Is eating regularly more a habit than a need?

D. Chandramouli, Contributor/Jakarta

Should we eat when we are hungry? Or do we become slaves to the tyranny of time, usually assigned for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day? Many of us face this daily dilemma of "eating to live or living to eat?"

In the last six months or so, I have put on three to four kilos and have not been able to reduce it, despite my regular morning walks and twice a week work-outs in the gym at weekends. Obviously, it is not easy to win the battle of the bulge!

Last week, all of a sudden, a thought flashed in my mind -- would I be able to skip eating and drinking for about 12 to 13 hours a day like my Indonesian Muslim brethren? After all, the proof of dieting is in fasting!

It was time to give it a try. So, on one fine Friday morning, I implemented my resolution. However, there is something that I cannot do -- eat the first meal before 4 a.m. There is no way that I could wake up that early -- even if I did, I wouldn't enjoy such a meal.

Therefore, I got up at 5:30 a.m. and had my usual cup of coffee (South Indians like me can't go without the morning coffee -- which is always with milk, and the coffee, usually the filtered variety).

I am not used to having a hefty breakfast anyway. On normal working days, my breakfast consists of a bowl of fruit, often papaya. Being a strict vegetarian all my life, I always carried food from my home to the office for lunch.

On my first fasting day, I did not have any breakfast nor did I carry any lunch to the office. Without the lunchbox in my hand, I felt a sense of liberation and pride. Around lunchtime, fortunately, I had to go a factory in Karawang along with an Indonesian colleague, who was fasting.

In the midst of a meeting, I didn't even realize that lunchtime had passed. When I returned to my office at 6 p.m., it was time to break the fast, and an apple came in handy to sustain me for another hour's drive back home.

That was the first successful day of my fasting. I congratulated myself for the small beginning I made. It was indeed possible to abstain from eating or drinking for a long stretch of time.

The next day, Saturday, my afternoon tennis game prevented me from continuing the fasting, and on Sunday, I didn't want to make a fuss at home, particularly when my wife had prepared special meal. In fact, she didn't know I was trying to observe fasting.

On the following Monday, I started my fasting again. I did feel a slight headache in the afternoon but I kept up with my usual busy schedule at the office.

In the evening, to break the fast, I joined my colleagues in the company canteen for a glass of fruit juice. Four more days passed in this fashion, and while I felt a little tired during the fasting time, I didn't encounter any special problem.

With already five continuous days of fasting "under my belt", my confidence level soared, and I expect to persevere with my fast as long as possible (if not for the whole month). The intention to continue the fasting is not only for health benefits but also to test my willpower. Isn't the feeling of being fit and active good enough?

Habits are difficult to break. But, then, how do we set about changing them?

There are three important stages one should go through.

First, a desire -- with a strong sense of willpower; secondly, follow up action and thirdly, reflection (learning and understanding). If all these elements are ordained by one's religion, the efforts should be even more fulfilling.

After a week of fasting, I feel that my craving for food has certainly ebbed. What about emotional control? Did fasting help? Well, I don't know, but I became sufficiently tired I could not show any strong emotional reactions.

So, did I lose weight?

Yes, after a week of fasting from dawn to dusk, I did lose at least two kilos, but then, weight loss is not too important -- that was not my goal in the first place. Challenging myself was the primary consideration, and the "feel good" factor, post- fasting, compensates for everything else.

Regarding the purification of mind, I suppose it should be an ongoing struggle and challenge for all of us. The journey would, of course, be as rewarding as the destination itself.