5:2 diet

maxinecc

I was just wondering if anyone had tried this diet, not sure how I would manage 500 calories 2 days a week, but I like the idea of eating' normally' for 5 days. I have tried so many different diets and only manage to lose up to 2 stone and it always creeps back on.

I do think I eat healthy meals and lots of fruit but my main problem is snacking on biscuits/sweets and other treats. I haven't managed to include these in my eating plan without bingeing so I go from eating non to overeating them.

JenRunTriHappyGirl

I have never tried it, but from the sounds of it it probably would not do you much good. If you are already bingeing on things, imagine a binge after a 500 calorie day. Depriving yourself is not the answer. You have to learn how to control your binges. If it is in your house, get it out!!!

jonnythan

Starving yourself 2 days a week is not a sustainable lifestyle. That's madness.

sutton8401

I'm starting it...hopefully it will have some good results.

IronSmasher

Fasting can be ok for some, but a terrible idea for someone that suffers from bingeing.

RunHardBeStrong

Check out the Intermittent Fasting group on here. There are different approaches to IF, 5:2 is one of them. You probably know as with any diet it always comes back to cals in vs. cals out but IF has many benefits. I have great success with it helping my binge eating. My eating window is 12 pm to 8 pm everyday and ever since switching over to this method I'm in much better control! Good luck!

JesterMFP

Starving yourself 2 days a week is not a sustainable lifestyle. That's madness.

The 5:2 diet does not involve "starving yourself".

OP - you'll find lots of threads on this if you use the search function, and there are more to be found in the Intermittent Fasting group forum: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/66-intermittent-fasting On these more general boards, you're likely to get a few "ZOMG don't do it!" responses.

I'd have to agree that if you have a history of binging, Intermittent Fasting may not be ideal for you. I don't think it's really recommended for people with a history of disordered eating (which binging is).

ETA: On the other hand.... reading the post above mine, it obviously helps some people with binge issues. I would just tread carefully though.

jonnythan

Starving yourself 2 days a week is not a sustainable lifestyle. That's madness.

The 5:2 diet does not involve "starving yourself".

I don't know about you, but I couldn't go an entire day eating only 500 calories without feeling starved.

I manage to net 1550 calories a day without ever feeling hungry. Seems stupid to limit myself to a measly 500 calories a day - otherwise known as starving myself - for no good reason.

maxinecc

thanks for all your replies, they have been very helpful. I might sound like I binge (sometimes it feels like I do) but we are not talking excessive volume here, I mean having a few bad days.

I have lost over 12 stone and managed to keep it off for the last 4 years but the odd 7 or 8 lbs keeps coming back, so I cut back and try and eat better. I would ideally like to be 2 stone lighter and feel I need to change my current eating habits if I want to get where I want to be.

MsPudding

I'm not sure about others, but whenever I've binged on junk it's because I've been on a diet that's absolutely prohibited it and so, naturally, that'd be all I could think of until the point where I'd snap and dive headfirst into half a kilo of cheese or something of that ilk.

I find 5:2 easy myself (I'm actually doing 4:3 this week) and I tend to have a 23-24hr window of not eating anything. People may disagree but I kind of think it suits bingers in a way because the day after fasting you're not being strict - you're eating normally. I've tracked my non-fast diets down to the last gram and whilst I eat more than I normally would in a day, when I average out the calories for the week it's coming in approx 1,400 a day so there's a deficit there. Difference being it doesn't really feel like I'm dieting. Tonight, for instance, after eating a venison steak, massive baked potato and greens for dinner I'll be going out with friends and having a few glasses of wine and it'll be fine and I won't need to beat myself up tomorrow with guilt because I'll still be maintaining a deficit over-all.

It's not for everyone, but it's totally untrue that it's unhealthy and it's absolutely NOT starving yourself - far from it!

MsPudding

I don't know about you, but I couldn't go an entire day eating only 500 calories without feeling starved.

You may not be able to go a day on 500 calories without feeling hungry but you certainly wouldn't feel 'starved' - unless you're the one example of humanity who suffers severe constipation, stomach pain, weakness, decreased sensation and temperature regulation and of course, organ shut down if you don't eat more than 500 calories in a single 24hr stretch.

It's ok to disagree with a diet - but amateur dramatics is probably best left for the local theatre ;-)

IronSmasher

thanks for all your replies, they have been very helpful. I might sound like I binge (sometimes it feels like I do) but we are not talking excessive volume here, I mean having a few bad days.

I have lost over 12 stone and managed to keep it off for the last 4 years but the odd 7 or 8 lbs keeps coming back, so I cut back and try and eat better. I would ideally like to be 2 stone lighter and feel I need to change my current eating habits if I want to get where I want to be.

I think it depends what you mean by bingeing.

If you find you can't stop eating the day after your fast.
If you find yourself on special shopping trips for special food you've felt deprived from on your non-fast days.
If you find yourself eating until you are sick.
You over eat on your fast day, realise it can't be a fast day, so you'll fast tomorrow, and since you're fasting tomorrow, do all of the above.
Then fasting is definitely not for you.

x3na1401

Funny.

I have been doing this for one month and have lost eight pounds with no exercise. You do not over eat the next day despite planning all the wonderful food you will eat when your 500 cal day is over.
You work too hard on the fast day to throw it away the next day on crap food. Well that's how I see it anyway. And I eat quite a lot for 500 cals. You just have to be creative.

I think I may have overly restricted on the normal days as I have mostly stuck to mfp recommended 1200 cals. I have been in a plateau for a week so today ate 1500 cals and worked out. I will continue to do the 500 k days 3 times a week both the others will all be over 1500 c to see if eating more can truly help lose weight

asia_n

I started on this last week I hit a plateau and needed to switch things up a little.
Week 1 : -4lbs

susiesue12

starting this tomorrow! weighed myself today - gulp :embarassed:

will be interested to here how others are getting on, good luck! x