POLITICS Orthodox Christianity - fasting

[Guest guest]

I want to share with you 's brilliant ideas on fasting. They are

religious in nature; but health, diet and fitness are covered. I

thought his remarks might be helpful, especially for those adhering to

religious convictions, or for those who see that native lifestyles

necessarily limit foods as winter progresses as a result of natural

availability.

Enjoy!

Deanna

On Thu, 20 Jan 2005 09:34:51 -0600

Deanna wrote:

>

> >I for one fast regularly and am usually quite active during the fasts.

> >You can make the fasts quite WAP friendly if you so desire, and they can

> >be maintained by most people.

> >

> >

> Hi . I have fasted on occasion in my veggie days. Since eating

> flesh foods again, I have only done minor Lenten fasting. Would you

> mind explaining how to make fasting WAP friendly, especially prolonged

> fasting and/or abstinence without consuming any animal foods.

Hi Deanna,

Of course the obvious part of the answer, which I am sure you already

know, is to make sure that the foods you do eat during the fast are WAP

friendly, like nutrient dense veggies and fruits, properly prepared nuts,

grains, and seeds, good fats like coconut and palm oil, and good quality

seafood when allowed.

But a more foundational answer is to understand that fasting actually

allows us to make better use of the nutrients we do consume when not

fasting from animal foods or foods entirely when on a total fast. This

has been pointed out time and again in the fasting literature and most

recently shown in the feasting/fasting studies we talked about during

the Warrior Diet thread on NN.

http://tinyurl.com/5oj63

http://tinyurl.com/4szv8

But know that there are many medical studies on fasting involving people that

have been done in Europe. America is way behind in this regards.

Sally mentions the health and spiritual benefits of fasting at the

beginning of Nourishing Traditions. All three Fathers of Western

Medicine practiced and prescribed prolonged fasting. Hippocrates,

Galen and Paracelsus, who diagnosed fasting as " the greatest remedy,

the physician within "

So I think, from a health perspective, is that we need to look at

fasting as a part of our overall diet plan, and something which makes

our WAP diet even more beneficial when fully engaged in, rather than

something which interferes with or disrupts our goal of reaching or maintaining

optimal health but we tolerate for spiritual reasons.

In fact I believe one will never reach optimal health or spiritual

effectiveness unless one fasts. I also believe that God would never ask

us to do something harmful or detrimental as a matter of practice to our

physical

or spiritual health. In the Sermon on the Mount Christ says " when you

fast, " " when you pray, " " when you give. " He assumed these practices

would be a normal part of following Him.

In light of that, a prolonged total fast, at least once in your life,

can be quite beneficial, even life changing. I have done total fasts of

21 days and 42 days, had lots of energy, and frankly they were life

changing. I have done a 21 day water and fruit fast, where I ate fruit

every fourth day. I have done modified fasts of milk and of milk and

fruit. They were all quite beneficial for me. I have even done an eight

day water/coconut water fast and a seven day total water fast.

Fasting twice a week whether on food or juices and in some cases water

is a good practice. What is often overlooked with the Warrior Diet is

that it can be stretched out so that one can fast for a full day and

feast the following day. I have done that several times and have thought

about incorporating the practice in my normal lifestyle. And in the

feast/fasting studies this is the pattern that was used.

http://tinyurl.com/4c5aq

On a prolonged modified fast you should keep in mind that fish is

allowed at times during most of the fasts and that in the several books

I have read on fasting shellfish is allowed during the days of

xerography, even in the more traditionalist circles of Orthodoxy.

Between the exceptions during the longer fasts and healthy WAP eating

when not fasting, you shouldn't have much of a problem

<snip>

> >Once, when I fasted for a very long time, people would always comment on

> >how great I looked and how I never looked better, etc. *until* they

> >discovered I was fasting. Then they literally forgot what they just said

> >and became extremely concerned for my health and so on.

> >

> >

> Huh. But how did you smell? LOL. When I fasted for 3 days a year ago,

> I was stinky.

LOL - no doubt you were detoxing. I smelled just fine (except on the

days I had my tomato cocktail which included garlic juice). This was

during my 42 day fast when I got all the comments. I lifted the whole

time, worked long hours, played ball, and had LOADS of energy and toward

the end required only 4 hours of sleep a night and had all kinds of

creative breakthroughs and insights.

Thats how it is when you juice fast. Now water fasting, that is another

story, lol, although I hear the same thing eventually happens. I think

the last time was more difficult because I wasn't exercising and most of

the long and energetic water fasters that I have read about were quite

active.

> I think periodic fasting is quite healthy, quite so when

> illness is present. Yogi thought is to do it when temperatures are

> mild, around the equinoxes. So I find it appropriate to follow Lenten

> fasts, even though in Catholicism it is very lenient. I have gone

> beyond their minimums and found it very emptying, if you know what I

> mean. So for health of body, mind and soul, fasting has its place.

There is no long term effectiveness in the Christian life without the

spiritual disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving

> >The best thing, IMO, is to acquaint yourself with the literature on

> >total fasting, which should go a long way towards alleviating fears

> >about fasting in general, keeping in mind that there are very few days

> >in Orthodoxy that require a total fast (i.e. liquids only).

> >

> >

> I am not normally so fearful of fasting, however, I must admit hesitance

> as a omnivore. Part of it stems from knowing I do so well eating

> grain-free hunter-gatherer style. So a prolong period without animal

> foods makes me wonder what I'll eat. I guess the answer is fruits,

> veggies and nuts.

Again comment about the WD:

" The Warrior Diet program incorporates daily cycles of negative and

positive

energy balance that trigger hunter-gatherer thrifty genes making humans

leaner, stronger and healthier.

Journal of Applied Physiology 96:3-10, 2004 "

helpful foods (at least for me):

fruits: avocados and coconuts and all the various products from the

coconuts, olives and olive paste

coconut water - this stuff is quite remarkable:

http://www.youngcoconuts.com/benefits.html

veggies: potatoes roasted in oil,

legumes and various soups

nut butters

thick heavy bread

coconut oil, palm oil and olive oil when allowed

oysters and when allowed fatty fishes and fish roe

To be quite honest, you can set up a " fasting " menu such that you don't

even really know you are fasting, which is a danger to be aware of. I

have a number of cookbooks with fabulous vegan recipes. Once at a

seminar in California, I gained 5 pounds in about three days eating

nothing but very delicious vegan meals which consisted of a huge salad

for lunch and a very nice spread for dinner and some tasty raw pies

afterwards. Yummy!

> >Then, for Orthodox, fasting is always done in consultation with one's

> >priest or spiritual father.

> >

> That's good. Do they offer much on the health side, or only the spiritual.

The priest will take into account your whole situation.

" I feel sorry for all those health food

people. Someday, they will be lying in a hospital bed,

dying of nothing. "

Redd Foxx

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" This is what the king who will reign over you will do:

He will take... He will take... He will take... He will take...

... he will take... He will take... "

(I 8:11-17)

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