7 ms·

Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? Even small fasts seem to sap my concentration and critical thinking. Once I eat a

Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? Even small fasts seem to sap my concentration and critical thinking. Once I eat again I feel like I think better.

smilliken 7y ago
You could switch your metabolism to ketosis, then your energy level won't depend on blood sugar and will be more consistent through the day. I do my most cognitively demanding work without food.
losteric 7y ago
Mental clarity is a challenge when fasting on an otherwise stereotypical American diet... those blood glucose swings are no joke. However I have no problems on keto, or even just a consistently low-GI low-carb diet. If anything, fasting seems to improve my discipline and "depth-first" thinking.
- VeninVidiaVicii 7y ago
  Interesting. I did an "animal-product only" diet for about six months, and I began to feel sorry for everyone else and their inability to think deeply. I was in an almost constant state of enlightenment. Then my buds convinced me to go on a 2000 mile road trip, and after the first stop at Wendy's I lost it, and haven't had the will to go back. It's been like 4 years now.
  - shrimpx 7y ago
    Can you elaborate on what you ate? Curious.
  - ChrisCinelli 7y ago
    animal-product only ? No veggies?
    - coldtea 7y ago
      https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet
    - VeninVidiaVicii 7y ago
      Correct. I even ate organ meats as a source of vitamins and minerals I thought I lacked.
    - abecedarius 7y ago
      “KetoAF” for a search term.
somebodythere 7y ago
There is a hump for me around 12-14 hours where I do feel distracted by the urge to eat. Once I make it past that I find that I have more mental clarity than before the fast.
lottin 7y ago
On the rare occasion I have fasted for a couple of days, I noticed I was more focused not less. Physical exercise I would not recommend though.
- ChrisCinelli 7y ago
  It depends... I would not do an intense weight lift or 1h run but you can definitely go for a fast walk or 20 minutes moderate run.
catdog 7y ago
> Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? Absolutely. > Even small fasts seem to sap my concentration and critical thinking. Once I eat again I feel like I think better. That's kind of normal when you start with (intermittent) fasting, may take at least some days until it gets better. Especially if are on a high carb diet and already developed some degree of insulin resistance your body is unable to fully switch into fat burning mode while the glucose stores are already depleted. This results in low energy and food carvings. Once that is regulated well your mental abilities likely won't suffer.
joelrunyon 7y ago
This is likely just a function of fluctuating glucose levels. Fasting + becoming fat-adapted can help with this. That said, I have gone through fasts and said f-it at hour-mark 34 because I was on a deadline. It's not a religion, so do what works for you - but I would at least try it.
matwood 7y ago
> Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? I'm only speaking of IF, but yes. Multi-day fasts may be different, but I actually think best right after my workout during my IF window. The effects are so pronounced I'm considering just eating a single meal each day right before bed.
wirrbel 7y ago
I do multi day fasts (water Ott broth fasts, so no carbs) and once I am in ketosis I actually feel like I can concentrate as well as when I eat. It's key to not refeed carbs at all during fasting (no juices, honey, etc). I also occasionally do keto between the fasts which might have helped my metabolism switching to ketosis more quickly. Ketosis is - in brief - a metabolic state where the body primarily used fats to burn for energy. Our bodies are perfectly suited to operate on ketosis. But this is only reached if glycogens are completely burned which means to u need to avoid refeeding carbs entirely. Basically it is simpler to eat nothing at all, than to eat at a caloric deficit. Think of it this way: our bodies have evolutionarily adapted to be able to live off our fat reserves (when overweight). I recommend reading material or watching videos of Dr. Jason Fung, a Canadian nephrologist who makes compelling well-sourced arguments and explanations.
- neves 7y ago
  What is "water Ott broth"? Couldn't find it in Google.
  - gjkhkldajghl 7y ago
    "water or broth"
    - wirrbel 7y ago
      This
kurko 7y ago
I've done intermittent fasting both on a fat-based diet and on a carbs based-diet. On a carbs based diet, it feels like there's an animal inside me craving for food all the time. Then I feel drowsy and sleepy if I don't eat anything for even a few hours. As a developer, that's terrible. I feel really bad. On a fat-based diet (e.g less than 40g of carbs/day), I feel absolutely great, and I don't feel hunger. When lunch comes, I feel just empty, but no craving at all, no hunger. Then the fasting becomes easy. The caveat: switching from carbs to fat is not pleasant, takes a few days and isn't any fun. If you break it with a piece of cake, then you'll have to make the switch all over again and it won't be pleasant again.

Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? Even small fasts seem to sap my concentration and critical thinking. Once I eat again I feel like I think better.

smilliken 7y ago

You could switch your metabolism to ketosis, then your energy level won't depend on blood sugar and will be more consistent through the day. I do my most cognitively demanding work without food.

losteric 7y ago

Mental clarity is a challenge when fasting on an otherwise stereotypical American diet... those blood glucose swings are no joke. However I have no problems on keto, or even just a consistently low-GI low-carb diet. If anything, fasting seems to improve my discipline and "depth-first" thinking.

VeninVidiaVicii 7y ago
Interesting. I did an "animal-product only" diet for about six months, and I began to feel sorry for everyone else and their inability to think deeply. I was in an almost constant state of enlightenment. Then my buds convinced me to go on a 2000 mile road trip, and after the first stop at Wendy's I lost it, and haven't had the will to go back. It's been like 4 years now.
- shrimpx 7y ago
  Can you elaborate on what you ate? Curious.
- ChrisCinelli 7y ago
  animal-product only ? No veggies?
  - coldtea 7y ago
    https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet
  - VeninVidiaVicii 7y ago
    Correct. I even ate organ meats as a source of vitamins and minerals I thought I lacked.
  - abecedarius 7y ago
    “KetoAF” for a search term.

somebodythere 7y ago

There is a hump for me around 12-14 hours where I do feel distracted by the urge to eat. Once I make it past that I find that I have more mental clarity than before the fast.

lottin 7y ago

On the rare occasion I have fasted for a couple of days, I noticed I was more focused not less. Physical exercise I would not recommend though.

ChrisCinelli 7y ago
It depends... I would not do an intense weight lift or 1h run but you can definitely go for a fast walk or 20 minutes moderate run.

catdog 7y ago

> Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? Absolutely. > Even small fasts seem to sap my concentration and critical thinking. Once I eat again I feel like I think better. That's kind of normal when you start with (intermittent) fasting, may take at least some days until it gets better. Especially if are on a high carb diet and already developed some degree of insulin resistance your body is unable to fully switch into fat burning mode while the glucose stores are already depleted. This results in low energy and food carvings. Once that is regulated well your mental abilities likely won't suffer.

joelrunyon 7y ago

This is likely just a function of fluctuating glucose levels. Fasting + becoming fat-adapted can help with this. That said, I have gone through fasts and said f-it at hour-mark 34 because I was on a deadline. It's not a religion, so do what works for you - but I would at least try it.

matwood 7y ago

> Do you find that you're able to do cognitively demanding tasks while fasting? I'm only speaking of IF, but yes. Multi-day fasts may be different, but I actually think best right after my workout during my IF window. The effects are so pronounced I'm considering just eating a single meal each day right before bed.

wirrbel 7y ago

I do multi day fasts (water Ott broth fasts, so no carbs) and once I am in ketosis I actually feel like I can concentrate as well as when I eat. It's key to not refeed carbs at all during fasting (no juices, honey, etc). I also occasionally do keto between the fasts which might have helped my metabolism switching to ketosis more quickly. Ketosis is - in brief - a metabolic state where the body primarily used fats to burn for energy. Our bodies are perfectly suited to operate on ketosis. But this is only reached if glycogens are completely burned which means to u need to avoid refeeding carbs entirely. Basically it is simpler to eat nothing at all, than to eat at a caloric deficit. Think of it this way: our bodies have evolutionarily adapted to be able to live off our fat reserves (when overweight). I recommend reading material or watching videos of Dr. Jason Fung, a Canadian nephrologist who makes compelling well-sourced arguments and explanations.

neves 7y ago
What is "water Ott broth"? Couldn't find it in Google.
- gjkhkldajghl 7y ago
  "water or broth"
  - wirrbel 7y ago
    This

kurko 7y ago

I've done intermittent fasting both on a fat-based diet and on a carbs based-diet. On a carbs based diet, it feels like there's an animal inside me craving for food all the time. Then I feel drowsy and sleepy if I don't eat anything for even a few hours. As a developer, that's terrible. I feel really bad. On a fat-based diet (e.g less than 40g of carbs/day), I feel absolutely great, and I don't feel hunger. When lunch comes, I feel just empty, but no craving at all, no hunger. Then the fasting becomes easy. The caveat: switching from carbs to fat is not pleasant, takes a few days and isn't any fun. If you break it with a piece of cake, then you'll have to make the switch all over again and it won't be pleasant again.