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Heavy Day//

Deadlift  

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The question I was asked today was, “What do I do after not being able to eat for a really long time?” It’s a great question especially if you care to keep it clean, your eating that is.

Fasting or just going without something, in this case food, for a long time, happens intentionally, but also unintentionally. Maybe you decide to fast to focus on prayer, or you decide to shorten your eating window to help cut calories or theoretically burn more fat. You might also have a hectic day at work where in your 10 hour shift, there isn’t a moment to eat. But in both cases one principle can help you break that fast wisely. 

Remember back to science class in school. Specifically learning about measurements. Do you remember trying to wrap your brain around the difference between a pound of lead and a pound of feathers (I went to school long long ago, they weren’t quite hip to metric).  There is a lot more feathers in a pound than there is lead because they have lower density. Do you see where I’m going? Yes your hunger is likely brought on from a lack in energy (see calories) but the void can be satisfied or filled by voluminous food. If the void, the volume is say a pint. A pint of anything will fill that void just as well as a pint of ice cream. 

That’s the first concept to consider when breaking your fast, but it doesn’t end there. We’re still talking about density and volume though. You understand that there are high volume foods that are low calorie or less energy dense. But you can’t just eat styrofoam. Yes it’s low cal, but also nutritionally void. You also want high nutrient density foods.  

Sorry for this long explanation to simply tell you that the answer is whole unprocessed foods eaten slowly and to 80%, but when you haven’t eaten for 10 hours for whatever reason, and you’re stressed, tired, and irritable, you’re better to educate yourself through some reasonable and level headed thinking! 

Well that was boring so here is an added layer of strategy. When you are I’ll-stab-someone hungry, it’s no joke! So you can reason with yourself. Say “ok, what I want is to eat half of a pizza and half a bottle of wine, but I know I should have meat and vegetables and a La Croix. I can eat that pizza but first I have to eat the meat and veggies and wait 20 minutes. If I’m still hungry, Pizza Town!” Hint, you won’t still be hungry!