5:2, low calorie, low carb?

[Hugsgalore]

Hi everyone,

I know this has probably been done to death but I'm looking to drop about 2 stone before September if I can. I know it's not great and it's probably impossible but it's important that I do the best I can.

I'm quite big at 18st 10lbs and a size 20 and not very fit but am capable of walking etc.

I started calorie counting this week with MFP and have come in around 1300kal per day.

My husband seems to think that 5:2 might be better for me and if I can keep a healthy diet during the week and fast on 2 days then it might suit me better.

I'm looking for advice from anyone who has lost a fair bit of weight and what worked best.

Thanks... I'm desperate...

I did keto and lost 2.5 stone. Came off very quickly but keto is a pretty big commitment.
I've tried 5/2 but didn't like it. Felt very hungry during the low cal days and unable to regulate properly on normal days.
If I were you I'd low carb and calorie count. Though your calories sound pretty low given your current weight.
Avoid all carbs except for veg and berries and avoid sugar.
You could also try IF.
I IF as generally find it an easy way to regulate appetite.
It's all trial and error though. You have to find what works for you and what you find sustainable.

Good luck

My advice would be to make sure you eat enough! I lost a fair amount of weight a few years ago, by sticking to 1400 calories. I’m tall and active and 1400 calories just wasn’t enough for me. So the diet felt like really hard work and, to be honest, I wasn’t even dropping weight that quickly.

This time round, I’m sticking to 1700-1800 calories and the weight is flying off me. I’ve lost close to 2 lbs a week on average since I started in April and, most importantly, this way of eating feels sustainable. It hardly feels like a diet! If you Google “NHS BMI calculator” that will give you an estimate of how many calories you need to eat to maintain and loose weight.

What I’ve been doing is intermittent fasting (16:8), but most of the time I make sure that the food I eat during my eating window is really healthy (lots of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts etc). I don’t eat much sugar and keep refined foods to a minimum. That’s mainly because I have a lot of food intolerances, so it’s just easier for me to eat that way than rely on ready meals, preprepared sauces etc.

I’m starting to think that staying away from refined foods is also helping me to loose weight quicker. I’m reading a book at the moment called “why calories don’t count”, which talks about the differences in energy your body can absorb from whole foods vs processed stuff. Let’s just say it’s not very complimentary about highly processed foods!

Wow thank you both for the replies. I appreciate the help. I'm on day 3 of low calorie low carb and trying to do some walking etc too. I'm finding it a little too low calorie so I'll definitely check the NHS calorie recommendation.

Long-term this isn't sustainable for me but short term I'm hoping to lose 2 stone quickly. I need to get my bmi under 40.

Long-term I think some sort of intermittent fasting would probably be best for me along with a healthier choice of meals and cutting out junk food. I have a long way to go and it's very daunting. I'm determined to do it this time though and to keep it off.

16:8 works for me as I don't enjoy breakfast and prefer working out on an empty stomach. 16:8 combined with calorie counting (keeping to a deficit of between 500 and 750 a day, usually,) and keeping carbs low-ish is what finally got 5 1/2 stone off me and has kept it off. You may not be thrilled to hear that what has kept it off is continuing the exact same regime, but eating calories at maintenance level rather than a deficit.