Is 5 2 just a fad?

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I did a stricter version of the plan (alternate day IF), for my weight loss. Fad or not, it worked brilliantly for me.

It is not a fad, Dr Michael Mosely has been doing it for over 10 years, and it was he who made the TV programme that triggered the recent interest

What's your point? Lots of "fads" have been around for years - look at the cabbage soup diet that keeps coming around in different variations but basically the same thing.

I'm not interested because I don't think it's something I can maintain, but if you think it's something that will work for you then go for it.

I'm doing it at present, 500 calories twice a week and 1300 calories on all other days. Also taking vitamins and drinking lots of water. I'm not excluding any foods but have cut out fizzy drinks, tea and coffee. For exercise I'm doing Jillian Michael's 30 day shred every other day rather than every day as I'm also doing lots of work around the house. I've lost 11 pounds in 3 weeks so far.

The only thing I will say though is that for me, having tried the 5:2 diet earlier in the year, eating anything I wanted on the 5 days didn't work as I put weight on. Lowering the 5 days calories and sticking to 2 days of 500 calories though is working and upside I feel really invigorated, no tiredness and the 500 days are easy.

I have 6 weeks off work so it will get tougher once I go back as I work at a desk job which gives me no exercise but is very busy and stressful. I am determined though to lose the weight and tone up by the third week in October.

I'm doing it at present, 500 calories twice a week and 1300 calories on all other days. Also taking vitamins and drinking lots of water. I'm not excluding any foods but have cut out fizzy drinks, tea and coffee. For exercise I'm doing Jillian Michael's 30 day shred every other day rather than every day as I'm also doing lots of work around the house. I've lost 11 pounds in 3 weeks so far.

You're losing because you're averaging 1000 calories a day, not because of the arrangement of how you're eating those calories. Not healthy or sustainable.

I just can't see that being something I could get into. I like food.

I do understand the good folks that do IF though.

If you're doing 1300 the 5 days why not just do 1300 every day? That level of constant deficit seems to work for most people who have been successful. Not being a 5:2 disciple myself, my understanding of the plan is that you eat at 500 on the low days and at maintenance the other 5 days (not binging past maintenance on these days). I guess the point is to get the same weekly deficit but only "suffering" two days of the week instead of every day. By eating at 1300 the other five days you are averaging just over 1000 every day which pretty much everyone will agree is too low. If you at least bump it up to 1500 on the other five days you'll have an average of 1200.

I've done it at times throughout the years, I don't consider it a fad. Just extremely difficult to do if you have an active job, or kids...or if you really like food.

I've done something similar to work in my planned higher-calorie days -- a low-calorie day before and/or after. I think it's a great way to have your cake and eat it it too. I only do it if it's not too much of a struggle that day, generally. Is the 5:2 diet a fad? Kinda, but it's definitely not one of the worst.

Hadn't thought about it in terms of how many calories I was having a week. The 500 days I find really easy and I'm doing them as I like the sound of the benefits that go along with it, plus these past 3 weeks I've had no flareups with my IBS which is a miracle in itself. I take the point though on overall weekly calories and will up my daily calories to 1480 with 2 days of 500 to make up to 1200 a day. Sometimes it's so easy to get lost in the details and it can take someone looking in from the outside stating the obvious to make you rethink things lol.

Just to be clear: :glasses:
Fad is defined as: An intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, esp. one that is short-lived; a craze.

So, yes it is becoming popular and many people, like my self, are very enthusiastic about it. But I believe it is breaking out of short lived. To be fair, even though some might call the Atkins diet a fad, the fact that many people still swear by it could be a testament to it's longevity and deny this assertion. Although that says nothing about how healthy it might be. Personally, I believe Atkins diet is harmful and I offer the condition and health of the founder at his death as prima facia evidence.

Why is 5:2 effective and why does it work?
I believe that 5:2 emulates something that has been practiced for THOUSANDS OF YEARS! Spiritual fasting.
Physically what happens when we deny or restrict food is that first the body goes into a recover mode or rejuvenation mode. In this mode the body eliminates many impurities. It is like a reset button. But then to deny food for an extended period of time puts the body into conserve mode/ or hunger mode. In hunger mode, the body reduces metabolic burn and tries to conserves most any energy stored in the body. Then introducing or maintaining a small amount of food brings the body back into recover mode, rejuvenation mode. That is what the 5:2 does effectively by lowering calorie intake twice a week it keeps your body in that rejuvenation mode for at least those 2 days. That is why there are so many health benefits associated with it. Many studies are now finding that other groups that participate in mild fasting enjoy the health benefits of reduced cholesterol and lower incidence of diabetes.

Personally, I have done many fasts (denial of food) for personal growth and spiritual growth. In fact, those two areas in my life are tightly intertwined. I find that when my body is in recovery mode I feel amazing! Even though I just started the 5:2 diet, this is why it makes so much sense. It is a familiar place that is simply wonderful.

So, my sister is evangelising about the results on the 5 2 plan. Is it just hype or should I give it serious consideration?
Does it make exercising harder when calories are this restricted?

I've heard that it does work reasonably well but it probably isn't a good idea for anyone with a continuing, chronic medical condition or who is over 60 or under 16. There's a reason why they didn't require the elderly, the ill or children to fast in ancient Israel. Most healthy adults have abundant reserves to draw on during a fast. It would be terrible for me because I have uric acid levels that tend to run on the high side--fasting would likely trigger a gout attack. Not fun.

Honestly, there seems to be just as much evidence that fasting reduces Gout attacks and Gout symptoms as there is that trigger attacks. I have suffered from gout for many years and have gone on many fasts, as much as 60 hours with just water, which 5:2 is not, and never so much as a the sign of any flares. There are two keys to ensuring that gout will never be an issue with 5:2:
1. Stay hydrated, drink lots of water and healthy fluids.:drinker:
2. Keep plenty of Potassium in the diet for the two light days. Dieting can cause a loss in Potassium which in turn can increase Urate levels in the blood. Kale and chard are great sources of Potassium that add hardly any calories. Also apricot, bananas, white beans, summer squash and salmon are great sources of Potassium.
Sometimes, in fact most times, our fear is the only thing in the way of growth, happiness, and health.:happy:

as somebody who has previously lost 3 stone dieting the conventional way and put it all back on, I have found 5:2 fasting much more manageable and am determined to continue when I finally reach my goal. I only wished I had followed this eating pattern years ago.

do what works for you,

repeat.

You're losing because you're averaging 1000 calories a day, not because of the arrangement of how you're eating those calories. Not healthy or sustainable.

I absolutely agree. I'm not sure many people understand the point of intermittent fasting.

Agreed, it's why I left the 5:2 group on here. They were treating it like a diet. It's not a diet, it's intermittent fasting. It's about health not weight loss.

To the OP, look up intermittent fasting groups and people like Lean Gains. You'll understand the concept of IF better if you're looking at it as a lifestyle change and a health change rather than the weight loss fad it's currently being sold as.