This isn’t a tale of fasting. It’s the transformation it unlocked.
I’m Sienna Verdi, and what follows isn’t armchair advice or fleeting hype—it’s the hard-won fruit of a decade’s relentless pursuit of health.
Rewind to the 1990s: My A1c hit 7.2%. Kidneys faltered under the strain. At 258 pounds, I wasn’t bedridden—but I wasn’t truly living. Days dragged with fatigue, puffiness, and a haze of doubt.
Cut to today: My vitals—and my very sense of self—whisper a triumphant rewrite.
- A1c: 5.4%
- Fasting glucose: 83 mg/dL
- eGFR: 37 (Stage 3 CKD—locked in stability)
- Weight: A joyful plateau at 155–166 lbs
- Energy: Unwavering. Crystal-clear. Electric.
This path? It’s the heartbeat of my book, Rewire Your Fast, where I unpack how to sync with your body’s innate pulses—not just hop on another diet bandwagon.
But here’s the truth: I didn’t wake up to this shake, this schedule, or fasting. The cadence I’ll share? It crystallized through trial, tumble, and tenacity—layer upon unyielding layer.
And it’s alive, still. New discoveries? I dive in. Body whispers a shift? I listen and pivot. This isn’t dogma; it’s a symphony in motion.
The spark? Stumbling on Dr. Andrew Huberman’s YouTube deep-dive into intermittent fasting. His razor-sharp take on time-restricted eating and circadian cues cracked open why when you eat rivals what—and how ritual guards your future.
Disclaimer: Dr. Huberman isn’t tied to this story or my book. His wisdom just lit a fuse in my rhythm-fueled fasting framework.
From 7.2 to 5.4 — And 258 to 155: No Magic, Just Momentum
No fairy-tale flip. Just deliberate beats, daily devotion, and dogged grit.
The levers that lifted me:
- Intermittent fasting (16:8 to 18:6): A nightly breather for pancreas and liver—rebooting without burnout.
- Gentle, enduring weight shed: 258 to 155–166 lbs, sans starvation stunts.
- Smart meds: Steady doses, never a crutch.
- Ironclad ritual: No fireworks weeks—just compounding wins.
Steady pulse trumps flash-in-the-pan fixes, every dawn.
Why These Markers Illuminate the Win
| Marker | Latest Reading | The Story It Tells |
|---|---|---|
| A1c | 5.4% | Mastery in motion—avg. glucose ~108 mg/dL |
| Fasting Glucose | 83 mg/dL | Metabolic poise, pure and simple |
| eGFR | 37 mL/min/1.73 m² | Stage 3 CKD, steadfast—no slide backward |
| CO₂ (Bicarb) | 20 mmol/L | Tamed by bicarb savvy and savvy eats |
Fasting’s Quiet Defense for Kidneys
Fasting? Not famine—it’s a cellular spa day. Harnessed right, it fortifies kidneys via:
- Insulin thaw: Dialed-down acid eases the grind.
- Inflammation fade: Autophagy sweeps in, scrubbing cells clean.
- Hydration harmony: Fuels flawless filtration.
- Protein pause: Slashes acidic debris.
Fasting, synced to your biology’s beat, morphs into potent elixir. — Rewire Your Fast, Chapter 3
My Pulse of the Day
Effortless trumps exact. Here’s the tempo that fuels me:
- Fasting arc: 16–18 hours of graceful pause.
- Feast frame: ~Noon to 6 PM, unhurried.
- Hydration hum: 2L water or herb-kissed teas.
- Supps spotlight:
- Methylated B-Complex mid-meal.
- Sodium bicarb (650mg x2) post-bite.
- Motion mantra: Soulful strides + leg lifts for flow.
The Dawn-Breaker Shake (In Perpetual Polish)
My now-signature sipper? It bloomed from blunders.
Dawn breaks: Early “healthy” bites spiked sugars, taxed kidneys. Cue labs and intuition—they sculpted this gem.
Yet it breathes. Fresh tweaks? Always testing. Less recipe, more rapport with my inner workings.
🥤 The Blend:
- 1 cup water or pristine coconut water
- 1 crisp apple
- ½–1 lush guava
- 1 tbsp live-culture yogurt
- 1 tsp MCT oil (C8/C10 fusion)
- Dashes of oregano oil
- Pinch turmeric
- Pinch black pepper
- Dash cayenne
- ½ tsp honey (whim’s call)
Whirl 30 seconds. Emerges: Sunset gold, vivid zest, fiery whisper—a bridge from void to vigor.
The Alchemy Behind the Shake
| Star Player | Its Magic | Your Gain |
|---|---|---|
| Coconut Water | Electrolyte whisperer | Silken sip to quench and revive |
| Turmeric + Pepper | Fire-tamer tag-team | Guards kidneys, vessels from inner storms |
| Guava + Apple | Fiber-fresh nutrient net | Blood sugar’s gentle ascent, no jolts |
| MCT Oil | Swift fat-fired fuel | Ignites metabolism’s quiet burn |
| Yogurt + Oregano | Gut’s gentle guardians | Rekindles digestion’s post-fast peace |
| Cayenne | Circulation’s spark | Banishes leg swell with warm waves |
Labs: The Unbiased Echo
Tests mirrored the thrill. The arc:
| Metric | Evolution | The Read |
|---|---|---|
| BUN/Creatinine Ratio | 16 (spot-on) | Hydration and filters in flawless duet |
| Potassium | 5.2 (high-normal edge) | Coconut’s cool counterbalance |
| Albumin | 4.3 (prime) | Nutrition’s firm footing |
| CO₂ (Bicarb) | 20 | Diet + dose: Equilibrium etched |
Your Toolkit: Bites of Wisdom
- Fast with finesse: 16–18 hours? Gold standard—sustainable spark.
- Pure picks only: Ditch faux fizz and salt snares; honor the real.
- Lab love quarterly: Metrics murmur what mirrors miss.
- Stir softly, daily: A wander? Wins over weights.
- Bicarb blueprint: Food first, capsules as chorus.
The Whisper Within: The True Reckoning
Scales and stats? Mere footnotes. The revolution? My mind’s murmur.
Once: A stray sweet or skipped step summoned shame’s storm—scorn, spiral, self-sabotage.
Now? Grace reigns. Post-treat or tempo-slip: Breathe easy. You’ve built this. Flow knows you. Forward.
That mercy? Forged in the forge of fidelity, not flawlessness.
I rewired more than meals—I reclaimed my narrative.
Healing? Beyond A1c dips or dress sizes—it’s shedding guilt’s shadow for humanity’s light.
That liberation? Sweeter than any stat.
The Last Note
Rewire Your Fast‘s North Star:
Flawless? Forget it. Faithful? That’s the fire.
Clean pauses, wise welcomes, lab-lit leaps: I flipped freefall to fortress—solid, soaring, yours to claim.
A1c: 5.4% Kidneys: Anchored 100+ lbs: Vanquished Spark: Reclaimed
No hacks. Just harmony. Your rhythm awaits—step in.
Read more here: The Shake That Stabilized My Kidneys — And My Life