The 5:2 thread number 26 - Bring on the Lifestyle Change Victories!

[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 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 through our very own 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!

Wow, been busy on here today! Welcome newbies, i suggest you all read through a thread or two as we've all been through various up/downs and rampaging munchies (check out my mega 4000+ binges ) it does get easier, but don't be hard on yourselves and you can always ease into fds with a few sub 1000cal days. It can be a bit of a shock to the system, i still get dizzy spells after 4months and occasional migraines.

FD here, annoyed with myself as i snarfed mini chocolate brownie this afternoon (damn you left over executive lunches!). Still under 500 cals but need to find some of this "self discipline" stuff I've heard talk of. Down to 9st 12 from 11.2, hoping to drop a bit lower after today as i also managed a 3 mile jog at lunch... Night all :)

Btw, have said before, but I'm a 2 meal per FD girl. A 100 cal prawn/chicken salad for lunch then a 180-200 cal pot of soup for dinner plus a large apple if i need something to tide me over. Very low cal but generally keeps the hunger pangs at bay.

FD complete. am in bed snuggling up with the freshly reemerged winter duvet now. the sudden return of cold weather does not sit well with my skinnier frame. I think my body wants its fat back!

FD done :)

Found today pretty easy, I had some apple and a cup of tea for 'lunch' and then beef cooked in tomatoes and peppers with little roasted new potatoes and broccoli for dinner. Very small portion and very delicious.

I'm giving myself 700 calories on a FD because I'm still BFing my toddler 2-3 times a day. I would love to stop but he's having none of it, so we continue. Everything I read says that you need to allow anything from 200-400 calories per day for feeding a child of his age, so I've gone for the lower end of that. I will see how I get on with this method and adjust if necessary.

Having said that today I've had 600ish which I'm really pleased with.

Sorry very me, me, me post, just trying to get my head around it all :)

Well done newcomers.
AS somebody who has been doing 5:2 for over a year and have been maintaining (roughly) for the whole of 2013
its really really pleaseing to see so many new people joing in.

itsaboat Good luck for tomorrow and yes it certainly is cold enough for mulled wine which went down very nicely indeed last night.

Just back from Brighton where I had fish and chips for the first time in years. Jumping Jehoshaphat, they tasted divine. Had a spikey mikey from Greggs after and felt full up for the next six hours so I didn't eat and won't until breakfast at work tomorrow. I'm maintaining fine on 6:1 but I don't think it'll do me any harm to do 5:2 now and then.

Wishing nice results on the scales for dotty and Angie tomorrow

My second fast day competed at about 540-50 calories. I found it easier skipping breakfast and easily went until lunch. When I have breakfast I find I want a snack at about 10 am! Going to weigh myself before the weekend!

Half a pound down this morning from yesterday fast.
Next fast on Tuesday of next week.
Food will be dinner tin of baked beans, a piece of fruit and something else.
Woke up starving today. So just had a banana and a cup of tea until first tea break at work, and not hungry anymore.

Friday WI see's my first goal met! Down to 11.4.6 from 12.5.2, I am absolutely thrilled - I'm following this woe for just under 4 months. I can't remember being around this weight for about 8 years. I always get close to 11.7 and move my way back up. On top of the moon that I'm in the 150's as well. Next goal is to get under 11 stone. Without wanting to fall into my old trap of obsessing, I'd love to do it in the next 4 weeks. I'm also reading that beck book and its v useful, some great techniques for coping with cravings.
Off to have some breakfast after my FD yesterday. Hope anyone else weighing in today gets the result they have worked for, I shall float off now [ grin]

Try again.....

Well done emma. Are you at work or in a different time zone?

Can't remember who mentioned bad breath, but I get that too, only on FDs as far as I'm aware. Apparently it is vile. Advice on here was to really pay attention to oral hygiene, ie floss and slosh and to ensure drink plenty of water. I also have breath freshener sprays in all my bags.

Just lying on the kitchen floor at work (thats not what they pay me for but its quite comfortable in a way), and that Will.I.am and Britney song came on the radio. I remember the first time I heard that I was sat in the car feeling really uncomfortable in a pair of size 20 jeggings that were cutting me in half. I felt so despondent knowing I needed to lose weight but not able to stick to a diet for more than a day. A few weeks later, I heard about 5:2, started end of Feb and now
Size 16 is getting too big. It might seem slow to some, but it seems to have wizzed by to me.

Oh jb, that's great news. We are both the same weight, how tall are you? Yes I'm champing at the bit to get sub 11.

first weigh in after re-starting, lost 1kg in the week. 2nd biggest weekly loss I've had, think the break of several weeks has reset my clock and these fast days have been a jolt for it. Now to enjoy the weekend!

Lovely post peplum :)

Fantastic loss JB! Bet you'll be floating on cloud nine all day!

Well done emma.

I'll be weighing in in 5 mins - just waiting for my 5yo to wake up (I keep the scales in her room, under cupboard, so I'm not tempted to weigh more than once a week.

Woohoo, 1.8 lbs lost this week :)

Fantastic losses everyone, well done.

peplum that is a lovely post.

bad morning here.

first of all the scales haven't been kind. I'm still showing as up from last week, though I'm a little blocked still and haven't gotten out and about this week as much as I normally would so trying not to take it too much to heart.

Dd can now escape from her bedroom. she's been able to open doors for a while but her bedroom door is quite sticky so its been beyond her. not now. she was in our room at 6am despite knowing the sun wasn't up on the gro clock. she then proceeded to shout at full volume and woke ds. I am now grumpy with two grumpy and tired under 3s, neither of which are going to sleep any time soon I think. so lots of naughty stepping already for Dd. I'm only one coffee in too, which I normally manage long before they're up.

kids, who'd have em eh?

Hi everyone new and old.

Can anyone give me some exercise advice please ?

As the days shorten and the rains come I have got back on my exercise bike as I will be able to walk less. So, to end up with legs more like Chris Froome's than Sir Chris Hoy's do I go for short bursts at high resistence or longer at low resistence ?

Hi Peplum oh the things we do at work that they don't actually pay us for !

nicely done bssh

Well done jb peplum and bssh. I'm 10.7 this morning post FD, so 5lb of the 6lb pastie holiday gain gone. Total loss now 11lb. Aiming for 7lb in next 4 weeks. Off to gym now and out for gin , wine and curry tonight! Eek!

jb30 peplum bssh and prawn (and anyone else I've missed of today's mammoth weigh in list, well done all. Some great sv's there :)

eatriskier have you tried saf's trick of eating a pile of sweet corn? I often find I'm up on my official wi but once any blockage clears (tmi, sorry!) then i can loose up 2 lbs. Hope the coffee kicks in soon

mehefin you're aiming for stamina here (think of all the skinny marathon runners vs muscly sprinters) so I'd go for slightly lower resistance for longer periods (not too low though or the muscles wont work hard enough) or try interval training (short fast high resistance bursts between slower, lower resistance). Good luck!

mehefin I personally haven't found heavy weight lifting or HIIT treadmill to bulk up my leg muscles at all; the muscles just lean out iyswim. If you have a tendency to bulk up then go for the longer steady state cardio work, but if you're not sure then just alternate the two types (long slow with short high). I mix the two types of cardio because I get bored easily.

Thanks alwaysanauntie and Bssh that's helpful. My excess weight tends to gather more on the thighs than the middle so I was worried about adding to the bulk !

Have you seen the dreaded daily fail has been at it again?

www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2418552/Weekends-weak-ends-slimmers-Dieters-consume-10-000-calories-weekend.html

Though it does contain this wonderful quote:
The 5:2 diet is becoming increasingly popular – where we limit our calories for five days and allow ourselves a few treats on the other two days. For many people, the two days off are Saturday and Sunday but they go way too far

Just to clarify, I don't read the df I picked that up from somewhere else.

always unfortunately I cannot stand sweetcorn. I have managed a mini clear out with some lemon juice in water and a cup of coffee (and saw a scale drop despite adding to my system so am happier now!). I shall be picking up some prune juice tomorrow.

Well done to all the losers!! Some amazing losses and tales here on progress.

Eatriskier. I'm sorry to hear of whiny toddler situation. And lack of sleep. Argh. It's a killer that one. Sort of similar here. 4yo DD is off school with a cold and temp. 2yo is cutting a molar and also has cold. So the whining and squabbling hasn't ceased from the moment they woke up. Ugh. Long day.

I fasted yesterday. Still couldn't get below 600 cals (does it count that I am as tall as a man? )

And overnight I lost 1lbs. But I also had a hair cut yesterday so perhaps it was hair loss rather than actual fat loss .

Anyway after a few weeks of taking up 6 week 6 pack again and not losing I am at 166lbs exactly this morning which is my lowest yet since having the DC.

Lets hope I don't eat 10,000 cals over the weekend Daily Fail style eh.