Losing phantom weight gain pre-Christmas 2019

I’ve been suffering from depression a lot this last month. Initially (just last week!), I dropped back down to 10st4lbs – then on the scales today I was just under 11 stone, which is the weight I said I’d never allow myself to get to again. I know that this is ‘temporary weight gain’ from overeating for a few days; huge three-course meals every day.  And the best way, in my experience, to overcome temporary weight gain is to flush it all out of your system.

THE AIM: To lose the phantom 9lb weight gain I’ve sustained over one week.

THE METHOD: Accelerated intermittent fasting

I’m starting off with a 36-48 hour fast: basically until I get hungry or lack energy to do anything again. I will absolutely cram liquid down me during this time.  Following my ‘second sleep’ of the fast, I will weigh in – do a VLC day that day – and take it from there.

Rapid weight loss is never recommended, but it is a solution I’ve found to counter rapid weight gain. It’s also great for my mood & spirituality, I seem to reconnect with the world somehow when I’m fasting.

17 hours into the fast, the first hunger pangs begin. I take three Slim Fast Vitality pills with a Krill Oil pill. I keep in mind I’m going to be asleep for 8 hours of the fast, so there’s only really 11 hours left, if I want to ‘wimp out’ at 36 hours. No further pangs until 23 hours in, mostly bought about by going grocery shopping and knowing that there is some delicious food in the fridge for breaking the fast.

MORNING ONE: 3lbs gone

At 40 hours things are going well, but I’m just bored. I know I can manage the next 8 hours with ease, the hunger pangs are gone entirely, but I just want to eat through the boredom of not eating.  One clue for people who get headaches on fasts: take a headache pill.  Yeah you may be aiming to clear out the toxins in your system and against big pharma, etc, but it’ll help you get through the pain and not feel so low.

I broke the fast at 44 hours with what I call “poop food” (it’s food that makes me poop!). 1 litre of chocolate Alpro and a bag of nuts, around 1,200 calories. This will be followed by another 24-36 hour fast as it works its way through my system (and of course, I can ‘just stop’ at any time: seriously, do not do this unless you are medically approved to do it, and this method of weight loss can trigger problems for people with a previous history of eating disorders).

MORNING TWO: 7lbs gone

24 hours later I’ve dropped over 7lbs. Although most of this would be water weight, it was mainly water weight I’d put on in my 5 days of reckless eating & drinking.  I break this mini-fast with a feast of very low carb food: cheese and Italian / Spanish tapas meat upon waking, As my body should already be in ketosis, I want to keep it that way for another day. I allow myself to eat as much as I want, but only manage 200g of meat and 50g of cheese.

MORNING THREE: 9lbs gone

And there it is. My phantom weight gain is gone again. Which leaves me pretty much where I was when I started the blog three years ago.

Here we go again….