Hi everyone,
Giac Ngo online is opening a writing competition on “scientific fasting” (ăn chay khoa học). I have the feeling that they mean vegetarian diet. (Not sure what “scientific” really means 🙂 ) This is a very interesting issue for me too.
This year I started to eat brown rice, sesame seed and sea weed for several months. I felt very good. But then I lost so much weight and muscle strength after several months, more than I wanted, so I stopped and switched to tofu.
Right now I eat tofu as the main food, which is much better for physical strength.
I just boil the tofu and dip it in soy sauce. Sometimes I fry (using sesame oil or olive oil or other vegetable oil). It feel good. I feel my muscles have much more strength than brown rice.
I would suggest tofu as the main food if you are going for a long time. Several martial artists I know eat mainly tofu.
Anyone has some thing interesting to share?
Have a great day!
Hoanh
Đọt Chuối Non 
Hi bro. Hoanh,
Absolutely right for ăn chay trường. My bà nội ăn chay trường since her husband passed away when my dad was 11. However, I want to discuss with you a little more about fasting and ăn chay trường first and eating tofu last. Fasting is not ăn chay. Fasting is nhịn đói. It is voluntary. When you fast you stop eating or feeding your body with all the food you used to put in. The purpose of fasting is to cleanse your system within a certain period of time. It is like you deprogram your system for a while by decoding all informations you used to transmit to your brain about your food for your metabolism. After certain period of time as your body finished its clearance you begin to feed your body again with new kind of nutrition that you think it is suitable to your way of eating.
Usually, I fast once a year for 7 days to cleanse my system. The Oshawa method is one of the ăn chay methods to cure one’s illness.
As you know, our body/metabolism is made of Protein, Amino acids, Fat, Sugar to build up our strength. Without them our immune system becomes weak and we ‘ll be sick due to bacteria attacks. Eating Tofu is not getting enough nutrition for your body to build up your muscles and muscles give you strength.
Tofu is made of soy bean which has a great quantity of protein. But, your body system needs more than just one kind of protein. Only Amino acids contain some sort of 20 different proteins for different uses.
That’s the reason why you feel your strength is deteriorating.
Thanks and stay in touch.
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Thank you for the info, sis. Phuong Hang.
I understand what “fasting” means, and “fasting” as a way to purify the body makes sense. Actually eating brown rice and sesame seed, of the Oshawa method, has some colors of fasting, from denying all other kinds of food for a long time.
But when the Buddhists in Vietnam say ăn chay, they usually mean specifically “vegetarian diet.” “Quán cơm chay” means vegetarian restaurant. If you ăn chay trường, it means you are a permanent vegetarian (nothing that has anything to do with meat or fish or any living thing can enter your body. That’s the rule, with some minor exceptions here and there).
Won’t you agree?
I’ve been experimenting with tofu as my main food (instead of rice, meat, fish or whatever). Sometimes I have other vegetables along. But that’s it for now. So far it seems to be very good for me. Will let you know how it goes. Some guys on UFC (ultimate fight championship, most vigorous sport on the planet) also eat tofu as the main food. So it probably can do the job well.
I think the Oshawa method (brown rice and sesame seed) is good to purify the body to cure diseases, but probably not good for permanent living, because it weakens your muscle strength. For ladies who want to lose weight fast, I would recommend brown rice and sesame seed until you get to the level you want, then stop. 🙂
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Hi , another feedback .
We need a balance nutrition. Tofu is one of the good food but not the main food. We, Vietnamese have the most balanced and nutritious meals in the world. Don’t you know that?
You must know that some bodies can’t take tofu.
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Hello Hoanh,
I enjoy your forum pretty much, and especially your way of thinking. I think it is very scientific. I used to be a teacher teaching students how to read and write English in the USA. May I help you a litte bit with your English regarding a scientific fasting?
It is not a vegeterian diet.
1) A scientific fasting truly means the ancient and modern key to health.
2)Fasting is defined as follows:–the voluntary denial of food to a system which is diseased, and which, because of disease, neither demands nor desires nourishment until, rested, purified, and with hunger in evidence, it is again able to resume its metabolic processes. Then, and not till then, is food supplied; then, and not till then, does starvation begin.
3) While starvation is defined as the denial of food, by accident or design, to a system needing and demanding sustenance. Hunger, true desire for food, indicates the want and calamitous consequences ensue when its call is denied.
4)The time to fast is when one is ill, and when the body gets sick as a whole. In disease nature is in process of purifying the body–is casting out its waste, thus cleansing the system in preparation for active, healthy rebuilding. Omission of food permits the eliminative organs to act unhampered by intake, and in this omission and in the employment the essential hygienic accessories is discovered the sole means of assistance that will assure permanent relief.
5) It becomes scientific because there are many studies and researches on that matter including its history, theory and techniques, evidence of daily hygiene improvement , proof of natural therapy.
Thanks for reading my comment. Stay in touch.
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Yes, Katemc. I forgot to say that I drink soy milk too. Without sugar, Sugar is bad for your body. Well, maybe we should form a Soya Club to lend each other mutual support 🙂
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U have a nice method!
Sometime I try to Diet but my organism so tired that I have to Stop.
May be I’ll try 1 more with tofu and soya milk.
Thank for your experience.
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