According to this text, regarding the various medical sciences "absention from food is of utmost importance." According to Yijing, these medical fasts were done for up seven days in central Indian monasteries (but in other regions, two or three days were the upper limit).
The monks only make two meals a day, one in the morning and another before noon. After the second meal, they do not eat solids and spend the rest of the day only with liquids while studying, practising meditation, and other activities related to the temple, community, and self-development.
The Rule of St Benedict
Chapters 39 and 40 of the book dictate that monks may enjoy two meals a day, with two cooked dishes at each. Each monk is allowed a pound of bread, along with a quarter litre of wine. Benedictine monks were not quite vegetarian by modern standards, though.
According to the Vinaya, monastics can eat food only between dawn and noon. Although this diet was intended to meet the specific needs of the Buddhist community in 5th-century India, some lay people have chosen to take on a version of the practice.
Mono-Diet. In line with their beliefs surrounding food combining, the monks often spend chunks of time eating just one type of food as a type of cleansing practice. This utterly simple approach to feeding oneself is found to be easier on the stomach because it ensures there is no clash in terms of digestion.
Restrictive diet
The monks aren't able to control their own diet – it's at the mercy of the offerings they receive each morning. Traditionally, those alms are calorie-rich foods, either processed or homemade – with the Buddhist faithful wanting to offer something of high value and taste.
Food is prepared as a spiritual exercise with attention to balance, harmony, and delicacy. Conscious eating is followed among all Buddhists. Buddha advised monks to avoid eating 10 kinds of meat for self-respect and protection: humans, elephants, horses, dogs, snakes, lions, tigers, boars and hyenas.
As you refrain from nighttime meals, you too will experience less illness, less affliction, lightness of body, strength, and a comfortable abiding.” Then the monks, being thus advised by the Buddha, agreed. Here, the Buddha is saying that skipping dinner (fasting) will make you stronger and healthier.
"Monks were six times as likely to develop this condition than their secular counterparts." She said the monks' sedentary lifestyle coupled with overeating led to the weight gain. Obesity was unusual in medieval times, a period when many people suffered from poverty, malnutrition and deadly plagues.
Bedtime – the monks went to bed at 8pm in the winter and 9pm in the summer. They had to sleep in dormitories of 10 or 20. They slept fully clothed except that they had to remove their knives in case they cut themselves when they were asleep.
According to this text, regarding the various medical sciences "absention from food is of utmost importance." According to Yijing, these medical fasts were done for up seven days in central Indian monasteries (but in other regions, two or three days were the upper limit).
The monks remain silent throughout the meal, except on feast days when they are given special permission to talk after grace has been chanted. There is a series of specific sign language that allows the monks to make a number of practical requests, such as passing the butter, without speaking.
The majority of the monk's day in the Middle Ages was spent praying, worshiping in church, reading the Bible, and meditating. The rest of the day was spent working hard on chores around the Monastery. The monks would have different jobs depending on their talents and interests.
4.00 am - The monks wake up and meditate for one hour, followed by one hour of chanting. 6.00 am - The monks walk barefoot around the neighbourhood while the local people make merit by offering them food. 8.00 am - Returning to the temple, the monks sit together to eat breakfast.
Between praying up to seven times a day and working a medieval monk got little sleep. They averaged approximately five hours sleep between evening prayers and the 2am church service, and then snatched another half an hour before being up at 4am for more prayer.
The 72-h fasting induced significant decreases in glucose level, body weight, and an increase of ketone bodies that confirmed successful fasting of the volunteers. In addition, the median of BDI-2 increased significantly (4 vs. 7, p = 0.006).
Benefits of 36-hour fasting
The benefits of intermittent fasting for 36 hours are better insulin resistance, lower cholesterol levels, and a sharp decrease in belly fat (waist circumference) which is responsible for cardiovascular diseases.
In the olden days, they were forbidden amongst the Buddhist community because these vegetables can cause irritation and intestinal gas, which lessen one's ability to concentrate or meditate.
Admittedly, the five precepts that lay Buddhists agree to follow say that one should refrain from drinking alcohol and it is also one of the basic rules that novices and fully ordained monks are responsible for following.
The monks go on alms round in the morning and the only other activities of the day are morning chores, breakfast, and the main meal. At 7:00 pm, the community gathers for pūjā, meditation, the taking of the precepts by the laity and a Dhamma talk.
These preliminary results confirm the existence of a survival advantage for nuns and monks compared to the total population, an advantage that is more evident if the survival is considered on a longer period. This advantage is generally larger for monks compared to nuns.
Some are convinced that the normal amount of daily work in the monastic community of Saint Benedict is between five and six hours. The amount of lectio is at a minimum of an hour and a half but generally more than that. They seem to have about an hour's siesta on work days.
Monks do not solicit food on their alms rounds, but people come up to them freely. While temples do not have formal congregations, monks often have disciples who are regular patrons.