Our Longevity Diet

I know, it’s August and typically not ‘cold and flu’ season, but here in Mexico it never really gets cold, so the viral infections are on a different schedule. This is a monsoon climate; 90% of our annual rainfall comes in just four months — June to September — and this is when the contagious bugs spread best. The air is more humid, and that is probably why they survive longer and spread further.

So this month, Isabel and I both caught colds. For the past few years, these annual colds have been lasting two to three weeks. This year, being in our sixth month on our Intermittent Fasting regime, our colds lasted about three days. During that time I didn’t have much of an appetite, so I ate less than usual during eating hours, and was less hungry during fasting hours. Isabel, on the other hand, reports that she felt weak and sometimes even a bit dizzy, near the end of fasting periods, when she was sick with the cold.

Thankfully, the experience was short-lived and we are both back to normal. A few weeks ago we spent several hours out in the hot sun, digging holes to plant trees and shrubs, on a morning that was the end of a fasting period. We were plenty tired and hungry when it came time to eat the picnic lunch we had brought along (Isabel’s delicious ceviche tostadas) but we had no problems with doing hard physical labor while fasting.

As time goes on I only become more impressed with how well this eating schedule makes us look and feel, and how easy it is to stick to the time-table. The only problems we have had were when traveling; we find it very difficult to stay on the schedule at those times. But going off the plan for a few days now and then has absolutely no negative consequences, and indeed some folks think it may even be beneficial, since it breaks the pattern and helps your body learn to adjust better to changing circumstances.