Allowing the Pause — A Small Shift in Thinking

I’ve been listening to a podcast by Steven Bartlett about fasting and how our bodies are designed to cope with periods of not eating.

It’s a long conversation, but a really interesting one. What struck me most wasn’t rules or routines, but the bigger idea behind it all.

We all know diets rarely work in the long term. For most people, the weight goes back on again. Fasting, though, isn’t talked about as a diet — more as a long-term lifestyle that reflects how the body was originally designed to function.

The starting point they discuss is a 12-hour fast. That’s simply leaving a clear 12-hour gap between your last meal of the day and your first meal the next day. Much of that time is spent asleep, which is why it’s often described as a gentle place to begin. It’s less about restriction and more about giving the body a proper overnight pause 🌙

What really connected for me was how closely this links to my recent post about embracing discomfort.

The main learning points I took away were these:

• Our bodies are more resilient than we often give them credit for
• Hunger, like tiredness or cold, isn’t always something that needs fixing immediately
• Constant eating and constant comfort are relatively modern habits
• Small, manageable discomforts can sometimes bring longer-term benefits
• Noticing habits matters more than following rigid rules 🌱

What do you think?

(For anyone interested, in the conversation that prompted these thoughts can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/reel/2120499505389404)