Hi all. Good fast day so far. Cup of tea with dash low fat milk for brekky. Didn’t eat again until 3pm, ham and salad 73 cals. Looking forward to dinner now which will be spaghetti bolognaise made with cabbage for noodles 313 cals so total for the day around 400 cals. Not very hungry today which is great.

Swany I used to teach but semi-retired now, casual library assistant. I find days at work easier; not so much access to food and busier; so long as I have dinner ready for when I get home (crock pot or I’ve made enough for another night previously).

Not long to go for this fast day. Remember, if you really want that treat you can have it tomorrow. Everyone hang in there. AUSSIE DETERMINATION will get us there.

Hi Team, feeling low energy this fast day. Still powered 4 km around our lovely Botanical Gardens (love that fast day exercise). Went the coke zero option this afternoon and it did seem to give me a lift. Anyway, winding down now and not going to MelbVegas tomorrow. Hope everyone had/has a good fast day.

Woo Hoo – hubby brought a roast chicken home for his dinner and I pulled it apart and DIDNT LICK MY FINGERS ONCE – I am mighty impressed even if I do say so myself. First day on the 5:2 with today being a fast day and I have made it without too much drama. Was worried about the afternoon snack time but got through it OK.

@swany, so funny, your dinner is exactly mine!
Also I teach sometimes and find fast days easy at school because who gets time to eat??
I will have an orange at morning tea (no breakfast) and a boiled egg and some cherry tomatoes for lunch. Then the fish and veg or steak and veg for dinner.

Good Morning ADs
Bali, you are doing everything right. Few years back, when I was training with a fitness first personal trainer, he once said “not to rely on scales a lot while training.” 2 reasons he gave me:-
1) Muscle is heavier than fat, when you train, you gain muscle and lose fat.
2) when training and especially starting new type or form of exercises, muscles retain water.
So, if you get cramps from new type of exercise, you will probably gain water weight as per scales.
He also mentioned that when you exercise, your measurements are effected first and weight gets effected later.
As long as your measurements are down and your clothes are getting bigger, i wont worry.

Fast day yesterday was not very easy for me as well. Lack of energy and light headed for first time. However, that’s done and dusted now. I am again doing 4:3 this week, so fast day tomorrow and Friday for me. Then I leave for a beach holiday for 3 days to Great Ocean Road. Oh, so looking forward to it. We are renting an apartment there, so preparing healthy meals will not be an issue. However few winos are on agenda as well 😉

Ruxton, not giving into temptation is a very big win, congratulations!!!

Good Morning all!

B2B day 2 for me. I’m a little hungry this morning but coffee and water seem to be helping me along. I had a herb encrusted half chicken breast last night with a cup of mixed cabbage vegetables for dinner – I didn’t calculate the calories as i find that trying to calculate exactly how much chopped cabbage, capsicum, cauliflower etc is just a pain in the you know what! I figure it was about 250-300 cals though with the coconut oil i used – a good fat to help me feel fuller for longer. has anyone got any tips or tricks for the calorie counting of mixed, fresh vegies?

@Ruxton Welcome to your changed eating habits. This happened to me as well. I’ve found i’m no longer hungry when i used to be and that i can only eat small amounts before i’m full. It’s a great new WOL knowing you’re only consuming what your body actually needs. If you’re not hungry in the morning i would just have a tea or coffee and just wait until your body goes ‘right… feed me now please’ but we’re all different. As @countrygal says… she hasn’t had breakfast for a few days due to not being hungry. Good luck with it all! i promise it gets easier (i’m onto my second week and loving it).

Good news is that one of the girls i work with has decided to do a calorie restricted diet regime… I reckon i’ll make her see the light with 5:2 soon enough!

Have a great day AD – keep posting to keep me distracted on my B2B 🙂

Hi all. Excited today. Not my weigh in day but can’t help myself and am down another half a kilo to my lowest point since I started back in early November.
SW 76 TW 70.8
When I saw the 0 after the 7, I had to rub my eyes cause I wasn’t very awake, but yes, it was real!
Hope you all have a good day.

Wow CG, you’re not eating breakfast at all anymore? Tough cookie, you are. A low-fat tough cookie obviously 😉 I’ve been feeling very hungry every non-FD morning for the past few weeks, so if I don’t have breakfast before 11 am, my stomach is roaring like a lion. Also, I still at bread almost every day. No more than 2 slices/day (or one or 2 buns on Sunday), though. I used to polish off probably 6 or 8 slices, easily.

Bali, I don’t really exercise that much. I do keep an active daily lifestyle. I live in an area where I can cycle/walk almost everywhere so I’m out and about on foot or by bike a lot. And I do my tummy exercises and my squats. But I should really make more of an effort. I weigh myself every day, I like knowing my fluctuations. It helps me. But when I used to plateau or gain a bit, I often felt more comfortable taking a break from weighing every day or week. I can see how you’d be more comfortable not weighing yourself as often as we do on here.

Ruxton, I had the exact same thing happen to me. Just keep to the routine you’ve chosen for a few weeks (so eating after a FD) and you can always switch it up later, try out what you like. Try a consecutive FD week. Trying out different things will get you to a place where you are most comfortable and that’s how it will be sustainable for you. I loved feeling saturated after eatng a normal amount of food and not wanting endless extra servings even though I rationally knew I’d had enough. Still one of my favourite things about IF after almost 2 years is having my stomach reset to its natural girth after fasting so I feel full when I’m supposed to.

Andrew, you’ll get there, we all know it’s going to happen. I got stuck between 72,7 kg and 71,2 kg for like 5 months, going up and down between January and June of 2014. It felt like I was never getting passed it. 7 months later I’m around 10 kg lighter. You’ll beat those 88 before you know it.

Uptight, that’s amazing, well done!

Aly, I just weigh them. I have my scales with me when I cook at all times. After a while you get very good at estimating the weight of your veg and you start remembering how many calories that is. So I technically hardly need them anymore to know how many calories I’m consuming. But it takes a while. I wish I had easier advice than that.

Hmmm i think that’s my problem. I don’t have kitchen scales.
I think that i’ll be getting scales and a food processor to help me!!
Thanks Flemish!
Foxy – does that mean if you have dinner on fast day to wait 12 hours after that?

Good morning FDs. A little cooler today, 29 degrees.

CG I may follow your lead and have no breakfast any morning, it would save around 200 cals for later in the day. I also rarely eat bread, it’s so calorie-rich as well as addictive. You are an inspiration.

Andrew, you WILL get there. Ruxton, well done. Flemish, I also weigh nearly everything; for me it’s just too easy to let things creep up in size. Uptight, wow, going so well. Aly, I haven’t done a B2B yet, all the best. I’m sure you’ll do well. FB my last weigh for 3 weeks will be Friday also. We’re both going to be on holiday. I hope I do as well at AUSSIE DETERMINATION as you. I don’t want to undo too much of my good work since December 1. Bali, you are so dedicated with all that exercise, no wonder you are shrinking so much. Well done.

Have a great day everyone.

Hi Everyone,
I try to keep up with the posts but have trouble as I don’t look everyday. I do find the ones I read very inspirational and educational.
Bali, I exercise at least 5 days a week and quite strenuously as well. I have read other posts that say it will slow down the weight loss process but the health benefits will out weigh the slower weight loss.
There has been some talk about resetting the size of the tummy. I have experienced that also. After a fast day I tend to want to eat less. It messes with my head though as the message has not quite made it all the way to my head yet. I am a work in progress.
I can so relate to the talk about plateau’s. I have been on a 90kg barrier for sooo long. It is driving me crazy. I thought I would break it with my official weigh in this Monday as I had gotten under after fast days during the week last week, but alas, 90.1kg. I will just have to wait another week. I am pleased as that is a constant 500gr per week since getting serious with 5:2 at the beginning of the year.

I just purchased my first kitchen scale – *feeling proud*. Also helped me with hunger pangs to walk around and get some retail therapy!

Hi all,
Yesterday was my third fast day. I was OK till supper time but after a meal of smoked salmon and lots of salad – kept to the 500 calories,I felt really hungry. I drunk lots of water to try and get that full feeling but it did not help. Does anyone have any suggestions?
On th positive side I’m feeling very energetic and chirpy.

Dogsabie, it does get better. you are on right track with water. Lots of water, herbal teas and/or lightly sparkling water helps too.
As CG suggested try to include some sort of protein, it will keep you full for longer. Couple of fast days more, your appetite will reduce and fast days become really easy. My advise- Don’t give up hope, it WILL get better. All the best!!!

Dogsable I have had some evenings like that too….I just have sparkling water as bubbles seem to fill you up….and if I have cals left a piece of fruit.

19Aly….yes that is what I do….have my dinner between 6:30 and 7pm on a fast night….then nothing but water until 7am the next day when I break my fast…..sometimes it’s later depending on how I’m feeling…..after 12 hours of fasting your body starts using fat for fuel to do all it’s stuff…..even on non-fast days I try and finish eating or drinking cals by 7pm and don’t eat breakfast until 7am….I also go for an early morning walk with my dog every day, including after a fast….that way my body is relying on using my fat for energy

Welcome Cyndal and good luck with your fast today…..we are all behind you 100%..

Catherine you will break through….I have been 74.4…..74.1….74.2 for so LONG now…..I can understand how you feel….you just want to see….89.9!!…hang in there we will do it together! 🙂

Good Morning!
Non Fast day… HOORAY!
I just wanted to say thank you for the tip about the birdseye steamed fish!!! my goodness how quick, easy and delicious! and when i added the bag of steamed vegies… i couldn’t believe how little the calories added up to be. I ended up having a total of 368 calories yesterday. I think you’ve helped me find my staple fast day dinners and most likely lunches now too! so thank you!!!! what a big help this forum is!
good luck to all those fasting today!

Good morning all

Will continue with exercise even if it slows weight loss, it’s the smaller size I am looking for.
Lost another 4cm off waist and 2cm off hips. Bought size 16 undies and workout pants.
I guess we all put too much pressure on ourselves to show up on scales.

Anyway 14kg in 4 months very happy. Feel so much better

Fat buster enjoy your holiday in my part of the world. Hope we put on some great weather for you. Make sure you swim in our fabulous beaches, and also do a sunset walk along the beach best time of day.

Good luck everyone, for Friday.

Day off work today catching up at home, amazing I have Wednesday’s off the list of jobs just gets longer each week.

Love this group

Good Morning ADs
And CG, so sorry to hear about your fiend’s loss. She must be a very brave woman. Wishing strength for her. This is very very heart breaking.

Gotta love your inspirational posts CG, they are so motivating to start the day. Thanks.

FC and gypsy, I love reading long posts too, so keep ’em comin.

19Aly, it is really amazing how so little calories can fill you up and low cal meals can be so delish as well. I am sure that you would have enjoyed every mouthful of the dish.

GG where are you?

GG1, now we are aware of our food choices and I am sure we will come back from our holiday refreshed but not stuffed up with food.

Yesterday, I was talking to myself and realized that main reason for eating junk food is commercialization. I used to associate celebration with eating, going out with eating out, getting bored = eating. Going for movies meant dinner and then movies and more eating while at movies (popcorn, ice cream, chocolates, lollies)
I am now at a stage where I try to reward myself in a different manner than eating. Now Celebration can be done in other ways than just drinking and eating out. I am going to stick with this mantra and hopefully this will help me avoid binge eating anymore.

you are right CG, Fast day for me today again and so looking forward to rest of the day. Lets Roll it!!!

Helloooo

Sounds like everyone is doing well.

I am on my 3rd week and had my first fast day for the week yesterday. I find that I can go all day without food but when I get home and before I pick the girls up from daycare I want to eat. I am sure it’s a mind thing rather than a hunger thing and once I start I can’t stop. I tried just having a protein shake yesterday and I still wanted to eat more. So I think I will try to not eat at all on fast days.

Hi All, went out for Thai last night and still weigh 70.8 this morning. Whew.
@19aly, I am the same. I had 348 calories all day on Monday with the Birds Eye combo.

What I really like about it is that it means I don’t obsess about food which I think is important. If I start thinking about what I can and can’t eat to keep the count right, getting ingredients to follow recipes etc, it can consume you. I know what I am having, ungourmet that it may be. It is always ready in the freezer and the whole thing is done and dusted in minutes.

I was brought up with the right attitude to food. I don’t emotionally eat and I have never really eaten unhealthily nor snacked after dinner etc. BUT that doesn’t mean I didn’t put on weight over many years after having 4 children and working most of the time as well. I didn’t know that for many, many years I was severely iron deficient due to heavy periods. No one ever talks about what is normal. All the years I was so tired and often sick with colds, I always thought that it was motherhood etc. I certainly didn’t have energy for exercise. Or anything but flopping in front f the tv at the end of the day. All sorted now but a bit too late.
Add in a fondness for a wine or two at the end of the day and there you have it!

I have lost weight in the past the old fashioned way and kept it off for a long time but sometimes life gets in the way such as a period of depression which had me in bed sleeping a lot and the odd other illness.

Now, however, no matter what, I feel this is the answer. I could be depressed, (but don’t expect to be, that was a very particular case) and still do 5/2 that way with no thought at all and it is a darn sight easier when you don’t have to feed a family as well. Everyone who is left living here is on the same page health wise, and while my husband doesn’t like my Bird’s Eye meal, he is very happy to get his own meal that night.My daughter fasts too but has her own method that suits her and we don’t always fast the same days.
I also travel a bit and that can be my undoing. However, again, this is the answer.
I do like checking in here and hearing other people’s stories. They are never too long for me @flemishcurves! BUT I do have to limit the times I will read because for me, at least, I don’t think it is a good thing to be constantly talking about it but rather saying, this is the way I live now, and just getting on with it.
It is great that this site exists however and thank you to Mother Hen for organising it and to the others who actively participate. I get a lot from it. And newer people definitely will.
Now I have gone and written a long post but I am hoping that sharing my perspective on it all may help someone else or at least encourage people to ponder their own attitudes.
I am so lucky to have been brought up by sensible parents and I have tried to do the same with my own children. The foundation is there and hopefully they will be able to access that during their own lives. I haven’t been so successful with my daughter because she is obsessed, in my opinion, with being thin. She is slender and healthy and loves food too much to ever have an eating disorder so I am not worried about that. I think that doing this has been good for her because it means 5 days a week she can still eat a burger if she wants, go out drinking on the weekend etc and maintain her weight easily and if that means she reduces her focus on her weight it can only be good.
Speech over 😉

It’s me again.
I have Mimi Spencer’s recipe book and plan to cook her Ratatoullie for dinner. It says on the recipe that it contains 118 calories and serves 4. I presume that this means 118 calories per serve and not for the whole amount. Does anyone know please?

Thanks countrygal and others for your replies and very helpful tips. I’m going to try adding the chook breast as you suggest. I also appreciate your idea of marking the calories on the container.
Yes to my fellow animal lovers, puppies are a lot of work but worth that extra effort.
It’s great having this forum with fellow 5:2 dieters to share our experiences.