Me vs Me Podcast

This is a great subject to discuss as preparation is so important for any fast but especially an extended water fast. To not prepare would be like trying to build a house with no tools. It’s going to make an already challenging task even harder. Just like the level of training you need to do to complete a marathon depends on your current level of fitness, the preparation you need to do for a water fast depends on your current diet and lifestyle. If you are coming from a place where you have a good lifestyle, with a diet high in fresh whole foods then you can start off by doing intermittent fasting. By this I mean not eating before 12 noon and not eating after say 6pm. This gives your body the time it requires to assimilate what you’ve eaten and do a little bit of daily detoxing before the next meal comes in. If you want you can even take that down to 23:1 which is fasting for 23 hours and just eating for one hour a day which is what I’m doing at the moment.

oday is a special episode, as some of you know that every 10th episode is a Q&A episode. So today, I get this question all the time, especially after I made my post on my Instagram about my 21-day water fast experience. The question that was asked the most was: How to break an extended water fast properly? What should you eat and how long do you have to eat this way before eating a normal meal.

If you’re starting a ketogenic diet or doing an extended fast, you may have developed a rash and don’t know why. Maybe you’ve Googled the symptoms of ketosis and think that the rash means ketosis is bad for you. I personally first experienced keto rash is from my 21 days extended water fast, around day 8/9 I started to get this rash all around my ribs/under my chest area and back as well. That itchy rash you’re experiencing is called “keto rash”, and it’s a normal side effect experienced by many (but not all) new keto-ers. It can definitely be annoying and somewhat embarrassing, but it’s not dangerous.

Today we are going to be talking all about water fasting! I have done an episode on fasting already so if you are interested be sure to check out episode number 2, I have also included a free guide on my website under my podcast tab where it says freebies, so definitely check them out! So I have recently completed a 10 day fast. I originally wanted to do 21 days but ended up breaking it due to lack of sleep and overall too much stress. The short answer is that overall, water fasting was an amazing experience and I’ll definitely do it again. But I must emphasize that this is MY experience after a lot of research. I’m not suggesting anyone else try fasting, at least without checking with their doctors. While fasting is generally considered safe for short amounts of time, not everyone canor should try it. Fasting can vary in duration from 24-72 hours, which is considered safe for most people. Or the fast can extend to five days, seven days, or even 40-days.

37: Hunger by Pei Miller

36: Acceptance by Pei Miller

When those whom we love so dearly and trust completely betray us, the feeling is like a stab at the heart that leaves us feeling unsafe, demoralizing, uncertain, and alone. This feels like you lose someone completely and makes us more vulnerable physically as well as emotionally. I recently had to deal with some betrayal, I trusted someone that I have called friends for a couple of years, he wasn’t a super close friend but I never thought I would hear some of these words out of his mouth, basically, he was bad mouthing me behind my back and I have found out about it and confronted him. He is only sorry that he got caught but not necessary for what he has said about me. Of course, I was hurt but I wasn’t about to let him get the satisfaction of knowing that I was hurt by this. Anyway. I did not forgive him, I had to let him go! Without trust you have nothing so I couldn’t lie to myself and continue our friendship together.

The best way to ensure that you hit your macros is to plan ahead. Plan plan plan, I can’t stress enough. You can do this by preparing your meals in advance for the upcoming day or just knowing what you’re going to eat and adding up the macros. It is really just a matter of math games but people choose different foods that affect the body differently, just because the numbers fit doesn’t mean your meal plan is sound!

So, if it does act like a muscle, can it also be strengthened? After several studies, we have our answer! With the right practice, willpower can be strengthened just like any other muscle in the body. Fair warning: like all practice, these workouts can be challenging. After all, you will be exerting your willpower in the same way that you would exert your legs on a run. But they are scientifically proven to get you results.  So, although it will be difficult in the short-term, eventually it will be easier to say no to temptations, stick to your diet and stick with your long-term goals!

We are quick to beat ourselves up for our apparent lack of willpower. However, the reason why we struggle so much with self-control is often not some innate weakness of our characters, but our lack of understanding of how our minds work. There are many willpower traps that we can avoid simply by being aware of certain mental glitches that we all share. One of such glitches is moral licensing, a fascinating phenomenon, understanding of which can make overcoming various willpower challenges much easier.

So, last week I did a 5-day fasting, it was originally going to be 7 days but traveling and family gathering I decided to do a 5-day fasting instead. Long story short, that it was not bad at all, second day was the worse and then after that day 3 on it feels amazing. The feeling like many described as euphoric and it is true, it feels like something you have never felt before if you have never fasted before. I did it from Monday to Friday since I was busy with projects and work I was able to do it without any problems, keeping yourself busy was the key. Now I wasn’t doing a strict water fast, I did have some heavy cream in my coffee and some bone broth after workout to replenish some of my electrolytes. I also take calcium supplement along with a multivitamin throughout this fast. I’ve checked my blood ketone it was around 4.4mml so I was in super deep ketosis. I was still doing my trisets/super sets workout along with my HIIT with ease. I didn’t feel any fatigue it was probably one of my best workouts. Now please note, I was following a strict keto diet prior to start this 5 day fasting regimen. If you are fat adapted fasting is a breeze, a lot of this is mental for me. I LOVE food and sometimes I need a break away from food just focus on other things has freed me up a lot of time not to prep food for 5 days!

Here is another Q&A episode, can you believe we are at episode 30 already?! So today mainly I want to address how long does it take for you to be fat adapted and what’s the difference between being in ketosis vs fat adapted?

Intuitive Eating is an approach developed to help people heal from the side effects of chronic dieting.  People who repeatedly diet often experience a “diet backlash” - increased rigidity regarding good and bad foods, restriction leading to increased binging, reduction in trust of self with food, feelings about not “deserving” food, social withdrawal, and shortened duration of dieting episodes.

You could say social anxiety is the fear and anxiety of being negatively judged and evaluated by other people.  It is a pervasive disorder and causes anxiety and fear in most all areas of a person's life.  It is chronic because it does not go away on its own. Only direct cognitive-behavioral therapy can change the brain, and help people overcome social anxiety. People with social anxiety are many times seen by others as being shy, quiet, backward, withdrawn, inhibited, unfriendly, nervous, aloof, and disinterested. Paradoxically, people with social anxiety want to make friends, be included in groups, and be involved and engaged in social interactions.  But having social anxiety prevents people from being able to do the things they want to do. Although people with social anxiety want to be friendly, open, and sociable, it is fear or the anxiety that holds them back.

Adaptogens are natural substances that work with a person’s body and help them adapt; most notably, to stress. Adaptogens are a natural ally in dealing with persistent stress and fatigue because they work with regulating important hormones. Adaptogens offer several other health benefits, including…

The human body contains around 60% water, which plays a key role in all aspects of life. However, excess water retention and bloating is a common side effect of chronic inflammation. Also known as fluid retention, edema can be caused by food intolerances, poor diet, toxin exposure and diseases like kidney failure. Women may also experience water retention during the luteal phase aka PMS week of their menstrual cycle and during pregnancy. For most people, excess water weight is not a serious health issue. Exercise may be one of the best ways to reduce water weight in the short-term. Any form of it increases sweat, which means you will lose water. The average fluid loss during 1 hour of exercise is anywhere between 16–64 oz (0.5–2 liters) per hour, depending on factors such as heat and clothing. A lot of athletes who are trying to meet their weight class will use this strategy, I do not recommend people who just want to lose a few pounds of water weight to do this as this can be extremely dangerous if not done correctly. During exercise, your body also shifts a lot of water into your muscles.

Today I am giving away my free Ketogenic Diet Guide. Download link is at the end of the show notes and also on my website. I want to bring you the most basic guide for someone how is brand new to this lifestyle and also talk about what you can expect and how to deal with some obstacles that will come up on your keto journey.

There is a lot of misunderstanding and confusion about goal setting. People just don’t know why they set goals and what the benefits are. If they do it, it’s because someone told them it is important. The baggiest misconception that people often fall into when they set goals is that they think once they reach their goals they will be happier, that can’t be further from the truth! You will not be happier or less than who you are today because goals are attaining goals is about personal growth, it is not the direct cause or reason why you would be happy but it is the process that you go through to obtaining your goals is where you grow into a different person at the end of the goal.

Today I am going to go over some tips/tricks on how to manage your hunger while dieting. Now first I want to mention that, when you are dieting there is no way around being hungry is just the way it is. But you shouldn’t feel like you are starving to death all the time. So, keep in mind, a mild discomfort is normal but extreme hunger might be because you are dieting too hard/too big of a deficit.

Today I want to talk about a term I have come across while reading this book called the “The self-love experiment” I thought it was interesting and I wanted to share the definition from the Wikipedia, it says: The Paradise Syndrome, while not officially recognized by psychologists as a mental condition, is a term used by some to refer to a condition in which a person suffers a feeling of dissatisfaction despite having achieved all their dreams. The term may have been coined by Dave Stewart. It is often applied to individuals of such great wealth and success that they feel they no longer have anything left in life to accomplish. It is common with people who assign great value to their career and, although they have achieved much, do not feel satisfied.

We all know that some people who just can’t seem to lose weight. They try and try. They seem to do all the right things. What’s going on? That reason is called “life.” Everyone knows the fat loss formula is calories-in vs calories-out. The problem is that, when we track macros, we’re only controlling the calories-in side. The other side of the equation is your metabolism—our body is more than just calories in/out, the complex machinery of organs, hormones, and body movement that uses the amount of energy every day. So, what is the solution? What if you could speed up your body’s metabolic engine until dieting is not only possible—it’s easy? Well, you can. It’s called “reverse dieting.”

Every 10th episode I bring you guys a Q&A episode. So, as you can see the title that today we are going to be talking about Diet break, PSMF aka Protein Sparing Modified Fast and also diet fatigue. I am going to define each and talk about how you may use them in your weight loss journey.