5:2 diet- curious if anyone has tried this??
Replies
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Thank you everyone so much for the feedback! I wish there were "like" buttons like on FB for the comments I felt were helpful
I can tell this is a great community to be a part of already! 0 -
JanetYellen wrote: »Does not teach anything about healthy habits for life. Not sustainable. It's the flavor of the day diet.
This is the second time I've seen you tell someone IF is unhealthy. Please go look into it, it's not for everyone but just because some people work better with IF instead of eating small meals all throughout the day doesn't make it bad. It makes it different.
Totally agree with this statement 0 -
I basically do the opposite, 2:5 instead of 5:2. So I eat lower 5 days a week, and have 2 days at maintenance or above. That really works for me! Last week for instance, my days were 1287, 2021, 1413, 1130, 2310, 1185, 1107, which averaged out to 1493. Usually my high days are Friday and Saturday when I drink, eat out, and/or have pizza.
I feel like this is easier to stick to than 5 days at maintenance and 2 days at only 500, but figure out what works for you! This is also much easier if you do a couple of really big workouts a week, and you save those calories.
That's basically what I'm doing at the moment, as I find it easier to cut back when I am at work Monday to Friday, whereas the weekends are filled with family dinners and events.
So, I aim for 800 or less Monday to Friday and then allow myself to have 1,600 on Saturday and Sunday. My BMR is around 1650 I believe, though I am reasonably active in my job too. MFP recommends 1230 a day at the moment to lose 1kg a week.
How I have those 800 calories varies, but I tend to avoid eating until early afternoon when I have something protein rich like 0% fat cottage cheese on wholemeal toast, then I have dinner later on.
Some days, I clock in at around 620 calories, but the average is around 750 calories.
I track the weekend days too, of course, but I like knowing that I can have something indulgent liked a grilled sausage sandwich with tomatoes on a Saturday morning and still have enough calories left for a decent lunch and dinner. It is worth cutting back during the week for that flexibility at the weekend - for me at least.0 -
I basically do the opposite, 2:5 instead of 5:2. So I eat lower 5 days a week, and have 2 days at maintenance or above. That really works for me! Last week for instance, my days were 1287, 2021, 1413, 1130, 2310, 1185, 1107, which averaged out to 1493. Usually my high days are Friday and Saturday when I drink, eat out, and/or have pizza.
I feel like this is easier to stick to than 5 days at maintenance and 2 days at only 500, but figure out what works for you! This is also much easier if you do a couple of really big workouts a week, and you save those calories.
I'm on a similar plan except right now I try to stick with 1:6. I'll have 1,000-1,300 calories 6 days a week and up to 2,500 on Saturday. I also try not to eat until 10-11am and stop eating by 7pm so like a 15:9 or 16:8 fasting schedule.
I'm not opposed to trying the 5:2 someday if I start to have more hunger. I think I could manage a 500 calorie day with a lot of protein like one 160 calorie protein shake followed by 3 100 calorie Greek yogurts. With coffee, tea and chewing gum in between.
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I basically do the opposite, 2:5 instead of 5:2. So I eat lower 5 days a week, and have 2 days at maintenance or above. That really works for me! Last week for instance, my days were 1287, 2021, 1413, 1130, 2310, 1185, 1107, which averaged out to 1493. Usually my high days are Friday and Saturday when I drink, eat out, and/or have pizza.
I feel like this is easier to stick to than 5 days at maintenance and 2 days at only 500, but figure out what works for you! This is also much easier if you do a couple of really big workouts a week, and you save those calories.
That's basically what I'm doing at the moment, as I find it easier to cut back when I am at work Monday to Friday, whereas the weekends are filled with family dinners and events.
So, I aim for 800 or less Monday to Friday and then allow myself to have 1,600 on Saturday and Sunday. My BMR is around 1650 I believe, though I am reasonably active in my job too. MFP recommends 1230 a day at the moment to lose 1kg a week.
How I have those 800 calories varies, but I tend to avoid eating until early afternoon when I have something protein rich like 0% fat cottage cheese on wholemeal toast, then I have dinner later on.
Some days, I clock in at around 620 calories, but the average is around 750 calories.
I track the weekend days too, of course, but I like knowing that I can have something indulgent liked a grilled sausage sandwich with tomatoes on a Saturday morning and still have enough calories left for a decent lunch and dinner. It is worth cutting back during the week for that flexibility at the weekend - for me at least.
I don't know your stats (height, weight, age, etc), but your weekly caloric average is rather concerning. If you're eating, at the maximum, 800 calories 5 days a week (which you admit to eating under majority of the time), and at 1600 calories 2 days a week, then you are only averaging around 1000 calories a day. That's under the amount MFP is recommending for you, which is already the bare minimum for maintaining normal body function. If your BMR is indeed 1650 (BMR being the calories you burn by simply existing and doing nothing), you really ought to eat more. Fasting is meant to create a deficit, but high calorie days are supposed to keep your calories up to a healthy weekly loss. Lilawolf's weekly average is within a healthy rate of loss. Your deficit, in contrast, is very extreme.0 -
My other half's mum does 5:2 and really likes it but she just loves to eat grilled chicken and salad anyway so low cal suits her. I prefer my way of controlling my CI - like some who have already posted, I eat one large meal a day (basically fasting for 23 hours a day). It works really well for my satiety and lifestyle.0
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It's going well for me. I just don't eat breakfast or lunch on the fast days, drinks lots of tea and water (up to about 50kcal in milk) and then a nice 450kcal meal for dinner. I don't feel deprived and the weight is coming off easily. I also don't go nuts on my other days, having a light breakfast and lunch and usually 500-700 kcal dinner. This gives me flexibility to have a cheat day now and again (if I want to go out for drinks or a meal I don't have to worry). It's not for everyone though.0
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JanetYellen wrote: »Does not teach anything about healthy habits for life. Not sustainable. It's the flavor of the day diet.
It actually teaches quite a bit. If you are serious about your maintenance, normal days are a perfect chance to practice it and build new lifetime habits. The strategies you need to lose weight are slightly different from those needed to maintain it. Dieting is temporary, maintenance is (hopefully) how you will be eating for the rest of your life. I do every other day dieting (one day on one day off) and it has helped me learn quite a few things about what actually matters in this whole weight loss deal: maintenance.
Why I think this diet is personally for me:
- I get to practice maintenance. This is very important to me.
- If I ever feel like eating something on a fast day that doesn't fit my calories, it's very easy to stop myself in my tracks by simply telling myself that I can have it tomorrow.
- I get to have an actual slice of cake, not just a sliver, a moderately sized maintenance friendly slice of cake without compensating for it by modifying my other meals or doing longer workouts. Being able to eat the foods I like in non-microscopic portions without having to stress about fitting it in makes this diet sustainable to me.
- After a couple of weeks I stopped feeling hungry on fast days. I'm almost never hungry, and when I am it's the type of hunger that you acknowledge and move on, not the kind that gnaws at you nonstop and disturbs your sleep. Not being hungry makes for a sustainable diet to me.
- It's easy to correct higher than expected calorie days. The other day I was nearly done with my day when I remembered that I was invited to a birthday party. The day came at 500 calories over maintenance. To correct that all I had to do was to remove 500 calories from my next maintenance day. My weekly loss didn't suffer at all.
- As a socially active person, it's much easier for me to not be the "party grinch" who chews salad in the corner and declines eating dishes made and shared with love.
- Timing my workouts on maintenance days helps a lot with recovery and makes it easier to manage exercise munchies.
- I have a lot more freedom to experiment with interesting dishes and try new vegetable prepared in all kinds of ways and combinations.
- Even though I don't feel hungry on fast days, sometimes I feel like eating something just because it's there or just because I'm bored or out of habit. Fast days have been very helpful at teaching me how to manage that feeling.
- Binging is now a once in a blue moon thing for me. For some reason I no longer feel the desire to binge.
Mileage may vary, and different people thrive on different calorie control strategies, so dismissing a strategy that can be valid for some just because it sounds unappealing or unsustainable to one person is a bit silly. I assure you, those who tried IF and didn't like it are no longer doing it. Those who do it long term do it because it's easy, sustainable and effective in their case.
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JanetYellen wrote: »Does not teach anything about healthy habits for life. Not sustainable. It's the flavor of the day diet.
You learn portion control on a 500 calorie day, and re-acquaint yourself with hunger. You can move to 6:1 and ultimately maintain and drop into a "fast" day if your weight starts to drift up.
Perfectly sustainable, and at least as sustainable as monitoring calorie intake 24/7.0 -
I did. I was starving on the fast days and couldn't maintain it.0
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I don't know your stats (height, weight, age, etc), but your weekly caloric average is rather concerning. If you're eating, at the maximum, 800 calories 5 days a week (which you admit to eating under majority of the time), and at 1600 calories 2 days a week, then you are only averaging around 1000 calories a day. That's under the amount MFP is recommending for you, which is already the bare minimum for maintaining normal body function. If your BMR is indeed 1650 (BMR being the calories you burn by simply existing and doing nothing), you really ought to eat more. Fasting is meant to create a deficit, but high calorie days are supposed to keep your calories up to a healthy weekly loss. Lilawolf's weekly average is within a healthy rate of loss. Your deficit, in contrast, is very extreme.
I have modified it slightly.
800 Mon-Thursday.
1200 Friday.
1600 Saturday-Sunday.
Averages 1,085 per day which is within the MFP recommended daily intake of 1000-1200.
Because of a few ongoing health issues, I cannot do the amount of exercise that I used to do, else I would up it to reflect that increase in calories burned.
I am making sensible food choices, so I am actually eating a decent amount on the 800 calorie days - food that is low calorie but rich in nutrients.
So far, two weeks in, I have lost 9lbs and am feeling much better in myself. My skin is starting to clear up and I am sleeping better...
Over time, it might change again, but for now I am feeling happy with what I am doing. 0 -
I don't know your stats (height, weight, age, etc), but your weekly caloric average is rather concerning. If you're eating, at the maximum, 800 calories 5 days a week (which you admit to eating under majority of the time), and at 1600 calories 2 days a week, then you are only averaging around 1000 calories a day. That's under the amount MFP is recommending for you, which is already the bare minimum for maintaining normal body function. If your BMR is indeed 1650 (BMR being the calories you burn by simply existing and doing nothing), you really ought to eat more. Fasting is meant to create a deficit, but high calorie days are supposed to keep your calories up to a healthy weekly loss. Lilawolf's weekly average is within a healthy rate of loss. Your deficit, in contrast, is very extreme.
I have modified it slightly.
800 Mon-Thursday.
1200 Friday.
1600 Saturday-Sunday.
Averages 1,085 per day which is within the MFP recommended daily intake of 1000-1200.
Because of a few ongoing health issues, I cannot do the amount of exercise that I used to do, else I would up it to reflect that increase in calories burned.
I am making sensible food choices, so I am actually eating a decent amount on the 800 calorie days - food that is low calorie but rich in nutrients.
So far, two weeks in, I have lost 9lbs and am feeling much better in myself. My skin is starting to clear up and I am sleeping better...
Over time, it might change again, but for now I am feeling happy with what I am doing.
MFP recommends OVER 1200 for a reason, because less than that deprives your body of vital nutrients. The quality of food is irrelevant if you aren't eating enough of it. 9lbs in two weeks is mostly water weight. IF is a sustainable eating schedule for those who do it correctly. The way you're using it is unsustainable. But if you don't care about healthy weight loss, fine. Your choice.0 -
I don't know your stats (height, weight, age, etc), but your weekly caloric average is rather concerning. If you're eating, at the maximum, 800 calories 5 days a week (which you admit to eating under majority of the time), and at 1600 calories 2 days a week, then you are only averaging around 1000 calories a day. That's under the amount MFP is recommending for you, which is already the bare minimum for maintaining normal body function. If your BMR is indeed 1650 (BMR being the calories you burn by simply existing and doing nothing), you really ought to eat more. Fasting is meant to create a deficit, but high calorie days are supposed to keep your calories up to a healthy weekly loss. Lilawolf's weekly average is within a healthy rate of loss. Your deficit, in contrast, is very extreme.
I have modified it slightly.
800 Mon-Thursday.
1200 Friday.
1600 Saturday-Sunday.
Averages 1,085 per day which is within the MFP recommended daily intake of 1000-1200.
Because of a few ongoing health issues, I cannot do the amount of exercise that I used to do, else I would up it to reflect that increase in calories burned.
I am making sensible food choices, so I am actually eating a decent amount on the 800 calorie days - food that is low calorie but rich in nutrients.
So far, two weeks in, I have lost 9lbs and am feeling much better in myself. My skin is starting to clear up and I am sleeping better...
Over time, it might change again, but for now I am feeling happy with what I am doing.
MFP recommends OVER 1200 for a reason, because less than that deprives your body of vital nutrients. The quality of food is irrelevant if you aren't eating enough of it. 9lbs in two weeks is mostly water weight. IF is a sustainable eating schedule for those who do it correctly. The way you're using it is unsustainable. But if you don't care about healthy weight loss, fine. Your choice.
The app states 1000-1200 for women, actually.
Plus, I have spoken to my doctor in the past who actually recommended a 800 calorie a day diet without the days having extra calories to up the overall weekly total.
I am aware that the start of any diet brings a loss in water weight. I have always drank a lot of water - having at least 2 litres a day - and that hasn't changed.
I have not suggested that what I am doing is right for everyone, but it is working for me and I am feeling a lot healthier, with certain medical conditions I have already improving.
I do not think there is any need to be quite as rude as you are being.
Criticising me repeatedly doesn't do anything other than make you look like a bully.
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I tried it and know others that have as well. It was ok but I found myself dreading the fasting days and during them I would be lethargic, have headaches and not be able to concentrate, not good for a medical student!
well I did intermittent fasting ! and fasting helped me to sleep only 4 hours a day with great energy through out and I passed Med school
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[/quote]
MFP recommends OVER 1200 for a reason, because less than that deprives your body of vital nutrients. The quality of food is irrelevant if you aren't eating enough of it. 9lbs in two weeks is mostly water weight. IF is a sustainable eating schedule for those who do it correctly. The way you're using it is unsustainable. But if you don't care about healthy weight loss, fine. Your choice. [/quote]
Bit harsh, and not at all supportive. I agree it may not be many people recommendations but there are nicer ways to explain things.
Well done on your 9lb lotte. A loss is a loss and something to be congratulated for.0
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