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Will this work? I need a kick-start

InfinityEleven
InfinityEleven Posts: 8 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
I'm 24 years old, and female. I used to be a size 8, around 8 stone, and it suited me. It also alleviated my joint issues. I've put on a fair amount of weight over the last few years - a combination of living on takeaways for a year or so as we had no kitchen, and being hospitalised for a long time.

I'm now 63kg, and I'm doing alternate day fasting - around 500 calories one day, 1300 the next. I don't seem to be losing weight very fast, though. I work from home, and have a computer job, so I guess that's my problem.

I've completely got rid of takeaways from my diet, and I'm not buying snack-y foods anymore. I've been doing a JM kickboxing workout (about 20 minutes) every day for the past week, and today I'm going to try and do all three in a row - I've got my heart rate monitor on ready to go when I get the chance!

Is this likely to make a noticeable difference? I've got a defined baby bump, at the moment, and a double chin if I look down. Mortified.

Replies

  • db34fit69
    db34fit69 Posts: 182 Member
    Alternating 500 and 1300 calories a day? That's an average of 900 a day, very low.

    Everyone has a double chin when they look down, that's the flexible skin on your chin folding into itself.

    There is no kick-start, doesn't matter what exercise you do.
  • fluffyasacat
    fluffyasacat Posts: 242 Member
    Alternate Day Fasting means you fast one day (that's your 500 calories) and don't diet the next day. I can't stress this enough. You're not fasting and dieting.

    Think of ADF as a percentages game: you eat 25% of your TDEE on your fast day, and 125% the next day. That will give you an overall deficit of 25%. Any more than that and you're going to start losing muscle, hair, skin elasticity, all sorts of stuff you don't want to lose!
  • InfinityEleven
    InfinityEleven Posts: 8 Member
    I think 1300 is my allowed limit - it's certainly what the My Fast Diet website suggests I eat on a NFD! I've put that I'm pretty sedentary because of my job, and I'm 5 foot 3.

    Two workouts done, but they are both burning about 200 calories, so I'll probably be able to burn 550/600 calories per day if I can fit all three in. That could be a challenge on busier days!

    I find this stuff really confusing, so I really appreciate the feedback. Thank you.
  • Cc215
    Cc215 Posts: 228 Member
    Is this the site you've been using? http://thefastdiet.co.uk/

    If so - they give you both your BMR and TDEE in the results. It sounds like your eating your BMR on non-fasting days. That isn't how it works though - it's the TDEE figure you eat when not fasting.
  • fluffyasacat
    fluffyasacat Posts: 242 Member
    edited January 2015
    Cc215 wrote: »
    Is this the site you've been using? http://thefastdiet.co.uk/

    If so - they give you both your BMR and TDEE in the results. It sounds like your eating your BMR on non-fasting days. That isn't how it works though - it's the TDEE figure you eat when not fasting.

    This is all true... but the fast diet works on 2 fast days and 5 non-fast days. What @InfinityEleven‌ here is doing is every second day.

    If you do a fasting diet you have to do it safely. You are currently misreading your instructions and bending them to make it very unsafe. How does alternate day fasting relate to 5:2? How does BMR become TDEE? It seems to be some very wilful misunderstanding on your part to get it so wrong.

    5:2, eating at 25% of TDEE on 2 fast days and 100% of TDEE on non-fast days, comes out at a weekly deficit of about 22%. You are currently getting deficits over 50%, and that's a very bad thing. Here's the maths.

    Assuming a TDEE of 2000, your week on 5:2 looks like this:
    1. day 1: 100% of 2000 = 2000
    2. day 2: 25% of 2000 = 500
    3. day 3: 100% of 2000 = 2000
    4. day 4: 100% of 2000 = 2000
    5. day 5: 100% of 2000 = 2000
    6. day 6: 25% of 2000 = 500
    7. day 7: 100% of 2000 = 2000

    total calories for the week = 11000
    average calories per day = 1571

    But what you, @InfinityEleven‌ are doing, is this:
    1. day 1: 65% of 2000 = 1300
    2. day 2: 25% of 2000 = 500
    3. day 3: 65% of 2000 = 1300
    4. day 4: 25% of 2000 = 500
    5. day 5: 65% of 2000 = 1300
    6. day 6: 25% of 2000 = 500
    7. day 7: 65% of 2000 = 1300

    total calories for the week = 6700
    average calories per day = 957

    The following week would be even worse, as you'd have 4 days at 25% and come out to an average calories per day of just 843. It's a deficit of over 50% (52% and 58%, alternating) for the week. AND you're working out on this! This is called at VLCD, or a very low calorie diet. It's isn't just frowned upon on this website, it's disallowed and for good reason.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    edited January 2015
    I do alternate day fasting. I'm 64kgs and 5"8. I try and stick to 500 on down days and 1550 calories on up days. I've lost 11kgs in 3mths following this.
    If i were to follow Dr Johnsons plan of the every other day diet I should be eating 1738 calories on up days and 348 on down days. I very much struggle to stay under 348 calories...
    Oh and I don't exercise, if i did, i would definitely up the calories.
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