Best way to do fast days to minimize hunger.

This topic contains 4 replies, has 4 voices, and was last updated by josie1 10 years, 6 months ago.

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josie1

12:07 pm
30 May 14
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Hi, I really want to start the 5/2 diet, but I really hate feeling hungry. I don’t need to lose a lot of weight, maybe 8 pounds, but at 45 it has become very difficult. Low carbing used to work for me, but apparently not anymore. I’m wondering what is the best way to do fast days with the least amount of struggle? Is it better to fast all day and have the 500 calories all at once in the evening or eat small things of 150-175 calories each three times a day? It seems that it is harder to do the latter. Just wondering if anyone has a system that works well for them and would like to share it?

Linds

12:21 pm
30 May 14
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Hi josie, I usually fast Mondays and Wednesdays so that I have Tuesday and Thursdays as a back up and you can vary the days anyway to suit what is going on that week. When I started I tried dividing the calories over the day but I have found it easier to leave it all until dinner time (around 6.30) and just have water during the day with perhaps an apple or a few nuts if I am desperate. It’s difficult at first when you tummy starts rumbling but after a bit the feeling of emptiness is fine and I have learnt that I won’t die if I don’t eat for a while. If you can’t manage on 500 calories you could always have a few more, it’s not an exact science so don’t beat yourself up about going over by a couple of hundred calories. It’s bound to be a lot less than you would usually eat in a day.

Good Luck! Linda

TracyJ

1:29 pm
30 May 14
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Hi josie1, you really need to experiment and figure out the best course for yourself – everyone is SO different.

Personally I couldn’t possibly stand to have 3 tiny meals on a fastday, as I find that once I’ve eaten ANYTHING, food is all I can think about and somehow hunger seems exponentially worse. I learned pretty quickly that even 2 sittings in a day made me too hungry on an evening, which is the main bit of the day where I have access to my food cupboards so that is DANGER time for me. I quickly went from 2 meals to 1 as late in the day as possible and I now do that on most non-fastdays too (16:8 ‘eating window’). Works for me and after a while of training your body this way you barely know the meaning of the word ‘hunger’, it seems like a foreign concept to me, all my battles are strictly mental now, there is no physical hunger anymore.

Have a think about what kind of eater you are at the moment. CAN you go half the day without even realising you’ve not eaten when you’re busy? If so, try the 1 or 2 meals later on approach. If you start getting teary when you can’t eat every few hours then maybe the little & more often approach is for you.

Amy C.

1:34 pm
30 May 14
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On my fast day, the only food I consume is almond milk that goes in my coffee – about 45 calories.

At dinner, I have most of my calories and choose to eat mostly protein, but have done lots of veggies as well.

I save about 50 calories for a cup of almond milk and sugar-free hot chocolate right before bed.

It helped me to recognize that I will indeed be hungry. It is only natural. Hunger comes in waves and if you wait it out, the hunger subsides. It just takes a bit of getting used to. I use the fast day to catch up on my water intake as I drink a lot of water and herbal teas, along with my coffee.

josie1

2:55 pm
30 May 14
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Thanks so much for the feedback everyone. I am leaning towards one meal in the evening myself. I have a sense that if I eat smaller meals, it will be worse. I think I may follow your lead Amy and do the almond milk/coffee, almond hot cocoa and one meal. I did a strict diet with minimal calories a few years back and it worked. I kept the weight off for 2 years before I got sloppy, but this makes much more sense to me because your body is always surprised and doesn’t go into starvation mode. Oh well, here I go. Time to get comfortable with hunger again, lol!