Wondering if 5:2 diet is healthy

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beebeeto
beebeeto Posts: 24
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all,

what is your opinion on the 5:2 diet? What results did you achieve with it? I fear it will make me very hungry. Was it that the case for you? Do you get used to the calories on the fast days with time?

Replies

  • Iknowsaur
    Iknowsaur Posts: 777 Member
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    If you have to ask if it's healthy...
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member
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    pick what works for you, not what other people tell you.. if you can't do 5:2 then don't.. You will probably be hungry at first but you adapt.. but you can just do 7 days with a deficit to get the same results.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    It's a form of IF...done properly it is fine...a lot of people do IF regardless of their weight control goals (losing, maintaining, or gaining). There is no magic to it...if your calorie intake results in a deficit you will lose weight...if you consume a balance of energy you will maintain...if you eat a surplus of energy you will gain. Only you can decide if it's right for you...a lot of people do well with IF types of diets...others do not...I'm one that needs pretty regular fueling so IF doesn't work for me.

    A lot of people do not do 5:2 the way it is supposed to be done though and end up with dangerously low calorie intakes. If you're going to do it you should do some research and do it the way it is designed to be done and don't try to create some kind of hybrid plan.
  • PhearlessPhreaks
    PhearlessPhreaks Posts: 890 Member
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    Hi all,

    what is your opinion on the 5:2 diet? What results did you achieve with it? I fear it will make me very hungry. Was it that the case for you? Do you get used to the calories on the fast days with time?

    There is a 5:2 group here- check it out. Also, it would be helpful to read the book.

    As an aside, something I found interesting in learning about 5:2 and fasting was- Buddhist monks fast on the new and full moon for 24 hours. That struck a chord in me...
  • a_stronger_me13
    a_stronger_me13 Posts: 812 Member
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    It's a form of IF...done properly it is fine...a lot of people do IF regardless of their weight control goals (losing, maintaining, or gaining). There is no magic to it...if your calorie intake results in a deficit you will lose weight...if you consume a balance of energy you will maintain...if you eat a surplus of energy you will gain. Only you can decide if it's right for you...a lot of people do well with IF types of diets...others do not...I'm one that needs pretty regular fueling so IF doesn't work for me.

    A lot of people do not do 5:2 the way it is supposed to be done though and end up with dangerously low calorie intakes. If you're going to do it you should do some research and do it the way it is designed to be done and don't try to create some kind of hybrid plan.

    This.
  • serena60
    serena60 Posts: 3
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    I discovered that if I eat breakfast, I'm hungry the rest of the day. If I skip breakfast, I don't even feel properly hungry by lunchtime. I can eat a low cal lunch - salad and lean ham or chicken, a piece of fruit and a low fat yogurt and feel full. Dinner is easy - baked fish, like lightly dusted frozen fish fillet and a whole lot of vegetables or roasted tomatoes with the merest dribble of olive oil.Add in a few cups of tea and glasses of water and it's not hard at all, and all for 500 cals. I reckon as long as I eat my 1200 cals on the other 5 days It'll be healthy enough.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    I discovered that if I eat breakfast, I'm hungry the rest of the day. If I skip breakfast, I don't even feel properly hungry by lunchtime. I can eat a low cal lunch - salad and lean ham or chicken, a piece of fruit and a low fat yogurt and feel full. Dinner is easy - baked fish, like lightly dusted frozen fish fillet and a whole lot of vegetables or roasted tomatoes with the merest dribble of olive oil.Add in a few cups of tea and glasses of water and it's not hard at all, and all for 500 cals. I reckon as long as I eat my 1200 cals on the other 5 days It'll be healthy enough.

    My understanding of 5:2 would have you eating your maintenance calories on the other 5 days, and I would be surprised if your maintenance is as low as 1200.
  • WillLift4Tats
    WillLift4Tats Posts: 1,699 Member
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    I discovered that if I eat breakfast, I'm hungry the rest of the day. If I skip breakfast, I don't even feel properly hungry by lunchtime. I can eat a low cal lunch - salad and lean ham or chicken, a piece of fruit and a low fat yogurt and feel full. Dinner is easy - baked fish, like lightly dusted frozen fish fillet and a whole lot of vegetables or roasted tomatoes with the merest dribble of olive oil.Add in a few cups of tea and glasses of water and it's not hard at all, and all for 500 cals. I reckon as long as I eat my 1200 cals on the other 5 days It'll be healthy enough.

    This is exactly what NOT to do with 5:2.
  • snailrunner
    snailrunner Posts: 215 Member
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    Agreed...you MUST eat to TDEE the other five days or you are not creating enough of a difference between your normal day and your fasting day. I started 5:2 in Feb 2013 and have maintained my loss since Aug with only occasional fasting. I'm healthier than I've been in a long time! Clean eating is important but with 5:2 there's room for some self-indulgence too instead of daily restriction.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
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    Cant think of anything less appealing then starving myself for almost a third of my life every week.....
  • blovesit
    blovesit Posts: 20
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    I tried this diet for a number of weeks but found that it gave me an unhealthy relationship with food on the days that i was eating - I started to consume alot more because i felt that i 'deserved' it after fasting on the other two days!

    That said two of my friends have been following it for the last 8 months or so and have found they have been able to loose weight and keep it off.
  • thankyou4thevenom
    thankyou4thevenom Posts: 1,581 Member
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    I discovered that if I eat breakfast, I'm hungry the rest of the day. If I skip breakfast, I don't even feel properly hungry by lunchtime. I can eat a low cal lunch - salad and lean ham or chicken, a piece of fruit and a low fat yogurt and feel full. Dinner is easy - baked fish, like lightly dusted frozen fish fillet and a whole lot of vegetables or roasted tomatoes with the merest dribble of olive oil.Add in a few cups of tea and glasses of water and it's not hard at all, and all for 500 cals. I reckon as long as I eat my 1200 cals on the other 5 days It'll be healthy enough.

    And here is a prime example of an unhealthy 5:2 diet. DO NOT DO THIS. It is unlikely unless this person is older (60+) under 5 foot in height, female and sedentary that their maintenance is 1200 cals.

    The whole point of the 5:2 diet is simply a way to give you a deficit and as a by product of fasting learning to control your hunger. You do not do this on your normal days, you eat to maintenance and get your deficit on your fasting days.

    As for it it healthy? Well that depends on the food you eat. As others have said check out the 5:2 groups for more info.
  • WaterBunnie
    WaterBunnie Posts: 1,370 Member
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    I'm too active for it to work for me. I get lightheaded sometimes on a 2lbs deficit eating back my exercise calories and really cannot imagine functioning well on less!
  • sciencegirl_14
    sciencegirl_14 Posts: 9
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    I've just started eating in 5:2 style. I personally love it because it gives me a boost of energy and I feel a lot more clear-headed and focussed. I don't find it too hard to eat only 500 calories on down days because I keep them all for my evening meal. Eating 500 calories on two separate days a week isn't going to ruin your metabolism or anything!

    I have completed two "fast" days and have lost 0.8 kg so far. :)

    But I just want to point out that the first purpose of this way of eating is NOT weight loss. It actually is supposed to improve your all-round well-being (blood pressure, cholesterol, insulin sensitivity etc) I suggest you watch Michael Moseley's documentary "Eat Fast Live Longer". :)

    ***edited to say: I am aiming to eat 1800+ exercise on the other days of the week. :)
  • helengetshealthy
    helengetshealthy Posts: 171 Member
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    I am doing it, have been on this plan for about 5 weeks and have lost 8lbs, which is a sensible weight loss. For my fast days I prepare a low calorie vegetable soup for my lunch - this means I'll get nutrients without loading up on calories. My dinner is normally something like an omelette with lots of spinach and tomatoes, or a chicken salad. You will feel hunger on the days you are fasting, this is expected but it comes in waves rather than continually building to starvation. You will spend a lot of time thinking about food, too! But just think of it as being for one day, where you don't even fast completely, you still get to eat as long as you PLAN YOUR MEALS! The good thing is that you can be relaxed with your calorie intake on the non-fast days, so not so much planning is needed. But I wouldn't recommend eating 1200 calories on your non-fast days, you'll need to eat more than that. Please please please read the book, it is really important that you understand what the diet is about. Also, drink lots of water, avoid milk in your tea and coffee because they will add up calories, and I like to do some workouts on my non-fast days rather than when I'm fasting, but a brisk walk can sometimes take your mind off the hunger. Try it for a few weeks, that's what I did. Leave two days between your first two fasts, and hey you don't even need to weigh in after the first week, you might get disheartened if the weight loss doesn't happen straight away. Some people have had great results on it, so it's really up to you whether you can adapt it to fit your lifestyle or not.

    Good luck!
  • loubidy
    loubidy Posts: 440 Member
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    It suits some people, not all. To me, not eating for two days is the road to anorexia. My lifestyle is not routine at all so it would be difficult to choose days, but it work for other people.

    If it doesn't feel right for you then its not for you.

    There are so many ways to find you r calorie deficit healthily, just keep trying until you find what suits you.
  • thavoice
    thavoice Posts: 1,326 Member
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    Cant think of anything less appealing then starving myself for almost a third of my life every week.....
    Dont knock it until you try it, and you really dont starve yourself.
    I have been on it for a few weeks and it is increasingly easy.

    When the lightbulb went off that you can go on 24 hour cycles it isnt bad.

    Dinner 6pm on sunday. Fast until 6pm on Monday, and eat your maintin calories until 6pm tuesday. I do it 3 times a week but with the 5:2 you do it twice a week. People get into the routine of counting calories from Midnight to midnight. That makes it harder if you ask me.

    The cycle I am on...I know that the day I am fasting will end around 6pm that evening and then I can eat my maintin weight for the next 24 so mentally you never really are missing a "day" of eating.

    and to be honest, with being on it 3 weeks I am finding it difficult to eat my maintain weight on those 24 hour eat "days".
  • thavoice
    thavoice Posts: 1,326 Member
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    It suits some people, not all. To me, not eating for two days is the road to anorexia. My lifestyle is not routine at all so it would be difficult to choose days, but it work for other people.

    If it doesn't feel right for you then its not for you.

    There are so many ways to find you r calorie deficit healthily, just keep trying until you find what suits you.
    You dont not eat for two days.
    As a matter of fact, yuou dont even go a full "day" without eating if you cycle it correctly.

    What if you were told you could have a good dinner Sunday night, and then fast and have another good dinner monday night, and until tuesday evening you eat your maintain weight and then do it again?

    You dont go 2 days without eating, nor do you even go a "day". My fast days are M-W-F and for dinner those days I pretty much have what I want.

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