![]() ![]() ![]() Depending on the type and duration of your fast, you may also need to increase your sodium intake greater than the recommended daily amount (RDA). For prolonged fasts of three or more days, you may need to supplement with bouillon for extra sodium. Make sure to get the recommended daily allowance for your weight and gender. Sodium depletion leads to headaches and muscle spasms. Remember, too, that the best way to absorb electrolytes is through whole foods, not supplements, unless you are at an extreme deficit and require supplementation. ![]() These are depleted through physical activity and fasting, so you want to be sure you’re getting enough of the following electrolytes in your feeding windows. You’ll want to increase fluid intake if you exercise while fasting, if you live in a high-temperature environment, or if you’re taking any medications that require extra fluids.Īlways pay attention to your thirst, which is an important cue for dehydration, but remember it can be easy to overlook thirst if you’re busy or distracted, so it may not be the most reliable way to stay hydrated.Įlectrolytes are substances everybody needs to manage, regulate, and maintain important bodily functions. Zero’s nutrition expert, Nicole Grant, RD, recommends healthy adults drink 30–35 mL of water per kg of body weight to start and then adjust from there. But after your glycogen stores are depleted, deeper into your fast, your body won’t have those stores of carbs and water to fall back on, so extra hydration becomes increasingly important. It’s also why people often seem to gain weight back so fast when they begin to reefed.Įarly in a fast, as you burn through glycogen, you’ll actually release water into your bloodstream. This is one of the reasons why you tend to lose weight so quickly when you cut carbs - some of it is water weight, says dietitian Jaime Mass, RD. For each gram of glycogen, your body stores about 3 grams of water. Your body stores carbohydrates as glycogen, and that glycogen is attached to water. So even if you’re drinking the normal amount of water, you aren’t getting water from these food sources during a fast, which puts you at risk for dehydration.Ī surprising link between carbohydrates and water storage also comes into play during a fast. Other foods like soups, watermelon, and celery contain a significant amount of water naturally. You actually get approximately 20 percent of your fluid needs from food! Whole carbs like oatmeal, whole grain pasta, and brown rice absorb water while cooking. Prolonged fasting runs the greatest risk of dehydration if you aren’t vigilant about water consumption. Remember, when we say “fasting,” we’re referring to any number of protocols-time restricted feeding (TRF), restricted calorie fasts (5:2 fasts are an example of this), and prolonged fasts. They call it a “water fast” for a reason-you should be drinking plenty of water! Unless you’re fasting for religious reasons (Ramadan for example) that require you not to drink fluids, keep downing that H2O. When it comes to fasting, a lot of emphasis is placed on what we eat (or don’t eat), which makes it easy to forget about another crucial element: staying hydrated. ![]()
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