Day 3 (72 hours) into my water fast

Check out the results of my fast.

72 hour water fast disclaimer

I do not recommend that anybody else try this type of fasting. Consult your medical practitioner about any lifestyle changes that you plan to make. I am simply sharing my personal experiences as I fast. This is meant to serve as anecdotal evidence and is not meant to be a substitute for sound, medical advice.

Find the results below.

How much weight do you lose on a 3 day or 72 hour water fast?

I weighed 73.5 kg (162 pounds) right after my last meal. I currently weigh 68.5 kg (151 pounds) at the 72 hour mark. I therefore lost 5 kg (11 pounds) from 3 days of fasting.

I still had a lot of food in my belly as I weighed myself at hour 0 (right after my last meal). My blood pressure has dropped and I have lost a lot of water weight. This leaves me to believe that I've only lost about 2 kg (4 pounds) of fat.

I suspect that most people will lose a lot less than I did. My metabolism is high because I exercise regularly and I eat healthy. This means that my body is very efficient at burning fat for energy already.

An estimated 2 kg of this is fat.

Hunger levels during a 3 day fast

I was the hungriest during the first day. My hunger dropped by about half on the second day. I wasn't hungry at all for most of my third day, but I do feel a little food deprived right now as I wright this article (about 72.5 hours after my last meal).

I'd say that my hunger has consistently dropped day after day. It is not completely gone, though. Water (salt water in my case to keep my blood pressure steady) has definitely helped to curb hunger cravings throughout the 3 days so far.

I feel better than I did on day 1.

Energy levels after 72 hours of fasting

I had an energy drop yesterday (day 2) afternoon.

I woke up with low energy that seems to come and go. I currently have low energy. It is not an uncomfortable kind of low energy. I feel very relaxed and laid back.

I find it hard to muster the motivation to do anything. I just want to sit back and watch videos.

Sleep during water fasting

I slept very little on day 1 (about 5 hours of sleep in total). I didn't feel like I needed any more sleep than that. I slept about 4 hours on day 2.

Day 2 (yesterday) night I fell asleep and slept through until late this morning. I slept for just over 8 hours - very soundly.

It looks like my sleep has returned back to normal. I had extremely low energy when I woke up this morning and it took me a while to get the energy to start the day.

Caffeine during a water fast

Some people say that you can have caffeine and that it will extenuate some of the benefits of fasting. Other people say that caffeine increases some fasting benefits but stops other benefits. I don't drink caffeine during my fasts in order to make sure that I get the maximum benefit from a pure water fast. I consume nothing but water and table salt.

I must say that this fast has been much easier that my previous fasts. I'm pretty sure that the fact that I stopped caffeine 6 days before my fast is a major contributing factor.

Most of the negative side effects of water fasting could probably be attributed to caffeine withdrawal for most people that embark on a pure water fast.

I don't drink coffee when I fast.

Does food tempt you when you fast?

I have just completed 72 hours of fasting and my family made this wonderful stew with a new tomato-based sauce.

The smell fills the whole house and it smells absolutely delicious. I am tempted to break the fast and grab a bowl, but I don't feel too deprived to be without it at the same time.

The fact that I can enjoy it in the future and the fact that I am currently upgrading my body is enough to keep me from giving in to temptation.

Fasting gives you a strong sense of will power that transcends into other areas of your life. I feel proud of myself for navigating past this temptation. It is a lot easier than you would expect on day 3.

Why am I so cold when I fast?

The massive drop in blood pressure and metabolism of fat for energy will make it harder for your body to generate heat. Heat also costs energy that becomes very precious to your body during a fast.

I have noticed that my body temperature drops quite considerably. In order to keep myself motivated enough to stay away from food; I bargained that in place of that I can have two luxuries: heat and sleep. I have loosened my self-imposed restrictions on sleep and I have allowed myself to sit in front of the heater whenever I want.

It is healthy for you to get too hot and too cold from time to time. I have currently been fascinated by research into the health benefits of heat and cold.

Since my body is already under enough stress during this prolonged fast, I won't do any heat training until I start eating again.

Low blood pressure is a part of fasting.

Have my allergies and asthma improved after three days of fasting?

I noted on both my first and second day of fasting that my allergies and asthma seem to disappear completely after 24 hours of fasting. This effect lasted all the day through the second day.

I woke up this morning with a slightly tighter chest than what I have had for the first two days. It seems as if I've had some sort of reversal of these benefits on my third day. My allergies/asthma is much, much better than it ever would be when I don't fast, but it is not as good as it was on day one and two.

I think that this could be for one of two possible reasons. Firstly, my body could be more adapted to going without food and therefore it is starting to return to a place of normalcy (like, for instance, the fact that I slept fully for the first time last night).

The second theory is that the small recurrence of my asthma or allergies is part of the healing crises that is said to happen during fasts when the body starts to heal itself.

See the results from my first day of fasting.
See the results from my second day of fasting.
Here are the results of my fourth day of fasting.
Here are the effects 24 hours after I end my water fast.

Stay Strong!

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