I can feel it in every part of my body: my neck, upper arms, stomach, and currently, especially in my thighs. The body fat is literally melting away.
It would be nice and, of course, motivating if the loss of body fat were also reflected on the scale. However, the digital display is currently throwing out numbers that, in these first few days, don't seem to align with my fasting days.
As mentioned before, I am currently fasting three days a week for 40 hours each – a total of 120 hours per week. On fasting days, this means: no food, only water, tea, and coffee. At most, a teaspoon of psyllium husks (2 kcal) to cleanse the intestines, and of course, the two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar that I drink with warm water.
But the problem starts with the psyllium husks. They bind 20 to 30 times their own weight in water and slow down digestion. As a result, the body stores water for a longer period, which then shows up as extra weight on the scale. Also, the glucose stored in the liver and muscles, which is broken down on fasting days, binds five times its own weight in water. Drinking plenty of fluids is a must to keep fat burning active.
In the last few days, I realized I had stopped using psyllium husks and dried plums – just to please the scale. That is wrong and definitely not the point of the journey.
With three fasting days per week – or put another way: I consume food on four days a week within an 8-hour window (12 PM to 8 PM) – I should reach a calorie deficit of about 7,000 kcal, which corresponds to about one kilogram of fat loss per week. My peak weight in January was 114.8 kg, and my lowest measured weight was 101.8 kg (as of late March). Thus, I have lost about 13 kg, which confirms my theory.
Instead of stressing over the scale, I measured my waist circumference (starting at 115 cm) and ordered a pair of trousers that are currently too tight (waist size 108 cm) to "fast my way into." The trousers should arrive in early March. Then, I will step on the scale again for a week to get an average reference value. As soon as I start training, I will also begin measuring my body fat percentage.
Here is a video that illustrates this topic well:
