My blog title is “The Puzzle.”

The motivation for The Puzzle came from studying how businesses are built. But also from a childhood memory of a puzzle my mom and I made.  A puzzle that, like many businesses, we never finished.  

WHY?  Because we could not find one piece.  We ended up taking a similar colored clay and making the last piece. 

I can still picture that puzzle.  We bought a frame for it and put it up on the wall.  I can still see that spot we filled in with blue clay.

I’m just like all of our restaurant clients, trying to build my puzzle every day, and I can’t say that we’ll ever have every piece in place on one given day.  

One of the puzzle pieces is you and I.  As business owners and visionaries, we are a key piece of the puzzle.  

Every day, I think about improving myself.  I think about what I can do to make my mind, body, and spirit unbreakable.  Becoming unbreakable is impossible, but you might as well aim right, right?

Now, to why I’m fasting.  We’ll get into my current five-day fast, but first, let’s talk about why I’m not doing my planned seven-day fast.

Last Thursday, I decided to do a seven-day fast. Then, around 5 p.m. on Friday, around 23 hours into the fast, I thought, “That means I won’t be able to grill with the family tomorrow or eat with the family when we move my daughter back to college that Sunday.”  So, just like that, I canceled the planned seven-day fast and said, “I’ll start a five-day fast on Sunday.”

You see, while I can create some goals and stick to them, I can also “reason” with myself.  I’m all for getting healthy and creating a better me, but being happy is also a part of that.  And I wasn’t willing to give up those weekend moments (and meals) for that.

So, on Sunday, the five-day fast started around 12:30 pm.  

This year, I told myself I’d do a five-day fast every quarter, along with my daily intermittent fasting.  This is my third one.  There are many benefits to fasting like this, the biggest one being your body getting a reset.  That reset has been proven to kill cancer cells.  On top of that, your body goes into a state where it burns off your stored body fast as energy since there’s no new energy coming into your body in the form of food. 

Funny fact: They say your body has around 100,000 stored calories. So, if you need around 2,000 daily, you have 30-50 days of stored calories. Crazy, right?  

Of course, besides the reasons above, there is also weight loss. I lost 8 pounds the first time and five in the second. I’ll lose 3-5 pounds this time.  

Last but not least for me is brain health.  Research also indicates that a part of your brain gets bigger, a good part, when you do things you don’t want to do, and let’s face it, none of us want to go five days without eating.  

For me, a person who’s done many one-day fasts is better than it may be for someone who has never fasted.  But it’s honestly not bad.  The most challenging part is thinking about eating.  As I type this, I’m halfway through and not hungry.  All I’ve had the past 2 1/2 days is water, water with electrolytes, salt water, and coffee.  I’ve also chewed four pieces of sugar-free gum, which is fine.  

Tomorrow evening through Thursday morning is usually the most challenging time for me. I did have a rough spot around 5 pm today while working out. My energy was low, and my mindset needed to be corrected.  I tend to notice I let negative daily items impact me more during this, basically slight mood swings.  I also think I had too much coffee today, which might be to blame for my rough afternoon.

But I know what you’re thinking. You’re working out while not eating!  Yes, it’s proven that HIT workouts are an excellent combo for fasting.  In fact, on day four of my first five-day fast, I had the best workout I can recall in years.  At that point, your body is tapping into immense stored energy, and you can do much more than you’d ever thought.  

Friends, especially restaurant owners and parents.  It’s your job to lead your tribe, and if they see you being unhealthy, overweight, and not caring for yourself, ask yourself, “What kind of example am I setting.”

Talk to you tomorrow,

MP