The 5:2 Thread Number 23: Summer's really here - time to melt off those extra pounds!

[BetsyBell]

The continuing thread for those of us following either the 5:2 diet or the alternate-day fasting diet.

The 5:2 diet was featured on Horizon in August 2012, and essentially requires you to fast for 2 non-consecutive days per week. The other 5 days, you can eat what you like, or approximately your TDEE (see explanation below). 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 for a woman, 600 for a man, on those days.

You'll find on these threads we use a number of acronyms. If you're new to the threads, or Mumsnet in general, they might not make much sense.

WOE/WOL = Way Of Eating/Way Of Life. We use this term instead of "diet" as many of us see this as something to do in the long term.

MFP = My Fitness Pal, a website many use for keeping track of the number of calories they're eating.

TDEE = Total Daily Energy Expenditure, 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.

ADF = Alternate-day Fasting, as it says on the tin, fasting every other day rather than 5:2.

NFD = Non fast day

NSV = Non scale victory

Michael Mosley has a website to accompany his new book on the subject. Please go check them out, as he's the whole reason most of us are here!

I know a number of people lurk on this thread, as this is currently quite popular. Please just jump in and post if you're new- you'll find a lot of support here.

Here is a list of links to get you started with this way of eating. Please let us know if you find a new article or some other information online:

All our previous threads can be found by browsing back through the fasting section of the site.

Another thread which breadandwine has started is a good resource for some of the tips and links 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. This might be a good place to catch up with us if you're feeling a bit lost!

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

If you've been at this a while and are moving on to maintaining your goal weight, there is a thread here to discuss that.

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

There's a link to the aforementioned Horizon programme here.

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 by Dr Mosley himself, very informative if you're just starting. (I highly recommend this for an 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%).")

Something to consider 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.

A BIG THANK YOU to all who have been contributing. 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.

A HUGE THANK YOU to Greeneggsandnicht for putting together all this info and resources into one concise OP text, much appreciated by so many 5:2ers!

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

Hello, I had my first NFD and decided to use mfp. I came in at 1700 and did day one of couch to 5k. Bravely jumped on the scales and I lost another 1lb. I don't think I'll weigh myself again for a week because I know a gain would set me back, even if it does even itself out in the end.

Some really positive success stories on this thread, I think I'm going to read through some older threads later to keep focused.

Can I just say, the title of the last thread, 'put that biscuit down, you can have it tomorrow' is the reason I choose this diet over ww, sw and low carb. I like food so knowing I can have what I want the next day means I don't feel deprived.

Good luck for everyone on a FD today, I'm doing my second one tomorrow and the food is already prepared so fingers crossed I should manage ok.

HairyPotter Yay, my thread title inspired you

Sounds like you've embraced this wholeheartedly and you will have a success story of your own to add here before long. Couch to 5k is addictive - I did it last year and now run (jog) for fun! Something I never ever ever thought would happen to me.

The whole point of this WOE is we never feel deprived (for long).

Eagle WHOOP! Excellent NSV

peplum it won't put me off for long I'm sure... don't offer me strong cider though [boak]

Just had an increasingly rare breakfast - don't often bother on week days now. But this one is so good - full of power! 2 slices vogel bread toasted (sourdough or similar would do the trick too), thinnest smear of butter and marmite on each, avocado slices, drizzle of lemon juice and lashings of pepper,then topped with some thin slices of tomato. It's guacamole on toast essentially isn't it? YUM. Oh and a big cup of fresh brewed coffee, with cream .

NFD

It feels good not to be hungover...

eagle
For me too the start of this journey was a size 20 pair of trousers I could not fit in. To my shame the shop didn't have anything bigger! That an the horrible feeling of my ribcage being ensconced in rolls of fat whenever I was sitting down.
Now shops have clothes that not only fit me but suit me as well!
Fast day for me today again
Good luck to all the losers

Yes I'd like to add that the last thread title was genius

Having an additional fast day today. Yesterday I was at alton towers and, during the slush and ice-cream frenzy, realised I would LIKE a fd to get over the high-fat, high-sugar excesses of yesterday. I love that I don't feel I have to do it but am doing it because I want to.

Boiled egg and huge cuppa for breakfast :-)

vieenrose, thanks for the stats up thread. You started where I am now, inspiring to think I could be 9st 9 in 6 months. More likely to be the low 10s. My goal for then is to buy a nice winter coat in the sales, hard to imagine wanting such a thing when my arms are glowing with sun burn.

helles Isnt it great actually wanting to fast. We get the best of both worlds on this woe.

ELR what method did you choose for today? Im attempting the full on nothing til teatime 500. Going well so far....

SoutheastD Well done on the successful fast yesterday. Hope those neighbours let you lie in. They're up unusually early for such feral types! Your poor landlord. If you do decide to dwell up north, theres so many amazing places to choose from depending on what you're into.

peplum
You're welcome. That coat is beckoning as we speak. How much have you lost so far?
Fast going well for the time being (fingers crossed)

Peplum yes retro indeed! I really like callanetics as it's gentle enough for my back problems yet I feel I've done a workout.

Good luck to any fasters today! What is the general consensus on eating back your exercise calories? I don't, but am wondering if I should?

Had a splurge Friday and am taking that into account today.

I'm really chuffed with myself for not snacking this week. I didn't think I was going to pull it off if I'm 100% honest.
It wasn't easy, but not as impossible as I thought it would be.

Thanks for the stats, they make interesting reading and are very inspirational

Not that I'd recommend it, but toothache is very effective at reducing appetite

Hi missunicorn its recommended that you stick to 500/600 on FDs, aim to not eat them back on NFDs, but enjoy the extra cals that exercise gives you when needed for socialising or when really hungry. If you find you can get by without eating back then fine. Personally I need them being a piggy old trougher with a wine addiction. Can you do all the callanetics moves? I could never do the bum one, where you sit behind a chair. Or the legs open and close.

vieenrose Ive lost just over a stone since late Feb. A whole dress size. The first 10 -14 lbs came off fast and easy. Its been hard and slow since early May. Sticking it out though.

Todays fast going ok. Not up to much today, just distracted self by looking at reviews for steam mops on Amazon. Got to do some cleaning soon, Bread&wine alerted me to the fact that the tops of my kitchen cupboards aren't very clean(he puts his biscuits there). Not in the mood but once you start these things you soon get into it. Im not disturbing any spiders on fly patrol.

Weighed myself this morning after 2 piggy NFDs and have put a pound and a half back on. Really hoping this isn't going to be a case of 2 pounds off, 2 pounds on which seems to always happen to me whatever diet!

peplum over a stone is very good going. Slow is the way to go with this woe.
I don't know about everyone else but I can see myself doing this forever. I know from past experience that as soon as I stop controlling my eating, I put everything back on and then some. And I don't mind a woe that enables you to eat well (and drink ) on most days. In fact I quite enjoy fasting after a weekend say of splurging.

Hi, I had started a stand-alone thread further down but BreadandWine recommended I posted here.
I lost a stone doing 5:2 last year but stopped as I got pregnant. DH wanted to lose some weight so I recommended 5:2 as I'd gotten on so well on it.

He's now 2 weeks in, has done 4 fast days and hasn't lost any weight and I'm confused. He sticks to 600 calories on the fast days (I know because I do the calorie counting for him) and he pretty much sticks to 2500 calories on the other days (I've forgotten the acronym but how many cals a day he should have).

I THINK he might be eating too much junk on his days off - Doritos etc but I kinda did that as well and it didn't affect my loss. It could be salt retention but not too sure if that would mean he didn't lose 2 weeks in a row. Did think the scales might be a bit wonky as previously they weighed me at 10 stone 14 pounds but they're weighing me the same as the doctors scales.

He's keeping going but I'm a bit disheartened on his behalf as I had such good results and raved about it!

helga
What is his TDEE?
Just that the 2000 / 2500 figures are much too much for many people
also, if you are doing his calorie counting, how do you know what he eats when he's not with you?
He has to do it himself

wonderful thing on radio 4 a couple of years back - half of all pork pies are bought, cash, in a separate transaction after the end of the shop - so people can pretend they did not buy them ....

EVening all! gosh, it's hot isn't it? I've been away this weekend and if I didn't eat the calories, I most definitely drank them . Normally I'd fast tomorrow but we have a team away day with lots of food available so not even going to attempt that.
Tuesday and Thursday for me this week instead.
Good luck to all the usual Monday fasters

talking His TDEE is 2453 (He is 12 stone 8.2 and 5 foot 6)
I know what he's eating because he'd doing the fast the same way I did, which is he doesn't eat until dinner, which is usually about 400 cals and then has something before bed, like a muller rice or something.
Would it be better to split his meals?

He CAN count the calories himself but as a lifelong dieter I tend to know the value of things off the top of my head and I remind him to look at the calories per portion, and not per 100g or whatever.

He doesn't need to pretend he didn't eat something, if he said he had a pork pie on a fast day I'd just shrug. He does have pork pies on his off days though.

Helga does his tdee include exercise? I'm not a great believer in the exercise levels on these calculators so normally suggest setting to sedentary or at least one level below the exercise level you think you are.

Interesting about the exercise EagleRiderDirk may I ask why you are sceptical? Is it because we tend to overestimate the activity levels of our own lifestyles or because of an inherent problem with the way the calculators work. I ask because I put in the lifestyle I believe I have (lightly active because I spend most of the day standing though not necessarily moving about a lot) and I was amazed how high my tdee was.

Absolutely stuffed - and on a fastday! And I had breakfast and lunch. Love this WOE - even after less than a week, I can tell this suits me.

helles a bit of both actually! I am quite active, running around after kids all day but I work to sedentary as I felt the Tdee was overestimated and also working to minimum any exercise calories burned are a bonus.

Helles Yes, it could be the activity level that he has put in. I have set my TDEE to sedentary so that, as ERD says, any exercise burned are a bonus or you can bank those exercise calories for another day eg going out for a meal etc.

NFD today. I logged my calories today on mfp (was a fairly typical day for me) because I like to I log at least once a week to make sure my portion size are not getting too big. Anyway, I am not eating all my TDEE calories - still. Struggle to eat my "allowed" calories tbh - hopefully it won't cause any long term problems if I continue to do this? My TDEE is 1470 and I only ate 1234.

Thanks for the reply Peplum. It's good to know I can use those as a buffer; don't feel too bad now that I let the sexy bartender make me a cocktail full of calories last night.

I don't have a barre or anything I can use as one now, but when I did, I managed 2 open and close! I can do the bum one though. Even though I have the book I still watch the video to laugh hysterically at the exercise gear remind myself to slow myself down as I'll speed through them otherwise. video.yandex.ru/users/ekzark/view/243/?cauthor=ekzark&cid=11

I'm doing Tuesday and Thursday fast this week too Dotty

Hi Helga. I'm thinking he's eating too much on NFD's and simply not registering it all subconsciously.

sotired If I've got my maths right (probably not!) you're only below your tdee by 16%. If you find you're not losing weight you might find you need to have a day or 2 a week when you do try and bump it over a bit but if all seems fine then I wouldn't worry too much.

helga Maybe your DH needs to eat according to his 'sedentary' tdee? Maybe he's over-estimating his activity levels? The good news is he's found a way to maintain his weight easily but if he wants to lose he needs to eat a couple of hundred calories less each day I think!

Can I just say, the title of the last thread, 'put that biscuit down, you can have it tomorrow' is the reason I choose this diet over ww, sw and low carb. I like food so knowing I can have what I want the next day means I don't feel deprived.

Yes I'd like to add that the last thread title was genius

Betsy please can I offer you some of this humble pie!