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Morning All,
Cazzaritch – welcome! Congrats on your first day 🙂 How do you feel today? I am constantly amazed at how much energy and clarity of mind I have from fasting and this is one of the main things that keep me going. Loving it!
msxjsds – that’s awesome that you’ve reached your goal weight and are on maintenance. Well done 🙂 Surely you deserve a girlie weekend away now as a reward!! lol
ihaveawaist – an even smaller waist today! Woo hoo
Happy Friday!
Hi CathB,
Thank you for your kind welcome to the thread.
I feel a bit spaced out today, I am sure that will go away. I have lost my appetitie a bit, I have had a coffee and toast with peanut butter for breakfast and am on my second latte. This is a normal day for me foodwise, but I had to force down the toast. I thought it would assist in the spaced out feeling, not yet!
Cazzaritch,
I find a protein breakfast is really good the next day – eggs is a winner! And two coffees (skim flat white) is my daily intake although only one on a fast day. Oh how I love that one coffee though! I was getting a headache in the afternoons if I didn’t have my caffeine so have factored in the calories to my fast days now.
I’m really feeling like carbs today as I started doing a couple of classes this week which has made me uber hungry! I’m usually pretty sedentary so this more active lifestyle and the fuel I need to keep going will all balance out soon enough. I’m amazed at how strong I am at saying no (we have cake, biscuits and chocolates at work far too often!) as I know I can have something the next day. Funnily enough, the next day I don’t really feel like it!
Keep up the water intake and I find a variety of herbal teas and miso soup (only 27 cals) really get me through my days whether I’m fasting or not.
BTW, I’m in Sydney too 🙂
Keep going!
Cath
I also have just 2 coffees per day, and like you I love them!!! I did factor one in yesterday on my fast day, for the next fast I think I will stick to black to save the calories. I quite like a nice long black. I also get headaches if I don’t have a coffee in the morning.
Congratulations on starting the classes, and wow, you do have willpower. No one offered my high calorie foods yesterday, so I wasn’t tested.
Hi everyone I am in Bathurst NSW and 65 yrs young over the last year I have lost 10kg and feel great. over xmas and a 2 week holiday in January i gained 2kg but have lost that already. I love the way I am now I have more energy and since starting this I have been going to zumba class and 2 exercise classes for seniors each week and find it so easy. However I would love to lose another 5kg as I am still at the top of the range for my BMI. Maybe fast exercise is just what I need.
Hi all, big welcome to the newbies and very best of luck on the plan!! Another hot day for us here today and the drought is becoming very very serious for the farming properties in our area, extremely worrying. Anyone watching the Sochi Games? I am looking forward to them especially the ice dancing!
Fast day went well yesterday even though I did inadvertently go slightly over my very tiny 331 cal limit. I eyeballed and guessed then at the end of the day, did the maths and discovered my error. Weigh in morning today, will see what the scales say.. Have a great day everyone!
Hi all
I’m a newbie from Melbourne. Started on Monday this week with my first fast day. What a breeze. Fasted again on Thursday, not so breezy. I had the headache from hell ! Managed to hang in there though. Herbal teas saved the day.
I love the thought of this way of eating for weight loss, and from what I am reading on this forum, very encouraged that I will have success. Thank you to all for the great tips and hints shared.
Re how I heard about 5:2.
My friend injured her knee and was advised by her Dr she needed to have a knee replacement. As she is totally opposed to having it done at the age of 58, she decided to lose weight in an attempt to keep the knee going a bit longer. Whilst her Dr wasn’t happy that his advise was being ignored, it was he who suggested she try the 5:2. Guess what. After 25 years of being an unsuccessful serial dieter, she has had great results on this regime. Great weight loss and test results now predicting she will get another 10 years out of her knee ! Another happy camper !!!!
Cheers & Best Wishes
Karyn
Hello everyone,
What excellent stories!
Helendm, it so fantastic about getting into Zumba and exercise classes, dancing, no matter how or why you do it, will definitely be a fun way to move and burn calories at the same time. You have to love anything that kills two birds with one stone.
Jaybee, I’m just watching the fab young Scott James doing so well on the snow board at Sochi, he’s a little trooper. Hope he does well in the future.
Rynkarosi, that was really great about your friend and her knees. Just imagine if the doctors reccomended 5/2 for all of those joint replacement candidates before they got so bad they had to have the surgery? It would probably revolutionize the health system. I have two friends who have been impressed with my 5/2 journey, one with a very painful knee, and both have taken it up. I recommended this forum to keep them inspired, as this keeps me keepin’ on.
Have a lovely weekend!
Hi everyone! 🙂
Sounds like you are all doing well, managing the heat but still keeping up with exercise and this WOL. 😀
Jaybee – please don’t worry about exceeding your fast day allowance by small amounts. Weight loss and this WOE is not an exact science. With such a small allowance, a bit of license is ok!
Karyn – welcome 🙂 I am also in Melbourne. You have a great role model in your friend and your positive approach to this WOL is a wonderful start, Fasting does get easier, tho there can always be days that are more challenging! The day after the fast is the reward – I almost always feel great the morning after (lovely to not have a full tummy!) and know that I can eat what I want that day. In general, this also helps me make thoughtful choices about what I will eat.
Welcome back Ali, and welcome Helen – it does seem to be a common experience that weight gained on hols comes off pretty quickly once one gets back into the fasting routine. Another fantastic benefit of this WOL! 🙂
Helen – add in more exercise if you enjoy it, but if you stick with this WOL I am sure the extra kgs will come off. They did for me with very little exercise,
However, I have just started the MM version of HIIT – so just 3@20sec HI on the exercise bike, with warm up, 100sec between HI bursts, and cool down, taking total of 10 mins. Then I follow with the 8min Joanna Soh strength training. (I do these after I have walked the dogs for 50min – the dogs give me no peace until they have had their walk, then they are exhausted for most of the day, esp with this heat.)
I only do the HIIT 3 times a week. I find it difficult to keep up the intensity for the 20sec!! But it is v early days, so expect that should improve??
I am hoping this will help with allowing myself some regular food indulgences but not put on weight (as I am on maintenance). And of course I hope it will help tone this slimmer but a bit saggy body!!!!
Best wishes to you all from warm and windy Melbourne – tho I think the cool change is on its way? (Wish it would bring some rain, everything is so dry. 🙁 )
Cheers
Sassy
Hello! Nervous newbie in Adelaide here. I’ve given IF a couple of tries over the last few months but always fall off the wagon after my second fast day. This time I’m determined to stick to it as I’m sooo desperate to shift some weight. I’m 48 years old, 5’2″ and weigh 178lbs. My BMI is a shaming 32.6. I’ve decided to try and save most of my calories for my evening meals, hence so far today I’ve had one coffee (dribble of milk and one sugar) and an apple. Dinner is still a couple of hours away so I thought I’d join you guys for some inspiration on how to get through the next few hours! Dreading a night without wine but at least my husband has agreed not to drink on my fast days either!
Congratulations @arla and @kiwi25 on your good weight losses. I managed to lose 0.8 kg last week at my Saturday weigh-in. That’s a total loss of 9.1 kg for me since the start of November. Started my 59th year on Saturday weighing 83.9 kg (23.9 kg left to go). Spent 2 hours of my fast day today walking around Carindale shopping centre – now too tired to go for my usual 3 km walk. I discovered today that I now enjoy a black Expressi coffee on fast days (that’s the Aldi brand of a pod espresso coffee maker). I usually drink espresso coffee with frothed skim milk and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, but I thought I’d try it black today and found the crema top of the black espresso was fine for me without the milk or sugar added – only one cup of a morning, though, otherwise I’d be awake all night.
Hi @lizinoz, you and I just posted at about the same time. I’m a fair bit older than you, just a little bit taller than you (at 5’4″) and 3 kg (6.6 lbs) heavier than you, but today is also my fast day and I know the last few hours before dinner are the hardest. They say that 2 nights a week without alcohol are good for us, so the fast days are a good excuse for that. I find that drinking plenty of water and keeping busy, or finding something as a distraction, is helpful late on fast afternoons (such as reading this forum or the new Facebook page).
Congrats to all the losers..lol..of weight, that is!
I too, had another good week and have reached the first 0!
While I had nothing better to do on Friday, I recorded all the foods we eat and their calorie values.
Ye gods, I can see why we are overweight.
For 2 days I kept a record of everything we ate and tallied up my portions.
Fortunately, mine was well below my TDEE of 1642, but nevertheless a wake-up call to my dietary intake!
Even a humble teaspoon of butter is 27 cals and one grape = 2cals
I will certainly be looking at food from a different perspective now 🙂
Thanks @gomarg! I’ve been trawling through the forums and picked up lots of useful information. It’s certainly keeping my mind off food, I know I can do this if I just make a proper effort. I have a big party to go to in June and I’m determined to feel proud of myself! I’ve converted my weight into kgs like everyone else, so I’m currently at 80.73. If I can lose a kilo a week I’ll be happy!
@lizinoz I’m older & heavier if that helps at all. It does get easier after the first couple of weeks. I make sure I have a bottle of fizzy mineral water and add some lime juice to it. It feels more filling than flat water (even if it’s only different in my brain). Whenever I get a hunger moment, I remind myself that I can have [insert craving] tomorrow. Of course tomorrow I’ve usually forgotten 🙂
@arla I’ve got a sugar free bottle of lemonade to get me through this evening. I tried sugar free coke last time and didn’t sleep a wink all night!! The hunger has receded a little bit, I’ve filled some of the time by tidying up and shouting at the children… I’ve also found a foolproof way of not feeling hungry when cooking for the kids and my husband – I’ve got them sausages for dinner and I hate sausages so I know I won’t be tempted to have a nibble! 🙂 Tuna salad for me tonight, I reckon I’ll probably be well under my 500.
Hi lizinoz, when I started I had a BMI of over 42, and as I went I have set myself small goals, the first was to loose 10kg, the next is to get below BMI 40 which I am just a couple of weeks away from. That will see me having lost14.5kg, at present I have lost just on 12kg and at present I am loosing around half a kilo a week. Sometimes less sometimes more, as many of the others comment, my inner tortoise says slow and steady. I too am older and taller than you, and my crutch was always that my weight is the result of fertility treatment and PCOS. That crutch has been thrown away since finding this way of life. My blood test results were 90 percent excellent and one bad, that was blood sugar over 8, but my doctor has tweaked my medication and given me another three months to the next test, although he did another test that was more a background test and that was not too bad, suggesting that my stressing out of having to wait more than an hour for the test had some effect on it. I have also consoled myself by thinking how much worse would it have been if I had not started IF. Fasting days now after three months are very manageable, coffee with milk for breakfast, and my meal at night. Another fast day safely behind me today, good luck to all the fasters for this week no matter which days you choose. Cheers, Charlie.
Charlie, I’m similar to you. I started IF in November with a BMI of just on 42. I’ve lost almost 8 kilos, and I’m hoping tomorrow’s weigh-in will see me with a BMI under 39.
I haven’t had blood tests since I started IF, but will se the doc and get some done in a couple of weeks.
My fast day today has been almost easy – I’ve only had 340 calories and I’m not starving at 10pm. I’m hoping I don’w wake up hungry in the middle of the night!
Hi @charlie, thanks for the encouragement. You’ve done brilliantly, 12kg is a fantastic amount to lose, you should be so proud of yourself. You’re right about setting smaller, achievable goals rather than one big goal which, for me anyway, seems very far away at the moment. I’m happy to have got through this first fast day and I’m sort of looking forward to my next one on Thursday. I don’t actually feel hungry at the moment, I ate the most enormous tuna salad for dinner and couldn’t finish it all! Keep up the good work – you’re a great example.
You guys are ALL a wonderful inspiration, whether new or old to this WOE, you still give the rest of us hope and consolation that we too can intermittantly fast our way to a healthier outcome for our bodies, and gain a great deal of confidence that we are truely the ones in control.
I’m a good example in point; until I heard about and got inspired to try 5/2, I was under the sad impression that I was going to gain weight, have higher and higher blodd pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol and suffer from IBS the rest of my life.
My doctor only told me to walk thirty mins a day to lower my choleserol and raise my vit D, and gave me B12 injections for my anemia. After following her instructions religiouslly for three months, my cholesterol was exactly the same, and my weight had increased…..she had nothing else to give me except threaten me with medication, as well as offer to have my thyroid removed because it had formed a goiter.
So ten months down the track, I’m 12.5 kg lighter, feeling more energetic and in control of my future. I’ve yet to revisit my doctor, but am going to go in March when I turn 51, to see if there’s any difference in the blood tests. I already know my 30 year battle with untreated IBS has now completely disappeared and my thryroid has shrunken by itself, down to a more normal size.
I’m confident that there will be positive results to the blood tests and that I won’t be needing any meds or surgery for the goiter either.
If I can be the one behind the wheel, steering myself in the direction I want to go in, then I’m more than happy to go and fast intermittently for the rest of my days here on this lovely little blue planet.
On a side note, since getting back into my Dune-care work last Monday, my fellow Dune-carers have been asking about my weight loss and how I did it. They are very interested in 5/2 and a few will be going on line to look at this site, maybe even reading the book! My neighbor has started too! So soon my little town will be full of 5/2 supporters like you and I!
Have a wonderful week!
Well, I got through my first fast day! “Normal” day today but I didn’t feel all that hungry this morning. I ate a piece of toast about two hours after I got up, it’s now 11.30am and I’m still not hungry again, although I have had two coffees this morning! Very hot weather here in Adelaide again today so the whole family is having salmon and salad pittas tonight but if I feel like a little slice of lemon and lime pie and a glass of wine to wash it all down then I know I can. Good luck to us all this week!
Hi Guys,
Been awhile since i’ve posted but i’m happy to say that i think my Plateaing has ended.I seem to have managed this with ADF or 4:3. Sometimes I get the feeling that i’m overdoing it with the fast days and am frightened that the body will go into starvation mode. I know the website FAQ states that you would have to go into severe calorie restriction for weeks for this to happen but i’m wondering at what stage have you crossed the line into overdoing it ? As this is a lifestyle change I’ve decided to go back to 5:2 and only weigh myself once a month being the first friday of the month.I have already lost about 8kgs, over the last 3 months.That at least validates in my own mind that what i’m doing works.Changing back from ADF to 5:2 may slow the process a little bit , which is the reason why I only to weigh in once a month ,so not to get disheartned if there is any intial weight gain.
I just need to know from people that have been consistently on it for longer periods whether there still is weight loss after long periods of 5:2 or does the body adjust ?
Well done on the 8 kg loss joestar!
Here’s my opinion, please take it with a grain of salt. Fasting every alternate day or even 3 days a week takes a lot of effort and may dramatically disrupt your normal social activities. I like having only 2 days a week fasting, as I can switch days if there’s a birthday or family get-together.
Of course going from 3 or 4 days a week to 2 will slow down your losses, but it may be easier to continue over the long haul. What you think need to ask yourself is what are your goals for this process? Is it just to lose weight? Get better health outcomes overall?
The other thing you may need to check is your new total calorie intake on feast days, as when you lose weight, your total calorie intake goes down. There is a great calculator on this site, very easy to use and gives you info immediately. Work with this new number on feast days to keep yourself from regaining too much.
Keep us posted on your progress, happy fasting this week.
Second fast day successfully completed yesterday! I decided to keep most of my calories for dinner so ate nothing at all until 8.30 last night although I did have three cups of coffee! I didn’t feel hungry much at all during the day except for the odd tummy rumble around 5.00ish and when I did sit down to eat I could only manage half of what I’d allowed myself. Anyhoo, I weighed myself this morning and was delighted to see 78kg down from 80.73! Very, very happy with this but realise I can’t go mad this weekend and undo my hard work! I honestly think my head is in the right place to carry on with this way of eating now and I CAN achieve my ultimate goal which is to comfortably fit into size 12. I don’t want to be supermodel skinny, just comfortable in my own skin and not too ashamed to look in the mirror anymore.
Have a great weekend everyone, enjoy yourselves but lets stay focused!
Well done liz, I understand about the mirror issue too.
I didn’t look at myself for years. Isn’t it odd that we can be our own harshest critics?
In reality, we should all look deeper and see the beautiful loving soul which resides within each and every single one of us. It’s only our warped attitudes that distorts our vision so we see ourselves as unworthy and ugly, not the unique beautiful beings that we truly are!
Have a fun weekend and say hello to yourselves in the mirror!
Thank you IHAW, and you’re so right about being hard on ourselves. It’s funny, I have a nine year old daughter and she’s absolutely the right weight for her height but she’s already picked up on the whole weight/beauty issue simply from watching tv and reading “tweenager” magazines. I have told her that beauty doesn’t come from being skinny and wearing the “right” clothes, it comes from being loving, kind and compassionate towards others and being happy in who you are. Sadly the media conspires to tell our children the absolute opposite of this every single day and try as you might, that message wiggles into your brain and drips poison in.
My mirrors says I’m looking good but my roots need doing! 🙂
We need to remember to be good role models for our kids, particularly daughters.
My daughter started to notice the issues about bodies and faces and fitting in, around the age of nine too, she’s 24 now. One thing that saved her from becoming heavily engulfed in the beauty myth, was getting passionate with surfing and later on, snow boarding and travelling. Once she discovered something she was really passionate about, that rewarded her with more payoffs than just ‘looking good’, she took off and had the confidence to have adventures and be her own woman.
Everyday I thank the universe that she is my daughter, and what a fantastic woman she’s grown to be and the great future she has in front of her.
Hello to everyone, am in Adelaide and we’ve gone from weeks of unbearable heat to torrential downpour!!
Week 4,am 66.4kgs, but I haven’t lost from the initial loss 2 weeks ago – feels discouraging. I followed 12 solid weeks of Body for Life, and had the same problem..still going to continue, but wondering if I should just give trying to diet up..maybe it’s my body telling me it is comfortable here. Sigh. Anyway, hope everyone is going well, will see what happens next week. p.s. – happy Valentine’s Day! 🙂
Hi Poppy,
I’ve only lost 100 grams in the past two weeks, which is a little frustrating when I’ve done my fast days. As I’m now within ‘healthy weight’ range (BMI 23.5), I was wondering if I should just stay here. However, when I think about it more, I think how even with two fast days I’m staying static – just goes to show how hard it is to stay within a healthy weight when you have a completely sedentary job (my number one reason for weight gain I think). I’ve also had some problem with over-indulging with cakes etc at work on feast days 🙂 But that temptation is always going to be around, it should be even more motivation to try and get my weight lower. So I am going to continue…
Hi Peggy,
Some weeks you do not move very much weight, as I found when I tried doing 4:3, so I switched back to 5:2 for a week and lost 600g, then this week I went back to 4:3 and this morning with today’s fast still to go I have lost 1.4kg since Saturday. But I am only partly doing this to loose weight. I am also doing this for the health benefits, and in three months I have corrected all but the blood sugar, which is still a work in progress.
My greatest success has been my liver function test. Years ago both hubby and I had an indeterminate strain of hepatitis and it really damaged my liver even though I was not the one who was sick with it.
Every time the GP does bloods he has tested my liver and for years I have not been allowed to have caffeine or drink more than one glass of alcohol per week. This time the test showed that my liver now appears to be functioning normally, almost fifteen years after the damage, that was still present three years ago.
It’s not just weight loss, it’s improving our overall health that matters. I now also have hubby convinced to fast with me one day per week and today is his first effort. He only needs to loose five kilos, but again I want him here with me in my old age, 🙂
Will report end of week weigh in Saturday, to all those who like me have been suffering the heat I hope that Autumn comes early, and that when it comes it blows away the smoke, as we have not seen the sun for days and it is meant to hang around for days yet.
To anyone that has been effected by the fires, my heart goes out to you as I have been through this before in 2009.
Good luck everyone and stay safe, Charlie
Hi all,
Just thought I would log an update.
If you recall Valentines Day is my first weighing date of the year and my goal is to get under 100kg. I started at 114kg in June, went to 108kg and then 104kg at the beginning of December.
Anyway, got up this morning and weighed myself 5 times – just to ensure a true result!
The result was… 102kg… so a 2kg loss to report.
Initially disappointed if I’m honest but then I think how better I feel and how my clothes are not tighter anymore – with very little effort on my part.
I’m going to continue doing my adapted version from breakfast to breakfast (nothing in between) 2 days a week, to see if I can shift the additional 2.1kg and get under the 100kg.
I’ve decided my next weigh in will be Friday 28th March 2014 – so lets see what happens in another 6 weeks.
Have a great Valentine’s Day everybody.
Dave
Wow!!, congratulations, so much weight “lost”, may you never find it again.!! My husband and my self did a good fast day yesterday after several feeble starts. I have had my hip replacement surgery brought forward 6 weeks by a very caring surgeon who could see the agony I was in. While I am so grateful to him now It is only a week away I am faced with the reality of it. I really can’t wait to be free of the pain, I find it hard to fast when pain is my focus, but managed yesterday, yahoo!!
Look forward to reading your posts when I come out of hospital.
All the best, @mikayla. I hope your surgery is a great success.
Mikayla, we’re all thinking of you and your surgery, let’s hope it’s a wonderful success and you can soon move around without pain!
Charlie, what an incredible result! I’m so glad that your liver is now functioning properly. Maybe you could be our new poster girl for the wonders produced by the 5/2 diet! Perhaps you could notify Doc Mosley to let him know all of your results? You are living proof that this WOE works!
Harveyworld, congrats on the weight loss. Remember that the closer that you get to your goal weight, the longer it can take. Check out your calorie ntake on the normal days, as you’ll be needing less total energy, now that you’re lighter.
Have a lovely weekend fasters, I’m hoping for some rain.
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We pay tribute to our dear friend and colleague, Dr. Michael Mosley. Michael was an integral part of our lives, […]
Michael is touring Australia this September! Here's a link to dates and tickets. Hope to see you there.
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6 Feb 14