For me, fasting has changed how i eat. Used to eat because i was bored, and I ate all sorts of junk. Now, im far more mindful of what i put in my body, and i can tell when im hungry, and when im just bored, hungry. Did i need fasting to achieve this? Probably not. But it has made a world of difference for me.

You are a person with a balanced life style who workout frequently and with healthy habits and a healthy body... most people that finds the solution on fasting come from different background and history where your concept may not be applicable. .. I fought with my body weight and eating habits for more than 40 years... Fasting changed my life and I believe it can help lots of people out there...

16/8 is a miracle for me, Helps me have discipline in my food, I lost over 10 kilos when i wanted to and still trying to do 16-8 as it keeps me on the weight i want. I guess, a 48h or 72h fasting is like a mental challenge for most people

I've had knee necrosis for 27 years of my life. Couldn't run or ride a bicycle. Did fasting during a period of half a year. Did a lot of 2-4 day fasts, and did a 10-day and 20-day fast too. And my knee healed completely during that time. It's been 5 years since then, and my knee is still in great shape. Fasting is amazing and the science is way behind on its healing effects.

I was LOLing when you showed a picture of your boy Chris when talking about AG. Love you both and its great to see healthy disagreements and banter about these things.

I tried fasting and I did get some things from it. It made me realise how fortunate I am to live with food always available, and renewed my empathy for people who don't. It made me realise how insanely ubiquitous food advertising is (for shitty foods) and how that was likely affecting my daily choices at some level. It gave me a light, sharp, productive feeling I kind of liked. I'm not sure I'd do it often.

this is an advertisement for the detriment of a negative mindset

hardly a challenge yet being so melodramatic lol

I have enjoyed 48 hours fasts in the past, mostly because I skipped the chore of making food, and didn't have anything social. I also have to be in a good place.I get totally depressed and struggle to work. I only notice a reduction in general appetite for a few weeks after. Good to know that just restriction also causes autophagy. Top video!

A few months ago I started a very mild version of intermittent fasting that basically means after my last meal I skip the late night snack and don't eat for 14 hours (ish). I did this as I was feeling bloated and low on energy and by doing this I reduced the bloatedness and feel much better. But it's only a small change and something I can easily stick to without it feeling like I'm restricting myself.

Looks to me you decided what your outcome would be before you even started.

I do 16:8 because it gives me less hours in the day to fill my fat face with food. After gaining a mega shit ton (metric) of weight after a hernia operation fasting helped me lose 20kg. But that just means it works for me, most important thing for everyone to do is find what works for them, might be fasting, might be something else. And giving up alcohol at 51 helped a lot, mainly I wasn't filling my face with food at night after drinking and breaking the 16:8 fast.

If you dive into a 72hr fast from nowhere then you will obviously be miserable. A lot of people who fast have tried all the conventional methods. People should experiment and do what works for them. For some it's intermittent fasting, for some it's daily caloric restriction. Usually it comes down to how disciplined one is. Some can fast better than they can control their appetites.

I'm ambitiously losing weight (80lbs by the end of the year) so 72hr fasts every 3 months, 24hr once a week and 16:8 the other days will give me a jumpstart. It's been shockingly easier than I thought, and taught me not to binge eat or drink out of boredom or stress. That being said, I wouldn't recommend it to any of my friends cause most will end up overeating once they break their fast.

this made me laugh so hard, especially the dog eating food section haha. I appreciate your channel Just subbed

I have only recently found your channel and it's really helping as well as being informative. I am 59 years old and last year I was 110kg and just over a year later I am 82 kg. I am now going to the gym and have a personal trainer and for the first time in my life I have a good shape and look years younger. You are never too old to become fit and healthy. BTW your humour really makes me chuckle ..Thank you

I’ve been doing the 16/8 for almost 12 months which has helped me lose just over 3 stone. It’s now helping me maintain. It’s not some miracle weight loss scheme but has personally helped me get my diet back under control and stopped me for over indulging on a regular bases

Shots fired putting Chris' mug up for taking the AG1 money hahha 😂

Loads of people fast and have measurable improvements in mood, well being, helps with digestive issues whilst also helping people be in a calorie deficit. I wouldn’t take this video as my only source of information on this. It’s done great things for me personally.

Bro went through initial withdrawals from burning sugar for decades LOL, this was more entertaining than educational for the initiated.

The Essex dig was uncalled for 😂

Fair play, I decided to do a 72 hour fast when I had a bad stomach bug bit before Christmas. During the fast I felt pretty good and afterwards did feel like a reset.

You failed at simple math at the end, impressive.

Great video... The main benefit I find with fasting is that it resets my cravings, making it much easier to stick to a healthy diet after the fast... Maybe it's because my gut flora has been cleaned out, or whatever, idk... It's kinda just what i do to signal to my body that a new health effort is starting. I'm sure I could just power through the cravings for the first two weeks and just eat a healthy diet without the fast... but then I wouldn't have that initial few days of absolute misery, hating myself and my body... punishing myself... for... getting off track... in the first place... *looks down at the belly fat that I've been "working on" for the past 6 years* ... Guys I think I have an eating disorder. And fasts aren't helping.

Cool. Awesome video. I'll do one myself. I will go to gym 3 times (in total) to prove the internet wrong! Going to the gym will do NOTHING!

Another no bollox video. Nice one James. Top bloke.

I do appreciate your contrarian viewpoint and that you gave it a shot, this isn't something easy to do. But, it didn't seem like an open minded effort. Seemed biased and half-hearted. And whether you were or you just kept telling yourself that you were miserable the entire time is a sure way to remain miserable. This is also a very common experience for people addicted to sugar or carbs. The body goes through withdrawals and struggles to flip the metabolic switch to fat burning.

I think the only key advantage of time restricted eating or fasting over daily calorific restrictions is the simplicity. Working out your calorific intake each day can be tricky whereas just eating for a shorter period each day or over a week is simple. Sometimes I find I might not feel very hungry but eat as it’s mealtime and this can trigger the munchies big style.

I fasted for 50 hours and I lost 7lbs and felt and looked great. My brain fog went away also

Thanks for the video. Yeah it is also important to have recovery days. I find that changing things up like doing not just the same thing all the time, but shooting for the most plants and proteins with some fasting, helps me to also exercise and think clearly. Life quality is also important for any long term protocol that you will actually do.

@jamessmith Love your videos man, I laugh out loud every time, but I appreciate the ‘cut through the BS’ approach. I disappeared down a DOAC podcast hole and ended up getting very confused about everything health related. Keep it real brother!!

buddy is ready to DIE on this rock😂 he REALLY wants to be right about this😂😂😂

Fasting gives me mental clarity and energy that I’ve never felt in my life before.

Interesting video - I went into fasting pretty heavy a few years ago, and experimented with keto and all that, but have dropped off most of it and just stuck with intermittent fasting. What I’ll say about fasting is the following: 1. It is brutal and extremely difficult for the first 2-3 days; 2. You simultanously realise how much of your life revolves around food and how much time it takes; and 3. It definitely does get easier after day 3 - I used to do 5 day fasts and I used to feel pretty clear and almost euphoric on days 4 and 5. However, ultimately it is just extremely hard work and I eventually ended up at the conclusion you did with this video; I got similar results just maintaining a good diet and exercising.

The building anger and increased tapping while you were standing at the whiteboard was hilarious

I can only speak from personal experience but I have tried a three day fast a few times since I started loosing weight at 22 stone I'm now 14.4 and can honestly say that I haven't been affected by the depression or hunger pangs you've experienced maybe using my fat stores made it easier for me I also cabined it with keto and feel so much better body and mind with so much energy I no longer suffer from sleep apnoea or acid reflux and I loved eating as much as anyone but when you get to the end of the spectrum where I was the two meals a day keto/fasting cycle combined with walking for exercise and to lower my cortisol levels worked for me the three day fast works as a circuit breaker for wen I've gone off keto for Christmas or something. I'm not selling anything and I'm not trying to push any diet or fasting regime on anyone nor will I call others stupid or ridicule them for how they choose to loose weight instead I would try to be more empathetic than you came across in your video. Problems come from people on both sides of an argument when they start being antagonistic. what's wrong with saying I tried something I hated it but if it works for you then great as long as their happy and healthy.

I think for a lot of people it is a control thing, mental control, physical control, showing yourself you dont represent the debauchery of the previous weekend.

I’ll let the Essex comment slide after the “random burst of no I didn’t”. Cracking video btw - epic blend of insight, comedy and communication.

The Essex jokes are killing me 😂

I also watched BeardMeatsFood when I did a prolonged fast recently. Actually managed the 72 hours fine and felt quite good afterwards, didn't feel as hungry and felt full much quicker. But that lasted only a week or so and now I'm back to being my old gluttonous self.

Love, love, love this.

All good. Fasting, like many other practices, is a useful tool for helping some people clear out potential excess build up in the body that would otherwise hender response times, when done correctly. Proper nutrition would also help in this way. Another potential effect of fasting is a form of stress tolerance. Just like overcoming the mind to do that extra rep, overcoming the mind to function in stressful low calorie situations can be useful. It's simply another way of overcoming weakness and learning how to appreciate and enjoy life in any situation. Intentionally inducing stress with the mindset that it will improve one's tolerance turns stressors into buffers. It's not necessary, but it can be effective and practical. All is mind, and this is a form mind training. Good video.

Standing near grilled sausages while fasting is a recipe for depression

Hahah putting Rogan, Huberman and Chris Williamson especially, with him being your biz partner, on blast with AG1 is so James Smith

I did one recently. Black coffee the first day and just water the next 2. Didn't do it for anything more than the challenge. Honestly wasn't that hard. Probably not bad to if nothing else to give your digestive system a break. I did find weight training a lot harder was the one thing though. Cardio wasn't bad.

I'm currently alternating between a normal deficit + training week and a "fasting week" where I don't train, but I fast on the 4 days that are typically training days and eat the same calories as on the normal training week, still a deficit, in order to finish off a cut.

Just subscribed. Bloody good channel mate.

Over a quart million subs. No sponsors, no celebrities guests, just raw truth and dry humor. This man deserves more subs. Love from Kansas, USA ❤

Ty for not acting like you know way more than you do and trying to sell us some bullshit. Tried it yourself, gave us your take based on your experience, and had an expert in the field talk ab the science. Good shit.

FBD! 😂 absolutely brilliant. Love the videos, really interesting. I just couldn’t do it, fair play. I did watch the Chris Hemsworth limitless on Disney where he did the same, and that was pretty interesting as well. I clearly get and understand and agree with your opinions and thoughts about the fitness industry and ‘selling’ the golden bullet. Would be interested in your thoughts of the Hemsworth documentary. Keep up the good work/vids

It would be interesting to see a study on bulking in higher body fat ranges (say 14-20), and using fasting and/or very aggressive caloric restriction. The idea would be to speed up fat loss so that more time over a course of a year is spent in a surplus building muscle. In theory, cutting very aggressively in higher body fat ranges spares muscle more than in a leaner at the same fat loss rate.

Great video - all this makes a lot of sense to my experience of fasting. Though I'm not sure I've ever quite made it to 72, I've got pretty close. What I've found with fasting, is that when I'm trying to lose weight, running a sensible calorie deficit, I can 'plateau' for a few days, maybe a week. When that happens, if I do a 24 or sometimes a 48 hour fast, I drop 3 - 5 lbs. I tend to put 1 or 2 back on the day I start eating again but after that, I get back on track. Great channel, btw. Glad I found you. Subscribed.

As someone who has fasted a lot and isn't a zealot or trying to sell a product to anyone, I have a couple of things to say. 1. I've found it to work for me versus other methods of maintaining a calorie deficit. I have an addictive personality and I'm very much an 'all or nothing' kind of person. I prefer to abstain entirely for an extended period rather than trying to limit my calories on a daily basis. I've been doing this for years and I make it fit in with my lifestyle. I very rarely have to sacrifice a nice meal with friends or family, and if something I really don't want to miss comes up I can change my schedule just for a couple of days. 2. Going from never fasting to fasting for 72 hours is going to have a significant mental impact on you. As I said before, I'm not trying to sell it to anyone, but if somebody does talk to me and expresses an interest in fasting, I recommend building up to longer fasts with shorter fasts first. My own routine involves two non-consecutive 36 hour fasts each week. For each fast, I eat my last meal in the evening, go to sleep, don't eat the next day, go to sleep again, then have breakfast in the morning, so in practice it's like a one day fast. Before I started doing this I conditioned myself to tolerate much shorter fasts and built up to longer ones. I can honestly say that my own fasting routine does not give me any noticeable mental trauma. I'm not going to tell you it seems to invigorate me either, it's just something I do and I get through the day just fine like this. It's clear that fasting isn't for you, but I thought my second point in particular was important to consider in context.

This plays out very much like an episode of "The Doctors." That was a DIRTY fast. Any of the claims you brought up were claims about WATER fasting.

You missed the entire point, it's not about the calories, plus 3 days without food isn't a huge deal, it's pretty easy once you're mentally locked in, I'd argue a low calorie extreme cut is significantly harder.

Every religion on the planet has fasting. I'm going with 10000 years of human experience...

I trust my wife who is a biochemistry engineer more than the dude's nutritional phd. There's always one dude who decides to go against the "trend" just to prove the opposite and get some clout. My friend.. I know people who got cured of stage 4 cancer using autophagy and medicine to reduce glutamine.

Came here because of watching you on beards podcast and watching you guys do the food challenge…..love your personality!!

So I just did a 68 hour fast and I'm inclined to agree. I did see some more obliques and upper abs coming in however the amount of discomfort in reintroducing carbs really sucked. My brain has had a bit of wonkiness, even a week later post eating. I did it for all the proposed health benefits, mental challenge and lastly weight loss. With that said, caloric deficit and tracking macros would've probably been just fine. I could see doing a 24 hour fast in the future but would need to study a lot more going beyond that. Good video.

I’m sorry, but there is solid, peer-reviewed, perfectly legitimate research that demonstrates non-trivial health benefits to several kinds of fasting, including water fasts. Of course it’s not magic, and there are downsides as well, but your friend with the nutrition degree is overstating his case, and being a special little darling when it comes to the research he chose to present. And so am I, of course, in making this argument. Nevertheless, the weight of evidence strongly suggests fasting is a useful tool - one among many - that has statistically significant benefits for a large percentage of people. It can really suck, that’s for certain, and like anything else, it’s not for everybody. Update: Since you guys want research but youtube removes comments with external links, here are brief summaries of a tiny fraction of the available research: “The importance of diet and the gut-brain axis for brain health and cognitive function is increasingly acknowledged. Dietary interventions are tested for their potential to prevent and/or treat brain disorders. Intermittent fasting (IF), the abstinence or strong limitation of calories for 12 to 48 h, alternated with periods of regular food intake, has shown promising results on neurobiological health in animal models. In this review article, we discuss the potential benefits of IF on cognitive function and the possible effects on the prevention and progress of brain-related disorders in animals and humans. We do so by summarizing the effects of IF which through metabolic, cellular, and circadian mechanisms lead to anatomical and functional changes in the brain. Our review shows that there is no clear evidence of a positive short-term effect of IF on cognition in healthy subjects. Clinical studies show benefits of IF for epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, and multiple sclerosis on disease symptoms and progress. Findings from animal studies show mechanisms by which Parkinson’s disease, ischemic stroke, autism spectrum disorder, and mood and anxiety disorders could benefit from IF. Future research should disentangle whether positive effects of IF hold true regardless of age or the presence of obesity” That’s from the journal Nutrients, 2021, volume 13, issue 9. Here’s another: “The results from this pilot study indicate that short-term daily IF may be a safe, tolerable, dietary intervention in T2DM patients that may improve key outcomes including body weight, fasting glucose and postprandial variability. These findings should be viewed as exploratory, and a larger, longer study is necessary to corroborate these findings.” World Journal of Diabetes, April, 2017 I’ve posted several of these responses with referencing different research without any external links. But they keep getting pulled, which is making this ridiculously time-consuming. Why do they keep pulling comments without links? Is it just because I list the name of the journal? Wtf?

You did it wrong, only water.

72 hour fast and your pants change colour.

the main thing you gain from fasting is insight. there is no other way to gain the certain spiritual benefits that come from fasting other than doing it. it's a type of therapy you can only get when you remove food for a while that lets you look more within than you're able to when you've got food around constantly.

There is no fit all rule, training method, nutrition style, resting method : each one of us will have to find one's "groove"

This is the laziest argument against fasting I've ever seen

Always keeping it really James, which I why I love your content! I did a 72 hours fast a year ago and I proved to myself that I could do it. Did I enjoy the process, not at all. After completing the 72 hour fast last year I told myself that I'd do it again in 6 months, but I can't seem to bring myself to do it and I'm not certain that any benefit out weight the drawback especially the lose of lean body mass and the fact that you shouldn't be weight training during that 72 hour time period. I really agree with James's point that just doing IF (16/8 or OMAD) would be a much better form of CR.

James Smith, one of the few industry experts that is honest and says it how it is. Whether it be steroids, fasting, fad diets even aspartame 😂, he gives factual opinion that have no bias as he has no need. His videos have helped me get over body shaming myself by trying to be like steroid fuelled bodybuilders (nothing against steroids btw just the people who lie and say they are natty). Hats off JS. Fancy doing a video on training for old men like me in their mid 40s and what you think works best to avoid over training?

16/8 was very beneficial for me. Easy to stick to and helped me trim up nice and quick. CBA fasting any longer than 16 hrs.

As someone who has been intermittent fasting for years, I really appreciate these videos. Great work 😀

Would be interested in hearing your advice on reversing insulin resistance.

Thank you for the upload Brother! Only watched to 01:33 & had to pause to show some appreciation for your joke right there lol concerning 72 hours aka 3 days & Joe Wicks lolol nothing against Joe just how you delivered the suggestion was hilarious hahaha :::)) Peace & Love!!!

I love fasting and have implemented short regular fasts for years. But this video is broken down incredibly and so many great points as always James! Thanks for another digestible video

1. Clearly better MUSCLE definition 2. Enormous benefits, beyond actual weight loss. 3. Miserable attitute: BEFORE, DURING AFTER - not related to fasting!

sweet clowns clowning together

Thank you for great information about fasting …. What a load of bullocks! Inspiring Vlog🕊🙏🏼

Actively explains his awareness of his food addiction/entertainment -> Goes through food/substance withdrawal -> I don't feel that great -> Fasting sux Stay on your grind gentlemen

Thank you for this video! In spite of that I have done 3 day fast to improve health, I love that fact that you have different view than the ones that are all pro-fasting. I believe in learning an that can only come from seeing things from different sides, not only one way. Again big thank you ♥

Great post mate ,good see some putting this info out there ,you are realistic,keep up the good work 👍❤️

I'd be questioning how good my mental health really was if a couple of days of fasting caused so much depression. That would concern me quite a lot.

Been 72 hour fasting and the results have been amazing. I love it

I and millions of others enjoy fasting and always feel good during and after. James is often a contrarian, it's what he does. He clearly went in to this with the mindset that it would horrible!

I spat my coffee in laughter when you said "These people who've stuided youtube".

There is peer-reviewed medical research that suggests this idea of autophagy and its benefits are real, especially for cancer. That is what led me to watch this video today.

Dr. Norton obviously has not studied autophagy and did not look at the work done by cellular biologist Noble Prize winner of medicine, Otani Yoshinori. Just because you are a doctor does not mean you’re well-informed or well read nor researched.

I just finished a 5 day fast. Like you I was skeptical. Day one, I had a terrible headache all day. Day two I was beginning to wonder why I was bothering. Day three I was washed out and tired. But day four things seem to turn around. Day five, I was feeling energetic, alert and buzzing with energy. I even had a job interview and smashed it. I was so cognitively quick, I couldn’t believe it I didn’t want the diet to end!

I love that my sponsored advertisement for this is Dominos pizza 😂

I didn't hear the expert mention stem cell and growth hormone production. Also wondering how you know you *didn't* lose any viceral fat?

So the worlds leading longevity scientist in humans dr David Sinclair is wrong and James smith is correct 🤔 James smith has made a career out of telling people how to be average. All the James smith fans on here please watch his training collaboration with Mike thurston it’s embarrassing.

Consuming a stimulant isn’t fasting, just makes it easier

Thanks for the posting dude. I got to 33 hours which I found interesting and did progressively less weight in my resistance training and personally felt better for it.

Glad you told me 72 hours was three days... I'm from Essex. 😂

Watching James realize how addicted to food he is was both entertaining and sad.

The 'beautifully sarcastic' voice of reason - thank you. Awesome as always!

I do it for the autophagy and the health benefits regarding your body cleansing itself and by using ketones as an energy source. The weigh loss is just an added benefit.

Your sense of humour kills me! 😂😂😂😂

I've incorporated IF, specifically TRE and I get many benefits. The main ones are: improved mental clarity, improved appetite control, weight loss (of course) and increased energy. Fasting works James - and its evidence based!

you didnt actually fast, a proper fast is just water. you had coffees and teas with milk in. you had your energy drink. lol waste of time.

I’m new to this channel, I guess his whole channel is centered around sarcasm

I've found it is the lack of Patience is what most lack. All fitness goals require patience, effort, and the right attitude. Props for putting yourself through this. I definitely wouldn't.

The combination we all wanted. Layne Norton and James Smith 🤝