5:2 fasting diet anyone?

I can't imagine that *netting* 500 calories for the day would be pleasant, much less only *eating* that much. I'd have to spend the whole day in bed to not feel like absolute *kitten* by noon if I did that. I have hypoglycemic tendencies, so if I go too long without eating I get agitated, shaky, and irritable - I can't simultaneously fast and continue to function.

I do 20/4 and it's quite manageable because your body adjusts to the new eating schedule so you don't get hungry during the day. 5:2 sounds harder because your body doesn't adjust to it.

OK so think about where you are at the moment.

Your 'normal' eating pattern is to eat little during the day but a good sized dinner and then snacks. If you are maintaining a heavy weight and your portion sizes are not huge then you have gotta be packing some calories into those snacks because the weight has come from somewhere.

If you are not able to eat a balanced diet throughout the course of the day then why do you think the 'starving yourself' for a day or two each week will be successfull for you!!?

Tough questions i know but if you really want some long term success then anything that you can't keep doing is perhaps not such a great plan. Addressing two days per week by starving won't fix the other 5 days when you aren't.

I would suggest that you take a really good look at what you can do EVERY day to make your diet better, control your calories and eat food that doesn't leave you hungry or needing to snack. As for the exercise, start on the sofa if you need to, upper body exercise with some small weights just to get you moving, it all helps.

As for where the calories come from there is alot to be said for nutritional content that I won't go in to but a single nice yummy sandwich can pack 500 - 600 calories which is more than I eat in my evening meal and am I more likely to snack cos I'm hungry having only eaten a sandwich or am I more likely to snack when I've had a really nice big satisfying meal???

It's not about where the calories come from so much as how much you can buy with them!!

i have never personally done a fasting diet, however, if that works for you then who am I to tell you differently.
as long as you get your vitamins and nutrients (take a multi-vitamin please) then i have no problem if you decide to fast two days a week.

good luck on your weight loss journey

♥m

I've never heard of it, but what is meant by eating "normally" on 5 days?

I would say listen to them, and not take so much offense when you don't get the answer you want.
The community here can be jerks at times, no doubt, but these people are giving solid advice. a 2 day fast sounds more like fad diet territory than actual weight loss neighborhood.
If you want to do some well known and supported fasting, try leangains.com.

Actually, doing that will put you behind, not kick-start anything.

Calculate your TDEE and eat a 15-20% cut from that. You have to fuel the furnace to keep it burning strong.

I have not tried it, but I am researching into it to see if it is something for me. But I have started drinking healthy fruit/veggies juices with flaxseed, and they have helped me maintain my diet a lot. I can share some recipes with you if you are interested.

Here is a video on fasting diet, thought it was interesting... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20890613

I know several people who have started doing a 5:2 fast but it's more for the impact they think it has on brain cells (preventing early onset dementia) than for weight loss that most people have done it. There was a very good Horizon documentary on the BBC that looked at it if you can find a copy online.

Fasting has actually been part of religious and cultural tradition for centuries, and when you factor in that we are all here on MFP because we regularly eat FAR TOO MANY calories, it makes sense to me that one or two separate days a week of eating less (it is important that the two days are not consecutive) won't kill us.

I say go for it butterbeanz x

I appreciate peoples comments, but unfortunately as we all know - diets, like clothes, are not "one size fits all" and I find this kind of diet far easier and sustainable than anything else I have tried.

To sum this up, all I can say is that you are terribly misinformed that 500 calories a day anytime is sustainable or even healthy.

Our bodies are not that different when you base a diet off of TDEE and BMR, anyone can have success by eating the right amount of food, not by starving themselves.

Eating 500 calories a day for 2 days a week is hardly starving oneself. In fact, it would be possible to do this and still eat TDEE minus 20% if you averaged the week. Calorie intake does not have to be the same every day to lose weight healthily, and what is sustainable is completely personal.

I was IFing unknowingly for years before I came across the site.
This is what my body seems to want, so I oblige.

I'm a 18/6, which means I fast for 18 hours a day, and eat/snack for the remaining 6 hours. I stay within my 1400 calorie allowance in that 6 hours.

I was able to maintain a healthy weight for 2.5 years doing this.--but I was eating 2000-2200 calories.
Then I quit smoking (last April) and put on 50lbs.

I dropped my calorie intake to 1400, added more fruits and veggies, less processed crap, exercise regularly, and throw in a full day of actual fasting (no food for 24 hours) here and there when my body tells me to.

I feel great. Lots of energy, I'm not constantly starving and I'm losing weight.

It works for me.

Hey there,

I have been on the 5:2 diet since the 7th of January and I have lost 5 kgs (11lbs) so far. Altought less than a month on it doesn't make me a specialist on the matter, I have found it not exactly easy, but not really difficult. I have lots of energy on my fast days, I go to the gym and swim, run, bike and even do 45-minute boxing classes on those days and have not been moody either. I love food and I wouldn't have gotten to the weight that I was on the 7th of january (90kgs in a 1.64 body) if I hadn't. But, for me, the fast days don't bother me at all, because I know that the following day I can have " whatever" I want (I always stay within 2000 calories, though).

See your doctor, do your research and have a go at it if it suits you. Personally, it has been great because it fits around my life and not the other way round. I have started a blog and take pictures of my meals on the fast days, have a look if you want (http://5and2er.blogspot.co.uk/).

Even though I lost 5kgs already, I fully expect that this trend won't hold and the weight loss will slow down. I have been spending a lot of time at the gym, I got myself a personal trainer and I am training for a sprint triathlon, so I guess I'll try not to worry too much about the scales and concentrate on body fat % and how well I fit into my old clothes and how I feel.

Either way, good luck! And whatever you do, it is always best to see a doctor and do your research!

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