Ok guys, just sneaking on whilst having a lunch break. So I've looked through the info that you recommended and it looks hard, but I reckon I can do it as it is only one day and then two days off etc. It's saying my TDEE is 1854, so I guess this is the amount I shouldn't exceed on non fast days right?
It's recommending to eat a 200kcal breakfast and a 300kcal dinner and leaving 10-12 hours in between which is fine as I'm always up early for the kids and work etc. and generally eat about 6pm.
The questions I have is what recommendations do you have for 200kcal breakfasts and 300kcal dinners and what liquids can I drink? Is it just water? Or can I have green or black tea and black coffee ☕️ ? Thanks again 😊
You're correct to assume that your recommended TDEE shouldn't be exceeded, since repeatedly doing so will eventually lead to weight gain.
As for fasting days, two large eggs for breakfast (scrambled or poached) will ensure that you come in under 200Kcal, whilst also assisting with levels of satiety throughout the morning.
Concerning evening meals, stir fried beef or chicken will ensure that calories remain low, allowing also for the remainder of calorie allowance to be obtained from foods that contain fibre (if it's permitted on fasting days), allow you to remain fuller into the evening.
Two things are important on fast-days: super-low calories, and 12 hours between meals. That means you should aim for breakfast to be no less than 12 hours after previous day's evening meal, evening meal 12 hours later, the breakfast on your next 'normal' day 12 hours later.
I can not recommend enough researching Michael Moseley about the 5:2. He wrote a book on the 5:2, he has videos on YouTube. Look at these things first before reading/watching other people about this diet, as their info will be their own understanding about it.
The fast-days I think are 500 calories for women and 600 calories for men. I have been doing my fast-days using 'common sense' rather than counting calories. For me this means I am not obsessing about the food and it's calories. An example of how this works in my house:evening meal for husband is jacket potato, sausages, baked beans. My meal:smaller jacket potato (no butter!), baked beans. I refuse to cook different meals for each of us! I drink plenty of water to help me through the day, and I still drink my tea with milk.
Also very important:on non-fasting days you must eat healthily, making sure you are including all food groups. Do not exclude carbs! Also remember, 'eating healthily' does mean you should quit eating chocolate, sweets, cakes, cookies, etc, etc.
Saturday is NOT a fast-day for me. We went out for a meal in the evening. I had breakfast, no snacks, fish finger sandwich for lunch, no snacks, evening meal. For me, it seems to work.
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