Hi there

I’m type 2 and been doing this life change for 8 weeks at first I got dizzy spells and headsches. I drink lots of water decaff black coffee and green tea. I’ve lost over a stone and 4 inches off my wasit in that time. Try and perserve as I worth it. I also use fitness pal so I don’t over do it on feed days I eat and try to stick to 1500.

Good luck

Hello again, shop1240 – I would say that if you are borderline for diabetes then you do already have a problem with your insulin control and need to learn how best to reset that, which I believe can be done by dietary measures and lifestyle changes, without needing to resort to drugs. And, yes, it can arise without a mass of chocolate or other sugary foods being involved, as I understand it.
If it were me, I would research the subject online and, especially, check out the information and advice provided on various websites of organisations for diabetics – the forums can be particularly helpful, involving people who have ‘been there, done that’. Also, I would investigate the websites of health practitioners who specialise in non-drug methods for regaining control of one’s hormonal systems. And then I would get onto my Doctor’s Practice to see what health support/advice is available in my area to best tackle this issue without resorting to drugs.

Here are some sites (of organisations based in UK and USA) which I have been exploring, that may or may not interest you:

DiabetesUK – http://www.diabetes.org.uk/

Diabetes.co.uk – http://www.diabetes.co.uk/indexc.html

Dr Mark Hyman – author of ‘The Blood Sugar Solution’ – http://drhyman.com/

Dr Ritamarie Loscalzo – Provider of dietary-based therapies, information and courses – http://drritamarie.com/

Speaking personally, I am increasingly horrified by just how much our conventional Western health system is so oriented towards drug-therapy and treating separate, individual symptoms of illness, rather than exploring overall causes and adopting a pro-active, preventative approach, focused on wellness.

A number of contributors to this forum are already diabetics and, hopefully, their comments and experience will be helpful to you. I hope you will find a good way to continue, experimenting and adapting the 5:2 system to suit your needs, and that you will experience many health benefits from eating healthily and appropriately for your circumstances. All best wishes to you.

Hi shop1240,

I’m not a doctor or a nutritionist but looking at what you consumed in the morning, you had 2 cups of tea and a can of coke, all of which are diaretics and will make you pee any actual water involved away. Don’t cut out your tea, if you really would miss it but don’t bother with any other drinks but water and plenty of it. If you are someone like me (you have a little less to lose than I did when I started this, so you might be a bit like me) and have always been pretty good at lasting a decent time between meals (many of my skinny friends would literally die and/or kill someone if they didn’t get fed every couple of hours) then you might try knocking breakfast entirely on the head.

My first couple of months I did 600 calories. I had water all day, lasted as long as I could before starting to eat and then munched through a selection of carrot, celery & cucumber strips (which I never ‘counted’ as calories but should have – hense the 600 calories). I’d then try to last at least another hour (difficult once you’ve actually eaten something) then have 200 calories of poridge made with water and 1 teaspoon of sugar (which you also have to count into the 200). That would keep me going all afternoon and then I’d have a very small 300 calorie meal for dinner/tea, to stop me raiding the cupboards when I got home.

Once I got used to managing the hunger pangs during the day – which you quickly realise are not REAL hunger at all – I now just go the whole day on water and have the full 500 calories in the evening (much more satisfying as a meal). I’m never hungry the following morning and I almost always fast at work.

I have had 1 really serious headache during a fast day, the likes of which I have never had before and I think it’s something of a miracle that I managed to safely drive home in such pain, to then collapse into bed without even the energy to get to the kitchen and break my fast (much as I wanted to). But even that, I think was entirely the result of not drinking enough water during the day. That was quite early on – 1 or 2 months in I think – and has never happened since.

I would recommend that you find the food/ timing combination that is most likely to work for you and cut out any drinks other than water and tea. If you need to have an extra few calories (in the shape of something wholesome like veg or fruit) in order to stick to your guns then do it. Whatever you can manage comfortably is a good start and as you get used to it you can reduce the calories down.

Here’s my Fast Days plan: I’m 71 and after 11 weeks in, I’m down about a stone (as you Brits say).
Start with some coffee and lite creamer. Morning break – water. Lunch break – water. Afternoon break – water. Dinner – nice portion of soup with lots of vegetables and occasionally chicken.
In between breaks, I drink a glass of water. We’re all different, but I exercise normally on Fast Days and rarely have been bothered by headaches or dizziness. Stay with it. You can do it.

5ft 3 and 9.4 stones sounds almost ideal to me? According to my Wii, that’s exactly what it thinks I should be aiming for and I’m only an inch taller than you. Why do you feel you need to lose weight?

Anyway, the 5:2 diet is for health benefits too and you’ll struggle to lose weight on it once you’re at your ideal weight, so it wont hurt you to do it if you keep between 1500-2000 on non fast days. If you’re just worried about ‘wobbly bits’ then it will probably redistribute your weight, so you might well feel and look better but don’t expect to lose much and don’t expect it to come off quickly if you do. This isn’t a fad diet it’s for life and your body will decide where it wants to stop.

Good luck with it and I hope you enjoy the health benefits. My new skin, hair, nails and hormone balance have been a revelation to me.

Hi Shop1240,

I experienced something similar to what you experienced on my 2nd fast day. (I am now on my 14th week). I decided to change the way I ate my 500 calories. While I admire those who can go all day and only eat at dinner, it doesn’t work for me. I eat a breakfast of 200cals. which includes 2 cups of coffee with half & half. The H&H is only about 5 calories a tsp. so I figure is costs me about 10 to 11 for 2 cups of coffee. After those 2 cups, I switch to water. Like you about 2 or 3 in the afternoon I eat and apple or some kind of fruit. This has taken care of that “wonky” feeling. Then I have a meal of about 250-300 cals. about 6pm. What I try to do is to have some activity in the evening of fasts days. Taking classes are good for this and that way I don’t think about food and I’m not close to my kitchen for 2 or 3 hours in the evening. This works for me. You will have to figure out how you arrange your food intake so you can make it thru the days without feeling too deprived. So you can stick with it and make this a “lifestyle” change, not a diet.

Best of luck.
Jan