I mentioned in an earlier article that I had lost 9 pounds in a 10-day fast.  Yes, I went 10 consecutive days without eating a bite; I merely drank a couple of soft drinks each day.  I had been hoping to lose 10 pounds in 7 days, but it didn’t work out that way, so I kept fasting till I had completed 10 days, whereupon I had lost only 9 pounds.  I was slightly miffed that I fell short of my mark.

Then for about two weeks, I ate a minimal diet: one cheeseburger, one small order of fries and one small bag of potato chips per day.  Despite this minimal diet, I gained back one of the pounds I had lost.  So I decided to go on a 5-day fast, which I completed last week, losing 6 more pounds.  I was elated.

I was not overweight to begin with.  At 5’-11”, I had a starting weight of 175 pounds and got down to 161 pounds, which is what I prefer.  I hadn’t weighed myself in two years and didn’t realize I had been creeping up.  I’ve been doing exercises regularly for two years, and there’s not an ounce of fat on my body.  For a chubby or fat person, results are much more dramatic.  A tubby person can lose 15 or 20 pounds on a 7-day fast.

The 10-day fast is a new record for me, and frankly, I was a little worried that I might have been overdoing it.  But no, I felt good throughout the whole fast, and feel super now, partly, of course, because I feel virtuous, and, partly, because my clothes fit better.

If this method seems drastic, it may still be beneficial, according to an article that appeared recently in the webzine World Science.  The article links fasting with longevity.  Caloric restriction has been found to promote long life in animals, corresponding to certain genes that have been identified.  It is theorized that the ability to survive periods of food deprivation is what has enabled certain animals to survive.  Animals who have gone without food for extended periods may outlive regularly fed animals by as much as 40%.

Drugs may be developed that mimic the efficacy of these genes, thus producing the results of fasting without requiring people to stop eating.  But why bother with makeshifts, when fasting is free and easy?

Now that I see that I can remain slim and trim, while increasing the likelihood of a ripe old age, I’m all gung-ho to keep it up.  I’m 69 at present, and hope for 15 more years at least.

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