I've been reading about the benefits of a 10 day water fast, that it helps heal the body, cleanse it, as well as lose body fat rather rapidly. Has anyone tried it, or any comments about it? Thanks
Lets see.
You are drinking primarily water for 10 days. Water has no calorie value.
Lets take a look at a
"hypothetical person" that needs 1600 calories (base) for just organ and other basic bodily functions.
Factor in activity (such as work, school), and lets say (hypothetically) one would need 2500c when activities are given consideration.
Also, lets assume no fitness training.
Since you are not consuming carbohydrates, water levels will drop during the course of the week, and one's weight will be effected just through this--alone. Despite the water consumption.
2500 (MT-Line) X 10 =
25,000 calorie deficit (hypothetically speaking). Not to mention macro nutrient deficiencies.
3,500c approximately in one pound of fat.
600c to 800c (approximated) in (a hypothetical) pound of muscle. And, Muscle is "primarily" water, and is the more nutrient rich when comparing muscle and fat.
During the course of the 10 days you are consuming no energy. However, the body has "needs" that are not being met: in the basic sense, and in the activity sense, and you are not giving it any reason to hold on to any muscle it does have with no fitness training.
Thus muscle wasting (or body having its lunch on muscle) is increased and fat loss can be reduced because "the environment created" increases the odds more muscle will be "eaten/used" by the body as compared to what it consumes from fat----
but this may not be all true:
This is NOT to leave out, the complications/personal problems you could experience if you were weight/fitness training during this 10 days (which could speed up glucose storage depletion, increase the rate of plummeting energy levels, etc, etc).
Therefore, one could also make an argument, that training during this calorie deprivation period (or 10 day fast), could also worsen it--especially if it goes beyond 10 days (think concentration camps), because the training adds in other "heightened" needs (such as immediate energy need for one's glucose stores, as mentioned previously, the need to recover and repair, which is grossly inefficient because of the lack of nutrients, and the ability to replace nutrients, etc, etc).
The body "always" has energy available, and can down shift/up regulate its internal operation to compensate what you are and what you are not doing to it.
But, no matter. The body "will eat" despite you not eating. It will simply feed on you.
A........VERY......BAD.....environment.
Your body will "happily" find its energy from your muscle and from your fat, and since you are not weight/fitness training, the muscle loss/fat loss ratio will "likely" be at a "ratio" you will not like.
And, given that this environment lasts 10 days (and dependent on your starting physique), you will see a major change within those 10 days. Additionally, "at some point" you will more than likely feel the effects of low carbohydrate consumption, dependent on glucose depletion.
This environment has the potential for severe muscle loss, fat loss, and water weight loss (through the lack of water retention caused primarily by lack of carbohydrate consumption).
Since water in the muscles are reduced, calorie (energy input) are reduced, nutrients depleted and not replaced, energy/strength levels will eventually plummet, and over time (keeping things equal) you glucose stores likewise drop and eventually deplete. And, this is assuming you can "withstand" the body's signals to force you to eat during these 10 days, and the "symptoms of low calorie/low carbohydrate consumption", because the body will come at you with all of its offenses to compel you to eat. And, in this case, the body is right in doing so.
Chances are you will feel like utter crap, IF you are able to make that far.
I would rethink your approach to your health/fitness goals.
Best regards,
Chillen