Morning All. Where is everyone???? How are all the newbies going?? Very interested to hear from you all.
Thin – Where are you? Maybe its all that exercise and paddling on Sunday!

Well, I had a very good FD yesterday. Huge salad with a little chicken & an early night. So, I’m back into the swing of things. I’m having a light-eating NFD today with a big stir-fry tonight (with wine) and doing another FD tomorrow in anticipation of various family things over Easter….no eggs though….oh ok, maybe just one little one! Be strong MK88. Luckily I don’t have a bad sweet-tooth. Making some mini hot-cross bunnies today, so I can have half a bun with my coffee on NFDs.

Does anyone have one of those FitBit thingies?? Are they any good??

Weigh-in tomorrow…yikes! Have a wonderful day. CM xx

Hi CM, I was wondering the same thing, very quiet today. I had my FD yesterday and when I weighed myself this morning have gone down to 82.7, I can hardly believe my eyes. Just over eight weeks ago I was 87.1. Another FD tomorrow like you. It’s funny but I haven’t felt like eating today, I guess with this WOL it’s up and down went to the gym this morning and mowed the front lawn which takes me an hour so I think I’ve had enough excercise today.

I’m sure you’ll be fine with your weigh-in. Cheers

Hi Intesha – Absolutely Fabulous! You’ve well and truly “got it”! Isn’t it an amazing feeling. Every morning we look at those pesky scales, and then all of a sudden they drop, a lot. I remember breaking through 67 and jumping up and down in the bedroom. OH thought I had finally gone over the edge..its been close a number of times!! That was several weeks ago now, and I’ve been zigzagging up & down because of travelling & visitors. Hopefully the downward trend will commence again. My goal is late May. We’re going on a 2 week cruise out of Venice to the Dalmatian Coast. Last cruise I put on 3.5 kg & that’s not going to happen this time. Although, I did REALLY pig-out! But I also want a bit of wriggle room this time, so I can still enjoy myself. We’re away just over 3 weeks, so I’m thinking of getting a set of travelling scales that I’ve heard about. No excuses then! I don’t really want to be running up to the gym starkers for my “just out of bed” weigh-in! Could cause a stir!

….and, from my earlier post, I think I’m a day ahead of myself…weigh-in is on Friday not tomorrow.

CM xx

MK88 – I wish I could find a good class like that. I do a bit of yoga, but a combination like that would be perfect. I don’t like the jumping, sweating, running, puffing sort of exercise – if you get my meaning. Walking, weights, yoga, pilates, tai-chi is right up my alley. Yes, I’ve been making hot cross buns for quite a while now and muck about with bread a bit too. The buns in the shops are too big (read “tempting”) for me, so I enjoy having just half a mini bun. I also like to know what I’m putting in my mouth. I’m going to find those noodles today because that salad sounds delish and I really miss my noodles.
Glad you like the FitBit & think I’ll give it a go. Hope it motivates me to walk a bit more. Which model do you have?
CM xx

I am struggling today…this is week 5. So far, I have found the fast days easy but today…I feel light headed and absolutely knackered. I feel quite empty/hungry too.

Can’t wait for this work day to end so I can go home. I plan a very early night after a light zucchini and onion broth (312 cals).

Why so hard today???

Expat that’s not good- that’s exactly how I felt on Monday on my FD. I haven’t struggled too much with my FD’s so far but Monday was really hard. At least it’s almost over! Hang in there. Do you drink peppermint tea? I’m just having one now. I find it curbs my appetite and the ydration always helps!

IHAW that is a fantastic result. Thats the sort of outcome I am after! total health as well as weight loss. Congratulations ands good luck getting down to 60 🙂

MK88 xx

MK88 – Glad I make you laugh, love!! People normally say, I drive them nuts! X
Expat – That’s no good. So, what have you eaten so far today? Yes, peppermint tea and lots of water keep me going and staying hydrated is REALLY important. Some people swear by hard boiled eggs when the energy levels slump on FDs (personally, I can’t stand them). I had these symptoms in the early days too. Many say that its caused by the body detoxing (sugar & carbs) & it does improve the further in you go. Try to up your fluids on fast days – they recommend almost doubling your intake.
BTW, what else is in your broth to bring it up to 312cals! You can have 100g of chicken breast and heaps of vegies or salad for 312cals. Just make sure your not starving yourself of the good stuff. Regardless, the main thing is not to stress about it – it happens to all of us. You’re doing so well and yes, those health benefits are worth it.
IHAW – Well, what bl…dy amazing news….and OMG how much weight have you lost!! Fantastic. You can crow to your hearts content – you deserve it. My asthma has improved a lot too. So, now I think you deserve to treat yourself….pedicure, new lippy, just something to say “I’ve done something amazing for myself”. I think I can say, we’re all so proud of you. Bet you feel fabulous too!!!

Today (NFD) I feel fat & I’ve got a tummy…..it’s not hormones & I’d like to know why??
CM xx

Thank you, IHAW. x

CM, your ‘She didn’t kidnap me’ gag had me laughing into my peppermint tea! Sorry you’re having a ‘bla’ day. I’m sure your little tummy is just bloating and not weight gain but as IHAW said, take the good days with the bad days in this WOL because you know the end result is good health and a happy weight!

Intesha, thats a nice low cal protein shake you’ve found- mine are 120 cals but taste delicious so I won’t give them up 🙂 protein shakes are handy snacks aren’t they!

My Vietnamese chicken and noodles were deeeelish! I’m looking forward to trying a few other recipes from the book!

Almost at the end of another fast day 🙂 woo hoo!

MK88 xx

Secret, that sounds so yummy. Must give it a try on the weekend. Hope you & OH are feeling better. Yes, the carbs & sugar could be the villains! I’ve finally removed sugar from my coffee after having it forever, bit by bit, but its gone now. Bali – very nice! We go every year in Sept. Yes, you do need some wriggle room as the food is AMAZING! Although the heat sweats out any naughtiness pretty quickly…..and yes, luckily there is always another FD to get us back on track. Where are you in Oz or NZ?

Have a lovely evening everyone.
CM xx

Morning fastfriends, I’ve been lurking for a couple of days but I have read everything. Brilliant results everyone, especially Intesha and you IHAW, well done, you should be very proud of all the health changes as well as the weight loss. You too MK88 for resisting those chocolate eggs, I knew you could do it – anyway, five minutes after you’ve eaten one, you’d be regretting it. Take my advice – I’m not using it.

Merry, if you return from a four week holiday with no weight gain, that will really be something to crow about. Same for CM with the house guests. Good luck on the scales tomorrow.

Expat: we all have tougher days. Choose your foods carefully, high protein, low GI and delay eating as long as possible so you can bank your calories for a decent evening meal. Lots of water. You can do it.

I won’t comment on everything except to add to what CM said about NannaP & other Perth losers being welcome to join us for a coffee (maybe even a walk thrown in) somewhere in the Perth-Fremantle corridor. We’re harmless, honestly. Please make yourselves known as we’re planning something next week.

Hi all,Merry me I take my hat off to you if you can get through such a long holiday in such a lovely place and not gain ant weight.Love NZ and landing on getting over there for brother in laws big 5 O in September. But I do think the food is not quite as tempting as Bali. Especially in Ubud where my big sis and I go every year for 2 weeks.Its become a foodies heaven of international as well as Indonesian cuisine and so so cheap to indulge in this fine fare. So envious of Perth’s proximy and cheap fares

Brilliant CM, you’ve worked very hard to stay on track and never lost sight of the goal, well done! I’m very happy for you. 65.8 is an excellent score! Not such good news about Charlie though, what’s up with him? Big scratch behind the ear for Charlie.

Morning Intesha, sorry to hear that the holiday periods make you feel lonely but it’s good you have your Dad there to force you out of bed. It’s helpful to keep busy. Of course there are many things in life that we can’t change, but we’re in control of much of our destiny so, good for you for starting this change on yours. It’s incredible how taking control of what we eat and of our health can elevate our mood. I’m a much happier person than I was when carrying all that excess weight around.

I have a whole book on Churchill quotations, shame we don’t have statesmen like him in this generation. I always have a chuckle when the orchestral music comes on to prelude the ABC news, such and pomp and ceremony in that piece, you expect to hear a rousing, “We shall fight them on the beaches….”. Instead, you get some ridiculous headline explaining how a team of sporting heros celebrated their latest win by getting totally hammered and wearing it like a badge of honour. I’m starting to sound like my nan.

Anyone else fasting on Easter Sunday? Probably not! I thought the best way to avoid temptation would be to stick to my fast day today. So it’s nearly noon and no chocolate, hot cross bun – or anything else for that matter – has passed my lips. I’m going to try CM’s tuna tip today. Small can 69 cals.
Enjoy the rest of your day everyone.
From self-righteous, sunny Perth.

You deserve a treat now and then Intesha, you’ve made a good start to your new WOL. Be strong, imagine you’ll great you’ll feel when you’re on here announcing that you’re under 80kgs! It’s not far away…

Hi all. This is my first post. I starting the 5:2 3 months ago when I was 93 kilos and with a goal of losing 10 kilos prior to my cruise on 13 April. I weighed myself this morning and I am 83.3! Who hoo!

So happy and with a week still to go. I have never been a fan of diets before but really this hasn’t been too hard. Even on my so called “cranky days”. I do admit to being lazy and using the protein shakes on the fast days as I have a very busy job and it is just easier than calorie counting and they somewhat fill me up.

I just hope not to undo all the good work on the cruise.

Happy Easter to all!

Welcome, and well done, Singlemum. And you have a week up your sleeve! You have such a satisfying success, that whatever works for you, works.

When I began 5:2 eighteen months ago I started by having an omelette for breakfast, apple for lunch, carrot after work and then a leafy salad with avocado for dinner, but now find I don’t need to break my fast until a boiled egg in the middle of the day. However, it’s now after 1pm here in NZ, it’s not a work day, and I still haven’t had my egg. The body adapts, and you learn what is necessary and what is habit. I decided not to change my Monday/Thursday routine, as I find it much easier to be rigidly consistent.

Keep up the good work and enjoy your cruise. Where are you off to?

Hi again and thanks for your supportive comments. I do agree that your body adapts after being on this eating plan. At first it was quite a challenge, especially going to bed hungry, but I find it much easier these days and naturally eat less on my non fast days.

My cruise is 14 days from Singapore to Japan, with a lot of port days so I will be very busy and I think the motivation to not undo the good work will mean I will not overeat, plus I plan to dance and exercise a lot! And there is always the means to loose a few extra kilos when I get back. I still have a few more I would like to shift anyway. I am 5 feet 11, so my goal is to be below 80.

Hi Intesha. I submitted this on Friday, but only just saw that it hadn’t posted. Hope you’re feeling better today.

Love, we all have our “off” times, so don’t beat yourself up about it. For me it’s Christmas….& it used to be my fav time of the year. But that’s a long story for another time.
I can only imagine the upheaval you have had since your dad moved in with you, but remember what an amazing thing you are doing for him. Does he need constant care or is he fairly independent. If you feel like having a sleep in – maybe let him know the night before & get his bfst ready for him before bedtime. You still have to live your life. Talk to him, I’m sure he will understand. If you’re feeling that down, talk to your doc. Don’t let it get to the point where depression, anxiety or loneliness is controlling your life. Believe me, been there done that & it ain’t worth it.
You might feel alone sometimes, but you’re not. We’re here for you to vent, unload or just for a chat….& also to celebrate with you when you reach one of your goals! Even though we’re cyber friends, we’re friends none the less. You’ve already done something amazing for yourself and you’re on your way to being a NEW YOU & ready for that visit to your daughter.
Big hugs to you..…& a wet lick from Charlie too! CM xxx

CM, so glad to hear Charlie is ok. That would have given you a real fright. Love your encouraging words for Intesha, it rings true for a few of us I imagine. I do agree with you, Intesha, make sure you are looking after yourself. It’s tough work giving that much of yourself so take care of yourself.

Thin, thank you for remembering- he did get the job!! It’s a fantastic offer with more pay, wonderful perks and so much potential for career growth so he is rapt. I am very proud of him lately! He’s also managed to lose 3kg in this WOL and has stuck with it which i think is sometimes harder for men.

SSM, welcome to this forum and well done on your achievement so far! This time next week you’ll be setting off! Enjoy it and enjoy finding the balance of having fun and indulging while also looking after yourself.

FD today for OH and I, we visited friends this morning and got to snuggle their 2 tiny kittens which was a great distraction! Walked 6km from Brighton to Elsternwick and back again then home for some Alpine bread toast. So far so good with fasting from home! It feels good to know I have the willpower to keep it up away from work and the distractions there.

Thin, did you treat yourself today?

MK88 😀

Wow it doesn’t pay to go out for a few hours so many posts. Went and got my Mum from the Nursing Home and took her and my Dad to visit a very old friend of theirs. Even though Mum has Dementia they never stopped chatting about things, it’s wonderful to see, they have been friends for over 60 years.

Barata, are you maintaining your weight or have more to lose? If you are maintaining do the two fast days allow you to eat more or is it just a way of life for you now?

Thin, I’ve been on a couple of cruises and the first few days you just stuff yourself but after that you seem to get sick of the sight of all that food, that’s what I found. But they do have individual restaurants that you can book into for a small charge and you can just order off the menu, much better idea.

CM, thank you for your lovely words. Dad is relatively independent, he’s on a walker but can’t do cooking, washing etc. I guess it’s just that I have been on my own so long, but I also lost my job two years ago just prior to things falling apart with my parents and a few other issues which turned my world upside down. Everything happening at once was devastating and the loss of my independence, I did get very angry and depressed but I did get help and it has only been recently that I’ve started to feel somewhat normal again. Hence now starting the 5:2. I know we all have our own personal mountains to climb and even though I have not been in the forum very long, I do feel the cyber friendliness, so thank you all for that.

MK, thank you for your encouragement as well.

FD for me tomorrow.

Hi all, great news MK88, well done OH! Lots to celebrate at your house this weekend then.

CM: I never opened the tuna – stayed well below 500 cals yesterday and wasn’t hungry at all. Paid off with the scales this morning. Today was another story though as we had lunch at friends’ place. I only had one helping instead of stuffing myself silly so that was something. And there won’t be any dinner tonight. So, that was my treat MK88.

A well-worded post CM as usual; Intesha, we’re all here to listen to whatever you have to say.

NannaP and other Perth losers: Charlie, Charliesmum and I will be meeting at Deep Water Point cafe, Mt. Pleasant on Friday 10 April at 8am for coffee and, depending on the weather, maybe a walk too. We’d love it if you could join us. And just to make the rest of you jealous, here’s the link: http://www.deepwaterpointcafe.com.au/
We hope to see you there!

Thanks everyone! It’s a fantastic job offer with incredible perks so we are both really happy. It was nice to take the 4 day weekend to celebrate 🙂

Intesha, you can do a 6:1 for maintenance also where you noly fast one day a week once you’re at your goal weight. Sounds like a really rough couple of years you’ve had (to put it lightly). Good on you for coming out the other side and getting yourself back on track.

These cruises sound amazing! I’d love to do something like that with a group of friends and all their kids or maybe with my family… although the thought of beng stuck in the middle of the ocean with them all is somewhat terrifying!

FD yesterday was going well until afternoon/evening. I am still learning how best to spread my calorie allowance over the course of the day. I failed at that yesterday and spent all evening hungry and grumpy. Is anyone else struggling with headaches on fast days? I am drinking loads of water and tea but still get a headache every fast day.

MK88

Hi All. Have just found some interesting new soups in Woolies & I shall be the guinea pig for you all. They’re from a company called LaZuppa & this type is called “Just add Water”. I’m going to try the Tom Yum Soup first as I love Thai. They seem to be in a paste form & not a powder so the flavour should be much better. Two pouches per box @ somewhere around $3.20…..and only 28 cals! Add some Slendier noodles & that’s what I call a cheap FD dinner @ 36 cals total. If hungry, then maybe add some prawns, chicken, tofu or vegies for a well-balanced meal. Sounds good to me. I shall report back once I’ve tried them. CM xx