Day 40:) Fast
What does fast click in your intelligent device, brain? Does it make you think of the movie Fast & Furious or something else? A word has lot of different memories associated with it. Now relate fast to religious or medical perspective. Hope now you know where fast is leading to.
Fasting has been a practice throughout human evolution. Ancient hunter-gatherers didn't have supermarkets, refrigerators or food available year-round. Sometimes they couldn't find anything to eat.
Why do we refrain from eating now?
There are lots of purported benefits one can gain. Let’s discuss them one by one. Firstly, fasting boosts our immune system. It also speeds up the wound healing. People also do for weight loss. It also triggers the cell regeneration. Secondly, for the religious purposes. Jainism’s primary festival, Samatsari, is about fasting. Ramzan fasting in the month of Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Thirdly, for spiritual benefits, it increases awareness and calmness.
What are the different kinds of fasting?
There are different kinds of fasting: Dry fasting, Water fasting, Intermittent fasting and more.
Dry fasting: In it one refrain from consuming anything for the period of time* one wants to do fasting. It is the superior and the most difficult form of fasting.
Water fasting: Here one can only consume water for the period of time* one wants to do fasting.
Intermittent fasting: Here we eat for just 8 hours or may be even less throughout the day.
I have been doing fast for more than 15 years. For the last 7 months , I have been doing fast once every month. I have come across people who have done for 9 days continuously. There are people who do fast on alternate days for a year or multiple years.
From my experience, it has helped me to boost my immune system and awareness. It also relaxes our body parts. There are some side effects too. One may feel agitated and may be won’t be able to focus on work. There may be headaches and stomachaches. You may miss food more on that day. It has succoured me to realize the importance of food. I used to waste lots of food. We realize the significance of the things when we don’t have them.
You have a great opportunity to do a fast in the remaining 19 days. Please take a precaution before doing it.
*period of time: In multiple of day/s