Hi,
I think what you need is the blood sugar diet. The book would be well worth reading and there is a separate forum. That really works to sort hormones out and reduce weight quickly. I have lost 70 pounds in 7 months doing a combination of the blood sugar diet and alternate day fasting. You have to avoid sugar and anything that gets broken down to sugar quickly and the first couple of weeks are difficult but then the changes in hormones kick in and the cravings go away. I have a different relationship to food now. Everything tastes better but I don’t need a fraction as much of it. I would think the prospect of surgery would be a powerful motivator to get you through the first part and then the results start giving you good reinforcement and it isn’t as difficult to stick to as you might think. I don’t think plain 5:2 would be enough by itself although good for maintenance when you reach target.

Hi Hil,

I broadly agree with Fatrabbit’s advice. If I remember correctly, the BSD (blood sugar diet) is an 800 calorie per day program (that is basically a Mediterranean diet program) that you do for 8 weeks before moving over to the 5:2 program. (I haven’t looked closely at the program so I may have some details wrong.)

When I lost the bulk of my weight the BSD had not been written so it wasn’t what I followed, however I did use a VLED (very low energy diet) which was also 800 calories per day to lose the bulk of my weight. The key difference is that my program used a lot of meal replacement products and fresh vegetables.

I had been obese for most of my life. Like you, my GP was advising me to consider gastric banding as he had seen me lose and regain weight so many times. At the time he suggested gastric banding I was about 127kg (which is 280 pounds or 20 stone). I just didn’t want to go down that path as everyone I knew who had had this procedure had issues afterward – some quite serious. For me the impetus was orthopaedic surgery – I needed a knee replacement and my preferred hospital would not admit me unless my BMI was 35 or less – at the time mine was 50. So I went on a VLED of 800 calories per day. I did this for 3 months then moved to a 1000 calorie per day program until my weight was low enough to have the knee replacement done. I ended up losing 52kg (114pounds or 8 stone), although I have regained 4kg over the 2 years since then.

I came to the 5:2 program looking for a tool that would help me maintain the weight loss, as I was find maintenance to be a continual challenge that I just couldn’t seem to master. A 5:2 approach really has helped, as it allows me to balance my tendency to occasionally binge with restricted days that correct this excess. I have been doing 5:2 since January and my tendency to binge has significantly reduced since then, my food is healthy and balanced most days and my health is quite good.

If you have a lot of weight to lose then 5:2 can work but it will take a very long time to lose the weight because you are essentially only dieting 2 days per week. I certainly needed to make faster progress than 5:2 would have given me, to stay motivated and to break my unhealthy eating patterns. Although I moved to a 1000 calorie program after completing the 800 calorie period, had I not been on a surgery deadline, I think moving to 5:2 after doing the 800 calorie program would also have worked well.

The BSD has its own web page and support forum that you may want to look at:
https://thebloodsugardiet.com/

Good luck.