The new 5:2 diet thread

[GreenEggsAndNichts]

The continuing thread for those of us following either the 5:2 diet or the alternate-day fasting diet. Both are two versions of Intermittent Fasting, which you can read more about here.

The 5:2 diet was featured on Horizon recently, and essentially requires you to fast for 2 non-consecutive days per week. The other 5 days, you can eat what you like. Alternate-day fasting is just how it sounds; you fast every other day. By "fasting", we mean that we keep our calorie consumption very low, around 500 calories on average, on those days.

Come join us, and tell us about your experiences with this diet! :)

Checking in again. After a half stone drop the first week, I haven't lost anything this week... however, last week I couldn't see where the weight had come off, but this week my clothes feel looser and my face looks 'tighter', so something seems to be happening.

Finish my holiday today and just hope I can keep this up at home (where all the bad habits are - it somehow seems easier to change things while on holiday).

Hi all,
just another 'normal' day. Went quite well until after dinner when I suddenly had to eat two big bowls of cocoa pops. Luckily the box is now empty so that's and end to it!!!!

Wilselfl I understand - IKEA is hell! It's just the whole 'follow the arrows around, like a seaside donkey plodding along' thing and the furniture that falls to bits. What are the 'funny' bowels? I'm not sure I have experienced that yet? The joys of fasting!

Bunt I have no idea about losing weight and how it is supposed to work. Michael wotshisface on Horizon did lose weight, but he was focussing more on the blood sugar levels (or something - confused face) so it seemed a side-issue. The consensus seems to be that 1lb a week is reasonable to expect. I think? What weight are you aiming for?
I'm hoping to lose about a stone.

It just dawned on me that I will be fasting on Sunday and it's Saturday tomorrow!!! (music from Psycho shower scene plays) Hopefully, it will just get easier and easier!! Wah!
I am managing to do a bit of pedalling on my normal days and not bothering on fast days, so settling into a bit more of a routine, I hope.

Have just got to the end of my 3rd fasting day this week. Just need to get to bed before I give in to any temptation! I am finding internet window shopping an excellent distraction from wine and crisps. Naturally I am shopping for shoes so they will still fit me after my amazing weightloss

Just dropping in. My next fast day is Sunday and looking forward to it! Off to the races tomorrow where steps will be performing so well excited!!!

Really interesting article here

Suggests that low carbing in combination with IF could be helpful - also interesting about the role and timing of exercise, and gender differences.

Fascinating article! Interesting about the dairy aspect too. I had started this 'diet' on the genesis diet but then went on to 5:2. Makes me wonder whether genesis would be a better way forward after all. Wait to hear what others think.

Interesting link, thanks BIWI

Well I managed my first fast day just fine, about 450 calories, and didn't really feel hungry this morning. Had a shocking detox headache in the night though, so something's working! Next fast day Tuesday but going to try and stick to a reasonable diet on eating days. Thanks for the welcome folks!

Hi BIWI!
I am doing 5:2 and low carb on the other days and am still losing...albeit not loads, but still losing.
Bad day yesterday...I ate croissants for the first time in over a month and a) didnt really enjoy them and b) they have stalled my weight loss for this week. I also had 5 x choc hob nobs!
I tend to do mondays and wednesdays as fast days as these are days I wont be going to the gym.
I am also thinking of skipping breakfast (when I was thin I never ate breakfast!) too as the article suggests.
Dh lost another 3.5 lbs this week making his total weight loss over a stone :)
The gym scales put me at 11 st yesterday which I reckon is a stone down on where I started so an happy.
Another 14-20lbs to go!....

Fast day for me today. It's the first day of my period and been swimming this morning with my little boy so feeling peckish already, not like me as I can usually last out until about 2pm quite comfortably. I'm going to give a cup of bovril a try, never tried it before. Little boy asleep so going to do a bit of ironing, see if that can distract me. Definitely find days at work easier to fast. Weighed in this morning and was pleasantly surprised to have lost another 1.5lb. With it being the time of the month I want expecting anything. Got some home made Quorn chilli for my meal today, think that might be why I'm so hungry.made it last night and I know it's gorgeous and is calling me from the fridge, lol.

rachel fast day for me and, indeed, period is just starting today as well. Would explain the chocolate I wanted yesterday (I only ever seem to crave it then).

BIWI Thanks so much for that link! I think I'm doing a lot of that already (my fast days are almost entirely veg, with one piece of fruit. And coffee ofc!) I need to clean up my eating days now that I have the fasting down. Unfortunately, my first few I didn't eat so well, but yesterday I noticed I'd calmed down a lot and was eating normally.

Despite the days of not eating ideally, I still have lost weight this week, a few pounds at least (I weigh myself in kilos, it was almost 2 kilos). I know a lot of that is just because it's the first week, though. If I can manage to lose 1-2 pounds a week, I'll be happy. I'll be happy with any consistent weight loss, tbh!

Aftereights I wonder about the Genesis diet, as well. I did start with that but I don't really enjoy drinking milk. I do like yogurt. I'm still considering it.

Thanks Biwi , looks interesting. have printed it off to peruse fully later as im SUPPOSED to be working!

Yesterdays partial fast was good , I didnt eat lunch and although today is a feed day im not eating lunch again..(although had a sausage and egg breakfast) so i can drink wine this evening instead!! .

I want to keep my feed days down to my basal calorie rate of 1800 and if 500 of them is going to be wine (like today) then i need to lose it elsewhere .. Im prepared to do that though its not like i drink every day , just weekends

Loving 5:2 so far and have lost another pound making 4 in a week now (unheard of!) so this will also motivate me into anothercycle ride later on today .. ill need it as have been sat at computer working al morning so far

I'm going to try and lose lunch all weekend now and fast again on tuesday.

good luck all down day-ers today!

DH and I found the Horizon programme very interesting. We have followed Michael Mosley's programmes over the years and what he says about 5:2 is very convincing.

Can I ask how many of you have consulted your GPs before starting?

I'm very interested in the whole fasting thing, not least because it is obviously the latest 'thing'. But I can only really see it working for me if I low carb, otherwise I will just be hungry. The key benefit of low carbing for me is the hormonal control that leads to appetite suppression. Without that I think I would just end up head first in the biscuit tin!

Am currently on holiday and eating carbs without restriction for the first time in 6 months. Some of it I have enjoyed, some of it just makes me realise I'm just not that bothered about eating.

I have definitely put weight back on, so will be LCing with a vengeance when I return. I will be very interested to see if fasting or ADF or intermittent fasting makes the weight loss any faster/easier then.

PP (love your name!) I didn't consult with my GP first. I think if you're on insulin medication or have other issues (most are mentioned in these articles), it is advised to visit your GP first. I'm reasonably healthy (outside of the fact that I'm overweight) so I didn't feel the need to waste his time with this.

It is something I will bring up when I am in there again, if I do keep this up in the long term. Or if I want to become pregnant again. Which is a possibility. :)

If you want a diet where the weight just seems to fall off then do Dukan. However I have regained all that weight and am not convinced that low fat and low carb together is right for me. After 3 weeks of 5:2 it looks like I will be in for the long slow haul in terms of weight loss but will keep going, although as yet I am not feeling any different.

DW and I watched the Horizon programme, found it very interesting and we are going to give the 5:2 a go. We also watched the new "slimmer" Hairy Bikers' series "The Hairy Dieters". Many of the recipes are around the 300 calorie mark which might work well for TASTY fast days.

(First post ever - looking forward to reading more about I.F. and other topics in due course :-)

I didn't check with dr either, didn't think he'd have anything useful to say about it. I would have gone if I had something which could be affected by it (heart issues, diabetes etc).

I have lost 3.5 inches from my waist in 3 weeks - need to lose another 10 though!! But I have fitted back into some of my old clothes, ok they are maternity clothes, but still, they weren't fitting on before, and i look nice (comparatively, not actual nice yet)! Saves me buying more 'fat clothes' from the supermarket.

Fast day yesterday and I lost another lb, so 3down this week, as long as I can keep it off on my feed days. That seems to be the key for me, I lose a lb or just over consistently each fast day, then if I eat 1200-1400 cals on a feed day, I keep that loss, any more and I put it back on. Appetite has definately reduced in general though, which really helps.

I'vefound low carbing only works for me up to a certain point being pretty much post menopausal now (ihope!) I think a lot of the 'standard' diets work differntly.

I've not found any information yet on post-meno women and fasting (because ive not looked !) but would be very interested if anyone has any info they can share.

Thinking of getting older, looking forward I'm interested in the potential health benefits of fasting as well as keeping my weight down, but dieting does seem to be a while new ball game after menopause.. Its harder i think to shift excess weight.

However im lucky in that i have no other health issues and right now cant see there being any reason as to why i shouldnt be able to reamain active for a long time yet.

But my initial experience of 5:2 seems to be pointing to acheiving a weight loss ive not been able to acheive with anything else recently. It wasnt always like this. I used to be able to shift weight fairly easily if i stuck to a process like WW or similar. However on LC I lost half a stone and then no more.. despite keeping it up.. I still do limit most carbs now .

Second day of fasting for me, my other day was Wednesday. So far I've had a banana and 3 cups of tea. I'm cooking the Hairy dieters Korma for tea and it smells WONDERFUL .

More recipes with 250 calories or less. www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/9483381/52-diet-healthy-recipes-250-calories-or-less.html

Think the Hairy Dieters said it came out at 400 cals with rice, but I'm just going to have a smaller portion

I find it quite interesting that I'm noticing far more about what I'm eating on the normal days. I'm skipping breakfast occasionally & it's not bothering me. On days it does I have a boiled egg. I've been gluten free for a long time as it makes my arthritis much worse so it helps not having loads of butter & marmalade! But I've not really lost anything these last 2 weeks so am beginning to wonder if it's worth it. But I'm going to persevere as I need to lose about 5 stone though I'll be happy with 3!

Tis my fast day and I've just had a coffee so far. I'm heating up some sweetcorn for dinner, and will probably have a piece of fruit as well. I might even.. have a glass of wine as I'll still be in a calorie deficit. It's strange how easy fast days have become.

Normal day today, but eaten healthily as we are going out for Indian meal tonight & out tomorrow. Weighed myself this morning down to 9st 12lb. So 2½lb down from Monday, but as I am eating at the w/e will probably be at nil loss by then.
Will fast M/W/F.