Do you fast regularly?

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DeniseNY

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Curious as to how many people do. I was thinking of making it part of my prayer life. If you do, how does it benefit you and help strengthen your relationship with God?
 
Every Monday.
It benefits me not at all. It makes me miserable. I do it in hopes of helping souls.

I don’t know if it strengthens my relationship with God. I leave that stuff up to him.

I was fasting multiple days a week and wondering if I should go back to doing at least 2. Many devotions call for Friday to be a fast day, however that is not a good day for me to fast for various reasons. I do abstain from meat on that day. I could fast on Wednesday or Thursday, possibly.
 
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I don’t currently because I’m breastfeeding (I stopped when I got pregnant.) But before that I did. I’m in good health and was cleared to do so. My personal practice was to eat one meal per day. If you’re familiar with Jimmy Akin, he did a similar fast to lose weight and it was successful.

(I lost weight too, but I found it was very beneficial spiritually. It helped me strengthen my will in a lot of ways. I didn’t feel enslaved to food or other physical pleasures. It was shocking just how much headspace those things occupied.)
 
At the very least, I abstain every friday. Even have a few of my buddies doing it with me, fun! Get to pretend like we’re in Lent the whole year round 😀
 
It’s the Flame of Love devotion bread fast. Bread and water till 6 pm at least. You can eat as much bread as you want and you can put salt on the bread.

Sometimes I try to eat this blah crispbread that I don’t like, other days when I have to work I will get something like a plain toasted bagel with no spread on it and eat that, or if I have bread in the house that I need to eat up I will eat that bread so it doesn’t get wasted.

If you want to eat something other than bread after 6 pm, you have to say a 5 decade rosary for the Poor Souls in Purgatory on the same day.

This sounds pretty easy but in reality I get a headache just about every Monday, and often I still have to drive places and go to work, and often by 6 pm I’m so tired I’m about ready to fall asleep. Sometimes I have ended up just going to bed about 7 pm.

When I was doing multiple fast days, I would make Monday a bread and water day and then on another day I would do an egg and grapefruit fast where all you eat is 2 hard boiled eggs and a grapefruit until 6 pm. Eating a lot of bread isn’t all that great for me, so I don’t like to do bread fast more than 1 day a week.
 
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I remember doing the bread and water fast until l3pm some years ago, I always had a headache and felt very weak. I never really liked drinking water anyway.

I like the fact you can eat but pray a Rosary, that is great, a real win-win.
 
I messed it up a couple of times when I got so tired from the fast that I fell asleep before I got the Rosary done 😦

I now try to make sure I say the Rosary early, or if I feel myself getting tired after 6 pm and the Rosary isn’t said, I just go to bed and if necessary I get up after midnight (then I can eat). I try to say a daily Rosary anyway but sometimes I miss days and have to make them up, except for this devotion you are supposed to say the Rosary on the Monday so I can’t just say two of them on Tuesday and make it up. I’m sure God would hear the prayers anyway, but I’m trying to do it right.
 
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I try to be meatless Weds and Fridays (and the other few fasting days throughout the Church year. I also try to do something a little extra (pray or give up something else) during the 4 fasting seasons. Most of the time I fail about 2 weeks in haha…The Apostles’ Fast starts soon…we’ll see how that goes lol!
 
I dont fast Denise, as you will see some people will praise fasting and go on an on about how it stregthens them. An if it works for them, then great. I just dont personally buy into because Jesus did it, an because everyone did it since 2000 some odd years ago then I have to do it too. If that was the case I should destroy fig trees when they dont bare fruit and go and give up all my material possesions and be homeless.

I only have one real meal a day anyhow, so I mean if I fast any further than that im just starving myself and that is even more pointless. For me personally.

If the point of fasting is to experience pain and suffering and to give up something, I can easily think of other things to do , other than starving myself.

Anyhow DeniseNY that is my personal answer to you, coming from a practicing Catholic, Not saying you should consider anything im saying , just replying to you is all.
 
I really miss fasting, especially after this lent. I would like to change the wednesday and friday from no meat days to real fasting days. This thread remembers me to do so, thank you so much!
 
May I ask how you fast? I’ve read too many different ways on how and I’d like to try it.
 
I go by the pre-1966 fasting and abstinence rules: all days of Lent except Sunday, Ember days, Holy Saturday, and the vigils of Christmas, the Immaculate Conception and Pentecost.
 
Outside Easter season. Yes. And not on feast days. Feast days are for celebrating.

I try for Wednesday and Friday. I have morning coffee, maybe some fruit, then just water till 3 pm.
In summer , depending on the heat, I might have to break fast early or I am doing lots of physical work. On those days when I do eat, it’s a simple meal after fast. Sandwich or bowl of pasta.

I don’t eat meat at all. So I am on a life long meat fast 🍱

It disciplines and I remember why I am fasting. God is more important then my stomach, wants or needs.
 
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I have thought about it. But I don’t “get” it. I have done it, not eaten all day until dinner. Sometimes on purpose, sometimes unintentionally. Or I have tried the smaller meals, the snacks and one normal meal. It’s not impossible for me, but I don’t understand the concept of fasting. If it is supposed to make me feel closer to God, it doesn’t. :confused:
 
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