[00:01] Valerie Beck: Rise. Renew, Reconnect.
[00:04] Welcome to from the Ashes, a podcast where every episode ignites hope and healing.
[00:09] I'm your host, Valerie Huang Beck, and I'm on a mission to help you embrace your unique potential and become the vibrant visionary you knew you were meant to be.
[00:24] Shadows may come try to tear you apart, but you're the flame that ignites. Hello friends, I am here back with from the Ashes podcast. And today I wanna talk about the 72 hour water fast that I just did this past week.
[00:43] So let me lay the groundwork because for many years I actually was pretty skeptical about fasting in spite of being a wellness coach and in spite of a lot of the evidence that is out there that supports fasting.
[00:59] But here's the thing. I come from an Ayurvedic background,
[01:04] and in Ayurveda we know that no diet is one size fits all. No approach is one size fits all. So it took me this amount of time to be able to sustain a fast on my own,
[01:16] knowing that there were mental patterns actually rather than physical ones that would make it not so good of an idea for me to fast.
[01:24] So today I'm going to be talking about who should fast, who shouldn't. What are the benefits of doing it and talking it from not only a modern science perspective, but from an ayurvedic,
[01:36] individualized medicine perspective.
[01:38] Now, why do I want to talk about this and why am I doing this now? My mission is to help high performers and those who desire to make a big impact in the world get healthy enough to do so on a sustainable basis.
[01:54] So if you have a big purpose in life, if you want to do more with your time, with your life,
[02:00] I'm here to help you do that by stabilizing and strengthening your health, your resilience,
[02:07] and your clarity.
[02:10] And fasting is one extremely powerful way to do that on so many levels.
[02:19] And the thing is, fasting can be really charged.
[02:23] Some people, when they hear that I'm fasting actually get triggered because of past personal experiences that they might have had with not eating.
[02:37] You know, a lot of people stop eating because of eating disorders.
[02:41] And I'm here to talk today about the very, very distinct mindset behind fasting and eating disorders too, because it is two completely different worlds and intention can change everything.
[02:58] So first, let's define what a 72 hour water fast is. Because this is not my first dip into fasting.
[03:07] I have dabbled with intermittent fasting as well as the fast mimicking diet for the past two years.
[03:17] And those are also really Great ways to help the body clean itself and to really reset your digestion. And in Ayurveda it's the health is all about resetting digestion.
[03:33] So at the foundation of all of this,
[03:37] I am doing this for health.
[03:40] Now why,
[03:41] why is it that I am talking about fasting and doing fasting for health?
[03:48] Well, the thing is that health is the basis of everything that you do.
[03:53] Because if you are not in good health,
[03:55] you really don't have the capacity to focus at your best. You don't have the capacity to operate at your best.
[04:03] If you do not take care of your health,
[04:05] if you neglect it,
[04:07] or if you actually have destructive behaviors towards your health,
[04:10] you are going to, at some point in time, sabotage your own means of living your life, making a difference and really showing up in the world in your best self.
[04:23] So 72 hour water fast involves abstaining from all food and calories, consuming only water for three days.
[04:31] This has gained a lot of popularity for its potential health benefits.
[04:35] And if you look it up on the Internet, you can find a lot of different scientific evidence, a lot of discussions on water fasting, and oftentimes people even go even farther.
[04:45] But 72 is kind of like this magic number for being able to reap the benefits of a water fast.
[04:52] So again, fasting is not for everyone. And I'm going to be talking in detail about who it is for who might want to do it and who should not do it.
[05:00] And in the past, I was a person who I would have recommended definitely not do it. And it was only after I was able to shift my mindset and my way of operating so that I am more flexible with my routines that I felt like it was safe and recommended for me to do this.
[05:19] All right,
[05:20] so let's talk about mindset going into a fast.
[05:25] Because if you're going into a fast because you are not happy with the way that you are,
[05:29] if you're going into a fast because you want to lose weight because of some external reason, people don't like me or like people think I'm fat or whatever.
[05:38] It's very different from if you're going into it knowing that this is going to get you towards your highest self, this is going to help you operate in your life at a much higher energy level.
[05:49] And it is actually going to boost the way and support your way for doing more of what you want to do in life.
[05:58] Those are two very different motivations.
[06:01] And these two motivations basically come from survival mindset as opposed to thrive mindset.
[06:09] So survival Mindset says, I need to fix myself. There's something wrong with me and I'm going to torture myself in order to get the results.
[06:18] Otherwise I'm not going to be enough thrive. Mindset says, I choose this challenge to unlock something deeper within me and to elevate my capabilities.
[06:30] So the danger of fasting from a place of not enoughness is because it overlaps way too closely with the mindset of eating disorders.
[06:38] And that could be a downward spiral.
[06:42] And this is why a lot of people who have dealt with eating disorders also deal with deep feelings of being not enough.
[06:52] They deal with deep feelings of low self esteem.
[06:56] And that's not a place where you should attempt a fast.
[07:01] But if you choose to look at fasting as a discipline of devotion to your own body,
[07:09] to your own capabilities,
[07:11] and not deprivation,
[07:14] then it's about choosing the fire to become clear rather than to punish yourself.
[07:22] When you're a high performer,
[07:24] you learn to integrate what we call adversity habits into your life.
[07:29] It's choosing the correct hard in order to propel you forward,
[07:34] to elevate your body, mind and spirit so that you are capable of holding more in your life.
[07:42] So think about it this way. If the body is a temple, then fasting is the cleaning of the sanctuary,
[07:49] not the burning of the altar.
[07:51] All right, so let's actually talk about the science behind the 72 hour water fast. Because even on surface level,
[07:59] when we do something like a 72 hour water fast, there are actually things going on in the body that are extremely beneficial.
[08:07] Fasting has the ability to activate autophagy, which means that it's the body cleaning out older damaged cells,
[08:17] metabolic wastes,
[08:18] and potentially supporting disease prevention and cellular health.
[08:23] So it's helping you renew your cells.
[08:27] And by fasting,
[08:29] you can also renew the immune system by promoting regeneration of white blood cells,
[08:34] making the body more resilient to illness.
[08:38] So if you're already in a state where you can fast,
[08:42] it can actually stimulate your immune system.
[08:46] And by stimulating your immune system,
[08:48] you also stimulate your resilience.
[08:52] And you might also be stimulating human growth hormone, which helps support fat burning,
[08:59] pre muscle preservation and cell regeneration.
[09:04] Fasting has benefits beyond this too.
[09:07] So by depleting ourselves of available glucose and activating that autophagy,
[09:14] we might make cancer cells more vulnerable to treatment while protecting healthy cells. So fasting is an act of anti cancer.
[09:22] And so if you do have a family history of cancer, if you know you want to reduce your risk,
[09:30] this could be a really good way to do that.
[09:33] And a lot of people who have high blood sugar have been recommended this water fast to reduce blood glucose and insulin levels,
[09:45] which can improve your insulin sensitivity and decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes.
[09:52] So a lot of people do this water fast to reverse the risk of getting diabetes.
[10:00] So also, fasting in research also shows that there are beneficial effects on the genetic pathways associated with longevity and metabolic health.
[10:14] So it can also prolong your life and reduce the risk of chronic disease, such as heart disease and also neurodegenerative conditions.
[10:26] I mean, even just everything that I've said so far is well worth trying out a fast. But also it decreases inflammation.
[10:37] And for a lot of us, we are dealing with chronic inflammation.
[10:42] For me, I know that my inflammation shows up especially when I've been really stressed or I've been eating more sugar than I should, if I've been sleeping less than I should.
[10:52] Oftentimes these symptoms show up for me before my menstrual cycle.
[10:59] And so I find myself having canker sores, fevers,
[11:03] and general like aches and pains almost always around the same time of month.
[11:09] So one of my reasons for trying out this water fast is seeing if doing this is going to reduce those symptoms and then also because it's an adversity habit and you're really forcing yourself to abstain from behavior that we are so ingrained to do, which is eat right.
[11:34] Fasting can help us build willpower and focus.
[11:39] It's like showing ourselves that we can do hard things and when we can do hard things in this brief period of time, it gives us the resilience and the hope,
[11:51] the mindset to see that we can do hard things beyond just this fast.
[11:58] It's very empowering to do something and finish something like a 72 hour water fast.
[12:07] Okay, so those are the scientific benefits of fasting.
[12:11] And not gonna lie, it's a hard thing to do.
[12:15] And like I mentioned, not everyone should be doing it.
[12:20] I've had people come to me, clients that have come to me asking whether they should do like a week long water fast or whatnot.
[12:28] And when I hear them say that and I think about their doshas or their constitution, their way of being actually on a regular basis,
[12:38] more oftentimes than not. I feel like fasting is just an another way for them to feed their ego.
[12:46] Now what do I mean by this and why does it matter? It's actually really,
[12:51] it's actually really dangerous for you to fast because you want to prove something or, or if you want to do it in a way that doesn't Compromise your daily routine.
[13:03] Because fasting is really about changing a routine,
[13:06] not about sustaining one that you already have.
[13:08] So in Ayurveda,
[13:10] what is required if you want to fast one is that you already need to have what we call a strong enough level of ojas.
[13:20] What is ojas?
[13:22] Ojas is basically immunity, resilience and inner strength combined.
[13:28] So it's not just physical, but it's also mental.
[13:30] And it's this ability for yourself to bounce back from adversity and not fall into patterns of depletion and fatigue. When you do something hard or when you do something really energy draining,
[13:44] which fasting is now. Ojas for a lot of people is depleted because they're constantly stressed,
[13:51] they're constantly fatigued,
[13:54] they're constantly tired too, because they burn the candle at both ends.
[13:57] So if you don't have enough ojas, if you're already waking up really tired, if your, your bones are aching, your joints are aching, I really don't recommend attempting a fast because I've seen more than enough people attempt it and then get dizzy,
[14:15] feel lightheaded, blood pressure drops that are dangerous,
[14:19] excessive weight loss.
[14:21] If you have these high vata symptoms, if you have issues with bone fragility,
[14:28] if you have issues with vertigo,
[14:32] if you have issues with low blood pressure, these are all signs that maybe fasting is not for you, not until you're able to get to a place of stability where your ojas is high.
[14:44] And this includes people who have high trauma and aren't able to withstand a lot of stress.
[14:53] So I mentioned these doshas, right? These are the energies in our body according to Ayurveda. And each of these energies have different features and functions.
[15:02] So I already mentioned vata dosha. When there's a lot of high vata and imbalance of that in the body,
[15:10] you tend to feel depleted, anxious, ungrounded.
[15:14] And fasting can exacerbate these symptoms, especially if you're in survival mode because you're trying to fix something, you're not actually trying to elevate yourself.
[15:24] Or if you are,
[15:26] you still have these underlying energies of,
[15:30] of depletion.
[15:31] Now there's another type of person who should not fast, and this is called the pitta dominant people.
[15:38] Pitta people can be really, really hard headed when it comes to achievement.
[15:45] They can be really overly driven and they want to get things done and prove to the world that they can do them and they them without sacrificing their hardcore routines.
[15:56] And these often involve multiple times a day of working out,
[16:00] of staying up late to Work extra hours to get projects done. They can be really, really intense people.
[16:08] But the thing with Pitta is that they tend to burn the candle at both ends and they don't realize they don't have an infinite amount of energy.
[16:17] And so if they keep doing this and they decide to dramatically drop their energy sources by fasting,
[16:23] that can a wild imbalance and that can create the same vata type of symptoms where they get lightheaded and they all of a sudden start to feel really weak.
[16:37] And because they're so used to driving forward, this can be a really dangerous approach to fasting.
[16:45] And I've seen my friends also go through this by trying to prove to the world that they can still do who they're,
[16:53] you know, twice a day, hour long workouts while also fasting. And it's just not a good idea. And I myself has have tested the boundaries with other types of fasting to see,
[17:05] you know, how much I can push. And I noticed that even with when I'm eating in like a fast mimicking diet type of way, with 500 calories a day,
[17:14] my capacity to lift weights, to run is significantly reduced.
[17:18] So I really learned my lesson and tested the waters.
[17:21] And this time when I did my 72 hour water fast,
[17:26] I abstained from all major exercise, didn't even go out that much during those three days and it was probably a really good move.
[17:35] Now if you fast for longer, you'll go into ketosis and you might have more energy to work out. So that's a different story.
[17:42] But for just like a short three day fast like this one,
[17:46] I did not have the energy to sustain myself beyond just the basic tasks of the day.
[17:54] Now there's a third energy in Ayurveda called kapha.
[17:58] And kapha is the energy of stability,
[18:01] of groundedness,
[18:02] of solidity,
[18:05] moisture. And so kapha is actually pretty well equipped to sustain a fast, right? Because kapha types, especially when there's too much kapha,
[18:15] can experience heaviness and stagnation.
[18:18] And a fast is introducing very light qualities of emptiness.
[18:24] And those are directly opposite of kapha.
[18:27] So for those who tend to have difficulty taking off weight, who have difficulty with sluggishness and low metabolism,
[18:36] fasting can be a really good way to alleviate those symptoms.
[18:43] So then what I would like for you out there to really think about is what are the dominant energies in your body? Are you feeling very light and anxious and ungrounded and depleted and you know, you feel very sensitive or do you feel very, very intense and you kind of just Want to get through a fast to prove to yourself that you can do it?
[19:09] Or do you actually feel like you require this fast to get rid of inflammation, to boost your energy levels and whatnot?
[19:19] And the big question is, do you have the inner reserves to sustain this fast,
[19:23] or are you trying to force healing through willpower?
[19:27] I didn't warm up to the idea of this fast until having tried out different, more minor versions of fasting because I knew that it would be really hard for me to give up my workouts.
[19:42] I knew that I had a past pattern of pushing it way too hard and overexerting myself and causing chronic fatigue.
[19:51] And I suspect that I had a period of adrenal fatigue at some point in my 20s, 30s,
[19:58] where I was feeling really dizzy even when I stood up. I was,
[20:04] I had persistent joint pain even when after a night's sleep I would get up and like all my joints would crack.
[20:11] And it took a long time to heal that.
[20:15] It took a long time for me to recognize that I can say no to a routine when it's not helping me.
[20:22] And it took years to get me back to a place where I had the discernment to take a few days off of my workouts,
[20:34] to soften the workouts even, or do different types of meditation, do different types of self care that would be more of service to myself.
[20:47] And it was not until I was able to do that that I decided to do this fast and try it out.
[20:53] And even then it was still pretty hard because not eating for three days is going to introduce a lot of vata energy into your body.
[21:03] And if you are unwilling to balance that really light, frenetic energy with,
[21:09] you know, being a lot more sedentary maybe than you're used to, being a lot more at home,
[21:14] doing a lot less than you're used to,
[21:17] I don't think it's going to work out for you.
[21:19] And there are some really serious risks of fasting. One of them is dehydration,
[21:28] especially if you're not taking electrolytes during your fast.
[21:32] And also you can experience low blood pressure, dizziness,
[21:38] fainting even.
[21:40] I've heard of some people even experience seizure like symptoms.
[21:46] And it can also negatively affect your mood, especially if you're,
[21:51] you know, an anxious type of person.
[21:54] It can also exacerbate that. Now for me, it actually reverse the anxiety, but that was because I really intentionally decided to do almost nothing except stay at home and do some light work,
[22:07] right? And just it takes some self awareness to know what kind of activities to do while you fast.
[22:16] So here are the people who really shouldn't fast.
[22:20] You shouldn't fast if you're in deep, deep burnout and you're not used to to acknowledging your body signal. So if you're experiencing joint pain and dizziness and exhaustion, you're probably not in a place to fast.
[22:36] You also shouldn't fast if you're unwilling to adjust your routine. And for those of you out there, just be very, very honest with yourself.
[22:45] Are you trying to still do your hiit workout or your 2 hour ashtanga practice while you do your fast? And if you're unwilling to stop those things, just don't do it.
[22:56] Don't do the fast.
[22:58] You shouldn't fast if you're fasting as punishment or to get control or to own your worth,
[23:04] because it's really not about control. I had to surrender a lot in order for me to get through this fast.
[23:11] And it was not to punish my body. In fact, I knew that there were things that I wanted to heal and I wanted to get more clarity on. That's why I did the fast.
[23:20] So you also shouldn't fast if you're emotionally dysregulated and using the fasting to feel more powerful or if it's giving you a buzz.
[23:29] Because I want you to know that some people do this and they feel amazing and they chase the feeling of the euphoria.
[23:37] And the euphoria is temporary,
[23:39] but just because there's euphoria doesn't mean it's actually helping you.
[23:43] So what to do if you want to fast, but right now you're maybe not in the place to sustain one healthily.
[23:51] Well,
[23:52] you have to work towards building, building your OGIs, your resilience, your emotional regulation, your nervous system regulation and your blood sugar stability.
[24:03] So I often with my seasonal cleanses with my coaching group Club Phoenix, we do intermittent fasting to introduce the idea of starting to regulate the digestion,
[24:18] right, or using Ayurvedic principles like not eating between meals,
[24:23] sipping hot water throughout the day to strengthen the gut,
[24:29] and then introduce that light type of fasting, like fast mimicking diet which is five days of 500 calories each. So there are steps you can take to start to get used to fasting for longer periods of time and with more intensive methods.
[24:47] So I wanna go just a little bit into my personal experience of why I did this 72 hour water fast.
[24:55] So I've been in my own wellness coaches community for about a year and a half, almost two years now.
[25:04] And fasting is one of the biggest,
[25:08] the biggest, most recommended ways of detoxing in that group.
[25:14] And,
[25:14] you know, there's a lot of evidence to show that this can benefit people. Especially,
[25:20] you know, as we get older, we get more susceptible to illness.
[25:24] And I want to start to do more between seasons to really boost my body and upkeep my ability to do high performance work.
[25:37] I travel a lot.
[25:39] I also do a lot of deep emotional work with my clients.
[25:43] I use my brain a lot and I use my body also.
[25:47] So as an athlete, as someone who likes to do martial arts, who likes to dance,
[25:52] I want to make sure that I can do this for a very, very long time. And that means also boosting my body's ability to heal itself.
[26:01] And in Ayurveda,
[26:03] our perfect state of health, called svastha, or establishment in the self,
[26:08] is basically the idea that we are in balance so that the body is able to heal itself.
[26:16] When we're in homeostasis, when we're in rest and digest, we have this ability to self repair.
[26:24] But when we eat too much sugar, when we're on the go too much, when we're constantly burning the candle at both ends,
[26:31] we actually make ourselves susceptible to chronic disease and inflammation.
[26:36] And we don't even realize that we're doing it.
[26:38] And the thing is, when we're so caught up in the busyness of life,
[26:42] you're also probably caught up in a cycle of chronic inflammation and depletion.
[26:50] And in my body and in my mind,
[26:53] I experience this not only as physical inflammation, but also anxiety.
[26:58] I experience it as also mood fluctuation and loss of motivation.
[27:05] And I know that if I want to continue doing my work, I have to be as clear as possible.
[27:11] I need to be able to show up not only for myself, which is super important,
[27:16] but also to show up for others.
[27:18] So I told myself,
[27:21] you know what, I'm just going to take a break.
[27:24] I know that I love doing my workouts and I love all of this other stuff,
[27:28] but I have some time right now and it seems like a good opportunity to try.
[27:33] So I went hungry for three days and it was really hungry.
[27:39] The hunger didn't actually fade. I think watching some videos online,
[27:43] some people stopped being hungry after day three or four, but I only went for three days, so I didn't really get to experience that like, disappearance of hunger so much.
[27:53] And I attempted some breath work on day two, which I don't know if that was what caused it, but I did feel a little bit dizzy and, and tired on day two.
[28:05] Overall, I was still able to work at my computer, to take light walk,
[28:09] to run some, some errands. But I knew that I didn't want to try doing anything that much heavier.
[28:17] And in terms of emotions,
[28:21] I forced myself to slow down a lot, meaning I didn't look at my phone so much, I didn't rush to answer messages as quickly.
[28:31] And I also wasn't pushing myself to do so much reading like I usually push myself to read a lot of books and to work on stuff in my business. I was like, I'm going to do as less of that as possible.
[28:45] And I honestly, because of that, felt so much more at peace.
[28:49] And so I even laid down for a while. I remember on day two, just laid down in bed and allowed myself to relax. I don't really allow myself to relax that often.
[29:01] And I know that I want to try doing a little more of that even when I'm not fasting because it gave me a lot of clarity and it was like I still got my work done,
[29:11] but I didn't have feel like I had to rush it all the time and I could still be disciplined in a different way.
[29:17] So overall I the mental benefits of having done this and knowing that I could do it have been great.
[29:24] Now, in terms of how I want to do it in the future,
[29:27] I think I prefer fast mimicking diet.
[29:31] Even though it's a little bit longer than a 72 hour water fast, you're allowed some calories throughout the day and for someone like me who prefers a little bit more activity,
[29:43] that might be a better option. But I am probably going to end up doing another 72 hour water fast sometime in the future, that's for sure.
[29:53] Hopefully that gives you some insight into the water fast, especially if you're someone who has never done it before.
[30:00] This was a really good way to test the waters.
[30:04] I do recommend that you try fasting out at some point,
[30:08] especially after you've gained some of that strength and resilience and you're feeling pretty even because there are just way too many benefits to doing something like this.
[30:19] And it can be beautiful, it can be revolutionary,
[30:22] especially if you're someone who is very hooked right now on a routine that you know might not be of the best service to you.
[30:32] So if you ever want to try one, but you're afraid of trying out a fast by yourself or you know that it's going to be difficult to do it. We also run seasonal challenges that might include fasting in our programs.
[30:48] So book a call with me,
[30:50] let's chat and see if doing this together would be a good fit for you.
[30:55] Have a great day everyone and happy fasting.
[31:01] Thanks for tuning in to from the Ashes. If this episode sparks something in you, I want you to know your evolution matters and we're rooting for you all the way.
[31:09] For coaching, community and resources to help you rise into your full potential,
[31:14] visit intrepidwellness Life and check out what we have to offer.
[31:17] If you love the episode, please leave a comment,
[31:20] share it with a friend, or tag me on Instagram ntrepidwellness Val, because I'd love to hear what resonated for you.
[31:28] Until next time, keep rising.
