10 Science-Backed Benefits of Fasting (And Why They Matter for Long-Term Health)
FASTING — METABOLIC FLEXIBILITY + LONGEVITY
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Fasting (And Why They Matter for Long-Term Health)
A practical, research-informed breakdown of how fasting affects inflammation, blood sugar, fat burning, brain health, gut bacteria, and cellular repair — plus who should avoid fasting and how to refeed safely.
Author
Craig McCloskey
Board-Certified Nutritionist
Fasting is having a moment again. But the truth is, fasting isn’t a “trend” so much as a built-in human rhythm: periods of eating… and periods where food simply wasn’t available.
That’s why I made this Part 2.
In Part 1, we tackled the fear-based myths around fasting (and who shouldn’t be doing it). This article is the companion to today’s video: the benefits - what’s real, what’s overstated, and what the science actually suggests.
And just so you know where I’m coming from personally: Bethany and I have been doing longer fasts since 2017 (usually 1–2 per year). I’ve done a bunch over the years. Right now, I’m in the middle of a short, structured fast - a bone broth + local juice + water + electrolytes setup - because I love what it does for my body and my brain when I do it intentionally.
Brief note: this is not medical advice. If you’re on medication, have diabetes, or have a history of disordered eating, this is a “work with your doc” situation - no shortcuts.
What “fasting” actually is (and why it works)
At the simplest level, fasting is just time without food. Even “breakfast” literally means break-fast. You “break” your “fast” with food.
You can fast in a lot of ways:
12–14 hours overnight (the baseline most people can handle)
Time-restricted eating (like a 16:8 schedule)
Alternate-day fasting
Short fasts (24–72 hours) - what I’m currently doing as I type this
Longer fasts (often defined as 7+ days—this is where supervision matters)
The common thread across all of them is that your body eventually transitions from “using what you just ate” to “using stored fuel.” That metabolic shift is part of why many people report better appetite control, better energy, clearer thinking, and easier fat loss over time.
Now let’s get into the 10 benefits - with the real-world lens and the science lens side by side.
“For most of human history, eating was intermittent by default — and our metabolism evolved to handle periods of both feast and famine.”
Read the full transcript
Fasting is one of the hottest trends in the health and wellness space today for good reason. It comes with a host of health benefits. I'm talking your immune system, weight loss, brain health, autophagy, helping to prevent cancer, and a host of other benefits that we're going to talk more about today. But fasting isn't a trend and it's not going away anytime soon. In fact, fasting is built into our DNA. As you learned about in our most recent video about fasting, we talked all about the history and the myths behind fasting. Today we are talking about the benefits that fasting contains because the truth is fasting is built into our DNA. We are meant to feast and we are meant to go through periods of famine. And when you can do the right types of fasting, I'm talking whether that's intermittent fasting or just going to sleep and waking up and breaking your fast, hence the term breakfast break fast. That's what fasting is. You go to sleep, you wake up. Or you can do an intermittent fast like a 16- hour fast. You can do an alternate day fast. Eat every other day. You can do a three-day fast or you can do an extended fast. They all come with unique health benefits and we're going to be talking about more of those today. So, when you're ready, let's jump into this episode. Now, we're going to run through the 10 benefits of fasting. The first one being it lowers inflammation. Now, there is a ton. There's a host of science that shows short-term and longerterm fasts, few days to more than a week, can actually help to lower inflammation. Now, anecdotally, I can speak from personal experience. When I did a 7-day juice cleanse back in 2018, days 1, 2, and three were a little rough. You know, that was kind of my rough period. But on day four, I was on beach patrol. I was a lifeguard in Ocean City, Maryland. And I can remember day four just vividly. It's one of the best days of my life. It was seriously so incredible because I could run forever. I felt as light as I've ever felt. Zero inflammation in my body. I could swim forever. I didn't get tired. I'm not even exaggerating. It just was incredible because I was running on ketones. I felt like all the inflammation left my body. I was so clear-headed. And that's my own anecdote, but there's also a ton of incredible science that shows engaging in a regular fasting protocol can help to lower and regulate inflammation levels. Now, the second benefit of fasting is that it improves skin health and complexion. And it does this in large part because it resets completely your gut bacteria in a lot of ways. And when you're fasting, you're changing your gut microbiome. And we know now that your gut is kind of like your second brain. Your gut microbiome controls a lot about your body. It controls your skin. and it controls your thyroid, controls heart health, it controls so much weight loss. There's a lot of different benefits of having good probiotics in your gut. Now, just to reiterate this point, there was a 3-month randomized control trial published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine that looked at a fasting mimicking diet. So, it wasn't completely fasting, but it was a fasting mimicking diet and its influence on skin health in a group of 45 healthy women. They were between the ages of 35 and 60. And what the researchers found was that skin hydration, complexion, and texture was all better in the fasting group than in the control group. Now, if you out there engaging in a juice fast, like I'm currently doing, I'm doing five juices a day. There's a lot of incredible science that shows that fruit juices in general when you're doing a fast can actually help improve the skin and complexion as well. There was a 2016 study that suggested that citrusbased juices might help preserve skin health by reducing oxidative stress because citrus based juices are full of vitamin C and that's an antioxidant vitamin. So it can really help the skin via that route. Similarly, pomegranate juice has been shown to help prevent signs of skin aging in another study. Now the third benefit of fasting is that it reverses aging and extends longevity. Because I've talked about this a little bit before, but one of the most amazing benefits of fasting is apoptosis or programmed cell death or autophagy, which literally means to eat oneself. These are the repair mechanisms that basically take place when you are in a fasted state, not getting in sugar as we're about to talk about or a particular amino acid called leucine. Now, our bodies are constantly undergoing, as I'm standing here today, as you're watching this, our bodies are constantly in a state of repair and renewal. It's just, you know, we're healing. We're we're going through that repair state. You need food. You need food to repair, but you need time to allow that repair to happen, which is what we do in a fasted state like I've mentioned before. And if we're not giving our bodies that fasted state, sleep is primarily where we'll be fasted. If we're not giving our body sleep and a fasted state, then we are not going to go through autophagy or apoptosis properly. And sometimes we forget that in order to bring in the new, we need to clear out the old. And that's exactly what autophagy is. You're literally eating old damaged cells to make way for the new one that you're going to make by all that new good food that you're eating. Now, there's some science to confirm what I'm saying. There was a study published in the journal Cell Metabolism, very prestigious medical journal, where authors said, quote, "Chronic fasting extends longevity in part by reprogramming metabolic and stress resistance pathways." That's what I was just talking about. They went on to say, "Thus fasting has the potential to delay aging and help prevent and treat diseases while minimizing the side effects caused by chronic dietary interventions just by engaging in fasting. It's a free protocol. You have to pay nothing. You just don't eat. And if you can train your body to do that, there's going to be no stopping." Now, the fourth pretty incredible benefit of fasting is that it might prevent Alzheimer's disease. the autophagy that we just talked about. The main thing with autophagy in brain health is that it helps to clear out all the beta amaloid plaque that tends to accumulate in patients with Alzheimer's disease. And if we are able to clear out that beta amaloid plaque, this is a lot of good association that suggests that we might not develop dementia or Alzheimer's disease later in life. And this is makes sense like kind of intuitively thinking it just makes sense when we are engaging in a fasting protocol because Alzheimer's is known as type three diabetes. you know, ingesting too much sugar. But if we are engaging in a nice fasting protocol and not eating as much and just kind of cycling through what we are eating, eating higher quality foods, this could help. Now, the fifth benefit of fasting that you probably already knew about is that it boosts fat burning. Of course, if you're eating less calories, you're going to burn body fat. And of course, we just talked all about that. You're burning through your stored glycogen, and then and only then can you excess your stored body fat. Now, the sixth benefit of fasting is that it helps to keep your blood sugar levels stable. If you are somebody out there that is struggling with your blood sugar issues, pre-diabetic, diabetic, you're on metformin or anything like that, please keep working with your physician. Don't undergo a fasting protocol without working with your physician. But fasting can be an incredible way to help regulate blood sugar levels naturally because of all the mechanisms that we just talked about, burning through your food, burning through your stored glycogen, and then accessing your stored body fat to keep your glucose levels regulated. Now the seventh benefit of fasting and this is a major one. This is it helps to regulate your metabolism. Now the science has never been clear in regards to fasting and metabolic health because there's been a host of studies that have shown that fasting both short-term whether that's intermittent alternate day or just a simple 3-day short-term fast or a long-term fast 7 days plus they have very positive beneficial effects on metabolism. Now, there was a smaller study done in 11 healthy men that found that a simple three-day fast like I'm doing now and actually increased their metabolism by 14% because of kind of all the things that we talked about. You're repairing your building back up. Now, the eight out of 10 benefits of fasting is that it improves clarity and mental focus. Now, going back to that conversation about hunter gathers in the history of fasting not always having food readily available. Think about this. Like common sensically thinking, if we didn't eat food, why would it have made sense in a fasted state for our ancestors, why would it have made sense for them to be brain fogged or just not have good cognition? They needed to be mentally alert when they didn't have food in their bellies. And that is one of the major benefits of being in a fasting protocol. kind of the opposite. When we think about Thanksgiving or a major holiday event, when we're eating a lot of food, what do we feel? We feel tired. We feel sluggish. We're in a food coma. Because when we're eating a lot of food, we have a lot of blood rushing to the center. It's not because of tryptophan like you might have believed. It's because you have a lot of blood rushing to digest all that food. So, that's less blood that is going to your brain. But when we are fasted and producing ketones in a ketogenic state, you are going to have so much mental clarity. You're going to be so focused. Right now, I'm recording this video on the third almost fourth day of my fast because I am so mentally alert. If I were recorded this on day one or day two, I wouldn't have been as mentally alert, but because I'm doing it after my body is burned through all that stored glycogen and now accessing my stored body fat, I'm producing ketones. Now, I'm more mentally alert to do it. So, that's one of the most amazing benefits of fasting is that you're so clear-headed. You won't be brain fogged. You'll feel like you're on the Limitless pill all for free. Now, the ninth benefit of fasting is that it improves your gut bacteria. when you completely allow your digestive tract to have a break. I mean, when was the last time your digestive tract had a break? No food coming in. You eliminate all the waste. You're flushing it out with either juices, bone broth, water, or all the above. You completely are able to reset a lot of your gut bacteria. To prove this point, there was a 2017 study with a 3-day juice only diet like I'm doing right now. This study found that the diet altered the gut bacteria in 20 healthy adult participants. they experienced substantial weight losses that lasted after the study ended. And the researchers concluded this may be due to the changes in the participants gut bacteria because we know today that gut bacteria control virtually everything. And if you're trying to lose weight, you got to try and change that gut microbiome. And doing regular fasting protocol can help. And the last benefit of fasting, engaging in a nice fasting protocol is that it can help with weight loss. This is not the first benefit. This is not why you should do a fasting protocol. I listed this last for a reason because I don't want people going out there and just eating less calories for the sake of losing weight with the goal to lose weight. That's not why you should do fasting. That'll just be one side effect of the person that you're becoming with all the other benefits that you're going to get when you engage in fasting. Yes, you're going to eat less, but you're also going to change your microbiome. You're going to improve your immune system. You're going to improve a lot of other things in your life, in your body, and in your health. And fat loss is just one benefit that you're going to have. Now, will you gain some of that weight back when you start eating food again? Yes. But you're going to change your microbiome. Hopefully, you're changing your eating patterns. But don't do this for the weight loss. But the science has shown that people that engage in regular fasting protocols have longlasting weight loss results long term. I am a much bigger fan of thinking of fasting as a tool that you keep in your superhero utility belt. You know, you pull that out of Batman's belt, pull that out of his gauntlet, and you're able to use that when you want to use it. You don't have to use it all the time, but it's more of a tool that you can use for certain instances. What's up, guys? Real quick, if you're loving this content about fasting, then you are going to love these two supplements right here that can help take your fasting protocol to the next level. The first thing that I have is Ancestral Minerals. This is basically electrolytes that can help to replenish your body. You know, you're drinking a lot of liquids. You might be flushing a lot of things out. This is going to help keep you hydrated because you need electrolytes like magnesium, potassium, chloride, sodium, wildflower, bee pollen, and Atlantic kelp. This is going to help you to actually hydrate your cells because it's not actually the water that's hydrating. It's the electrolytes, and that's what ancestral minerals are. All in the most bioavailable forms from the most pristine sources. So, check that out. I'm also taking this grass-fed colostrum in powdered form from ancestral supplements because colostrum is incredible at helping the gut. And right now, I'm in a fasting protocol. I have everything cleared out of my digestive tract. I'm just doing juices, bone broth, water, electrolytes. That's it. And so, when I can ingest a little bit of colostrum, it's kind of like a nice G-code. There's very minimal, if any, calories in these little packets. and your gut is getting flooded with some nutrients in colostrum that are unique to colostrum alone that can help to repair the gut lining, help leaky gut, help your immune system, and so many more things. So, if you're looking to take your fasting protocol to the next level, give ancestral minerals and grass-fed colostrum a try today. Now, with all these benefits about fasting and talking about this, fasting just isn't for everyone. And who should not do fasting? Well, we have a few groups of people here that should not fast. The first one is pretty obvious. If you are malnourished, have any form of eating disorder, or you are severely underweight, fasting is not appropriate for you right now at this point in your life. If you're able to put on more weight, if you're able to get a little bit healthier, if you're able to put on a little bit more muscle mass, a little bit more body fat, then you can engage in a nice fasting protocol if it's right for you at that point in time in your life. Also, children under 18 should not engage in a longer period of fast. Now, 12 hours is the bare minimum everybody should fast. I mean, that's 8 at night to 8 in the morning. That's bare minimum. You can even get a lot of benefits just by doing that and then extending that to 14 hours to 16 hours. I think most people can probably do that, but I'm talking about a three-day fast or even longer. Kids under 18 shouldn't be doing a more long-term fast. And also, pregnant and breastfeeding women should not be doing any type of fast. This goes without saying, but if you are out there pregnant, looking to become pregnant, or breastfeeding, I wouldn't engage in long-term fasting protocols either. Now, there are a few select populations of people that maybe should approach fasting a little bit more cautiously, and this goes without saying, but anybody out there on medications should work with their doctor. I understand that this is a large group of people, but if you feel like your medications might interact with your fasting protocol, if you're on metformin, you know, blood sugar issues or anything like that, please work with your doctor and, you know, work with a a well-guided health professional that can help you maybe adopt a nice fasting protocol if it's right for you. If you have diabetes or other health related complications, don't just blindly go into a random fast and just stop eating. That's not what I'm encouraging. Work with a doctor, work with a health professional that can help you do this the right way. Now, side note, you might be wondering, should women be fasting? Is it the same for men and women? Now, when talking about all this, everybody's different. Each individual is different, but across the board, the same issues that men experience, women also experience and vice versa. So in the data, the fasting is generally pretty much the same both for men and women. Now you might be an individual that has tried fasting before and it might not have worked for you and that's all right. Now when talking about the history of fasting and going through periods of feast and famine, both sexes were equally affected here. It's not like the men just were in a famine and the women had food abundance. Both sexes are equally designed, our biology is equally designed to be able to handle periods of food scarcity. women probably more so than men because women have a little bit higher of a body fat percentage normally than men do just for a lot of different reasons, but they are typically able to handle fast better than men can. Now, health complications will come into this, medicines will come into play, but just across the board, women tend to do better with fast than men. But you might be thinking, what about like reproductive hormones and things like that? Well, I got some science here that kind of affirms what I'm saying. There was a study that examined the effect of a three-day fast on the reproductive hormones during different parts of the menstrual cycle in women. Glucose and insulin levels for all women stayed the same and were at normal levels. And all reproductive hormones also remained in normal levels as well. The researchers even ran ultrasounds on the women and it showed that there was normal growth of the egg in the women and overall menstrual cycles remained unchanged. The point with this is that if you haven't tried fasting, don't be afraid of it just because you are a woman. You just got to learn how to do it the right way and figure out how it works for you, if it works for you, and it might not, but you don't need to do anything crazy like a 3-day fast, engaging in a 12 to 14 to 16 hour fast might be great for you. But it goes without saying, if you're a woman out there that is underweight, that has a lower body fat percentage, this can cause amenorhea, which is the loss of your menstrual cycle. So, if you're out there and you are currently at a low body fat percentage, underweight, low muscle mass, don't engage in a fasting protocol. Please eat more food. I'm giving you permission to eat more food. So, don't engage in a long-term fasting protocol. So, there's many different types of fasting like I talked about today. There's intermittent fasting, there's alternate day fasting, short-term fast like I'm doing. Anything more than 7 days is considered a long-term fast. And all of these different types of fasts can be done many different ways. There's liquid fats fast. You can include like grass-fed butter, a bulletproof coffee, like I've been a fan of since 2015, for almost a decade now. You can do just soups, you can do just juices, you can do a combination. like I like to do. And of course, the electrolytes, tea, and you should aim to keep your calories less than 300 per day. So, just to give you an example of the protocol that I just followed, I stopped eating at 8:00 p.m. on Monday night, and then I've done nothing but juice and bone broth, electrolytes, and salt Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and then I'll eat again on Friday morning. And you're probably wondering, how's Craig going to break his fast? What's the food he's going to break his fast with? Now, what I'm going to do is not eat a big giant steak like I would like to do. What I'm going to do is introduce it slowly. And this is something that I think is very beneficial that you could do as well whenever you reintroduce a food into your fast. I'm going to break my fast with kefir. Now, I have here my kefir that I am fermenting. This is raw milk that's been fermenting with kefir grains in my cabinet for the past almost 24 hours. And what this is, this is the best probiotic that you can get. Now, this kefir, when I strain it out, is just basically going to be drinkable yogurt. This contains over 65 different strains of probiotics. The next best thing on the market might be kombucha, tempeh, or miso soup, but they don't even come close to having the same amount of probiotics in here that kefir does. And you might be thinking, yogurt only has about five strains of probiotics in it. And over 60 strains of probiotics in there. Well, my gut is nice and cleared out. It's cleansed. I'm fasted. I'm going to ingest all those probiotics, healthy gut bacteria, and my gut is going to be basically Superman at this point. So, that's what I'm going to break my fast with. I'm going to drink all this kefir and then I'm going to probably do a little bit of eggs and some avocado for lunch and just have a light Friday. Nothing too crazy, but I'm going to do probiotics. I'm going to do protein, healthy fats, and just ease my way back into it. And then I might have a big steak on Saturday or something like that. So, that's what I have for you guys today. If you found this video valuable, be sure to leave a comment below any questions that you might have. Hit that like and subscribe button because we have a ton more incredible videos coming your way just like this very soon. Send this video out to somebody that you know needs to see it most.
1) Fasting may lower inflammation (especially over time)
One of the most common things people notice after they get past the first rough day or two is that they feel… less puffy. Less achy. Less inflamed.
I still remember a 7-day juice fast I did back in 2018. The first few days were humbling. But on day four, I was working beach patrol (I used to lifeguard in Ocean City, Maryland). And I’m not exaggerating when I say I felt light - like my joints were oiled, my breathing was easy, and my body just wanted to move.
That doesn’t prove anything scientifically, but it matches what researchers have been exploring: different fasting protocols can reduce inflammatory markers in certain populations, though results can vary depending on the protocol, weight loss, and baseline health.
Important nuance: inflammation isn’t “bad” across the board. Acute inflammation is part of healing. The goal is better regulation - not becoming an inflammation-free robot.
“Lower inflammation isn’t about eliminating inflammation — it’s about restoring the body’s ability to regulate it.”
2) Skin health and complexion can improve (yes, there’s actual data)
People love to talk about “fasting glow,” and there’s at least one interesting clinical angle here.
Why might that happen?
A few plausible routes:
Lower inflammation/oxidative stress
Changes in insulin dynamics
Shifts in the microbiome and gut-skin axis
3) Cellular “cleanup” and healthy aging pathways
Autophagy gets thrown around a lot online, and it’s easy to make it sound mystical.
Here’s the grounded version: during periods of low nutrient availability, your body shifts into a conservation/repair mode. That includes cellular maintenance processes and stress-response pathways.
Do we have “fasting makes humans live longer” proof? Not in the clean, causal way people want. But the mechanistic logic and early human evidence around metabolic health are strong enough that fasting is being actively studied in aging and disease-risk contexts.
“Autophagy is less about ‘cleansing’ and more about cellular maintenance — removing what’s damaged so healthier tissue can take its place.”
4) Brain health: fasting may support pathways relevant to Alzheimer’s risk
Alzheimer’s is complex. There is no single lever.
But it’s also true that brain health is tightly linked to metabolic health, insulin signaling, inflammation, sleep, and mitochondrial function - areas fasting can influence.
My practical takeaway: If fasting helps you stabilize blood sugar, reduce late-night snacking, and improve sleep quality, that’s a meaningful downstream win for brain health - even before we talk about the more speculative mechanisms.
5) Fat burning becomes easier once the “metabolic switch” happens
This is the obvious one, but it’s worth saying correctly.
You don’t burn fat “because fasting is magical.” You burn fat because:
you’re not constantly topping off glucose, and
once stored glycogen drops, your body increases reliance on fatty acids/ketones.
That’s why the first 24–48 hours can feel like a transition period - and then many people hit a stride.
Disclaimer: if you fast and then rebound hard with ultra-processed food, you can undo a lot of the benefit. Fasting is a tool, not a hall pass.
6) Blood sugar and insulin sensitivity can improve
But I want to be crystal clear:
If you’re diabetic, prediabetic, on glucose-lowering medication, or have a history of hypoglycemia - do not freestyle this. Fasting can change medication needs quickly, and that’s where people get in trouble.
If you’re generally healthy, fasting can be one of the simplest ways to give your insulin system a break.
7) Metabolism doesn’t necessarily “crash” (and may temporarily rise)
A lot of people avoid fasting because they’ve heard it “slows your metabolism.”
In longer-term starvation contexts, metabolism can adapt downward. But short fasts are different.
That doesn’t mean you should live in a fasted state. It means short, strategic fasting doesn’t automatically equal metabolic damage - especially when you refeed well.
8) Mental clarity and focus (the “Limitless” feeling is real for many people)
This is one of the biggest reasons I personally like short fasts.
Once I’m past the early transition, my brain turns on.
It makes sense from an evolutionary perspective: if you didn’t have food, you’d be more likely to survive if you were mentally sharp enough to go find it.
Mechanistically, ketones can be a clean fuel source, and many people experience reduced “food noise” when they aren’t constantly spiking and dipping glucose.
A practical tip: If you want the mental clarity without pushing into a long fast, start with 12–14 hours consistently, then test a few days of 16 hours and see how your brain responds.
9) The gut microbiome can shift
The gut is involved in everything: immunity, inflammation, mood, skin, metabolic health.
But here’s the nuance most people skip:
More recent research suggests juice-only cleanses can also have downsides - especially because juicing removes fiber, and fiber is a major microbiome regulator.
My take: If you do a juice-style fast, do it intentionally and don’t pretend it’s the same thing as eating whole plants. Fiber matters. Smoothies, blended soups, and broths can be a smarter “reset” for many people.
“The gut rarely gets a true break — fasting is one of the few times digestion fully powers down.”
10) Weight loss can happen - just don’t make that the only reason
Yes, fasting can lead to weight loss. But if weight loss is your only goal, fasting can turn into a binge/restrict loop fast.
I like thinking of fasting as a tool in the utility belt. You pull it out when it makes sense:
after a holiday stretch
when you need a structured reset
when your hunger cues are off
when you want to practice metabolic flexibility
But the long-term win is what happens after the fast:
better food choices
better eating rhythm
better sleep
less snacking
more stable blood sugar
That’s how fasting becomes something that supports your life instead of becoming your life.
“Fasting works best when it improves how you eat — not when it’s used to compensate for how you don’t want to eat.”
Fasting support
If you’re fasting in any form, two things tend to make the process dramatically smoother:
1) Electrolytes
Hydration isn’t just water - it’s minerals. If you’re increasing fluids and not replacing electrolytes, you’ll feel it (headaches, fatigue, cramps). This is why I take Ancestral Minerals during my fasts because it’s an easy way to keep minerals consistent while limiting food.
2) Gut support during refeed or “near-zero calorie” protocols
I also like grass-fed colostrum powder, especially for gut support during a fast. Some people use it strategically because it’s gentle and gut-focused.
You can savee 15% off everything at Ancestral Supplements using code CRAIG at checkout.
Who should NOT fast (quick safety section)
I’m keeping this short and clear:
Avoid extended fasting if you are:
currently dealing with an eating disorder or active disordered eating patterns
underweight, malnourished, or struggling to maintain lean mass
pregnant or breastfeeding
under 18 (beyond normal overnight fasting)
If you’re on medications - especially anything affecting blood sugar, blood pressure, or electrolytes - work with your clinician.
What about women and fasting?
This topic is loaded online, so here’s the calm take:
Women can absolutely fast. But context matters - body composition, cycle health, stress, sleep, and caloric intake all matter.
That doesn’t mean every woman should do 72 hours. It means the blanket statement “women can’t fast” is too simplistic.
If a woman is already underfed, overtrained, and stressed, fasting can be the wrong lever. If she’s metabolically healthy and uses fasting strategically, it may be fine.
How I’m breaking my fast (and why I do it this way)
When I finish a short fast, I don’t come out swinging with a giant steak (even if I want to).
I reintroduce food slowly - starting with raw milk kefir.
Fermented foods can be an incredible way to refeed because they’re nutrient-dense and supportive to the gut ecosystem. Then I’ll layer in something simple like eggs, avocado, and a light day of eating before I’m back to normal.
The goal is to come out of the fast feeling better - not like I got hit by a truck because I went from zero to 100.
Final thought
Fasting isn’t a magic trick. It’s a biological rhythm you can use intelligently.
Start small. Get consistent with overnight fasting. Learn how your body responds. Keep electrolytes in the picture. Don’t do extreme versions to compensate for extreme habits. And if you have health conditions or take meds - get guidance.
