5/2 diet does it really work? Can yo... - Weight Loss Support
5/2 diet does it really work? Can you give me some pointers on getting started tomorrow. Want a stone off by 7 November. Will I do it?
Yes, the 5:2 Diet does work but I think you're being totally over-ambitious trying to lose a stone in a month! I lost three stone in six months so seven pounds is more realistic. Have you read Kate Harrison's "The 5:2 Diet"?
You eat 500 calories two non-consecutive days a week (or three) - these are the Fast days - and then you don't eat more than 2000 on the other days. How you divide up those calories is up to you - one, two or three meals - I don't eat breakfast, have a bowl of soup for lunch and my main meal in the evening. Go for protein and lots of vegetables. There are Facebook groups that will help keep you motivated.
Once you've shifted the weight you want to, you then maintain by 'fasting' one day a week - and the weight stays off and you get the health benefits of a reduced risk of diabetes, cancer, dementia, heart disease.
Thank you. I agree I am probably being too over ambitious and 7lbs off would be great. I am currently 14st 61/2lb as do this morning. Will keep you posted. Itsgottogo
I am a woman and eat 600 calories (plus more in fruits like orange/pear) on feast days and still losing about a pound a week!
You will still lose but it will be slower - the average is 7 pounds a month so a pound a week is still good. Fruit does raise your insulin levels - Kate Harrison's book will tell you all about that.
thanks. will try a bit harder but I am such a nibbler. a pund a wee will do me as long as it isconstant. I only need to lose another 5 pounds. always the hardest in my experience.
That's why I found it essential to use the MyFitnessPal free app and log every morsel I ate - if I knew I had to log it I didn't eat it! It was so worthwhile doing that because now I can eat what I like, just fast one day a week, and I don't put any weight on. Mind you, I make sure I weigh myself once a week to keep an eye on that!
Hi Itsgottogo,
From what I've read, I think the best way to describe it is that the professional jury is still out about whether it is a particularly good approach to weight loss and what the longer term health and nutrition effects are. I know individuals who have had success with it.
My understanding is that as yet there is not enough longer term data about it, so for one issue, the thorny issue of do people manage to both lose weight AND keep it off isn't yet fully answered.
I can see how it might not lend itself well into getting into better eating habits if you continue to "eat normally" on five days. Let's face it, if you're overweight, it's pretty much your perception of eating normally that has got you into the problem. In more conventional weight loss ways, part of the mix is changing the bad eating habits for good ones and therefore ending up both with a weigth loss AND a healthy (non-weight-gaining) eating regime.
That all aside, I do really recommend that you try to keep you weight loss to the recommended 1 to 2 lbs a week (on average). I would say an absolute top of averagaing out 1 kg a week (2.2 lbs). O.K. most people lose weight a bit faster than that in the first week or two due to fluid loss and most people's weight loss journeys have some element of 'blip' and 'spurt'.
Basically - despite the silly claims of some advertisers - rapid weight loss is not a good idea, especially in the longer term and can be, in some circumstances, a serious health risk.
Good luck with your weight loss journey.
hi Doikosp, Initially I thought the same as you, how can it work when you eat normally on 5 days a week but in fact it does because you tend to actually not eat as much as you might have done on non-fasting days. If you read Michael Moseley's book The Fast Diet the science behind it is absolutely fascinating
Hi gardengnome42,
I do appreciate that would happen to some extent. It's like for those giving up smoking - the later you put off your 'first' cigarette of the day then the less other ones you usually smoke. So those who scrub off the list their first two cigarettes of the day often find themselves smoking four or five (or even more) less cigarettes a day.
I guess it's a bit of a confidence-training / realisation thing.
I mean, if you can take control of your eating on 2 days a week, then you'll begin to realise that you CAN contol your eating and it doesn't have to control you (and the size and weight you are).
But personally my view is, however a person arrives at it, the key to long term sustained weight loss - excepting certain specific medical conditions - is to entyer into a newer, better and healthier relationship with food and exercise/activity, i.e with what you eat, how much of it you eat and how often.
I also have had great success with the Fast diet, I have read both 5:2 and the Fast Diet. My other aid is the application myfitnesspal which is available for iPhone, Android and Windows formats for free, so you can put it on your smart phone, home PC or tablet this really helps to educate you as to exactly what calories are in what food or drink also shows Calories Carbs Fat Protein Sodium Sugar. So far this year I have lost just over 2 stone and droped a dress size as a result of my New Year's resolution.
I know 2 people who've done the 5:2 diet and have different experiences.
1 person lost a stone in a month, started eating normally and gained one and a half (!) stone in 2 weeks!
The other lost a stone in 2 months and 9 inches overall, but her body fat percentage has increased by 2%, which might be what you're looking for on the scales and in the fitting room, but it's not healthy for your heart and other vital organs.
I lost three stone on 5:2 and have maintained my weight loss since last April by just fasting one day a week. I'm fasting for my health as well as to maintain. If you get to your goal weight and then start eating as you did before then it's just any other diet. As far as I'm concerned it's not a diet, it's not a phase, it's a permanent lifestyle change. It certainly changed my life. I no longer have fat around my waist, my tummy is flat and the dreaded back boobs have completely gone!
I have been following 5:2 since April 128lbs and maintaining since the beginning of August 112lbs. I fast any two days each week (not consecutively) and eat from all food groups. I used MFP for the first month to calculate portion sizes and calories and used an on-line calculator to find out how many calories a day I needed to lose weight at a rate of 1 - 2lbs per week. 5:2 is flexible and sociable, but care must be taken not to overeat on feast days. I am doing this for the health benefits of fasting and the weight loss has been an added bonus
Hi,
I've been doing the 5:2 diet for about 6 weeks and there are pros and cons. My weight was at the higher end of healthy so I didn't have loads to lose but I was struggling to shift the last half stone. My fitnesspal app recommended 1200 cal a day but I find it really difficult to stick to this amount in the long term as I do enjoy wine and crisps or chocolate at weekends and that tends to mess up the calorie counting. After 6 weeks of 5:2 I've lost 6 lbs and have still enjoyed wine, chocolate, crisps and other nice things on non fast days so from a weight loss point of view I'm pleased. I don't go mad on other days and if anything I'm a bit more thoughtful about what and when I eat as it seems a shame to spoil all the efforts of the fasting. The pattern I seem to be following is 500 cal twice a week, sensible eating 3 days and eat what I like weekends (I also run 3 times a week - quick plug for the NHS C 25K plan which is great if you want to take up running).
It's not a magic solution though, the first 2 fast days were pretty awful as I had headaches, slept really badly and thought about food constantly. Since then it has got easier although I'm tired on fast days and I'm not sure about the other health benefits.
I'm going to do another couple of weeks of 5:2 and see what weight I get to then I'm going to try 6:1 as maintenance. If I put weight back on I'll have to think again as I'm not sure I want to do 5:2 forever! .
If you do decide to try it you should definitely keep going past the first couple of days as it does take a while to get used to and also to find out if it suits you better to have two small (very small!) meals during the day or saving all the 500 cal for one (slightly more) substantial meal. Good luck
6:1 works really well and I certainly intend on fasting one day a week for the rest of my life for the health benefits. I also run three days a week - hooray for C25K!
I have found that a low carb diet suits me better, it keeps my blood sugar level and is a permanent way of eating. I lowered my carbs gradually, so that I didn't get problems like headaches. You can experiment to found out what works for you. I haven't stopped eating all carbs, but choose ones with a good fibre content, like sweet potatoes. I still have treats like very dark chocolate, and make a no-added-sugar fruit cake.
This link gives a information on a very low carb diet, and its health benefits. Not everyone needs to go this low.
authoritynutrition.com/low-...
I've been following a similar regime for a while now, concentrating on curtailing my Carb intake, upping my Fat and Protein consumption or at least not worrying about my Fat intake like I used to. According to our body composite scales my Fat% is 8.2%, now I know these types of scales are not 100% accurate and are only a guide but I think it still adds weight to the fact that FAT does not make you FAT.
Glad to hear that you have been successful with low carb, the way I eat has changed hugely over the years. Eating fat has been demonised for the last 40 years, a real health disaster for many.
I had to look up "body composite scales"! They sound like an interesting idea. I'm wondering if it's worth getting some, as I'm guessing this is a more accurate measure of visceral fat than the not exactly high tech waist measurement I'm using at the moment.
They are OK, I'm not sure of the accuracy though, the best are Tanita but they cost a fortune.
amazon.co.uk/Tanita-Segment...
We have a set of
amazon.co.uk/Omron-BF511-Fa...
Which are very cheap at the moment on Amazon I think we paid around £80 at the time. I've watched my 'Reported' Body Fat decrease since we bought them earlier this year from 19% to 8%, My Muscle % has increased to just over 48% and my Visceral Fat which is scaled 0-9 go from 6 to 2 but I have been working out hard and doing a lot of running over the past 10 months!
Please watch Michael Mosley's excellent Horizon programme in 2012, "Eat, Fast and Live Longer" vimeo.com/54089463 and read Kate Harrison's book, "The 5:2 Diet" tinyurl.com/qe6mz4u - you'll find all the answers in these.
52fastdiet.co.uk/ This forum has lots of useful address and support and there are people who have been following 5:2 for over a year. It has taught me to eat when I am hungry and that I can eat whatever I want but mustn't be greedy. You can't go mad on the 'feast days' though!!
to my amazment, it DOES! my husband and I tried everything from wieightwatchers, to cambridge diet to this 12 weeks plan from NHS. I could not stick to any of it. then I just casually picked up the kate harrison 5:2 recipe book from Smiths, and tried the diet. unbelievably to me, the weight shifted. I believe each of us needs to find what works for US, no one else. I cannot be doing with constantly watching the calories. now I just watch it 2 days a week, that is all. and her recipes are brilliantly good and tasty even for the fasting days. sure I still cheated and never can stick to the 600 cals prescribed. even so both of us lose weightr steadily.I lost 1/2 kg a week so far without fail. the beauty is when I am hungry and want to reach for the peanuts, or biscuits or ANYTHING on fast days, I told myself tomorrow you can have all of it without guilt! and I do. on 'normal' or 'feast' days, I just eat what I like, (not going crazy, mind! just not bothering to count and watch calories. and that is the best of it all. I personally feel I can do this for the rest of my life. just fast 2 days a week. I come from jawa. and in west jawa the most beautiful girls are the sundanese girls. they and their mothers, grandmothers and great grandmas before them all fast on mondays and thursdays. coincidence? go figure. I recommend this for those out there who really cannot be bothered counting calories all the time.
good luck,
leny
So how did you get on? 
