Thanks for hosting us, @northerndawn!

I’d love to join this. I was on here for a couple of years when it first started and was very active. Back again last week hoping to get my fasting mojo back and starting back at square one. I had a fantastic week. I have always fasted 3 days (800 cals, previously I did 500) when I can, it suits my life and my social eating. On my none fast days I’m eating between 13/1470 cals. I’m counting calories on those days just by logging them in an app. I don’t exercise because I have mobility problems but I do as much as I can with my walker. To me food is weight, exercise is health. I lost 5 stone and didn’t do any exercise other than a little light walking. But even this helped my mobility and my bloods were great. I find when I literally make this a hobby I do so much better. I knew all there was to know about fasting when I lost my initial 5 stone (now regained). It just helps me to stay with it when I know all the science and all the tips.
I’ve lost 7½lbs this week, 2 inches off my hips! You can imagine the massive change in my eating habits and portion sizes this week lol. Broke the back of my sugar addiction too. Caused a few headaches but well worth it. Also the initial loss of fluids that are retained with a bad diet helped. Regardless I’m ecstatic because this will spur me on. I know that it will reduce dramatically for me now but I also know how effective this is when you follow the WOL and as stated to look at my clothes and measurements as well as how I feel in myself when the scales don’t move.
Looking forward to my first challange. X

This is FiveTwoFan5252 !!

Second post (effectively!)

I have just done something that I have been meaning to do for ages

I have changed my username to something a bit shorter and less of a mouthful!

Hope you like my new name – High5 😊

Good morning all
Here is the link for the spreadsheet in case you want to use it – names will be changed from red to black as you sign up to the challenge – I think I have given you all editing rights to the spreadsheet so you should be able to enter any details you wish “TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER!”

You can highlight your name in bright green if you are in maintenance………

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18oeu0nx9_7mM4Gutd3k6tObtYCgJ0vVcMTQbu1ug6OY/edit?usp=sharing

Thanks for volunteering @northerndawn. I own up @emma-taylor – I enjoy reading far more than posting – I’m going to make more of an effort in July – see you tomorrow

Day -1
Thanks for hosting the July challenge @northerndawn – I’m in! After a successful June (finally back on the waggon!) I’m looking forward to continuing the mojo into a second month. See you tomorrow 🙂

Day 1, NFD, Aus

Thanks again for hosting @northern Dawn! I love Day 1 of each challenge month.

Had a successful NFD yesterday – usually my second one in the week proves challenging, but yesterday was a breeze. I stepped on the scales this morning and they were NOT kind to me. However, I’ve stepped up the exercise this week and my core muscles feel tighter so I’ve convinced myself the lack of a weight change is because I’ve swapped fat for muscle.

So good to see the return of Lola, Wesley and co, @northgeorgia. A nice way to end June, thank you!

Right, a bit about me. I live in Canberra, where it is cold and grey at the moment, with rain forecast for this afternoon. I have a lovely OH and two dogs – one of whom loves to get into our vegie garden and help himself. They’re great fun and get me out and moving each morning. I’ve been doing 5:2 for many years and when I stick to the ‘rules’, I lose weight. And when I get complacent and indulge my love of red wine and gin martinis, the weight comes back on. It’s not rocket science, @penz!!! So this month, I am determined to be good and will join others in the goal to lose 5lb or its kilo equivalent.

Welcome @joanmars and welcome back @jayegirl

Collectively, we can make this a great month!

Hi, Everyone, I’m from Brisbane, in Queensland, Australia, where it is raining! So much for sunny Qld! The rain is actually very soft, more of a drizzle, and it is about 20 degrees celsius, so not cold. We can’t complain, can we? I’m in my mid-70’s, and have had a weight problem since having my children 50 plus years ago. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve lost and regained weight, but this time it has to stay off! Last year I contracted sepsis from a UTI (didn’t know that could happen, be careful!), and sustained heart damage as a result, so it’s now a necessity. I have had Type 2 diabetes for over 20 years (since last century, sounds impressive, doesn’t it?), so I have to do it under supervision. I look forward to your support in my new endeavour.

Day 1 Melb Aust NFD

Good to start a new month with enthusiasm! I lost a small amount last month – 0.7 kg, and though my “goal” for the month is a 4 kg loss, I’ll be happy if 1-2 kgs come off this month.

About me – 71-yr-old female, retired ESL teacher, have been yo-yoing up and down with weight loss, but aiming this time to lose it and have no regain.

@northerndawn, Thank you for being our host this month. I’ll try to post occasionally, but like a couple of others have already said, I’m likely to read more than post

Onward and downwards everyone!

Day 1 – Ireland – FD

Hello everybody, I hope you are all well.
It’s been over two weeks since I posted properly I think … life, holidays, tech issues, etc … and I am having one of those weeks where everything is going really pear shaped 🍐🥴 but back to it now and committed to make July a good month ✅ thanks to @northerndawn for hosting!
Thank you @at for hosting June – sorry I dropped off 🧗‍♀️

I hope all are well out there! Hello to all the newcomers – great to have you here.

Nice new name @high5 👌

My holiday was great and really was a break away from the world… We cruised the Shannon river for five nights and it was just great. My phone was off other than for photos and it really helped me to relax and switch off.

@daffodil2010 you should definitely use your voucher and book a trip! Go on, go on, go on 😁. So, we left from Carrick and first went south to Lanesborough, Termonbarry, Dromod amd Drumsna and then north as far as Lough Key Forest Park and Acres Lake. We had hoped to go further north but there’s a large number of locks on that section which would have meant a day each direction to get through… so that will be for another holiday…

I absolutely loved the trip and it was such a change for me to discover the midlands and we had such lovely interactions along the way… not to mention delicious food and drink 🥂. The boats are fab and there an array of sizes you can choose from… if it’s just you and your DH you could get a 1 or 2 berth which would be easy to manage – we had a larger 4 berth boat which could have accommodated 10 people but more skill is required to get through locks, through some of the bridges and into the marinas..
We have all done a little bit of sailing so had a little knowledge but half the fun is learning 😂. So you don’t have to be competent on boats but from what I know of you and your DH (camper/bikes etc) you’d both be well able! Every thing you’ll need is on the boat too – down to towels, bed linen etc. Pack light… no problem to you… we ate on board (ample room for food & drink in fridge) except for evening meal as pubs/restaurants were serving outside and it was a holiday after all. 🛥 🏖 🍹
Travel in morning/ early afternoon – moor up early so no stress with getting a space in a marina and enjoy each new spot.

Ok… off to work now… have a great day everybody and Good Luck for July 💪

Onward and downward ⬇️
We rise by lifting others 💕

Pocket list Day 1
@jaifaim

Day 1, London, UK, FD,

Thank you @northerndawn for hosting this month’s challenge!!! As we enter the 2nd half of this year of recovery it’s time for me to grab the bull by the horns, stop faffing about, pull my finger out ………………………. And actually complete some FD’s!!! These challenges are an integral part of any successful fasting for me. Some challengers get support from reading & posting sporadically (No worries @emma-taylor & @brightonbelle) others, like me find it helps to give my head a quick shake & empty EVERYTHING in my brain onto the page!!!! So, there may be some rambling ………………….You have been warned!!!!

A little about myself; I started fasting towards the end of 2016, joined these challenges in early 2017, lost 35lbs, took my eye off of the ball😭 and regained 28 of those lbs😤, my only excuse as someone else once said ………………………………. “several years of 5:2 have persuaded me that losing weight is not difficult, so I got too casual. Time to start again!”

Anyway, this month will be a back to basics month,
-I’m nixing the vino 🍷 🍷 🍷, yes you heard me!!!
– I’m sticking to 500cal FDs, 800 seems to make me hungrier😲!!
– I’m planning to slosh about as I walk since I’ll be maxing the water consumption and
– I’ll be doing a minimum 150mins brisk walking per week, apparently that’s our sweet spot 💪!!! Whther with Leslie or, if the British weather cooperates, in the great outdoors!!

@high5 ……………………………….. Phew, thank goodness!!! (although, I only ever cut & paste anyway!!)

To the Newbies ……………………………….Welcome!!!! @joanmars, @lyndyhw & @jayegirl (welcome back!) …………………….. Best Decision Ever!!! This is a great eclectic, international group of supportive people who KNOW there’s no better way to a healthier life than a WOL that DOES NOT deprive you of that chocolate, vino, bread fix!!!!

I’m up for this challenge, are you with me???? 💪🙏 🤗

“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” – John R. Woode

Day 1 UK FD

Morning all – regulars and newbies👋

I’m back to basics too this month 2 500 or less days and NOT go too mad on the other 5 simple right?

I’m going to review my exercise- I really do enjoy it but I’ve been quite busy and think I’ve slipped into the habit of to quote Jillian Michaels “phoning it in “ so maybe I’ll cut down but increase the effort

I joined coda on the first challenge over 5 years ago , dropped the 20 or so extra lbs I was carrying Happily maintained for a couple of years , forgot the basics and the 20lb went back on , I’m very near my original target but 5 years has seen my body change and I’m not happy with my ever expanding waistline so that’s my target this month

Thanks for guiding us @northerndawn and looking forward to this months challenge with you all

Pocket list Day 1 – TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER!
@jaifaim
@at
@flourbaby
@daffodil2010
@brightonbelle

Day 1 – USA/GA – FD

Weigh-in this morning: 224 lbs. So far this year, I’ve had two “lost months,” April and June, where I gained but thankfully lost all the weight to end the month the same weight I went in. I find them to be different from plateaus, where I don’t see much movement at all on the scales, but perhaps it is a type of plateau — just a different expression.

However, here I am in July, feeling more determined than ever to continue my journey downward! I am a 46 y/o male in northeast Georgia in the US, and have lost 55-59 lbs since January 2020, the overwhelming amount of which has been thanks to 5:2. My goal is to lose an additional 66-70 lbs to get to a mid-range healthy weight (although truthfully, if I get to the high end of “healthy”, I’ll be thrilled). I am also hoping to no longer be categorized as “obese” by the middle of fall. This month, my goal is 217, but more than anything, to get into the 210s.

I’m trying to get out of the feasting mode on my NFDs, brought on by a week of vacation and not being mindful when I eat out or with leftovers at home. My special goal this month is to return to the idea of mindfulness on NFDs.

Good luck to everyone!

Pocket list – day 1
@michelinme
@brightonbelle
@daffodil2010
@flourbaby
@at
@jaifaim
@litprof
@northgeorgia

Day 1 USA – NFD

Just a bit about me – 73 y.o.retired music teacher, female from northern Illinois. I began 5:2 in March 2016 then joined @coda in May 2016 and haven’t missed a challenge since then. THAT is my secret to continuing in maintenance after losing nearly 40 pounds by January 2017. I began nearly 200 pounds and am now doing my best to stay at 160# – and these people on this challenge thread have been wonderfully supportive and helpful. My maintenance is generally 6:1 with many days at OMAD. I faithfully use MyFitnessPal (MFP) since I absolutely hate counting calories. But the free version works for me. I do my best to go to a Silver Sneakers (older people exercise) class 3x a week. I do like to cook, though, so keeping DH and I from gaining weight is a bit of a challenge itself.

Welcome @lyndyhw – may you find success with us here!

Onward and downward.

Day 2, NFD, Aus

So much enthusiasm and commitment shining through. Keep it up everyone!

Welcome @lyndyhw, always nice to see another Aussie on board. Hope you’re coping ok with your lockdown. I successfully lost weight on 5:2 during the Canberra lockdown (light) last year so it is definitely possible!

@jaifaim, your holiday sounds wonderful. I’d so love to do that! Another of my fantasy holidays is to traipse around the country side in a horse drawn caravan, ever since I read a Famous Five book where they did that.

@at – your reset button has not been ‘pressed’ so much as thumped!

@daffodil2010, I bet your scales will show a loss after your hair cut!

Hello again @bellyblast – good see you back with us.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Day 2 – Ireland 🇮🇪 – NFD

I quite agree with you @northerndawn, it’s so good when people do post, the interaction really does help.

Though I confess that I tend not to at weekends, but I will try.

So my hair is now a lovely manageable length and looks glossy and shiny. @penz, oh I wish I had thought of the post hair cut weigh in, it would have been interesting 😄

However my FD didn’t happen by day’s end, it was so warm and humid that a couple of cold beers were needed. I didn’t even get on the scales this morning. Next week will be a reset.

DH is home today and doing some manual work outside, I feel I should also be doing something when all I want to do is rest. Fatigue and nausea has been this week’s theme post op.

Have a lovely Friday.

Day 2 – USA/GA – NFD

Today’s weigh-in: 222 (less than 1/4 lb from 221, but alas!) Tomorrow may or may not be a FD, depending on when the extended family decide on a Fourth celebration. If it happens, this week will have been a 3:4 and next week probably a 5:2. If it does, then both weeks will end up being a 4:3. Meh, I’m just happy to be drifting back towards 220 instead of towards 225 after each FD. I feel confident I’ll be in the 210s sometime later this month.

Good luck to those on the pocket lists today!

Day 2, London, UK, NFD

Yesterday’s FD was a bit Meh! I’m not beating myself up about it🤗, “patience grasshopper” …. It’s going to take some easing back into the swing of things 💪, so another FD planned for tomorrow & this one WILL be 500cals🙏!!!

I’m with you @at, daily posting is the key to successful fasting for me too, I’m a bit late today, but as long as I check-in with you guys at some point, my mojo should emerge from her cave into the sunlight with confidence!! 😎

@northgeorgia, did you strip down to your B’day suit😲? Force yourself to go to the loo😉? Contemplate a swift skinned head or full body shave😀? ………………………. ¼ lb!!!!!! No doubt there was some jumping on and off (I do that!!) hoping the numbers will miraculously change😜😂, those scale just DO NOT play fair some days!!!!

@bellyblast, welcome back, this nightmare of a year (15 months!!😢) has done a number on many of us, stick with us, we’re all travelling the same rocky path!!! 🙏

“Food is the most widely abused anti-anxiety drug in America, and exercise is the most potent and underutilized antidepressant,” by Bill Phillips

Day 2 UK NFD

Yesterday morphed into a NFD – late finish to project stuff and somehow chocolate. Today will be sensible eating in an 18:6 window ahead of tomorrow’s lovely day out with friends.

So glad to have got to a day off today, tho plenty of stuff to do with prep for tomorrow and pottering. I’ve just made two loaves of gf vegan oat sodabread as contribution for lunch tomorrow. Still need to finish some writing and colour or wash my hair – that always gives me a lift but really tiring and I usually need to sleep afterwards. I’d hoped to potter in the garden but I’m tired and slow today – look forward to doing that on Sunday/Monday instead.

I had my weekly weigh and measure this morning – despite yesterday’s NFD I’m still down 6lbs since 1 June, 2in gone from my waist and 0.5in from my hips. That should keep me motivated! Now July is a longer month and can bring me 10 FDs closer to my goal 🙂

Definitely warmer and sunnier today – after a glooming, grey, damp and cooler couple of weeks it’s back to summer.

Day 2 – Rural Nebraska, USA – NFD

I’m in! And oh, but I NEED to be in!!! To sum up the past 11 days, DH and I drove to Kentucky (about 14 hours) for a convention where I was a delegate. We walked about 15K every day, had a great time exploring the area restaurants for our meals, and enjoyed the time there. Then we drove 5 hours to Asheville, North Carolina, for a mini-vacation. On the first day, we walked around town, exploring shops (and eating and drinking), and on the second day we went to Biltmore Estate, an 8,000 acre estate built in the 1890s by George Vanderbilt. Then we drove the 16 hours home over two days.

And today I weight 157.2 DH is so sweet; when I told him what I weighed, his immediate response was, “It was a great vacation, wasn’t it??”

And, yes, it was. And now it’s time to get serious and back to the stellar mojo I had a few months ago–I am 14 pounds higher than at Easter!!! It will be a challenge to stay on track among all the things happening this month: tonight is a big Fourth of July party at a friend’s house (as in 150 people and a band and a smoked and roasted hog) and Sunday is the actual Fourth, and we’ll (DH and I and both adult sons) be in Seward, Nebraska, for their celebration (www.julyfourthseward.com), a tradition we absolutely love, and Monday we go to some friends’ lake house. See the challenge? This is going to take actual will-power, and I sure haven’t had much of that recently.

So I’m slowly setting some goals. The first, not because it truly makes weight come off, but because my body needs it (and it at least HELPS take off weight), is that I will walk. Since Leslie hasn’t been happening, the treadmill at the gym will be my new friend. My calves are actually a bit sore from all the walking we did on vacation, so it will feel good to continue the discipline. My specific goal is get at least 5K steps on the treadmill; I may revise that up, depending on how active I manage to be–or not be–the rest of the day.

Food–and drink, given it’s summer, and a cold beer is so lovely in the afternoon–is the biggest challenge. Remember the gal in our group who said last fall, “We get healthy in the gym; we lose weight in the kitchen” or something to that effect? Well, it is my pledge to limit my food and drink to 1500 on NFDs. To that end, I will need to log my food in My Fitness Pal. Ugh, but I’m going to do it, because I’ve gone entirely in the wrong direction and I still want to reach 132 or lower.

Oh, and I’m a 62yo female, 5’4″ (well, I was, now I’m 5’3″) and I used to be reasonably thin more or less naturally, until I reached menopause and two huge 500 mile moves and a change of career for my DH that required four years of schooling. At my highest, I’ve weighed 166, and I’ve been yo-yo-ing for almost twenty years. There, that’s the history.

@FUNSHIPFREDDING Welcome back!!! We’ve mentioned you many times, and wondered how you were doing, and it’s great to have you back!

@high5 Great new handle, and certainly easier to type!

@at Thanks for hosting June; I’m only sorry I was gone for more than half of it.

@northerndawn Thanks for hosting July!

Welcome @joanmars and @lyndyhw, and welcome back @jayegirl and @bellyblast!

Okay, plan for today: drink lots of water and eat nothing until the party tonight. Begin my walking plan. Work in the office for two hours. Work in the garden for one hour. Continue drinking water at the party, eat and drink no more than 1500 calories, using MFP–WHILE AT THE PARTY–to verify this.

It’s so good to be back, and to hear all the chatter from all of you. Have a great and strong day, everyone!

Day 2 USA – NFD

Yesterday’s eating was pretty crazy … fruit and an almond butter bar for lunch (coffee only for breakfast) then movie theater popcorn to watch “In the Heights” — pretty good musical by Lin Manuel Miranda, same man who wrote “Hamilton.” Then leftover sushi for dinner. Oh well … not much protein all day!

I fully agree that posting regularly is a huge incentive to stay with this WOL. Hang in there, everyone. GREAT to see some old timers back again!

Onward and downward.

2nd post

Hey @funshipfreddie I just spotted that you’re back. I thought of you when I heard the news from South Africa this week about alcohol possibly being banned again good to have you here 👍