Lenten Fasting and Abstaining

For those of you who have been a part of the CCN family, you know that fasting and our philosophy do not play nicely together. They are polar opposite. Like me, many of our clients are practicing Catholics and we observe the two days a year of fasting as Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. During these two days, it's recommended that we fast by only indulging in one full meal and two small snacks. Those without health issues are expected to take part in this. The purpose is to earn God's attention, and as a penance or sacrifice to strengthen us.

Our philosophy is based on keeping blood sugar stable by eating every few hours and eating full-size meals. As you can see, this is a major dilemma! It's impossible to do both! Here's the advice I have:

I believe in the church's traditions and strongly urge my fellow Catholics to follow them. It's important to fast on these days of calling and abstain from meat. Don't forget that we are also to abstain from meat each Friday.

If you’re looking for Lent-friendly meals, we have an entire digital cookbook dedicated to them! This digital download includes 15 of our most-loved meatless meals PLUS my guide to Lent! A great resource if you're a vegetarian or looking to learn more about how CCN fits into fasting for Lent.

For your small snacks and meals on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, I have some suggestions for you:

Start your day with plenty of water – room temperature may help you feel somewhat satisfied. Drink tons of water (NOTHING ELSE) throughout these days. And really, you should be drinking regularly all day, every day.

Have a small breakfast within an hour of waking up. A good option would be a sprouted grain toast with butter or avocado and a small handful of fruit. I recommend eating your larger lunch meal to help you through your day. Salmon and quinoa, sprinkled with feta, a full plate of veggies and maybe a piece of fruit on the side would be a great choice! For your dinner snack, I suggest a smoothie or something that offers a little satisfaction while sacrificing no meat and only one large meal. While you will and should feel hungry throughout the day, offering it up for God's greater good is still important. Use these times you think about food to meet Him in prayer.

If you’re looking for a traditional fast (no food), we’ve created a helpful PDF guide: The Art of Extended Fasting.

This guide explores extended fasting as a tool for physical and spiritual renewal. It highlights the benefits of fasting, including autophagy (cellular repair and detoxification), improved insulin sensitivity, and overall health rejuvenation. It outlines different fasting durations (24-72 hours) and offers helpful do’s and don’ts of fasting.

As for abstaining, here's my take: Stop giving up food selfishly. Sorry, but so many people do it, and it's not Lent's intended purpose. Don't give up bread or sugar to lose weight so you look better. I don't classify that as a great strategy to improve your faith walk by abstaining from something we like to achieve selfish results. Try something new this year. Here are some suggestions I've done in the past – TV, buying anything unnecessary for yourself, leisure reading, or coffee. I highly suggest adding things during this time to improve your prayer life, relationship with God, and faith. How about adding a mass to your week, a rosary to your day, an hour of Holy Adoration or even a great spiritual book that leads you to Him throughout the day? Try to do something hard, but not impossible. Think of the ultimate sacrifice. What can YOU do to bring yourself closer to that?

I believe fasting these two days a year is more important than stable blood sugar. You are what you consistently do, and fasting two days out of the year will not wreak havoc on your blood sugar long-term. I hope and pray you all have a very reverent and Holy Lent. Please pray for the same for me!