The continuing thread for those of us following the 5:2 fast or other forms of fasting such as 4:3, ADF, or daily 16:8.
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 normally - or approximately your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE - see explanation below). 4:3 is the same except you fast on 3 days in the week. Alternate-day fasting (ADF) is just how it sounds; you fast every other day. 16:8 is another form where you stick to only eating in an 8 hour window each day, therefore fasting for 16 hours each 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 or app 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.
NFD = Non fast day
NSV = Non scale victory
Michael Mosley has a website to accompany his book on the subject. Please go check it out, as he's the whole reason most of us are here!
Lurkers and new starters: please just jump in and post - you'll find a lot of support here and we’re a friendly bunch.
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 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!
eatriskier’s thread has some lovely inspiring stories which are worth checking out if you want some motivation to get started or keep going through a plateau. Please add your own too.
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.
This link nicely demonstrates that there are many body ‘right’ body shapes and types, because what we are actually aiming for is low body fat for fitness and 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!
Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.
Fasting / 5:2 diet
The 5:2 thread number 31 - Getting healthier one day at a time.
BetsyBell · 19/11/2013 10:36
not a bad FD but have just helped DTs out with their pizza, still under 600 though and have burned about 300 today so it'll do.
at sausage orgy!
somewhere - we are part of a triplets as I think someone else is my twin.
I have been eating a double decker for two days now and have barely had half 
.
I feel a bit like I have lost the enjoyment of stuffing my face but I do know it is for the best what with coming from a family of fat women and having 3 relatives who have died of cancer. I need to stay healthy for my children as I have no family living that bothers with me. It was fun or maybe not putting in my will that my parents and brother and sister are not allowed anywhere near my children should I die 
.
turkey - but not really, I'm definitely not a lady or lady like in the slightest, much to the chagrin of my DPs.
PPR I considered the biccie insignificant too 
. I liked that I didn't immediately want another one though :)
Turkey I like how your mind works! 
contemplates going to google sausage orgy
bssh that really puts it into perspective...you were almost twice as heavy as I am now at our height! What a fantastic achievement and it must have made a massive difference to your every day life and to the healthier future you can now expect.
betsy 1 choc digestive is extremely insignificant and definitely not detrimental to NND Those pesky pounds will go in time, just like the rest of them did.
How sweet you are turkey to even think that googling 'sausage orgy' would be a good idea!
Haven't seen many of the chaps around since we started talking lost sausages (ouch!) and spoonfuls of coqs...
Fd here. Not surprisingly, given my 4 day wkend, am finding rather easy so far.
Might even make it to a LOF at this rate as am only 40 cals in on hot drinks and not hungry yet.
So lemme get this straight.... We are clubbing MrF for Christmas??.... I trust all insurances are in place and up to date
...and BigChocReindeer is giving out Thors as Christmas presents for all???....
My, my what a multi-talented team the 5:2 massive are!
Not2be and all you other ladies (obviously this rules out EatRisky) - am so sorry if you were offended by coq-gate!
I realise what a genteel bunch we all are, which is precisely why I haven't yet shared a horrifying moment I had during our game of 'HowManySausagesHaveYOULost'.
The moment being, when I innocently decided to google Sausage Orgy, hoping to show Bssh what her missing sausages looked like.
I can tell you now. I didn't find them
Thank goodness I hadn't switched on google images yet! 
Now where are those vapours!
Ahem bigchoc, must confess all - I ate 1 chocolate digestive in the staffroom today - but it wasn't a fast day at least. BUT I didn't have another one and didn't even want one, so I'll take that as NND being successful…
Betsy Well done, sticking to NND despite the onslaught of bix and cake.
I felt really tempted at lunch. My morning meeting over-ran, so the canteen dessert table had only one fiddling pot of rice pud left .
They still had acres of huge choc cookies, donuts & Danish all calling my name, but I marched straight by.
I can have them on Friday !
Nearly there,HeadIn A final heave to lose that last 4lb ^
^
^
Well done, Rubbish.
If even your DD thinks you are thinner, it must be noticeable.
Height 5ft6
SW- 11st4 April 2013
Cut out fizzy drinks, got to 10st9, then started 5:2 July 2013 after gaining a few pounds on holiday.
GW- 9st7
CW- 9st3
Gone from a large size 14 to a small 10, body fat has reduced from about 32% (classed as obese, even though I was only bmi 25 or so) to about 23% (classed as fit). That's per the US navy calculator, according to my scales it's dropped from 36% to 25%. Good either way! I am at my lowest weight since about age 16 and have been happily maintaining for a month and a bit I think. Probably average a fast a week now, I just keep an eye on the scales to see if I need more 
.
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I couldn't think of anything but Slimming World for SW.
July 2012 - first time I realised I was fat 
. 13 stone 2lbs.
Did Pig 2 Twig and lost about a stone but it went back on.
October 2012 - 13 stone something - Started Diet Chef. Lost about a stone.
August 2013 - 12 stone 2 or 4lbs. Started 5:2.
CW - 11 stone 4.4lbs.
GW - would love to be 10 stone but haven't been that since 2000.
5 foot 6.
41 years old.
Oh yes pls Annielewis, do club together for a new H for Xmas
Perhaps
bigchocfrenzy can lend us one of her 6'5" Thor-like gym
Hunks! 
I'm 5'10" (and a half)
SW: 110kg (240lbs - 17 stone)
CW: 72kg still grrr (158lbs - 11.5 stone)
GW: 69kg (152lbs - 10 stone something)
And all that just to get back to where I were 5 years ago before I started breeding. Ho hum.
The last month has seen no loss for me. But given the amount of food frenzies I've had, its amazing I've not gain tbh.
Come on Bigchocfrenzy, give us a lend of a gym hunk!!
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