittent fasting, low carbohydrates, water therapy and keto: these are just to name a
few of the most trendy diet plans right now.
Apart from a million ways to go about it, there are a lot of reasons why a person would
restrict their eating habits.
The most common ones would be to look good and feel good.
For whatever the reason, deciding to suddenly starve yourself will never be worth it.
Even just for a day.
Yes, not even for a day!
And here’s why.
Food is being used by our body as a source of energy.
Once you take that first bite, different body parts start to play their role in digesting
the food.
It starts with the saliva in your mouth, which helps with chewing and swallowing.
It’ll then pass through your throat and esophagus.
Next, it’ll end up in your stomach.
This is where food is being churned and mixed with acid and enzymes, which breaks it down
before it moves on.
Hence, when the food leaves this small, sac shaped organ, it’ll be more or less in the
form of liquid.
After that, it’ll go to the small intestine.
Here’s where our pancreas, liver and gallbladder will be put in action too.
Our friendly oblong shaped organ, the pancreas, secretes substances which break down the food
into protein, carbohydrates and fats.
The liver plays an important part too!
It acts as a purifier of blood that comes from the intestine, which is already carrying
the nutrients.
Below the liver is where the gallbladder sits.
This pear shaped organ stores and secretes a greenish yellow fluid which helps in breaking
down fats.
It’ll then move to the large Intestine.
Our colon is a 5 to 6 foot-long tube of muscles where water is absorbed, and waste and leftover
food will be stored after being digested until the time that it exits our body through the
rectum in the form of stool.
Once your stomach becomes empty, it releases a hormone called ghrelin.
This is the hormone that tells your body that you’re hungry and that you need to eat.
Another hormone, which is equally important to keep in mind, is leptin.
This one is the total opposite of the first.
Leptin is the one that sends signals to your brain, telling you that you’re already full
and should stop eating.
Now you know who to blame when you still want to take a slice of that cake, but unfortunately,
you’re just too full to do it.
So, the cycle goes like this: when you’re eating, leptin will be produced to tell you
when you’re done.
While you’re fasting, digestion is still taking place and nutrients are being distributed
through your blood flow.
But while this process is happening, ghrelin slowly starts to build up until the very last
bite of food has been digested, and your body finally starts telling you that you’re starving.
The intervals of meals depend on how you usually go about your day, and the quantity of food
you eat.
Some people might go for at least 7-8 hours in between larger meals, and some eat more
often, but in smaller portions.
So this is how your body usually performs when you take in food at regular intervals:
It’ll be digesting it for you to get the nutrients that turn into energy, which you
need in order to perform your daily tasks.
Usually about 60-70% of our energy comes from fat.
This process keeps your body healthy and full of energy.
Another important detail that needs to be kept in mind is how sensitive our body is
to insulin production.
Insulin is what regulates our blood sugar, which is essential for you to survive and
stay alive.
Having low blood sugar will make you feel dizzy and light headed, while having a high
level of blood sugar may cause you to have headaches, blurry eyesight, or to feel fatigued.
The symptoms of these two may differ and vary in individuals, but both of them, in the worst
case scenario, can be fatal.
Yes, I can read your mind: finding a balance is, indeed, very important!
Imagine that, considering how your body functions, one day you just stop eating.
Instead of the normal production of glucose in your blood, it’ll start creating it out
of amino acids.
Now, what if you don’t have enough amino acids?
It’ll then turn to proteins with the hope of having enough for energy production.
And yes, all of these nutrients are coming from the food that you take in.
Lastly, if what you ate didn’t have enough protein, your body will just use your muscles.
Also, when you don’t eat, the sugar level in your blood decreases, and the usual response
of our brilliant body is to ask either fatty acids, or our old friend, amino acids, to
be converted into sugar.
Your body is desperately trying to use every bit of resources that you have left and turn
them into energy, just so you can carry on with your activities.
This is the reason why you lose some weight when you don’t eat.
Think it’s a good idea, since you didn’t have to do anything heavy, like cardio exercise,
and yet, you’re still losing weight?
Still a no.
Always remember that our muscles are what we use for our physical activities.
If your body is in starvation mode and starts feasting on muscles, you can definitely expect
a little difficulty in moving.
Need I say more?
Also, if this continues, there are a lot of other effects that you may not like.
Your skin may start to break out, your hair may start to fall, and even your breath can
start to have a foul odor.
This is what happens when you change the way your body functions rapidly.
You might have heard some stories about fasting being the key to losing weight, and there
are a lot of success stories to back it up.
No doubt, there are some cases where a person can go on without eating for 3 to 4 days,
but take note that this wasn’t accomplished overnight.
A gradual fast may help, until your body starts to adapt and work in the way that you prefer.
So, if you decide you really want to try fasting for an entire day, don’t just act on an
impulse and try it all of a sudden.
This could shock your body and may be dangerous for you.
Jumping into a long-term fast can make you feel weak, tired, grumpy and irritated.
Sometimes, a nasty headache will annoy you as well.
Your body isn’t used to you not taking in that burger that you’ve been drooling over
for a couple of days now.
So go ahead and give in.
And if you’re actually trying to lose some weight, you can still do so through a lot
of different, safer methods, that are a bit less dramatic and harsh than fasting; pick
the one that suits you best, and that you think you can actually stick to.
It’d be best to get some advice from a medical expert if you’re not sure which path to
take.
But don’t just starve yourself for a whole 24 hours or more.
Make sure that you’re on a program that’ll still sustain those nutrients you need, while
healthily losing the extra fats you take in.
(And yes, healthily IS a word in the dictionary.)
And as always, you’re beautiful in whatever size you're comfortable with.
How about you?
Have you tried not eating for 24 hours?
How did you feel about it?
If not, would you ever consider doing so?
Let me know down in the comments!
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Stay on the Bright Side of life!