Is fasting causing you to lose your hair? This article provides insight for those of you that are experiencing hair loss while living a fasting focused lifestyle.

Hair Loss and Minerals

Healthy hair follicles need a balance of these 7 vitamins and minerals present in the body: Vitamin A, Vitamin B, Vitamin C, vitamin E, Iron, Selenium and Zinc. When these nutrients are out of balance, hair loss can occur. Why might your nutrient balance be off? It usually comes down to one of two things: 

1. A mineral deficiency in the body, where you’re not getting enough of the 7 essential nutrients, whether through foods or supplementation.
2. Or, it’s an issue of toxicity in the body, where you’re actually getting the right nutrients, but the nutrients are unable to enter the cells because toxins are blocking the cell receptor sites.

Hair Loss and Mineral Deficiency

What if you’re eating all the right foods, could you still be mineral deficient? The answer to that question is, yes. Since the early 1900’s, our soils have become progressively more and more depleted of vital minerals and trace minerals necessary for optimal plant, animal and human health. This is due to things like chemical spraying and single crop farming practices. Remember plants cannot manufacture minerals, so if any mineral is not in the soil where the plant is grown, it’s not in the plant no matter how good of a reputation that plant has for a particular mineral. I highly recommend you watch the documentary, Kiss the Ground for more on why our soils are failing, and why this is a serious issue for humanity. 

In parallel to the issue with our soils, we are also living in the most toxic time in history. Toxins like pesticides, glyphosate, heavy metals, and plastics are ever present in our environment, homes and workplaces. When these toxins enter the body, they clog up the cell’s receptor sites. Receptor sites are an opening in the cell wall that is essential for allowing hormones, information and nutrients to enter. If these sites are blocked by toxins, it doesn’t matter how well you eat, or how many quality supplements you take, nothing is getting in.

Supplementing with IonBiome can help fortify the gut lining, to strengthen the gut’s barrier function from toxins you ingest, preventing toxins from entering the body in the first place.

So…..Could your hair loss be from fasting?

Well, yes AND no. It may seem like fasting is the cause, but in actuality fasting will help lead you to the deeper underlying issue. If you are autophagy fasting regularly, which means 16-18 hours, you may experience hair loss. Here’s why…We love autophagy fasting because it turns on the intelligence of the cells, which allows the cells to repair themselves; However, there are two things to keep in mind about autophagy fasting. First, autophagy won’t work on heavy metal toxicity or synthetic chemicals, only organic matter. Second, autophagy can stimulate something called apoptosis, which is where the intelligence of the cells decides to kill certain unhealthy cells, aka “cell death”. When this happens, the toxins from those cells will look for another cell to attach to. When toxins are circulating around like this, it can feel unpleasant.

So, while autophagy fasting can accelerate hair loss, it is only because there is an underlying issue of either mineral deficiency and/or a high toxic load. This does not mean you should stop fasting, but it does mean there may be more for you to uncover in your health journey. 

Also, hair loss can be more common in people who have thyroid issues. The thyroid is often the “canary in the coal mine” for patients. It is a warning sign that you might have mineral deficiency and/or a high toxic load, at the root cause of your thyroid condition. Once patiences address the toxicity issue, the thyroid issue usually clears up on its own. 

Here’s what you should do:

Solution 1: Up your vitamins and minerals.

We like using MIN by Systemic Formulas, especially when doing longer fasts. You can also add pink salt to your diet for added minerals. Not all salts are the same, which is why I like this one.

Solution 2: Look at your toxic load.

As I mentioned, toxicity is often the underlying root cause of cell dysfunction, which is leading to hair loss. Take Dr. Mindy’s ARE YOU TOXIC QUIZ here. Testing your heavy metal load is the best way of finding out whether heavy metals are at issue for you. This can be done with a Heavy Metal Test, specifically detect the presence of toxins that can cause hair loss, such as lead, cadmium and thallium. 

If you find that toxicity is an issue, we recommend doing a deep detox like Dr. Mindy’s 90-Day Toxin Reset that will go deep into the cells, pull out the toxins and remove them from the body. 

Solution 3: Work on diet variation.

We often have a preference for specific fasts, our favorite fast, and find ourselves sticking to that fast over and over. However our bodies thrive from hormesis, a biological phenomenon whereby a you can improve health, growth or longevity through small stressors on the body, such as changing your fasting style. When we switch between shorter and longer fasting periods, the body begins to learn how to adapt and in turn, create better health. 

Original article credit: Dr. Mindy Pelz: “Are You Struggling with Hair Loss When Fasting?” Click here for the YouTube video where she explains WHY you may be losing hair while fasting and what you can do about it!

Explore more info about fasting in our Fasting Hub!

The post Could Fasting be the Cause of your Hair Loss? appeared first on That Green Lyfe.

For starters, if you’d like to review a full breakdown on what happens to your body during a extended fasting, click here .

Here’s Why Tea and Extended Fasting are the Perfect Match

1. Helps increase satiety

It’s pretty normal to experience hunger pangs during intermittent and extended fasting.

Hunger pangs occur simply because our bodies have adapted to expecting food at certain times during the day.

So, how do we get around this hunger pang phenomenon if the goal is to experience the benefits of fasting?

The answer? TEA! It’s more than just something to sip when you’re thirsty. Green tea catechins have been proven to support healthy ghrelin levels.

Ok, so what the heck is ghrelin?

Ghrelin is a hormone known as the “hunger hormone,” and it is the main culprit of those hunger pangs. Furthermore, many of us experience lifestyle, environmental and biological stressors that can lead to a hormone imbalance which can actually set off hunger pangs that have NOTHING to do with a true need to eat.

Mind blowing, right?! I know.

One of the key components of adapting to intermittent and extended fasting is normalizing ghrelin levels. The body will eventually adjust to it’s new feeding schedule–meaning, minimal discomfort..

2. Supports calm energy

Compared to coffee, green tea has much less caffeine and it contains L-theanine, which has relaxing and anti-anxiety effects. It relaxes the mind without drowsiness and focus without the jitters. So, if you’re addicted to coffee then switching over to green tea may help you to still get a small boost in wakefulness without making you anxious.

L-theanine: An amino acid that promotes a state of calm, focused awareness. It is also known to support a state of mindfulness.

It’s no wonder why monks have been using tea for centuries to support their fasts and meditations!

3. Supports cell health

What makes tea such a unique beverage is the polyphenols contained in tea leaves.

Polyphenols are antioxidants that battle free radicals found in your body.

Ingesting polyphenols can help you support gut health and digestion, healthier skin, sustained energy, improved mental focus, and much more!

Drinking tea just might be one of the simplest (and most delicious) ways to get a high concentration of polyphenols into your diet on a daily basis.

Tea Can Promote Autophagy!

Tea can boost the effectiveness of intermittent/extended fasting by turning on autophagy faster.

Autophagy: “Auto” means self and “phagy” means eat. So, the literal meaning of autophagy is “self-eating.” Autophagy is an evolutionary self-preservation mechanism through which the body can remove the dysfunctional cells and recycle parts of them toward cellular repair and cleaning. It is recycling and cleaning at the same time, just like hitting a reset button to your body. Plus, it promotes survival and adaptation as a response to various stressors and toxins accumulated in our cells.

Did you know that there are many compounds in beverages that don’t break a fast or stop autophagy but actually INCREASE it? For example, the polyphenols in coffee can stimulate autophagy, but so do certain teas! Note: I recommend cycling off caffeine on a regular basis to allow your body to become re-sensitized.

The best teas that promote autophagy

If you’d like to get tea blends that have been specifically designed for people who do intermittent fasting, then check out Pique Tea. They have a variety of autophagy-boosting blends without artificial flavorings, fillers or sweeteners.

#1 Green Tea

Green tea has a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine and other parts of the world. It’s made from the leaves of Camelia sinensis and has been shown to have many health benefits, including anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anti-carcinogenic properties.

EGCG (Epigallocatechin gallate) is the main polyphenol in green tea that’s been shown to stimulate autophagy in vascular endothelial cells as well as upon endoplasmic reticulum stress. It also reduces lipid accumulation, risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and bacterial infections. All of those benefits are primarily mediated by autophagy. (Source: Siim Land)

Green tea increases metabolic rate similar to coffee but only by up to 4% compared to the 11% of coffee. Green tea extract can raise rates of fat oxidation by 17% and insulin sensitivity by 13% for 24 hours.

#2 Matcha Tea

Both matcha and green tea come from the same plant, but matcha bushes are covered from sunlight about 20-30 days before harvest. This increases their chlorophyll levels, making the leaves look darker, and promotes the production of amino acids.

Instead of brewing the leaves, they’re ground into matcha powder and consumed with the brew. This way you’re ingesting more of the antioxidants and polyphenols, creating a more potent effect.

To reach the optimal dose for the health benefits you need about 100 mg-s of EGCG. 

A cup of regular green tea has about 80-86 mg-s, but matcha has over 130 mg-s per cup. Matcha also has over 10 times more L-theanine and 130 times more antioxidants because you’re also consuming the powder.

Here’s what I recommend:

Pique Matcha Green Fasting Tea

Featuring the world’s best ceremonial grade matcha. Secret weapon to conquer the mental challenge of fasting. A mug full of zen.

So, does Matcha Tea break a fast because you’re consuming the leaves?

A cup of regular green tea has 2-3 calories. Matcha tea is said to be 2-3 calories per gram and on average you’ll end up using about 1-1/2 tsp of matcha powder per cup of tea. That’ll give you 6-10 calories per cup, which probably isn’t enough to break a fast. The polyphenols in the tea itself will also counterbalance those calories by stimulating autophagy. So, matcha tea will NOT break a fast unless you end up drinking more than 2 cups at once.

If you can’t make up your mind about which one to get, then check out Pique Tea’s Fasting Tea Power Bundle. It includes regular green tea with ginger and matcha green tea. The packets can mix with both cold and hot water and you can travel with them quite easily.

#3 Citrus Bergamot

Bergamot or Citrus bergamia is one of the main compounds in black tea. It gives Earl Grey tea it’s distinct and unique flavor.

Bergamot oil is extracted from citrus fruit, primarily bergamot oranges. It has anxiolytic, analgesic and neuroprotective properties. Studies show bergamot oil aromatherapy can reduce anxiety, stress, and mood disorders.

Most conventional black and Earl Grey teas don’t have the antioxidants and polyphenols because they’ve been replaced with artificial flavorings and peels from other citrus. That’s why you would want to read the label and see what the actual ingredients are.

Pique Tea has both Green Tea Bergamot as well as Black Tea Bergamot. You can also get them as a bundle:

Try the Bermagot Fasting Tea Bundle

#4 Herbal Tea

There are dozens of different kinds of herbal teas like jasmine, chamomile, peppermint, echinacea, etc. They all have (practically) no calories and probably won’t break a fast. If anything, they’ll actually BOOST autophagy.

• Echinacea tea strengthens the immune system and fights infections.
• Chamomile tea helps with relaxation and sleep.
• Peppermint tea can alleviate symptoms of digestion problems.
• Ginger tea fights nausea, constipation and digestion problems.
• Turmeric has strong anti-inflammatory properties.
• Ginseng stabilizes blood sugar levels and promotes hormonal health.
• Hibiscus tea has been shown to lower hypertension and lipids.
• Rooibos tea can lower oxidative stress and blood pressure
• Lemon balm tea has been shown to improve elasticity of the arteries
• Rosehip tea will lower inflammation and pain

None of these teas break a fast and they’ll help the body’s autophagic processes in some way as well. While there are no specific studies on autophagy, they’ll at least help to fight inflammation and infections, which then gives you more resources to go through autophagy at other regions.

Affiliate Disclosure: Please note, the links found in this article are affiliate links, so if you purchase any of these items through the links on this page, I make a small commission that is used to help keep That Green Lyfe up and running. I only link to products I personally use and support and if you purchase through my links, you have my sincere thanks!

The post Achieve your Extended Fasting Goals with Tea! appeared first on That Green Lyfe.

First Thing’s First, Avoid Rookie Mistakes

If you’re doing intermittent fasting, then you need to avoid all caloric intake for a certain period of time. You can’t eat food, drink juices, have desserts or snacks.

Once your body enters a fasted state, your physiology shifts into mild ketosis, which increases fat burning and reduces appetite.

So, the longer you fast, the deeper into ketosis you get and the easier it gets. There’s not much difference in terms of your hunger levels between fasting for 48 hours vs fasting for 5 days because your body adapts very quickly to the abstinence of calories.

Nevertheless, there are still some additional beverages you can drink during your fast that won’t break the fast.

These drinks can actually boost the effectiveness of your fast because they promote cellular detoxification, cleansing of the gut and ketosis. Here they are:

#1 Pink Salt

Sodium is important for energy production, electrolyte balance, helps to maintain blood pressure, helps to fire nerve impulses. Deficiencies in sodium can cause muscle cramping, brain fog, fatigue, water retention, and even insulin resistance. It can also create binge eating after breaking a fast because the body is depleted of essential nutrients.

Click here to Buy Pink Himalayan Salt

See: Homemade Electrolyte Drink for Extended Fasting

#2 Spring Water (mineral water)

You can drink regular water, sparkling water, and mineral water (Perrier). The reason you’d want to drink spring/mineral water is that when you’re fasting, you’re flushing out a lot of water and this may lead to electrolyte imbalances and mineral deficiencies.

To prevent that, you can simply add a pinch of sea salt or Pink Himalayan sea salt to your water. Also, consuming ionized rock salt will give you some iodine as well, which promotes thyroid functioning and prevents hypothyroidism.

Click here to Buy Spring Water

#3 Baking Soda

You might be using baking soda only for cooking, but it has other health benefits as well.

• It helps with digestive issues
• Relieves constipation and bloating
• Kills parasites and bad bacteria
• Reduces fatigue and muscle soreness
• Neutralizes the acidity in the gut
• Helps to balance pH levels in the body
• You can consume a teaspoon of baking soda in your water to boost your physical performance and overall health.

When you’re fasting, it’s important to keep your electrolytes in check because you tend to flush out some water and minerals.

Baking soda consists of 100% sodium bicarbonate, which is great for getting some sodium while your fasting but, to be honest, it tastes quite bad so it can also be used to prevent hunger. After you drink it you really don’t want to be consuming anything else and you’ll happily continue your fast.

Click here to Buy Baking Soda

#4 Herbal Teas

• Herbal teas taste great and they can be used to stave off hunger while fasting. However, they also have some detoxifying and other medicinal benefits.
• Chamomile is known to calm an upset stomach and help with sleep
• Peppermint improves digestion, reduces inflammation and muscle pain
• Jasmine strengthens the immune system, prevents diabetes and lowers cholesterol
• Green tea is considered the healthiest drink in the world after water. It has a lot of polyphenols, which promote heart and brain health. The small amount of caffeine also boosts fat burning.

• Black tea is enriched with compounds that benefit heart, digestion and stress levels.
• There are maybe 1-5 calories in a cup of tea, but it’s not enough to kick you out of a fasted state. However, don’t brew teas with fruit, berries or other types of seasoning that have carbohydrates in them. That sugar will most likely stop the beneficial effects of autophagy.

#5 Coffee

The easiest and most effective way of suppressing hunger while fasting is to drink coffee. Caffeine gives you a jolt of energy and increases your focus while boosting fat burning.

At the same time, coffee has other health benefits, such as better blood sugar regulation, high polyphenol count and lowered risk of Alzheimer’s disease. So, it’s an amazing enhancer for the brain and mitochondria.

To not get kicked out of a fasted state, you want to be drinking black coffee. If you add a pinch of cinnamon or Stevia, then you may accidentally kick yourself out of a fasted state but small amounts – like a few milligrams – won’t have any significant effect on fasting. Instant coffee mixers tend to also have added substances that will kick you out of a fasted state.

Do consider the amount of caffeine you consume. You shouldn’t drink any more than 2-4 cups of coffee a day because it leads to caffeine intolerance and higher cortisol levels. Stress can kick you out of ketosis but it can also make you more catabolic while fasting. Decaf, however, is potentially unlimited, although there is some caffeine in it as well.

What About Bulletproof Coffee While Fasting?

Which brings me to the question of: Can you add butter to your coffee while fasting Bulletproof style?

It’s true that pure fat like butter, coconut oil, or MCT oil, won’t raise blood sugar and this can keep you in a semi-fasted state. The fat won’t cross the blood-brain barrier, making your mind think that it hasn’t actually eaten anything.

However, this will most likely block the process of autophagy. Even just as little as 50 calories puts you into a fed state and stops the cells from self-digesting themselves.

This is not necessarily a bad thing as you’ll get energy and stay in ketosis but you’ll be missing out on some of the detox health benefits.

Here you have to think about why you’re doing intermittent fasting for.

• If you’re doing fasting for weight loss purposes and adding butter or MCT oil to your coffee helps you to make it through the fast then go for it. However, do remember that you’ll still need to consume fewer calories and putting an entire stick of butter into your cup will give you at least a thousand calories.
• If you’re fasting to thoroughly clean your body from toxic proteins and inflammation, then I’d advise you to not consume anything at all and do strict water fasting with mineral water with these salts and teas.

Click here to Buy Black Coffee

#6 Artificial Sweeteners

Which brings me to another question: Can you consume artificial sweeteners while fasting?

The answer is: It depends – It depends on what type of sweetener you’re using, why you’re doing intermittent fasting for and how does your body individually reacts to them.

A lot of sweeteners have carbs in them, like maltodextrin, dextrose or sucralose – avoid them, no objections there.

Natural sweeteners like Stevia are shown to not raise insulin or blood sugar, which makes them okay to be consumed.

However, you’d still have to be aware of how you specifically respond to Stevia. Although Stevia doesn’t have calories, it’s 300 times sweeter than table sugar and this can cause a placebo-like insulin response. Your taste buds get stimulated by the sweetness and you’ll get kicked out of a fasted state – the mind is that powerful.

To be sure, I would avoid all sweeteners while fasting because… I mean, it’s not a big deal but if you do want to try them then you’d have to test and experiment.

Click here to Buy Stevia

#7 Rose Water

 It’s refreshing and aids the digestive system without breaking your fast!

• Drinking rose water, especially when combined with saffron, reduces the impulse to eat.
• Drinking rose water helps cool down in the summer heat.
• The most important benefit of drinking rose water is that it contains a lot of vitamins: A, C, D, E, and B3.
• Rose water also contains tannins, citric acid and zinc.

A special mention should be made regarding Ayurveda: rose water has been used in Ayurveda medicine for centuries. It is believed to balance the subdosha of Pitta dosha that determines the emotions, which can dysfunction especially in summer and result in mood swings, and digesting problems. Drinking rose water cools down the emotions and the digestive fire.

Click here to Buy Rose Water

#8 Hot Morning Elixir

You know what? This is the sort of drink that I like to begin my day with and sometimes sip on up until my first meal of the day around 10:30am (I practice 18/6 intermmitent fasting). It really curves the hunger pangs if they every come about! Instead of 1.5 cups of water, I dilute all the ingredients into approximately a half-gallon jug and sip on it cold or at room temperature.

In efforts to NOT disturb your fasted state, use ONLY a pinch of cinnamon.

Click here for the Hot Morning Elixir Recipe

#9 Apple Cider Vinegar

A great drink for fasting is apple cider vinegar because of its anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory compounds. It’s acidic but it actually helps to balance your body’s pH levels.

There are practically no calories in apple cider vinegar but it has other minerals such as potassium, some magnesium, and iron. This is perfect for fasting because you’ll be able to keep your electrolytes in check and prevent deficiencies.

Apple cider vinegar kills off bad bacteria in your gut and it staves off hunger. It can be added to sparkling water to make a nice tasty beverage.

To ensure you’re not stopping autophagy, I wouldn’t recommend you consume any more than 1-2 tablespoons of ACV at a time.

You can drink it during your fast but it’s also great for breaking your fast. In that case, add some squeezed lemon juice to promote the creation of digestive enzymes and to prepare the gut for eating. I wouldn’t add lemon juice during your fast because it can have the same placebo effect.

Click here to Buy Apple Cider Vinegar

What Can You Drink While Fasting
Without Breaking Your Fast?
(Cheat Sheet)

Pink Salt

Spring Water

Buy Now

Baking Soda

Buy Now

Herbal Teas

Buy Now

Coffee

Buy Now

Artificial Sweeteners

Buy Now

Rose Water

Buy Now

Hot Morning Elixir

Buy Now

Apple Cider Vinegar

Buy Now

See our Medical Disclaimer

Article info Source: Siim Land

The post 9 Drinks You Can Have Without Breaking Your Fast appeared first on That Green Lyfe.

If you’re feeling sluggish, getting muscle cramps, or performing poorly while fasting, there’s a good chance you’re low on electrolytes. If you are experiencing all those symptoms, it’s more likely that you’ll cut your fast short.  This zero calorie electrolyte drink makes extended fasts more bearable.

Electrically-charged minerals (electrolytes) are important because they help your heart beat, your muscles contract, and your brain cells communicate.

I personally love to add electrolytes to my water when I’m doing extended fasts. They help to reduce the uncomfortable side effects of fasting allowing me to “hang in there” much longer.

So, what does this electrolyte drink entail?

Sodium and Potassium (chloride)

Now, although there are other important main electrolytes like calcium, phosphate, chloride, and bicarbonate. Sodium and potassium and magnesium (I’ll touch on magnesium later) are the ones that people are most likely deficient in. Here’s why they’re important:

Sodium

Sodium is important for energy production, electrolyte balance, helps to maintain blood pressure, helps to fire nerve impulses. Deficiencies in sodium can cause muscle cramping, brain fog, fatigue, water retention, and even insulin resistance. It can also create binge eating after breaking a fast because the body is depleted of essential nutrients.

I recommend using pink salt as sodium source during fasting.

Potassium

Deficiencies in potassium can weaken muscle contraction, cause arrhythmia, and impair insulin production. Low potassium activates calcium signaling which results in excessive autophagy leading to calcification. This is why you should try to eat as many potassium rich vegetables as you can during your eating window to ensure that you get enough potassium.

I recommend using “No-Salt” as a source of potassium (chloride) during fasting.

If your electrolyte levels become unbalanced, you may experience muscle cramps, low energy, headaches, irritability, and neurological symptoms. These side effects can easily occur during a fast.

Why does fasting deplete electrolytes

There are a plethora of things that can deplete electrolyte levels: drinking over the amount of water you need (water intoxication), vomiting, diarrhea, sweating, low-carb diets, and fasting…yes…fasting. But, this process isn’t so straight forward

When insulin levels are low, you pee out more sodium. And no dietary protocol (not even a ketogenic diet) lowers insulin more than fasting.

During a fast, low insulin levels are great for burning fat, but awful for retaining adequate sodium levels.

What are the benefits of adding electrolytes while fasting?

Any fast over 12 hours increases the likelihood of electrolyte deficiency. There are two main reasons for this:

-Food (especially plant matter) is the main source of every electrolyte except sodium. When you fast, you cut off your supply.
-Fasting lowers insulin levels. As a result, your kidneys start expelling sodium, potassium, and water in great amounts.

Taking electrolytes during a fast can prevent deficiency. These are some of the benefits:

You have more energy

You have more energy from increased salt intake.

Lower weight rebound

If you step on the scale a couple days into a fast, you’ll likely see a lower number than expected. Most of this is water loss. When you fast, your body breaks apart glycogen (stored sugar) to meet your brain’s ravenous glucose needs. This process, called glycogenolysis, releases torrents of water which you subsequently pee out. Water is heavy, and your body weight decreases accordingly.

When you break your fast and start eating again, glycogen reforms and the weight comes roaring back. “Sodium supplementation dampens this effect, reducing the post-fasting weight gain to only 39% of the original amount lost.”

Increased exercise performance

During exercise, you lose sodium through sweat. Combine this with fasting-induced sodium loss and you have a strong case for supplementation. Increasing electrolyte intake can give you much needed gas in your tank during fasting.

Prevents Hyponatremia

Low sodium, or hyponatremia, is a dangerous and sometimes fatal condition that afflicts about 15% athletes–according to a source. The root cause is bad “drink more water” advice. Athletes end up guzzling fluids beyond the dictates of thirst and end up diluting blood sodium levels.

Hyponatremia can be reversed by drinking a saline, or a salt water solution. So if you’re only drinking water—but not consuming electrolytes—during a fast, you may end up with low sodium symptoms.

What about the Magnesium mentioned earlier?

Magnesium–another essential daily electrolyte. It supports muscle function, mood, and bone health. At least 300-400 mg magnesium will meet basic requirements and can also help you relax during a fast (these numbers differ for men and women). This comes in handy when you go to bed hungry.

Personal Preference: I do NOT add Magnesium in with my electrolyte drink because I take it at night during extended fasts as it helps with sleep.

I take it in the form of Magnesium Citrate found in this Calm supplement. It contains 350g of Magnesium Citrate per serving. It is said that “men ages 19 to 30 should take 400 milligrams (mg) a day, while men over age 30 should take 420 mg. Women up to 50 years of age should take 310 mg a day.

For more info on fasting, you’ll likely find these articles useful:

What Happens to your Body During a Water Fast

The Ultimate Health Benefits of Fasting

How to Naturally Balance Hormones w/ Fasting

Achieve Your Extended Fasting Goals with Tea!

The Ultimate Vegan Keto Shopping List

Get Into Ketosis Faster with these 6 Hacks

————————————

Please See Medical Disclaimer

Affiliate Disclosure: Please note, the links found in this article are affiliate links, so if you purchase any of these items through the links on this page, I make a small commission that is used to help keep That Green Lyfe up and running. I only link to products I personally use and support and if you purchase through my links, you have my sincere thanks!

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Homemade Electrolyte Drink For Extended Fasting

Incorporating electrolytes into your fasting regime can prevent discomfort and even boost overall your energy. I like it when that happens. Don't you? Here's an electrolyte drink you can sip on.

Keyword Electrolytes, Extended fasting, fasting

Total Time 2 minutes

Servings 1 serving

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon Pink Himalayan Salt
• 1 teaspoon Potassium Chloride
• 1 Liter Spring Water

Instructions

• Mix all ingredients up and sip throughout the day when fasting. This recipe makes 1 serving of electrolyte drink. DRINK NO MORE THAN 2 SERVINGS PER DAY. If you have already drank 2 servings of this recipe, feel free to drink plain spring water.
• IMPORTANT: Please further educate yourself on fasting–the potential dangers, the ultimate benefits, scientific studies, etc. Listen to your body at all times. If you feel that you are experiencing a medical emergency, immediately call 911.

The post Homemade Electrolyte Drink for Extended Fasting appeared first on That Green Lyfe.

Whether you’re currently fasting or heavily considering a fast, this info will be a source of inspo- to push you along your journey. Find out what happens to your body during a water fast.*

Let’s face it, when you’re in the thick of a fast, it’s nice to go back the to science of things to drive you forward if things get tough (as they may). Going back to the science of fasting can also serve as a reminder as to why the heck you’re fasting in the first place!

Here is a breakdown on what happens to your body during a fast–from the moment you begin your fast, up to 4 days:

Before we dive in, it’s best you understand how intelligent your body is and how it is ALWAYS working to heal you…

This healing process is interrupted when we eat. Our body’s intelligence has to shift it’s priorities to digesting food. What does this mean? Let’s put this into perspective: when we are constantly eating throughout the day, our body’s internal intelligence system will always be looking to tackle immediate situations like digestion. So, if the only time we aren’t eating is when we are sleeping, our bodies only have about 6-10 hours to work on healing itself. Depending on the time you stopped eating before bed, most of what will be happening during your sleep time would be digestion.

Now, let’s take food OUT of the Equation

Take food out the equation and therein lies a whole world of chemical reactions that will occur in your body. Cease from eating, sit back and just watch what your body does.

Here’s what happens when you begin eating the last meal before your fast:

Your body will receive an insulin spike. The size of insulin spike depends on the amount of protein or carb you’re having in that meal. If it’s high-protein, high-carb you’re going to get a really big insulin spike. It will take about 8-10 hours for that insulin and glucose to start to come down. If you’re eating a lower sugar, carb, or protein meal, your insulin spike will no be as high and will begin to come down a lot quicker.

Cheat code: If the last meal before your fast was a low carb/protein/sugar meal, you will encounter all of the benefits of fasting much quicker!

The Moment you Stop Eating…

It typically takes about 8-12 hours after your last meal to fully enter a fasted state.  

12-13 hours of Fasting:

Growth hormone (GH) kicks in. In fact, research shows that you get a boost of about 1300% just from 12-13 hours of fasting.

Growth hormone is really important because it helps us burn fat, build muscle, and slows down the aging process. It’s also important to note that it begins to decline because once we hit the age of 30.

13-15 hours of Fasting

The body starts to sense that no more food is coming. It will begin to transition from burning the energy from sugar, to burning fat for fuel. If you’re looking to lose weight with fasting, this is the switch/transition that you’re trying to make happen.

The way that your body lets you know that this switch has happened is by an increase in ketones. Ketones are healing. The more ketones your body has, the more healing is taking place in the brain, and in the cells of your body.

17 hours of Fasting

By this time, you are well into the fasting “sweet spot”. Autophagy begins to kick in. Autophagy is when the cells of your body notices that your blood sugar is going down and there is no food coming in, so they (the cells) find food elsewhere. Where is elsewhere? Within the cell itself. This is called cellular detoxification. It can continue long and strong up until the 72 hour mark of a fasting (according to research). After the 72 hour mark, autophagy does continue, just at a slower, steady pace.

Here’s a summary of what’s going in the body thus far. Growth hormone is switched on. Autophagy is turned on. Plus, the body is learning to become “Fat-Adapted” and will start to make more and more ketones!

[“Fat adapation: a long-term metabolic adjustment to ketosis, a state in which your body burns fat for fuel instead of carbs. Fat adaptation is said to result in decreased cravings, increased energy levels, and improved sleep.”]

At 24 hours of Fasting

There’s so much magic that gets turned on at this point. At the 24 hour mark of fasting, 3 major organs begin to repair and go into an accelerated healing state:

The Gut (Small and Large Intestine): An MIT study states that your intestinal stem cells begin to regenerate after being in a fasted state. This helps with leaky gut, candida, SIBO, or any other digestive issues that you might have. If you keep fasting past 24 hours, those intestinal stem cells will continue to heal and repair.

The Brain: At 24 hours, your body starts to create more BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor) for the brain. BDNF is a like protein fertilizer for the brain. It goes into the brain and REPAIRS degenerating neurons that cause memory loss, brain fog, the inability to focus, depression, anxiety, and trouble with learning.

The cool thing about BDNF is that when it goes up, serotonin levels go up, too! A surge in serotonin is great especially when fasting because it makes you happy!

Inflammation: Also known as CRP levels, inflammation begins to go decrease.

Blood Pressure: Starts to come down.

36- 48 hours of Fasting

At this point, your body has settled with not having any incoming glucose, so it will find sugar that it stored a long long time ago.

If you find it difficult to lose weight, 36 hour fasts may do the trick for you. When you hit this mark during a water fast, you force your body to go and find stored sugar and fat.

Here’s what else is happening during the second day of your fast: Ketones continue to go up. You might begin to feel a little dizzy BUT, as your ketones go up, so will GABA production. GABA produces a feeling of calm. It is normal to feel as though you want to lay down and go to bed throughout the day. If you have the freedom and ability to do so, by all means, lay down and go to sleep.

[“GABA is considered an inhibitory neurotransmitter because it blocks/ inhibits, certain brain signals and decreases activity in your nervous system. When GABA attaches to a protein in your brain known as a GABA receptor, it produces a calming effect.”]

Because you have so much BDNF (still) being released, brain repair is heightened during this time.

Overall, day 2 of a (water) fast can bring on some tough times. You may have waves of uncomfortable feelings throughout your fast.  Allow them to come and go. Feelings of tiredness, dizziness, even headaches, and/or pain in other areas of the body may occur.

They are likely side-effects of your body repairing itself. Repair does not always feel great; so, if you need to, take naps or go to bed early and allow the body to heal itself.

72-120 hours of Fasting

Stem cell production is really starting to kick in. If you’re really fat-adapted you may hit this point early (before the 72 hour mark). Others may need all the way up until the 72 hour mark for the stem cells to really kick in.

According to Walter Longo’s research, the primary stem cells that kick in on the 3rd day are from the immune system. Old, useless white blood cells will be recycled and regenerated 72 hours after the start of a water fast. So, if you’re looking to boost your immune system, a 72-120 hour water fast is the way to go. Keeping the body in a fasted state between 3-5 days is a sure-fire way to enter the land of MAXIMUM stem cell, BDFM, and ketone production.

In summary, the first 3 days of water fast is where all of the (beneficial) chemical reactions are initiated. Fasting beyond 3 days allows you to live in a longer healing state. Listen to your body during a water fast. Use your best judgement when deciding how long you’d like to carry on in this healing state.

Bonus

Because you are not getting that dopamine response from reaching for food while fasting, you, in turn, recalibrate your dopamine receptor sites.

Hang in There

If you’re on day 2 of your water fast, hang in there if you can help it! Go back and read this article from the beginning if you must. Miracles are happening inside of you right now. Be proud because are giving yourself an incredible gift.

Click here to learn about the Ultimate benefits of Fasting.

Click here to learn how you can Naturally Balance your Hormones w/ fasting.

*See Medical Disclaimer

The post What Happens to your Body During a Water Fast appeared first on That Green Lyfe.

The benefits of fasting include weight loss, improved heart health and brain function, even improved blood sugar control. If you have yet to try fasting, I highly recommend it.*

Do you love to eat? Me too! Buuuut sometimes good food and the love of it can possibly take a toll on your health in ways we’d never expect. So how does one maintain or improve their health while maintain their sanity about food? The practice of fasting!

What is Fasting?

Let’s take to Wikipedia shall we!

“Fasting is the willful refrainment from eating for a period of time. In a physiological context, fasting may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight, or to the metabolic state achieved after complete digestion and absorption of a meal.”

Many are skeptical of the benefits of fasting especially after being programmed and conditioned eat constantly throughout the day to “avoid hunger” or to keep the metabolism up -_-. After reading up on studies proving that fasting for short periods of time could help people lose weight, reduce inflammation, and initiate a massive repair response in the body, I was not at all skeptical. I was INTRIGUED.

I used to be big fan of eating six to eight meals a day. But after learning about the benefits of time-restricted eating and the overall benefits and fasting, it would have been practically illegal for me not try it. Now, I live a fasting focused lifestyle; After feeling and seeing my overall improve, I’m never going back!

Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is where you eat all the food you want in a short period of time. My typical intermittent fasting protocol is 18 hours of fasting each day, with a 6 hour eating window. I begin my eating window at 1pm and have my last meal by or before 6pm. Research proves that daily fasting for 15-18 hours provides the best health benefit.

This can be difficult at first, especially if you love breakfast or have grown accustomed to snacking all day. One suggested to start intermittent fasting is to skip the early morning breakfast and have water or tea until lunch time. This may be difficult at first but as you apply intermittent fasting to your daily habits, it will get “easier” and you will likely notice that you are able to go longer periods without food.

Health Benefits of Fasting

So what to the studies say about the benefits of fasting? Why are so many people flocking to daily fasting protocols?

Overall, fasting accelerates healing and gets your body to repair itself

Additionally, according to Dr. Mindy Pelz, fasting helps to:

• Normalize your insulin and leptin sensitivity, which is key for optimal health
• Improve biomarkers of disease
• Normalize ghrelin levels, also known as “the hunger hormone”
• Reduce inflammation and lessen free radical damage
• Lower triglyceride levels
• Preserve memory function and learning
• Increase your growth hormone (a fat-burning hormone) secretion by 1300%
• Boost your brain power by stimulating BDNF (a brain-boosting hormone) by 400%

If you haven’t tried fasting, I highly recommend it!*

Where To Start

As mentioned earlier, I’d suggest beginning with daily intermittent fasting. A basic intermittent fasting protocol is 16:8–16 hours of fasting and an 8 hour eating window. So, start by going 16 hours without food. You may only be able to do 12, 10, or maybe only 8 hours of fasting to start with, but with repetition, your body will get more adapted to fasting and will eventually be comfortable going for 16 hours or longer. Hey, eventually you may even want to venture off and try extended 24-72 hour fasts!

WARNING: If you have adrenal fatigue, you may really struggle with fasting. You can find yourself dizzy and ready to pass out. If this describes you, be sure that you are doing everything you can to strengthen your adrenals. There are two supplements that I suggest for strengthening the adrenals: Loving Energy by Bioray or Adrenal Health Daily Support by Gaia Herbs . (Do not take any of these supplements if you are intolerant or allergic to mushrooms)

*SEE MEDICAL DISCLAIMER

Parts of this article was adapted from Dr. Mindy Pelz: Health Benefits of Fasting

Not ready for intermittent fasting, and would rather try a juice fast? Click here.

The post The Ultimate Health Benefits of Fasting appeared first on That Green Lyfe.