# 5 Day Fast. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 6, 2017, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745 "2017-12-06T22:30:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2017, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/21 "2017-12-09T18:07:58Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Here is a better informed research paper on the subject: [INTERMITTENT FASTING AND HUMAN METABOLIC HEALTH - PMC](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4516560/) > > There are studies that show that for obese people, fasting is an effective way to kick of weight loss and encourage them to change their lifestyle to continue to lose weight and avoid a rebound. But like anything else, if you stop doing the good things, bad habits creep back in. Weight loss as a lifestyle change works. Weight loss as a fad diet, doesn’t. That hasn’t changed. Read it again. The study does not say that a _five fucking day fast_ is good for weight loss or health. It talks about _intermittent fasting_, such as every other day, or time-restricted feeding, etc. Yes, skipping a few meals or even a day can be great. Not starving for five days. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2017, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/22 "2017-12-09T18:46:35Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Read it again. > > The study does not say that a _five fucking day fast_ is good for weight loss or health. It talks about _intermittent fasting_, such as every other day, or time-restricted feeding, etc. > > Yes, skipping a few meals or even a day can be great. Not starving for five days. Wow. Why so angry? If you read my posts you’ll notice that I’ve been doing IF for well over 10 years now. It’s not news to me. And I haven’t been “starving” for 5 days. I was fasting. There’s a difference. Most people are 3 weeks from “starving”. Maybe calm the fuck down, yeah? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2017, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/23 "2017-12-10T07:35:51Z")
Did you notice some muscle aches near the end of the fast? How do the days after a 5-day fast feel? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2017, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/24 "2017-12-10T15:16:47Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > Did you notice some muscle aches near the end of the fast? > > How do the days after a 5-day fast feel? No muscle aches. No particular sense of loss of overall physical strength. However, day 5 was a pretty low energy day and I didn’t get to the gym. Adjusting to eating again, specifically having an active gut that’s processing food, is annoying. My fast breaking meal was about a half a cup of hummus and some pita chips. It hit my gut like a brick. Had to wait a couple of hours to eat again because of slight nausea while processing. The subsequent meal was a well balanced supper of [orecchiette with broccoli rabe and sausage](https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/orecchiette-with-broccoli-rabe-and-sausage.html). I used a new (to me) vegan sausage that is indistinguishable from the real thing. I could only eat about half of my normal serving. But it wasn’t quite as hard on my gut as the first meal. In general, my gut is a bit angry with having to do work again, but it’s adjusting. More importantly, my energy levels are restored and I’m heading back into the gym with a new sense of vigor. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2017, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/25 "2017-12-10T20:49:07Z")
This sounds like a spectacularly bad idea without a doctor’s supervision. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2017, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/26 "2017-12-11T03:50:43Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > This sounds like a spectacularly bad idea without a doctor’s supervision. Yep. One day? Sure. Five days? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2017, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/27 "2017-12-11T13:21:18Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > This sounds like a spectacularly bad idea without a doctor’s supervision. Why? ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2017, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/28 "2017-12-11T15:23:58Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well, for a healthy adult, not much danger of a five day fast if you keep hydrated. But the weight loss is temporary > [@](#): > > So, not too dangerous, but few actual benefits. Well, I didn’t mean for the health or weight-loss benefits 🙂 Just going that long without eating. I hate eating and still have to eat at least once a day or I feel faint. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2017, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745/29 "2017-12-11T15:40:30Z")
In that case I agree with the reflexively panicky detractors. You should definitely not be fasting. Eat! It’s one of the few true pleasures in life. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-day-fast/803745.md?page=1)