On Wednesday, Del Hall's first meal of the day is a yuzu ginger sour.

More than 40 days into his beer-only Lenten fast, Hall says his palate is incredible. The Pleasant Ridge man describes the yuzu, a citrus popular in Asia, as delicate and the first sip of the beer is tart and bright.

The beer, called Twelfth & Central, is a 50 West Brewing Company collaboration with Zundo Ramen and Donburi.

"I feel like I'm in my 20s," the 43-year-old Army veteran said.

After 40 days, Hall said:

He needs less sleep

His mind is clear

He said he feels like there's no inflammation in his body

"I knew there were going to be challenges doing this and I welcomed them," Hall said. "I jumped headfirst into the deep end."

Over the course of his fast, he's lost more than 40 lbs.

"My family thought 'Oh, that's just Del being Del.' No one really believed me. To me it's not that big of a deal. I've done all kinds of crazy things in my life," Hall said. "I know when I put my mind to it, I'm going to do it."

For those worried about excessive alcohol consumption, Hall said he's only had about two to five beers a day.

"Beer isn't as bad a people think. People really vilify beer. Everything in excess is bad for you and really, the average American diet will kill you faster than craft beer will," Hall said.

What do you eat after a beer fast?

In a few days, Hall will be able to eat real food again but he isn't going to break out a steak on Easter Sunday.

He'll start with broth, then move up to steamed vegetables, then meat. He says it will take about five to six days before he's back to being able to eat whatever he wants.

Hall has done his research.

Over "lunch" at 50 West Brewing, Hall talks about his previous experiences with fasting and specialized diets. He said often when he does interviews, people expect him to come off as a "frat bro." At the onset of his fast, Hall researched fasts and talked to his doctor.

He said he initially thought of doing a water fast for Lent, but picked beer because he "wanted to keep sane and interested in the fast."

So back to the real question. What does a man who has only been drinking beer want to eat more than anything?

Sushi.

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He isn't sick of drinking beers yet

Unfortunately for Hall, he hasn't been able to avoid food completely because this is the 21st Century. He also still has to cook for his daughter, 12-year-old Natalie.

And because he has to cook for Natalie, he has to go to Kroger and get food. He said people have recognized him at the grocery store now that his fast has garnered him a bit of celebrity and ask about his cart full of food.

Also, for the past week, Hall was in Denver for the Craft Brewers Convention and even though everything was covered in delicious chili verde, he didn't "touch a morsel of food."

"Dive bars were like my safe space," Hall said.

Hall isn't sick of drinking beers, but he is a bit sick of doppelbocks – beers traditionally associated with the monks Hall wanted to imitate.

"They're too sweet," Hall told The Enquirer on Wednesday.

Hall's fast was inspired, in part, by monks.

"Just like the monks used to do it back in the 1600s, I'm going to do the same thing," Hall said in a Youtube video announcing the fast. "It's not necessarily about the weight loss as it is the challenge of replicating what the monks did."

Lent was time to walk the walk, not just talk the talk

Hall was also inspired by the active lifestyle and culture around 50 West Brewing, where he is the director of sales. They have canoeing, sand volleyball and have a marathon training group.

He said founder Bobby Slattery embodies that health conscious and active culture. Hall tells a story about being at a nice burger joint in Nashville and watching Slattery take the "beautiful" brioche bun off of a burger.

"That display of willpower really resonated with me," Hall said. "He doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk."

So Hall wanted to, as well. He felt that he had to do something to change, so he jumped right into the deep end.

"Once I make a habit, I'm dedicated," Hall said. "This was my jumping off point."

On Day 43, Hall was officially down 41.5 pounds. He said the fast has definitely helped break his unhealthy relationship with food.

"When I thought I was hungry, I wasn't. True hunger isn't that rumbling in your tummy," Hall said. "If I didn't eat for 46 days, missing one meal isn't going to kill me."

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