Good morning,I have to say I’m doing very well on my eating plan and was playing in my closet yesterday and was happily amazed that while I couldn’t even pull some dress on over my head, let alone step into them, I managed to not only pull them on over my head, but they almost fit, too. I have a ways to go, but I’m going.

Now, I don’t know if you recall I said my husband was joining me on my mission, and Lord have mercy, HE’S SURPASSED ME! He came downstairs this morning and his size 38 slacks were done up, but were around his hips and I couldn’t believe it! I asked him if he could move them down further and to my disbelief, THEY SLID DOWN TO THE FLOOR. These pants were done up!

So far, starting on May 18th, he went from 185.9 lbs. to 174.2 this morning and my weight was 182.9 to 176.2 lbs. The bad news on his grocery shopping trip yesterday, he picked up two bottles of my favorite red wine Layer Cake and I had a couple of glasses, so my silly butt steps on the scale this morning and I’m up 179.8 lbs., however, as disappointing as that may seem, I know it’s only alcohol weight and will dissipate shortly.

Men! He’s not even working out and I’m kickin’ the shi* out my body 4-5x a week with my workouts. It’s all good, because he looks sooo good. I look a hell of a lot better than I did last year, that’s for sure.

Yesterday, my workout was Fluidity, the ballet/pilates barre workout and it targeted muscles I wasn’t using with the Hip Hop Abs Extreme workout. Nevertheless, men always lose weight faster than women and I’ll just keep “pressing play” on my dvd player and continue eating healthy until I can start pulling tags off some of the clothes in my closet.

Have a great day, everyone.

Hi, etherial glad things are going well for you. as for that hubby of yours, mother nature just isn’t fair to us females is it?? 🙂 And, to bring home cake and wine, shame on him. 🙂 my husband did something like that years ago when I started Weight Watchers. the first day he comes home with german chocolate cake!!! now this is a man that seldom eats sweets!! I’m sure you weight will come back down though. hang in there. 🙂

Lynne, wow thanks for the noodle review, I haven’t tried them. oh, don’t you hate deceptive labeling? hope you are able to get through the rest of the day without too much difficulty. be sure to drink lots of water, I like mine with lemon, it helps fill you up. probably won’t get rid of that craving for wine. looking forward to hearing about how well you got on this week.

my fast day is going ok. weight and measure tomorrow too. hope everyone is having a good Fri. Phyl

Morning everyone….I can’t believe it….I am 3lb down from last Saturday! This is the first significant loss I have had in at least 4 weeks, and it will be surprised if the scales stay there, but hey I will take it!!

Not done measurements yet, the only thing I have done differently this week is be a bit stricter with the fast days…I am always over with calories, possibly up to 700 Cals as I drink gallons of tea and always have milk in it. But I think having the three fasting days does make a difference in that I can afford to be less strict.

Also I didn’t do any exercise this week as I wasn’t motivated at all…unlike me…I am now sitting in bed contemplating a run in the rain…boo! I may well put my bike on the turbo instead and do some intervals inside! I can hear thunder……humph!

Hi etherial, layer cake wine?? well that’s a new one on me, but I don’t really like wine so I don’t know too many. 🙂 I say enjoy your weekend and back to serious on Monday! have fun.

Lynne, 3 lbs down in a week!!! very impressive!!! like you say it may fluctuate a bit, but enjoy your achievement!! And your feed day!!

I am down 1.4 lbs this week since Monday. it’s the first time I’ve seen a 130 anything in a LONG time. LOL. haven’t measured yet, thought I would weigh and measure officially on Monday since that is when I started the experiment to see if I could go lower. I had settled in at around 137-138 for a couple of months. very happy to see 135.4 lbs this am.

sending everyone wishes for a great week. Phyl

Annette, congratulations on the skirt!!! sounds like you have your hands full with your essay, I think you have done well this week. you may be in a “body adjusting to new weight” period and the weight will start to drop soon. for now, just get that essay done and celebrate your achievements!

I shouldn’t have bragged yesterday, I had one of those days I ate all day long. back up a pound today, but that’s ok. I won’t be watching my intake today either. it’s my 40th wedding anniversary. going to be some serious cooking and eating today. 🙂 so I’m off to start, wishing everyone a great week. Phyllis

Hello everyone….

Oh my goodness…..I need to detox after this weekend (which I have thoroughly enjoyed!) we went to stay with friends at RAF Benson and on Saturday I just ate and drank whatever I wanted, which consisted of muffins, curry, crisps and almost all of a bottle of white wine (yum!) the weather was glorious and it was great to have a catch up.

On Sunday the men entered a 10k run and went off to do that first thing in the morning (great hangover cure apparently) I had a hangover breakfast of huge pieces of toast and jam and copious amounts of tea. I didn’t eat to badly for the rest of the day, but did have a really nice coffee n cream ice cream at Henley on Thames. We had lunch at Wetherspoons and I was impressed with the brilliant menu, we had a super foods salad which was gorgeous.

When we got got home at 7pm I went out for a 6 mile run in the sunshine …I felt I had to do something to burn up some of Saturdays 3000 calories eaten! It was really lovely…I don’t often actually enjoy running but all the food and alcohol seemed to provide great fuel and I ran it like a dream, plus changed my route and added in quite a few hills.

I haven’t dared weigh myself! Will wait until next Saturday, and didn’t have time to take measurements or try on clothes either. I can feel that I have retained water…my fingers were really swollen after the run, so I know the 3 pound weight loss will not show today.

Thank you all for your kind words and encouragement….it’s a fast day today and I have woken up ravenous! Hope yiu all have a great day. Lynne

Annete52, I’m trying to walk my dog, walk around the neighborhood and eat healthier. I also participate in gymnastics once a week. Is there anything else I can do to try and make this better or am I on the right track?

Wow, Kindle, that’s truly amazing. I love success stories. I tried to go back to my nightly two glasses of delicious red wine, but the urge or habit when I cook dinner is gone. Well, at least for now. I don’t have the desire.

…hummm, now that’s really strange; for me anyway.

Have a wonderful evening everyone and keep those success stories coming!

Hey everyone…hope you are all having a good week. I had to resist the most amazing looking cakes at work today….I am surprised I managed to say no….my will power seems to be better these days.

I have another very low calorie recommendation for you all…..slim rice! You can get it on amazon….actually it is more like noodles cut into rice sized pieces…I had them with stir fry and put a couple of eggs in for protein…..very acceptable, and the rice was only 14 calories for 200g…which is a LOT.

So I am now able to eat rice and pasta on my fast days…which means I am getting a decent meal at dinner time, and if feel a lot less deprived.

I had a sneaky look at the scales this morning and think I have put 2 of the 3 lb back on! Blame that on a boozy weekend! I will check tomorrow and may do a half fast day tomorrow as well…..really to offset Father’s Day where I will defiantly be having a very boozy pub lunch!

On the plus side my clothes feel looser and I think I can see less tummy in the mirror!

Annette good luck with the running….I did 6 miles last Sunday and will do 7 this weeknd before the boozy Sunday lunch!

Kindle well done with the waist measurements! I can’t remember when my waist was less than half my height! Probably never!!!

Hello, my fast friends!!!! Been awhile since I’ve checked in. But I’ve loved reading everyone’s posts. So much to catch you up on! Oh my.

Welcome to all who’ve recently joined us!

I loved @etherial‘s comment several posts back, “now on to my favorite topic…me!” Haha!!! I’m paraphrasing, of course. But so funny.

It has been about 3 weeks since I’ve fasted. And boy can my body tell it!! Oh my. I decided to take a break simply because I had so much going on. I couldn’t keep up. I was studying for & took my test for my group fitness certification. I was so unbelievably stressed about it! Like you, Annette, I indulged too much as I dealt with my stress. Anyway, it takes about 4-6 weeks to get my results. (Tomorrow marks 2 weeks.) I think I passed the practical part of the exam but the written part was very difficult. I truly believe I will have to retake that portion.

I also haven’t fasted much because not only am I teaching classes on Tuesdays & Thursdays, but I’m also subbing for other instructors when they need to miss. Last week I taught so many classes I don’t know when I would’ve fasted!!! One day I taught my normal boot camp, which is a very hard hour class, then went home & choreographed a routine for an evening class, then went back to the gym & taught that 1.5 hour class. Probably a good 3.5 hours of exercise that day!

Despite all my exercise, inches have returned. I’m anxious to begin fasting again & hope I can start next week. I’ve got to get this under control! So close to my goal, I’ve got to get back at it.

And now I go back to watching the World Cup. We spent the day swimming…well, the kids were swimming. I was either poolside getting sun or throwing a tennis ball for the boys to catch while performing fancy jumps. Ha! So now I’m ready to get caught up on the World Cup!!

Morning everyone…today is weights and measures day….

Weight has stayed the same since last weeks 3lb loss (that’s fine at least I seem to have consolidated the weight loss…often it seems to go back on again!)

Measurements:
neck lost 1/2 inch
Chest lost 1.25 inches (back fat!)
Thighs lost 1/2 inch
Bust lost 1.5 inches

Hi Annette started the 5:2 diet a week ago today and managed to slip an extra fasting day in during the week so managed 3 on my first week. Today will be my 4th fast day. I got weighed yesterday and looks like I lost 2 lb I’m pleased but the trouble with me is I do well for about a month then my old habits start creeping in and the weight goes back on.
I hope you don’t mind me joining your chat forum yours and other peoples posts have kept me going this week and I think I would get the support and encouragement I’ve never had before.
Your all an inspiration to me and I think your all doing so so fantastic, I hope to be getting good results to report soon
Thanks for letting me join your conversations Adele x

Hi I’m really struggling today, I’ve only had 100 calls but I’m just thinking about food all the time and watching the clock to see if it’s late enough to eat.
I’m feeling really hungry and if I’m honest fed up with feeling like this. Sorry I’m sounding really negative arnt I just feeling a bit down today I guess 🙁
Will keep reading all your posts and try and draw from all your successes and advice
Adele

Why not have two boiled egg whites and 1/2 cup of low sugar berries? Or some berries with non-dairy cheese? The cheese is only 70 cal. a slice and the berries is 40 cal. I even saute my egg whites with the non-dairy cheese and add a ton of mushrooms, onions, tomatoes. The vegetables are free foods.

Please don’t starve yourself or give up. There are ways around this. I will be more than happy to share some almost zero calories meals and snacks with you.

Hi Etherial thank you for your great advice, I seemed to manage better last week when I was at work but today just seems really hard and my stomach is hurting with hunger even though I’ve now had almost 400 calls in healthy food.
I’m just worried I won’t be able to last long on the 5:2 if I’m feeling like this after just 1 week and 4 fasts. I don’t really have much to lose (20lbs) but losing it will make such a difference to my clothes and confidence.
I’ve never been able to lose weight particularly fast and get scared I’ll give up too soon. The worst bit is going to bed feeling hungry the stomach ache just isn’t very nice and I find I can’t sleep too good. I’m so sorry I just feel like I’m moaning, I’m not honest just really desperate and I’m just on a real low at the moment. I’m a single mum of 2 teenagers both doing A levels so their quite stressed too at the moment.
And I work full time as a senior admin officer in a primary school (now I’m waffling haha)
Will report back in again soon
Thank you so so much for taking time out to reply and help me, can’t begin to say how much it means. Adele 🙂

Delly, believe me it DOES get easier! I found the first month was very tough and the first week I never stuck to 500 calories.

Take a day at a time, and if you feel faint or ill I find a bit of sugar helps. Other things that are good are low cal cup a soups, tea, hot milk n a small sugar, yoghurt. My biggest tip though that gets me through is to NOT eat at all before at least 2pm…once I start it is much harder to stop and I would use up half my calories by lunch time and then not have enough left to get me though the evening and night.

Also diet fizzy drinks help…if you have to eat something just do it, and have a little less on your feed days to compensate. If you are fasting three days per week you will find you can be a bit more flexible than the two day fasters. Have a read of my previous posts about slim rice and naked noodles…these are a life saver! I now make up a big stir fry for dinner and eat half about 6pm which fills me right up and then the other half about 9.30pm and this gets me through the night!

The next day I don’t even wake up hungry. Remember it the calories over the whole week that count, not the ones on each individual day, so don’t beat yourself up and give yourself time to settle into this way of eating. It does work very well, but your body needs time to adjust. Mine is getting there after 10 weeks.

Good luck! Lynne

Dellyg, you are welcome. I know it gets better as you get used to it; I got used to it as if it wasn’t happening anymore. Some days are harder than others and on those days, it’s always good to stay busy, drink tea and/or water, incorporate exercise.

Good luck.

Like several 5:2-ers I have experienced no weight loss but looser clothes, however my husband lost half a stone in a couple of weeks – typical! My husband has Type 2 diabetes and following routine blood and urine tests last week was told that his blood sugars are significantly lower than they were. We can only assume that this is due to the 5:2 diet!

Hi without sounding too stupid is anyone able to explain how people on 5:2 manage to lose inches but nothing on the scales. In my head these 2 things usually go together.
Hope I don’t sound too stupid
Adele

Hi Dellyg:

It can happen if you are exercising a lot.

Another explanation is water weight. The body can keep or expel two or more pounds of water on a daily basis. So if you are losing fat, you will lose inches, but if at the same time you are retaining water, you will not lose weight.

As an aside, water retention explains a large majority of ‘plateaus’. If you weigh on a day when you are low on water you will get a great reading. But if the next time or two (which could be measured in weeks, not just days) you are hydrated, it will appear you are not losing weight even though you have been good on your diet and are losing fat.

Stay on the diet and be patient. It really works!

Good Luck!

Etherial….a much better explanation!

Thank you…. And the water weight is interesting….I have noticed that after hard exercise like a run, I have more swollen fingers and my feet get hot and swell a little bit too.

I also retain more water in warm weather, and again notice it when my rings are tight on my fingers. So I guess this can affect the results on the scale….

I have a friend who wants to start 5;2 and I must send her the link to this thread as she gets really demotivated when the scales don’t budge!

Have a great day everyone!

Lynne

Annette, you should wear a heart rate monitor when you dance….I bet you use up loads of calories….do you have a fitbit or step counter? I would definitely be including those calories in my daily allowance! You will easily be under your net calories today!

Hope you had fun

OMG I have had SUCH a horrible week! Everyone at work’s stress levels are sky high…..it’s a fast day today which really isn’t helping…in fact I have just binned a small portion of sticky toffee pudding because I KNOW I will be eating it later!

I am desperate for a glass of wine….yes I know I sound like I have a problem! But trying to keep within my calories, so have opted for a glass of brandy instead.

Anyone know what calories to count for vodka? On MFP it says zero?

Hope everyone else is enjoying the sunshine and is more chilaxed than me!