Fasting for what purpose?

[andonitxo]

Hi folks,

I've fastened several times since I began vegan. There're some direct effects which can be commented:
1.Your body cleanses.
2.Your willpower gets empowered, because you must give up your old eating habits.
3.Your guts get emptied, so the blood stored there finally is released to the rest of your body.
4.Your brain receives more blood.
5.Your mind gets more clear and sharp, and a sense of calmness fills your muscles.
6.Meditation processes and the like gets improved.

On the negative side:
1.Your body's organs take advance of so less work releasing toxins to your blood.
2.This way you can experience a light autointoxication, called toxemia.
3.Your tongue acquires a horrible look the first days (it is the main output portal for toxins).
4.You can experience a massive feces elimination.

Anyway from my viewpoint the best "spiritual improvers" are fastening and sex contemption.

Hope this helps.

[Hpmons]

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[Psan]

I feel that fasting is the most effective and easiest method to break away from the primitive programs running inside our brains. Not that these programs are unnecessary, but we tend to overuse them, to the extent that they halt our spiritual development.

Once you have reached a level of material development, when you need not worry about food and other basic instincts anymore, and you have ample to survive, you must start the next level. But habitually we continue in the same loop of eating, excreting and sleeping. Fast can break you out of this.

It will let you see the mechanical programs running and ruling you. Now you take charge of them and realize your next level. So its has more to do with mind, less with body, although you may get the obvious side effects - good or bad.

The trick is to defeat your program to eat, not to eat when the food is in front of you. And to eat only when you wish to, not when you are forced to, by the program.

The next step is to defeat the program of collecting wealth, even when you have more than sufficient. It's an outgrown version of our primitive instinct to collect supplies for the bad season ahead.

Next and most difficult is to control the urge of mating. Abstaining from sex is a kind of fast that can become a huge challenge. Its not giving up sex, but to see your own actions, when you are driven by this powerful program. You'll be highly surprised, try it !

[Kris]

Next and most difficult is to control the urge of mating. Abstaining from sex is a kind of fast that can become a huge challenge. Its not giving up sex, but to see your own actions, when you are driven by this powerful program. You'll be highly surprised, try it !

how about masturbation??

[Psan]

Its more or less the same thing. But it comes in the category of acquired habits rather than natural programs. (E.g. drugs, smoking etc). There is nothing wrong in it, as long as it is used as valve, to release the desire so that one can concentrate on important things.

Its very easy to acquire because its so convenient, and there are not many deterrents here.

If you find yourself in this loop, the practical thing to do is to find an alternative way of fulfilling the need. Like finding a partner or to go for paid sex. Or practice all the three together. Once you have so many alternatives, this loop will become weak, divide and conquer.

When you feel that the program is getting weaker, try to eliminate it. Next, try the usual abstaining from sex, the hassle of maintaining a partner and the worry of maintaining your bank balance will help you

Again, my opinion is that one should not try to repress it. Only see it.....and become your own master.

[Makaveli]

I'm interested in trying fasting maybe just for a day.  Besides for it slowing my metabolism my only other concern is losing muscle mass.  I've read from many weight lifting and fat loss sources that starving and not eating enough leads to losing muscle.

[Hpmons]

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[Makaveli]

That's good to hear about fasting and muscle loss.  I'm going to try it soon maybe just with some whey protein powder on my first attempt but that would probably be considered cheating.  

I agree that fad diets are no good.  They may temporarily help with weight loss but they don't work in the long run.  It's best to just eat generally healthy and cut out junk from your diet.  That hussman.org link looks good.  I'm doing the HIIT cardio that is discussed there, and high intensity weight lifting, which is good for losing fat and building muscle, plus there is no need for overtraining.