Who is still doing the 5:2 Fast Diet?

[Legion]

I remember reading quite a while ago that several fellow c25kers were giving the 5:2 diet (as promoted by Dr Michael Moseley) a go, and I wondered if any of you are still doing it and/or have any feedback to share?

I'm giving it some careful consideration at present, to get my weight loss kick-started again. I'm not sure how it will tie in with my digestive issues but it could prove beneficial if I do it right, so would really like to hear from those of you who gave it a proper go and/or still fast regularly.

[Beek Graduate]

I keep making feeble attempts at it. It would be a lot easier if we were both (OH ) doing it.

I was meant to be doing a fast day today but scotched it by having some Green and Blacks chocolate after my run.

Since doing C25K I often feel very full - after a lifetime of never feeling that. I still run on the fast days. I used to run on empty first thing so making a fast day of it usually works well for me. I have lost 2kg in a month. I know that is not a great deal but I am finding it tricky fitting 5/2 in at home.

I have to take T2diabetes into account as well so the running is really working wonders for me!

I would give it a go!

[Zizzy Graduate]

I've just started on this again after lapsing before Christmas when I was ill. I'm only fasting on rest days. I like it because life is busy and it doesn't require much thinking. Like Beek, since I started running my appetite has changed, I'm full more quickly and not craving sweet things.

Keep us posted as to how you get on!

[loulou51 Graduate]

I am still doing 5:2 a year after I started. I have lost 2 stones and it is now a way of life. Here is a link to a forum which I have belonged to for a year, it is very helpful fastday.com/ Good luck.

[Carolecal]

I've been on it a year now and have lost around 7.5 kilos ....I wasn't vastly over weight ,but well out of my comfort zone.

I've had the odd short break ( holidays and Christmas ) but generally it's just a normal way of life for me now.

I got a bit too relaxed in the run up to Christmas with the "5"'part of the " 5:2" and have since checked out my BMI ( very top end of healthy) and am aiming for around the mid-point, so just have another few kilos to go and then I will probably drop down to one fast day a week .

I often run on my fast days...I always prefer to run first thing in the morning anyway, but have experienced no problems running the morning following a fast.....I'm almost never hungry at that time anyway.

It's quite surprising how much you can get out of 500 cals(600 for a man) and there are a couple of excellent books ( Dr Michael Moseley and Mimi Spencer and another by Kate Harrison ) which are packed with all the info you would need and lots of ideas for meals and snacks, plus the forum loulou51 has mentioned is very useful and supportive.

I space my two fast days out ( Mon and Thurs) though this is flexible of course and some people like to do two continuous days.....my preference is to know there can always be " jam (or whatever !) tomorrow " .

I'd say give it a go. I'm happy to help ,if I can, with any other queries .Good luck

[gingernut49 Graduate]

Yes, having lost three stone on the diet, I now still fast one day a week to maintain my weight loss. I weigh myself every Saturday morning, and then I know whether to fast just the one or an extra one that week if a rogue pound has crept on. Apart from anything else I'm doing it for my health (as in the video "Eat, Fast and Live Longer" vimeo.com/54089463 - do watch if you haven't already) as I'm 64 and I want to live as long as possible and stay mobile and healthy. It was due to 5:2 that I started to have so much energy. Pre 5:2 I used to have to have a nap in the afternoons - January last year I started C25K and now run three times a week. It's the first diet that has ever worked so well for me - I haven't been as slim, fit and healthy since my teens!

[Legion Graduate]

Thanks everyone. I had diverticulitis at Xmas, which really threw my usual eating habits out the window, and I lived on little but soup, liquids and well-cooked fruit/veg and lots of water for a few weeks while I recovered. That got me thinking about the 5:2 diet again. To try and prevent further flare ups I need to stay hydrated, eat my FAD and limit junk food (like the pizza I had yesterday, for the first time this year). Although I haven't found any evidence as to whether 5:2 is good/bad for people with diverticulosis, I thought giving my digestion a couple of 'rest days' each week where I only have liquids and fruit and veg, might be beneficial to my system, as well as all the other advantages of doing 5:2 (weight loss, living longer, etc).

I'm going to give it a tentative go today. I've been for a 5K run, I've had my daily Actimel, I've got fresh soup for lunch/dinner (it's a 600g pot, so haven't yet decided whether to have it all in one meal or split between two - any thoughts?) and I'm going to have some fruit. Can anyone tell me whether men/women 600/500 calories is a strict figure based on gender or is it based on the assumption than women are smaller than men in general? I'm a 5'10" broad-shouldered woman, so I wonder if I should be aiming slightly higher than 500 cals? I don't want to 'cheat', but I don't want to restrict myself more than I should either.

[hjs007 Graduate]

I started the 5/2 diet last January and stuck with it until my BMI got down to 22. I prefer to save most of my calories for my evening meal so I don't go to bed too hungry and the rest with a few cups of coffee (with milk) during the day. I've lost 2 stone in a year. I found the final few pounds very difficult to shift, but I started the C25k in September, graduated in December and this certainly helped me with this lose the last few pounds. I now only fast one day a week which is very manageable and actually feels like a mini detox. The 5/2 diet also helped me cut down on my alcohol consumption. I was drinking red wine every night before the diet, but had to cut that out on my fasting days. Over the months, I've managed to cut down even further and now I don't drink at all Mon - Thursday. I have recommended this diet to friends and family as it works and apparently has lots of health benefits. I'm not sure if these will pan out in the long run, but I certainly feel more healthy. Good luck!

[Legion Graduate]

Just done my first proper week of 5:2, with yesterday being my second fast day. I also ran twice yesterday, and get the feeling that the running was better for the fasting.

My first fast day was horrible, but I feel that's my own fault for not eating properly the day before, and then having a hot cross bun for breakfast on my fast day. I felt nauseous a lot and was hungry all day. Yesterday, I didn't have breakfast, just a cup of tea. I went for a run and dog walk in the late morning, and came back to a nectarine and banana. I had a sneaky pear mid-afternoon, then went for an early evening (very short) run before a delicious panini for supper, topped with mediterranean vegetables, Quorn 'pepperoni' and a dash of mature cheddar. I hadn't felt hungry all day but was just starting to feel a bit peckish by dinner time. I could easily have eaten more, if it wasn't a fast day, but it was a tasty, satisfying meal so I got by quite happily.

I've found putting a dash of squash in my water (which I drink plenty of) helps to satiate cravings for sweet stuff and makes me feel a bit as though I've had something more substantial. I was definitely a bit hungrier this morning than usual, but not ravenous. A bowl of cereal and one piece of wholemeal toast kept me going until a late morning Danish pastry, which I didn't enjoy as much as I expected - it tasted 'stodgy'! Beans on wholemeal toast for lunch, and a couple of Hobnobs this afternoon, and I'm getting peckish. Might be time to make an early dinner with lots of lovely veggies to fill me up. I don't think I'll be ready for another fast day tomorrow, so I'm thinking I will probably aim for Wednesday and Friday or Saturday this week.

Do you usually space your fast days out? At the moment, I feel as though I need a couple of days 'normal' eating to be able to cope with a fast day. It might be because I have a terrible habit of 'forgetting' to eat until my stomach complains. Fast days should be easy for me, because I often feel like I 'can't be bothered' to eat, yet knowing that I 'can't' eat on a given day is a whole other matter!