Fast, Breathe, Move

DISCLAIMER: If you have any medical condition, consult your doctor before employing the tools or techniques featured here.

Fast, Breathe, Move: This has become my mantra. I have a very bright son who frequently clues me into things I might otherwise overlook. What he has turned me onto in the realm of health and nutrition has proven invaluable in my own life – life saving, really. This is my attempt to pass it on. My hope is that someone will find all or part of this helpful.

Doctor please, some more of these
Outside the door, she took four more
What a drag it is getting old

Stones - Mother's Little Helper

A few points:

While aging can't be reversed, many of its ill-effects can be – others can be ameliorated. Many metabolic diseases can be reversed (Type 2 diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, cardio-vascular disease, dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, etc.), and this can be done relatively simply and inexpensively with little or no intervention from the medical community.

Many are suffering because they do not understand or have not heard what science has now figured out about the centrality of diet in human health and longevity, and the astonishing ability of the body to regulate and heal itself, given the right conditions.

One important discovery, or rediscovery rather, is the importance of fasting. It's the most powerful metabolic intervention there is, and it's free. One of the newly discovered important things about fasting is that it stimulates an amazing process called autophagy.

In 2016, Yoshinori Ohsumi, Japanese cell biologist, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of the mechanisms of autophagy. One of the main benefits of fasting is autophagy.

Autophagy:
new science
important in metabolism, aging and disease
cleans house on a cellular level (takes out the trash)
repairs damage throughout the body
stimulates pluripotent stem cell production that can become any needed form of new tissue which your body knows exactly what to do with
a powerful way of self-healing
and it's free, will in fact save you money (on groceries)

Pluripotent stem cells are master cells. They're able to make cells from all three basic body layers, so they can potentially produce any cell or tissue the body needs to repair itself. This “master” property is called pluripotency.

What Is Autophagy and Why Did It Win the Nobel Prize?

Understanding autophagy and how to simulate it via fasting, etc, puts amazingly powerful self-healing tools in your hands – and it cost nothing.

It's not in the best interest of Med, Inc or Big Pharma to apprise the public of this new info – that many if not most common ailments need not be “managed” by profiteers – that the cure is simple and free. Who profits from that? I mean other than the individual involved and we the people. In terms of the traditional medical establishment, nobody makes a buck on fasting (book authors notwithstanding).

To understand anything complicated, you have to grok the full context within which that thing occurs.

The human animal comes hard-wired by history, genetics and evolution to survive on this planet in myriad and complex ways. While our social/technological circumstances have changed rapidly and dramatically since the agricultural, industrial and technological revolutions, biologically we are evolved for life as cavemen or hunter-gatherers who live a perpetual cycle of feast and famine. Our environment has changed profoundly, but our biology hasn't, evolution hasn't. Biology evolves at a glacial pace.

The biological human being is a wonder of fine tuning. We are elegantly adapted to life on Earth. We've been at this evolution thing for a great long while, going back to that first fish to grow a set of lungs and flop its way onto land. Our progenitors have been evolving ever since.

One thing that hunter-gatherers don't do is eat all the time. Only in the past couple of hundred years, the last hundred years really, has it become the norm to have constant access to food. Three meals a day is a new invention. Cave folk probably didn't eat a lot of breakfasts. In fact, they routinely went without food for extended periods of time. Feast and famine has been the general rule for most of human history. It can take a while to track down and kill a mammoth. In the mean time people went hungry. The hungrier they got the better hunters they became (and the more their bodies healed themselves). Nothing gives an edge like being hungry. That biological rhythm of feasting and fasting is what is natural to us. The agricultural revolution changed our access to food and our way of life, but it didn't change, more than a hair, our genetic predispositions.

Agriculture began ten thousand years ago and took several thousand years to spread throughout the far flung pockets of the human population. In evolutionary time, that's nothing. We've been eating a grain-based diet and eating on a more frequent basis ever since, neither of which are natural to our species. The negative ramifications are all around us and inside of us. Many of the diseases to which we are heir can be traced directly to these two factors: the composition of our diet and our frequency of eating.

Grain. We're simply not adapted to it. And it harms us in profound ways: systemic inflammation being one. The aches and pains of getting old have a lot to do with a grain heavy diet, think pasta, rice, bread, etc. - and sugar in all forms. These things cause systemic inflammation – which causes arthritis, autoimmune diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, allergies, asthma, dementia, Alzheimer's, inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn's disease among others. This is what elevates the importance of low carb high fat diets and ketosis – the resulting biochemical process that results.

The ketogenic diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that shares many similarities with the Atkins and low-carb diets. It involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This reduction in carbs puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis.

I have come to follow a strict ketogenic diet most of the time. After a long stretch (and many choose not to stray at all, which may be best) I will incorporate carbs just for a break. I will spend a few days or a week eating bagels and pizza (along with healthier things), then I jump back into keto. I also utilize fasting, both Intermittent Fasting and prolonged water only fasting. Together the power of these tools is impressive and they are free to use however you will.

Fast, Breathe, Move: do these things and you will suffer less and live better if not longer.

Nutritional science and the medical community have been dead wrong about what's best for us. Surprise, surprise, healthy fats are good for you. It's carbs and sugar that are killing us.

Prof. Tim Noakes - 'Medical aspects of the low carbohydrate lifestyle'

FAST

It's easier than you think. And more powerful than we've imagined.

Dr. Jason Fung - 'Therapeutic Fasting - Solving the Two-Compartment Problem'

You can start by skipping breakfast. It's not hard and it's so powerful.

Is fasting the fountain of youth?
https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/01/health/fasting-longevity-food-drayer/inde...

BREATHE

Learning to breathe with intention will improve your health.

Breathe to Heal

MOVE

Any movement is exercise. If you sit too much, and who doesn't, start getting up more often and moving around a little bit. The more you can move the better. It doesn't have to be elaborate. Do what you can. Start from there. But move!

Exercise is the most transformative thing you can do for your brain.

The brain-changing benefits of exercise

donovan-3-peace-out-640

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Comments

I'm in day 6 of a water fast. It's like a drug...that's good for you.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

Lots to "digest" here. Thank you so much for this. I intend to go back and listen to the vids. I've recently been diagnosed with high blood pressure. I've resisted taking the medication, thinking I can control it, to no avail. Now, this gives me hope. I don't want to live on medication the rest of my life.

I started a vegan diet five years ago and came to be a vegetarian, instead. I should say, really, pescatarian, as I do eat fish. However, now I think this might be it - carbs are the enemy. It is harder to eliminate carbs than meat! Oh well, I'm up for the challenge.

Hope you are doing well - sounds like it! Stop by more often. Your voice is important and needed.

Peace, bro! Pleasantry

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann The videos contain a wealth of very useful info based on the most current science. If you watch them, you're likely to benefit greatly from one part or another. Thanks for reading and for the kind words, RA.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@OPOL
yet somehow refuse to believe it. I'm going to change my ways - not overnight, but change will come!

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

moneysmith's picture

I follow the recommendations of Dale Bredesen, MD, a UCLA physician and author of The End of Alzheimer's, a program he has used to reverse Alzheimer's in hundreds of patients. And some of his basic rules are no grains and no eating for at least 10 to 12 hours (intermittent fasting, overnight, basically) so autophagy can do its thing. It's so easy, anyone can do it.

Actually, your points are all part of the program. And there's a ton of medical research demonstrating the benefits. Unfortunately, it's a very hard sell among people I know, especially the ones who need it most.

Congratulations on being open to trying new things and sticking with it! Sounds like it's working really well!!

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Hell is empty and all the devils are here. William Shakespeare

@moneysmith That's very interesting. And yes, people can be amazingly resistant to new info - and it does seem especially true in those who most need it. Go figure. Smile
\

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gulfgal98's picture

We have a friend who regularly does a 24 hour fast every three days and swears by it. I have never tried it since I wake up hungry every morning and always eat something before I walk. Perhaps drinking more water would help. Hub has been on a keto diet after seeing his brother lose 17 pounds looking to be in the his best shape in years. The problem with keto for me is that I do not eat eggs or cottage cheese, two of the staples of the diet.

Meanwhile I eat mostly pescetarian diet but usually add a small amount of meat or chicken no more often than once a week. I started doing that because my digestive system felt better by not eating meat. I think I should also eliminate wheat, but that is going to be more difficult for me to do.

As for moving, I used to be a competitive distance runner in my 30's, 40's,and part of my 50's, but the wheels broke down so I quit. I gained weight and finally began walking every day with a walking partner. I usually do between 4.5 and 5 miles each morning. It is not as much fun as running was, but I hope it is keeping me in better shape than most people my age. And I started the day off feeling energized.

Thank you for writing about this and sharing your links. Great essay!

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Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

@gulfgal98 Thank you very much. A few points: you can certainly do keto without eggs or cottage cheese. There is plenty of other stuff you can eat. If you're already keto adapted (burning fat for energy, not glucose from carbs or sugar) fasting becomes much easier. But in the end, everyone has to suit themselves. I encourage experimentation though. You never know what you might find. Always a pleasure hearing from you, old friend.

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if i have to deprive myself of carbohydrates.

you don't want to know what my homemade thick-crust pizza looks like.

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The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

WindDancer13's picture

@UntimelyRippd

what does it taste like? = ) I make my own bread and pizza also.

Ditto: not sure what the point is.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

@UntimelyRippd If I try to replace too many carbs with fat then it might go through the roof.

And I had to read this right after eat Kraft Mac & Cheese . . .

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@SancheLlewellyn It will do the opposite. it will lower your LDL. It's mentioned in some detail in one of the videos above, sorry I don't remember which one.

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@OPOL particularly since you make most of your own cholesterol anyway.

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LeChienHarry's picture

@SancheLlewellyn Perfect Health Diet and saw our weight drop on its own, lost cravings for anything, our lipid profile is really good.

The old fat in is fat on, is really been disproved. Cut out gluten grains, fast 12 to 16 hours a day and eat in an eight hour span ending late evening.

Coffee with cream in the am keeps us going until 1pm. Chocolate and wine are included and there is no portion control. We don't have to worry about weight gain or loss as we seem to have gotten to our natural normal weight.

Thanks OPOL.

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You may choose to look the other way, but you can never say again you did not know. ~ William Wiberforce

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@LeChienHarry
is it crucial for the fast to begin in the evening? I ask because I rise early and eat at 5:30 am. I stop eating at 1:30 pm. Do I need to change that?

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann No, that's actually fine. That's a fairly good fasting window. AM/PM doesn't really matter. The only thing better is to extend the fasting window...but 16 hrs is not bad.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@OPOL
I'm going to work up to full day fasting. I appreciate the info! I need to change my life!

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann Very cool. Best of luck to you. Let me know how it goes.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@OPOL
I actually fasted 24 hours. It was quite by accident - no, actually on purpose. I got to thinking that I want to eat differently, say eat from 11-7 or 12-8, so I changed it up by not eating from yesterday at 12:30 to today at 12:30, so tomorrow, I'll get on a good cycle.

I'll certainly let you know how I'm doing. Thanks for this, OPOL! Pleasantry

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann Nice! A 24 hour fast. That's good stuff. Good luck to you and please do keep me posted.

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@Raggedy Ann This brand new diet is amazing! You can eat absolutely anything you want! You just can't swallow.

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we'll see people getting implants that use electrical stimulation to suppress appetite. It turns out that if you're not responding to the hunger urge, eating is a fundamentally unpleasant experience.

The farmers won't be happy, though.

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The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

WaterLily's picture

I did this last year (trying to figure out what was causing a variety of physical symptoms) and honestly have never felt better in my life. I never read the full book (and have just now skimmed your essay in advance of a deeper reading later), but I think its premise may be based on many of the things mentioned here?

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@WaterLily Yes, I believe you're right. Pretty much the same principles. Glad you're feeling better. It can have an amazing effect.

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WaterLily's picture

@OPOL But over time, I've bent or broken most of Whole 30's principles and am starting to feel the need for a re-set. Fortunately, having been through it once, it's no longer daunting. In fact, I look forward to it.

I just read a little about keto-adaptation and I'm pretty sure that's one of the reasons I felt so much better.

Great topic -- and always a sight for sore eyes to see you here!

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@WaterLily Thanks very much. Yep, ketosis make you feel great while burning fat reserves. Best of luck getting back to it. Great to see you.

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Anja Geitz's picture

So maybe the question that follows should be what are we really eating?

My sister is a registered dietician who over the last 25 years has seen younger and younger patients end up in long term rehab centers due to complications from diabetes. When counseling them on their diets and how to reduce their inflammation and increase their circulation she suggests many of the things you have discussed here. Too many times she hears that they 'can't' give up their [fill in carb loaded favorite breakfast food]. Too many times she sees these same patients either lose their limbs, suffer cardiac arrest, or come back with compounded complications and end up having to take +10 Meds a day, and still end up feeling sicker than ever.

I'm sorry but that kind of living does NOT seem worth a breakfast muffin, a slice of pizza, a gooey dessert late at night, or any of the other favorite high sugar high carb favorites we like to eat everyday.

A "revolution" in the way we think about our food and our bodies is long past. I've had to change my entire diet due to a recent digestive illness that brought my life to a screeching halt. The choices I make about eating are now very simple. Feel good. Or feel sick.

The amount of time I have to devote to meal prep is considerable if I don't want to eat bland and boring meals day after day. My dietary needs have forced me to stretch my culinary skills to areas I've never gone before. Who knew you could do so many things with eggplant!

Given all the work I must do, along with the benefits you cite in this essay, the idea of fasting is very appealing. Do you have any information on how to safely and successfully begin fasting? I know "Stop Eating" may seem fairly clear, but I suspect success rates may also dependon how you go about it.

Thank you for sharing your own experience as well as putting together this resource rich essay. Have bookmarked it for further reference and for sharing it with others.

Happy life. Mindful Eating. Or in this case, not eating

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There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

@Anja Geitz @Anja Geitz I would say start with Intermittent Fasting. Even when I am feeding/not fasting, I do IF. It's easy get started, very useful and a good way to ease into prolonged fasting. If you get into ketosis (which you can measure with keto stix, available at any pharmacy), fasting is even easier. Here's a good vid on IF and how to get started.

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Anja Geitz's picture

@OPOL

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There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

@OPOL @OPOL
For hunter gatherers, which we for the most part are, despite our relatively recent corruption from agriculture.

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Beware the bullshit factories.

@Timmethy2.0 Exactly.

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Lookout's picture

Changed my life and health. I'm 60 pounds lighter than a year ago and I wasn't obese...just over weight. (230 to 170 lbs)

Once you tune into your gut, you feel better. Just came off a 5 day water only fast last week. Kinda made up for eating out on our holiday. None the less I hadn't gained weight. I think your body adjusts to a keto (low carb) situation and functions there. I ate more fruit than usual, but still no weight gain.

Can't sing Fung's praise high enough. Can't thank you enough for your essay about him a year or so ago. Thanks OPOL!

Glad to see you are still singing his praise too.

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“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout Yeah, Jason Fung is awesome. I highly recommend his videos on YouTube. I'm so glad you've had such amazing results. It's science, not magic...but it feels like magic. It's helped me so much. I'm happy it's helped you too. Biggrin

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mhagle's picture

@OPOL @OPOL

Already into the low carb eating breathing moving thing, but have not done fasting for many many years. Going to check it out.

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Marilyn

"Make dirt, not war." eyo

@mhagle Awesome.

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once again. I saw it the last time you brought it up. I enjoyed the links as well. I hadn't heard of Prof. Tim Noakes but now will look for some of his other talks on youtube. I noticed he mentioned Gary Taubes who I read 6 or 7 years ago and I immediately changed my diet after reading him.

Anyway, your essay is great timing for me because I'm just about to jump into an extended fast. I do intermittent fasting all the time and generally follow a low carb diet so fasting is not too hard for me. I appreciate your links, they can help me keep up my enthusiasm.

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@randtntx Thanks for reading and best of luck on your fast.

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One of the things I learned about my time in the saddle (bicycle) riding Centuries (100 miles) was about the natural transition of available energy sources the body goes through during a prolonged physical effort. The primary sources are the quick and easily available sugars already circulating in the bloodstream, and their cousins, carbohydrates which are easily converted into additional sugar.

Then you hit “The Wall”. All the available sugar is gone and the carbs are getting thin. If you’re like me, that point comes with a persistent and abiding negativity, and a strident voice in my head screaming “STOP, already!” But pushing through the wall by continuing the effort leads to a remarkable transition in the way the body uses its reserve energy, the fat I carry with me.

In a process I do not completely understand, on a cellular level, muscles begin to directly metabolize fats. Endorphins also kick in around this point, which can lead to a euphoric sense of well being, but more importantly, this metabolic shift that taps into our fat reserves turns on the tap to a seemingly endless energy supply. It’s like the original, human, Dual Fuel System.

So, I’m thinking that we might either restrict our sugar/carb availability through dietary restrictions or we can make it a habit to periodically burn it all off with exercise. Or both. Either way, we bring our body into a condition it was designed for, both for extra energy and, perhaps, for periodic “tune ups” of our organism. The wonders of it all never cease!

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Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men for the nastiest of motives will somehow work for the benefit of all."
- John Maynard Keynes

@ovals49 "The wonders of it all never cease!" That's my sense of it too. Thanks for reading.

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Have had good results fasting as well. Did a 16 day water / ginger fast crossing the Atlantic last year. Amazingly refreshing. Keep it up friend!

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@QMS 16 days is impressive. Kudos and thanks for reading.

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lotlizard's picture

Mahalo nui loa, OPOL! Fantastic to see this topic getting everyone’s attention here!

Better health can only help every one us, physically, mentally, and spiritually, regardless of what or who our views, causes, and favorite political figures are!

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@lotlizard Hey, thanks. Always great to hear from you after all these years. Aloha.

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Mark from Queens's picture

As many are saying I abide some of the basics you talk about.

But given my situation as stay-home Dad with two babies it's all I can do - at the end of another interminably long day of relentlessly dashing from one thing to another trying to keep it all together as a middle-aged guy - to not indulge in a meal that rewards me. And it happens all day too. Then there's also being so tired and looking for convenience. Tough day of non-stop whining and crying babies/cleaning up after them all day, and I'm off looking for the ice cream or something.

It's difficult to sustain any kind of regiment in my current situation. But I do abide lots of things said here, just off and on unfortunately. Given the amount of ailments and conditions bubbling up I know I need to get serious about this.

Re: your advice. I've always thought breakfast was very overrated. I can and do skip it most of the time already. Easy for me. And when I had a bad bout of acid reflux that resulted in the very scary condition of expiratory stridor (which closes the air passage way in the throat) I would only relentlessly drink water and then have a ginger tea in between until lunch time.

Biggest problem for me is tackling all those preconditioned ideas of food (especially the idea of "comfort food") that are still to some degree stuck inside. A lot of it has shaped our taste buds from an early age and also what our expectations of food are. For me it's mostly carbs and acidic stuff, such as pasta with sauce, pizza, bagels, sandwiches with potato chips. etc. But I recognize when I'm doing it and view it as an occasional treat. But mainly my ideas of eating and especially what I cook are way beyond those staples I had as a kid. My taste buds and philosophy are in a whole other, healthier and more interesting way for the past couple of decades. Being in NYC is also a double-edged sword. Great access to all kinds of ingredients but the temptation to eat out is also great, and we all know what that means: over-salted/fattened cooking.

But for many meals I can eat lots of salad, filled with all kinds of things from olives and walnuts to roasted beets and capers to dried/fresh fruit and cucumbers. Hummus is a mainstay in the house, which also allows my baby boy to get involved helping out, from the soaking of the chick peas the night before to cooking them in the pressure cooker with a bay leaf, etc. Always have greens, pretty much every day. Trying to eat more fruit, and instead stay away from pastries and ice cream.

Have forced myself to get back into shape by doing at least 15-20 minutes of yoga every other day and pushups. Can't get out and run really anymore and don't know that I have the same kind of endurance or mindset to do so anyway. Days like today in which I'm just too tired a lot of this falls by the wayside (i.e. turkey cold cuts in the fridge for the babies = me making a sandwich and having chips too) and I just want to nap to make up for all that sleep deprivation. But having allowed myself this today makes me know I'll start tomorrow off different, starting with fasting in the morning until lunch.

Looking forward to checking these guys out. Fasting is something always on my mind and I think I make efforts to go for decent stretches of the day to only drink water. I like the idea of not eating anything after dinner and then until lunch the next day.

Thanks for the essay and topic. Good to see you, man.

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"If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:

THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED
FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
WAS MUSIC"

- Kurt Vonnegut

@Mark from Queens Thanks much, Mark. I sympathize completely. Life's demands can keep you from doing all the things you might like to do for yourself. It's always a struggle it seems. BTW, I cured my acid reflux with the keto thing. Anyway, even if you don't or can't use all these things, it's good to know about them. I got in trouble recently with high blood pressure and AFIB and it made all of this all the more important to me. Anyway, best of luck to you, dad. That's a tough job, sure enough. Good to see you too, man.

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Anja Geitz's picture

@Mark from Queens

Not only helped me cure my acid reflux but I no longer have to take any Meds for it either.

I began with juicing two packages of organic celery in the morning on an empty stomach. It's better to drink it within the first 30 minutes when it is at its full potency, rather than make a lot of the juice and store it in the fridge overnight. I did this for two weeks, and then reduced it to one package of celery every morning.

Starches and sugar, especially as the holidays arrive, are my nemesis. Eating them more than twice a week, on a regular basis, and the acid reflux comes back.

While you probably already know this, it bears repeating: Acid reflux is not only terribly uncomfortable, but can do serious damage to your esophagus if left untreated. And since ya only have one esophagus, I'd get cracking on treating it sooner than later. (My lecture is done now Smile )

Good luck!

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There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

Mark from Queens's picture

@Anja Geitz
What's helped me remediate it a bit is aloe vera gel (fillets). Instead of just reaching for the pills every doctor seems to want to prescribe (in this case, omeprazole) I just take a gulp of the bottle of aloe gel and it does wonders. However, I do keep the prescription bottle with me if I'm traveling and can't find the specific aloe vera gel fillets bottle and am in a pinch, say, playing at a private party/corporate event and the food is really rich. But doctors were suggesting I take them every day, which I thought was crazy (especially in light of how well the aloe works). Of course then found out how harmful that drug can be and nixed the daily suggested dose completely.

If I know I'm going to have to treat myself to a rich pasta sauce and some red wine with it I'll take an extra bigger gulp. And it works. A woman at a farmers market in FLA where my parents live highly suggested it and it's been my go-to ever since.

Will try the celery idea at some point, thanks zoebear.

Starches and sugar lure me too, especially when I'm vulnerable as described above, which overtakes me more often that I'd like. But when I do go through a streak I usually get disgusted with myself and go cold turkey with just veggies, legumes, no starch, no caffeine, lots of water, etc.

It's amazing how much cleaner I feel and clearer I think when I'm water fasting for stretches. Must keep up the yoga and pushups too. That always helps in all ways, mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually.

You know, the more I think about this it might be a good idea for a regular Open Thread or some forum to discuss ways of for better well-being through eating, fasting, exercise, etc. Either way, thanks again for the tip (and the story about your sister the dietician).

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"If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:

THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED
FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
WAS MUSIC"

- Kurt Vonnegut

Anja Geitz's picture

@Mark from Queens

Working on digestive issues as well. I'm glad to hear that your experimentation with it has yielded good results.

Yeah, that ole starches and sugar bugaboo. It's a tough one to overcome. I too have found myself indulging knowing I'd feel like crap afterwards. But I do it less often then I used to and hope that trend will continue. As we get older, our bodies definitely don't tolerate the abuse as well as our younger bodies did.

I think a regular Open Thread on Food, Health, and even the mind body spirit awareness would be an excellent addition to our essays.

P.S. I meant to respond to a comment you made in JtC's wonderful essay last week. Your childhood memories of your family's food were so wonderfully written and such a joy to read. Thank you! Also enjoyed hearing the familiar places in New York as can only be told from a native New Yorker. It made this former New Yorker smile in fond remembrance. I dont have a lot of conversation anymore that include references to the Throggs Neck Bridge! It was good being back "home" again Smile

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There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

Hopefully I am not the last to go back to this previously read thread to reread it again and to watch all the valuable videos you provided for us.

I needed it today and searched for it on C99.

You helped and continue to help a lot of people.

Again...

Thank you!

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