Les bienfaits du Jeûne

When I was a kid, on the farm, Sunday was a day of fasting.
Not for health reasons, mind you, but because religion found it spiritual and we, well... we were poor.
Killing two birds with one stone.
Finally, thank you Christians: it was a relief for the body and the wallet.

Years later, around the age of forty, I wanted to rediscover that little thrill of hunger.
But not just a little 11am hunger pang, no, THE hunger, the real thing.
The one of the kid who comes home after three hours of football and yells: "Mom, I'm hungry!"

So I tried fasting.
One day, two days... seven.
Then fourteen.
Yes, fourteen.
And guess what? I didn't die.
Better: I liked it.
My energy skyrocketed, and so did my concentration.
My stomach? On vacation.
My brain? Turbocharged.
My intestines? Calm.
My mental state? Zen... or almost.

Well, for the first two days, I had flashes of crispy baguettes and saucy dishes that were winking at me cheekily.
But then, nothing.
I worked better, I exercised like a ninja, and I discovered... time.
The time we spend eating, cooking, digesting, thinking about what to eat...
All of that: POOF, gone.

And the craziest part?
My palace. Poor thing, it wept.
He begged me for two days: "Give me some flavor! Something crispy! Something melt-in-your-mouth!"
Nothing could be done. He held on, the rascal.
Until he made me dream of raclette at 3 a.m.

That's when I knew: fasting isn't hard on the body.
It's tough for the hedonist in me.
But even that can be tamed.
I continued to do my things my own way.
No preparation two days before, no gradual reintegration at the end.
Just me, my instinct, and my body in "OK, boss, let's go" mode.
And then what?
I've put on a few kilos, but I've gained a ton of clarity.
I understood that fasting is not just about stopping eating, it's about giving yourself a reset.
Physical, mental, emotional.
It's like telling your body: "Here, a gift. Do the housework."

Since then, I fast from time to time, in my own way.
Liquid.
With or without coffee.
With or without rum (yes, it's happened to me).
But always with respect for this body which, when you really listen to it, knows exactly what to do.