While intermittent fasting, the nutrients derived from bone broth can be incredibly beneficial, and regular consumption is one of the simplest and least expensive ways to reclaim your inner mojo as well as your (th)inner self.
MojoMe Instant Collagen “Bone” Broth is a super convenient alternative to hours of simmering bones and delivers all of the nourishing goodness of traditional bone broth in an instant. Packed with grass-fed protein and free from artificial ingredients, MSG or preservatives, our collagen “bone” broth is a delicious and nutritious natural source of collagen, gelatin, trace minerals, and anti-inflammatory essential amino acids, which promote gut, skin, and joint health.
With such powerful benefits, it’s easy to appreciate how drinking bone broth regularly can significantly impact your daily vitality. But have you ever considered doing a bone broth fast?
What is a Bone Broth Fast?
A bone broth fast combines all of the benefits of intermittent fasting(IF) with those of drinking nutrient-rich bone broth. It’s a modified type of intermittent fast that involves refraining from solid foods and consuming only liquids throughout your day as a replacement for meals.
The difference is that during a bone broth fast, instead of drinking only water, coffee or herbal tea, you consume between five to eight servings of traditional bone broth or our nourishing instant collagen broth throughout your day.
The key benefit of a bone broth fast (over other types of fast) is its consistent delivery of essential nutrients, electrolytes, and protein throughout your fasting time. These vital nutrients help prevent dehydration and provide sustained energy while its clean protein keeps you feeling fuller for longer.
Unlike other fasting methods, drinking bone broth is unlikely to leave you feeling starved, deprived or light-headed, which means it’s more sustainable. And your chances of a successful fast to reset your gut integrity or kickstart your weightloss are higher.
Why Should You Fast?
Intermittent Fasting (IF) is an excellent way to reset your digestive system and reboot your body’s metabolism and energy production to work more efficiently.
For most people, during the day, your body is in a “fed” state and working hard to digest, absorb, and convert the nutrients from the foods you eat. But when you enter a fasted state which means you’re not taking in any significant calories, your body can redirect its focus from digestion and shifts gear to boost your metabolism[*] and accelerate fat burning as its source of energy.
For this reason, the “fasted” state is often referred to as the “fat-burning” phase. During your fasting window, you might expect to feel tired or weak without eating food. Still, many people experience an increase in energy, reduced brain fog, and improved focus and concentration.
Fasting is also an excellent way to give your digestive system a break and a chance for your gut to heal, rebalance and repopulate its beneficial bacteria[*]. Stress, depleted levels of glutamine and the consumption of inflammatory foods such as sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods feed the harmful bacteria in your digestive tract. An overpopulation of these bacteria combined with a lack of beneficial bacteria to keep them in check can wreak havoc on your system, leading to painful digestive symptoms, including gas and bloating and more severe GI conditions including candida (yeast) overgrowth and leaky gut.
How Bone Broth Can Supercharge Your Fast
Bone broth is an excellent fasting alternative. It supports autophagy — the process by which your body rids itself of cells that are either damaged, harmful or no longer required. Bone broth is a gut-healing super fuel that will keep you energised and feeling fuller for longer. Bone broth is an excellent known source of protein, essential amino acids and rich in naturally occurring glutamine, glucosamine, chondroitin and hyaluronic acid.
These bioavailable nutrients may help support your:
- gut-healing and digestion
- joint health and comfort
- skin health and youthful radiance
- immunity and well-being
Bone broth is a beneficial drink at any time and not just when fasting. However, by consuming only bone broth during your fast, it gives your body the ability to digest and absorb the nutrients even more efficiently, allowing them to reach where they’re needed that much faster.
Who Can Benefit From Doing A Bone Broth Fast?
Consider doing a bone broth fast if you:
- Want to kickstart a detox or reset on a ketogenic diet
- Want to accelerate fat loss (and you are overweight with body fat above the normal range)
- Are experiencing an active autoimmune flare
- Are experiencing digestive distress
- Are recovering from a cold, flu or food poisoning.
- Want to kickstart a detox or reset on a low carb ketogenic lifestyle.
Benefits of Fasting
- Accelerated fat loss[*]
- Reduction of fasting insulin and insulin resistance[*]
- Risk Reduction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes[*]
- Autophagy: the elimination of cells that are either damaged, harmful or no longer required[*]
- Increased production of human growth hormone (HGH) to maintain muscle mass and improve body composition[*]
How To Do A Bone Broth Fast
For a successful bone broth fast all you need to do is consume five to eight (250ml) servings of bone broth or instant collagen broth (in addition to drinking water) during a fasting period of 24 hours which will allow sufficient time to reset your digestive system.
Getting enough protein is essential for maintaining optimal health and body composition. For this reason, there is a recommended daily intake for protein of around 50 grams per day. You may need to further increase your protein intake depending on your level of activity, age, muscle mass and current state of health. For this reason, each serving of MojoMe collagen “bone” broth contains 10,8g of protein per serving so you’ll need to drink in the region of five servings to meet your daily protein requirements. If you want to drink more, just because it’s so delicious, that’s also not a problem.
If you want to continue your fast beyond 24 hours, we recommend drinking three to five servings of bone broth per day in addition to eating one low carb meal with added protein and vegetables. We do not recommend extending your bone broth fast for more than another 48 hours (3 days in total) before returning to your regular eating routine.
Once you’ve completed your bone broth fast, we recommend making MojoMe Collagen “Bone” Broth a regular part of your daily routine. Continuing to drink at least one serving of broth per day (and using it in your recipes wherever possible) provides ongoing digestive support while replenishing the collagen you want and the hydration your body needs for younger-looking skin and more flexible joints.
How To Get The Best Results
— If you are new to fasting, try doing a mini-fast first?
- It’s always best to start slowly and work your way up to a 24-hour fasting period. For this reason, you may want to give the 16:8 intermittent fasting (IF) method a try first? The 16:8 method involves an 8-hour eating window and fasting for the remaining 16 hours. For example, you could eat between 09h00-17h00. Then start your pure bone broth fast at 17h00 until the next morning, breaking your fast at 09h00.
- During any fast, its essential to always listen to your body. If you feel light-headed or faint at any point, don’t push yourself to continue fasting. It’s perfectly normal to feel slightly tired, but you should never feel as if your body is taking the strain. Everyone’s body reacts differently, and for some, it can take time to find the fasting “sweet spot”, and that’s perfectly normal.
— Avoid Intense Exercise During Fasting
— Avoid overexertion and stick to light cardio cycling or jogging.
Modifying Your Bone Broth Fast
If dealing with hunger pangs becomes uncomfortable, you are diagnosed with hypothyroidism or dealing with adrenal fatigue; we suggest limiting your pure bone broth fast to 12 hours. For the following 12 hours, we recommend blending a tablespoon of pure fat into each serving of bone broth. If you are experiencing any of these conditions, ensure you consume between 3-5 tablespoons of pure fat throughout the following 12 hours. If you are more than 15Kgs overweight, do not consume more than 3 tablespoons of additional fats. Ideally use a preferred combination of coconut oil, ghee, MCT oil or MCT Oil powder, avocado or olive oil blended into your bone broth.
Who shouldn’t do a bone broth fast?
Do not undertake a bone broth fast if you are:
- underweight
- pregnant or nursing
- trying to conceive
- have a history of eating disorders
- engaged in intense physical activity
- under intense pressure or stress
- been diagnosed with a heart condition
- have a blood sugar imbalance (such as hypoglycemia or diabetes)
If you have any health issues, doubts or concerns, we recommend consulting with your health care provider before doing any fast to ensure that it’s 100% safe for you.
Bone Broth Fast FAQ’s
Q: Can I consume anything else during a bone broth fast?
A: It’s normal to feel slightly hungry during a fast. Still, if it becomes intolerable, we suggest adding a tablespoon of MCT powder, coconut oil, ghee, or butter to your broth, and snacking on raw vegetables.
Please note: any addition of healthy fats may cause gastric discomfort for some, especially if you suffer from low stomach acid
Q: How often should I do a bone broth fast?
A: If you are in good health, doing a bone broth fast once per week is recommended. It’s best to do it consistently, for example, every Monday. For best results, you should also consider transitioning to a low-carb or ketogenic diet for the rest of the week.
Because if you are consuming too many refined carbs in between your fasting days, you may experience issues regulating your blood sugar which will negatively impact your energy levels and de-accelerate fat burning. It’s essential to consume sufficient nutrients, vitamins and minerals calories on your non-fasting days, and during that time you should try to consume at least eight servings of vegetables.
Q: What is the most prolonged time I can fast for?
A: Health experts have mixed opinions on how long a bone broth fast should last. Some suggest up to four days. However, we don’t recommend going any longer than 24 hours without eating solid food. As mentioned previously, if you want to continue your fast for a longer than 24 hours, you can extend it by a maximum of two more days, providing that you also include one meal daily with protein, healthy fats and vegetables.
If you have any health issues, doubts or concerns, we recommend consulting with your health care provider before doing any fast to ensure that it’s 100% safe for you.
Q: Can I also drink coffee during a bone broth fast?
A: No. Caffeine gives you a false sense of energy and triggers a blood sugar spike followed by a crash which can cause irritability and more intense hunger pangs shortly afterwards. The bioavailable nutrients in bone broth provide sufficient sustained energy and can satiate your hunger for longer.