Cinderella-I did feel brave and then had a little panic with the number on the scales, but then I reminded myself that the chocolates, mince pies, crisps, cheese straws and Christmas pudding had all been demolished so that it was going to be easier in the coming weeks. I do struggle on a FD when it is winter though, but find it far easier when I am home and can occupy myself rather than negotiate a lunch that I have no control of. We only get half and hour and it is the one social part of the day, so I really don’t want to eat alone.

I am equally exasperated too with the advice being given. No one has a clue it seems and so called experts are still advising low fat/high carb with little thought to sugar. If I had the information from Lustig and Fung when my kids were young then I wouldn’t have fed them so much pasta/rice/bread/potatoes in an effort to fill them up. I would have made different choices for them.

I am certain that less of those 4 carbs and some fasting is the way to go. However, the sugar and diet industry are not going to want the population to become slimmer by avoiding their products. Does rather smack of the positive advertising that cigarettes used to have and the fight that the tobacco industry put up when health problems became known.

I have no doubt that sugar is something that I will have to try and avoid for the most part for the rest of my life. I know that it converts to fat, I can see it and feel it when I wear my jeans. I have no doubt that it drives the need for more and more. I am frightened to think how many mountains of sugar I have consumed so far.

My boy who has been avoiding those 4 carbs has lost, I would guess somewhere in the region of 3 stone and still shrinking. My friend of the 5 stone loss has also avoided them and has fasted too. We can’t all be wrong, but we aren’t going to make lots of money for anyone else buy not buying the sweet stuff.

I think that a lump of cheddar or some fruit as a snack would be the best option. I like raw carrots and peas in pods when they are in season, which of course are sweet, but don’t send me head first into anything sugary.

I have weighed myself every day to see if there was a difference. I could gain and lose 10 lb in a day, which is why I prefer to use that number in conjunction with my skinny jeans and the tape measure.

Onwards and downwards fast friends.

Hello Iona,
In my own experience, the thought of fasting is far worse than actually doing it. I am cooking a roast this evening and then plan to ditch breakfast, aim for a light lunch at work and then light dinner. I am back to work tomorrow too. It is an inset day and I doubt that there will be any salad options either Monday or Tuesday until the cherubs are back on Wednesday. For my lunch today I have 2 salmon fillets that I will cook, 1 I will have with salad and the other will go into the fridge for my dinner tomorrow evening cold with salad. So that whatever I end up with for lunch, at least I know that dinner is a positive choice!

I dare not buy/make Christmas Cake or have it in the house. I learnt a few years ago when I just kept eating it, plus 2 of my chaps both like it and both need to shrink, so for all of us, I don’t have it. They never asked either and were quite happy with the mince pies, although next year I will not make them(I ate more than I should) and will buy less too.

I think that I might put the scales/tape measure into retirement for 4 weeks and just do 2 days a week FD and eating as best I can for the NFD and see what the results are in 4 weeks. My challenge is going to be no biscuits or puddings at work-I have done it before for quite a while and then caved in. This time I am giving myself the goal of half term. That seems rather more manageable than forever!

Onwards and downwards fast friends.

Hi snedger,
I find it quite cathartic to sort things out, it somehow make me feel lighter. Baby steps towards the not longer, larger.

I woke at 4.30 am and it was very chilly, skipped breakfast for the FD and then had the one option that was lunch-chicken with wild rice, which was lovely. One bite of a cardboard-like naan was all I needed to ditch that. Managed to ignore both biscuits and pudding-very pleased as I wean myself off the white stuff again. Such a ‘raw’ day, freezing cold, stopped into the supermarket to buy some fruit, looked at the chocolate-put it back on the shelf. Feeling proud.

I might try M/W/F this week. I haven’t ever managed that, but it might be worth a try.

Hi Iona,
Well done! Day 3 of no biscuits or puddings at work and I am feeling powerful!
Just 2 more days to go then it is a whole week, just 5 to go until half term which is my goal.

Hi Cinderella,

Hope that you found the frozen peas and you are feeling a little better today. Quite right how much we value health when we don’t feel on top form.

I have just completed another FD-more like 800 than 500, but my focus is on a period of fasting and avoiding the puddings and biscuits. Day 4 complete, just 1 more to go and that is a whole week.

It is my birthday on Monday and there will be cake, perhaps a meal out or a ready meal in-haven’t decided yet. I am planning a weigh/measure/clothes try on over the weekend first!

My Birthday has been a complete nightmare in terms of wrecking my resolve on the avoiding sugar front. On the plus side, I have quite good for the rest of the week, but did cave in for pudding yesterday. I didn’t need it or particularly enjoy it.

I have completed several 24 hour fasts in the past and I think I need to fit a few more in soon to try and reduce the Birthday damage. My current plan is to skip breakfast and lunch and then eat dinner this evening.

My scales need a new battery, so I have no idea about the numbers, but my jeans are tight. Friends are putting together a Birthday dinner for me and another of our group soon, which is lovely but I have no idea of what we will be eating, and there will not be a choice either. So I think I will just enjoy it and get back into the groove afterwards.

I have given a colleague my copy of the 5:2, so I am hoping that he will read and then do it. Another colleague mentioned that she wanted to lose weight, so I told her about this WOL and about Lustig and Fung. It will be interesting to see what they decide to do.

Hello Everyone,
I tried to buy a ready meal to celebrate the dispatch of the essay but I found that none of them appealed, so that was quiche, coleslaw and cherry tomatoes for tea. I have also found that some of the sweet treats consumed during the high stress, I didn’t enjoy and will not have them again. So, its not been a complete disaster by any means.

So, back to fasting again this week. The plan today is to skip breakfast, an omelette for lunch and homemade soup for dinner and then repeat later in the week.

How is everyone getting on?

Hi Cinderella,
You have had a tough time, but glad to hear that you are on the mend. Good luck with the cholesterol results-fingers crossed. Glad to hear that the new job is going well, less stress will certainly help with trimming the body. I too can’t wait to get out into the garden. My SAD light isn’t on much now and I have no idea whether the Vitamin D3 spray is having any effect, but I haven’t been ill this winter and loads of work colleagues have(I work in a senior school) so is that a coincidence?

I did laugh at your comment about the trousers. For years I have made most of my clothes purchases in charity shops as my shape changed and I shrunk. However, My shape isn’t going to change very much in the future so I have been indulging in some on line shopping in the sales. It started in the summer when I admired a work colleagues trousers so I bought some very jolly trousers at a very good price in the sale and wore them all over the summer and then into the winter. Then I bought some more trousers that are cotton velvet and are warm for the chilly winter days. I was always a dress wearer for work with jeans at the weekend but due to planter fasciitis striking last summer, heels have not been an option but sturdy shoes/boots with a rigid insole have. Which means that trousers have been a good option, and no more holes in tights and pockets!

I have also been through my clothes with a gimlet eye and have discarded those things that I bought but never wear which will be off to the charity shop. I am also trying to make my clothes purchase ‘smart’ so that I have tops that go with all the bottoms that I will keep. The light cotton trousers were a huge bargain and lovely quality in rather muted shades that I would not normally buy but I will team them with stronger coloured tops that I already own and they should be fine for hot summer days and I could wear them to work too.

I am just not sure that I can trim much off the tummy, I think that it is the wreckage of having babies but I will fast 2 days a week and see what happens. I used to think that I was a good candidate for a tummy tuck but doing the 5:2 has certainly eliminated the droopy tummy which I thought was impossible. I am happy with the rest of my body but less tummy would be wonderful.

Went out with friends yesterday for a walk in the chilly sunshine and a pub lunch. I had fish and chips, ice cream and then promptly bought myself some chocolate when I was at the shops later for some milk. I have no doubt that eating the sweet stuff drives the desire for more just as Lustig explains. I just need to avoid it and for me, I might hang it all on Lent. After yesterday I am fasting until lunch and then might try just having lunch and skipping dinner too.

I dare not go anywhere near a tape measure or scales Iona. I have gone slightly bonkers and both the odd pudding, lots of biscuits at work and chocolate sneaking into my handbag on the walk home from work have been happening. No idea why or what has happened but there it is. My current excuse is the menopause!

The weather has been foul and the snow is finally starting to melt-hurray. Perhaps boredom and the desire to treat myself? No idea. I do know that the sweet stuff makes me want more and I am finding that the thought of it is often rather better than the reality.

Thank goodness I eat good food the rest of the time and so I am y=trying not to be negative and gloomy about where I am now. It achieves very little apart from driving me towards the sweet stuff.

The plan next week is to skip breakfast on Monday and Thursday and to make the best choices that I can for lunch on those days, which either gives me an option for food later or it doesn’t. I think getting back to FD is the first step.

Hi cinderella,
Lovely to hear from you.
I do think that Lustig and Fung are right, sugar just makes you fat.
When I started this I was 52 and have just had my 57th birthday. I have a waist which is one of my proudest achievements when my body shape was that of a Buddha! I look at women who are ‘of a certain age’ and there are an awful lot of them who are very overweight. Is that because of the ‘middle age spread’ that is an accepted thing that happens to bodies and it can’t be changed? Or is it because of too much sugar when fat has been vilified for years while we have all been scoffing pasta, rice, potatoes and bread?
My body shape is one that I can maintain by eating the foods that I like and make me feel good, which happen to not include pasta, rice, bread or potatoes for the majority of the time. I also happen to think that they are part of the key to losing inches. My son, who was very overweight and has been shrinking steadily doesn’t eat rice/pasta or potatoes very often anymore.
Perhaps it might be an idea to change what you eat and ditching those carbs as a starting point? If your husband has loads to lose that might be a way to change his carb consumption and also shrinking him so that he can see in quite a short time that it is having an impact on his body shape/size?
My very overweight friend stopped eating breakfast and those carbs and has lost 4 stone. The scales didn’t move at first but her clothes were hanging off her in a short time.
My tactic was to talk to my son about the goal of a waist that was no more than 37 inches for a man which at the time he was wearing XXL clothes seemed quite impossible. He has some inches to lose but they are now on his tummy, not anywhere else, so I am delighted.
We had a roast dinner and chocolate eggs yesterday. I have one left that was given to me from work, which is lovely but is about 80g of sugar! I plan to share it out amongst the 4 of us!!
I find that the tape measure with the clothes is a very accurate assessment of how things are going and reflects what I have been eating. Onwards and downwards fast friends!

Hello Fast Friends,
I have well and truly fallen off the wagon. It has been a gradual change from the occasional treat to lots of biscuits every day.
I have been wondering if there has been an increase, my light winter jacket has been a tad snug which I have ignored. I found a pair of white jeans-completely the wrong style but I used to be able to do them up. Not any more, the zip doesn’t come anywhere close to doing up.
So today I was very brave and walked past all the cakes and chocolates that surrounded me when I was out and about today. I made some hummus and lunch was that with carrot sticks and cherry tomatoes, with some nuts. Dinner will be fish and salad.
I am planning to skip a meal tomorrow.

How is everyone else getting on?

I managed to go from 7am-7pm without any food and it was fine. Out and about in the garden and then a friend came round which was a great distraction in the sunshine.

All in all it was easy peasy, so I have no excuse to get back into the groove. I know that it works and fasting seems like a re-set button to me from the nonsense options and back to the ones that make me feel better too.

The plan is to do 2 FD in the coming week. I will shop with that in mind tomorrow. I have measured the usual body parts and I hope to see some improvement next weekend.

Hello Everyone,
Yesterday was lunch out with my boy and then an evening BBQ with several glasses of Prosecco. Breakfast this morning which I didn’t really need and then a short walk/run in the sun. Lunch will be some fruit and nuts and then dinner will be some meat and vegetables. The real challenge will be the biscuits that are work, which I will be tacking 1 day at a time with a view to losing those biscuit inches.

My boy(who used to be about 3 stone overweight) continues to shrink. He doesn’t fast as such, but doesn’t eat if he isn’t hungry and misses breakfast if he knows that he is having lunch out. He eats meat/vegetables and whole fruit, and looks great.

I re-read Jason Fung The Obesity Myth on the train to see my boy just to remind me what to eat/when to eat and I thought that I would share the points that he makes. He states that obesity is a hormonal disorder of fat regulation and that Insulin is the major hormone that drives weight gain. All foods cause an increase in Insulin but there are 2 factors that keep out Insulin levels high, what we eat and meal timing.

Fung argues that we should not snack because it helps keep insulin levels high, make breakfast optional, eat whole unprocessed foods and reduce the consumption of added sugars. Reduce consumption of refined grains(bread/potatoes/pasta/rice) as they stimulate insulin production more that any other food. Avoid bread/wraps/cakes/pasta/noodles. Avoid fake foods like replacement shakes and bars.

Instead aim to increase fibre by eating natural foods-fruit/berries/vegetables/flax seeds/chia seeds/ beans/nuts/oatmeal and pumpkin seeds. Eat more natural fats-full fat dairy, avocados, butter and olive oil.

He believes that stress and sleep deprivation also affect weight loss and insulin levels, so take steps to help those as well as fasting and eating whole/real foods.

In order to break insulin resistance-fasting is the second half of the puzzle after changing food choices. Even after 6 hours of fasting, insulin levels start to fall. He advocates fasting for 24-36 hours and alternate day fasting.

Inspired by Fung I tried several 24 hour fasts(last meal-evening meal of the day before and then skipped breakfast and lunch the next day). I found this far easier than eating 500cals on a FD and saw the tape measure show that I was shrinking.

Thank you Emma. The most that I have managed is 24 hours and just a few times. Really interesting to hear that you usually do 36 hours. Do you notice a difference in your body shape?

It has been a mixed week. I am bored witless at work which means that there is lots of time to consider tea and biscuits plus lunch options have been challenging. There have been biscuits, but I have avoided the rest of the rubbish.

Huge row with boy last night and I have felt sad and low. But I didn’t have any of the sweet stuff on the way home from the shops, so rather pleased with that achievement. Trousers are feeling looser. Plan is to have a FD over the weekend and then 2 next week(looked to see what food is on offer).

Hoping for some movement on the tape measure at the weekend. The challenge is next week which is supposed to be very hot when I di love ice cream. Ho hum.

Hello Fast Friends,
The last week has been a bit of a disaster as it has been very hot, food offers for lunch have been poor and I have been bored. The result has been lots of biscuits, ice cream every day and then gifts of cake and chocolate as it is the end of term. It has been eaten and/or shared out with the boys. Large box of chocolate as a thank you from my line manager has been put in the cupboard for Christmas.

Back to fasting today, just holding out a bit longer for lunch. Tape measure hasn’t moved which is a relief considering what I have scoffed. Clothes are, however, fitting better. Just cleared out everything from my wardrobe that I haven’t worn in at least the past year and had a small purchase of clothes that I know suit me and I wear every day.

I am planning to go sugar free from today. Which means eating fruit and vegetables, fish/meat, nuts, homemade hummus and avoiding anything that comes in a box or packet.
I have felt rubbish this week and know that I will feel better without the white stuff. Will it have an impact on the waist line with longer fasting? Yes it will.

Have a look on I player for ‘The truth about carbs’ Iona. very interesting. Jane McDonald lost 4 stone by fiving up sugar apparently. She looks fabulous now and my waist could do with some shrinking. Cinderella, think about the less fat around the organs, sometimes, you just have to have faith that intermittent fasting works but you can’t always see what is no longer there!

Feeling very powerful with no ice cream in the house. Onwards and downwards Fast Friends!