I was recently diagnosed with PCOS and elevated A1C as well as elevated Glucose levels. This was something that I desperately wanted to change (as well as lose weight, duh!).
Overall, for me, it’s really about getting away from the precipice of diabetes that motivates me to try prolonfmd. This isn’t a sponsored post, and I did NOT get it for free. I paid the whopping $225 for 5 days of food that fits in 5 teeny tiny boxes. I was inspired to write this because of course, I looked for blog posts on how other people handled this crazy fast! And you know what? Those posts were annoyingly positive and pretty much all rainbows and butterflies. But that’s not how I felt all the time on this fast!
The supposed benefits of Prolon are:
- reduction in visceral fat (fat surrounding your internal organs, super bad for you)
- resetting of blood sugar and lowering of cholesterol
- feeling energized
- autophagy ( your good cells start to eat up all the dead and bad ones in you!)
Now, I had already made some significant changes to my diet in the two months before I did my fast. I cut out gluten and dairy (good bye pizza 
) and I really lowered my sugar intake. I pretty much only had dark chocolate as my dessert for two months. However, I will admit to getting ice cream with all the fixings the day before the fast. A girl has got to live!
What I’m saying, is that I had already done some of the mental work of dealing with cravings before I went into this 5 day experience. I also think that 5 days is a pretty reasonable amount of time to give up foods you like and be able to wrap your brain around it! That is what I decided to try this program over other programs to work on fixing my blood sugar issues.
So, what did I experience on the fast??? I’m going to try to break it down day by day.
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| The free book included in your order about the science behind this, and how to make this a way of life |
Day 1
No weight loss- It was the first day.
What is there to eat?
- 5 kale crackers
-Tomato soup
-minestrone soup
- two nut-based L-bars
-1 coco crispy snack
- LOTS of tea!
- some supplement pills
Day one was hard. All I could think about was that this was not a lot of food, and also all I wanted to eat was anything that wasn't in the day one box. However, looking back and typing out all of what I ate day one, I am currently thinking, " wow that was a lot of food!" One major change I have experienced on this fast is that my relationship with food changed, and I need a lot less to feel full. Mental hunger vs. physical hunger.
Another big piece of this fast is that you can drink as much herbal tea and water as you want. So I was basically running to the restroom every half hour. This was do-able for me since I have been working from home, and I had a pretty flexible work schedule. If I was doing this fast as a full-time teacher in a classroom, there is NO WAY I could have handled not getting a potty break!
At the end of the day on day one, I was exhausted and had a huge caffeine headache. That is another thing to consider, no caffeine on this fast! I literally fell sound asleep at 7pm at night and woke up the next morning at 8:30 am. I felt well-rested and not hungry in the morning. I was expecting ravishing hunger to overtake me, but that was not the case!
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| The minestrone soup |
Day 2
Weight Loss: Two pounds!
What is there to eat?
- 1 L-bar
-mushroom soup
- olives
-minestrone and quinoa soup
-L-bar choco crisp
-L-drink
This day was also hard for me. I HATED the olives, so I did not eat them. In fact, I tried one and spit it right out. I was not desperate enough to eat the package of olives, but I was missing being able to eat more food.
The mushroom soup was good but not as good as the tomato soup. The quinoa soup was horrible! I did not like it. But my mom, who did this with me, liked it! So I guess it's really about personal taste. (She also liked the olives so the elevation of her palate is debatable... :) ).
I was annoyed and angry on day two. This stems from my own issues with food and restrictions, but I was not a happy camper. I took a nap mid-day to stop myself from obsessing about eating. My mom and I also had cleaned out our fridge and pantry before this fast so that we would not be tempted to cheat. I highly suggest doing this with someone who will hold you accountable.
Now, I might have been extra hungry because I did not eat the olives, but I wasn't so hungry that I broke the fast. This day was all about mind over matter. This is a very real thing, dealing with head hunger versus tummy hunger, and I struggled today. I also had a very bad headache. I think this was more caffeine withdrawal. It also could have been the start of the "keto flu" as the goals of day 2 and 3 of this fast is to get your body into ketosis.
Again, I went to sleep a little earlier than normal, but not as early as day 1! I slept soundly, minus the constant pee breaks due to chugging the L-drink all day long!
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| Some of the amazing teas included! |
Day 3
Weight lost- 2 pounds for a total of 4 ( this was over TWO days!)
What is there to eat?
-L-bar
-tomato soup
-kale crackers ( I MISSED these guys on day two!)
-Minestrone soup
-L drink
Today was not as hard of a day as days 1 and 2. However, it is the day with the least amount of calories. This didn't seem to bother me, and this might have been because I was dealing with my hang-ups on food restrictions, and it also might have been because I no longer had a constant headache on top of my hunger.
The ProlonFMD literature says that your appetite should be changing, and as your body is entering a fasting state, you don't feel as hungry as often. I think this was true. I have intermittent fasted before and had had this same phenomenon happen and I am here for it! It felt great to sleep well and to wake up not immediately hungry.
The key to this day was planning out when I was going to eat each food, and how much I would eat. I missed those kale crackers on day two! That is a phrase I never thought I would say! I split them between each of the soups for lunch and dinner. I also made sure to save most of my nut bar for a sweet treat at the end of the day, since there was no choco crispy today. ( super sad!)
The tomato soup tasted divine today! I think this was because I hated the quinoa soup so much. I had liked the tomato soup day one, but I loved it today! I was bummed that I would not be getting it on day 4.
Today was also an east hunger day. I think this was partly because I was used to the food and had set up a routine, and also because I knew I had only two days left after it.
This night I did NOT sleep well. I woke up from 4-6 am and was unable to get to sleep. And I did not fall asleep until midnight before that. I did take a nap in the afternoon, which could be a contributing factor to my interrupted sleep. However, I would call myself a professional napper, and I do not normally have an issue sleeping despite taking a nap.
Day 4
Weight lost- 1.5 pounds for a total of 5.5 pounds in 3 days
What is there to eat?
- L-bar
-Veggiessoup (new flavor! Did not like, but better than quinoa!)
-Olives- TWO PACKS! (still hate these, but I got hungry so I ate two...)
-Minestrone and Quinoa soup ( I was v. upset about this!)
-L-drink
-CHOCO CRISP IS BACK BABY!
Day four was pretty easy, but I waited to long to eat and that set me off. I was out and about with my mom and I got shakey and agitated. We had to go home between errands so we could eat. Oops!
This day was good mentally because I knew that there was only one day left, but there was still one day left! I just wanted to be done! My mom also agreed, she kept saying "I feel like this should be day 5!"
I was headache free, slept well, and besides the one close meltdown, I was pretty sound mentally!
I did not take a nap, I ran around with my dog and I sat in the sun on my porch for a while.
Day 4 was good.
Day 5- LAST DAY!
What did I lose- Sadly, no change, but this is considered normal- many people lose weight after the fast on days 6 and 7!
What is there to eat?
- L bar
-Tomato soup ( I was very excited for this!)
-kale crackers (YES!)
-minestrone soup ( eh...)
- L- drink
No choco crisp bar :(
Day 5 was a mental game again. I was not super hungry, but I needed to keep my mind from thinking about the fact that I could eat regular food again in just one day. The more I thought about food, the more I wanted it. So my mom and I discussed food for day 6 for 10 minutes and then agreed not to speak of it again. We even made sure we were going to eat things we already had in the house so that we did not have to go to the store to stock up for day 6 on day 5. That would have been our breaking point!
I was a little fatigued today, but I think that was more from walking around in the 90-degree heat for a few hours. My mom and I visited an outdoor art show, and that took a toll. I drank so much water and paced myself with eating! Those kale crackers needed to be saved for dinner so that I could end the day feeling satiated.
I was able to end the day well, and with a great mood! Mostly looking forward to eating non-plan foods the next day!
Day 6
I know, this is supposed to be a 5 day fast! And it is! But day 6 still has some restrictions so that you don't upset your tummy by eating junk in bulk right off your fast. You are encouraged to eat low glycemic fruits and grilled veggies on day 6. You also should consider non-meat soups and no overly processed foods. I went with a prolon brand l-bar nut bar, some tomato soup from a can, and avocado toast on gluten-free bread. My tummy was just fine!
Overall Results:
5.5 pounds lost
Less puffy in face and under eyes, slimmer looking face
Tummy bloat GONE and tummy pouch noticeably smaller
Great mood and good sleep
Fewer cravings
Lowered appetite
This is something that I would do again! But not any time soon... I think it's a great way to reset your gut and health, and it's such an easy program to follow! It is all done for you, you basically just need to open packets and heat up water!
Have you tried something like prolon? Let me know in the comments your experience and what other tips you might have for Prolon Newbies!
