Every Other Day Diet--anyone else on this diet?

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  • fastforlife1
    fastforlife1 Posts: 459 Member
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    I have never succeeded with daily calorie restriction. I tried eat stop eat but never found it easy. It is weirdly easier to do a semi fast EOD. My appetite has shrunk on the eat days also. Plus the author Dr Varady is also a researcher with 10 years of studies under her belt. I find her tips and research extremely helpful. I highly rec com end this program. PS - maintain dance is 1000. Calories EOD.
  • tishaj888
    tishaj888 Posts: 1
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    Nice to see people having success with this eating plan! My husband and I started EOD on July 1. So far he's lost 8 pounds and I've lost 12! Some days are easier than others but overall it seems to be working. I was curious if anyone was experiencing headaches! I'm pretty sure its related to water intake.
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
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    Nice to see people having success with this eating plan! My husband and I started EOD on July 1. So far he's lost 8 pounds and I've lost 12! Some days are easier than others but overall it seems to be working. I was curious if anyone was experiencing headaches! I'm pretty sure its related to water intake.

    your body will typically adapt

    the circadian rhythm will adapt
  • angie007az
    angie007az Posts: 406 Member
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    I guess you have to read her book to understand what I'm talking about.

    I appreciate all your feedback and thank you for your input.

    I have been researching this subject for a couple of months now, and I was kind of looking for someone who was familiar with Dr. V's EOD so we could do it together.

    I won't go into all my reasons for preferring this diet over eating 1500 calories a day--except for this one: with the EOD, I am not hungry all the time, whereas if I try to eat a restricted calorie diet every day, I feel like I'm starving and I usually go off the diet.

    Thanks again everyone, and hope the best for you all!

    I use the books on 5:2 and ADF to lose weight. I sometimes fast for no reason at all. I feel great when I fast and I've been using that method since I was a teenager. I also just fresh lemons in my water when I fast. The juice is just enough to keep me from feeling yucky or getting a headache. I will send you a friend request.
  • angie007az
    angie007az Posts: 406 Member
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    Just got my copy of her new book, Krista Varady,PhD "The Every Other Day Diet". She conducted scientific research and developed this plan: on the Modified Fast day, you eat (total) 500 calories for either lunch or dinner, and then the next day, the Feast day, you eat whatever you want and keep alternating days--Fast day, Feast day, etc. The book is very convincing because she backs up her statements with research that was published in various medical journals.
    I've tried it on and off since I heard of it about a month ago, but I haven't been consistent. Even what I've done, though, I see benefits.
    Now that I have the book, I want to practice the diet in earnest. Information about the diet is here: http://www.eoddiet.com.
    Is there anyone else who has tried or is going to try EOD?

    How do you work out on days when you've only consumed 500 calories?

    Easily. I walk 5 miles every day no matter how many calories I've had. Your body gets use to it I guess.
  • Fit_Chef_NE
    Fit_Chef_NE Posts: 110 Member
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    "Diets" don't work. Changes in lifestyle that are sustainable do. Sure, you lose the weight, but if you don't adopt changes that will be easy to stick to for the rest of your life, it will all come back on. Maybe you can eat 500 calories every other day for the rest of your life. I know I couldn't. And the moment you go back to eating full calories everyday, you will have problems. If I were you, I'd try to find a way to lose weight that means making a commitment every day. But of course, I'm not you.

    My fear would be not being able to cut back on my "eat anything I want" days when I stop doing the 500 calorie days. The happy medium would teach you how to be disciplined all the time. I think that's why this is more a fad diet and not something that most people can or would do. You are still not really dealing with the binging and overeating that got you where you are if you give in to those binges 3-4 times a week.

    I could be totally wrong obviously and I really hope this will work for you forever. But I know I would not want to be stuck eating like that for the rest of my (hopefully) long life.
  • kimadele315
    kimadele315 Posts: 1
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    I have started this but combined it with the 8 hour diet on "feast days". I am really enjoying not thinking about food at all. It is working extremely well for me.
  • focused4health
    focused4health Posts: 154 Member
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    I have heard of it but it doesnt seem like a healthy management plan. For example I did cardio today and also a lot of movement with the dog grandkids etc. So accorfing to MFP and Fitbit I burned 680 odd calories over my BMR which if I ate only 500 calories then I would be -183 calories. So where do you get the energy to exercise or even exist? I am not knocking it but at my age, weight and fitness levels I reckon the insulin levels would be all over the place.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    I have read about it and the two diet books that have been around before are actually based on the studies performed by the author of this book (and she has been researching the subject for years). From what I understand she is releasing this book because her research was taken out of context and results applied to a method that may not produce the same results as her findings which may or may not apply to fasting 2 days a week.

    I have no problem with this approach personally, and I have tried some variation of it a few times, but it's not for me. Sends my blood sugar out of whack. My own diet is pretty variable in calories so it's pretty similar, though not as extreme as 500 calories. I can see this working.

    One of the findings of one of her studies is that after the first week or two adaptation period the hunger signals on feeding days taper off so you aren't bringing as much as you thought you would. If I remember correctly the energy intake on feeding days averaged around 110% of energy expenditure and is mediated by the fasting days.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    I have heard of it but it doesnt seem like a healthy management plan. For example I did cardio today and also a lot of movement with the dog grandkids etc. So accorfing to MFP and Fitbit I burned 680 odd calories over my BMR which if I ate only 500 calories then I would be -183 calories. So where do you get the energy to exercise or even exist?

    From your fat stores, that is the point of a weight loss diet - to make you use up some of your reserves.

    Practically everybody has 100,000 calories or more of fat on board.
  • DeWitch
    DeWitch Posts: 34 Member
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    Have been on this for a little over a month now - I LOOOVE it.
    It is has been easy for me since the start as I almost never eat until noontime anyway so had already come close to intermittent fasting.

    Have been eating only healthy (and grain-free) foods for many months but still wasn't losing weight.
    Since I started this I have lost at least 12 lbs., maybe more.

    On the fast day I do one meal (approx. 400 cals.) and one snack (approx. 100 cals.) and for the person who mentioned they wouldn't try it because they would be using up all the 500 cals. on their fast day in exercise, I "use" those too if I feel like it and I still lose.

    I enjoy both days - eat as much (within reason) as I want of good food on the feast day - and much less meal preparation and dishes to do on the fast day:) Hubby has to make his own meals that day;) He is retired so it doesn't hurt him at all!
  • FisherGT
    FisherGT Posts: 55 Member
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    that sounds horrendous!
  • DeWitch
    DeWitch Posts: 34 Member
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    that sounds horrendous!
    If you are commenting on my post - WHAT do you know???
    I feel great, am not at all starving or feeling even a little deprived
    AND it works for me
    I guess your name says it all for you;)
  • amsecchi
    amsecchi Posts: 19 Member
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    This topic is perfect for me, I wanted to give it a try but wasn't sure it would work. I was finding mantaining a 1.200 cal a day diet really hard and was going out of options. I started de EOD diet yesterday as a fasting day and today as a feast day. Even if I'm still careful not to buy processed or sugary foods, I was able to eat a home made falafel burger and a small dark chocolate as a treat and stay under 2000 cal. And the fast day wasn't that terrible, I had to be really careful on what I chose to eat (a 350 cal salad, a banana, green apple and fat free yogurt) but wasn't feeling too hungry by the end of the day.

    I think this might really work for me!
  • dittmarml
    dittmarml Posts: 351 Member
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    I'm on it. I hit somewhere between 450 and 600 calls on "fast" days (try to target near 500) and eat at my 'maintenance' calorie intake on "feast" days. I've had 2 or 3 days where I've done the "eat anything I want" routine and gone over maintenance calories, but that's not typical...however even with two of those in one week I still lost a pound.

    I read Varaday's book and was convinced by the research which is still not "definitive" but is highly suggestive that this way of eating can help lose and maintain weight (she provides a 'maintenance' approach in the book too) plus have other benefits; the most important to me is reduction of inflammation since I have issues in that area (of course I like the stuff about avoiding cognitive decline, too, but didn't find that research compelling - still early; I look forward to more studies).

    I find this way of eating the "best" approach for me; it's easier to stick to than the daily reduction routine. Hardest part has been figuring out exercise so as to not make myself really hungry on fast days but I'm getting into a routine now that seems to be working.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,835 Member
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    Just remember, energy balance is key.

    I've done 5/2 before not logging and was able to eat enough on eating days to stay at maintenance. I've got a pretty big appetite though.

    I stick to 16/8 ish method most of the time though. (daily)
  • dittmarml
    dittmarml Posts: 351 Member
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    Just remember, energy balance is key.

    I've done 5/2 before not logging and was able to eat enough on eating days to stay at maintenance. I've got a pretty big appetite though.

    I stick to 16/8 ish method most of the time though. (daily)


    I agree with this. I have to remember to manage activity levels (less) on the 'fast' days.
  • amsecchi
    amsecchi Posts: 19 Member
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    Hi everybody, I've been doing this for about 3 weeks and this week I started to workout, my question is, on fast days (500 cals) should I eat my calories back?
    Thanks!
  • hopeguidesme
    hopeguidesme Posts: 1
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    I've been doing the 5:2 and have amazing results. I make sure that my weekly calorie goal is under because, in my opinion, it is far too easy for me to eat too many calories on feast days. What I do is track my calories. On feast days, I'll allow myself to go up to 200 calories over what MFP has suggested I eat to lose 1 pound a week. On fast days, I eat 500-600 calories. It all comes out in the end. My weekly deficit is usually larger than what MFP has suggested and I have a more satisfying loss. Also, I have a heart condition that causes me to breathe poorly and retain water. 5:2 helps me keep my water retention under control and I have less trouble breathing. Not just on fast days, mind you, through the entire week. It almost feels like a mini flush of the system. I feel far healthier when I do it this way. In fact, I am fasting today before I visit my cardiologist tomorrow.

    Not looking for judgment. Just offering the OP my thoughts.
  • fluffyasacat
    fluffyasacat Posts: 242 Member
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    I'm on EOD and loving it. I've lost about 5lbs since starting about 12 days ago. I've struggled with the idea of prohibiting myself forever from the things I like to eat, and the sense of failure that a "bad day" can bring if I weakened in my resolve to abstain for even a moment. The idea that "I can eat that tomorrow" is very soothing, even if you don't end up doing so it's psychologically reassuring that you're not tied to abstinence for the long haul.

    For those assuming someone can eat 3000-4000 calories on a "feast" day... you've obviously never noted the stomach shrinking effect of a 500 calorie day! While you might *think* you'd like to gorge like that when given free rein, the reality for me is I rarely break 2000 calories and I'm in no way holding back. If I ate more I'd be physically very uncomfortable.

    The first week is a little rough. I fully expected to feel hungry and have a headache or two (and I was and did) but one of the unexpected side effects was feeling very wide awake on a fast day as I was trying to go to sleep. Being hungry makes you super ALERT. Thankfully this has calmed down a little too as my body has been able to switch to burning fat rather than looking for sugars all the time.

    Good luck to all trying an intermittent fasting diet! It's the first weight loss method I've tried which I feel I'll have no trouble maintaining for the long term. If anyone from earlier in the thread (a couple of you started in January?) could give an update I'd love to hear how you're going.

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