Hi Chris,

Try doing 5:2 and only weigh yourself once a week (if you must weigh yourself at all), and don’t worry about the results until you have a month’s worth.

Scales are problematic for daily weighing as we fluctuate so much with various bodily processes holding water etc, and they have mad behaviour that seems to have no scientific explanation whatsoever.

Make it easy and sustainable. Slow and steady wins the race.

I lost 30kg that way.

Chris, I find that some foods [for me beer, white rice] put the weight on and then it stays for a while, difficult to remove. Perhaps something like that is happening to you?

It takes a deficit of around 3700 calories to lose 1lb in weight and there is nothing anyone can do to change that.

You’ve lost some weight in your first week so you know that it works and what you need to do is readjust your expectations and continue with what you’ve started.

That might sound harsh but it is impossible to lose weight at a quicker rate without giving up eating completely.

If I do 4 36 hour fasts in a week I lose 2lbs which doesn’t seem much but it took me a number of years to gain weight so it’s unrealistic to expect it to fall off at a faster rate.

Fasting isn’t a quick fix but it works and it helps us change our eating patterns for the better.

Chris,
I was so busy reading your dissatisfaction that I didn’t take in that you lost 3lbs in a week. That is phenomenal!
The average with 5:2 is one pound a week. What you are doing is working extremely well for you.
Make it as easy and sustainable as you can, feel pleased if you lose a pound a week, and get ready to have to buy new clothes soon!

Chris,

Men can have 600 calories on FDs.

I only eat dinner on a FD. I put aside 100 calories for milk and kefir which I drink every day and I find it possible to make a very filling dinner with the remaining 400 calories.
Some days fasting is a breeze and others it is tough but I’ve found that having a glass of water and a hot drink cures hunger pangs immediately. If I want something savoury a mug of Bovril or Miso does the trick.

I have done food free FDs but I realised that it wouldn’t work for me long term although many people find it easier than only having 500/600 calories.

I’m in the weigh once a week the day after a FD camp. I really cannot be doing with all the ups and downs of the scales and although I fully understand the fluctuations of weight over time, I find it counterproductive to see a larger number than the day before when I’ve been working so hard to lose weight.

ChrisPE, if you need recipes with the calories, et al, all counted out, click on my ‘handle’ and look at my profile. You’ll see my blog address. There I post recipes for other Fasters. That way no one has to count calories since I have done it all. My husband and I eat 600 calories on a Fast Day and have done so for 5.5 years.
Good luck. Hope there recipes help.