For many people, fasting can be a great way to support both physical and mental well-being. There are many types of fasting, including intermittent fasting (IF), which is an eating pattern that alternates between periods of eating and fasting, and prolonged fasting, which typically involves foregoing food for longer than 72 hours. There is a growing body of scientific evidence that shows that fasting, particularly prolonged fasting, can contribute to a range of health benefits including fat burning, cellular rejuvenation, metabolic health, brain function, and healthy aging. However, prolonged fasting can be a challenge for most people, and may come with risks. The Prolon 5-Day Fasting Mimicking Diet gives you the amazing benefits of prolonged fasting—including cellular renewal—while you eat nourishing foods. Our other products, like our Fasting Bars and the 1-Day Reset, can fit nicely with intermittent fasting routines. 

As with any health or nutrition question, it’s a good idea to consult your healthcare provider about fasting. While fasting can be safe and effective for many, it’s not appropriate for everyone and should always be approached with individual health in mind. People managing type 1 or type 2 diabetes or other medical conditions, anyone taking medications that require food, older adults (especially over 65) should get medical advice before beginning any prolonged fast. If you have any concerns about whether fasting is safe for you, consult your healthcare provider. 

Prolon’s Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is the first and only patented nutrition protocol scientifically designed to support longevity through cellular rejuvenation. Backed by over 25 years of scientific research, the program is formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged fast while allowing you to eat. It delivers all the benefits of fasting, including cellular renewal, without the challenges that come from water-only fasts. 

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Water, water, and more water: Stay hydrated. Aim for around 32 fl oz (1 liter) of water in addition to the L-drink and all the other fluids within the program. Note that this is a general goal, and each individual will have their own hydration needs, so listen to your body. If you feel thirsty or lightheaded, your body is telling you to drink more. Staying hydrated is one of the keys to unlocking the health benefits of Prolon.

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Stay active, but avoid heavy exercise: Light exercise, like walking or stretching, is not only healthy; it also helps you "stay in the moment" and distracts you from thinking about your food cravings. 

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Share with someone: Fasting isn't like Fight Club; you're supposed to talk about it! By letting people know you are fasting, they can support you and hold you accountable. Whether it's a family member, a co-worker, or a friend, having someone in your corner is key and will help make your fast more rewarding. Who knows, maybe they'll join you for your next round. Fasting with friends is even better. Of course, many people do this program on their own, but Prolon is also a team sport! The advantages of choosing to fast with a friend are that you’ll have a built-in support network and someone with whom to share the experience. Whether it’s your spouse, friend, or work colleague, think about buddying up!

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Meditate: Having a mindful practice can not only help calm you, keep you centered, and help you achieve inner peace; it can also help with focus. Meditating helps you surmount obstacles and achieve your goals, like completing Prolon.

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Prioritize sleep: Good sleep is one of the keys to health. Most adults need between seven and nine hours of quality sleep every night to reset and reenergize, and during Prolon the body may need even more sleep. Plan to turn in early and listen to your body. 

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Coach yourself: Remind yourself why you took on this challenge. Prolon users have found that writing down their goals helps them stay motivated and succeed. Whether you “coach yourself” through journaling, recording positive affirmations on your phone, or even just verbalizing to yourself, keep reminding yourself that you have the strength to reach your goal of completing Prolon.

Give: Helping others is always rewarding, but when you're fasting, it takes on even more meaning. Whether you read to the elderly, or donate your time to an animal shelter, volunteering is a great way to shift your focus away from yourself and from food and concentrate on others.

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You can take it with you: You don’t need to eat your Prolon meals at home. Go out and enjoy the weather. Whether you pack a “Prolon picnic,” go to a dinner party, a restaurant, or a family member’s place for dinner, bring your Prolon food and enjoy it in the company of others. Everything you need is in the box!

We make it easy to get support, whether you’d like a helping hand as you go through the Prolon 5-Day FMD, or you’d like longer-term guidance in meeting your health goals. 

If you’re starting a cycle of the FMD, be sure to register your start date with us and join our free health-coach led fasting groups to get the motivation and support you need. You can also connect with others through our private Facebook group, Fastination, for advice and encouragement. 

If you’re looking for ongoing support to meet a health goal, our guided Weight and metabolic wellness program could be an ideal plan for you. It’s a guided program for weight management and metabolic health—with hands-on, expert support and results tracking. Depending on their goals, most people follow the Metabolic Reset Program for 4–6 months, achieving sustainable results in fat loss and overall health.

The purpose of the L-Drink in the FMD kit is to provide the body with an alternate energy source to use instead of lean body mass during days two to five of the fast. So, the L-Drink helps protect your lean body mass while keeping you in a fasting state. This is important! Your muscle is not only important for strength; it influences many areas of your health. With extreme diets or GLP-1 drugs, you may lose weight, but a lot of that weight comes from lean muscle. The Prolon FMD is designed to help you lose fat, and protect muscle. The L-Drink is intended to be consumed during the FMD as a one-time use only.

While there are many different signaling factors in the “nutrient-sensing pathways” involved with cellular fasting, the 3 primary nutrient-sensing pathways that Prolon and fasting down-regulate are IGF-1, mTOR, and PKA. The process is complex, and each pathway can interact with other pathways, but in general, PKA responds primarily to sugar and carbohydrates, while IGF-1 is primarily responsive to protein (and more strongly triggered by animal protein), and mTOR is triggered by IGF-1 and amino acids. Sugar and carbohydrates (and to some extent caffeine) will activate PKA. These nutrient-sensing pathways all help regulate the cells’ growth cycles and stress-resistant “fasting” state.

Autophagy is the body's natural cellular cleansing and repair process. During this state, the body breaks down and recycles damaged components to enhance efficiency, generate energy, and support new cell growth. Recognized for its role in slowing aging, reducing inflammation, and protecting against diseases like cancer and neurodegeneration, autophagy was the subject of the 2016 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. Autophagy is typically activated after 72 hours of nutrient deprivation; the Prolon program was designed to activate autophagy by providing scientifically developed foods that stay below the body's nutrient-sensing pathways, allowing it to maintain a fasting state. A recent peer-reviewed study proved that the Prolon FMD initiates autophagy in people. Once autophagy clears out cellular debris, the body makes way for younger, higher-functioning cells. These vibrant cells help improve efficiency, support healthy metabolic markers, and slow the aging process—a transformation known as cellular reprogramming. . 

All of our products and programs are backed by 25+ years of research into nutrition and longevity. That means original scientific studies that we have conducted and published in association with the world’s leading institutions. We encourage you to compare that scientific track record to any other wellness product (or any product) you may use. Our company was founded by scientists, built on peer-reviewed research (41 studies and counting), and is driven by the same scientific rigor you’d expect from biotech or medicine. That commitment means you can use Prolon with confidence—knowing our products are not just part of another wellness trend, but rooted in real science, proven results, and a mission to help you live healthier, longer. For those who love digging deep into the science of things, we’ve provided a list of some of our published scientific studies on this site.