Fast-5 Diet and Lifestyle: Re: [fast5] cucumbers

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Re: [fast5] cucumbers

Regarding cucumbers ...

It's probably ideal not to eat anything, and that is the guidelines for F5.

On the other hand ... 1/2 a cup of cucumbers has 8 calories,
and realistically, maybe less (the way they count calories
in vegies, some unabsorbable nutrients count as energy).
Since the cutoff is 5 calories, it's very close.

Also, I was on another IF plan, the Warrior Diet, which
allowed all the raw fruits and vegies you wanted outside
the fasting period.

On the plus side, this made it easy to take medications etc.
and to eat with family. Most people ended up *stopping*
the fruits and vegies after awhile voluntarily, so they
didn't really lead to overeating during the fasting period.

On the minus side, fruits and vegies aren't a "real" fast.
And in my case, I found myself adding oil and vinegar,
then lox, then a breadstick or two ... and pretty soon
a salad was a lunch.

So my current opinion is that it's ideal to eat nothing.
But if it's a choice of dropping IF altogether or eating
raw vegies ... I'd eat the raw vegies. Whole crunchy
ones without dressing (not juices, which pack a really
high caloric punch). Raw vegies make it possible
to take medications without killing your stomach,
for one thing.

However, if the ONLY reason for eating is to "keep
xxx company", you might want to think about some
other activity to keep them company. For a long
time I read to the family. We had "our book" and
I'd read it during dinner. This has become a family
habit now, only since I'm working nights they are reading
to each other (and it's a series I don't really like,
the current Vampire rage!). I would also do needlework
while they ate, which actually makes it easier to
talk than when one is trying to eat and talk. Mostly
when people say "I want your company" what they
really mean is "I want someone to talk to about what
is going on with me". A lot of time when we do eat
as a family, I'm already full anyway (since I've been
spending time with the food preparing it, and tasting
it!), and doing things like popping stuff in and out of the
oven, so I don't feel any particular obligation to be
eating while they eat.