5:2 Thread 94 : Its a New Year, a New Day and we're feeling GOOD

[ListeningQuietly]

Welcome to the latest edition - 94,000 posts done and we are still here (just with less Chocolate Frenzy)

Links to lots of the ~ scientific information ~ hints and tips ~ abbreviations and terminology ~ are in the header of the last thread here
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/fasting_diet/4057993-5-2-Thread-number-93-Drive-in-the-fasting-lane-to-goal

But basically :
If you are new to fasting / 5:2 ~ welcome, introduce yourself and join in
If you are returning to 5:2 ~ welcome back
If you are a long standing Faster ~ great to see you still here

@Humphriescushion a lot of us skip breakfast and have the majority of our calories in the evening, or just one meal a day. I find that much easier in terms of defeating night time hunger pangs!

Welcome to Judy and Humphries

Judy
My favourite poison is a dry martini. Short, harsh, has to be sipped slowly. Or a margarita - short, harsh, has to be sipped slowly.
LOTS of ice in mixed drinks helps too

Humphries
I naturally do 16:8
because I'm not a breakfast person.
Even on an NFD my calorie split is
100 calories in milk in my gallons of tea, around 300 calories in lunch and the rest for dinner.
Planning a nice meal for the end of the day makes the tummy rumbles worth it.
On a Fast day, think vegetables as then you can have a big plate of food
have a look at this
sciencevibe.com/2015/06/15/what-does-200-calories-really-look-like/

Humphries yeah it's definitely easier the later in the day you start eating. Going to bed hungry is horrible!

I haven't calorie counted on non fast days yet and haven't been particularly strict and have lost all the weight that I put on in lockdown 1. However, I put weight on whilst furloughed so I boredom ate a lot and was almost completely inactive and I think this is why it has come off so easily. I think that I will need to be stricter to get down to a healthy BMI unfortunately.

Regarding skipping breakfast, I am not fasting today but have not felt hungry in the slightest so have not had anything to eat yet. I have a lunchtime strength class and I will have an omelette as soon as I am hungry.

Thank you everyone great advice. You have motivated me and i sure it is the way to go. Thanks @ listening i will look at 16:8 as well and i also am not bothered by breakfast.

Humphries
Another trick to structure the day is to plan a proper end to the day
(a poster from long ago would have a small square of DARK chocolate for dessert after dinner)
Also, brush your teeth straight after supper
as then your palette is clean for the evening

@ListeningQuietly HOW did that poster resist breaking off more than one square? HOW?!

(I want bourneville now)

harriet
IIRC it was things like the Green & Blacks 70%
I'm not a chocolate person but I gather it is SO strong that you can only nibble it.

@Humphriescushion

I find it easier to eat some of the same things on fast days so I don't need to count too much. So I will have a mug of miso soup and maybe some tomatoes and cucumber when I start to feel really hungry (mid afternoon) and a boiled egg some time late evening as it stops me feeling hungry and unable to sleep.

My main meal is generally 320 - 380 calories. I like to cook and have some ingredients that I know I like and are filling so I try and be inventive with these.
They are, prawns, seafood (Sainbury's do a 200g pack of seafood selection that only have 150 calories in the whole pack), beans, mushrooms, sea bass and most non-starchy vegetables. I tend to make things with these in various combination.

My other advice is to use olive oil spray to roast veg or to fry things without adding loads of extra calories and ensure your food has a lot of flavour. I feel like spicy food is much more satisfying so tend to add quite a lot chilis which are very low in calories.

Thanks for that @ kylie and listening. Yes think i will keep it simple and stick to same things till i feel more confident with calorie counting. Good idea about egg and chocolate - maybe not together .
Going to do first fast day on monday but calorie count until then. Checked my calorie thing and said 1650 so presume then on fasting day i aim for 400 calories?

Humphries
On a Fast day, do not go below 500
If you are using an App set to weight loss it will lower your numbers ....
The key figures are

• current sedentary TDEE

and sedentary TDEE at happy weight those will give you the basis for a weekly plan.

Ok thanks @ listening, will go to 500 calories Lots of reading to do!

How much calories is it women are meant to have in a day again? 1800?

ListeningQuietly ooh yeah a strong harsh drink is good. I've got margarita stuff here too 🍸

Got gin and tonic tonight, it's not slimline but honestly I don't think I can do it, it's grim.

Have treated myself to a craft gin subscription instead of the wine one I had.

So I was on track, but the update on Dad isn't great. He has cancer. I think today might just disappear in a bucket of chocolate and wine.

Hoping my waist does as well!

Sorry, that was in response to Harriet about stomach size shrinking on a FD.

I'm sorry gin, it sounds like you've had a tough day.

So sorry to hear that @ginsparkles

Thanks both.

Oh @ginsparkles I am so sorry - I've dealt with, and am dealing with, elderly poorly parents and it's a TOUGH gig. Drown yourself in wine and start again tomorrow xx

Yeah definitely take the night off.
Self care comes in many forms 🍷 🍫
Sorry about your dad

Hello Friday fasters - last fast day of the week completed.
Bought myself a nice dress in the sale and I can do it up but it is a bit too tight ( pulls a bit) so will be good motivation to keep going back to my pre Xmas weight ( will just hang bit better).

Gosh @missfliss you look like an after picture to me!

@KylieKoKo Thankyou!
I'm not trying to lose much really - maximum 10 pounds now. But this time last year I was 12 pounds heavier than I am now! Ao I am making progress