This topic contains 16,527 replies, has 252 voices, and was last updated by Bob23 1 year, 5 months ago.
Jojo – We will be cooking on bbq and camping stove!
Can I just ask people what they do on non fast days?
I know the ideal scenario is to eat healthily and avoid rubbish, junk, sugar and processed food and therefore not having to worry about the calories…..but I wonder if any of you have occasional days where you allow yourself some carbs and treats (cough – alcohol) but stick to your TDEE?
Kay
Hi Kay, ignore the message from Samantha, we get lots of gatecrashers on here. Stick with 5:2 and your weight will come off. Re your question, I do allow myself regular ‘treats’ and believe that is why fasting works so well for me. However, it is important to restrict them to special times or even just weekends. Thats why they are ‘treats’ and thats how lots of us got overweight in the first place – too many treats too often!
Or I limit them to social occasions. I don’t have them in the house because I still find sugar hard to resist completely. Luckily kids have moved out and husband not a sweet tooth! But if you really want to change your life it is so worth it.
Hi Fast Trackers
Nicky Emel and Aussie O in South Australia Nama in Victoria Bay in ACT PVE in NSW WiWi France Barata in NZ and Jojo HappyNow Amazon Herm Lizzy Ply Tartan lass Smiffy Weemam Lor_PA CakeyWakey Sarah103 HealthCoachB Tessy pen nib Iona72 Pentimento pranayama and Hello World (You All know Who You ARE) 😉
HI Jojo I miss the weekly fist pump and moon walk of striving for consistent weight loss in terms of the driver so extended fasts are another personal challenge to sharpen me up and stop me from getting slack with complacency 😳 or as Purple always say “constant vigilance” now that I am settling nicely in to planet maintence my main driver now is health & longevity with the body of research that suggest that fasting will indeed help the battle against Alzheimer’s which as you all know my Dad has Mark Mattson has good information.
Mark and his team have published several papers that discuss how fasting twice a week could significantly lower the risk of developing both Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
“Intermittent fasting enhances the ability of nerve cells to repair DNA.”
https://www.collective-evolution.com/2015/12/11/neuroscientist-shows-what-fasting-does-to-your-brain-why-big-pharma-wont-study-it/
emel wow really great to see you up and about keep on keeping on
Thursday fast trackers lets get our fast on
“Remember that reserve of fat you have on your body already and realise you actually don’t need food, you just want it.”
Peace RT
Hi RT
Since that last quote was also mine, (and I wish I’d phrased it more carefully for posterity), I have to say I NEED to eat today, so no Thursday fast. 😊😊 I guess that’s the benefit of the “sunny uplands of maintenance”. ..the freedom to pick and choose eat and fast days (within limits).
I agree that I too constantly need new things to try to keep me motivated and, as Jo says, some days are SO much harder, some a breeze. No explanation.
Have a good one. P ☺
Hello,
Well, well! It feel good when you are not greedy and the not universe conspires against you.
According to the survey we have more then we barked for… We shall watch from now on as less kind and more profit minded comes on our neighborhood.
Key our friends here have so much more experience then myself and we are all different from one another! I would say that try to be mindful. Some days when you feel like having a piece of cake just go ahed and have it. If you want to have a piece of cake all the time question yourself why! If you think you can’t stop don’t even go there (RT).
I do drink on off days but have reservations on how much. Watch that too 🙏
We need rain! The forecast says 40% tomorrow. They are pulling our leg. Doesn’t look like. Lot’s of thirsty plants to take care of.
Overall! It’s a beautiful day right and left. Fasting tomorrow and in a little bit have a mint tea and get myself ready for Fast.
P. S.: can you believe that I have ever camped!
Xoxo
💖
Morning Jo,
Interesting reading your take on educating in the outdoors. While I can see the benefit for children, I’m afraid I’d far rather people stayed out of what little remaining wildlife habitat there is in the UK!
Did anyone stop to consider potential impacts on wildlife before setting up camp I wonder? Bats would likely be in hibernation by November, but if you were close to any mature trees with bat roosts the disturbance could he very damaging (lighting, camp fire smoke). You also risk disturbing other animals (hedgehogs, amphibians, reptiles, etc) in hibernation/ torpor during winter, and could potentially compromise their ability to survive winter…
And that ‘woodland debris’ you recycled (unless it was anthropogenic waste) would very likely have been wildlife habitat I’m afraid! I’m assuming you’re referring to things like fallen dead wood…a very important part of the woodland ecosystem!
Ha ha, sorry, but it is my job 🙂
I’m fasting today too, too many corn cakes and nuts yesterday 🙁
Rt as you know we still have my lovely Dad who is 98 and has suffered from Alzheimer’s for over 10 years . My lovely Mam had it to and Grandma and 3 aunties . I started 5.2 because of the benefits of hopefully keeping it at bay a bit longer in my life . Loosing all that weight was such an added bonus AND the difference in my RA has been amazing too . Mind you the RA is killing me at the moment with all the walking around hospital corridors BUT I would swim through sharks to see my Jim :).
I agree too about the wee treat . IF I didn’t have a wee treat ( Ice cream) now and again ONLY now and again .I know I would put the weight on so quickly . I ALWAYS LOOK ON IT AS WE CAN EAT ANYTHING we want ,just not as much as we want . I was a very greedy person . I have had some the last few days but I don’t eat until after afternoon visiting .Sometimes it’s as late as 8 or 9 o’clock so I am still doing well 5’2 wise . If I don’t have a wee treat now and then I would eat everything in the house when I started .
I hope all this makes sense .
Jim has NO machines attached now only on his normal meds and some pain killers . All the stress of the fear of the aneurysms bursting has gone and his face just shines , he can’t stop smiling . I am so happy I could burst lol . I wont though 🙂 🙂 🙂
Wee xxxxx
Is it okay for a man to join your little group? It’s hard to tell who is male or female by their avatars.
My name is James, I am 50 years old, weigh 21 stones 9 lbs today (weighed 21 stones 11 lbs on Saturday when I started the fast diet), which I think is mainly due to cutting out sweets, chocolate, ice cream, crisps, ciscuits etc. and ahving an apple instead when I’m peckish. I’m hoping to get down to 14 stones sometime in the next couple of years. First goal is 20 stones in three months.
My TDEE is just over 3000 calories a day because I do a little bit of cycling (three and a half miles slightly uphill and three and a half miles freewheeling back again) every day when it is not raining. Does this mean that if I eat just over 3000 calories a day I will stay the same weight? Also, if I understand this correctly and I limit my TDEE to 2500 calories per day and 750 calories on fast days, I should lose around one and a half pounds a week?
Anyway, well done everybody so far and keep the faith.
Hi SlimJim (interesting handle 😉)
Gender is completely unimportant. Commitment is what counts. Do you seriously think you should eat 3000 cals a day?? Ignore the fact that you cycle…that has clearly not reduced your weight to this point!
Be genuine with yourself and find out what a reasonable healthy weight for your height should be (no excuses for energy level, muscle bulk, age etc). Then eat the correct number of calories per day, and 1/4 of those twice a week, for your goal weight, not your current weight! This will be your eating pattern for life. Might as well start now.
Sound tough? It isn’t and it works! Go for it!!! PVE😊
Hi Everyone,
I’m fasting every other day right now and then will go to 5:2 for maintenance, so I thought perhaps this might be a good thread for me. I definitely need to check in a lot when I’m fasting, as I have children to cook for at my hungry time of day…and now that school is out. (Sigh)
I decided to do alternate day fasting because my 2 fasts per week were hard and I would cheat. So I thought perhaps every other day would give me more practice and get my blood sugar and fat burning ability to work better. I need to lose 13.5 more pounds. I also need to heal an injury so I can get back to what I love to do for a stronger more flexible less painful body, Yoga.
Hi slimjim,
Your calculations are about right regards anticipated weight loss. About 1.6 pounds per week of real fat loss + some associated water loss so Id say 2 pounds per week. Do an audit of what you eat. Sugar and simple carbs like bread, pasta, rice, pizza, potatoes spike your blood glucose which spikes your insulin levels. High insulin is the body’s signal to store glucose as fat. Try and get most of your carbs from veggies. Don’t be scared of fats and protein. Don’t drink sugary drinks. That includes fruit juice!! If you want fruit eat whole fruits and not dried fruits or fruit juice. Go for the berry type fruits if you must have fruit. Avoid breakfast cereals they are just junk.
Good luck.
Hello James (NearlySlimJim)! woman am 56 years in Brazil
Two years ago when I decided to shrink in size I weighed 127kg (21 stones) with you, I lost weight 20 kg comm Lowcarb, but recently began to regain the weight back, day April 01 began fasting and has decreased from 111 kg to 105, 5 kg (16.6 stone) my aim of fasting is to have health.
My last tests were great, just like 30 years ago, do not take any medication I am very active, working with information technology, have to be with my mind always great to work with increasingly complex systems.
Persist in the long term results are wonderful! if you need information we are here to help!
Brazilian hugs to you!
So i realize i didnt really introduce myself. Im a 40 something female (try not to count), living in Austin Tx, though from Ohio originally. I moved to Europe when i was 18 and lived there until my 30s when i decided to go back to med school. So technically, im a physician, but ive been home for two years (due to our Austin move) and on this site im a student. Though i do love to geek out at the science behind fasting.
This week i sent my two little lovies, Elliot 6 (girl) , and Calvin 9 (boy) to “London” to catch the train to Hogwarts. So they are learning wizardry all week. I wish they’d learn a spell to get this weight off n heal my bidy. Lol.
As you might guess, I am fasting today.
Thanks PVE, so if my target weight is 14st then my TDEE will be 2100 calories per day and my fast days will be 525 calories excluding exercise. If I stick to that I should easily lose more than two pounds a week. I’ll give it a go.
Oh dear BB, bread, pasta, rice, pizza, potatoes; all my favourite foods. If I can’t have these I’ll have to learn to cook again. I expect I’ll have to eat carrots and brocolli instead I suppose, boo! (not even a little mashed potato occasionally?)
Hi Anaide, thanks for the encouragement. Hopefully be joining you at a lower weight soon. Good luck.
Carrots, broccoli, butternut squash, courgettes, tomatoes, spinach, green beans, peas, snow peas, onions, beetroot…..the list goes on! And salads. And berries. With cream. 😊 If you reduce your carbs and raise the fat like BB says you’ll feel healthier too. That’s such a good summary he’s posted. Try mashing cooked butternut squash with steamed cauliflower and some butter. Or cauliflower ‘rice’: you put raw cauliflower in a food processor and whizz it in bursts till it looks like rice, then steam it in a strainer. Lovely with a sauce like you’d put on pasta. You’ll soon hardly miss potatoes.
I just eat one treat a day instead of ten…so if I hanker for mashed potatoes, I eat them and then just try to do the rest healthy. I have to do what will keep me faithful to the long term plan of fasting and making better choices overall.
On that note! Due to an injury and some very good excuses, I haven’t exercised in a year, except for a few spurts here n there. And if anyone has ever lived in an American city, the degree of sedentary existence (house to car is the big 5 steps) is unmatched!!! Every time I lived in Europe, I was skin n bones from just normal life! Our genes don’t know what to do with all that movement! Lol
So this week, I started exercising with a Fitbit and really having a plan to do 10,0000 steps a day and it’s 100 degrees out and humid and I’ve actually stuck to it enough to tell people, because it looks like I’m in a groove! I just got 2000 in around the neighborhood and the fast is going well. So excited!, I’m just longing to be strong again. 😊
Well done, Slim! Yes, it’s surprising how little you can get away with just at home or out in the car! But also how fast the steps mount up once you start. I have a Fitbit too, and when I go to a Pilates class or for a swim I try to park a good distance away so I have to walk. But still it’s often only 5 or 6000. Adding the beach, the park or a country ramble (UK, small town, so not too difficult) it adds up a lot. I couldn’t do it in 100 deg, though, in spite of coming from Africa.
I found when I went back to this sort of exercise I was exhausted after week one, but gradually it improved, so now I’m back to being able to do 8-10 miles like I used to before my job got too busy.
Hello,
Welcome everyone! Embrace this beautiful journey. It is called fast but for many of you it isn’t fast enough. We’ll all get there.
Isn’t that unbelievable how we get stuck with old habits and paterns we think we can’t live with out it. For some of us just the thought of giving up potatoes, pizza, coffee, sugar, spaghetti, et centera can be terrifying and it is.
Like many of you fasting today, I thought I wasn’t going to be able to have coffee without stevia and milk. I did it and now having my green ice tea and approaching my 18th hour.
I will have at some point a big salad because when I see BIG my eyes get already pleased.
Today I feel like I will accomplish my Fast the way it should be. Yes, some days are different then others.
Tomorrow is another day and I will please myself with my coffee, milk and stevia.
Jo can you believe for the first time I read your profile today LOL 😂 Still can’t find your email info. Please feel free you email me when you see mine.
Now get back to busy … Let’s Fast 😘
B
Yes James. 2100 sounds much more realistic. Both my husband and I lost 32% of our weight in a year, by using our end goal as the calculator for TDEE. We have been maintaining that weight loss for well over 2 years by regular fasts (to lower insulin) and following a low carb, full fat, heavily veg based diet. 2 to 3 eating sessions only. Skipping breakfast frequently. 10 000 steps per day. He has reversed his insulin dependent Type 2 diabetes with this lifestyle. 😊 It works, but only if thoroughly embraced as a complete change to old habits. Do it half heartedly, and you are likely to fall off the perch. Jump in with both feet. Monitor your progress daily, and you will wonder why you ever considered any other regime. 😊😊 P
Hi Slimjim,
Ive got Italian heritage, how hard was it to give up pasta and pizza for me!! Now here is the weird thing. I asked my mum what she ate as a child thinking it had to be pizza, pasta, bread. To my surprise she said those foods were considered treats and you would have them maybe once a week!! Much like we consider chocolate and biscuits treats now. Im talking the 1940s. The staples were veggies, seasonal fruit, beans, legumes. Fish and meat was had once per week, maybe twice if you were lucky. Some cheese and eggs. Fast forward one generation and we eat biscuits like its supposed to be our staple food. We have to end each meal with a dessert. No wonder we’ve lost the plot with our eating. Im not a saint. I do have those foods but its perhaps once or twice per month. They have become my treats. Sugar and chocolate and biscuits, I don’t miss them at all.
Hi Fast Trackers
Nicky Emel and Aussie O in South Australia Nama in Victoria Bay in ACT PVE in NSW WiWi France Barata in NZ and Jojo HappyNow Amazon Herm Lizzy Ply Tartan lass Smiffy Weemam Lor_PA CakeyWakey Sarah103 HealthCoachB Tessy pen nib Iona72 Pentimento pranayama and Hello World (You All know Who You ARE) 😉
Wow some powerful and positive posts around the traps today fantastic stuff great work apricot with the information highway and welcome to all the beginning fast friends slimjim happy to share my man cave 😉 slimhealthy ANAIDE nice to see you with us welcome bigbooty kay65 weemam swimming with sharks 😆 yes your dear dad I spent 2 days with my dad and the gap now before a repeat of a story is closing quite noticeably but he is a funny bugger and happy bugger now moon walks and fist pumps loved the remark jojo off to feed my soul what a glorious image im so full of zen I will push the envelope for an extra day today take to a 5 day fast
Keep on keeping on find your doable and seek
‘progress not perfection’
Peace RT
Man lost in a hot air balloon over Ireland. He looks down and sees a farmer and shouts to him, “Where am I?”
The Irish farmer looks up and shouts back “You can’t kid me ya b’stard, you’re in that feckin basket!”
Paddy is cleaning his rifle and accidentally shoots his
wife. He dials 999. Paddy says “It’s my wife, I’ve
accidentally shot her. I’ve killed her”
Operator: “Please calm down sir. Can you first make sure she really is dead?”
CLICK, BANG,
Paddy: “OK, done that, what next?
Once upon a time a guy asked a girl “Will you marry me?”
The girl said “No” and she lived happily ever after.
She went shopping, drank vodka with friends, always had
a clean house, never had to cook, had a wardrobe full of
shoes and bags, stayed skinny and was never farted upon.
The End.
Little Johnny… Make a Sentence
Little Johnny’s teacher asks him to make a sentence using the following words: defeat, deduct, defense and detail.
Little Johnny says, “De feet of de duck went over de fence before de tail.”
We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I don’t know. W. H. Auden
Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served. When little Johnny received his plate, he started eating straight away.
“Jonny, wait until we’ve said our prayer,” his mother reminded him.
“I don’t have to.” – the little boy replied.
“Of course you do.” – his mother insisted. “We say a prayer before eating at our house.”
“That’s at our house,” Johnny explained, “but this is Grandma’s house and she knows how cook”
Have a happy Weekend all you beautiful losers 😆
Peace RT
Hi,
I can’t believe it’s Friday already somewhere in the world! Laughter makes as burn fat as well 👍👍👍👍.
Today I wanted to make sure to test my fasting glucose 💖. It was 71… Very pleased.
Happy Fasting to you all who still on specially to the brave one there doing “5days”. Mind and body connection it is and congratulations to US who is done with 5:2 💪
😘
Hello all from a cold and damp Melbourne.
Welcome to newcomers, great to hear your stories and challenges. Whoever said they love mashed potato (sorry not sure), try cooking and mashing cauliflower half and half to start with. Big savings with calories and carbs and actually tastes yummy I think. It has taken me over a year to adjust to far less carbs, but if the replacement foods are tasty is is possible!
Had a lovely swim this morning and looking forward to a weekend in the country, probably wont leave the fireside for long!
Thanks for the jokes RT, my Irish roots protest but very funny. Little Johnny is a smart boy.
xx
Hi all,
9:30 pm here (Austin, Texas) and I just finished my protein shake n water. 330 calories and I did 6000 steps.
This is my 13th fast, alternate days. Will do 5:2 when I get to goal weight n health.
First week of exercise so I’m definitely getting 10,0000 on up days but if down days run a little short, im OK for now. Especially with 100 degrees and humid. I’ll get there eventually .
So mix potato and cauliflower to reduce dense carbs by half! Thanks Nama! Now that sounds better!!!
I’m feeling quite invincible tonight…a bit superhuman. Fast was just so easy today. I think my blood sugar must be getting very healthy. I’m noticing that I feel more relaxed and patient with children on fasting days than I used to.
I finally crunched all my numbers and realized I’ll be at goal by Novemeber (birthday month). That seems so fast and maintenance looks so easy… I’m feeling truly inspired by everyone’s stories and ability to do this for so long.
The truth is, and I never admit this, I’ve been sick all my life. Even as a kid I always felt rotten and tired. So “hopeful ” is not in my vernacular. But I do, I’m feeling like I may actually feel good and be able to sustain it and have a good second half of life. I mean aging happens, but I’m in less pain and discomfort and have better energy than I can remember.
Well done Slim! Great to hear you are feeling invincible! I think, apart from the physical benefits of fasting, its psychologically a great boost to finally feel ‘in control’ Who knows, you may have a low grade wheat intolerance or similar. Many fasters report feeling energised after a fast day. And I think a lot of us have been chronic over eaters, grazing constantly and never really hungry. Food is wonderful but I think the marketing guys have won and there is simply too much of it everywhere now!
Cauliflower is a fabulous veggie – have you tried Cauliflower rice – google it. Some people even make a pizza base with it, personally I find that a bit fiddly. I make soup with it too, if you blend it smooth it can be really thick and creamy with hardly any calories.
Hello Friday Fasters
Just a quick hello in passing.
Back in France for a few days after driving from Rome, and off to Porto on Monday.
Not good for fasting and I will pay for it. Next fast day in a week, with damage limitation being the goal! I will avoid those little custard tarts they make so beautifully in Portugal.
The NZ Christmas tree (Pohutukawa) should be in flower there, and that explains the timing of the visit.
Happy Fasting
Good to see all the positive vibes on the thread. Welcome, Newbies!
xx Wiwi
Wee,hope all goes well today.
RT, love the Friday jokes! Well done for the 5day fast,never tried to do that,don’t know that I could!!
I haven’t been writing much lately due to family commitments, and also been away on holiday in Italy….but I do read all the posts regularly,when I get the moment to!
We still do 5:2, but have” light” days when we are away from home if strict fasting is difficult. Both OH and I are maintaining fairly well on this regime. I would like to lose a bit more but I may be fooling myself that I can achieve the same body of my 20s!! I think I might try stricter carb restrictions.
Anyway, hope all are well and enjoying fasting!!
Wilbersnanna.
My first thought too, like Nama, when reading Slim’s post about tiredness was also low level wheat intolerance. It’s worth checking out low level lactose intolerance too, which wouldn’t necessarily be a problem when eating hard cheeses, butter and cream but might with milk. Yoghurt seems to be better, though there is lactose there, but some mildly milk intolerant people are fine with it.
Yes, I keep stopping myself hoping for unrealistic weight and shape too! The “I can hold the aging back if I do x…” fantasy!
Wiwi, where do you see pohutukawa in Portugal? Safe travelling. 🙂
Great to get your news about Jim, Wee. Keep that twinkle twinkling. And I hope he is home tomorrow, saving you the corridor trek.
Well done on your son’s achievement, Jojo.
And welcome, newcomers. We need more blokes here. I have tried (and failed) to convince OH that the threads would be a great way of getting support. He’s finally moving off his plateau and dropping a few grams, but oh so slow. At least it’s in the right direction.
Another lovely winter’s day here, the season is sliding past so smoothly this year, and nearly at the shortest day.
Good morning all,
i forgot to thank RT for the jokes, my husband laughed really hard at one!
Nama and Apricot,
thanks for the thoughts on health. Im vegan so dairy and lactose have been gone for years, but I think you are right, it was part of my childhood fatigue. I remember when I gave it up in my 20’s, I felt fabulous. I went years without wheat except on occasion…I’ve done more since having children…I do think I notice overall allergies better when I avoid it, though nothing like people report who seem to be really sensitive to it. Now overeating, (forgot who said that,) I think that may be a major factor. I overrate terribley as a child ( I had pneumonia as a baby with antibiotics and my digestion was wrecked, so I think inflammation and absorption were issues way back then). Instead of fasting and healing it, I ate and ate without satisfaction) I was always thin so no one thought anything of my “big” eating except to comment that I ate like a boy. Lol I think the fasting is healing my gut, and decreasing all the inflammation. I’m eating and absorbing and feeling more satisfied with less. That feels amazing. Again, thanks for your thoughts, all suggestions welcome.
Congrats JoJo, so lovely to have an adult child doing well!
I’m off to keep my walking goal today despite having to go to Hogwarts early to watch a Quiddich match. Calvin is a chaser and my sweet Elliot Is the snitch, gold cape and all! Hugs to all fasters!
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8:17 pm
15 Jun 16