As I see it, the idea is to only eat between the hours of 6 to 8am until 2pm. A Dry Fast of 16 to 18 hours follows. The theory is that Cellular Cleaning (or Cell Washing) and anti-Aging results. She mentions that heavy Raw Food eaters may have lots of energy, but it doesn't help them in the Aging Department. Does anyone else get a different 'slant'?
What to eat is a personal preference. I'm going to use Wheatgrass Juice to break my Fast everyday, followed by Celery Juice for Hydration, then maybe Carrot Juice. A big Green Smoothie just before 2pm will end my eating for the day.
I know some of you have heard of Tonya Zavasta and her book "Quantum Eating", and one person (that I know of....anyone else?) is even following the program. Tha book is a 'must read' as far as I'm concerned. One negative.....It took Tonya Zavasta 453 pages to say it. Be prepared to wade through some 'Fluff'.........WY

its well documented that a calorie restricted diet increases longevity, at least in animals, and very likely in humans as well. at a cellular level, the fewer metabolic processes that the cells must undergo, the longer they last. the less they have to replicate, the more "true to the original" the copies are. etc. while i think the long fast definitely gives the body a great rest, i don't think cellular cleaning is the key to the anti-aging effects. i think its the number of metabolic processes the cells must complete.

so with raw foods and calorie restriction, you have a great one-two punch. fewer metabolic processes. more antioxidants. less toxins and free radicals. it makes sense that a raw foods calorie restricted diet would be the best anti-aging diet. however it should be noted that there has never been a direct comparison of what is called "calorie restriction with optimal nutrition" or CRON (arguably, low calorie raw) to "calorie excess with optimal nutrition" (a regular old raw foods diet) in either lab animals or humans.

WY,

I often get 16 hours or more of dry fasting between my last meal and the next day's first meal. I eat my first meal at 2pm, and my last meal ends by 8pm (typically, not always). But I don't drink or eat anything during the 16 hour period because I am neither hungry nor thirsty, so there is no special effort or denial for me.

I didn't start out this way. I used to eat 5-6 meals a day. As I could hold more and more raw foods in my belly, my need to eat so often diminished. Also, at some point I liked the idea of getting extra time in the morning where my body was not digesting a recent meal, and more detox could occur each day.

maui_butterfly Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>there has never
> been a direct comparison of what is called
> "calorie restriction with optimal nutrition" or
> CRON (arguably, low calorie raw) to "calorie
> excess with optimal nutrition" (a regular old raw
> foods diet) in either lab animals or humans.

Well, we have something that points in the right
direction. Ad libitum (as much as they wanted) fed
mice on low glycotoxin diets (50% glycotoxin restriction)
still live longer (10%) than calorie restricted mice
(40% calorie restriction) on high glycotoxin diets.

The low glycotoxin diet group also had lower plasma
glucose and insulin levels than the calorie restricted
high glycotoxin group.

I can send you the paper if you want it. It's Am J Path
June 2007, authors Cai et al.

> Ad libitum (as much as they wanted) fed
> mice on low glycotoxin diets (50% glycotoxin
> restriction) still live longer (10%) than calorie restricted
> mice (40% calorie restriction) on high glycotoxin
> diets.

so is that a calorie restricted diet with NON optimal nutrition versus a calorie excess with optimal nutrition comparison?

glycotoxin = free radicals? (sortof?)

It's sort of like overcooked comapred to undercooked. The optimal nutrition part was concerning vitamins, minerals, protein, and EFAs, these were held constant on a per unit weight basis. Basically they gave the mice the same type of food but they overcooked it for the calorie restricted mice.

Glycotoxins are the toxins that arise in food when you cook them. The common denominator with free radicals is that some antioxidants fight both of them. But glycotoxins are different --they form when sugars combine with lipids or proteins (often but not always under the influence of heat). They form new compounds which undergo additional reactions, finally making brown, insoluble junk that accumulates in the long-lived tissues wreaking havoc in many ways. We can not only eat them (in foods processed at high temps) but also make them within our bodies (if we eat too much pure fructose, as in high fructose corn syrup products). I don't think fruit makes much of a contribution to glycotoxins because it also has many anti-glycation substances in the colored parts, many of which are also antioxidants.

okay! very interesting. thank you!

I'm not interested in the Theory of Quantum Eating from a study on Lab Animals. I'm interested in an actual experience. Does anyone here practice Quantum Eating? You're the one I want to hear from. I just know that I'm going to try it......WY

Is it difficult to stay hydrated when going for 16 hours without drinking any water? I guess 8 of those hours would be while sleeping, but still...I think I get dehydrated really easily. If I go for more than 45 minutes without water, my breath becomes really horrible and my mouth gets uncomforably dry.

I'm eating LESS in my 3rd month of raw than I did in my first month... but considering how constantly, how late, and how much I used to eat for years, keeping all food out of my stomach between 10:30 PM-10:30 AM is the present challenge I've set for myself, and it IS a challenge.

I think it takes a LOT of time and a high level of health/internal cleanliness to be able to function on so little food.

I'm not saying that it can't or shouldn't be done, and there are a lot of benefits of calorie restriction--but quantum eating is a quantum LEAP down the road from raw foods 101.

I think it is a gradual process that you can work to, but can't be forced. I do like the feeling of having lots of space between meals. 15 hours I can do (over the night), too much more becomes not sustainble for me at this point and makes me want to binge.

Well, I had a big Green Smoothie just before 2pm today, and I've vowed not to eat or drink again until 8am in the morning. I'm feeling quite good about this. If anyone would like to join me, feel Free......WY

I usually go about 48 hrs without eating/drinking, I'll probaly only eat about 3 times in the week...I workout and do my normal duties just fine....

F1

I'm on my 4th week of quantum eating,and the first day was the hardest.After that was ok.Last week I woke up with headaches and running nose,the whole week.That was difficult,but I was great after my green juice.I have a 62 oz green juice every morning (celery,beets,kale,zucchini,cucumber,carrots,lemon _and sometimes 1 apple).
This week I feel better.
The quantum eating lifestyle has also holding the breath(Diaphragmatic breathing),Yoga,and tempering your body with ice cold water.
For me,the only hard thing is to have an ice cold shower (I'm from Brasil -98 to a 100 F the whole year,so it is hard on this winter),but I'll get there.

PS)all the experiments on CRON are done with cooked food.

[www.youtube.com]

I went to see her lecture and I really enjoyed.
I agree with her in everything and for me her lifestyle works.
It is very important to find out our own lifestyle,and for me this one is working very well.

I finished the book Quantum Eating couple weeks ago. I think the book is impressive just like the author`s look. I like Tonya`s thorough research and pioneer work. Since I learn it from the book, I do 14-18 hours of dry fasting and I have no problem with. But listen to her warning if you are thin (as I am) eat your last meal around 5 pm instead 2 pm for a while. She also wrote that you need to be on the 100% raw food for several years before putting quantum style into practice.

maui_butterfly Wrote:
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at least in animals, and very
> likely in humans as well.

Are there some humans that aren't animals as well? Because I'm certainly one!!

I've just recently learned about this book and have question about the 14-18 hour dry fast. If you stop eating at 2:00 pm, you can eat again when you wake up in the morning, right? I thought this was the time we were eliminating toxins, and it was best to delay eating until around noon, or wait several hours after we wake up. Just want to clarify this. What reasons does she have for eliminating eating in the late afternoon on and eating vs eliminating morning eating?

I'm hoping to pick up the book at some point because it sounds really good and interesting. I've heard a lot of positive feedback about it so far.

Cheers,

Mona

I can see the logic in fasting (not eating any food) because it frees the body of a very energy expensive process so that the energy can be used to heal. I have done many water only fasts including 3 water only fasts of 21 days each and many shorter ones as i experimented and learned. I just don't see the advantage to stopping the water intake ? Is the assimilation of water an energy expensive process ?

^ I'm wondering that myself.

For now, I really NEED the water, especially in the AM, before I eat. Sometimes I wake up very crusty and dehydrated.

But... I'm still only at 3 months. :O

You don't give a drowning man more water. You shouldn't give a waterlogged Body even more water (or Food). A Dry Fast is 10 times more effective than a Water Fast (I don't have the reference to this statement, but I read it somewhere).
I believe the combination of Quantum Eating and Dry Fasting is the Road to Superior Health and Long Life, and I'm testing that theory with my own Body......WY

The human body can last perhaps 3 to 10 days on dry fasting. With water fasting, the human body can last perhaps up to 3 months or more. It is not clear to me that a 1 day dry fast is any more beneficial than a 1 day water fast. If you are fasting, and you become thirsty, then drink some water. This is what your body is asking for.

Just a note here - be careful people. If people have had positive results with dry fasting, good for them. But I think people should work from their own experience, not dietary dogma. Being dehydrated is not good for most people. I can not go more than a few hours without liquid with out very ill effects, dry mouth, hoarse voice, headaches, and oh yeah - thirst. These aren't "detox" symptoms, they are signs of dehydration. I don't think extending that is going to do me any good. I think people should be veeery careful and gradual about this. Somembody said something about a long period of a raw diet before trying this - I hope nobody is overlooking that part of the message.

BTW, please pardon any overly cynical tone here . I have to admit that non-physics books with the word "quantum" in the title immediately put me into an overly judgemental frame of mind. Putting "quantum" in a book title seems to be the fastest way to sell a book these days. You can do it with "zen" too.

Now off to write my next best seller, Quantum Zen!

-DaveK

You forgot a word: detox. Another word: enzymes.

Quantum Zen Detox with Enzymes.

arugula Wrote:
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> You forgot a word: detox. Another word: enzymes.
>
> Quantum Zen Detox with Enzymes.

Well, heck, while we're at it:

Low Carb Quantum Antioxidant Zen Detox with Enzymes

(Wow, I can feel my wallet getting fatter!)

-DaveK

A old Chinese saying that I have found to be a good rule to live by goes like this:

"WISE IS THE PERSON WHO COOPERATES WITH NATURE"

Simple enough. I don't see where dry fasting is in sync with reading and responding to the body's signals.

EZ rider Wrote:
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> A old Chinese saying that I have found to be a
> good rule to live by goes like this:
>
> "WISE IS THE PERSON WHO COOPERATES WITH NATURE"
>
> Simple enough. I don't see where dry fasting is in
> sync with reading and responding to the body's
> signals.

Here's what I have to say about all the negative
remarks about Dry Fasting......WY
[www.youtube.com]

Quote

Wheatgrass Yogi Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Here's what I have to say about all the negative
> remarks about Dry Fasting......WY
> [www.youtube.com]

WY -- That's a really stupid response and adds nothing to the discussion.

Sorry.....I'm in a Good Mood and was just trying to add a little Humor to a most Serious subject.....WY

Dry fasting past the point of feeling thirsty is generally recognized as dangerous.