What is Intermittent Fasting?

Intermittent fasting is fasting that takes into account and encourages long periods of time spent between meals. There are actually multiple ways that intermittent fasting can be done: fasting or reduced food intake every other day, or time-restricted eating where you would fast from the evening until the morning of the next day.

Imagine animals when they are sick: they usually avoid food and spend time fasting in solitude. This is because the animal body is wise and knows that it needs a break from eating to conserve all the energy it normally uses for digestion. In fact, when the body is sick, it needs all the energy it can get, and eating food disrupts that process by "stealing energy" through the process of digestion and assimilation.

Our bodies intuitively know how to conserve their energy in the most efficient way and behave much like an energy battery that is placed in hibernation mode. However, fasting not only helps to cure any of our unresolved health problems, but if done correctly, can regenerate tissue and improve genetic weaknesses.

Overall, the type of fast you choose to do should fit your personality and lifestyle, and should be the type of fast that is sustainable over the long term. The most effective fasts also work around reducing your intake of dairy, meat, processed sugar, salt, vegetable oils, protein and fried foods.

Intermittent fasting for weight management

Intermittent fasting is great for health because it gives the body a break from digestion, which is very energy-draining. In fact, more than 70% of the daily energy supply is spent on the digestion, assimilation and elimination of food and its by-products. This energy could be used to enhance cellular and organ function, improve mental clarity and performance, and heal underlying health problems.

Fasting gives the body an opportunity to redirect its energy towards healing and regeneration, including maintaining a healthy body weight. It may not be well known, but much of the body weight around the belly is caused by inflammation in the gut. Perhaps the gut flora is dysregulated, the gut is irritated due to acidic foods and lifestyle, or leaky gut issues are present. To protect the area, the body creates a lipid barrier that seals the inflammation and helps protect it from further damage.

When we fast intermittently, we can reduce the overall level of inflammation in the body, improve organ function and metabolism, and reduce the overall production of fat and cholesterol. It's not just about calories when it comes to weight gain, it's more about the nature of the food you eat - especially whether it's acidic or alkaline. Acids cause tissue corrosion, inflammation and high production of cholesterol and fats that are supposed to protect vital organs!

Does fasting have spiritual benefits?

From a spiritual perspective, the physical-mind-spirit triad is interconnected, and any improvement you see in your physical health also translates into better mental health and spiritual awareness. When the body is empty of food and obstructions, cells and organs rest and become more receptive to an external environment that is ripe for ideas, coincidences, and other illuminations. In other words, when the vessel is empty, it has more room to receive physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It's a reset that disrupts the regular state of things and helps the body stop and recalibrate.

This release of blockages in the body further allows the energy vortices (or chakras) to better communicate with each other and strengthen our life force potential. The energy can then flow better into the basic meridians of the body and relieve pain and disease symptoms over time.

In the Vedic tradition, the body's chakras correspond to the body's endocrine glands—the vital managers of all communication in the body and the producers of hormones. When we repair our body's communication network, we can feel healthier, more energized and more vital.

What are the risks associated with intermittent fasting?

There are no risks associated with intermittent fasting, although one may experience symptoms of detoxification as part of the body's overall healing crisis. Therefore, the initiation of intermittent fasting should be preceded by a proper cleansing of the alkaline diet, which includes the exclusion of packaged foods, dairy products, meat and other artificial foods and preservatives.

Then, probably a month before starting the fast, it is advisable to eat a clean diet consisting of plenty of raw fruits and vegetables. This will prepare the body for fewer detoxification symptoms during intermittent fasting and will only help overall healing and the natural weight loss process.

Final thoughts

From Buddhist tradition to the Abrahamic religions, monthly or annual fasting periods have always been extolled as a necessary physical and spiritual cleansing on this physical and spiritual journey called life. Similarly, in our modern world, intermittent fasting can modify some of these spiritual qualities to help us better connect with ourselves, our communities, and our environment.

Fasting not only tries to do this, but juice fasting and fruit fasting give the body more energy without having to digest it, because juicing removes hard-to-digest fiber and provides the body with additional nutrients, while fruit is the highest energy food found in Nature.

Increasing energy in the body is the key to healing any disease. Since the body is self-healing, when it has excess energy and vitality, it will use it to regenerate some of its weakest areas. This is most effectively achieved through intermittent fasting along with a detox protocol that consists of organic cold-pressed juices and fruits. For your health!