As of right now I'm 23 days into my re-feeding after a three week fast.

I entered the re-feeding period with some knowledge of 'best practices', and I had a plan laid out for myself on what I wanted to accomplish with this entire experience of water fasting.

I did it and I'm damn proud. 21 days fasting was an amazing experience, and I'm sold on incorporating fasting into my life on a regular basis as part of the lifestyle I'm building for myself. While fasting, I thought often and deeply about how I wanted my eating habits to be once my fast was over.

The first bite of orange was amazing. I finished the entire orange in just about 2 hours. Eating slow, chewing much, and just enjoying the fruit. An hour or so after the orange, I began eating some papaya. I finished about half the fruit, making sure to again eat it very slowly.

I woke up the next morning and it felt like heaven on Earth. I was SO alive, so excited, so much energy, I felt absolutely amazing. Couldn't stop smiling. It was really an amazing day.

To work that day I took the rest of my half-eaten papaya and a few oranges. Each day thereafter I added one or two different foods starting with bananas, kiwi, avocado, grapefruit, pineapple, spinach and tomato. I found this a very rewarding way of eating. I was definitely on my way to building my diet.

Up through this moment I have been adding new elements to my daily diet. My goal was to build a diet that I really enjoy eating, the backbone of which has been based around significant quantities of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds.

Part of the reason for this is that I do not expect myself to completely abstain from...anything. I want to be able to be healthy enough to make a burrito as a part of my meal some day if I choose. So, I figure that if I consume mostly foods from these four groups as the base of my intake, I allow myself that leeway and give myself the ability to indulge when I choose to. I trust myself.

So now 23 days in, my days look something like this...

Wake Up: Glass of OJ
15-20 minutes later: An orange
30-45 minutes later: Stove-top cooked oats with banana, almonds, soy nuts, and a spoonful of brown sugar

Then I'll eat at random but steady intervals throughout the day. An orange here. A banana there. Handful of peanuts. Handful of my personal trail mix (Almonds, personally dried fruit, banana chips, sunflower/pumpkin seeds). Spinach salad with olives and cherry tomato.

I'm very happy with where I am at right now in terms of my diet. I have plenty of energy. I'm eating what seems like a lot of food, but it's for the most part all fruits/veggies/nuts/seeds.

The best part is that I am LOVING the way I'm eating, and it's healthy. I've found that perfect diet FOR ME, and I'm sure I'll be able to stay with this for good. It's a delicious way to live.

Hope everyone is doing well. It's been fun reading all the posts since I've been away from the boards.

Keep strong, friends!