Times to eat on fast days & calorie count on feast days?

crazycranberry
crazycranberry Posts: 117 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I decided to start the 5:2 approach this week and today will be my second 'fast' day.
Having watched the Horizon documentary and also read 2 books about it, I am still a little unsure about 2 things;

When is the best time to eat on a fast day. My chosen fast days are mon & thurs. Therefore just as an example on a sun night I normally won't eat anything after 10pm. I then eat nothing until 7.45am on Mon. Then I eat nothing again until 6pm on mon. I go to bed about 11pm and then on Tues morning I have breakfast at 7.45am again. So over a 33hour period i am only consuming 500calories. Does it really matter when you eat the 500 calories? I keep seeing lots of different posts with people eating lunch and dinner and skipping breakfast completely. Is there a reason for this? Would appreciate it if any of you 5:2 followers can give me your thoughts behind your choices.

Also, the book and the documentary say that you don't have to count calories on your 'feast' days and yet I am reading some posts where people say they are sticking to a reduced calorie count on those days.

I am just curious thats all so, and I know everyone is different, but I am new to this so want to arm myself with as much info and reasoning behind peoples choices as possible.

Thanks everyone and keep up the good work :smile:

Replies

  • ClareKaczmarek
    ClareKaczmarek Posts: 42
    Hey :) I'm also doing the 5:2 diet and I choose to eat my 500 calories in the following way:

    I generally skip breakfast on my fast days (I've never been much of a big eater in the mornings so this doesn't really bother me), have a light low-cal lunch, occasionally a small afternoon snack, and then have the majority of my calories at dinner time. I find it difficult not to snack in the evenings when I'm at home so I usually try to save my calories and have a more substantial dinner to fill me up.

    I think it's up to the individual to choose what works best for them. Some people prefer to do longer periods without food and have all their calories in a single meal, whereas others like to spread them throughout the day. It's just trial and error really to see what works best for you :)

    With regards to calorie counting on feast days, while the book suggests you don't have to, I think it is recommended that you don't really go above your TDEE.

    Hope this helps, and good luck! :)
  • crazycranberry
    crazycranberry Posts: 117 Member

    With regards to calorie counting on feast days, while the book suggests you don't have to, I think it is recommended that you don't really go above your TDEE.

    Hope this helps, and good luck! :)

    Erm, I might be a little dense here but what is TDEE? :huh:
  • ClareKaczmarek
    ClareKaczmarek Posts: 42

    With regards to calorie counting on feast days, while the book suggests you don't have to, I think it is recommended that you don't really go above your TDEE.

    Hope this helps, and good luck! :)

    Erm, I might be a little dense here but what is TDEE? :huh:
    TDEE is your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, which is the number of calories that you burn in a day. It's based on your gender, weight, height, age and the level of exercise you do. For me it works out around 1,700 calories. This thread will explain it better than I can :)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/512956-tdee-what-is-it-and-why-you-should-not-eat-below-your-bmr

    I think as long as you don't eat to excess on your feast days then you will still see a loss on the scales :)
  • covkimbo
    covkimbo Posts: 2
    I've been on the 5:2 diet since Jan 1 and have lost 17lb so far. I fast on Tues and Thurs. I skip breakfast and then have fruit for lunch,, saving my calories until the evening when i usually have fish and salad. skipping breckie usually means i can squeeze in a little potato. I try to keep to around 1800 calories on my other days. Buying digital kitchen scales has helped control portions although my husband roars with laughter when he sees me weighing grapes or prawns. My only exercise is walking the dogs, but i try to walk as fast as poss. I have artthritis in my knee so hoping this will ease as i lose wieght. I was over 20 stone so need to lose a lot
  • ClareKaczmarek
    ClareKaczmarek Posts: 42
    I've been on the 5:2 diet since Jan 1 and have lost 17lb so far. I fast on Tues and Thurs. I skip breakfast and then have fruit for lunch,, saving my calories until the evening when i usually have fish and salad. skipping breckie usually means i can squeeze in a little potato. I try to keep to around 1800 calories on my other days. Buying digital kitchen scales has helped control portions although my husband roars with laughter when he sees me weighing grapes or prawns. My only exercise is walking the dogs, but i try to walk as fast as poss. I have artthritis in my knee so hoping this will ease as i lose wieght. I was over 20 stone so need to lose a lot
    17 lbs is a great loss in little over a month!
    I'm exactly the same with my digital scales, I weigh everything just to be sure!
    Good luck :)

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