New to 5:2 and have a question re: Cambridge Diet.

[BlackNoSugar]

We've decided as a family to all do the 5:2 diet, we could all do with losing a few pounds (or stone ) and this diet seems to have the most health benefits.

I have a friend who does the Cambridge diet and I looked at the bars/soups/shakes etc, it seems like they would be the easiest way to do the fast days - we are all crap at calorie counting, and DD particularly is very picky about food so most of the 'recipes' I've seen for fast day meals won't work for her.

Has anyone tried this? Is there any reason why it's not a good idea?

How old are your children?

The thing with the bars and such is that it won't help you with learning healthier eating habits you can stick to for life. For that reason it's best to eat real food with fast day meals mostly consisting of protein and veg.

Cambridge would be ok for your FDs - whatever suits you.
Many folk have small ready meals, whereas others have e.g. protein shakes, as in one of Michelle Harvie's studies.

BUT your DCs shouldn't be on 5:2 unless they are adults - that's advised by Mosely and Varady too.

Do you need to eat meals together with any child DCs ?
If so, I suggest keeping lean protein, carbs and veg in different dishes. If you have protein and pile a mass of veg onto your own plate, DD shouldn't be bothered that you are skipping carbs, but you can encourage her to have a higher proportion of veg than usual.

5:2 tends to cause people to eat more healthily on NFDs, which is when they can learn better longterm habits

No, DD is 17yo and hasn't decided yet whether she's doing it, I think she wants to see how we get on first! She's only a few pounds above her ideal weight, it's more that it seems 5:2 is a healthier way of living so if she does decide to do it I'm more than happy for her to.

I have never looked at 5:2 recipes. I have tasty soups or/and amended meals I would normally cook. Personally what I eat on a fast day has to be bloody yummy as there isn't that much. The thought of processed bars or soups really would hinder the whole way of eating.

If your DD does wish to try it, then while she is a teenager I suggest 1000-cal FDs instead of 500. The BFers (!) do this because it is much gentler on the body and enables more gradual weight loss.

We have a pretty good diet, I did SW for quite a while and got into the habit of loads of fruit and veg and very little processed food, and we all eat like that most of the time. So it's not a case of needing to change to healthier eating habits, more a case of needing to eat less - we all tend to have large portions, I started to use smaller plates but then we all went back for seconds. I think we're just in the habit of eating far too much. That's why I think 5:2 will be best for us, I think we'll be able to stick to the fast days knowing that we can eat normally the rest of the time.

I did the Cambridge diet late 2012 and lost 3 stone (unfortunately depression saw me put back on two of those!). Due to the cost of the CD and its restrictiveness, I'm doing 4:3 with protein shakes and 200cal meal for dinners on my fast days, which seems to be working well! I don't see why you couldn't do protein shakes for FDs (I see that Superdrug has brought our 5:2 'meals' with LigherLife but these are stupendously overpriced...)