Hi guys
I am a young (19) male fasting for metabolic flexibility, autophagy and general health purposes. I naturally have a very low PBF (~5%) and have done strength training the last 2 days of my water only fast, with 3 days of ketogenic diet beforehand. I have been consuming electrolytes and magnesium chloride, experienced minimal lightheadedness. I feel generally weak but gym lifts have held up the last few days so muscle mass preservation seems to be in order. My question is this, should I be worried about my PBF? Is a 3 day fast going to be harmful to my hormones or physiology in any way? I have calculated if oxidising fat only I will burn 700-900 grams over the course of the fast which will bring me down to ~2.6 - 2.8kg of body fat mass in total and ~3.7% PBF. Especially considering my age, could this be pointless health wise or even harmful to my endocrine system?
Answer
5% body fat is very very low and something people work very hard to achieve. Its also not a healthy place to be and often unsustainable. I’d be surprised if s dexa scan confirmed this as your natural BF percentage. Furthermore, you should definitely not be fasting below this, for men, 5/6% body fat is essential. For women it’s higher. For these reasons I’d say you shouldn’t fast and should probably try and out on a bit of weight.
Answer
Hey! I just realized you were getting a lot of downvotes and I just wanted to say don’t let it get to you.
It was a really good idea to post here! I don’t know why people are jerks, but this post is fantastic. Other guys might be in the same boat and might not feel at liberty to ask for advice.
So don’t let weird Reddit drama queens bring you down. You have my upvote!