My Journey to Weight Loss and Regaining My Energy with Fasting

I'm 43 years old, 162 cm tall, and I've struggled with weight gain for years. In 2020, I gained over 30 kg, and after contracting COVID-19, I developed polyarthritis and myocarditis, which forced me to stop exercising. A medical examination revealed that I had hip joint arthritis, limited mobility in one leg, a kidney cyst, and a nodule on my thyroid gland. I also started experiencing issues with my gallbladder. I tried following diets like low-carb, keto, and intermittent fasting, but my weight either remained the same or increased when I relaxed my diet. I reached a maximum weight of 94 kg.

I'm a meat-eater, and I enjoy it, but I've always been a bit of a foodie. I love trying new things, but that makes it hard for me to stick to diets that specify what and how much to eat. I needed a gentle method, and that's how I discovered Marve Oganian's fasting method.

I chose the 7-day program, and before starting, I had a late lunch of sautéed cabbage and even treated myself to ice cream. In the evening, two hours before bedtime, I took magnesium supplements and drank a lemon and honey tea. Then, I spent an hour lying on my right side with a hot water bottle and the remaining hour in the bathroom.

Day 1. Weight: 90.65 kg. Drinking the tea is pleasant, but the morning routine is a bit of a hassle. It's not hard, just annoying. By evening, I had a white coating on my tongue.

Two days in and I'm weighing in at 89.75. I'm starting to feel a bit peckish, but my stomach isn't exactly begging for food.

Three days in and I'm at 89.15. I'm having trouble drinking the full 3 liters of the tea, to be honest. But so far, so good - no pain or discomfort.

Four days in and I'm down to 88.40. I'm getting a bit sick of the taste of the tea, to be honest. I've been munching on about a kilogram of honey, and I've taken to replacing the tea with water half the time. Still, no pain or discomfort, just a bit of a metallic taste on my tongue and some not-so-pleasant breath.

Five days in and I'm at 87.80. I'm feeling pretty good in the mornings, but by the evening, I'm getting a bit of a headache. The coating on my tongue is starting to clear up, though.

Six days in and I'm weighing in at 87.60. I'm feeling a bit anxious, but I'm not hungry at all. I'm just getting a bit bored with the taste of the tea, and I'm craving something a bit more exciting - like pasta with sauce. But I'm just observing the feeling, not acting on it.

Seven days in and I'm at 87.40. Still no pain or discomfort, but I have broken out in a few spots on my forehead. The tea is getting old, to be honest, and I'm having trouble getting through the day without it.

Eight days in and I'm weighing in at 86.5. This is my first day of gradually reintroducing food into my diet. I'm planning on sticking to animal products for at least 15 days, so I'll be adding in some veggie and fruit dishes - mostly raw - to keep things interesting. I've also cut back on the amount of tea I'm drinking, and I've started adding in some fresh fruit juice - grapefruit, orange, and mandarin - which is really nice and refreshing.

Nine days in and I'm at 86.3. I'm sleeping like a baby, and I've been drinking some really tasty juice - pumpkin, apple, and carrot. I've also been having some pretty bland but healthy meals - like mashed pumpkin and carrot with a bit of butter. I've even started adding in some greens - like a salad made from grated raw carrot, beet, and apple. My friend Marva says I should be adding in some butter to my diet, since I'm not living in a tropical climate. I've also started drinking the tea like it's just another beverage - no honey, no lemon.

Ten days in and I'm not weighing myself, since I've moved away from the scales. I've been having some really tasty salads - like one made from grated raw carrot and beet - with some grapes and almonds on the side. I've also been having some pretty bland but healthy meals - like rice with water and some chopped dates. I've even started adding in some nuts and seeds - like a bit of honey and almond butter on a piece of bread. The tea is still a bit of a habit, but I'm drinking it more like a beverage than a medicine.

11 days in and I'm down to 86.6 pounds. I think I can attribute the weight gain to my food holding onto water. Breakfast was a salad with tomato and cucumber, some olive oil, and lunch was sautéed cabbage with onion and carrot, a bit of salt, and some soluble chicory root. Throughout the day, I had an orange and pumpkin juice. For dinner, I had buckwheat porridge with water, pumpkin, and some butter. After 6 pm, I wasn't hungry at all, effortlessly. I craved warm drinks throughout the day. I've stopped drinking tea and instead opted for barley or chicory root drinks.

12 days in and I'm at 86.8 pounds. Breakfast was a salad with half a tomato and a quarter of a cucumber, some onion, and sunflower oil. For a snack, I had an orange. I wanted to sit and dissect it, just to avoid eating the skin. As a result, I ate it for 30 minutes and felt incredibly full. After that, I went for a 1.5-hour walk in the woods with my dog. Lunch was sautéed cabbage with onion and carrot, an apple. I'm temporarily in the countryside, and the selection of products is limited, but I do have the chance to go for walks. Back in the city, my job is so demanding that I spend most of my time sitting at my computer, and during rush hours, I only get to do some stretching.

13 days in and I'm still doing the same thing. My breakfast is a vegetable salad with some fruits, and I'm eating fruits throughout the morning. Lunch and dinner are still sautéed vegetables – cabbage, pepper, tomato, and carrot. For lunch, I added two hard-boiled eggs.

14 days in and my weight hasn't budged, which I attribute to the food I'm eating still not being fully digested. Today's the last day of this diet, and I'll be introducing animal products tomorrow. I did deviate from the plan a bit – I've been avoiding animal products, but yesterday and today, I had eggs, and tomorrow, I'll be introducing meat.

15 days in and I'm back at 86.6 pounds. For lunch, I had a salad with boiled beetroot, some onion, and a hard-boiled egg. For dinner, I had sautéed cabbage with carrot and onion, and half a grilled chicken breast cooked directly in the cabbage. For dinner, I had a salad with cucumber and tomato.

I continued to do the same thing, eating meat once a day for lunch - chicken breast or fish (halibut, pollock, pangasius, mackerel, lemongrass). For breakfast, I had a salad with vegetables, nuts, and citrus fruits, and sometimes cheese. For dinner, I had steamed or raw vegetables, green beans, and sometimes porridge with water: buckwheat, rice, or puffed rice, often with apricots and walnuts. I had fruits like apples, pomegranates, citrus fruits, and grapes in the morning. I didn't even want to start drinking milk except for cheese, and I developed an aversion to it.

I was also drinking herbal teas like Marva's tea without honey, rye drink, dandelion root tea, and soluble rosehip tea.

It became natural for me to do intermittent fasting with the 16/8 schedule.

My conclusions:

1. This is perfect for people who have already accepted the idea of fasting in general but can't stick to it for various reasons, such as headaches, chronic disease flare-ups, family members with food, or other temptations.

2. Marva has thought of everything: the preliminary cleansing with magnesium is super helpful in reducing detox symptoms in the first few days. Drinking the tea frequently satisfies the urge to put something in your mouth. The presence of honey prevents hypoglycemia (no headaches and shaky hands), lemon makes the taste more diverse, and without it, honey would become too sweet. Morning enemas are also a preventive measure against detox.

3. The components of the tea are restorative and cleansing on their own. Honey smooths everything out and is a source of various substances. I want to mention the diuretic herbs that helped me get rid of hidden edema during the treatment, which resulted in reduced morning stiffness, improved vision, and a clearer mind.

4. Properly exiting the fast is crucial, and with this type of fasting, you're excited about every new taste you introduce. Pumpkin is divine, and oranges are a gift from the gods, and so on. Large portions are not necessary; you feel full, and you don't think about food for several hours.

5. This is much easier than simply reducing calorie intake after regular eating. If you're used to eating and then suddenly reduce your calorie intake by a third, your body perceives it as a tragedy. After a 7-day fast, you eat little, but it feels like you've eaten a ton. Your body is incredibly happy.

Final verdict. I've gotta say, I'm really into this whole fasting thing. Losing weight wasn't the ultimate goal, although I was counting on it. What I really wanted was to get rid of the joint pain and regain my old level of activity, or at least get close to it. And I'm happy to report that I've made some progress in that area.

I was also surprised at how easy it was to switch to smaller portions of healthier food. That was a real eye-opener for me.

Recommendations for others. I'd only recommend this to people who are already seriously considering fasting, are mentally prepared for it, and have done their research. You need to be aware of what's going on in your body and why you're doing this. Don't just jump in without a plan.

Fasting with Marve Oganian is the simplest and most adaptable way to get started.

This is an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of your body and its resources, as well as a chance to see just how much control you have over yourself.

I'll add that two years later, I'd lost a lot of weight, down to 79 kg, but then I met someone, we started living together, and he'd cook food for me. If I didn't eat, he'd get upset - what a manipulator. We eventually broke up, and my weight went back up to 92 kg.