[powerpress]
In this episode Chris and Nico share their experiences with (randomized) days of fasting.
Kicked off by Nassim Taleb’s paper Fasting and his resolutions for 2015, Nico did some research, started fasting, and published Random Days of Fasting on his blog.
Part of the research and inspiration came from Jesse’s podcast episode “Ketosis vs. Cancer“. From this also developed the idea of a “Water Fast Week”, starting February, 16th, which Jesse organizes. It’s actually “remote fasting”, so Nico will join while Chris has already started his 7 day water fast.
Fasting isn’t particularly new or modern. As Nico recently learned, Buddhist monks of the forest tradition only have one meal per day and often go for days without food under certain circumstances.
Tip for those interested in Buddhist teachings, there are a number of books by Ajahn Jayasaro and also Dhamma talks available in podcast format or on his Youtube channel.
Chris also shares his experiences with extended periods of fasting and adds a few graybeard tips to those who are curious to give fasting a try.
Disclaimer: Chris and Nico are no doctors or health experts. They simply share their own personal experiences. Consult with your doctor to make sure you are in a fit condition before you do any fasting.
Important: If you decide to do any fasting, make sure you are properly hydrated, i.e. drink lots of water.
Jack B
Hey Guys, interesting podcast but you missed an important part of Taleeb’s math. The two dice approach is a different distribution than the power laws NT talks about.
Rolling two dice will give you a gaussian distribution, this is not something that appears in nature very often. In practical terms it means your body will, on average, experience the same outcomes as the “Once every Monday” approach mentioned in the podcast.
You need to be a little fancier to make the two dice approach work. Roll one die, if it’s less 5 roll it again, add 2 and this is your number. If it’s 5 or more roll 2 dice and add 2 to find your the number.
This will give almost you the proper distribution. Something like this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_law