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

I totally avoid soya more than anything else. A big problem previously with vegan diets was the reliance on over processed food to compensate for loss of meat, and too much soya. Now that almond milk is readily available (and where I live cheaper than organic cows milk - we ony but organic milk here because normal milk the cows are injected with hormones and have terrible quality of life), and there are so many great blogs and books promoting vegan food without processed crap it's a lot better. I'm finding it easy to have a mainly vegan diet without needing soya or tofu at all

I do miss good British lamb and good pork - I didn't eat pork for 7 years as a teenager because we kept pigs and I became emotional attached. My fall down was a bacon butty.

In the USA though nice meat at a reasonable price is hard to come by so it's easier to avoid. And I've pretty much gone right off beef anyway, which helps!

Well I've just stuffed my face on a roast beef lunch ...
ATB, when you are next over, come 50 miles west of your parents and visit
pigs : yup I get that people become attached
but interestingly (ex veggie) friends of ours raised turkeys
bit stress because they thought their boys might get attached to them
nope
turkeys are so thick and irritating that the boys were pleased to kill one early for thanksgiving !
being served with "harveys left leg" was a tad strange though
BUT
that is the reality : if you care, it fits
and without animals there are no hedgerows

Bigchoc
all of the "increased cancer risk" stuff is relative
doubling from 1 in 10000 to 1 in 5000 is still teeny
when I see the much more likely health risks I tend to ignore anything at the under 1:1000 mark unless its easy

Without animals there are no hedgerows
So true. One of the things I love about where I live in Brittany is that there are still lots of cows, so lots of fields with hedgerows. The countryside is very pretty.
Sadly the way pigs are farmed is intensive: battery and cruel - nearly pigs are bred indoors and the result is numerous unhappy pigs which result in high water pollution - my tap water tastes like a swimming pool. Pork is cheap but I'd rather pay more for outdoor reared pigs.
Fasting will start again this week, I did a 10,6km race in the sand today on a beach in Normandy, 15 out of 92 in my Veteran 1 category, 55mins so not too bad. Plus I go to Veteran 2 later this year so I was the oldest in my category today
Relationship with new BF going very well and DC adore him so a very happy house here. Eating slightly more as a result so fasting will re-start, would like to lose 2kgs to get back to 57kgs for my 39km trail race mid September.
ATB good luck with your triathlon training, am in awe, would love to do one but need swimming lessons to master the crawl (I'm a breast stroke girl).
Congrats to your daughter TIP what a clever girl!
Mrs F enjoy your hols...
I watched the Dr M programme but didn't find it that interesting. But I don't eat much processed meat anyway. I just wish my family enjoyed fish more so I could eat it more often!

Motivation to maintain a healthy weight:

Oxford University research has found that
The earlier age age at which people become obese, the more likely they are to suffer from dementia later. BMJ , MedNews , Indie

Those who became obese at 30-39 have 3.5 x risk of later dementia. No figures for those who became obese even younger (obesity was so rare at the time when dementia sufferers were kids and 20s) but presumably the effects would be even worse.
The research appears to only examine those who remain obese, so logically those who manage to reach and maintain a healthy weight should reduce their risk wholly or mostly back to the average.

Interestingly, obesity onset at 70 is neutral and onset at 80+ apparently lowers the risk for the over-80s.
Extra padding in old age is thought to be possibly beneficial in fighting off some serious illnesses, so maybe dementia is one of these ?
Maybe longterm obesity is dangerous, but obesity starting in the very elderly is ntbo shorter lasting, so maybe less dangerous than lacking nutrients when the body can't absorb them as well.

Anyway, all of us here want to maintain weight - and I do NOT recommend B&W starts mainlining Lindt

Excuse the DM link but here www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2733767/Breakfast-NOT-important-meal-day-Scientists-not-kickstart-metabolism-aid-weight-loss.html
Looks like our approach to fasting and skipping breakfast (16:8ers among us like me) have totally the right idea. Even Dail Fail are onboard.

Yes, if you compare similar groups of people breakfast has no particular benefit.
(but if you like breakfast, you can do 16:8 by skipping supper)

I posted this 10 days ago on the main thread, when Snout was worried skippimg breakfast was going against everything she had been taught:

Myth: Skipping breakfast is bad and will make you fat

A theory much pushed by breakfast cereal manufacturers

Large epidemiological studies do show an association with breakfast skipping and higher body weights in the population.
However, most people skipping meals are not IFers but are disorganised eaters, or "on the run", who then eat high-calorie junk later in the day, e.g. crisps, pastries, biscuits, muffins, latte at 11am or 3pm.

People skipping breakfast as part of an eating plan, mindful of overall calories, are completely different to junk bingers.

Can you lot help? Despite nearly 18m of 5:2 I've hit an idea wall!

What the hell can I eat for dinner on the go that will fill me up, not be a calorie bomb and not be too massive to cart around? I'm not concerned with sticking to something like a 500 cal limit, but I would prefer something that wasn't over 1000. I would have considered popping into Subway but there isn't one without going well off route, and where I'm headed doesn't really have any so called healthier fast food outlets or decent restaurants!

Have been wondering how I got to this point with no clue then realised I haven't really been in a non lunch on the go situation (where I'm either happy to skip or have something lighter) for a long time.

Small shish kebab - with all the salad trimmings you can squeeze in

From a curry place : dhal / tofu options

From a chinese : steamed veg, dim sum, chicken and cashews

From an Italian : two different side salads / a starter

basically think tapas from any sort of fooderie and you'll get there

Oooh, shish. I'd never have thought of that. And there's some good places there. I knew someone would be able to solve that pdq!

Oh, and thank you very much tip!

HTH

Still lurking, sorry I haven't been posting.

Have rather fallen off the wagon over the past 6 weeks and struggling to get back on track. May need to join the Backsliders thread...

I need a solid kick up the arse, mainly. I keep getting back to within spitting distance of an acceptable weight (9.3-9.5 = acceptable) - around 9.5/9.6, then the weekend arrives and I'm suddenly back at 9.9 on a Monday morning. It's been the same for weeks, but the numbers keep on creeping up a tiny bit each time, so I never really reset the clock, just move the dial down a bit.

Went camping at the weekend, and didn't think I ate or drank all that much - plus we were really active. But still exited the weekend at 9.10. FD yesterday, and back to 9.7.6 this morning.

Trying to stick to 16:8 today, despite mammoth hunger pangs all morning. FD again tomorrow. But really cross with myself.

I've obviously got really complacent, and in a way I think stopping posting/reading this board is a sign of that- a bit like not turning up to AA meetings and then relapsing, I imagine (although clearly waaaay less bad!). For example, I'd forgotten how effective 16:8 can be until I caught up yesterday...somehow that had fallen out of my WOE once I stopped being mindful.

Maybe 16:8 alone will do the trick. Or having a limit of one pud or drink on 2 days per week, none for the other 5.

If not, I know it's a pain, but can you recalculate your TDEE for goal weight & realistic activity level, then mfp a few weekends ?
Sounds like you might be a bit surprised if you knew your weekend calories.
There are many techniques to suggest, once we know the facts.

If you can get to 3lb below goal, you might maintain without much effort.

I think the goal has to be realistic though doesn't it - a healthy weight that is achievable given a person's lifestyle. My goal is always 9.4 and I do hit it every now and then but I seem to hover around the 9.6-9.7 range most of the time when I am in 'normal' mode. i.e. eating healthily most of the time, fasting at least once a week and going out occasionally. Getting down to 9.4 and staying there needs effort and planning.

I'm thinking that the 9.6 / 9.7 weight is probably a more realistic norm for me than 9.4. It would be very easy to get discouraged by not hitting the magic 9.4 but I refuse to be discouraged by 2-3lbs when I've lost so much and maintained for so long - that way lies the 'sod it, broke the diet might as well binge' attitude.

We're a similar weight filly and I don't think you've fallen off the wagon at all - you are experiencing a normal fluctuation because of heavy socialising. If I go down to below what I can easily maintain then it's counterproductive as life just becomes a weight battle - and I don't want that.

Filly with your job (which seems very demanding also in terms of the social side) 5:2 can't be easy. I get the impression that you don't have time for sport either, to burn off extra calories on normal days. I don't think you are overweight at the weight you currently are, but I understand your frustration. Maybe 16:8 as BC suggests would be more of an option - are you obliged to eat out a lot in the evenings? I don't think you are overweight at all at your current weight (I think I'm the same height) but I know it is frustrating to be out of your comfort zone.

Hi all. Haven't been posting as going through a personal whirlwind at the moment and have a ton on my mind so feeling very unsettled. But I'm still maintaining thankfully.

filly I think you're being too hard on yourself and that you need to remind yourself what you've achieved as well as thinking of a weight that is truly sustainable and realistic for you in the long-term, which 9.3-9.5 doesn't seem to be.

great post from catsrus and I concur - my ideal is 133lbs but actually I hover around 135lbs without too much of an impact on my life and I should probably be happy with that and tone the rest up.

I haven't fasted properly in ages and am seriously overindulging in ice cream to make up for chewing so FD proper tomorrow

Agree about ideals ....
If I'm strict I can get down to 8st 10 = 122 lb
I can easily hover around 9 st = 126 lb
am currently around 130 lb because I've done sod all exercise and fasting this summer
BUT
its useful to have the tools in the box to drop weight if we need to (eg times when we'll be in front of a camera) without stress
and I know that if I go much over 130 my knees start to hurt again

((( Southeast ))) you'll be fine

Thanks all - I really appreciate your wise words and common-sense approach You guys all totally rock.

You're all absolutely right: I'm not really overweight at the moment, but I'm experiencing the fear of losing control. I wasn't desperately overweight to begin with (started around 10.2), so it's hard to recognise that it is normal to fluctuate 5-7lbs now and again (especially after a busy few days), as that takes me a long way back towards where I started...

After a FD on Tues and a semi-sensible day yesterday, I kicked off this morning at 9.5.8. Was fasting today right up until 10 mins ago when a colleague landed a slice of chocolate cake on my desk, with a fork and napkin. I meant to taste a tiny corner, as I hadn't had time between meetings to find anything to eat/drink all day and ended up scoffing eating the whole thing :( I'm going to try and pretend that hasn't happened and ignore the mini bounty i snorted earlier and stick to a sub-500 dinner, but it feels like some part of my brain is determined to undermine myself...aaargh....

Is the answer to redefine my ideal weight? Hmm. Not sure. 9.3 has been my 'perfect weight' for many years, and where I was pre-dcs (admittedly with gargantuan amounts of effort and almost no food, ever), and post ds, before the dds came along. I was quite gobsmacked that just doing 5:2 took me down to 9.3 and then actually started heading towards 9.2/9.1 before I put the brakes on and moved onto 6:1. So I think it's an ok place to aim for: I'm a scrap under 5'8", but have a very slim frame (no arse or bum, despite big norks), so I don't look skeletal until I get to 8 stone something.

((((SouthEast)))) - still waiting to meet up with you for sushi....let me know when life settles down a bit.

(({ Southeast })) Hope everything works out ok for you and life calms down again.

well I went to the gym for the first time in nearly a month today.
Had only put on 2 lb, but my waist has gone up a couple of inches.
Back to the toning - eating seems under control

Mmmmm : meeting up for Sushi in London ....

Yes I need to sort out toning too - I'm currently 2lbs under what I was post bike ride but look bigger thanks to no exercise!

Good FD yesterday, for the first time in yonks. Going to go back to 16:8 as well

Toning = build muscle + lose fat