Gemma’s 7 (or 10!) Waterfast Journal

[gemma]

Hi everyone! Hope everyone’s doing well and strong. I’m so glad I found a community and I really wish to join you guys in this incredible journey with our own body. My name is Gemma and I’m 28 years old. I’m an avid emotional eater and sugar addict. My battle with weight loss seems to be never ending, but started when I was 18 and weighing 200 pounds (I’m 5’4"), intensely bullied yet kept on resorting to food for comfort. Since then my weight has fluctuated so much, from eating disorders to excessive workouts. Last year, I fell in love and lost a lot of weight from routine exercise and IF. Well, the love went away but the workout routine was a keeper. I have been steadily gaining weight (I thought it’s just muscle mass) since last year, but BAM 2020 happened. This pandemic really took a toll on me. For the first two months of lockdown, I was just trying to ease in to this new life situation, so I ate. A lot. But at the same time I kept my exercise routine daily through online classes or Youtube videos—to no help. I weighed 171 lb in June, and my menstruation stopped. The past two months however, I turned to myself and said, that’s enough. So I did 20:4 IF, with daily cardio routine. I prepped my own meal every day, which mainly consisted of green veggies and oven bakes lean meat. After two months of hard work, I was already and arrogantly sure that I must have lost at least SOME weight. So I weighed myself again last week and… 174 pounds!!! FANTASTIC! I became very depressed about my hard work going down the drain and went a little bit manic with my research. Went to a dietitian and a hormone doctor to check what’s wrong, but everything seems alright. And it frustrates me even more that my family, who’s been in lockdown with me, is all losing weight without the fasting and cardio routine.

So, water fasting. I have heard about this for quite some time, but would never even dare to attempt it. I don’t really trust myself going without food for that long since I get lethargic if I miss my lunch. But over the weekend I stumbled into the fasting episode of UnWell and been researching ever since. So yesterday, I challenged myself to do this 7, if I do well might be even longer, water fast for the very first time. I am extremely nervous going into this, but finding this forum and reading everyone’s journey has been very inspirational for me. My plan is to go back to Keto IF once this water fasting is done and hopefully ease back to my workout routine. I don’t really have a goal weight… As long as I feel great and not depressed when I see myself in the mirror.

I might have tons of questions in the process, so bear with me Will stay committed and tried my best to go through with this week. Today is the first day of my change.

Thanks for reading!

[Sky]

Welcome Gemma. I’m relatively new at this, but so far, it’s working better than I ever could have dreamed. I hope you have the same experience. It’s not easy and I haven’t made it past 6 days yet, but I’m getting results from 1-3 day fasts as well. I watched the fasting episode of (Un)Well and thought it was fairly well-balanced. I had expected it to be completely anti-fasting, but it showed both sides.

[gemma]

Day 1

Coffee and tea helped me go through yesterday. It wasn’t easy but I did it! My first 24 hours without food! Still anxious since from what I’ve been reading, day 3 is going to be much harder. I took a little bit of salt with my water yesterday night and some magnesium for my sleep since I’m not an easy sleeper anyway. The lovely group from Yasemin’s fasting challenge this week suggested sparkling water and hot salt water, which I felt really helped me last night. I had a tiny acid reflux reaction from the coffee, but I think I’ll try apple cider vinegar if it comes back today.

I also managed to log 15,000 steps yesterday from moving around. if my energy allows, might take a short walk or an hour of pilates today. Still unsure if workouts are safe to do during this fast, I find myself obsessively googling about it yet there’s so many different information out there ans it started to confuse me… Maybe the only way is to find out my limit by myself?

Think I’m gonna weigh myself tomorrow instead. Wishing all of you well

[Sky]

I do think everyone is a bit different and you have to figure out what works for you. I go for a walk on the days I feel best, but mostly, I’m really sedentary when fasting. Some people seem to go to the gym every day even during an extended fast.

Don’t fear day 3. Everyone says it’s the worst, but that has not been my experience and it may not be yours either.

[gemma]

Thank you Sky! You’ve been really encouraging I’m on day 3 now and it did not start so badly, so I’m very optimistic to see how the day goes.

[gemma]

Day 2

Energy level is still quite high. Couldn’t believe I went 48 hours without food! But again I think coffee and tea saved me. Didn’t take the ACV yet coz I was feeling quite okay.

Sorry if this is TMI, but didn’t really get to do number two. I read somewhere that it is normal during fasting?

Had quite a good sleep! Should thank the magnesium for that. Still surprised how the day went so easily even without salt. Took a walk for an hour before sleep but returned early since I felt quite cold. Maybe because I have been at home all day long; have been in mourning mood due to Mr. Chadwick Boseman’s passing.

Weighed in today
Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb (this morning)

i think my body is in shock (since it’s my first water fast) and thus losing lots of the water weight.

and it’s pilates Sunday! Have curated a few YouTube video classes for a gentle exercise. I used to do cardio, boxing and HIIT every other day, but decided to switch to slower and much more restful exercise during this fast. Will post the youtube link if I really like today’s class: Yogalates (a combination of yoga and pilates). Tried it at my favorite pilates studio before the pandemic and I love it.

Stay well, friends!

[gemma]

Day 3

I did it! Passed the 3-day mark! Yesterday was hard but not as hard as I thought it would be (Sky and my group mates are right!)

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb (this morning)

I felt quite good yesterday so I worked out a little. Damn the sweat was never ending. And my body felt cold throughout the workout, so it was kind of a funny feeling. Did this video on Youtube: https://youtu.be/atFX3FjIx4Y and it was not too intense for me. So I figured I might do a workout that’s a bit more intense today. But not too intense coz I’m scared of doing HIIT or cardio for now.

At night I felt a bit nauseous. I thought it was the coffee and green tea with lemon that I had in the morning, so I took a teaspoon of ACV. I also drank a cup of broth to ease in the nausea. Didn’t really work; this morning I woke up still feeling nauseous. Drinking chamomile tea and refraining from coffee today, as per suggested by Yasemin.

Still going strong today. Might be able to go for the 10-day fast at this rate. Started thinking of what fast should I be doing once I complete this one, thinking of the ADF or OMAD.

Have a great week ahead!

[gemma]

Day 4

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb (this morning)

Today was quite rough. Ended up not having a lot of energy, and food cravings were all over my thought. Most surprisingly, suddenly my period came! It was not due for another two weeks and I usually have regular cycle. And the period was so much heavier than my regular period too. Asked Yasemin about it and she said some people have come to her with the same issue too—heavy periods with no/less symptoms, which is quite true for me. There is no cramp or whatsoever.

Still feeling nauseous the whole day despite quitting coffee for the day. Thankfully no headache from the coffee withdrawal, but then again I still had a cup of chamomile tea and green tea for a boost. Also had some pink salt and magnesium for sleep. Resisted drinking a cup of broth since I was not really that hungry at night.

Yesterday night I had a bad sleep. I put some Vaporub on my chest and tummy to ease in my nausea, but it turned out to be a bad idea. I could hear my heart pounding and the menthol effect made me feel even colder throughout the night, as if I was a defenseless skeleton against the air-conditioning. Will take note and stop doing that. But need to find the solution for my nausea soon, coz it got really uncomfortable especially when lying down.

[Kristy]

I’m so sorry to hear about your upset tummy! You’re doing great! The vaporub was an interesting idea! I’m sorry it didn’t work. Keep us posted and good luck!

[gemma]

Thank you Kristy! It was a childhood remedy that I thought I could give a try. It went so much better on day 5 without the Vaporub though lol. Good luck to you too!

[gemma]

Day 5

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb
Day 6: 163 lb (this morning)

Whoa, the food cravings went uncontrollable in my head today. I was just fantasizing about what to eat during refeed and even browsing for keto bakeries around me It was SO HARD guys, but I managed past day 5!

I never had a period this heavy before, so I just had to change my pad every two hours. It was a bit worrying but the no symptoms really helped me cope. I drank a cup of broth in the evening since I got a bit hangry, then I took an hour of walk. Energy level was quite good.

I’m a bit anxious since I still haven’t had my number two yet, 5 days in… Is this okay?

I also find myself obsessing about the next diet plan after my waterfast is done. Is it most definite that you will gain your weight back? How do I stay in ketosis? Is keto ADF better or keto OMAD?

[gemma]

Day 6

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb
Day 6: 163 lb
Day 7: 161 lb (this morning)

Dear God, I hope today would be my lowest point. I’ve been tempted so many times to break the fast, but alas I resisted. The cravings attacked me from all directions and I just had to stay away from home for a while.

I drank a cup of broth in the afternoon and had a little salt in it this afternoon. I also a tablespoon of ACV to ease my nausea (yep it’s still there!), and it fortunately got better as the day went. My period seemed to have slowed down, which is awesome. Oh, and it’s also my first time taking potassium supplements.

I went for a facial after work to keep my mind off food. Afterwards, the kind ladies offered me tea and I took a big sip before realizing that it’s sweetened with sugar. I was freaking out and scared the ladies for a moment there lol, but I think one sip of tea is less than 20g of carbs, so shouldn’t have kicked me out of ketosis.

Had a bit of energy left so I decided to take a long walk at night. Managed to do 13,000 steps the whole day, which felt awesome. Listened to podcasts from experts about fasting and I think I figured out my next plan: to do an ADF and stay low-carb on eating days. Goal weight would be around 130 lb for me (5’4”), but I work out routinely so I’m SOOOOO EXCITED to be able to go back to my routine. I owe all my depression relief to boxing, Strong by Zumba, HIIT and pilates. And food—but let’s not do that anymore, shall we?

Had a chamomile tea and some magnesium capsules. Had one of the best sleep so far.

Stay well, friends.

[eddy]

Well done Gemma - looks like you are planning to push this to 10 days?

[Kyle]

Staying on the keto diet will keep you in ketosis. OMAD and ADF are both good… I would suggest you stick with whichever one you can do the easiest. Go with your preference, Consistency is key. As long as you don’t “free-for-all”, You’ll lose weight either way.

[gemma]

Eddie — it looks like it! Excited to achieve my goal and beyond

[gemma]

Thank you, Kyle! I will make sure to try both ways and see how it fits my lifestyle. I also need to kick this “rushed to lose weight” mindset off my head and look for something sustainable instead

[gemma]

Day 7

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb
Day 6: 163 lb
Day 7: 161 lb
Day 8: 160 lb (this morning)

Oh my— Yesterday was the most energized I had ever been throughout this fast. I still thought about food, but it was not bad until I looked at recipes to make after my fast. I ended up shopping groceries online (don’t shop when you’re hungry, peeps) and spent way too much.

I was feeling great throughout the day. Had a cup of broth and green tea. I kinda miss coffee but I guess that can wait! Also logged in 12,000 steps for my night walk. Walked on a faster pace too, which was awesome.

Here I am coming into the weekend. Feeling strong!

[gemma]

Day 8

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb
Day 6: 163 lb
Day 7: 161 lb
Day 8: 160 lb
Day 9: 160 lb (this morning)

I was buzzing from energy yesterday and got lots of work stuff done. But the energy level drops fast mid-afternoon to the evening. Took a walk but couldn’t make it past 7000 steps.

I think my mind is obsessing over the refeed that I’d have on Sunday night might need more tips on how to avoid binge eating during refeed.

[gemma]

Day 9

Day 1: 175 lb
Day 2 : 171 lb
Day 3: 168 lb
Day 4: 167 lb
Day 5: 165 lb
Day 6: 163 lb
Day 7: 161 lb
Day 8: 160 lb
Day 9: 160 lb
Day 10: 159 lb (this morning)

I don’t know what it is but I just feel like my stomach has been grumbling uncontrollably during these last fasting days. But it’s fine; I GOT THROUGH IT!

Didn’t need to drink broth on day 9. Tried to do an hour of core cardio class, managed to go through half of it. Performance was definitely not maximum. Went for a walk in the afternoon, around 5,000 steps but I got exhausted by the end of it.

It really did get much easier on day 9 though. I just craved for baking some goods… and funnily I rarely did before this fast. Had a hard time falling asleep. The excitement of refeeding tomorrow is building fast!

[eddy]

Well done @gemma on pushing through and finishing your fast !!!
You are an inspiration!!