Need new friends doing the 5:2 diet (:

valeriecookphotography
valeriecookphotography Posts: 1
in Introduce Yourself
Hey all - I am on week 3 doing either Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday for my 500 cal days. Thanks!!
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Replies

  • nikkilaw07
    nikkilaw07 Posts: 3 Member
    I was wondering what the 5:2 diet is, I thought shocking your body with a low calorie intake is harmful to weight loss. Do you exercise on the days you are only consuming 500 cals? Sorry for all the questions I am just interested, I've never heard of this before!
  • joygong
    joygong Posts: 10
    hi! i'm on week 3 as well, doing tues/thurs
  • joygong
    joygong Posts: 10
    I was wondering what the 5:2 diet is, I thought shocking your body with a low calorie intake is harmful to weight loss. Do you exercise on the days you are only consuming 500 cals? Sorry for all the questions I am just interested, I've never heard of this before!

    5:2 is a take on intermittent fasting. I eat at maintenance on the days that I am not eating 500 calories (or "fasting").

    On the days that I eat 500, I am usually busy working during the day and taking classes at night, so I don't have time to exercise. It helps me to maintain a calorie deficit but get all my dieting out in one go, if you will.
  • kherzig
    kherzig Posts: 4 Member
    I started this diet on friday and find it easier than counting calories every day of the week. I started at 143lbs and have 8 lbs to lose. I will weigh in again this friday morn to see if any progress. That will be one full week with 2 fasting days completed. Wish me luck!
  • juicy_cat
    juicy_cat Posts: 145 Member
    Oh dear...and the minute you have all lost the weight and start to eat again normally....you will gain....do you all want to have to eat like this for the rest of your lives??? Sounds an absolutely awful prospect to me...
  • jessilyn76
    jessilyn76 Posts: 532 Member
    Wait, what?? There are days when you eat only 500 calories........aren't you starving?? How do you have energy to work out?
  • teacherspet1
    teacherspet1 Posts: 142 Member
    I am not doing the 5:2 diet but my friend Lankylil is.....maybe you could look her up and swap tips?
    :bigsmile:
  • nomesw84
    nomesw84 Posts: 101 Member
    I'm on my 9th week of doing 5:2 on Mondays and Wednesdays, feel free to add me :)
  • CookieCrumble
    CookieCrumble Posts: 221 Member
    I'm on week 2; today is my fast day so will Thursday be. I've got a flatter stomach now than I've ever had.

    Great to think that the weightloss is only a side effect isn't it? The health benefits are HUGE.

    Add me if you like.
  • last_time11
    last_time11 Posts: 68
    I've started this but not managing to keep to 500 cals, so I'm thinking of fasting 3 days a week

    This is my first week with registering my calories on MFP, but I had tried fasting before just to see what it was like.

    At first I thought I would just fast as I do when fasting for religious purposes, which is fasting from all food and drink from sunrise till sunset, which is about 6pm. Then have one meal and a fruit desert. I managed those days comfortably and only started to get hungry after 4pm and start to feel a little weak after 5pm. I went to bed satisfied, not at all hungry. I did notice the next day, a feeding day, my appetite was reduced and I didn't binge.

    Yesterday I decided to try eating all day just reducing my calories. I started being hungry from 12pm!! Kept getting weak and dizzy spells, I went to bed with a grumbling stomach that drove me crazy all night long. Today, a feeding day, I woke up wanting food with a vengeance!! I am so hungry and I really want to binge on anything and everything :(

    Lesson : I will stick to fasting till sunset and have one meal, enjoy it and go to bed with a full belly :D
  • Erica_Rae
    Erica_Rae Posts: 96 Member
    Thanks for posting.. I just researched and ordered a book on amazon.. feel free to add me, ill be starting next week !
  • keldarawlings
    keldarawlings Posts: 11
    Hi, I am staring today as it happens on a 5-2 IF diet. I am surprised that I am nearly through the day not actually chewing my arm off with only consuming 350 cals all day. I am saving the last 150-200 for just before bed so I can sleep okay.
    I also stick to a reasonably Paleo diet the remainder of the time - accept I eat some diary as I love it. Lets all keep in touch and see how we get on with this experiment.
  • amandaj1966
    amandaj1966 Posts: 342 Member
    I am on my 3rd week doing the 5:2 diet, yesterday was my fasting day and will do it again on Thursday. I don't normally exercise on my fasting days but did yesterday and felt really sick and lightheaded today. Might not have anything to do with my fasting day and exercising but who knows. Also didn't lose any weight this week but I did eat out twice so maybe it just balanced it out.

    Good luck to all that's doing the 5:2. x
  • last_time11
    last_time11 Posts: 68
    I also lost 1 kilo / 2.2 lbs on my first week
  • nicearbhaill
    nicearbhaill Posts: 12
    hi ya

    this is my 3rd week of 5 .2 (only just joined site). Finding it great and lost 4.5 lbs so far on it.
  • boosht
    boosht Posts: 12 Member
    monday and thursday for me, i also find i can walk briskly after work now and feel more energised and feel like i have more stamina than on full on eating days.

    only downside is foul breath on fasting days....(not that i notice but my other half regularly informs me...)
    fourth week of this and finding the fasting days easier to do now i think the brain and body seem to accept it more and just get on with it, the first week or two i can't say were easy at all but i stuck with it and sure enough definitely easier now, also on non fasting days if i an near to my daily limit then i can simple think "that's it for food today" and have a glass of water or squash and go to sleep and next day is a new day.. potentially eat wiser the next day if still feeling hungry as to obtain that satisfied feeling... (also notice getting more satisfied quicker when eating which is a bonus)
  • bfmummy
    bfmummy Posts: 6 Member
    Apparently people regain weight slower on this diet than after other diets. Also less muscle is lost than in normal calorie restriction throughout the week. It can help people to learn new habbits and that hunger need not be feared. I haven't lost much weight or particularly quickly compared with other diets but I still intend to carry on with it.
  • Jess1caLe
    Jess1caLe Posts: 31 Member
    Just out of curiosity, how long is the span of this diet? It seems that though it works while you're on it, but what happens when you decide to go back to a normal week of caloric intake?
  • Shananigans_
    Shananigans_ Posts: 785 Member
    Can anyone expand more on what this 'diet' entails?
  • Budgethefudge
    Budgethefudge Posts: 4
    Juicy cat. The idea IS to eat like this for the rest of our lives. The weight loss is a side effect. The main idea of the diet is to vastly lower our chances of getting diabetes, heart disease, cancer and possibly (research is still being done on this) dementia. I'd rather eat this way than count calories EVERY single day of my life.
  • Budgethefudge
    Budgethefudge Posts: 4
    OK, more about the diet. There is no 'life span' of the diet, it's a way of life change. The thinking behind it is, that the human body never evolved to be fed constantly. For thousands of years, humans evolved to survive on a pattern of feast and famine, and the modern way of constantly eating is having catastrophic effects with heart disease, cancer and particularly diabetes becoming ever more prevalent.
    The amount of days you fast depends on how much weight you want to lose, or how high your indicators of contracting an affected disease - diabetes, cancer or heart disease are. If your cholesterol levels or fasting blood sugar are high, or you're very overweight, you'll be wanting to do a 5:2 or 4:3 fast pattern. If you're at a weight and level of health you're happy with, then a maintenance fasting pattern of 6:1 is recommended.
    The theory behind the diet regarding diabetes, is that for the fasting days, you are eating very low GI food - no sugar or carbs, and very low fat. This means that your body doesn't release insulin for those two fasting days. When you are constantly putting food into your body, your insulin levels remain unnaturally elevated, which vastly increases your risk of getting type 2 diabetes.
    As far as the reduction of cancer goes, fasting has another effect on your body. When you are eating often, your cell growth hormone is produced, which keep the cell growth gene constantly switched on, and as you may know, cancer is basically cells growing out of control. When you fast, this hormone is switched off, which turns the gene off, and the cell repair gene switches on instead. Tests in rats are showing that it's this effect which is also having an astonishing effect on dementia.
    The diet also typically reduces cholesterol and visceral fat (the fat which accumulates around your internal organs) which in turn reduces your risk of heart disease.
    It does take some will power, but hunger comes in waves and is not a constant. If you meal plan sensibly, and use mostly vegetables with a small amount of protein, then you can get a surprisingly large plate of food out of it. I generally have a scrambled egg with a slice of ham for breakfast, a bowl of strawberries (brilliant fasting food, low GI and only 33cals per 100g) for lunch, and a huge plate of stir fry with chicken, fish or prawns for dinner. I've been on the diet for 9 weeks, and I've lost a stone and a half. I don't plan on ever coming off the diet.
  • Budgethefudge
    Budgethefudge Posts: 4
    Oh, and I forget to add, yes, I have the energy to work out, I do a 30 minute cardio followed by Insanity cardio abs EVERY week day! Many top athletes train on an empty stomach to promote fat loss and muscle growth.
  • chillier
    chillier Posts: 2 Member
    5:2 Started Monday was taking some medication standard Paracetamol and a anti inflammatory but with a low food intake made day one not to good. Thought would be fairly easy but stomach tightening was very frequent. Today Thursday decided to not take drugs and been a lot better.
  • Budgethefudge
    Budgethefudge Posts: 4
    Plenty of water and a cup of herbal tea can soothe your tummy chillier, and if you're really struggling, have a handful of strawberries. They are really loo GI and only 33cals per 100g.
  • getitamb
    getitamb Posts: 2,019 Member
    Im not doing the 5:2 but i do 16/8. It helps me to control my macros. That's why I like intermittent fasting. I'm stil in all my macros. not dpriving my body. Anywho, u can add me or I will add you
  • getitamb
    getitamb Posts: 2,019 Member
    Just out of curiosity, how long is the span of this diet? It seems that though it works while you're on it, but what happens when you decide to go back to a normal week of caloric intake?





    If you keep counting macros, everything will stay the same,
  • tayba85
    tayba85 Posts: 2 Member
    Hi all,im new here... Wud like some motivation and advice please!!!
    I was wondering if a nursing mom(( me)) can do th 5:2 diet.. And wud it have any impact on milk production...
    I need to lose (atleast) 10 kg in 8 weeks..
    All th tips on how to achieve this and types of food, meal plans wud b super appreciated
    ( sorry for th spellings mistakes)
  • Starbright20
    Starbright20 Posts: 2
    Hi,

    I am new on here and want to try the 5:2 diet. When doing the two fast days, do those days have to be simultaneously one after the other or is best to do a fast day and then return to normal eating? Any advice appreciated. Thanks.x:smile:
  • Starbright20
    Starbright20 Posts: 2
    Hi, I am new on here and new to the 5.2 diet regime, would value some support and some ideas whilst going through the process, thanks. :smile:
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Hi all,im new here... Wud like some motivation and advice please!!!
    I was wondering if a nursing mom(( me)) can do th 5:2 diet.. And wud it have any impact on milk production...
    I need to lose (atleast) 10 kg in 8 weeks..
    All th tips on how to achieve this and types of food, meal plans wud b super appreciated
    ( sorry for th spellings mistakes)
    According to the fastdiet.co.uk website pregnant or breastfeeding Mums are NOT recommended to follow IF.
    http://thefastdiet.co.uk/michael-answers-frequently-asked-questions/

    Here's a link to an active 5:2 group on here.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/8005-5-2-fasting

    To people throwing their hands up in horror at the idea of having two very low calorie days you should consider the other side of the coin - you are having five days a week eating normally and still losing weight slowly and steadily.
    Personally I found it far easier for adherence to a weekly calorie goal (effectively you are "dieting" one day at a time) and it helped support a heavy exercise routine.

    It's a different eating pattern rather than a weight loss diet. Doesn't suit everyone but it really suits me.

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