24 Hour Fast

I’m fit.  At 6’ 1” tall I generally weigh in at about 170 lbs.  Exercise is my secret—not much of a secret I guess—but there it is.  And because I’m seemingly healthy, and because I work with a stringent budget, I’ve never seen too much reason to be very concerned about my diet.  I eat out at fast food restaurants on a regular basis, and will often have frozen pizza for dinner.

Outside of my slack diet I’m exceedingly disciplined; I even have my own code of ethics which I’ve designed to cultivate tremendous intellectual and spiritual rigor.  There have been times where my diet was very healthy and balanced.  I was working very hard at getting in better shape while I resided at one of a few group homes which I’ve had to live in.  That fell to the wayside when I moved out and had to afford my groceries on a budget of less than $1000 a month.  This amount of money included what I received in food stamps—and much of that $1000 had to be spent on rent.

Food is important to how we function and how we feel.  I’ve just realized how true that statement really is.  I have just done a twenty-four hour fast where all that crossed my lips was water.  During said twenty-four hours I had a headache, I threw up, and I was lethargic.  Throwing up was mostly due to taking a multi-vitamin on an empty stomach (oops).  The headache was mild and was probably because I drank no coffee.  But the lethargy was very seemingly linked only to my lack of nutrition.

After I finished my fast, which was less than one and a half hours ago, I felt completely renewed and revitalized.  My food cravings were different than what I’m used to; I had tomato soup and a salad to get off my fast—with just a few potato chips.  In this short time after getting food back into my stomach, my mind is functioning on another level; and I am much more mindful of my wellness and nutrition. 

Now that I’ve come to this place of heightened mindfulness for my nutrition, I will experiment with mini-fasts.  Fasting once or twice a week might be the proper course of action for what I desire to get out of mindfully eating.  I want more discipline in my life; I’m always looking for ways to live with greater discipline and simplicity; and fasting is a healthy means to frugality.  And eating healthier, 

I’m sure, will promote greater creative vitality, making it great for my intellectual practices.

What I thought I’d get out of fasting was that I’d see that there are more important things than food.  I thought it would confirm many of my pre-existing notions on living healthy, and mindfulness.  But I was wrong.