IF / ADF / 4:3 / 5:2 / 6:1 / 16:8 ~ Maintaining at a healthy weight ~ Chapter 5

[TalkinPeace]

This thread is for those of us who have been practicing IF (Intermittent Fasting) for quite a while ( it being nearly 2 years since the Michael Mosely TV programme aired ) and are now at, or nearing, their target healthy weight.
It's also for anyone who is doing it for the health benefits alone.

How do we mix fasts and a stable food intake while having little or no weight to lose?
How do we ensure that this WOL keeps us at the healthy weight long term rather than revert to yoyo games?
How do we ensure that we keep ourselves looking great rather than just thin?

More and more of us have been maintaining at our original goal weight for many months, and others are joining all the time.
Obviously, the more the merrier!
It is also worth considering whether a second, leaner target might be achievable.

You'll find the first four maintenance threads and all the main 5:2 threads for posters practising IF to lose weight here Fasting / 5:2 on the diet forum. We're currently on thread no. 46, but there is a new main thread every 2-3 weeks.

There are three other associated threads:
This one, which is an absolute goldmine of Tips and Links on how to practice IF, and the research behind it.

And here is a treasure trove of 5:2 recipes, mostly low calorie for fasting days, but there are also recipes for when you want to treat yourself. And, now we're maintaining, we'll need more of these!

Since I started the last Maintainers thread the importance of exercise has come even more to the fore, as part of our general health and to help weight loss. BigChocFrenzys thread is here

Bigchoc. Thanks.
The part about chemicals in household objects is the sort of thing which brings me out on a cold sweat and makes me worry for DD and DS.

It's a tough job to keep them safe and do the best for them.

Sugar, alcohol and chemicals. It sounds easy to avoid but the hidden crap lurks everywhere.

Lovely weekend here. Did my marathon in duo yesteday morning with a friend (I ran the first 23kms she ran 19)and we won the women's duo category, 3H27mins. A nice trophy, 80€ between us and also won a holiday in a draw so it was a good mornings work
Not fasting today because of yesterday's effort, weight stable.

You and your chum are the champs, Anglaise ! Very fast time too

Duo sounds such an unusual event AND winning a holiday (!) plus €80 ice cream money.

Hop everyone is well? In Cornwall at the moment for family holiday....I have put on approx a stone over the past couple of weeks so probably shouldn't be on here at all but holding off weighing myself until I get home. Entirely my fault: I think I got a bit complacent in the few weeks before we came away, and the lbs started creeping up slowly. Then 2 weeks of family time, cream teas and ice creams and whoops....

At least I know what I need to go when I get home. But I wish I didn't know it was going to take 3 or 4 months to put the damage right again.

We're having a fairly grim few days at the Bedruthan steps hotel at the moment....definitely not what I came for! Oh well, at least we had a nice week self catering near st Ives first....

Filly The main thing is that you enjoyed the first part of your holiday...and you know what to do when you get back. Sorry that the hotel hasn't been as good as the self catering accommodation (as a self catering accommodation owner I'm biased!)
BigChoc Offering a marathon in duo means more competitors so more money to spend on the organisation and prizes. The shorter the races (5 & 10k for example) the more numerous the competitors.
My competition yesterday was just for the marathonians and those running in duo so pretty serious. Chapeau to the marathonians, I don't think I could have done another 20kms easily especially as it was getting quite hot by 10am!

Dashes in to say Hi!
Have just been at Camp Bestival which was 'interesting' as DH was working.
Now doing laundry before heading to the West Coast (ATB's one but north) later in the week.

Ate FAR less at the festival than I normally would, and drank less. But the food there WAS yummy especially the paella and pad thai!

Well done on marathon!! Very impressive!

TIP Camp Bestival. You're brave! I'm waaaaay over the hill for festivals of any kind. Enjoy your upcoming hols.

Should be working on my website (I was until 10mins ago) but now drinking tea and MNing. DC are out with a babysitter for a picnic which has given me a few precious hours of peace.
They were both up during the night (foxes fighting loudly and scaring the hell out of us all) so I feel like going to bed for a snooze if I'm honest.

Eaten v healthily so far today. Hope to keep it up.

To you all

Got home on Weds night and the scales reckon I'm about 5lbs up, which considering the number of cream teas I have consumed over the past 2 weeks isn't actually all that bad

FD on Thursday, and a mini fast yesterday, and thought it was dropping well, but BBQ for dinner last night and all of it went straight back on. Sadly, I think it's going to take a while to shift....

Just read you post upthread bigchoc - pretty much just given me all the motivation I need to get back on the straight and narrow (I miss narrow!) post-holiday. I feel pretty rubbish and I blame the booze, ice cream and solid white carbs.

We have another holiday in a couple of weeks but there will only be the small family unit which means it should be easier as I can prepare normal meals rather than attempting to feed 10 and padding everything out with bloody pasta! I rarely eat pasta normally. My system is full of things I normally avoid or at least have only in moderation.

So filly, my fellow Cornish holidayer, we need to do this! I'm attempting a fast tomorrow. I have my main meal of Thai veg and fish curry planned, with ribboned courgettes throughout so as to avoid bulking up with noodles! I don't like noodles but my DH does. He's not getting any though

Hi everyone. I've also put weight on but unfortunately I don't have lovely holiday memories to help compensate

It's 5lbs over 2.5 weeks. I'd love to say it's all muscle but an expanded waist and love handles are proof that I'd gone well and truly off the wagon having gone a bit cocky shortly after my anniversary post last month . I've been doing a bit of snacking and munching on chocolate most evenings (I've rediscovered Cadburys Bournville, both the plain kind and the rum and raisin one they do, the latter is the most dangerously moreish chocolate I've ever eaten!). Not posting or even lurking on here probably didn't help either.

But I've fasted today eating cleanly and had a good gym session so I'm back on track. I've now got the Lustig book and really will start it in the week to help with motivation.

Best of luck to filly and Betsy - we're going to do it!

Hello everyone.

Still here, still maintaining, just quietly reading.

It's my birthday so I've come on to give you all some and . I am not closer to 40 than 30. But given I feel about 3 decades younger than I did 2 years ago I'm oddly ok with this.

Have a good Sunday all

*now, I am now closer to 40 ffs. That autocorrect makes that a whole different sentence. Maybe I shouldn't have dished the out so early

Happy birthday eat! I will decline the and thanks . I'm 40 next year - feeling better than I ever did 10 years ago though! (had just had a baby though ) and life is better in every way so feeling fine with that

Ok, I did weigh in and it wasn't nearly as dramatic as I thought, only 3.5lbs off my very lowest weight and therefore only a couple of lbs up on my pre-holiday. They are very jiggly booze and ice cream pounds though! The worst kind.

However, I know from past, pre-5:2 experience that once my body is happily in weight gain mode (and my mind in holiday eating mode) it will continue on, so while I'm breathing a sigh of relief I am most definitely on a fast day today.

Southeast it sounds like you've had a holiday of sorts but have now put a firm full stop to it. Don't buy that moreish chocolate - I suspect it only comes in largeish packs right? And packed full of sugar no doubt. Definitely better off with the expensive, good quality, high percentage stuff that's hard to eat much of. And yes, we can do this!

Well I'm feeling like a right lard arse as the food here in Northern California is yummy and the portions are HUGE.
All four of us are getting into ordering side and child portions and STILL not finishing them.
If only they knew how to make tea!

It will be STRICT 4:3 for me when I get home!

Happy Birthday eatriskier
my next birthday is a zero

Happy Birthday, Eat I hope you had a wonderful day.

Happy birthday Eat. Hope you got spoilt rotten .

Hi Betsy. Thanks for positively reframing my blip, I feel much better about it now - we all need blow-out periods now and then, I suppose. The Bourneville chocolate does indeed come in slab size (180 grams). I think seeing so much of it when I'm at home after it's been opened makes me want to eat a lot of it, and it being not that dark doesn't help also. I've just chucked the last bit (about 40 grams) into the food recycling caddy, more of a symbolic thing than anything. So it's back to Green and Blacks 70% cocoa from next week (God help me if they bring out a rum & raisin flavour!). Eaten well today and well and truly back in the driving seat again.
Fasting either tomorrow or Tuesday, depending on how well I've slept.

Yes! A good fast day has done the job - only a pound up on my 'happy' weight. Today's eating better be good though - I'm back on the no sugar/white carbs/booze regime so how wrong can it go?!

I now have to remember what meals I cook normally and restock a bit...

And get back to my usual exercise routine...

I haven't run for a week now...am determind to stick to 10 days off. Plenty to do to keep me occupied with the gites, garden and pool even without the kids who are in the UK with their dad. I should be fasting but am not for the moment as scales OK. Haven't dared yet measure my waist, though.
New BF is skinny, he doesn't eat much and is a very fussy and very simple eater (the first Frenchman I've met who hates cheese and sauces on food) so no worries about putting on weight due to over eating with him.

Thought I would drop in to say hi, as I have pretty much shifted the weight I wanted to lose by doing 5:2 since January. It's certainly worked as a WOL for me, as even a blow out (in terms of eating and drinking) holiday in South Africa last month I managed to gain only 2lbs, which have gone already after a couple of good FDs.

Looking forward to the kids going back to school next week, so that I can get back into cycle rides and long walks during the day, as I have missed my exercise over the last few weeks (never thought I would ever say that!).

Eatriskier happy birthday

Hope you celebrated. Never mind being close to 40. I'm well over that threshold although in denial about it

Having a shocker with some woman on eBay who wants to buy DS cotbed. Why is eBay suddenly such as pain in the arse?? Have all the sensible folk gone elsewhere?

Anyway happy FD to all those persevering.

I'm no longer logging into MFP just now and doing FD here and by guesstimate. Working so far as I am maintaining.

Mrs F - if you are selling the cotbed for collection only, take cash on collection once they have inspected it. DON'T take PayPal, as you won't have proof of delivery. If they collect, they are deemed to have inspected it and accepted it once they hand over the cash.

TBH, I found eBay such a faff I tend to sell things on Gumtree, cash on collection.

SED I like 90% Lindt Mild Excellence, loads of antioxidants and just 120 cals, 1.5g sugar for 20g. The Mild is not as bitter as most other high % choc.
It takes a few tries to get used to it, but afterwards it is so chocolatey you only need 10-20g.
I dissolve a big square with oat bran, cinammon and almond milk for my Deviant Porridge,^ a very satisfying Choc dessert or light meal.

Squirrled. Yes. Thank you. I listed it as cash on collection. No couriers as I can't package it and no PayPal either (bitter experience).

And the lady who won the auction wants me to package the fecking massive cotbed and wait for a courier and take PayPal .

So it looks like I will be relisting it!

A total pain in the arse. I think I may try gumtree.

Made the most amazing Thai green curry. Made my own paste but this time my paste was the best ever. Soooo yummy. DH is in for a treat when he eventually arrives home.

DC refused to eat the lovely chicken fajitas I made for them. Too yukky and disgusted apparently. I am making them eat carrot and cucumber sticks and chunks of the chicken from the fajita. Apparently its now yummy.

I give up. The protests over whatever I serve up are driving me crazy. I usually stick to my guns.
It's been daily of late. Even pancakes were turned down on Saturday so they are clearly just trying it on. Naughty.

Bigchoc. I love oaty, chocolately cinnamony things. Mmmmm. Makes me want to bake.....

< drools over Thai green curry, chicken fajitas, pancakes .... chez MrsF. >
Your DCs turn their noses up at that !

Bigchoc. The naughty children are going through a phase of saying no to absolutely everything. It's a nightmare. Pushing boundaries like nothing else.

DH ate both the left over fajitas and his portion of Thai curry. Said it was yummy.

I'm thinking about your yummy porridge with cinnamon and choc
In. Do you add vanilla as well
Or would that be overkill?? Mmmm making some tomorrow.