A Fast Foray

I water(+salt) fasted for 36 hours. From Thurs evening 22:15 till Saturday morning. Didn’t have a particular goal in mind but just curious about how I’d feel.

Reading up (and tbh based on YT videos), purported benefits seem to be: switch over to burning fat as fuel (ketosis -> production and more reliance on ketones), autophagy (i.e. cellular repair), (possibly) some reduction on inflammation, weight loss, etc.

If I have to fess up I’m interested in: bettering insulin sensitivity and tackling these inflamed nasal polyps (the background bane of my existence atm)

Tips on the internet suggested a keto-like diet some days or even weeks prior to the fast as a way to both reduce cravings/hunger during the fast and reach ketosis faster. But I was eating fairly normally all the way to Thurs afternoon. Just that the last meal I made sure to be protein heavy instead of carbs. It was some broccoli, tempeh, spinach, nuts, and an egg. Plus also high-protein pudding and drink. I felt pretty full after that. Sucked that I got home late and ate late. Didn’t feel like sleeping till midnight.

The next day (had taken day off) I stayed home most of the day, trying to decide between cleaning up the room vs implementing gtd. In the end, did neither. Instead went on different distractions / rabbit holes. Overall, I didn’t particularly feel hungry which surprised me. There were moments when I had some cravings, which were slightly strange in their vibe in that it didn’t seem to come out of hunger per se but more a craving for the joy of eating. E.g. At one point, I was thinking of flavored yoghurt and how the texture itself is so so nice. Energy-wise wasn’t so high but I guess that’s pretty much my usual self right now. I drank a lot of water and in the late afternoon also a glass of saltwater. In the evening, went to the RatFrei meetup (Thinking Physics 3). Again, surprisingly, didn’t crave the snacks right in front of me. I couldn’t spot any difference in mental acuity and ability to focus. So-so as usual.

Afterwards went to the TanzBrunnen and danced for around 2 hours (though half the time was waiting out the Kizomba). Here too pretty much completely forgot about the fast. Got home at around midnight. The only point of note was that during this whole evening I only drank maybe half a litre of water.

Next morning (Sat) I woke up with a slight headache and fatigue/weakness. Drinking water helped a bit but was still feeling a bit hazy. Drank a glass of saltwater^* and as per suggestions from fasting internet, actually went on a short walk (as opposed to lying in bed) to try to clear it out. It worked to some extent + it was a mild one anyway. Mentally didn’t feel any different (no ketone-fueled mind clarity, I doubt I even reached ketosis in this short fast). Physically, I had gotten abs (lol, kidding). I just felt slightly leaner all around. My inflamed nasal polyps seemed to have cleared up maybe 20%. So slightly noticeable but nothing extraordinary. I did feel slightly weak(er).

Overall, I felt like I could have gone another day (maybe with the cost of “losing” the day to more mehness) but I decided to stick to the original 36 hours plan. Plus, I was looking forward to break(the)fast. Here, still, wasn’t particularly hungry. Was mostly just looking forward to the idea of food and eating. The joy of it all. I wasn’t sure what I’d eat, except in following the suggestion to not eat anything carby or sugary. I followed my craving and went with: broccoli soup, scrambled eggs, yoghurt with lightly cooked apples and one strawberry from the balcony. Also, I decided to not watch anything while eating plus take a full half an hour (woah, such a waste!) to eat it slow. That was heavenly. Later in the day pretty much went back to eating as normal (including binging on these damned addictive roasted/fried maiz).

All in all, it wasn’t that long of a fast and with water+salt wasn’t that hard. I think the main benefit was actually maybe a slight increase in self-confidence, a feeling that even though in the day-to-day it doesn’t feel like it, I can muster up some self-discipline and resolve. In the future, might try longer ones.

Notes

^* Got curious why we can’t drink seawater exactly (Spoiler: it’s too much salt; that’s the spoiler), and do fish drink water…

Written on June 6th, 2026 by Bijay Gurung