To any of the guys here with experience of this
@bruschi11 @MNK99 @mattyb @TubZy @Goose12 and of course anybody else who can offer assistance with this.
I'm coming up to six days completed on the water fast (aiming for ten) and I need to start preparing how I'm going to break it and re-feed. I see over and over again that the re-feed is more crucial than the fast itself so I want to get this absolutely right to avoid wasting the work that's gone into the fast.
Firstly, do I reasonably need to worry about refeeding syndrome? According to this
Refeeding syndrome: what it is, and how to prevent and treat it
"
Any patient with negligible food intake for more than five days is at risk of developing refeeding problems."
However, I see multiple people on this forum who have done extended fasts with no mention of refeeding syndrome.
Do I need to be taking electrolyte supps during the fast and during the re-feed? I was going to start the electrolyte protocol once my refeed was complete, however, these quotes from the reddit fasting sub have me concerned:
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I can't see you mention electrolytes anywhere in your post and if you are doing numerous fasts you will be very deficient at this point. Fasting without electrolytes is extremely dangerous and bad for your health."
"
Your body needs electrolytes to regulate all kind of things, some examples include: controlling your heart rhythm, nervous system and regulating your water balance. You need them to function basically and the nooby error is to take the name water fast seriously and only injest water, being deficient will make you feel bad and also it is dangerous to your health. This can be avoided with medical grade electrolyte supplements (usually capsules you can buy), rock salt which has salt and small amounts of many other electrolytes, LoSalt which has potassium and salt, or refined table salt which is salt and usually salt forms of iodine (an attempt to reduce iodine deficiency which affects about 2 billion people). The longer your fast the more you should take actual electrolyte supplements seriously as they will contain the right balance needed."
Once I know the answer to this I can order the supps from Amazon on next day delivery.
Secondly, I've looked around this forum and others for advice on what the food I re-feed with should be. I'm going to quote some of the advice I'm going to follow then
ask of you guys if there's anything I'm missing or anything that should be reconsidered considering my current pfs/cfs state:
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The important part is the proper refeed, which would include HCl and electrolytes, this is what causes the rebirth after fasting."
"
Mattyb breaking fast protocol:
Days 1-7
Focus on mineral intake, particularly magnesium, sodium and potassium
Calories will still be low at this point, you'll likely regain some water weight but continue to lose fat
Vegetable broths, soups, well cooked vegetables, cooked leafy greens, etc.
Maybe some rice
Minimal herbs/spices
A bit of fats (eggs, butter) mixed in with the soups
Not very much protein, if any
Introduce food/calories slowly"
As always, I have immense gratitude for any help that anyone can offer. You guys have already helped me so much so far.
