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Fasting / 5:2 diet

Talk about intermittent fasting and 5:2, including what’s worked for others. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

5:2 Diet Thread Part Six! Now's the time to de-lurk and chat with us..

984 replies

GreenEggsAndNichts · 25/10/2012 12:49

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 in August, 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.

Here is a list of the links we've gathered so far about this diet. I hope I haven't left many out, but we've filled several threads by now. Please share if you find something particularly useful, and we'll add it for the next thread.

First things first, here are links to some of our previous threads: most recent one before that another one.

Another thread which breadandwine has started is a good resource for some of the links and tips that get lost in these big threads. In addition to sharing links, we try to condense some of our top tips for fasting there. Keep in mind, we all do this differently, so these are just tips, not rules.

frenchfancy has a recipe thread over here, please post any low-calorie recipes there so they don't get lost in these bigger threads!

Here is the link to the BBC article regarding Michael Mosley's findings, which was featured on Horizon.

is a link to the first part of the aforementioned Horizon, subsequent parts of that episode are linked on that page.

A blog post here gives some of the scientific explanation for why this way of eating helps you to not only lose weight, but improve your all-around health.

A Telegraph article which comments on the diet and gives a brief overview.

A study discussed here gives commentary specifically addressing the effect of this diet on obese people (both men and women), with regard to both health and weight loss. ("After 8 weeks of treatment, participants had an average 12.5 lbs reduction in body weight and a 4 cm decrease in waist circumference. Total fat mass declined by about 12 lbs while lean body mass remained relatively constant.) it also mentions "Plasma adiponectin, a protein hormone that is elevated in obesity and associated with heart disease, dropped by 30%. As did LDL cholesterol (25%) and triglycerides (32%).")

Important link if you are currently your ideal BMI: this appears to suggest the benefits for women at a lower BMI might not be seeing the same health benefits that are found on men at their ideal BMI.

And for those already fasting, here is a link to 100 snacks under 100 calories. We tend to favour lots of hot drinks during the day (count your milk if you use it!)

Another food link, here is a link to the BBC Good Food site, with a list of low-calorie soups.

We mentioned BMR and TDEE often. Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) quantifies the number of calories you burn in a day. This measure is best estimated by scaling your Basal Metabolic Rate to your level of activity. TDEE is critical in tailoring your nutrition plan to desired fitness goals. Here is a link to a calculator to help you figure out how many calories you should be eating in a day.

A BIG THANK YOU to all who have been contributing, btw. Most of us are learning this way of eating as we go along. All of the links above have been posted by others in our previous threads, and they've been very helpful. Sorry if I haven't given credit where it's due, but it was just enough of a job getting them all in one post this afternoon. Wink

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

OP posts:
Amumsim · 31/10/2012 17:40

Hello, can I join in? I've been thinking about doing this for a while and have decided to give it a go.

Today is my first fast day and I'll fast again tomorrow, trying to leave 16 hours tonight until breaking my fast tomorrow afternoon.

Can I ask you all where you find your calorie info from, I've used MyFitnessPal today and wondered if there was anything a bit less laborious!

Good luck all x

Bordercollielover · 31/10/2012 18:09

I no longer think the engine analogy is particularly helpful. Not the place to go into it all here but to my mind engines simply burn fuel and give out waste products. When we eat a whole set of complex chemical reactions take place, some of which cause excess fuel to be stored as fat. That part I agree is fairly simple. However the more I learn the more it seems to me that the composition of the food and the timing of it do make a difference to how much gets stored ; if we eat many small meals of high GI foods there will be no respite from the effects of insulin/cortisol and, I think, more potential for fat storage than if you eat the same number of calories with more hours between meals and choose lower GI foods. In my case the key seems to be to avoid eating between meals and to avoid grain based carbohydrates. This is not really "low carb" as I am vegetarian and eat plenty of carbs as vegetables.
I may well be wrong, that's just how it seems to me.

TalkinPeace2 · 31/10/2012 18:45

If you do not eat you lose weight.
If you eat too much you gain weight.
It really is that simple
but the vast, vast bulk of people do not accurately record what they actually eat.

There was a lady on the AIBU thread about 5:2 who realised that her food diaries only included food - they missed out her seven cups of tea a day that each had two sugars in ....

and when you weigh 50g of dried pasta before cooking it
or weigh 100g of chicken breast,
you suddenly realise how TINY the "recipe book" portions are to get the healthy stats

ManOnBoard · 31/10/2012 19:02

BorderC The petrol analogy was simply that, an analogy, just saying that we need enough fuel for our journey. That said as analogies go you do say "complex chemical reactions" - the internal combustion engine. "excess fuel" sticks to the side of your bodywork. "timing of it" try not having your engine timed and see what happens. "composition of the food" - diesel, unleaded, super, high octane etc

TheCyclistist · 31/10/2012 19:12

I totally agree talkinpeace2 Eat too much, get fat. Eat less don't get fat. The only people with slow metabolisms are thin people as their hearts have to burn LESS calories to pump blood and keep their bodies warm. Bigger people burn more calories (have faster metabolisms) as their hearts have to work harder to keep their bodies going.

TheCyclistist · 31/10/2012 19:14

Oh and hello Amumsim, good luck I hope today's gone well for you Smile

Piebaldrider · 31/10/2012 19:30

I haven't posted for a few days but its great to see so many new people joining us.

Its a week since i was weighed at the gym and i couldn't go today so have to hold on another day before i can find out if i have managed to lose anything this week.

My fasts have been a bit up and down the last couple of weeks but i have managed two this week and plan another for Friday so fingers crossed. When i think about it my everyday eating is all over the place at the minute too and Saturday on an eating day i ate a bar of chocolate and drank best part of a bottle of wine instead of eating a proper meal and i was very irritable on Sunday! Life is busy and at times stressful for us all so I'm not surprised that i mess up occasionally.

I empathise totally with those who are not managing to lose weight on this woe and if you are truly doing it correctly and not losing i would say mess it up a little , swap days, swap number of days, try eating a few more calories for a few days or maybe exercise for a few days then don't exercise and if none of that works maybe you just have a different kind of metabolism or other hidden health issues to those who are losing weight easily . Its really just my thoughts certainly nothing tried or tested but its like interval training quick , slow quick slow.

I wish there was more research we could call upon but we seem to doing a good job of creating the research as we go along.

Enough calories for a glass of wine then a very early night so i'm away from an food and drink.

Hold on to the good feelings you get from this woe and never let them go.

frenchfancy · 31/10/2012 20:27

Amumsim I use caloriecount.about.com/ rather than MFP. Mostly becasue I found it before I realised everyone else uses MFP. It is a little cumbersome at first, but once you get the hang of the food log bit then its fine. I don't log everyday, but I did at the begining of this just to get a grip on what normal is.

ToffeeChops · 31/10/2012 21:45

Hi babbas, I'm taking ferrous fumerate which has folic acid with it. I'm seeing my GP next week to find out recent blood test results, but i know they'll be better because I feel much more normal again. Been on them 5-6 weeks now. People don't always realise how lousy it can make you feel so I hope you get some improvement soon. X

babbas · 31/10/2012 21:50

Thank you toffee.

I agree, it can be really difficult. I first noticed something was wrong when I was doing the bed in the morning and had to lie down and lie still for half an hour. Most unlike me. Also daily 3pm crashes. Nightmare with school run to see to! Thank you for your helpful replies. Hope all is well with your results.

rachel1982 · 31/10/2012 22:18

Hello, Has anyone heard of calorie girl? she provides great tips of what foods look like e.g. 100 kcals of cheese is the size of a matchbox etc?! really interesting and has helped me loads as its lots of visuals. Website is www.caloriegirl.co.uk and the facebook account is www.facebook.com/caloriegirl. Shes a Dietitian :-)

Bordercollielover · 31/10/2012 23:16

Hmmm. Re the argument that weight gain and loss is purely to do with calories in and out. I am just no longer so certain that it is as simple as that. Probably with a healthy body that is the case, but what about where hormones have gone awry? Could it turn out that in some hormonal circumstances that the composition of the food matters as much or more than the simple calorie total? That in some circumstances the body gives priority to fat storage over immediate energy availability instead of only storing the excess?
I am just pondering, but John Briffa has some more scientific things to say about this in chapter 7 (Is a Calorie a Calorie?) of Escape the Diet Trap. Interesting reading ( food for thought?!)
While this is not science and it is not humans, I have had a great deal to do with a great many dogs over many years and am open to the possibility that there is a connection between neutering , and thereby radically altering hormones, the feeding of cereal based foods and weight gain which is not entirely explained by simple calorie excess.
Any way, whether its just the calorie deficit or whether there is some other additional "re calibrating" going on , this WOE is wonderful!

FastFeeder · 31/10/2012 23:18

Amumsim another vote here for Calorie Count - it's great for compiling recipes and fine-tuning them.

Breadandwine · 01/11/2012 00:08

Thanks for the kind words, folks! Smile

Fasted 22 hours today - found it a breeze! [smuggitsmiley] I know it doesn't suit everyone, but for me, it works.

Thinking about it, though, I didn't jump into this long a fast straightaway, I built up to it gradually.

Maybe, for those finding it difficult, if you cut down breakfast and lunch calories and build up the evening calories, you might find it easier first to miss breakfast - and then lunch.

I'm still curious as to how long I can fast for before I feel any hunger - I may have to wait until I'm on my own for a couple of days. I must admit, it would seem weird not to have a meal in the evening. But it must have been common for our forebears to have gone without food for several days!

Just realised, with the constant feast and famine they experienced - they were the original yo-yo dieters! Grin

Back to another theme that is coming up regularly on these threads - the feeling of control that people are experiencing on this WOL. After years of having to watch everything I eat (I have a gold card from WW from twentyodd years ago!), food is no longer as important to me as it once was. I now feel as if I have finally gained control over my food intake, and weight - not to mention health!

And the method is spreading! I was offered a piece of petit pain au chocolat that one of my students had made in my breadmaking class this morning, and had to decline since I was fasting. "Oh, are you doing that too?" she exclaimed, "My husband and I have been on the 5:2 plan since the Horizon programme - it's great, isn't it?"

The ensuing conversation could have been lifted straight from these threads! Of course I told her about all you guys on here, and how friendly we all are - so we may well see her here.

SolarSparkle · 01/11/2012 01:15

Thank u so much for your replies....... Thanks

MummysHappyPills - interesting read, need to decide whether to stop this woe or get to my ideal weight b4 we start TTC but my biological clock's ticking Sad.......I'm 39 Blush

GreenEggs Since my mc early on in the year, my mc have been spot on....I might reduce my 'fasting' days from 3 to 2 ( or maybe 1) & see what happens Smile

TellMeLater Good to know that I'm not alone, let me know how u get on Wink

nminx · 01/11/2012 09:24

Half term and Halloween have blown the two fasts this week but it's good to know its not 'over' as it would've been with previous diets. Back on the wagon within the next few days.
A general note - My weightloss is very slow, ten pounds since beginning of September which can fluctuate down to only five pounds lost if I'm having a bad week on my non fast days. This is frustrating to me as DH has shed loads of weight very quickly (over a stone) and is keeping it off. Health has been poor since starting this WOE. Flu, diahorrea, two colds and very grumpy on fasting days. I do have iron issues though so have started to look after that side of things a bit better. Now taking Spa Tone iron sachets which are very mild on the digestive system compared to tablets.

On the positive side, the weightloss is there, albeit slow.

I do feel that this is the most successful WOE I've come across and am hoping that the health benefits will start to kick in and make me feel healthy too.

I find fast days very difficult and crave sweet things. I find it hard to go to sleep if I'm hungry but always wake up not feeling hungry the following day. Weird.

Thanks for all your posts. The encouragement in this forum is outstanding!

TalkinPeace2 · 01/11/2012 09:31

Same here - eating lightly but not doing 500 calories because no routine to the days
but still eating less than I would have done before

  • had a reasonable supper with the kids last night and felt stuffed
might have a bevvy tonight when DH gets back though

normal service will resume next week

  • actually, thinking about it, fasting in term time and easing off in holidays will work fine for me for several years and allows long term planning
Liberty132 · 01/11/2012 09:51

Woo hoo - fast day no 2. First was Monday. Do feel a tad more hungry today than Monday but its managable. Defo easier to miss breakfast and wait until lunch to eat anything.

Off work today so trying to stay busy. I do though have to go food shopping. Will write a list and stick to it.

Do have a circuits class tonight - will be interesting to see how well I cope with that. Its a very high tempo class.

Will weigh myself on Saturday after a day of non fasting - really hope I have lost something - but tum is so noticeably smaller.

Previously mentioned on here that I have recently been diagnosed with IBS. Anyone else on here got IBS and of so do they find this WOE helps or hinders.

Right - pen and paper - Asda here i come!

mumofcrazynamedkids · 01/11/2012 10:13

Morning all, my last working day of the week today, a fast day, which I've bought 2 of my favourite soups for, so that's all sorted, which always makes me feel good, thought I had persuaded the bf to get back on the fasting last night on the phone, but this morning he messaged and said there was leftover breakfast at his work, so he had scrambled egg, bacon, hash browns and a pecan plait! I guess when you're not in the habit of fasting that kind of temptation too much to bear!

I'm glad that even when people bring in cakes/donuts/choc to work now (it happens a lot) I'm not at all tempted on a fast day, I've alwasy found that more rigid diet rules work for me (atkins worked really well becasue the rules were so simple, but long term as a WOE it's no good at all) but not really feeling like I'm dieting and just pulling things back in line a couple of days a week, in order that I can eat a bit of what I like the rest of the time is soooo good!!!!

looking forward to a day off with my kids tomorow and we had fun at a halloween party last night, I had some homemade squash soup a couple of tiny slices of pizza and a piece of garlic bread, no chocolates, but 3 glasses of Wine but as a non fast day it wasn't terrible.

planning the first run in months this weekend when the kids are at their dad's, looking forward to it, I always enjoy it more when I've lost some weight, and also suddenly feel like I have the energy to do it.

have a good day all, more hot water with lemon required now.....

TalkinPeace2 · 01/11/2012 10:35

Liberty
DH and yes, lots

kittykarate · 01/11/2012 10:57

Hello, I'm de-lurking!

I've been doing this WOE since October 1st, while I was working away from home, as I wanted to try it out without my DH being involved. Sadly this means I didn't measure or weigh myself in, so I have if it is actually working. Got a battery for my scales at home now, so I can actually track it. Some clothes feel looser, but sometimes that can be a false thing, perhaps they're just going baggy in the wash?

I'm doing a 5:2, with pretty much fixed fast days on a Monday and Thursday to fit round my riding lessons and to make it easy for us to meal plan at home. I struggle a little on fast days, I do feel quite cold for some reason, and when I tried to horseride on a fast day I did feel very tired and lacking in 'go'. Perhaps I should try some other type of exercise for the fast days?

ToffeeChops · 01/11/2012 11:31

Hi kittykarate, welcome on board.

I get cold on fast days too - REALLY cold sometimes, but I guess it because we're not putting any fuel on the fire. I comfort myself with the knowledge that my body is having to draw on other stores of energy (of which I have ample supply Wink) in order to give me a bit of heat.

I'm like you mocnk, for some reason I manage to stay really strong on fast days. I'm not a very disciplined person by nature but I do much better with 'all or nothing' plans which is one reason I think this works so well for me. If I lapse (as I did on Monday - snatched a chocolate button and a pink marshmallow left over from our sweet-feast the previous day) I just deduct it from my calories that day. I wouldn't say it's easy but I don't feel deprived like I always do on 'proper' diets.

ToffeeChops · 01/11/2012 11:46

Hello nminx, sorry to hear you've been so unwell since starting this WOE. Loads of people around me have been ill with all sorts of things in the last couple of months so I think it may just be that there are lots of bugs about and not related to the fasting. Perhaps can't use that argument with the grumpiness though......! Wink

But what I really wanted to say is that I think 5-10lbs weight loss in 2 months is really good and something to be proud of. It may be less than other people (your DH for example) but it's never a good idea to compare ourselves too much with other people. If you keep losing weight at the rate you have been, that's a whole lot of poundage off over the course of a year. So don't be discouraged, and keeeeeeep fasting (to the tune of 'Strictly's: Keeeeeeep Dancing!)

mumofcrazynamedkids · 01/11/2012 11:53

I always feel the cold much moe when i lose weight, so it may not be the fasting but the weighloss? I used to think, (when i was above 12 stone and a size 16 - years and years of that) that I was one of those hot people, who didn't need to wear layers, then when i first lost lots of weight after having my second child I realised that i was much colder, and me telling myself I was just warm blooded was nonsense, simply, fat just insulates us, which is great in some ways.....if we were living in the wilds or had to survive, then we would need fat stores, and I do have a theory (very non-scientific) that fatter people get less sick in the coughs/colds/stomach bugs department, or we at least recover quickly as we have energy stores, and therefore don't always get hit with teh very next bug doing the rounds, whereas many fo my skinny friends seem to spend weeks and weeks blighted by every virus doing the rounds.

any science bods have an opinion on this?

not that this is a reason to stay overweight, we can all wear layers, eat healthily and overweight has it's own areas of ill health related problems, I totally get that.

ThinkICan · 01/11/2012 12:05

Here's an update on the health benefits after a check-up with the doc. Blood, cholesterol, triglycerides, liver function, heart - everything's perfect, though my cholesterol is teetering on the edge of the normal limit! BP was swinging from 170/90 but suddenly dived to 120/80. Lost 10 pounds in 8 weeks, fasting alternate days. Only 2 pounds in the last 4 weeks though as I stalled in the second month. BMI still 29.3 so loads to lose. Wonder when I'll get there at half a pound a week :(. Bigger problem, doc's scales show me at 10 pounds more on his electronic scales whereas my mechanical scales and my neighbour's show 10 pounds less.