5/2 fasting - discuss . . .

[Dan_1981]

Nah normal would prob be 16 - 1800 i'd guess.

I never eat breakfast unless its a weekend and its a treat of a butty or a fry up.

Lunch is usually a a sandwich & packet of crisps or whatever the work canteen has on

Dinner varies but is usually home cooked.

My downfalls are the occasional binges - huge take out, night on the ale, bottle of wine with Sunday lunch etc etc

For example yesterday I had a large Sunday roast with all the trimmings, homemade cheesecake for desert, 2/3rd a bottle of wine, couple of coffes (milk, sugar and whisky) and then for a snack later i had 5 crispbread with creamcheese and a bag of quavers.

[Eddw86]

Highly interested in this, and will give the Lean Gains a read as well as have been hearing things about IF for a while.

I'm currently on a bog standard My Fitness Pal tracked low cal, high protein diet but not seeing the results I thought I would, admittedly the cardio/ excercise side of things has lacked due to work commitments. Going to continue with this until Easter, then think I'll switch across to IF in some form.

Current eating plan if anyone has feedback is: Breakfast - 2 poached eggs 2 wholemeal bread (or golden syrup porridge sachet with protein shake). Lunch: Can Tuna/ Chicken breast, mayo, 200 g Broccoli, 100g beans, tomatoes. Dinner: meat/ fish and veg. Snacks - chicken mid afternoonish and protein shake or 2 on gym days. Generally carbs seem to be circa 100g or less a day, protein around 150-190g a day, 1400ish cals. 5'9 and 79Kgs.

Probably do that 4/5 days a week, other days will probably involve sandwich type lunch and a meal out.

[pilchardthecat]

Another vote for leangains. Much prefer the daily cycle over normal days interspersed with fasting days.

[LordGrover]

Eddw86 said:

Highly interested in this, and will give the Lean Gains a read as well as have been hearing things about IF for a while.

I'm currently on a bog standard My Fitness Pal tracked low cal, high protein diet but not seeing the results I thought I would, admittedly the cardio/ excercise side of things has lacked due to work commitments. Going to continue with this until Easter, then think I'll switch across to IF in some form.

If it's not working, why not stop immediately? Seems unwise to continue doing what you know doesn't work for no good reason.

Eddw86 said:

Current eating plan if anyone has feedback is: Breakfast - 2 poached eggs 2 wholemeal bread (or golden syrup porridge sachet with protein shake). Lunch: Can Tuna/ Chicken breast, mayo, 200 g Broccoli, 100g beans, tomatoes. Dinner: meat/ fish and veg. Snacks - chicken mid afternoonish and protein shake or 2 on gym days. Generally carbs seem to be circa 100g or less a day, protein around 150-190g a day, 1400ish cals. 5'9 and 79Kgs.

Probably do that 4/5 days a week, other days will probably involve sandwich type lunch and a meal out.

As you're not exercising at the moment were I you I'd cut back on carbs even further, especially the oats and sandwiches. If that reduces your kcals too far make it up in good fat(s).

[five5]

I've never been able to diet, I just haven't got the willpower to make the daily 'sacrifice' - so I thought I'd give this 5:2 a go.

I started 5 weeks ago at 13st2 and I'm now 10 pounds lighter! It's an absolute piece of piss! I don't need/want to lose a huge amount of weight, I'm just wanting to stop the ol' middle age spread in it's tracks. I do Monday and Wednesday (or Thursday) as my 'fast' days; I usually skip breakfast, drink nothing but water or black coffee/tea all day, have half a can of soup at lunchtime (<100 cals), a mid afternoon snack of 2x crackerbread with marmite (c45 cals) which leaves me with 400 cals (with a safe margin of error) for dinner which is either poached fish with a small portion of rice & veg or perhaps a stir-fry, I even made a low fat prawn curry last week which tasted great. On the normal days I eat normally and, whilst I'm maybe more conscious of portion sizes, I eat anything that I fancy. I drink half a bottle of wine in the evening and have a few* beers at the weekend. (*many)

Maybe it doesn't work for everyone, but for me it's been a real revelation. My belt has gone in one hole (comfortably), and jeans that were getting a bit on the uncomfortable side fit like they used to. Happy days

[LordGrover]

Remarkable isn't it?

[richardxjr]

I'm doing similar to five5. On my fast days I find having a small breakfast made me hungry, so I skip and have a 150cal lunch: slim soup in a massive mug + 2 crispbreads with a skim of low fat cream cheese, which leaves 450cal for dinner. With water and black coffee through the day, that's plenty.

I'm combining with a bit of cycling and have a great ride (60-80mins 85% effort) both before the fast day evening meal and the next morning. Consistent kilo-a-week fat loss and I must be building muscle as I'm getting a heck of a lot fitter. Down a stone with (ideally) another to go.

The both together are a great new focus for me having stopped smoking at New Year (after nearly 30 years).

I keep forgetting the weight loss is an added extra on top of the long term health benefits.

[Eddw86]

LordGrover said:

As you're not exercising at the moment were I you I'd cut back on carbs even further, especially the oats and sandwiches. If that reduces your kcals too far make it up in good fat(s).

I guess I wanted to stick with it as it should work as it's a relatively clean diet & isn't actually hard to stick to. But now you've asked the question it seems pointless. Hence I will start either 5/2 or IF next week to give me time to read up & get some meals planned/ shopping bought.

Will likely have some questions for the thread soon enough! Next week is also the 12 week mark to a milestone I have in mind so a new program & If could be just the ticket, may start a new thread for advice on workout programs!

[GlenMH]

IroningMan said:

Dan_1981 said:

Are people still sticking to this?

Am interested in trying it.

Have been using Myfitnesspal for quite awhile to track my intake

I can get by day to day on about 1200 caolories with very little excercise - but I do find myself hungry or craving a haribo or something.

Of course take aways and beer and stuff like throw me off massivly.

So I figure something like that might work for me?

I'm 5 ft 10, currently 74kg

Is it really as simple as two days at 600 calories and then up to 2500 for the other 5 days?

Apparently so. Two (non-consecutive) days at 600 and the other 5 at whatever is 'normal' for you - unless 'normal' is piling on the pounds.

This routine does also work if 'normal' is piling on the pounds style calorie intake: as Lord G on here knows, I am a bit partial to (lots of) curry, a few beers and lots of pastry/bakery products as I live far too close to a fantastic bread store in Brissle. In addition, apart from walking to the centre of the city a couple of times per week (2 miles each way), I do NO exercise apart from a couple of gentle walks pushing my daughter along in a buggy.

I have now been doing the 5:2 for 6½ months as I started on on 1st Sept last year. At that point, my weight was north of 17st 10lb and was likely to be closer to 18½ stone on a frame of 6ft. Suffice to say, my BMI was mid-30s+.

I am pretty religious about the 600 cal on the fasting days, but eat entirely what I like on all the other days - including full breakfasts, burgers if I want, cakes etc etc. I do make sure I do 2 days of 600 cal each and every week.

As I am staying at the M-i-Ls this weekend, I have just weighed myself for the first time since Boxing Day. Since that weigh in, I have lost a stone.

This brings my total weight loss to just under 4 stone in 6½ months. I am now 14st 9lb (93kg) with a BMI of just under 28. I am the smallest I have been for over 20 years....

I have no idea what my "target weight" is. I think the rate of reduction is slowly falling but am going to keep the routine up to sort other health issues that run through my family.

As a method of losing weight, this has got to be one of the easiest. There are 2 keys: keeping hydrated on fasting days as drinking water/squash is a great way of controlling appetite; the other is being absolutely religious about weighing/measuring everything you eat and drink on your fasting days.

Good luck to all of you out there doing it!

If you are thinking of doing it, then go for it. The first few fasting days are the worst, things do get far easier as time goes on.

[Dan_1981]

Today is my first fast day.

Had a soup for lunch from Asda at 159 calories and have got a corn beef hash, (new potatoes, corn beef, onion, worcester sauce) planned for dinner tonight.

And that'll be it.

Not especially hungary but missing my coffee (I take it with milk & two sugars)

[HonestIago]

Dan_1981 said:

Today is my first fast day.

Had a soup for lunch from Asda at 159 calories and have got a corn beef hash, (new potatoes, corn beef, onion, worcester sauce) planned for dinner tonight.

And that'll be it.

Not especially hungary but missing my coffee (I take it with milk & two sugars)

Drink the coffee black

[mattnunn]

I try to practice what the japanese call Hara hachi bu, meaning roughly eat until your 80% full. They say eight parts of a full stomach sustain the man; the other two sustain the doctor.

I'm not sure the zeitgeist of gorging yourself and then punishing yourself is either good for your body or your mind, steady and continued daily self control as part of your normal lifestyle is surely better?

[LordGrover]

IMO, no.
That's conventional wisdom - look where it's got us. Clearly wrong.
Before the advent of agriculture man ate when he caught/found food - not so many fridges or corner shops then. That's how our bodies expect to be treated and IME (limited) it works well. Very well.

[HonestIago]

LordGrover said:

IMO, no.
That's conventional wisdom - look where it's got us. Clearly wrong.
Before the advent of agriculture man ate when he caught/found food - not so many fridges or corner shops then. That's how our bodies expect to be treated and IME (limited) it works well. Very well.

This. Feasting and fasting is how we evolved. Personally from a digestive comfort point of view; eating an awful lot of food at once does me no harm if I have fasted accordingly. Where as eating little and often I feel a lot worse generally.

[pilchardthecat]

HonestIago said:

This. Feasting and fasting is how we evolved. Personally from a digestive comfort point of view; eating an awful lot of food at once does me no harm if I have fasted accordingly. Where as eating little and often I feel a lot worse generally.

I can support this with a medical anecdote (statistical sample of one, ie me). I have a long history of digestive issues (IBS, cramps, diverticular disease, etc) going back 8-10 years. Have been on 3 types of regular meds, and 2 on-demand meds, seen a variety of consultants over the years. Despite the medication i still had symptoms.

I started intermittent fasting (16/8 daily) in August 2012. By the middle of September i had thrown all of my medicine in the bin, and have been completely symptom-free ever since.

[Hoofy]

Wow! Congrats!

[HonestIago]

pilchardthecat said:

I can support this with a medical anecdote (statistical sample of one, ie me). I have a long history of digestive issues (IBS, cramps, diverticular disease, etc) going back 8-10 years. Have been on 3 types of regular meds, and 2 on-demand meds, seen a variety of consultants over the years. Despite the medication i still had symptoms.

I started intermittent fasting (16/8 daily) in August 2012. By the middle of September i had thrown all of my medicine in the bin, and have been completely symptom-free ever since.

This is BRILLIANT! Really, just what I like to hear! I am constantly banging on about fasting to anyone who'll listen (my parents have both started 5:2 now) about all the health benefits so its great to hear that from someone with a former digestive health problem.

I didn't have any specific digestive issues prior to fasting however everything is just, well...nicer...without being too specific!

[Dan_1981]

Come bed time last night I was bloody starving though.

I guess it'll get easier.

2nd fast day planned for tomorrow.

Soup or similar for lunch and planning cod with new potatoes for dinner.

[Hoofy]

Dan_1981 said:

Come bed time last night I was bloody starving though.

I guess it'll get easier.

2nd fast day planned for tomorrow.

Soup or similar for lunch and planning cod with new potatoes for dinner.

WRT hunger just distract yourself. Forget planning cod. Try playing COD.

I prefer BF3 - a couple of weeks ago, I had a mad 4 hour session and completely forgot to eat! Snag is, I'm targeting 2300 a day on rest days and ended up having to binge eat 700 calories in an hour before bedtime.

[pilchardthecat]

The hunger is why i prefer the daily pattern approach of fasting X hours/eating Y hours.

It's something to do with a hormone called Grehlin, which entrenches eating patterns, so if you eat a similar amount at the same time every day for a long enough period, you wont get hungry at other times.

I fast from about 9pm through to 2pm the following day, and i am never hungry outside my eating window. (unless i get drunk, then i want kebabs and st at 11pm, but that's nothing to do with hunger really)