The FastDay Forum

Hello,
I've been maintaining my weight for over a year now doing 5/2 and 6/1. About 5 weeks ago I started the no sugar diet. My weight has stayed the same without fasting. I still want to fast for the health benefits. How often can you fast and still get the health benefits? Which fasting method would best suit a no sugar lifestyle? Many thanks.

[carorees]

Hi @burn03 and welcome to the forum!

Congratulations on your success with fasting and adopting a no sugar diet. Unfortunately, the science to know how much fasting is needed for health benefits is just not there yet. I am pretty sure that the answer will depend on how you eat between fasts, how you exercise and sleep, your stress levels, age, gender and genetic heritage!

However, having said all that, I know of some studies of the rate of heart disease and diabetes among Mormons who fast for 24 hours once a month, starting in childhood compared with people who don't fast and there was a significantly lower rate of these diseases among fasters. The research may be muddied by the possibility that the fasters were likely Mormons who also upheld other lifestyle precepts of their religion such as not drinking alcohol. However, it could be that the benefits start at quite a low frequency of fasting.

It is possible to fast too often, but my guess is that once or twice a week is fine. I would say that you could try fasting once a week and see if your weight remains stable. If you lose weight you could try fasting for 24 hours once a week but no calorie restriction, or fasting every other week.

You'll have to experiment to see what works for you!

Good luck and do let us know how it goes.

Thank you for your advice. I will try the methods you suggest to see what works. Many thanks.

Hi @Burn03
I am interested in hearing how your diet is going, especially no sugar added to the Fasting. I hope you are succeeding with it. I may add no sugar to mine.