I’ve been doing regular fasting for a few years now. This means no solid foods for a number of days and, in some instances in my personal practice, experimenting with more intense forms of fasting. I have never done prolonged fasts, so in this article I will only be talking about short, few-day fasts.
What are some physical benefits of fasting?
People who are not into naturopathy or detoxification usually think that I fast in order to lose weight, and since I’m already slim, they have a hard time understanding why I would bother. I must have an eating disorder, they figure.
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Fasting is a practice long forgotten in the West that has been used for thousands of years in different healing and spiritual traditions. Our issue with food in modern day is not so much about not getting enough, but rather getting too much of the wrong kind. Many of the standard foods we eat are highly processed and difficult for our bodies to deal with, especially when we eat from morning until late evening without giving much attention to what, how and why we are eating.
The problem is that the average person eats these types of foods at every meal, from morning until late evening. This leaves very little room for us to experience what happens when we simplify our diet and give our digestive system a break.
On top of eating foods that can be hard to digest, we often eat quickly, eat too much, or combine many different foods without really paying attention to how they make us feel. Talk about acid reflux or bloating!
So we are often eating way too much, way too often, and not always the foods that make us feel our best.
The goal of fasting then, at a physical level, is to give our bodies a much-cherished break and allow the digestive organs to rest for a while.
During fasting, we also free ourselves from much of the time, attention and energy that normally goes into preparing, thinking about and digesting food.
The question then is, where do we want to direct this extra space?
Some people boost their creative powers during fasting, funneling their energy into different projects, art and work. The increase in mental clarity can sometimes be really significant, which makes it tempting to use this for creativity.
However, I personally feel that there is something even more precious available if we are able to stay still, rest and go inward.
My Beautifully Uncomfortable Experience
I recently did a 4-day water fast. This is not a particularly long fast, but I gained a lot from it, I believe due to my dedication to go inwards and to rest.
My initial intention was to film and document each day of the fast, but I soon found myself resisting this effort, and instead ended up going inward on a sacred journey to encounter myself, and to die a little ego death.
I was also on my Moon during the fasting, which made it a particularly visionary experience.
I allowed myself to let go of all physical pursuits and activities. As I found my body feeling weaker, I let go of any tasks or have-tos, sinking deeper into my own beingness, into the stillness of my own dark core.
On the second day I was having various insights and downloads pouring through me, which tempted me to act on them, yet I resisted the urge and stayed with my visionary journey.
I was surprised, as you rarely hear of fasting accounts where people have had a deeply spiritual experience, even though fasting has been used in many spiritual practices in the quest for greater clarity and connection.
Fasting really faces us with the quest to release, to let go, to die a little, and this is the ultimate gift we can have, if we are ready.
Many people continue their lives as usual during fasting, or at the very least distract themselves with all kinds of activities, but this, in my opinion, is to miss out on a precious opportunity.
We all hold attachments to all kinds of things, especially to food and different activities, and we struggle to be still in presence with ourselves.
Fasting can be an amazing tool to explore our emotional attachments to foods, our addictions to social media, and our urges to distract ourselves with all sorts of busyness from ourselves.
To eat is one of the most primal functions, and we usually act on the impulse to eat rather unconsciously.
Therefore, to temporarily step away from eating can become a practice of free will that strengthens our ability to observe the programs within our psyche instead of automatically acting on them.
All in all, fasting can bring us in touch with our inner authority, and the feeling that we direct our lives from a place of free will.
For me fasting is above all a spiritual practice to face my emotions, my cravings, addictions and distractions, to move past them so that I can have a direct relationship with my own divinity underneath it all.
Without all the nonsense, I can feel myself as an eternal being, beyond the material world.
The Physical Symptoms
Besides the amazing benefits of insights and clarity, I also experienced a lot of physical discomfort.
I felt nauseated for long periods, experienced considerable weakness, and at times my body was clearly telling me that what I was doing was intense.
As part of this particular personal experiment, I also pushed myself considerably further than I would today recommend for someone beginning a fasting journey.
Looking back, this experience taught me something important: fasting does not need to be extreme in order to be meaningful.
There is a difference between exploring our limits and creating a supportive environment where the body and mind are given space to slow down.
And this is also one of the reasons why the retreat we are offering now is very different from this experience.
A Softer Way to Experience Fasting
Our Juice Fasting Retreat is intentionally much softer than the fasting experience I describe above.
There is no need to push yourself as far as I pushed myself.
You will not be doing a strict water fast, and certainly not the more extreme experiments I explored personally.
Instead, we will be drinking fresh fruit and vegetable juices throughout the day, resting, moving gently, spending time in nature, sharing, and creating space to turn inward.
For me, this feels like a much more welcoming way to experience fasting, especially if you are curious about it but don’t feel drawn to doing something extreme on your own.
And perhaps even more importantly, you are not doing it alone.
There is something very different about going through this process surrounded by people who are sharing the same experience.
When cravings come up, when emotions come up, when we feel resistance, excitement, tiredness, clarity or inspiration, we have a space where all of that can simply be part of the journey.
Why We Created This Retreat
My own fasting experiences are part of what inspired us to create this retreat.
Over the years, fasting has become much more for me than simply not eating.
It is an opportunity to pause.
To notice.
To simplify.
To see what happens when many of the things that normally occupy our attention become quieter.
And I have also learned that we don’t necessarily need to push ourselves to extremes in order to experience that.
Sometimes a softer experience, in the right environment, can take us surprisingly deep.
For five days we will step away from our usual rhythm and create another one.
Fresh juices.
Nature.
Gentle movement.
Sharing circles.
Rest.
Connection.
And plenty of space to simply be.
The fasting is an important part of the retreat, but it is not the whole retreat.
The deeper invitation is to slow down enough to listen to ourselves again.
Conclusion
For me, fasting is a sacred spiritual practice and a journey into myself.
It can help me step outside of my normal routines, observe my attachments and distractions, and create space for greater clarity and connection.
Over time, fasting has become one of the tools I use to return to myself and to remember that underneath all the activity, habits and noise, there is something much quieter.
It all depends on our intention and how we use this wonderful tool and practice.
If you have been curious about fasting but don’t feel comfortable doing it alone, our upcoming Juice Fasting Retreat offers a much softer and more supported way to experience it.
Miia and I will be holding our 5-day Juice Fasting Retreat in Central Portugal from 17–21 September 2026.
It includes three full days of guided juice fasting, fresh juices throughout the day, gentle practices, nature, rest, sharing and plenty of space to go inward.
You don’t need to have previous fasting experience.
You only need some curiosity about what might happen when, for a few days, you give yourself permission to simplify, slow down and listen.