Vi80, that sounds like a lot of money for a few packaged meals and some supplements. How long does it last, for a few months? And then you’d have to pay to do it again or you’ll regain all the weight you lost. If you can’t think about food calories now, when you’ve finished all the little packets of food and supplements, it won’t be any easier.

The 5:2 way of eating works for me because it’s a lifetime thing and allows for holidays, travel and get togethers with friends. I choose the food. I’ve been on diets off and on for most of my life. Most of them work because calories are restricted. But they aren’t sustainable. I just gained back whatever I lost after the diet was over. 5:2 is flexible and doable. And it doesn’t cost me anything.

I find that with water fasting I’m in ketosis by the 3rd day, maybe even later the second day. Once one is in ketosis that fasting becomes pretty easy. I have had rougher days past that, but I was pushing working out hard too which really puts a lot of additional stress on the body. If you just kept to cardio type workout the fasting would probably be better.

One of the main reasons I like fasting is because it is basically free. I’m willing to suffer a few hours of slight discomfort in order to save money. But that is just me.

Hi Vi80,

Presumably you have now done the ProLon FMD? I’d be interested to know how it went, how you found it, levels of hunger on it, how you felt afterwards?

BTW – for the doubters (and you are right to be sceptical because of so much bogus info on the web especially around health/nutrition!) Dr Longo is a highly respected scientist with a speciality in gerontology based at USC – University of Southern California. The revenue from the sales of ProLon and ultimately the other product his company are developing called ChemoLieve I think are being used to help fund the larger human clinical trials needed to legitimise fasting as a protocol for cancer therapy among other things. I think it’s a very clever way to do this, large scale human clinicals are wildly expensive and extremely hard to fund especially without the vase resources of big pharma who obviously have no incentive to prove that the best way to prevent and potentially, in some cases eliminate, cancer is by fasting. I do have some expertise in this as I work for a VC that raises money for new medical technology businesses.

And while the benefits of fasting in the healthy are already well known amongst those who have use it regularly and find it easy, the majority of people find the very idea abhorrent and won’t even try it (the members of this forum obviously excepted!)

Personally I find 5-2 quite difficult and struggle with headaches and cold extremities. For me, a shorter more intense fast may be better but I’m interested to try the ProLon as I understand that, due to having sufficient and carefully balanced daily ‘meals’ which by all accounts are also pretty tasty, many people find it easier. And for me, that would be worth exploring as an occasional thing. Cheaper than a spa anyway 😉

Hi Vi:

Sounds like you had a bout of the ‘keto flu’. Here is one explanation:

“Many people (not everyone!) who start a low carb diet experience what’s called the “keto flu” or the “induction flu” in the first few days while the body is adapting to burning ketones instead of glucose. The basic symptoms are: headaches. nausea. upset stomach. Lack of mental clarity (brain fog). sleepiness. fatigue.”

Basically, many are addicted to carbs and when they are cut from the diet the person experiences withdrawal symptoms. The diet food for ProLon mimics fasting, so the body goes into ketosis. This normally happens for most people on days 3 or 4 during a water fast.

So, not the diet per se, just a normal response for some people when they convert to ketosis.