Starting 5:2 on 21/08/17 after 8 weeks of BSD

This topic contains 11 replies, has 3 voices, and was last updated by LJoyce 7 years, 3 months ago.

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fivefootsmall

2:32 pm
20 Aug 17
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Hello all,

Well, I must say that I am very excited to begin the 5:2 WOE and wave a final goodbye to my last 4kg.

I followed the 8 week BSD, starting this April, and managed to shift 19kg bringing my weight to 55kg.

All was going really well, I was walking between 4 and 6 km a day, doing kettlebell and resistance exercises at home and generally feeling fantastic. Then I broke two toes.

Here I am three weeks later, three weeks of resting my foot and only doing armchair exercises yet still miraculously 55kg.

Tomorrow I am going for a nice early morning walk and I intend to enjoy every minute of my first fast day.

I am 50 years old, post menopausal, 5ft and a whole half inch tall and my belly button measurement is 29cm.

Looking forward to reading the posts in this forum.

LJoyce

2:47 pm
20 Aug 17
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Hi, Welcome to 5:2 and well done on the 19kg you lost on the BSD. I hope that your weight loss has helped any issues you had with blood sugar.
You should find that 2 days per week of 500cal is a whole lot easier than 800cal every day.

As you’ve managed to maintain your new weight since finishing the BSD and with broken toes it looks like eating sensibly on the non-fasting days shouldn’t be a problem for you. However it might be worth checking your TDEE, as it’s likely to be low, given your height. https://thefastdiet.co.uk/how-many-calories-on-a-non-fast-day/

You are not alone in using 5:2 to maintain – It’s what I am doing also and there are plenty of other here doing the same. I find it makes it easier to deal with having a low TDEE (also because I’m short and over 50).

Good luck, I hope you find 5:2 easy to do.

fivefootsmall

5:50 pm
20 Aug 17
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Thank you for your warm welcome Ljoyce. Yes, my TDEE is currently 1300 although I hope to get that nearer to the 1500 calorie mark, providing my toes cooperate!

It seems odd to me now and I wonder why it was ever so, but I didn’t even know there were mysterious things such as BMI and TDEE until March this year.
I am currently managing to utterly confuse myself with macro nutrient calculators and blogs. This business of eating has become way too complex for me and so here i am, hopefully embarking on a sensible, atainable and enduring WOE.

fivefootsmall

6:51 am
22 Aug 17
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My first fast day was good. I took a small walk in the morning and this does not seem to have hindered my toes recovering so I will extend this slightly today. I had a 300 calorie meal that satisfied me and kept my fluid levels up. I went to bed happy and relaxed and ready to sleep, but I just could not nod off. I don’t know why, but I decided what I needed was an oatcake and cheese. I feel asleep very quickly after that.

I have a history of sleeping problems that I have worked very hard to minimise. I did not feel hungry when I got to bed. I suppose it may have just been a coincidence and completely unrelated to my fast. Why did sleep come so easily after an oatcake and cheese when I wasn’t even hungry? Was this purely psychological?

Anyway, I feel great this morning and must focus on the task at hand, eating towards my TDEE, which I find to be a daunting prospect despite my deep desire to normalise my eating. I am so worried about spiralling out of all control. This is what I do. No. This is what I have done and I must learn to control myself when all sense has abandoned me.

LJoyce

7:25 am
22 Aug 17
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Hi fivefootsmall,

Glad your first fast day went well.

You aren’t alone in sleeping issues on FDs, a lot of people on this forum have also reported that. Most say that its hunger keeping them awake. I actually think a lower body temperature could also be part of the problem – I am always colder on a FD. Not an issue in summer, but in winter it’s not pleasant. I often have a hot bath before bed on winter FDs – that always helps me sleep.

On FD’s I have most of my calories at dinner so that I am heading to bed with a similar volume of food in my digestive system as I would on a normal day. I also try to keep enough calories spare for a hot milky drink if I need it in the evening. Instead of cows milk, I use unsweetened almond milk to make this as it only has 38-50 calories per cup (varies between brands). I find that on a sleepless night a cup of hot almond milk with either vanilla paste or cocoa can help.

fivefootsmall

7:50 am
22 Aug 17
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Good Morning Ljoyce. Thank you so much for your advice, I’ll certainly get some almond milk in for my Wednesday fast.

I did not think to search for sleep issues and haven’t stumbled across that as I’ve been reading on this forum.

Have a great day.

fivefootsmall

4:00 pm
22 Aug 17
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I feel sick. I have comprehensively failed to control my eating tallying 1800 calories so far and it’s only 3.45pm. Not good nutritional calories but bad carbs. I was concerned that this may happen but knowing that it was a possibility was not enough to stop me. Do I dust myself off and start afresh tomorrow? Can I ever normalise my eating? Why was 800 calories for 8 weeks so easy and one single post fast day so unmanageable for me? I don’t understand myself anymore, I really don’t. How can I lose control so easily? I’m so annoyed and frustrated and saddened by my behaviour.

Right. I need to find some resolve, grit my teeth and get over this. I will look upon this as an early warning to myself. I will fast from now through tomorrow and hope that I do not muck it all up again on Thursday.

bigbooty

10:29 pm
22 Aug 17
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It has very little to do with resolve and grit and more to do with your hormones. You need to choose your foods very wisely otherwise they will reek havoc. So can you list out the foods you had today? What were they? I try and avoid all processed grain based foods. No bread, pasta, pizza, breakfast cereal (pure junk) biscuits cakes etc. No sugar in any form. Have you ever lost control and eaten too much leafy green vegetables? I doubt it. That should give you a clue as to what you should be eating.

LJoyce

4:49 am
23 Aug 17
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Think of it as a learning exercise. And yes, you do just just yourself off and plan for different choices tomorrow.

I have had a long term issue with binge eating behaviour that dates back to childhood. As I’ve worked through the issues that trigger it, it’s become much less of a problem, but it’s not gone. When I started intermittent fasting I wanted faster weight loss, so I did 4:3 and I struggled with overeating on the NFDs. This is less of a problem since I moved to a 5:2 pattern.

What you eat is important, whether it’s a fasting day or not, as some foods seem to trigger cravings for more. If you followed the BSD recommendation for a mediterranean diet when sticking to 800 calories it might be wise to go back to that style of eating. I have found that the better my diet is overall, the less I am likely to binge on unhealthy foods on the NFDs.

When on the BSD, did you plan your meals ahead of time each day? This might not be a bad idea to use for a while until you establish a new pattern for 5:2. I found I needed less planning as time passed – I eventually found a rhythm that worked for me.

I hope you are having a better day.

fivefootsmall

6:42 am
23 Aug 17
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While I was on the 8 week BSD I limited myself to around 10%, 20g of good carbs. Over the last month I have gradually increased my carb intake to around 25% of my fluctuating daily calories. I still follow a largely Med style diet, minus fish. The carbs I reintroduced are bran, wholegrain bread, wholegrain rice, bananas and apples while still maintaining my weight. I plan my meals a week in advance and am typically good at not deviating.

I think you are both right. I need to dial back on the carbs on post fast days. Thank you for your help Bigbooty and Ljoyce, I greatly appreciate the clarity you have brought to my mind and I now feel that I can fully embrace and succeed with this WOE.

This is my second fast day and I am looking forward to it.

Have a wonderful day.

bigbooty

8:42 am
23 Aug 17
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@FFS. Im not a big fan of any processed grain based product or rice. Of course that is your call, but I would really try and limit the intake. Im lucky to have 2 slices of bread per week and never have rice. Im Italian and I might have a pasta dish once per month, if Im lucky. Wholegrain bread has been way over spruiked as to its benefits. Eat lots of veggies (but limit potatoes)!! I like apples, especially the very tart ones and always eat them with the skin on (lots of soluble and insoluble fibre). Not a big fan of bananas but if you must have them try and eat green-ish unripened ones. They contain lots of resistant starch, so you are getting the benefits of bulk volume which satiates you, and lots of fibre, and smaller amounts of usable carbs/fructose intake.

Figure what triggers you insatiable desire to eat and eliminate those foods.

Good luck.

LJoyce

8:48 am
23 Aug 17
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fivefootsmall

There’s one more thing I should mention. Something that I found useful with 5:2 – being part of an active and supportive group on this forum.
There are a couple of very active country based options:
Aust & NZ: https://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/hello-southern-hemispherites/page/248/
UK: https://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/fat-busting-brits-%f0%9f%91%8a%f0%9f%98/page/272/
If either of these work for you, just introduce yourself. I did that on the Southern Hemisphere thread when I first joined this site and they’ve been a really supportive and friendly group (we even have a Brit and American who regularly join our conversations).
There are also challenge groups – a new one is started at the beginning of each month and people set their own targets and check in with each other daily.
https://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/august-2017-31-day-challenge/ This month’s is close to conclusion, but have a read of the posts and see of it’s something that would help you – be ready to join when the September group starts.

Alternatively you can just keep posting questions yourself, but I find the sense of group that I get from the Southern Hemisphere forum thread really adds something of value to me.