The FastDay Forum

Hi -

Apologies if this has been asked before but I'm trying to gauge opinion on the best way of dealing with exercise and fasting.

I do kickboxing on Tuesday and Friday mornings and can not work out whether it's better to fast the day before exercise, resulting in low fuel during exercise, or fast on the exercise day. Neither of which are overly appealing but then I'm running out of days. I'm an early 50s male.

I've tried fasting the day before exercise and have noticed reduced energy. I'm yet to try heavy exercise on a fast day.

I suspect that most people would (sensibly) suggest that I experiment and work out what's best for me but I was wondering whether there is any clear advice as to what's generally best.

Many thanks.

YK (Not my real name!)

I run in the mornings. I have done 4 fasts so far and run on 2 of them. One run was 6 Miles so about an hour & 10 minutes continuous. My last run was the day after a fast & I would say that I noticed the difference. I usually need 5-10 mins to settle into a run but this one took at least 20 mins so felt much harder than usual. I also find that taking the time to exercise on a fast day is a good distraction from food as it takes up most of my morning with shower afterwards. If you are going to exercise on a fast day make sure you have plenty to drink beforehand. I always have 2 cups of tea before setting out. Your 2 days of kickboxing are spaced out nicely. I think if it was me I'd choose these days for fasting, especially as you don't have to go all day without food. Have fun. Shelley x

I think you're absolutely right in saying that you need to experiment to work out what's best for you as an individual.

Personally, I exercise the same amount every day, whether it is a fast day or not. I experience days when the exercise is easy, and days when it is tough going, but there doesn't seem to be any relationship with whether I am fasting or not on that particular day.

Heavy duty exercise on a fasting day, I would suggest, requires you to keep a closer eye on hydration and sodium levels than usual. But apart from that, I don't differentiate between fasting days and non-fasting days.

I don't suppose that's terribly helpful to you, but at least it's another view!