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Francisco's Protocol · v1 · 07.05.2026

Pick a variant. Run the checklist by the hour.

A water-fast plus broth-tail protocol with four variants. The water phase drives the metabolic and immune signals; the broth phase extends the fasted-state window with mild nutrients that protect muscle, ease the sympathetic load, and produce the smoothest cognitive window of the cycle. Goal: trigger the regenerative immune signal documented in Longo's work without the cost of a longer water-only fast. Repeat every 2–3 months.

Read this first. Francisco is not a doctor or nutritionist. This is a personal protocol synthesized from peer-reviewed research and personal experience. It is not medical advice. Extended fasting can cause serious harm and has caused deaths in people with undiagnosed conditions or who did it incorrectly. Conditions that warrant physician sign-off — or that mean you should not do this at all — include diabetes, hypertension on medication, thyroid disease, kidney or liver disease, gallstones, an eating-disorder history, pregnancy or breastfeeding, and any prescription medication with fasting-state interactions. If in any doubt, do not.

Step 1

Pick a variant

Variant C — 80h water + 48h broth (main) · Default quarterly cycle.

Compare visually
Protocol timelines
0hd024h48hd272h96hd4120h144hd6168hA: 72h+24h4 days72h water24h brothC: 80h+48h5+ days80h water48h brothB: 96h+24h5 days96h water24h brothD: 80h+72h~6.5 days80h water72h broth
Mental clarity (peak)
Mental clarity (duration)
IGF-1 trough depth
Autophagy duration
Stem cell signal
Muscle preservation
Sleep quality
Sympathetic load (low=good)
Refeeding safety
Adherence ease
Recovery speed
Legend:ACBD

You picked: Variant C — 80h water + 48h broth (main)

128h · 5+ days
Aggressiveness
Rank 2/4
Mid-range
Frequency
Up to 4× per year
Every 12–13 weeks (quarterly)
Phases
80h water · 48h broth
Refeed Day 7–9
Pros
  • ·Best balance
  • ·Clears regenerative threshold
  • ·Long sustained clarity
  • ·Muscle-preserving
  • ·Smooth refeed
Cons
  • ·Requires 5+ days
  • ·Two-day broth phase needs more preparation than 24h

Default quarterly cycle.

Step 2 · live tracking

How it evolves, hour by hour

Each chart shows the expected curve, your variant's water + broth bands, and a marker at your current hour while a fast is running. Tap Log how I feel right now on any chart to record your own rating — your data persists across sessions.

Mental clarity

1 foggy · 5 baseline · 10 sharp
258waterbroth0h24h48h72h96h120h152hbaselinediptroughliftpeak

Slight dip in the first day, trough around 24–36h as glycogen runs out, lift from hour 36–48 as ketones cross 1 mmol/L, plateau and peak through the broth phase.

Refeeding safety

10 trivially safe · 1 medical risk
258waterbroth0h24h48h72h96h120h152hcareful refeed neededmedical-grade refeed

Short fasts are trivially safe to break. As the fast extends, electrolyte depletion and the risk of insulin-driven potassium shift grow. Past 96h, a careful refeed protocol genuinely matters; past 120h, it is non-negotiable.

Adherence ease

10 easy · 1 grinding it out
258waterbroth0h24h48h72h96h120h152hhardestbroth eases itfatigue creeps

Day 1 is normal life. The 24–36h trough is the hardest window — most fasters who quit, quit here. From hour 48 onward (ketones online), it gets easier than it has any right to. The broth phase is genuinely pleasant for most. Past hour 120, fatigue from cumulative caloric deficit creeps back in.

Recovery cost

10 fast recovery · 1 weeks of slow
258waterbroth0h24h48h72h96h120h152hmuscle cost climbs

Short fasts recover fully in a few days. By 80h you're looking at ~7 days of normal eating + training to fully restore lean mass. Past 96h pure water, the recovery cost rises sharply — muscle loss compounds and a full week of careful refeed becomes essential.

Step 3 · the work

Checklist · by hour

Currently in: Week before
Step 4 · capture

Cycle log

Captured per cycle. Fill in as you go; tap Archive when this cycle wraps to start a fresh log.

Why each piece is there

The protocol in depth

Tap any section to read the reasoning. References link to PubMed.

References

Sources for the physiological claims

Primary peer-reviewed papers. Each link opens a PubMed search for the exact citation.

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