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Slowing down to go fast
For the last week or so, I've been starting my annual fast. This is almost as much fun as having your blood sucked out by leeches, but without all of the water sports beforehand.
Fasting is an unusual activity. I first got into it a few years ago, and I really like it, overall. It's just the adjustment time that is so difficult.
I have a compulsive personality. For a long time, I've thought that most professionals who delve into one topic deeply must have some sort of compulsion issues, as I don't think that man becomes an expert on say, nuclear physics without some sort of inner driving force.
This personality type has some great benefits, but it has a lot of drawbacks too. I find that if one potato chip tastes good, then the entire bag is even better. If one Red Bull gets you going, then a couple in the morning will really get things ramped up!
You can see the problems. If it were just one thing, it would be easy enough to address -- just stop doing it, silly! But I find that they are all inter-related: sugar gives me a lot of short-term energy. That's great, but after a couple of hours the insulin kills the blood sugar and I'm on the rebound, looking for more starches or sweets. I've found I can kick the glucose fix up to a whole new level with a good hit of caffeine at the same time. Too much of this over the period of a week or so and then I've got the jitters and can't sleep well, which is cured by a few adult beverages before bedtime. Adult beverages make me hungry the next day (who would have thought there was a connection there?) which starts the cycle all over again.
I find that when I get "out of whack" like this, I begin to start "programming" my metabolism: got a big meeting coming up at ten? A couple of Mountain Dews and a doughnut or two around 9:45 should be just the thing to keep the noggin humming. The problem with all of this metabolism programming is that for some reason, it turns out I am actually a mammal. Who knew? And according to the user manuals, it's not good to overclock mammals too much.
So once a year or so, I just -- stop eating. As in no food at all. The first time I did this, I was convinced that giant belly weasels would come out of my stomach at night and chew my ears off. Perhaps I would die a horrible death. Perhaps I would get so weak that the rescue squad would have to come and force feed me Big Macs. When I would tell people that I haven't eaten anything in a week and they would look at me like I announced I was the Unibomber. Some would even walk me around, like a circus freak, to show friends. "Hey Joe! Have you met Daniel? He hasn't eaten anything at all in a WEEK! Ever hear of that?"
I also hear stories of terror from other people. These people, I am sure, mean well.
"I had a brother who went on a fast," a person will say, "Things were looking good until one day, he turned yellow and his arms fell off. Good luck with that."
None of these fears turned out to be realistic. What I DID find was that, after adapting to a low-carb, no caffeine, no alcohol lifestyle, my body did just fine. Strangely enough, my personality changed some -- instead of going through such extremes I settle down and feel a lot more "level". I get more of a jock personality (those years in the marines making a comeback!) and feel like I have more time.
It's not a cure-all by any means -- compulsive personality traits are with me no matter what -- but it's a nice break. The first couple weeks of transition, which I'm into now, is the hardest part, as my body gets really pissed off about the change and complains a lot. After that it's smooth sailing.
I wouldn't recommend fasting for everybody -- I drink medically approved shakes with nutrients and proteins though the whole time and take lots of vitamins -- but it is a very interesting experience for anybody who's never tried it. If you've tried other things to get your system straightened out and they didn't work, fasting and a lifestyle change afterwards might be worth looking at. Of course, if you're going to do something like that, be sure you check with your doctor. Better still, get into an "good carb" eating program with peer support. You don't want your arms to fall off.
Was that a belly weasel I just saw running around?
Remember this old joke?
Q: How do you make a slow pigeon fast?
A: Don't give him anything to eat!
Not so funny now is it, Nutrient Shake Boy? ;-)
I told my six-year-old daughter that I hadn't had anything to eat in ten days.
She said, "Why are you still alive?"
I'm sure she meant it in a nice way :)
I frequently will go many days without sleep and sometimes without eating. I'm weird, I don't do this deliberately, I just get wrapped up in something and don't stop until I drop.
I haven't noticed as much of that since the closed head injury. In some ways I'm much less productive but in others I'm more productive. I can more deliberately do work. I don't have the amazing super break through times. I miss those. But for now its better to just plug along.
So I can relate to controlling obsessive behavior. I think having control over yourself, either to say yes I will or no I won't, is one of the most important things you can achieve. Glad you are able to do that.