Hi Mary Anne! I appreciate your comment and the opportunity to elaborate. On the 3 consecutive days per month, I just tack on 2 days to one of the days I Fast in the month. Yep, 14 to 40 days - usually at the change of seasons - is to completely cleanse and detox. The length is determinate on how much weight I need to lose to get back to my “set point.” Because of the weight I gained when I took my fasting sabbatical - I had to do 35 days in June (Summer Solstice). Back in my 20’s - 30’s I would do frequent 40 days - but, really started losing too much and, have since reset my set point. My first few 40 day fasts were with medical supervision but as I became more in-tuned to my body, I am able to really tell the difference in something being wrong or am experiencing a temporary inconvenience. Once I get to my set point the regular 1 to 3 serves to keep my weight steady. Hope that makes sense. If not, please please feel free to ask me. Again, I really recommend that you do your own research and come up with your own fasting routine, if you decide to give it a go. I have The Complete Guide to Fasting by Dr. Jason Fung and Jimmy Moore on audio and am listening to it for about the third time now. It has much of the most current research and should answer many questions and concerns you may have.Thanks again for reading my blog and taking time to comment!