What is fasting?
Fasting refers to the voluntary abstinence from solid food and stimulants. In the Catholic liturgical calendar, the fasting period begins on Ash Wednesday and lasts until Holy Saturday, totalling 40 days during which solid food should be avoided. Sundays are not counted as fasting days in the church, as they celebrate the resurrection of Christ.
Fasting leverages the body's ability to function without solid food for a certain period. However, fasting as an active process is only possible if the person fasting is in a stable mental and psychological state. Otherwise, the body switches to starvation mode rather than fasting. Thus, fasting is an active, conscious, and human process where the body and mind adjust to drawing energy from internal reserves rather than external food sources.
What happens in the body during fasting?
With reduced food intake during fasting, your body is forced to use stored carbohydrates for energy. The glucose stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles is converted back into glucose to fuel metabolism. Over time, fat stores are increasingly used. Additionally, fatty acids are broken down into ketone bodies, shifting metabolism from sugar to fat. This allows energy needs to be met without external food intake.
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting, also known as interval fasting, is a fasting method where you abstain from eating for a set number of hours. This method is particularly suitable for beginners to explore the world of fasting. Intermittent fasting can be easily integrated into your daily routine. The most common variant is 16:8 intermittent fasting, which involves skipping a meal, such as breakfast. This form allows for an 8-hour eating window followed by a 16-hour fast. Another option is the 5:2 diet, where you eat normally for 5 days and fast for the following 2 days.
Modified Fasting
Modified fasting is a milder version of the Buchinger fasting method. Instead of completely abstaining from calories, you provide your body with small amounts of nutrients, primarily in the form of vitamins and vital substances. During fasting days, you avoid solid food but can consume protein shakes in addition to water and herbal teas. Besides abstaining from common stimulants like coffee, sugar, nicotine, and alcohol, you should ensure sufficient physical activity. Modified fasting should be practiced for 1-3 weeks, with beginners starting with just one week. After fasting, transition days with vegetarian food should be included.
Juice fasting as a special fast with our mixed juices
If you want to enjoy our juices even without fasting, our organic mixed juices offer a convenient alternative to fresh juice fasting. We recommend a daily intake of 100 ml of pure juice or diluted as a spritzer with water.
Juice fasting works similarly to regular fasting. Instead of solid meals, freshly pressed juices are consumed. To start a juice fast optimally, you should reduce food intake the day before and opt for light meals. For the juice fast, use fresh, organic fruits and vegetables, pressed into juice daily. In addition to juice, you can drink water and unsweetened herbal or fruit teas.
The duration of the juice fast can be flexible, ranging from one day to a maximum of 3 weeks. It should not exceed 3 weeks, as optimal nutrient supply cannot be guaranteed otherwise.
There are no strict guidelines on the amount of juice to consume daily. Depending on your body's energy needs and your intuition, you can drink between 5 and 6 glasses of juice per day. You should experiment to find which juices suit you best in terms of taste and tolerance. In principle, any fruit or vegetable can be juiced. A general rule: the more water content, the higher the juice yield.
Our fruit recommendations: Apples, pears, oranges, pineapples, pomegranates, berries (aronia berries)
Our vegetable recommendations: beetroot, carrots, spinach, cucumber, kale, tomatoes, celery
For extra flavour, you can add fresh ginger, coriander, or chilli to the juice as desired.
