I've been googling success stories online for some motivation today (much needed after a gain this week)
I keep coming across 5:2 fasting diets and people are raving about it. I also know that it was featured on a BBC programme - but I haven't actually watched it.
I'm just about to so some more goolging on this, but I also wanted to see whether anyone had done this before, what people's opinions are, and whether anyone has had any success on it?
I know it isn't a permanent solution - though I'm sure there are people out there who will be swearing by it and saying they've done it since they were 5 or something...
I realise, exercising is probably very difficult on the fasting days on this thing - can't imagine putting in a decent workout on 500 calories for the whole day. But I wouldn't even pin them as great rest days either, as you won't be taking in the needed amounts of nutrients needed for recovery.
So, would you push through and work out on the fast days, so you're then able to take in all you need for recovery the next day, on a non fast day...?
So confused as to weather this is a food only diet, or food and exercise diet... I'm unsure from reading things whether this is another fad diet things or a genuine lifestyle thing.
Good Lord, apparently there are 6 different types of fasting diets...??
1. 16/8 method
2. 5:2
3. eat-stop-eat (fast for 24 hours once or twice a week)
4. Alternate day fasting
5. warrior diet (fast all day and eat a large meal at night)
I really don't like the idea of 'fasting' for two whole days in the week. Does that mean not eating anything at all? I'm not clear on what this diet actually means. I think we should feed our bodies every day. If we can get into the habit of eating a healthy balanced diet and make life long eating habits we shouldn't need to fast at all.
I think at least with the NHS 12 week plan that's the intention. To learn to understand your body via nutrition and exercise and to make some permanent, yet simple, healthy life-style changes. This 5:2 diet seems a bit 'nay' to me because it doesn't really teach us about healthy eating - just two extremes; fasting and then unconstrained eating. Where's the balance?
Then again, if it works for you then fair enough. We're all different and we'll all have our own ways in which we lose weight. Each to their own.
For me I think trying to eat sensibly and make long-term changes to my life-style will be the right way as I think it will teach me how to live healthily.
I believe the general principle is, you can eat whatever you want 5 days of the week, but have 2 non-consecutive days with only a 500 calorie allowance. So fasting on a Monday and a Thursday, eating normally for the other days.
Reading up on it, it still implements all same things that the NHS plan does; making your calories count, being mindful over what you're eating and watching portion sizes - so I guess you could still implement the recommended calories for weight loss you get from the BMI calculator. On the fasting days, making it even more important to making your calories count. I mean 500 isn't a lot, so you'd need to be very picky in selecting nutrient dense foods.
It obviously just includes drastically cutting calories for 2 days.
I guess if you just heard about it, in terms of eating what you want 5 days, it has the potential to be taken out of proportion? Seeing it as they could literally eat ANYTHING they wanted on the 5 days. But I think the objective is to still implement a health diet and exercise, just with 2 days fasting.
It's all apparently backed up by science, then so is that military diet thing. And we all know that is ridiculous.
Healthy eating all the way. I question can you keep this going for the rest of your life? Or would you want too?
Healthy eating is a lifetime process if you want it to be continuous.
Also I would be concerned if you operated machinary or driving a car. The only reason i say this is because I go light headed if I am hungry. 😀
I have a MFP friend who does it and it seems to work for her. To me though, that's not a healthy lifestyle and isn't sensible long term. I would rather just eat less calories every day.
From what I've read, I think it makes it a bit easier for people who perhaps struggle with calorie counting on a daily basis?
If you're only having to watch 2 days of the week, but obviously eat sensibly the other 5, it might be easier for some, rather than obsessing over calories on a day to day basis perhaps.
I also know a few people who do this and it works for them, but not for me 😕 I can barely go 4 hours without eating!! Lol 😊 I did attempt it once but found I was just sooooo hungry for the subsequent three days it just didn't work 😕 At the end of the day it is just another method of reducing overall calorie consumption. Good luck which ever method you prefer 😊
I try to stick to healthy eating and calorie counting (MFP), but have, on the odd occasion, just had 500 - 550 calories in a day (and done this two days running), due to being really busy/not very hungry that day/being out. On those days I have 500ml skimmed milk, fruit (for breakfast), and later in the day, salad perhaps with a little chicken or ham. If I've really overdone it the night before and feel uncomfortable the next morning, then cutting portion sizes and calories works for me.
Horses for courses I guess. Also I try to 'listen' to my body, if it doesn't want food, then, just because it's meal time, I won't have food. Works the other way too, on a 'hungry' day, then healthy snacks here I come 😃😃
I am experimenting with intermittent fasting, not eating anything after 6pm and nothing until 2pm the next day, twice a week. Heh, when I said experimenting, I tried it once this week and survived. I am hoping it cures my midnight munchies.
I know a medical professional who did the 5:2 diet and they did very well on it and have maintained for several months now.
Let us know if you try any of the fasting methods, it would be interesting to hear how you get on.
I think I may give it a go to be honest for 5 weeks or so.
I don't eat breakfast anyway, so I guess I already do time restricted fasting like yourself. We've all gone to bed hungry before and survived, so it should be fine ha.
The main problem for me with a fasting diet is that it does not lead to healthy eating habits. The feast or famine must lead to massive spikes and lows in blood sugar, surly a recipe for type2 diabetes. It is also likely to lead to underperforming on fast days so will not suit anyone with a busy life.
Well, to be totally honest - I think it ultimately depends on the individual.
If you're going in to it with the mind set that you're going to eat healthily regardless, I can't see it being such a problem.
However if you go in to it looking at it as an excuse to binge eat the 5 days, because it's okay because of the fast days. Then it's a problem and I can't imagine you'd reap any of the benefits that it's claiming to have.
I wouldn't go in to it like, I'm going to fast for 2 days a week, but it gives me a free pass to eat takeaways for 5 days. I'd personally still implement healthy eating and lifestyle changes.
People have been "fasting" in various ways for centuries, for religious reasons, without any ill effects ( although you could be exempted if you already had poor health).
Perhaps see if you can find the Michael Mosley program? He does explain things well. If you are struggling to lose weight it seems to work well, although it may not be recommended if you have certain health problems. If you are pre-diabetic, it can be a possible way to reverse it, but you may get similar benefits by just cutting out carbs for a day or two a week.
If you have a fairly early evening meal and then nothing until breakfast, you will already be giving yourself a reasonable 'fasting' window. I sometimes just delay my first meal of the day to extend this.
Different things work for different people. If you're choosing one, it needs to be workable for you.
I have in fact just watched it tonight as I managed to find it in the archives. I think I remember watching it when it was first aired - but I was too young to understand any of it.
It does seem to have some very good benefits in terms of internal health and future health - weightloss being a beneficial side effect.
I think I shall definitely give it a whirl and see how it goes. Obviously I can't get all these tests that he had done before and after, but I'm sure you'd just be able to see and feel the benefits and that would be enough.
Whether it could be long term is another question. Could you really see yourself keeping it up for the remainder of your life - but I think it could be a good starting block.
I've done my own version of it for about a year now. I try to eat nothing (just tea and liquids) on a Friday. It's a good way of leading into the weekend, I have to eat well on Saturday as I don't want to go into starvation mode and I seem to cope better if I know I'm going to eat nothing, rather than 500 calories which triggers my hunger. My exercise consists of running and as I usually run in the mornings I will run on Friday morning if it's a running day. I wouldn't run on a Saturday morning after a day of fasting. And I'll do all my normal walking (probably even a bit more than usual) on a Friday as that is not quite so tiring. It's only one day a week though. It seems to work well for me, I lost 3 stone and have managed to maintain for the last 9 months. I think physiologically we're made to be able to cope with fasting, as long as it's not too long. Not recommended for diabetics of course, but otherwise I think it's a good way of sharpening your senses. I know food tastes lovely on Saturday!
I think I may give this a go to be honest. I dont see myself as being able to maintain this till I'm dead. But I think it could be a good starting block.
I will obviously eat healthily and still include exercise and activity as and where I can - it will be trial and error building it around fasting days and how that works logically in terms of it actually being safe and no risk of passing out.
I know that on some fasting diets and even just when people calorie restricthe to much, it can end up resulting in muscle wastage - so I'll definitely be including some full body workout circuits/strength sessions to keep muscle and build it - more muscle the better anyway!
Feeling hungry just thinking about fast days! Will still stick within my 1700calorie limit on my non fasting days. Not going to go stupid and eat takeaways and crap - it defeats the object and it's not exactly giving the body the kind of things it needs to rebuiId after fasting and exercise!
Your plan sounds really sensible and you have a (to me) big calorie limit on normal days. I've read that when folk do this and get their weight to where they want, they fast only one day a week to maintain. My calorie limit, taking into account my age, height and activity level is only 1050 per day to lose 1lb a week! Good luck with your plan, let us know how it goes.
Sorry, wasn't questioning your calorie limit, just envious as mine is so little... still, like you, this is what the BMI measurements on the NHS website gave me.
It seems to be right as I've lost (up until 3 weeks ago when I jumped off the wagon) an average of a pound a week since last Christmas. Back on board again now so let's hope we both have a good week.
No need to apologise! I personally thought/think it is a bit high - but reading more and more on here about too low of a limit (says the person who is trying 5:2) has the opposite effect. So if you can't beat them, join them - I'll lower it if I don't feel like there are any results.
Well done on the steady loss! Great achievement. Life has gotten the better of me the past couple of weeks, so now back on board!
I did try 5/2 and did loose weight. I had no problem with the fasting days, but you d I over ate on the other days. After a few weeks I just didn't feel well either. People commented that I looked I, but that could be just because I had lost weight. I wouldn't do it again , but do know people who swear by it. Didn't exercise at that time.e so that wasn't a problem. I've now decided to eat healthilyand stick to about 1400 calories a day, as in the NHS website diet. Good luck with your weight loss.
I tried the 5:2 diet a few years ago because my husband wanted to try it. It worked for him, but it really didn't suit me at all and I put on weight at a time when I was on a very successful healthy eating plan already. Keeping to 500 cals for 2 days was torture and on the "eat what you like" days I did just that and more than made up for the fasting and after a few weeks couldn't restrain my eating at all.
It seems I am, quite accidentally, doing my own version of the 16/8 (sometimes 14/10) diet, which is basically skipping breakfast or supper so that all of your eating is done over the space of 8 or 10 hours, alongside the NHS 12 week plan. It just suits my eating patterns and fits in with my family. It is interesting that all of a sudden skipping meals is becoming quite a fashion! I am sure in a couple of years that will be frowned upon again.
Personally I think these diets are a bit faddy and I like the NHS 12 week plan because it is just sound, practical advice which is sustainable and, if you want to get weight off and keep it off, it is sustainability that we need. I would suggest that whatever works for you is OK.
I'm doing both the 16/8 and 5:2. I eat normally five days a week, within an 8 hour window, and 'fast' two days per week.
On fast days, I eat a quarter of the calories I burn (which is a lot more than 500 or 600 calories: these numbers are based on the nominal average calorie burns for women and men).
16/8 increased my weight loss at a point where I could have expected it to be slowing down. 15:2 has made no noticeable difference either way (it may have been the other way around if I'd started 15:2 first), but I feel healthier when I do it and have stuck with it for the potential long-term health benefits.
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