5:2 intermittent fasting

shonat11

Hi folks,
Anybody out there doing intermittent fasting?
I've decided this is the way to go for me and would be interested in hearing from others........

sijomial

I liked it for my weight loss - please do it the way it's designed though as too many people cut also calories on the 5 days which isn't the idea at all. The transition to maintenance at goal weight was very easy as I was already used to eating at maintenance.

Experimentation with how to use the meagre calorie allowance on the 2 fasting days helps make those days easier (less hard in reality!). I liked to skip breakfast and eat lunch and dinner, my wife preferred to skip lunch.
Making the meals really tasty helped me, as did making sure I savoured my food rather than just bolt it down.

Do be aware that it really doesn't suit everyone, some hate it, some like me far prefer it to the more usual every day deficit.

Johnd2000

I did 5:2 at 1800/800 for 9 months. I hadn’t found MFP at that point, so I only kept a rough count of calories.

I wouldn’t recommend it. I lost a lot of muscle. Looked like I was half dead when I hit my target. I’m now about 5kg below that weight, and look much healthier, using MFP and a Fitbit to manage a small deficit/surplus when needed.

sijomial

Johnd2000 wrote: »

I did 5:2 at 1800/800 for 9 months. I hadn’t found MFP at that point, so I only kept a rough count of calories.

I wouldn’t recommend it. I lost a lot of muscle. Looked like I was half dead when I hit my target. I’m now about 5kg below that weight, and look much healthier, using MFP and a Fitbit to manage a small deficit/surplus when needed.

For contrast I was eating 2500 (my maintenance back then) and 600 for a 1lb a week loss and retained muscle, it supported my training very well as most of my training and recovery was fully fuelled.

Deviette

My mum does it and finds it really works for her. Me, I hated it. I really like the concept of this diet, but it really doesn't work for me at all.

The key is to make sure you're really eating about maintenance on your "5" days. If you eat too low on those days, then the "2" days are going to be complete hell. It may be tempting to eat at a deficit on the "5" days, but you really do risk losing too quickly and that isn't sustainable. It's also good training for when you reach your goal weight. One thing to remember is to constantly reevaluate your maintaining calories. As you lose weight, your calories will need to reduce on your "5" days too keep up. In addition finding the right maintenance calories isn't easy (just go check out the maintenance forum for examples), so don't be disheartened if you're not getting the "correct" results initially. Keep adjusting.

Remember that the idea is NOT to over indulge on your "5" days. You can easily completely negate your "2" days by eating at a small excess on the "5" days.

And remember, if you don't like it, there's nothing wrong with trying something else.

FrankCanDoit

I did this years ago on my own by just cutting allot of food out and being hungry for a couple of days. Didn't realize I was doing intermittent fasting technique till after the fact but it sure worked. I ate my required amount everyday as I should and then 2 or 3 days out of the week I would cut calories. For those days I ibasically having little to no lunch and a small dinner. Bit tough to sleep at first cause I was a little hunting going to bed but Once I got used to it the sleeping was easy. It's good to go to bed like that you will lose weight over night

psychod787

IF, is just a tool to create a caloric deficit, or fit a lifestyle. Could do 6:1. Eat normal 4 days and eat a deeper deficit 3 days a week. Up to you.

shonat11

Hi everyone, thanks for your posts. It's good to have tips from others and find out how different people do with this diet.
I find it suits me better than trying to cut back every day.
I'll see how the weight loss goes........