It’s a good feeling isn’t it? Enjoy – whatever it is!

Good work everyone,
You are all wonderful and it’s fun reading how you are all doing. I’m going okay too. Good days, bad days, but generally feeling very positive and feeling slimmer. The slacks are actually baggy now. I’ve convinced one of my girls to join me and she’s excited to with how she feels. So it’s onwards and upwards from here. Long life to all. Xxx

I’m half way through day one and feeling good so far. I’ve stuck up a reminder in my biscuit cupboard to remind me that I’m doing this for all the right reasons. Helps having my husband working from home and joining me so have the extra support.
Can’t wait to shift this 2 year old baby weight!!!

Hi Vine:

Unlike WW, all calories count. As current guidelines allow for up to 70% of calories from fat and another 20-25% from protein, your protein calories were fine. The concept with 5:2 is you can eat any foods you want to eat — you just have to keep under 600 on diet days and TDEE or under on non-diet days.

Here are some tips for newbies: http://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/warnings-to-newbies/

This may help you with TDEE: http://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/tdee-for-the-curious-or-why-dont-i-lose-weight-faster/

Good Luck!

In case anyone is wondering: Here are the new Norwegian national guidelines, yesterdays post is the antecedes this new one:

25-40% fat
max 45% carbohydrates, of which sugar less than 10%
10-20% protein

Exercise 150 minutes per week (less than 25 minutes per day) with moderate intensity, or 75 minutes per week high intensity

Note: Mosley mentions that 20 seconds of high intensity will do the job, and more and more science back this up: Here is an article (in Norwegian) about this method, which apparently is particularly beneficial for older people 🙂

http://www.vektklubb.no/artikkel/bedre-helse-paa-20-sekunder-22809111

Morning all…started fast day yesterday I weigh 78kg and BMI is 30. I’m 58 and my my goal is to get that BMI down to 25… but I am realistic enough to accept that this will take time..I managed to stick to 500 cals fairly painlessly and today I intend to munch on 1400. I am determined to release these unwanted kgs and not to accept weight gain as part of ageing. Its good to read all the posts and Im sure it will help to share with others.. Happy Saturday

I can’t recommend 5:2 enough although I appreciate it depends on each person – I have lost 13 lbs since January and I’m just 4lbs off my target weight. I don’t find it difficult – in fact, I really look forward to fasting days because of how I feel. I’m so happy with my ‘new’ body – smaller clothes, oodles more confidence; my 11 year old granddaughter was wearing my coat today!
Keep going guys – it definitely gets easier and as the advert says ‘we’re worth it!’

Hi franfit nd purplegranny thanks for encouragement. I managed ok today:) Im going to add in walking as often as I can but I work long hours and just feel too tired most of the time 🙁 I know ..excuses excuses!! Anyway off to bed after day 2 … Good luck to new starters…yes I agree we’re worth it…

Thank you Gezza – but as should be, it’s been a fairly steady 1lb a week with occasional plateaus; I think we’re all tempted to try to make it quicker (I toyed with ADF just to speed things up!) but I know really that this is something I can maintain forever – I never think about ‘when I finish 5:2’ because I don’t want to stop doing it- it really has become a way of life.
Good luck with the new start – you can do it! Keep smiling, Anne

Great British Bake off repeats were hard to watch too.The Tart Tatin looked scrummy. Some how a small piece of cake has popped in my mouth this evening……..fasting again on Thursday.

Watching it now………but trying on my clothes!

Brilliant! I have found that struggling to do up zips has been a motivating force while Mary has shown me how to whip up some rather good looking nosh.Ho hum.

If I am going to get into these clothes with ease, before the summer…I am going to have to focus(and check my TDEE).

Hi, I have been having problems trying to lose a half stone that went on over Christmas and I thought I might try the 5:2 diet. My problem however is, just what two days do I use? I go to the gym Monday, bike ride Tuesday, bowling Wednesday and Thursday, gym Friday, into town Saturday and on the bike Sunday. Most of these activities take a lot of energy and if I am not careful I get what is generally known as “the bonk” where I get very weak and shaky and resort to a Mars Bar (oh dear, advertising here, sorry). Yet I just cannot shift this weight. And now the television is telling me that postmenopausal women (I am 66) need to drink more milk. I only use skimmed milk, and very little of that. I really do think I’m a lost cause but I am determined to get into those cycling shorts by summer when we are off on the bikes for two weeks to France! Off now to check out what I can eat.

Hi Purplegranny, thanks for your reply. I know that if I keep looking I will find something that will suit. I am convinced that my arthritis is “food related” but cannot be sure, of course. For a while, I found that I could not eat things like fullfat cheese or butter, although I suspect it may not be so bad these days. So I do try fullfat things once in a while, but stick to skimmed milk mostly. To be honest, I cannot completely discard sugary things – even if it is just a small teacake. There really is nothing like a bit of sugar to get you up that hill when you are out on a bike ride.

I like the sound of the book by Louise Minger and I will look out for it. I watched a television program last night where they showed that, if fat is taken out of the equation, the extra taste has to be supplemented in, and it’s always with sugar. Well, that’s a whole new stick of dynamite, isn’t it. Out go the low-fat custards and zero-fat yoghurts!

I agree with your statement that exercising after losing weight is so much easier and much more fun. Last year, I rode 500 miles through Spain with my husband and I noticed the difference because I was at WW’s weight and getting up those hills was a breeze! It’s since then that I’ve gone downhill, what with Christmas and not getting out as much as I should be doing over the winter months. I really, really don’t want to put on any more weight and need to get the six to eight pounds I’ve put on right back off all over again.

Hi everyone, weighed this morning I am on top of the world 3 lb off that is with 2 days fasting and two normal day, Friday fasting, Saturday normal, Sunday fasting and Monday normal. I feel I can do this. I was well and truly stuck with weight watchers so I am now going to do 5 days WW and 2 fasting. I only wanted to lose 8 lbs thank you 5-2 dieting progam.

It’s worth a try – you may find, like me, that it just takes a break and that you can gradually bring it back. A word of warning though, I did find that even goats’ milk and cheese seemed to affect me and I can’t have soya so I tended to have nut milks instead. Almond milk is very nice.

that makes 3 of us Baltimoreans, how cool! We should have a get-together sometime (on a nonfast day so we can eat of course).

different people handle fast days differently. Generally the advice is to stick to protein/fat rather than carbs as they tend to fill you up longer. Also, you can spread your calories out over the day or save them all for dinner. I do the latter, which makes it a lot easier since 500 cal is a small but not tiny meal. Soup is a good choice for fast day dinner, so is an omelet or frittata. All depends on what you like to eat!

Hi and welcome:

5:2 does not require you to eat any given food, or not eat any given food.

5:2 focuses on calories only. You can get them from what ever foods you want.

So just eat what you want, but count the calories you are eating. When you start, work on doing your diet days correctly – that is, eat 500/600 calories or less twice a week. The rest will fall into place over time.

Here are some tips that might help: http://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/warnings-to-newbies/

Good Luck!

I understand how to incorporate protein/fat/carbs/calories into the 2 fast days I should have worded my question better. The book did not address Stevia or coconut milk & I wanted Dr. Mosley’s perspective on using them??? He did say in the book that milk was something he had to cut back on & I wanted to know if he had thought of coconut milk. I cut sugar/processed foods/fast foods/fried foods/dairy, out of my diet 15 years ago & now battling menopause & the extra 50 pounds.Thank you for any & all help 😎

hi ruthie and welcome:

Here is a converter: http://www.convertunits.com/from/kilojoules/to/calories

Fasting days are a mindset. Many people after a couple of months don’t eat anything on their diet days. Many more find one meal in the evening works best. Efforts to eat 500 exactly are unnecessary, and you may lose faster if you eat fewer kJs.

Here are some tips for those just starting – you don’t have to wait for the book: http://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/warnings-to-newbies/

Focus for the first month or two on getting your diet days right, and the rest usually falls into place.

Good Luck!

Hello, my fast days so far have been. Day 1. 30 grams porridge 1/3rd of a banana in it and microwaved, evening meal anytime after 5pm. 2 egg omelette, I use all left over veg (that I’ve made extra of the day before). I warm them in a frying pan and then pour the eggs over the warm veg heat for a few minutes then put under warmed grill. Tea no milk and coffee with a splash all day. No more than 500 calories . water, more water and more water.
Day 2 was breakfast the same porridge, WW tin soup 80 calories and a small bread roll or a slice of toast, one Apple one orange. Same second week more or less. JIP

Hi, this is my 4th week on 5:2 and so far the weight loss is very slow but I have lost 1 inch on my waist and 3 inches from my tummy. Clothes are fitting better and having tried WW and other diets over the years, find this easier. I use my fitness pal app to record kcal daily and pretty much stick to 1200 kcal on non fast days. Fast days I make sure I stick to 500 kcal. Previously, I would have been upset at slow weight loss but the fact my clothes feel better and the inch loss, is keeping me going.
This week I will measure bust, upper arm, thigh and calf in addition to see inch loss progress.
As many people have posted this isn’t a quick fix, but I am determined to keep going.

I have been hovering in the wings since seeing the TV programme last year. Today I made the leap and started with a fast day. Doing ok so far, if I can stay away from the crisps I’ll do ok I think.

Hi everyone, I am getting ready for my first day of fasting tomorrow & feel very positive after reading lots of great posts & helpful tips in the forum. So important to have a support network, especially when friends & family can sometimes be less than helpful. I am 56 & weigh 73 – 75 kg. I lost 10 kg a couple of years ago using the Bodytrim system but found although I was slimmer, I looked 10 years older having lost a lot of fat from my face, plus once I started to eat carbs again it was very hard to get back to the program. I love the idea of not having to eat breakfast & being able to just have dinner on fasting days & look forward to being able to eat well on ‘in between’ days. I am also hoping for some health benefits at this age; less body fat, lower cholesterol & more energy would be great. Wish me luck for tomorrow, cheers.

I am a 50 year old female with a sedentary job and need to lose 4 stones. I haven’t even been doing the diet quite a week yet and have already lost 3.5lbs. I am on my second fasting day. I am planning on doing my fasting days on Monday and Thursday. I have always had the willpower to stick to anything for a day so this diet is perfect for me. I know that however difficult that one day may be I can eat enough the next day not to be hungry. I am still eating sensibly the other 5 days but not having to be quite so strict as is necessary on other diets is taking my obsession with food away a little.