That time I tried a 72 hour fast...

I wasn’t sure I was actually going to go through with it.

The idea of doing a 72-hour fast has been rattling around in my brain for months, maybe even years, after reading about all the health benefits—especially the part about autophagy, when your cells start repairing themselves after 36–48 hours of extended fasting. It’s supposed to be great for longevity and for reducing inflammation and mental clarity. I was intrigued.

But it also felt a little bit scary. And hard.

And honestly, kind of unnecessary.

After all, I've already done the work of losing weight and getting healthy, right? I lost 49 pounds. I’ve healed my gut and balanced my hormones and achieved my ultimate goal of metabolic flexibility–everything we teach inside my Thinlicious® TAS program.

Overall, I feel pretty good. So why put myself through this?

Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was the challenge. Or maybe it was just that after a very busy fall and a not-so-carb-conscious holiday season (hello sourdough bread!), one of my goals for January was a mini health reset. 

So I started with the 10-Day Sugar Detox the day after Christmas, which had me feeling great, and like I was back on track. 

But I couldn’t shake my curiosity about trying an extended fast.

And, since we didn't have a lot going on this weekend, and because my husband Chuck was willing to try it too (at least partially—he didn’t want to go a full 72 hours), we decided to give it a try.

We officially started our countdown clock on Thursday evening after dinner. 

And I’m not going to lie—at about hour 20 is when things got rough. Really rough.

I was tired. Cranky. Distracted. And hungry. It took everything in me not to eat. Instead, I gave myself permission to slow down and practice some of the self-care that I rarely give myself time for. I took a long bath. I read a book. I did red light therapy and laid on my prana mat. I let myself rest.

And then, something shifted.

By Friday night, I was actually feeling a lot better, and by Saturday morning—believe it or not—I felt amazing. I had so much energy that I ended up cleaning out my barn gym and doing a bunch of stuff around the house—way more than I'd expected. (Turns out, once your body switches to burning fat for fuel instead of glucose, the hunger just... disappears.)

Saturday night, though, was challenging. Not because I felt hungry, but because we went to a party, and normally I'd lean on snacks and a couple glasses of wine to make myself feel more comfortable in a big crowd. (I love hosting parties at my house, but I'm so awkward at other people's events—I never quite know what to do with myself.)

But not this time.

So there I was, 48 hours into my fast, watching everyone else eat and drink while I just sat there, trying to make conversation. Usual crutch.

It was hard. I won't lie. Especially because Chuck had ended his fast at the 48 hour mark.

But I made it through. And as hard as it was, I was really proud of myself.

By Sunday, I felt almost euphoric. Clear. Centered. Calm. Not hungry. Not even tempted when I baked a loaf of fresh sourdough bread and served it—still warm out of the oven, slathered with butter—to our friends that afternoon while we played games. Nor was I tempted by the homemade queso and buffalo chicken dip I made later. 

In fact, I felt so good that when my 72 hours were up, I decided to keep going, just until the morning.

I finally broke my fast at 87 hours, after a great night's sleep and an even better workout.

And although I did drop a few pounds over the course of the fast, for me this really wasn't about weight loss. Not even a little. It was more about allowing my body to reset for the new year, which I do feel like I accomplished.

And before you think I’m going to challenge you this week to do a 72-hour fast—don’t worry, I’m not! I definitely don’t think this is for everyone.

In fact, I think the only reason this was even doable for me—let alone energizing—was because I'd already done a lot of the essential pre-work. I’ve created a foundation of health that allowed this kind of experiment to be not just safe, but powerful.

So why am I sharing it with you?

Well the real surprise for me wasn't that I finished. It was how good I felt for most of it. 

And how much it reminded me that sometimes we don't actually know where our limits are until we give ourselves permission to find out.

Archilochus wisely said that "We don't rise to the level of our expectations—we fall to the level of our training." Along those lines, more recently, Bob Marly said that “You never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.”

In other words? Sometimes you don’t even know what you’re capable of until you try.

Maybe there's something in your life you've been avoiding because you assume it will be too hard, or that you're not ready. Maybe the idea of pushing yourself—doing something uncomfortable—feels unnecessary, or scary, or inconvenient.

And maybe it is.

But then again, maybe it's exactly what you need to discover what you're actually capable of.

And so that’s my challenge for you this week, to test your edge.

Pick something hard—something you're not totally sure you can do—and see what happens. And again, it doesn't have to be a three-day fast. It could be a difficult conversation. A physical challenge. A creative project you've been putting off. Whatever it is, give yourself permission to try.

Because the confidence on the other side? It feels pretty good.

Live with purpose, friend, and have an amazing week!

xoxo, Ruth

P.S. Have you ever done a longer fast, or something else that really challenged you physically or mentally? I'd love to hear about it—just hit reply and tell me what it was and what you learned from it.

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