ROUND 2 FMD (Fasting Mimicking Diet)

ROUND 2 FMD (Fasting Mimicking Diet)

Having completed my 2nd monthly round of FMD (created by Dr. Valter Longo of USC), I can say that the experience was a bit different, but the end results as good or even better. As a reminder, this diet is all about caloric restriction of a significant degree for 5 consecutive days of a given month. Last month I struggled on day 1 transitioning from my pretty clean but unrestricted diet calorie-wise. On Day 2 major fatigue set in.This time around I experienced no difficulty in transitioning from my normal diet to FMD. I also experienced little to no fatigue this time around. But day # 3 was brutal. I was literally hungry the entire day. I had no specific cravings, but there was true physical hunger. Fortunately the hunger pangs dissipated on days 4 and 5. I was dreading a dinner meeting on day 4.It was my first social event on FMD. Despite the savory smells and everyone eating around me, it didn't much matter. Again, my energy soared the last day.

It's quite a journey, and again it isn't for everyone or for the faint at heart. It takes an amazing amount of focus and desire to change to fully embrace the FMD.

There has been discussion that while fasting and caloric restriction may indeed prolong our life spans, it may also decrease the gray matter in our brain.I haven't review the science behind this claim, and it may or may not be conjectured. But again, who wants a longer life span with a crummy brain ?! NOT ME !

What I can say in defense of this diet is that the period of fasting is a mere 5 days.We aren't talking about a long term fast. I doubt we will see any significant long term brain dysfunction through lowered caloric intake over a 5 day period.

One last point : The fast itself helps rid the body of old worn out cellular debris which is important. But it's through the refeeding process that stem cell proliferation and the hopeful anti-aging effects abound.