Trend Fasting in Bavaria
Written by a true New Yorker
I haven’t eaten for 7 days! I’m on my 7th day. Wow, somebody please pinch me… I don’t know how I was ever convinced of this, but somehow I just got sucked in. It’s the hottest trend, like wearing crocs with business suits. The idea certainly stems from lent, abstaining from life’s pleasures, one of them, of course being FOOD. Fasting has become the trendy way to shed those nasty extra pounds you’ve packed on during the winter months.
One girlfriend told me she started it, day 3 for her. The next day 2 other friends, beaming, told me how fabulous they felt after not having eaten for 6 days (huh?). They planned on stopping at 10, which is the standard “Heilfasten” (healing fast) that’s the big hit. They talked about it like it was the new drug everyone was dying to get their hands on, and they got it first.
Day 1 started on a Wednesday. I had lots of herbal tea, a soy milk shake for lunch, lots of water and veggie broth for dinner. Did I mention lots of water? I felt good, albeit a little hungry. I have a family of four to feed, two small children that are constantly munching on yummy healthy snacks that I buy and prepare. I thought it would be torture, but it was okay. A couple of the women that I meet up with once week for play dates looked at me like I was crazy, but one is from Ireland and the other from Romania. The three German women practically praised me. I think my standing with them has been elevated!
Day 2 went pretty much the same as far as tea, water, soy milk, and broth. That’s basically all you get for the duration of this thing! I noticed a funky pressure behind my eyes. That’s weird. Time seemed to be slowing down, way down, and my stress level went down a notch. I cooked a delicious meal for my family, went to the gym, went in the sauna and was up from 6 am until 12 mid-night, my standard hectic day.
Day 3 was a Friday. I decided to leave out the soy milk. Technically it’s supposed to be butter milk, but I don’t drink any kind of cow’s milk, never have. I felt great, dare I say jubilant. I was so friendly to everyone. I felt like announcing to everyone that I was fasting. I told the cafe lady at Ikea, “I’m not eating because I’m fasting.” I told the man at the dry cleaners and the kindergarten teacher. I would answer the phone and say “hello, I’m fasting.” What was wrong with me? How could not eating make me feel so good? Time was definitely moving slower (could it be because I was starving?). I was so mellow, like in my college days after I had smoked a joint. The pressure behind my eyes was gone, but something new started to happen. You know how in the movies when they want to soften up the look of a woman and they put that filter in front of her that makes her look all illuminated and frosty? Well, that’s what I was experiencing, everything looked illuminated and frosted. I bought new pillow cases for my couch cushions, new curtains for my entry hall and a beautiful new fruit bowl. I had to do something with my time, since eating wasn’t allowed. That’s it! I never realized eating took up so much of my time, and now I had all this time to fill.
Day 4 we had friends over. 4 kids under the age of 7 were running around and making a lot of noise. I needed quiet. I was a little shaky on my feet and that vision thing was intensifying. My friend’s husband told me my eyes looked glassy. Water, herbal tea, broth, water, herbal tea, broth… they ordered pizza and salad, no problem. I had so much time to help my family and guests feel comfortable. I wasn’t concerned with eating myself, so setting the table and getting up that extra up-teenth time wasn’t an issue for me. When they had all finished eating, I had a delicious, fantasic, out of this world dark beer brewed right here in our little town of Abensberg. I didn’t care that I cheated. It was good. Then I drank lots of water and went to bed.
Day 5 started out great (Sunday). I woke up and let my husband sleep in. I made the kids pancakes from scratch with maple syrup and a fresh fruit salad with cottage cheese. They loved it, and get this, I served my husband breakfast in bed! He loved it! I loved doing it for them! I’ve never behaved this way. I’ve never served breakfast in bed, never in 8 years! Then I went jogging with a girlfriend, who’s also fasting. Afterwards we hung out trying out different herbal teas and drinking carrot juice (all the while taking care of 4 children). The fuzzy eye thing was gone, jogging was a trip, and that night I felt, for the first time since I started this thing, wrong. I couldn’t sleep. I kept going through in my mind what I would cook when I was eating again. Whole meals were planned. Grocery lists were written. Would I cook it in butter or olive oil? How would I present my first course? Where would I store all my groceries once I started eating again? I finally got up and cleaned out my closets, creating two huge boxes of miscellaneous items to give to the poor. I had read that for spiritual reasons, fasting doesn’t count unless during your fast, you give to those less fortunate. I felt fulfilled, and tired.
Day 6 is Monday morning. I felt better than the night before. I kept dreaming that someone was tickling me and I was laughing so hard I kept waking up laughing. Up until now, I had only lost about 3 pounds. I didn’t care. I’m not overweight and didn’t do this to lose weight, I did it for the experience. Of course, losing the 5 pounds I put on over the holidays is a plus. When I weighed myself in the morning, I had lost another 3 pounds. I can only assume the jogging on no fuel burned up some cellulite and released all those toxins into my system, resulting in last nights dreams and before that, the uneasiness. Okay, back to the daily grind. The kids got up, I dressed them, fed them, got their lunch boxes ready and we all rode our bikes to school and kindergarten. Then I had a breakfast meeting with colleagues at 8:30, where I again told everyone that I was fasting. I drank tea, juice and a coffee (shhh, don’t tell anyone). After work, I picked the kids up and made turkey rolls with mashed potatoes with butter beans, and an extra healthy greek salad for my man. I felt like calling friends I hadn’t talked to in a while and chatting. 3 of us wound up going to the movies that night. For the first time, I’m hungry. I’m not just a little hungry, my stomach is growling and there’s this big knot in my throat. I made a veggie broth from scratch, drank about 2 liters of it and felt better.
Day 7: I’m stopping after today. I hope all the toxins are out. The feeling of euphoria has ebbed and I snapped at the kids today. I’m getting kind of used to not eating, but think it’s like riding a bike. You just start right up again where you left off. You ask, what do I think? I’m completely surprised and almost can’t believe that it worked, and that I wasn’t absolutely fried and kranky and dying to eat. I hope all the Bavarians are proud of me, I’m proud of me. I’ve lost 8 pounds and my skin has never looked better. My closets are organized. I’ve gotten in touch with several old friends and my husband and I have had great sex. Maybe I’ll try 10 days next time…
Saucy Stephanie
