Are you curious about fasting, but nervous to give it a go?
Good! I’m glad you’re curious and open, while also being cautious and sceptical because this is your health journey. It’s important you feel agency over it, and confident that it’s either right or the wrong path for you.
In this post, we will cover:
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- The most crucial ingredient for a successful fast AND achieving your long-term wellness goals
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- Small consistent steps you need to take before you even considering a water fast
- Plus! ‘A Complete Guide To Water Fasting: Clear Your Skin and Heal Your Gut With More Ease [downloadable PDF guide] for when you’re ready
If this is the first time you’ve been here (Welcome!) please check out The Benefits of A Water Fast and My Skin Story video to show how far one can come (in large part) from fasting.
Now let’s get to it!
The most crucial ingredient for a successful fast AND for achieving your long-term wellness goals
Clue: it’s not a blueberry…
It’s a mindset.
Your wellness journey probably isn’t linear, nor your results immediate. Which often means you’re on a true healing path — one that can be sustained and is ongoing. Because it is a journey, one that doesn’t end once you achieve clear skin, better digestion, or your ideal weight. It is an evolution of who you are, and not simply an alleviation of symptoms.
So if you want to be truly happy, content, and unstoppable in your life, approaching your path to wellness as a journey is half the battle.
Because it means…
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- You’re on your side.
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- You’re in this for the long haul.
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- You’re not giving up on yourself.
- You’ll listen to yourself first — and your intuition
Which is when the true healing begins.
This mindset is the most crucial ingredient because it lowers impulsivity and increases your intelligence, focus and ability to make sound decisions even amongst outside noise, negativity and opinions.
This is also the mindset it takes to fast (especially without support or supervision).
You haven’t (yet) cultivated this mindset if…
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- you’re skimming this post looking for a quick fix or answer
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- you are thinking of ignoring the warnings in this post or skipping the prep protocol
- or you are doing this to lose weight
If this is you, and you’re not there yet, and that’s okay too. Empathy and compassion for you are at the core of this mindset.
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The good news is there are things in this post to help you move towards this mindset, AND I’m now in the process of putting together a free intro course to an online masterclass called Love The Skin You’re In. In this, I’ll be sharing some of the ways to cultivate this mindset. So if you want to be the first to know about this, become a Ra insider by subscribing at the bottom of this page!
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Small consistent steps you need to take before you even considering a fast
1. Water, are you drinking enough?
Most people think they drink enough water without realising eight glasses a day are not enough! I drink 2-3 litres a day depending on how much I eat and exercise.
Ensuring your body is sufficiently hydrated before you begin fasting is going to make your fast even easier.
Because the more you can hydrate and maximise detoxification early on, the fewer detox symptoms you’ll experience, and the more ease, and healing that can occur during your fast.
Work out exactly how much water your body needs here.
2. Self-care, are you implementing a ritual every day?
I’m not talking about doing anything too exhaustive, but the reason I’ve added this one in is because if you currently don’t make the time to prioritise yourself in some small way, it will be much harder to implement the protocols needed to optimise your fast.
So commit to one new self-care ritual right now, and schedule it in your calendar.
Here are some ideas:
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- daily meditation in the morning (10-20 mins)
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- salt bath 2x a week (20-40 mins)
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- dance breaks
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- catch up with an old friend
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- yoga
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- walking out in nature
- fulfil a sneaky peanut butter craving (food for the soul) 😉
And many more! Let me know in the comments below what you’re committing to!
3. Increase your nutritional reserves
Our bodies are meant to be able to store nutrients. We weren’t originally designed to have access to all foods all year round, or in many places around the world, have access to sunlight every season. How could we have survived so long (without supplements), if we didn’t have the capability to store nutrients during winter, or famine? …we couldn’t.
Here are the common culprits we get low on and how you can get high on them:
Iron
Foods high in vitamin C — like spinach, kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts, berries, citrus, oranges, papaya etc.— increase the absorption of iron.
Great sources of iron include:
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- dark leafy greens
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- cacao
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- nuts and seeds
- (non-vegan) salmon, mackerel
Iodine
Kelp, seaweed and other sea vegetables
Vitamin D
Get. More. Sun.
You can’t OD on vitamin D unless its a supplement. With some people experiencing toxic shock from taking pills, I prefer to be all natural. Also, many brands have low efficacy! Besides, the sun is a free, non-toxic and great-er option (in my opinion) because there are a number of mental, emotional and physical benefits from sun exposure that extend beyond vitamin D!
Of course, be smart. Don’t burn yourself. Wear a hat. Use coconut oil on your body for natural SPF. Depending on your skin colour, make sure you get 10-20 minutes in the sun a day. Build your tan gradually so you won’t damage your skin, but still can build up your vitamin D stores for winter, which is what we’re meant to do! For those with lighter skin who may be worried, even if you’re in the shade you’ll absorb some vitamin D, but you might want to stay out for longer.
Note: best not to use makeup or other chemicals that can become unstable free radicals in the sun. Some European studies on sunscreen and skin cancer showed an increase correlation with skin cancer and sunscreen use. The researchers postulated it was due to the UV destabilising the chemicals into free radicals.
B12
Vegetable sources of B12 are hard to come by unless you’re buying biodynamic and organic produce OR have you’re own veggie garden where you only need to lightly rinse your food. Otherwise, depending on the source, nutritional yeast, mushrooms, algae, nori seaweed and some fermented vegetables contain B12. However, you may need to take a supplement for a time because increasing B12 will also help with your overall nutrient absorption.
Magnesium
An essential mineral for your bones, gut, immune system, energy and metabolism. Most easily absorbed through the skin — in a bath using Epsom salts, or with magnesium oil.
Nuts, cacao and leafy green veggies (again) are a great source.
Extras for those who struggle with digestion and absorption:
Juice your greens and your other vegetables. This is a great way to load up on all of your essential vitamins and minerals, and in this form, they are quick and easily absorbed. Aim for 5 servings of vegetables a day which is super easy when your breakfast is a green juice.
Smoothies — yassss! My favourite and my saviour for so long. I love berry smoothies, with a green powder, avocado, spinach, lemon, honey, nut and seed butter (drools), and coconut water. Or a cacao smoothie with berries and banana, greens, sea salt and nut butter — for the ultimate iron hit! Similarly, smoothies are easy to absorb and are a more filling meal. I tend to have my juice first, then when I’m hungry have a smoothie bowl.
If you still struggle to build your reserves, aiding your gut repair will help with absorption. My suggestion? Add collagen to your smoothies.
A 2016 study found that adding gelatin to an intermittent exercise program improved collagen synthesis (Shaw et al, 2016). Which improves skin elasticity, helps your hair and nails grow, strengthens your gut lining (repairs leaky gut), and supports your immune system because it’s healing your gut.
4. Intermittent Fasting: have you tried it?
Intermittent fasting (IF) provides most of the benefits of a water fast but on a smaller and much more gradual scale. It’s a lot easier too, so it’s a great place to start!
IF is also known in the literature as time-restricted eating — eating only within a 12-8 hour window. In an 8-hour eating window, for example, you’d only eat between the hours of 10am-6pm, 11am-7pm, or 12-8pm.
This optimises digestion, sleep and wellbeing because you’re not eating at all hours and because eating between the above window examples also aligns with your body’s circadian rhythms!
I won’t go into the details now, but there is a lot of research around this showing a significant increase in the risk of death (mortality) for those who eat after 8 pm.
So pick one of the windows and get started! If you get hungry in the morning eat earlier, and finish earlier. The earlier you eat (up until 4 pm) the better because you decrease your mortality risk even further.
Also note, if you stick to this strictly 5 out of 7 days, you’re likely to receive similar benefits to if you did the full 7 days. At least that’s what was found in mice studies…hopefully, this also applies to us! Which would mean you can be a bit ‘flexi’ on weekends!
5. An optional extra: a juice cleanse or a broth fast
These two can be great ways to ease into a water fast after applying the above 4 steps to your daily regimen.
If you’re interested in juicing, read the difference between juice fasting and water fasting and how to succeed on a juice fast.
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SUMMARY
Drink ample water
(find out how much here)
Add a new self-care ritual
(commit to it in your calendar)
Increase your nutrient reserves
(with juices, smoothies + collagen)
Intermittent fast
(try for 5 days a week)
+ optional Juice Cleanse
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Now, what’s the first thing (1 thing) you can begin today? Start there, and let me know in the comments below!
Eventually, over the coming weeks or months you’ve mastered all that, PLUS your wellness mindset, it’s time for a water fast!
The Complete Guide To Water Fasting + why I’m an advocate
There is no doubt in my mind that water fasting saved my life.
When…
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- No one else could help me — no doctor, specialist, natural health professional, or healer.
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- My skin and body were quickly spinning out of control.
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- My intestines were being eaten by bugs
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- I was becoming allergic to new things every-damn-day
- I could no longer consume anything without having a massive reaction
Water fasting saved me. It allowed me to start taking control of my health. It began the incline, rather than the fast and dreaded decline.
It’s also been instrumental in healing my skin, gut and reversing autoimmune symptoms, and regaining my mental wellbeing.
Of course, this is only part of the healing process, and it’s not something to just start without knowing whether it’s safe for you, the required preparation, safety protocols, how to break a fast, and how to re-feed post-fast.
All of which I will provide in a PDF you can download below.
In this guide you will have:
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- the preparation information you need to get the most out of your fasting efforts
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- an equipment list
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- my daily fasting routine
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- resource links
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- how to safely break your fast
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- what three days of re-feeding looks like
- and more!
[AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD IN 2018]
Stay tuned!
Lot’s of love,
xx Jess
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Disclaimer: this website is for information purposes only. It is not designed to diagnose, or treat any illnesses. Please speak with your trusted healthcare professional before implementing any of the above information.