5:2 Diet

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  • DocCollins_SFA
    DocCollins_SFA Posts: 113
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    Of course you will lose weight if you are at a caloric deficit at the end of the week. Why the heck would you want to limit yourself to only 500 cals two days a week though when you could just eat sensibly and well all week without starving yourself for two days instead?
  • alizon15
    alizon15 Posts: 59
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    Of course you will lose weight if you are at a caloric deficit at the end of the week. Why the heck would you want to limit yourself to only 500 cals two days a week though when you could just eat sensibly and well all week without starving yourself for two days instead?

    the "fasting" has been shown to have many health benefits , affecting and reducing cholesterol, blood glucose and blood pressure amongst other things - restricting yourself on two days and eating "normally" on the others is so much easier than calories counting every day.
  • AbsoluteNG
    AbsoluteNG Posts: 1,079 Member
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    Nah thats not completely right. By fasting like that you will lose a lot of muscle as well as fat. Instead do what the bodybuilders do and "carb cycle". Much safer and effective, if you are disciplined enough to do an entire fast then you can carb cycle easily

    Sorry but this is misinformation. When you fast your body will release HGH proteins. Link to science article below with research journal link inside the article if you want to read more. As long as you do some type of resistance training, you will not lose muscle mass during a fast and this can last up to 14 days.
    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110403090259.htm

    Link to someone who fasted for 14 days on 600 calories and did not lose any muscle mass simply by doing some resistance training. (The guy ate all protein on 600 calories)
    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121060001&highlight=psmf+vlcd


    Intermittent fasting group is located here for people who want more accurate information on fasting and like minded people.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/66-intermittent-fasting
  • ebony__
    ebony__ Posts: 519 Member
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    This is pretty much how I eat unintentionally, I generally have a couple of days a week where Im around the 500 mark (or less) an the rest are normally around 1200.
    Will it still have similar affects?

    My weight loss progress has been very slow, I've been at it for about 6 weeks and I'm very meticulous with my logging
  • AbsoluteNG
    AbsoluteNG Posts: 1,079 Member
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    This is pretty much how I eat unintentionally, I generally have a couple of days a week where Im around the 500 mark (or less) an the rest are normally around 1200.
    Will it still have similar affects?

    My weight loss progress has been very slow, I've been at it for about 6 weeks and I'm very meticulous with my logging

    Yes you should. If you watch the BBC program, the guy interviews the professor doing the research on fasting and she says that you still get all the benefits of a water fast if you only eat 500 calories. Which benefit are you most interested in?
  • laurenb1994
    laurenb1994 Posts: 40 Member
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    I didn't see the documentary, I read about it on the internet just this morning. I know when I really restrict my calories for a day or so here and there it really makes a difference.

    So having heard about it, I may try doing one or two days a week of 500 cals or less for a while and see what it does for me.
  • ebony__
    ebony__ Posts: 519 Member
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    This is pretty much how I eat unintentionally, I generally have a couple of days a week where Im around the 500 mark (or less) an the rest are normally around 1200.
    Will it still have similar affects?

    My weight loss progress has been very slow, I've been at it for about 6 weeks and I'm very meticulous with my logging

    Yes you should. If you watch the BBC program, the guy interviews the professor doing the research on fasting and she says that you still get all the benefits of a water fast if you only eat 500 calories. Which benefit are you most interested in?

    At this stage he biggest appeal for me is weigh loss but I'm am getting very interested in the nutrition aspect as well.
    A couple of weeks ago I did a cranberry juice fast. Which is mostly targeting liver and kidneys It was just fruit and veg for 2 days ( about 500 cal) and then 3 days of cranberry juice , it was tough but it felt amazing afterwards :)
  • licoricetwist
    licoricetwist Posts: 1
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    Hi kats56 - My husband (58) and I (56) have been trying the 5-2 diet ever since that Horizon program, also. First time *ever* he has expressed an interest! As a "TOFI" (thin-outside-fat-inside) like Michael, he didn't see much point. But addressing all those health issues (especially Alzheimer's risk) really got his attention.

    I had already started a 1250-a-day diet before the program began (being around 5 or 6 stone overweight), but have joined him on 600 a day (rather than 500) and sticking to my plan of 1250 the other days, whereas he was eating normally. He has found it very easy, and I've found it no harder than normal dieting. I'm also trying to keep up some exercise, to not lose muscle mass. Haven't had any trouble with lightheadedness or weakness, as I have had in the past (on a 'proper' 3-day fast).

    We've both lost nearly a stone and my husband (having reached 'target') thinks he'll drop back to some sort of 'low-calorie-but-not-strict-counting' version of his 2 days, at least until we get back from a 3-wk visit to the US. Hopefully not too much damage to undo, if we stick to 2 days minimal during our hol! :wink:

    I am trying to find more medical information about this approach - how long should one continue? How important is medical supervision? Any contra-indications? Any cautions?

    By the way, a very interesting book that (for me) explains quite a lot about why one loses appetite after a while, and how to manage one's appetite - The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Carbohydrate-Addicts-Diet-Book/dp/0091853753/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1347820865&sr=1-1
  • CordyChase
    CordyChase Posts: 5
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    I don't know... Even two days a week of starving yourself seems like too much. Heck, ONE day of eating just 500 calories is too much.

    Of course, that's my humble opinion...
  • shanice_22
    shanice_22 Posts: 202 Member
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    I watched it and was tempted to give it a go but I don't know if I could manage the 500 cal days
  • LizAWDavis
    LizAWDavis Posts: 45
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    Have not seen the programme but read an article in the paper about it last month - been considering doing it for a change to be honest - might try it this week and let you know!
  • rubyjune27
    rubyjune27 Posts: 87 Member
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    Hi kats56 -

    I am trying to find more medical information about this approach - how long should one continue? How important is medical supervision? Any contra-indications? Any cautions?

    My partner and I have followed this since the programme was shown early August. My husband does not need to lose any weight and doing it only for health benefits. For me it is for health and weight loss. I had already lost over 30lbs but was beginning to stall so I hoped this would help and it has as I am loosing 1lb a week. But I have had high BP and Cancer so am keen to avoid any reoccurrence if I can. Finally I hope this will assist with maintainence, something I have never achieved, so plan on being on this for life.
  • fester1084
    fester1084 Posts: 4
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    Hi , I have set up a group on Face book - 5:2 Fasting Diet , feel free to join its great to share advice and experiences.
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
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    Not saying that it won't work short term, but why put yourself through the excessive calorie restrictions on the 2 fast days, when you could just learn to eat properly or do some carb cycling.


    I'd much rather eat and feel full while losing weight.
  • pullipgirl
    pullipgirl Posts: 767 Member
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    It's surprisingly easy to fast 2 days a week 8 of those hours you are sleeping and the rest of the day I have time to do other things than worry about food. During the fasting you will need to drink plenty of water and eat healthy 500 calories after 24 hours. If you are already lean it will be a little more difficult and may want to try fasting for 14 or 16 hours a day instead.
  • Yellerie
    Yellerie Posts: 221 Member
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    save for later
  • trottola
    trottola Posts: 14
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    It's surprisingly easy. Started last night after dinner, had boiled egg and unbuttered toast for breakfast, made veg soup for lunch and didn't need my planned tuna salad to keep me going until dinnertime.
    Lots of herbal tea, water and black coffee, brewed with a cinnamon stick and cardamom pods
    instead of sugar.
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
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    Of course you will lose weight if you are at a caloric deficit at the end of the week. Why the heck would you want to limit yourself to only 500 cals two days a week though when you could just eat sensibly and well all week without starving yourself for two days instead?

    the "fasting" has been shown to have many health benefits , affecting and reducing cholesterol, blood glucose and blood pressure amongst other things - restricting yourself on two days and eating "normally" on the others is so much easier than calories counting every day.

    eating healthy has many health benefits like reducing cholesterol, glucose and BP WITHOUT having to fast. I don't know about you but i don't exactly feel like i'm "restricting" myself when i'm allowed over 1300 calories a day on days that i don't workout. The days that i do work out, i'm probably ending up right around 1800 by the end of the day. I'm so sick of this fad diet BS. It's a fad, nothing more. If it takes me longer to lose the weight, so be it. at least i know i have a better chance of keeping it off because i learned how to eat better, instead of just starving myself a couple days a week
  • samiamaustin
    samiamaustin Posts: 1
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    I AM interested in the health benefits. We all know that belly fat is the signal that you are in for many different kinds of illness. This is a fact. We deny this truth because we each are addicted to ''some'' kinds of food in certain amounts. We look in the mirror and say, "I'm not THAT fat!!"" Liar, Liar pants on fire!!

    I am Agent Orange infected. I like all my AO friends move into diabetes. It is NOT a family related disease for me. My glucose has risen lately from a wake up stick of 119 to 149. At the end of my second day of the 5:2 diet my glucose is down to 109 at bedtime. That is the lowest it has been in months.

    I MAY not be able to totally avoid medication in the future. But we all KNOW that wild glucose and high glucose causes kidney failure, blindness, foot amputation, and many other serious problems. I like to be active. I like to travel and play golf around the world. It's tough to enjoy the same quality of activity if I am sick or crippled.

    So I'll be back, just like our super hero Arnold. I will be back in 8 weeks and share the results. I eat 600 c on fast days. I fast two in a row and feast 5. I call this the DO NOTHING diet. Why? because it is a no brainer to develop one 600c meal then eat my normal food for 5 days. The secret to moving toward hunger on fast days is ""STAY BUSY"" doing what you really like to do. Also drink plenty of plain tea and '"HOT"" water. It takes away the hunger and is truly good for you.

    Samiamaustin.....TEXAS
  • Hennagrrl
    Hennagrrl Posts: 11
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    Saw the documentary a couple of days ago and it really piqued my interest. I checked out the book, as well as read several scientific articles on fasting and am impressed. I'm going to give it start on Monday (after I get my yearly bloodwork done) and we;ll see how it goes.

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