Fasting Gone Wrong: The Day Groundnut Betrayed My Spirit

Honestly, I was never a fan of fasting. The idea that I had to starve my body just to feel “high spirited” sounded off to me. Who even invented fasting? That was my honest question before. Because most times I fasted, all I use to feel was anger, hunger, and irritation. I'm not alone right?

Another thing is, a lot of people fast very wrongly and I say this with love and experience. Some people just wake up one morning, declare a fast with zero understanding, zero preparation, and too much confidence that they can do it like the pro they are, I too was like that before actually.

By 10am, our stomach will be staging protest. By 12 noon, we are rebuking hunger with one hand and eating with the other. Then at the end of the fast, we would have nothing to show for it. That’s why we have so many failed fasts and wasted energy. Plenty stomach sacrifice, very little result.

My Failed Fasting Story!

I've had a few out of my few fasting experiences but this one was the most simplest but annoying.

That fasting experience still make me laugh till today. I planned a very simple one day fast, no food, I just told myself, “You can do this.” Everything was going well until close to 12 noon.

I don’t even know how it happened, but I threw a good amount of groundnut into my mouth and was chewing happily, even appreciating the taste with the usual “Hmm, this groundnut sweet o,” And I was smiling while chewing, feeling good.

Then suddenly, the memory returned.

I stopped chewing.

I remembered I was supposed to be fasting.

The betrayal was loud, the disappointment was deep. But the groundnut had already crossed the gate. That was how my one day fast failed before it even reached afternoon. I didn’t even stop because of hunger pain, it was because of groundnut enjoyment, a very unserious behavior.

I could say fasting just wasn’t for me back then, I did most out of ignorance of what and how it should be done. Then a few months ago, that changed. I had a realization about fasting that completely shifted my mindset, I finally understood the power in it and not the pressure.

Since that realization, it’s been from one successful fast to another. Shockingly, when fasting is done right, your body won't be shouting like a town crier, your mind will be clearer and your spirit will be calmer. No constant thinking of what to eat once the fast breaks, it happens a lot.

And let’s talk about the duration. Please, fasting does not need to take forever to work. 100 days fasting ke? Kill yourself, not me. 😂 Even Jesus fasted for only 40 days with a purpose. You can fast a day with purpose and get visible results compared to one who did an over 20 day fasting.

The longest fast I’ve ever done is 3 days, and that was after my realization. It was successful, meaningful, and yes, I got lean, like very lean. But it worked for what it was meant for. Since I learned better about fasting, I found a way to do it without failing. I stopped seeing fasting as starvation and started seeing it as an alignment.

And most importantly, I stopped throwing groundnut into my mouth absentmindedly lol.