The Egg Fast Eggsperiment
Recently the Egg Fast Diet has been gaining a lot of popularity in the low carb & keto world. After seeing many online posts from people giving it a go I decided to attempt it myself to see what all the fuss was about.
It’s safe to say the rules to following this eating regime vary a little from person to person, but after reading up I decided to keep it simple and attempt to follow these rules for the duration of the 3 day fast:
1. Eat a minimum 6 eggs each day
2. For every egg eaten you must consume up to a tbsp of fat
3. You can eat up to 20g of cheese per egg
4. Keep condiments, spices and seasoning to a minimum
5. Drink plenty of water
The idea is that the combination of minimal carbs vs high fat and moderate protein gives you the perfect basis of a keto diet – therefore getting your body into a state of dietary ketosis quickly to initiate fast weight loss or break through a weight loss plateau. It’s worth mentioning at this point that I generally eat low carb day to day, BUT had indulged a little the previous weekend due to a family holiday and my son’s 6th birthday, so my aim was just to get back to the basics and back on track with my usual eating habits as quickly as possible. I’m also a sucker for a challenge!
Day 1
Calories 1336, Fat 125g, Carbs 2.4g, Fibre 0g, Protein 50g.
Breakfast: 2 boiled eggs, 1 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp full fat mayo, pinch of sea salt.
Lunch: 2 eggs scrambled with 2 tbsp butter, pinch of sea salt.
Meal: 2 eggs scrambled with 2 tbsp butter, 40g feta, pinch dried chili flakes.
Drinks: 2 coffees, 2L water.
I started my working day a little apprehensive at what lay ahead but for the most part found the day quite enjoyable! I felt satisfied and liked the fact I didn’t really have to think about what to eat since my choices were very limited in the office (egg boiler or microwave). I managed a strenuous lunchtime HIIT workout without any issues. I suffered a mild headache in the evening but expected this anyway, assuming I was heading back into ketosis I took it as a positive sign, increased my water intake and went to bed a little earlier than usual.
Day 2
Calories 1330, Fat 125g, Carbs 3.5g, Fibre 2.4g, Protein 47g.
Breakfast: 2 boiled eggs, 2 tbsp butter, pinch of sea salt.
Lunch: 2 eggs scrambled with 2 tbsp butter, 20g cheddar cheese.
Meal: Cinnamon Crepes (without the inulin).
Drinks: 2 coffees, 2L water.
I awoke feeling energetic and clear headed, and this continued throughout the day. By evening I felt I needed something a little more creative than boiled or scrambled eggs, so made up these Cinnamon Crepes that worked out really well and felt like such a treat! I also completed a 1 hour PT session (weights and boxing) without any noticeable decrease in energy or strength. The water weight accrued from my indulgent weekend was noticeably gone from my stomach area too.
Day 3
Calories 1015, Fat 88g, Carbs 3.5g, Fibre 10g, Protein 46.7g.
Breakfast: Egg & Soldiers, butter coffee
Lunch: N/A
Snack: 2 low carb chicken nuggets
Meal (sort of): 3 slices of ham, 1 Caramel & Sea Salt FattBar, 2 tbsp double cream.
Drinks: 2 coffees, 2L water.
So, day 3 took a wrong turn around mid-afternoon! I started well, determined I could finish the day off and complete the diet. Unfortunately due to such a busy working day where I was out of the office (and totally unprepared, naughty me) it meant that I skipped lunch. We were filming recipes all afternoon and at around 3.30pm I was so hungry and with energy levels flagging, I gave in and ate two low carb chicken nuggets fresh out the oven (gasp!). With a busy evening of family distractions I finally managed to grab my next bite to eat at around 8pm. I could not face eating another egg and really wanted some crunchy vegetables! Rather than not eat I salvaged what I could out of the fridge and snacked on some ham slices, a Caramel FattBar and a couple of spoons of double cream in an effort to not completely go off the rails! Oops.
My Experience
Definite positives and negatives to this diet. On the whole it was fine until my day ran away with me and my usual schedule was disrupted. I lost water weight and felt energetic, and most of all it got me back into ketosis very quickly. Would I do it again? Probably not! I think this type of extreme eating is for those who really have a purpose for it. I would recommend it for anyone wanting to get that weight moving from a plateau and needs this type of strict regime, and if you manage more than 3 days then you’re a whole lot more committed than me!
The Positives
I liked that I didn’t have to think about what I could eat!
The results were quick, so I think anyone needing to do this to move their diet on could really benefit.
It’s really cheap and I saved money on not buying lunches each day!
The Negatives
It gets boring quickly, and unless you like eating the same thing all the time doing this for any real length of time would be pretty difficult.
The lack of variety and fresh ingredients meant that I began craving crunchy salad and vegetables come Friday night – but this could just have been because I’d not eaten properly throughout the day.
I missed not eating the same food as the rest of my family at meal times. I didn’t feel it set a good example to my son, but as I normally eat well at home this wasn’t a major issue, just something I was aware of.
It’s antisocial! Eating out would be difficult and you also have to be really prepared if you’re out and about.
Have you done an Egg Fast? Get in touch and let us know how you did!