How often do you fast?

Question

whats the longest you have fasted for and about how many times in a year have you fasted

when I mean fast, I mean no food at all - do you really go a month???

Answer 1

I eat no food but I do drink a lot of water. I also mix up a lemon flavored drink with two tablespones of maple syrup to the pint of water to regulate blood sugar in case of a crash.

This can happen and you need to be prepared. The natural sugars of the syrup are almost instantly absorbed but don't have enough calories to mess up the fast. This is necessary because after the third day the bodys reserves are depleated and you are burning fat and other nonesentials. This may not always be enough to let you maintain your normal routiene if it is very active.

This is easy to tell when you need the lemonaid cause you will feel very tired and may begin having difficulty making decissions if you ignore the signs and continue exerting your self. A pint or two of the lemonaid will stabilize blood sugar but you need to rest and avoid the situation that caused the crash till you'r done fasting.

If you are haveing trouble with hunger, the lemonaid can help you there too. Usually a glass of it is enough to get me over the urge to break the fast and stuff myself. Odd that it works like this but it does.

I have never gone over 10 days because at his point I am having trouble getting the energy together to do the things that I need to get done.

Usually I do 5 or 6 days. This is enough time for the water I am drinking to flush all of the excess salt and other toxins from my system. This allows the body to eliminate all of the excess water that it has been keeping on hand to regulate the salinity. The water weight loss can be a bit freightning at first. Once I lost 37 pounds of water in just a week. Most people never realise how much water they are carring around with them.

I would try for just three days to start with. If everything seems ok take it a day at a time. I would not go more than a week without consulting your Doctor. Mine said go for it. I try to fast for 5 days out of every 60.

If your healthy otherwise I don't think short term fasting can hurt you. I think I would build up slowly. Don't start out with a fast for 40 days and 40 nights just cause it talks about it in the bible.

Fasting can make you feel a lot better. After the 60 days have passed I am feeling pretty bad and I know its time to flush the garbage out of my system.

Love and blessings Don

Answer 2

Used to fast according to the tradition of the Orthodox Church. That means every Wednesday and Friday (Wednesday for Jesus' betrayal and Friday for the Crucifixion), and four major periods during the year: Lent, the time before Christmas, the time before the Assumption, and the time before the feast of Sts Peter and Paul. So basically, twice a week plus about three whole months. Those days are basically just sunrise to sunset fasting. The longest total fast I did was the whole first week of Lent (total meaning no food -- I did drink water).

Answer 3

Today, I'm starting a 3-day fast (just water & juice). I usually fast one day every couple weeks. My longest was 2 weeks. My brother fasted one time for 40 days, and by the end, he was looking pretty bad. His co-workers thought he had some kind of serious disease. I'm wondering if the Ramadan fasters here are going completely wothout food for the month. If so, that's a long time.

Answer 4

I fast during the month of Ramadan. From sunrise to sunset for 1 month...

Yes for a month... and nothing enters our mouth, not even a drop of water.. their a some religions where only certain foods are allowed - not sure what religion...

heres some info i found about Ramadan

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. The Month of Ramadan is also when it is believed the Holy Quran "was sent down from heaven, a guidance unto men, a declaration of direction, and a means of Salvation"

It is during this month that Muslims fast. It is called the Fast of Ramadan and lasts the entire month. Ramadan is a time when Muslims concentrate on their faith and spend less time on the concerns of their everyday lives. It is a time of worship and contemplation

During the Fast of Ramadan strict restraints are placed on the daily lives of Muslims. They are not allowed to eat or drink during the daylight hours. Smoking and sexual relations are also forbidden during fasting. At the end of the day the fast is broken with prayer and a meal called the iftar. In the evening following the iftar it is customary for Muslims to go out visiting family and friends. The fast is resumed the next morning

According to the Holy Quran:


One may eat and drink at any time during the night "until you can plainly distinguish a white thread from a black thread by the daylight: then keep the fast until night"

The good that is acquired through the fast can be destroyed by five things -

the telling of a lie
slander
denouncing someone behind his back
a false oath
greed or covetousness

These are considered offensive at all times, but are most offensive during the Fast of Ramadan

During Ramadan, it is common for Muslims to go to the Masjid (Mosque) and spend several hours praying and studying the Quran. In addition to the five daily prayers, during Ramadan Muslims recite a special prayer called the Taraweeh prayer (Night Prayer). The length of this prayer is usually 2-3 times as long as the daily prayers. Some Muslims spend the entire night in prayer

On the evening of the 27th day of the month, Muslims celebrate the Laylat-al-Qadr (the Night of Power). It is believed that on this night Muhammad first received the revelation of the Holy Quran. And according to the Quran, this is when God determines the course of the world for the following year

When the fast ends (the first day of the month of Shawwal) it is celebrated for three days in a holiday called Id-al-Fitr (the Feast of Fast Breaking). Gifts are exchanged. Friends and family gather to pray in congregation and for large meals. In some cities fairs are held to celebrate the end of the Fast of Ramadan.

Answer 5

The longest I've fasted is for about 13 hours for 30 days. When they say they fast for a month, they're most likely Muslims who're referring to the month of Ramadan when we fast from sunrise till sunset (~ 13 hrs). We don't drink or eat ANYTHING during the day.. along with other conditions to be fulfilled. Yep, so 13 hrs it is totally without food and drinks (and lying and cheating and fighting and such too...)

Answer 6

Sadly, I have not fasted in a long time. My longest fast was for 3 day, no food or water. Before God I promise you I will fast again this year...You know what I will fast next week Monday and Tuesday NO FOOD OR WATER...Thanks

Answer 7

The fourth pillar of Islam is fasting. Allah prescribes daily fasting for all able, adult Muslims during the whole of the month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the lunar calendar, beginning with the sighting of the new moon. Exempted from the fast are the very old and the insane. On the physical side, fasting is from first light of dawn until sundown, abstaining from food, drink, and sexual relations. On the moral, behavioral side, one must abstain from lying, malicious gossip, quarreling and trivial nonsense.

Those who are sick, elderly, or on a journey, and women who are menstruating, pregnant, or nursing are permitted to break the fast, but must make up an equal number of days later in the year. If physically unable to do so, they must feed a needy person for each day missed. Children begin to fast (and to observe the prayers) from puberty, although many start earlier.

Although fasting is beneficial to the health, it is regarded principally as a method of self-purification. By cutting oneself off from worldly pleasures and comforts, even for a short time, the fasting person gains true sympathy for those who go hungry regularly, and achieves growth in his spiritual life, learning discipline, self-restraint, patience and flexibility.

In addition to the fast proper, one is encouraged to read the entire Qur'an. In addition, special prayers, called Tarawih, are held in the mosque every night of the month, during which a whole section of the Qur'an (Juz') is recited, so that by the end of the month the entire Qur'an has been completed. These are done in remembrance of the fact that the revelation of the Qur'an to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was begun during Ramadan.

During the last ten days - though the exact day is never known and may not even be the same every year - occurs the Night of Power (Laylat al-Qadr). To spend that night in worship is equivalent to a thousand months of worship, i.e. Allah's reward for it is very great.

On the first day of the following month, after another new moon has been sighted, a special celebration is made, called 'Id al-Fitr. A quantity of staple food is donated to the poor (Zakat al-Fitr), everyone has bathed and put on their best, preferably new, clothes, and communal prayers are held in the early morning, followed by feasting and visiting relatives and friends.

There are other fast days throughout the year. Muslims are encouraged to fast six days in Shawwal, the month following Ramadan, Mondays and Thursdays, and the ninth and tenth, or tenth and eleventh of Muharram, the first month of the year. The tenth day, called Ashurah, is also a fast day for the Jews (Yom Kippur), and Allah commanded the Muslims to fast two days to distinguish themselves from the People of the Book.

While fasting per se is encouraged, constant fasting, as well as monasticism, celibacy, and otherwise retreating from the real world, are condemned in Islam. Fasting on the two festival days, 'Id al-Fitr and 'Id al-Adha, the feast of the Hajj, is strictly forbidden.

Answer 8

Every Ramadan yes we fast for a month. We wake up in the morning (before sun rise eat some make an intention to please God by fasting) then fast all day (no food, water, sex , smoking) and then open our fast at sunset.

Optional fasts throughout the year are good as well to increase faith and lower sexual desire (if you are a young male like myself)

Answer 9

I'm Muslim and Muslims fast with no food, sex, or drinks at all for daylight hours during Ramadan. That's the month of fasting and when ALLAH sent down the Qur'an to the Prophet Muhammed(PBUH*).

Answer 10

I usually fast between meals so I'd say about 3 times a day.