As you may or may not know, I’m a big fan of intermittent fasting with Isagenix! I’ve tried juice cleanses, water fasts, raw food cleanses, etc. and they’re all beneficial, but for the last 3+ years, I’ve loved the ease and efficiency of the cleanse and mostly, the RESULTS!   It’s advised not to do much strenuous exercise during cleanse days and for the most part, I’ve followed that guideline, BUT, I’ve been super curious about fat-adapted distance running. I’ve also been reading about training for the bonk. So in my hyperactive mind, I thought, why not completely deplete my body of glycogen and see how long I last. Ok so not completely…but pretty close!

Yesterday, I had 18 miles on the schedule and a planned deep cleanse day. Also, my monthly female thing showed up! So, I was already thinking, “Maybe I’ll cut it short to 10-15 instead…I’m sure my coach will understand the reasoning! HA!”

So I left in the mid-day sun without having eaten since the night before. I’d had two cleanse tonics by the time I left and a bunch of water and a couple of whey protein wafers. I get to Mile 5 feeling great despite the real feel temp of 89F, so I kept going. I again stopped at Mile 7.5 to drink water and chew on a Clif Blok (I brought 1 stick…200 calories total)…it was my full intention to turn around at that point because if I didn’t, I’d have to cross the river into DC to refill on water. BTW, I had only a total of 32 ounces of water for the entire run!   
But as luck would have, as soon as I stopped for that last break before turning back, I get a text…lol.  Yep, it’s my psychic coach. All of a sudden, I felt sheepish about bailing on the planned 18 miles…valid reasons or not! So with a bit of tough love, I was pushed to finish the 18. I continued into DC and ran to Capitol Hill…just about the 9 mile mark. I was still feeling pretty damn energetic!

Refilled on water, spritzed myself down and started the trek back home…I was down to 2 little Clif Bloks and plain water. By mile 11, I was thinking hmmm….I could call an uber and have them pick my bonky a$$ up! LOL.  But how humiliating!!!

As all ultrarunners do, you just keep going until you’re done. Unless you have a legit injury or medical condition, you just don’t stop. Pace was slow…11:30-12 min miles at this point but kept it moving. It wasn’t until mile 17 that I felt like, “OK…I need to walk the rest of this because I feel like I’m gonna pass out.” Even then during Mile 18…I could push myself for a few pickups here and there.

In terms of results, I ran no faster nor particularly slower during the deep cleanse day. I did feel overall better energy and it was so freeing not to worry so much about nutrition…and what an interesting feeling to keep running while my stomach was growling!!! Psychologically, I felt lighter, more focused mentally.

Did this help me get a bit more fat-adapted? Maybe?! I took in approximately 300 calories before and during a run where I burned about 1900 calories. Where’d the energy come from? Something to ponder!  

I think the main reason for me attempting this was to help allay the fear we all have of being hungry. As a trainer and wellness coach, when many of my clients are facing a cleanse day, so much fear and trepidation crop up! Mostly the fear of being hungry…perhaps a fear of death? With all of our first world comforts, we’ve become soft…we’ve forgotten how to work through discomfort. In essence, we’ve forgotten our power and strength to endure through difficulty. We are continually searching for ways to escape and mask the pain…which eventually leads to powerless resignation.

Stay hungry. Eat Clean. Train Mean. Live Lean. 

Trust me, you can push yourself much further than you think.  Happy Suffering!