Gray Hodge lost 26.5 lbs., healed arthritis, continual colds, bowel problems, poor health.

Gray Hodge Fasting Testimony (Christian)
Juice Fast: 30 days.
Weight Loss: 26.5 lbs.
Healed: arthritis, continual colds, bowel problems, poor health.
Location: Tasmania

At the age of 21, I was a strict vegetarian and very involved in healthy diet and living. Three years later I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior and a year later met a wonderful Christian girl whom I married and have to date enjoyed 24 years of happy marriage. We continued healthful living for some time, but decided to return to eating meat because of a perception, or misconception, that it was more in harmony with the Biblical diet.

As the years rolled on and five children later our diet, while largely vegetarian was beginning to be compromised with a carelessness when it came to processed foods and takeaways (fast food). Without the hard work and exercise of my former years the weight was now building up and getting rid of it seemed impossible.

Quite suddenly I began to experience a lot of pain when walking; it was arthritis in my knees. This was combined with continual colds, bowel problems, added weight, and general poor health. But hey, I was approaching 50, time to slow down and accept that I was not as young as I used to be! Or was it?

The doctor said “just take pain killers and get on with you life”, that to me was unacceptable so I began to seek natural alternatives.

I was not new to fasting, over the years I had read Airola a lot, and completed several 3-10 day fasts. Longer fasts seemed to me to be in the realm of extremism, but on the other hand I could see myself heading for greater health problems if I didn’t act soon.

Exactly how I found Fasting.ws I’m not sure about, guess I was searching, and as Jesus promised I found! Suddenly here was the solution that somehow spoke to heart as being God way of healing. As I began reading the testimonies on the website, I saw that fasting and vegetarian or even vegan lifestyles were not the exclusive domain of New Agers, Seventh-Day Adventists and hippies. On the contrary, the miracle of Eden food was very much an expression of love from the Creator for His creation to bring peace and joy to the body as well as the soul.

On the 27th of August 2001 I began a 30 day juice fast. I didn’t actually plan to do 30 days, it seemed impossible to even think of. I just began and thought I’d see where it went.

The fast was trouble free and relatively easy so I just kept going.
On day 27 of the fast my family decided to climb a local mountain, I thought it would be a challenge and to my joy I made it to the top and down, a task previously impossible, there was some pain but not as much as expected.

The knees were being healed as never before!

By the end of the fast I was feeling a new man and had lost 26.5 lbs.
Following a suggestion on the Fasting.ws site I followed up with 30 days of raw food. Before that was up my pain was gone, I was feeling 10 years younger and really enjoying a healthier diet, so I decided to stay with it.
What I removed almost 100% from my diet was meat and all animal products including dairy, and processed foods as much as possible. This was the diet that seemed fringe to me before, but how could I deny the results? More importantly, I was also keeping the weight off for good.

On Jan. 1st 2002 a friend of mine wanted to do a 30 day juice fast so I joined him, off again! This time I lost a further 17.5 lbs., and kept it off through raw foods.

My desire for junk food and all that I had given up was mostly gone, just the odd temptation comes up.

In all I am 44 lbs. lighter, healthier than I have been in years and enjoying exercise, good food and praising our Wonderful Creator.

My abiding concern is that God people are for the most part ignorant of the provision God has made for their healing in the miracle of fasting. I believe that we should be in the forefront of the battle against Satan darkness to offer the unsaved, God’s healing of body, soul and spirit.

I’m grateful for Tom and Fasting.ws and the inspiration you have been.


By Tom Coghill of Fasting.ws
Articles  may be copied or reproduced as long as the back links to fasting.ws are intact and the author’s name is included.

Posted on by Tom Coghill

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33 Responses to Gray Hodge lost 26.5 lbs., healed arthritis, continual colds, bowel problems, poor health.

  1. Pingback: Colon Diseases | Fasting.ws

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  3. cynthia says:

    I am looking for a water fasting buddy!nthia

  4. cynthia says:

    I am looking for a water fasting buddy!

  5. Jess says:

    Hello Cynthia!

    I will be your fasting buddy!!

  6. MKJJD says:

    Hey Cynthia!
    I just started my 10 day water fast today and I will be your water fasting buddy if you want me to.

  7. Jess says:

    MKJJD…wow just a water fast …im not sure I could do that…have you done it before? I am doing a juice/water fast today is day 2.

  8. Jess says:

    Hello!

    Hi Cynthia and MKJJD I would like to be fasting buddies with both of you!

    I am on Day 2 it was harder to resist food today than yesterday.

  9. MKJJD says:

    Hey Jess,
    Today is day 2 of my water fast. I plan on doing my water fast for 10 days and I am going juice fast for 4 days before I eat again. I have done an 8 water fast before and . My water fast was hard the 3rd and 4th day but after that it was easy. I have been liquid fasting since March 22, 2008 so today is 40 days without food and I have lost 25 pounds since starting my fast. I lost 5 pounds since Sunday so I am very happy with myself. I am 18 years old and I weigh 175 pounds. My goal is to be 170 pounds by May 14th and I think that I will meet my goal. When I set my goal I weighed 200 pounds so it is possible. If you want fast results then you should water fast but if you are very active then you should probably juice fast to keep your energy levels up.

  10. Jess says:

    Hi MKJJD!

    WOW sounds like you are doing awesome! Day3 for me..was really hard not to eat I am laid off of wor right now so its hard to keep busy and my mind busy…I have never done a fast before..so this is all new to me. I felt really good this morning then afternoon i felt pretty sluggish. My friends and family think I am crazy..how does your friends and family feel about your fasting efforts? I had no idea how many food commercials there were and how many places I smell food! I hope it gets easier tomorrow I almost brokedown today! so far I have lost 4lbs and I have plently to lose.

  11. lisa says:

    Hi Jess,

    I am on day 1 of a juice fast. I don’t have a juicer so I’ve had 2 Naked Juices and one Odwalla. It’s caused heartburn though so I’ve had to have a few tums. It’s so hard to resist the food. Have you ever done this before?

  12. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess!
    I am still in high school and when kids ask about all of the weight I have lost I tell them that I don’t eat fast food and that I exercise a lot. I did not lie to them but I did not get into specifics because I don’t want to deal with the kids thinking that I suffer from anorexia or anything like that. My family was pretty worried at first but since I have been doing it for so long they have not been bugging me about eating. they sometimes offer me food but I just tell them “No thank you.” My father tells me that I need some nutrients but he stops telling me and changes the subject so its okay. When it comes to being around food, I am constantly around food like in the morning during homeroom right before school starts, their are people all around me eating breakfast! They are eating pancakes, ham and cheese sandwiches, and muffins. I do not even go to the cafeteria during lunch time but the kids bring their lunches to class and eat various foods such pizza, chicken nuggets,beef patties with cheese, and other food. This has no affect on me at all and I am doing just fine! At my house I am the one who cooks all the food and I sometimes have to watch food recipes online to see how to make the food and I watch multiple commercials but the temptation of food is not a factor for me at all. All you have to do is stay strong and think of how good you will look and feel when you are done with your fast.

  13. Jess says:

    MJKKD

    HOLY COW you have emense will power! One of the reasons I started this fast is becauseI feel I have a food addiction..I cook too and its soo hard..I hope that goes away..I almost ate a bite tonight I just wanted one bite…but I didnt…then I cried had a lil breakdown its was really hard and I do keep trying to think how good I will feel and look and I want that badly! I worry that I may be damaging my body and if I am getting enough nutrients..I wanted to do this for 30 days I hope that I can without damage. What made you decide to do fasting?

  14. MKJJD says:

    Jess

    I started fasting because I decided that I was tired of wearing 3XL shirts and I wanted to become faster than my brother because he said that I will never e faster then him. I knew that if I was going to be faster than him then I would have to lose all of this excess weight. I also wanted to separate myself from all of the americans out there that are obese and ready to have a heart attack! I also want to try and get six pack abs to prove my little brother wrong since he said I couldn’t do it by the end of June. Right now you can see my top four abs trying to show through the fat but I still have a long way to go but I am very confident in my goal of getting six pack abs by the end of June because I plan on fasting on water again on May 18 until June 10 or until I have six pack abs which ever one comes first. All you have to do is stay strong and you will be happy.

  15. Jess says:

    Hi MJKKD!

    I hope you prove your brother wrong! Ill be rooting for ya. My goals are fairly simple right now..just getting the weight off during my fast then intorducing my exercise plan into my life. I used to run 3-4 miles a day and then I had my son and just never got back into it. I miss it. today is day 4 for me and this afternoon is the first time I had energy…it felt great! the last 3 days were brutal!
    My mom’s birthday is tomorrow and she wants to go out to eat and drinks then the casino…Im am going and I told my mom and sister i was fasting and couldnt drink or eat. My mom says I hope this works for you and my sister still thinks im crazy!

    So far I lost 5 lbs not sure if thats good for 4 days on a juice fast or not…but I sure hope to see more coming off!

  16. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess

    When you say that you are not drinking, you mean that you are not drinking alcohol right? If you are trying to go on a dry fast then you are going to see that it is very difficult because I have been dry fasting for three days including today and when I get up after a long time I get dizzy and my vision is blurry for 5 seconds or so. I am going to start drinking water tomorrow because this way to intense for me since I have my push up routine. After I finished my push up routine my mouth was extremely dry and I was exhausted. So if you attempt it, be warned it is extremely difficult to do if you are active.

  17. Angel says:

    I’m going to start fasting May 3-2008
    I really need to jump start my weight loss
    and get my body back on track..
    any suggestions? email me at sciarranyla@aol.com.
    Thanks

  18. Jess says:

    Hi MkJJD

    YES I mean alcohol..I dont think I could ever do a water fast let alone a dry one.
    I am worried about my body getting enough wil my juice fast. I am pretty cautious I assume its because this is my forst time ever fasting. I go on vacation on May 10th and I plan to continue my fast. I am looking foward to tomorrow to see how I feel.
    Have you done the bentonite clay and psyllium husk to clean ur system fully?

  19. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess

    That is good. I have never ttried that but I was thinking of trying a colon cleanser though but that is later on. I weighed myself this morning and the scale needle was floating beyween 171 and 170. So I think that I will be able to maintain this weight and lose more by May 14th my deadline to be 170. My two brothers said that I couldn’t go more than a week without food but I have gone about six weeks without eating so I feel really good about myself. I also did it because I wanted to see if I was mentally tough enough. I saw all of the rich celebrities on Celebrity Fitclub and they talked about how hard it was to keep from eating and I looked at them and called them said because all of their money did them no good. It is all mental! Anyone can do it!.

  20. Jess says:

    MK..

    Morning! I thought it would be harder than it was thats for sure. You are almost at your goal thats awesome. I have quite a ways to go. I just started the colon stuff last night. Be careful with it talk to someone who knows something about it. I havent weighed myself yet this morning. One thing I notice is that I sleep better..when I was your age I slept good all the time but the older I got the harder it was. And when I wake up I feel rested I havent felt like that in YEARS! I am glad I have you to talk with about this too…its not like just anyone understands what your doing or what your going thru or Why..so for that I am thankful. I have a good feeling about today it will definitely be a test! But I know I can do it!

  21. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess

    Today is my official day 1 for water fast since I was dry fasting for 3 days straight and that was just to hard to stick to because my body needs to stay hydrated but water fasting until May 11 will be a piece of cake! I am going to do a lot of research before I actually start my colon cleanse
    so thanks for the advice.

  22. Jess says:

    Hi MK

    I am glad to hear you are going to research that! Good luck with your water fast! Day 5 for me and it seems to get easier. I will be leaving soon to see my Mom…good luck I will talk with you when i return Sunday!

  23. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess

    Have fun at the casino! I am going to start up with juice again because I have been feeling dizzy and things have been blurry lately. I already met my goal of 170 before my set date so now all I have to do is maintain and I will do that.

  24. Jess says:

    Hi MK

    Im home from my trip and proud to say I didnt cheat…no alcohol or food. But I am really disappointed i got home and weighed myslef and I wasnt down I was the same…that sucked….I felt like I sacrificed for nothing. I hope that when I get up tomorrow it will be a different story.

    Hope things are well with you

  25. Jess says:

    Hello MK

    How are things going for ya?

  26. MKJJD says:

    Hi Jess

    Jess it’s okay that you didn’t lose any weight. Do not get discouraged! Just stick to it and the results will come. I was tired of not getting results so I said that I will go on a dry fast! Today is day 2 of my dry fast and I plan on sticking to it until Sunday so that I can prepare my body for the food that I am going to be taking in on Wednesday the 14th. I will give myself a five break and then start back up on my dry fast which I will try to do for 18 days which is three times as long as this dry fast, but there are no guarantees for my dry fast of 18 days because I have heard that you can get very sick if you do it for too long but I will do my best to last as long as I can.

  27. Jess says:

    MK

    Ohh boy you have me worried..what is the reason for doing the dry fast? How close are you to your goal weight?

    You are correct I did go down the next day when I got up..but that was really disappointing sacrificing and then had no results! But it came down…so far I have been losing about a lb a day. I hope this keeps continuing. I had planned on a 20 day fast Im on day 8 I may go to 25 or 30 depending on how I feel.

  28. Tom Coghill says:
    Tom Coghill

    Dry fasting is indeed difficult and I never recommend more that 3 days. Two days of dry fasting is my max. I have heard of people doing 10 days but who know if it is the truth. I think the health benefits would diminish after the third day. You have to stay on the couch or in bed. You have to start with juice fasting, then water fasting for at least one day before you start dry fasting.

    Jess
    Slow weight loss is due to a slow metabolism. Fasting helps to heal a slow metabolism by revitalizing the glands. This is a lifelong process of living. I life time journey of health. When you do return to eating it is important to exercise regularly. Also a thyroid test never hurts if you are also lethargic and low in energy.

  29. Tom Coghill says:
    Tom Coghill

    Hi Lisa,
    Using bottle juices during fasting commonly causes heartburn. They use lots of citric acid as a preservative.Using a juicer is another world.
    Tom

  30. MKJJD says:

    Hey Tom

    I was just about to ask you how long you recommend a dry fast. Today is day 3 of my dry fast and I plan on sticking to it until Saturday. Do you think that I should go past 6 days or do do not go past three. I have lost five pounds since Sunday and I like the results, that’s why I am going the full six days. But what do I do to break the fast?

    Jess

    I am doing the dry fast to lose weight even though I met my goal because I want to have six pack abs. I calculated my BMI and it says that my BMI is 24.5 which puts me in the normal rang of 19 to 24.9. I am only .5 from being overweight so I want to increase the gap between a normal BMI and an over weight BMI. You don’t have to worry about me Jess I will be just fine.

  31. Tom Coghill says:
    Tom Coghill

    Hi MKJJD,
    Dry fasting has the most intense weight loss but much of it is not permanent as the body rehydrates quicky, usually in one day.

    Dry fasting is the most powerful procedure possible and also the most difficult.Dehydration after a point causes damage to the body. But if it is done after you have shut down the digestive system by water fasting first, the point of dehydration may be over a week. There is no scientific research on dry fasting and if anyone can post it I sure would be interested.

  32. Jess says:

    Hi Lisa

    Im sorry I totally missed your comment. No this is my first time fasting and it is going well for me. I feel great! But I cannot lie the first 3 days are brutal! Then its gets easier and food isnt do appealing anymore. How are you doing with your fast.

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