Complete Guide To Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day, and Extended Fasting Paperback – October 18, 2016

UPDATE: At 8 weeks, I have lost 10 pounds! I mixed in a few longer fasting periods (24 and 36 hours) as recommended in this book. Still feel great!I have holded off writing a review until I not only read the book, but applied what I learned. Bottom line: if you are considering fasting, this is a must read to understanding the science behind it.I regularly work out and eat relatively healthy and have tried all types of diets, but nothing seemed to take off the weight. I began low carb/keto dieting and saw small results, but not enough. Then I came across a few blogs that talked about the benefits of intermittent fasting. Not only did people lose weight, but fasting helped those with diabetes get off meds. As a natural skeptic, I had to know this was not just another fad. You will learn quickly that this book is considered a "bible" for fasting. Dr. Fung is one of the leading experts on fasting and the science behind it. But I am sure you already know this if you are considering purchasing this book.First, the book is an easy read and while it is scientifically based, the jargon is minimal and explained in ways a non-medical layperson would understand. There are charts, testimonials, and analogies that help (the fridge/freezer analogy is awesome!). The book also addresses the myths of fasting with explanations as to why they are false - this will help when you will inevitably come across them when you tell people you are fasting. "You are starving yourself!" Dr. Fung goes over in detail what is actually happening in your body, and you are not starving, you are just transferring the fuel source (from glycogen, aka sugar, to fat!).In the back of the book, the author addresses common concerns (hunger, headaches, dizziness, etc.). There is a resource section with fluid options, fasting protocols, and recipes!My results: While my goal for fasting is fat/weight loss, I was surprised at how great I felt after fasting for 6 weeks. My goal was small (15-20 pounds in 6 months). I was already low-carb, so while I made some small adjustments in my diet, I did not go full-on keto. In 5 weeks, I lost 5 pounds and 1% body fat! This included 2 full on cheat days (it's summer!). Others report much more aggressive results, but they may have made other changes or been more strict with the diet side. In addition, I also have more energy and feel less sluggish, sugar cravings have decreased, and in general, I have more self-discipline not only with eating, but other areas of my life. Win-Win-Win!If you are considering fasting, this book is a MUST. Results speak for themselves. The book goes beyond anecdotal evidence from bloggers or pill-pushing product affiliates. There is no quick fix, no pill, no magical drink, just simple rules to follow, consistency, education, and discipline. Overall, it is a mindset, but this book provides the science behind it.

Dr. Jason Fung's book The Obesity Code changed my life by answering my main question: why won't the weight stay off? Every time I'd lost weight, no matter how I'd gone about it, I eventually hit a wall and stalled, then gradually gained everything back. His insulin resistance theory of obesity made perfect sense. I'm prediabetic, so reducing my blood sugar has been a concern anyway. The Obesity Code (re)introduced the idea of fasting for health to me, and gave me enough info to start, but I wanted more.Dr. Fung's blog at his Intensive Dietary Management clinic and his videos on the Diet Doctor provided more information about fasting, and this new book incorporates a lot of that material. But it is more than just a rehash of the blog posts. The Complete Guide to Fasting is well organized, and expands on the topics he's been writing about the last few years, providing detailed practical advice for safely getting started with fasting, from intermittent (as few as twelve hours) to extended (1+ weeks). The book features comments from other fasting advocates, and stories from people whose lives have been bettered by therapeutic fasting. You'll get the historical background, cultural traditions, and methods of fasting. You'll get a buffet of fasting options that can include some calories, and the pros and cons of each. You'll even get some recipes, because a book on fasting also spends some pages explaining how to maximize your results between fasts, and that means eating healthy and satisfying food.There are approaches to fasting that you may learn about elsewhere - just do a YouTube search. The advice here is targeted to improving your health, particularly regarding metabolic disorders (obesity, diabetes). He doesn't overinflate his claims; some claim fasting can cure a wide variety of ailments, but he sticks to what he both knows, and prescribes to his patients, and has documented their success.Some people may claim that fasting is crazy talk. And for some it might be: he notes who should not fast, and who should be very cautious about it. He urges working with a medical professional if you have certain conditions, take certain medications, are of a certain age, and so on. This is a sober and cautious book.I've personally done 5-7 day fasts based on Dr. Fung's approach, and did so safely. I've seen the benefits in action. I recommend this book.

Jason Fung's book The Obesity Code is an absolute essential read for anyone who has ever been frustrated by the difficulties experienced by people trying to lose weight. It's a serious, well reasoned, well documented, well argued book on why diets fail; and what to do instead. It demolishes most of what physicians and lay people have assumed to be true about dieting for about two thousand years. To people with short attention spans and little interest in the scientific details it's might be a tough read.By contrast, this book is bright and shiny, rich with spot color, photos, tables, plans, and so on. It's definitely designed as a how-to book for people who just want to pick up a book and start fasting. I find this approach less compelling and less satisfying. I have been doing intermittent fasting successfully for a few years and I came away from this book thinking that had I used this book in making the decision whether to do it I might have not given it the consideration necessary to go ahead. My impression is that the author has not been quite so well served by his publisher as might have been the case.I am rating the book five stars because the information is accurate, well informed, well organized, and well expressed and that the ambitious graphic design of the book does bring it more appeal to those of us with short attention spans. It's a good production effort covering an interesting and important idea.

Great book that give you the low down on different fasting methods.