Five weeks, nearly a stone lost - advice please!

[Smudge2201]

I am 43 and 5ft 7ins, and according to my wrist measurement I have a large frame. When I started five weeks ago I was 13st 9-10lbs. I’ve now 1.5lbs off of losing a stone. I’d like ideally to get to 11st.

I am doing the 16:8 intermittent fasting plan, and averaging about 1100-1200 calories a day. I feel good, albeit a bit tired. I am wondering whether I need to up my calorie count a little, but struggling to see how to do that without overdoing it.

An average day at the moment:

Bran flakes, Greek yogurt, berries and milk.

Satsumas x2 and grapes as snacks, and a couple of plain crackers.

Dinner something like chicken / fish with lots of salad or green veggies.

I’m enjoying it, but do feel a little low on energy. Can anyone see where I could add some healthy additions just to top up my intake and give me a bit more energy through the day? I am thinking it will take at least another 3mths or so to get to my goal weight.

I think mix it up - sometimes treat your 11am meal as breakfast and sometimes as lunch. You need variety to get different vitamins and nutrients.

Glad to hear that worked well for you! 😊 good luck with the diet

I also do 16:8 and stick to 1000-1200 calories – I’ve lost 6.5 stone this way and have been doing it for 18 months. Lots of trial and error but what I’ve discovered is that carbs make me feel like absolute shit AND have a direct impact on weight loss. Ditch the bran flakes for sure. I focus on protein and good fats, and bulk out meals with vegetables and a very small amount of whole grain carbs, and the only sweet things I eat are fruit and Greek yoghurt. (I should add that I only do this during the week – at the weekend I stick to 16:8 but eat whatever I fancy!) It’s been life changing for me. I slipped for a couple of months and started eating carbs regularly again, and not only did I gain an alarming amount of weight, I also felt HORRENDOUS – my energy levels plummeted, my skin broke out etc etc. I don’t necessarily think this would be the case for everyone but for me, carbs are just no good.