Some pretty wild rumours go around about fasting. People talk about starving to death after a week and muscle loss in the heart, the worst scenarios get painted, and as a beginner you only have to click on the wrong article online to get scared right away.
All clear!
So today we want to give the all-clear. For many years we have been guiding thousands of
people through juice fasts and nobody starves. Nobody. I have personally taken part in many fasting seminars where you drink only herbal tea for over 10 days, and even there the opposite is true: no weakening, but always a strengthening of the
body can be observed.
So anyone doing a juice cleanse can approach it without a worry. Apart from a few symptoms like headaches and blemished skin (everything comes out!), nothing at all happens to most people. Of course, if you have health issues such as diabetes, you should only fast under medical supervision, but even then fasting can have an extremely health-supporting effect.
Movement matters!
You only need to worry about muscle loss if you stop moving during a cleanse.
But that applies to fasting periods just as it does to life in general. That's why we strongly advise against spending your juice cleanse in bed. You get a much bigger and more lasting effect with gentle movement, i.e. yin yoga, walks, back exercises, cycling. It feels good to get your circulation going, and that way you're more likely to lose fat while the muscle mass is kept.
On a fasting hike I even experienced that people build muscle while fasting and improve their fitness and their whole body image. It's important to note that during a cleanse you're not going without food for weeks, and that our juices are full of vital nutrients that supply your body while you fast. The cashew milk even contains protein. But of course (and that's the goal) your body goes through a self-imposed dry spell that prompts it to have a proper clear-out, shed old stuff and renew cells. People in Western industrial nations are generally more overfed than underfed.
When fasting, the body switches its glycogenic metabolism (sugar) to a ketogenic one (fat), which simply means that it gets its energy from its own body fat instead of from the carbohydrates you eat. You have to fast for a very long time (two weeks and more) and above all not move at all before the body really attacks its own muscle mass. That doesn't apply to any of the cleanses you can do, though.
Who should fast?
There is, however, one group of people who should not fast under any circumstances, and that's
people who suffer from anorexia. With anorexia the body first breaks down all fat reserves and then all muscles. This is a very serious illness and in this case the rule is: absolutely no fasting, and seek help, for example here: https://www.anad.de.
People who, on the other hand, really love eating, sometimes too much, sometimes unhealthily or even
very often, can only gain from a cleanse and in that short time will lose no
muscle, only fat. If you also move, you can even build muscle while fasting and go back into normal life strengthened, renewed and full of energy.
Some of the wildest rumours go around about fasting. People talk about starving to death after a week and muscle breakdown in the heart, worst-case scenarios get painted, and as a newcomer you only have to click on the wrong article on the internet to get scared straight away.
All clear!
So today we want to give the all clear. For many years we've been guiding thousands of
people through juice fasting cleanses and nobody starves. Nobody. I myself have taken part in
many fasting seminars where you drink nothing but herbal tea for 10 days, and even there, on the contrary, you see not a weakening but always a strengthening of the
body.
So anyone doing a juice cleanse can approach it without a worry. Apart from a few symptoms such as headaches and blemished skin (it all comes out!), nothing at all happens to the vast majority of people. Of course, if you have health problems such as diabetes, you should only fast under medical supervision, but even then fasting can have an extremely beneficial effect on health.
Exercise is important!
You only need to worry about muscle loss if you stop moving during a cleanse.
But that applies to fasting periods just as much as to life in general. That's why
we strongly advise against spending your juice cleanse in bed. You get a much bigger and
longer-lasting effect with gentle movement, i.e. yin yoga, walks, back exercises, cycling. It feels good to get your circulation going, and that way you're
more likely to lose fat while your muscle mass is preserved.
While fasting-hiking, I even found that people build muscle while fasting and improve their fitness and their whole body shape. It's important to point out that on a cleanse you're not going without food for weeks, and that our juices are full of vital nutrients that supply your body while fasting. The cashew milk even contains protein. But of course (and that's also the goal) the body goes through a self-imposed dry spell that prompts it to have a proper clear-out, shed old stuff and renew cells. People in Western industrialised nations are generally more over-nourished than under-nourished.
When fasting, the body switches its glycogenic metabolism (sugar) to a ketogenic one (fat), which simply means it gets its energy from its own body fat rather than from carbohydrates taken in. You'd have to fast for a very long time (two weeks and more) and above all not move before the body actually attacks its own muscle mass. That doesn't apply to any of the cleanses you can do, though.
Who should fast?
There is one group of people, however, who should not fast under any circumstances, and that's
people who suffer from anorexia. In anorexia, the body first breaks down all fat reserves and then all muscle. This is a very serious illness, and in this case the rule is: do not fast under any circumstances and seek help, for example here: https://www.anad.de.
People who love to eat, on the other hand, sometimes too much, sometimes unhealthily or even very
often, can only gain from a cleanse and in that short time will lose not
muscle but only fat. If you also move, you can even build muscle while fasting and go back to normal life strengthened, renewed and full of energy.
