Maybe you need to be a little more patient & give your body time to adjust to 5:2. When I started in January I made the conscious decision not to weigh myself & to focus on the health benefits as motivation, in fact I didn’t weigh myself for 6 months.
The first week I fasted on 2 days, then the next three weeks I fasted 3 days per week (fell back to 2 days soon after)- probably due to initial enthusiasm as whilst my first fast day was unpleasant, I realised on waking the next morning that I hadn’t starved to death and I didn’t actually feel very hungry. After the 3rd fast day I started getting quite a buzz on waking after each fast day and my body felt slightly more comfortable with each passing fast.
I got to recognise how hunger felt on my first fast day (possibly for the first time in my adult life), which progressively taught me how to differentiate between hunger and desire*, but this took some time. For the first few weeks I motivated myself through each fast day with the promise of ‘all you can eat’ non fast day treats and as a result probably lost very little weight over this period. However my body & mind within a few weeks became familiar the two extremes (feast/famine), as fast days became habit the need for motivational treats/rewards on non fast days diminished and I started to feel in control of what I previously thought was’hunger’, my stomach felt like in was slowly shrinking, I felt better physically & mentally and my non fast day ‘all you can eats’ became more selective as I learned to know when I’d had enough to eat & appreciate quality of food over quantity.

Just my opinion, but I’d suggest you stick with the 5:2 and treat the first few weeks as your ‘induction’ or ‘training’ period, don’t stress,it’s a long game, not a quick unsustainable fix. Just let yourself get used to the process and hopefully in a couple of months time you’ll look back and realise the 5:2 is one of the easiest things you’ve done in your life

*I soon after starting opted on fast days to have one or two cups of tea with milk & one sugar for breakfast, then consume nothing water and espresso’s until 7.00pm, giving a longer fast period. Often nowadays I don’t actually feel hungry in the evening so skip eating altogether – makes breakfast of toast and butter the next morning taste sensational

I’m not losing weight on 5:2 either, but I guess I am losing inches as clothes fit me that didn’t before and I feel so much better and more energetic! Sleeping is so much better. Out running 4 times/week and cycling 3 times/week. I log every single bit of food/drink I consume and as much as it is good to feel better etc, it would be so much better to see the scales budge!!! Thinking of bumping it up to 3 fast/week in the short-term to kick start it.

Well done on the weight you have lost, great! Do you feel better, I know I do for sure. Re the weight loss, are you measuring yourself? Do your jeans fit better than they did? The Fast Diet is about good health with weight loss as a side benefit really. You may be losing inches without losing weight. I have gone from a size 14 to a 12 in 4 weeks, and lost 6lb. I am more happy about the 4inches around my stomach than the lost weight to be honest! This is a long term lifestyle change, not a quick fix diet so please don’t lose heart.

My goodness, jjdroney, you really have been persevering – no wonder you are disheartened after trying so hard. Well done for applying yourself so diligently.
You don’t describe your menu for non-fast days but, if your three fast days are anything to go by, I would say you are not getting enough nutrition, so, your body is desperately holding on to any fat reserves, trying to survive the famine it is experiencing. Each fast day food item you mention is fine in itself but, together, they do not add up to the balanced intake of protein, healthy fats, and carbohydrates necessary to sustain your physical needs.
I would suggest you use the site’s calorie calculator to check your whether your BMI (Body Mass Index) is in the healthy range (between18.5 and 24.9) and what your recommended non-fast day intake should be, based on your size, age, activity levels, etc. The resulting figure is called your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) and one-quarter (25%) of that would be the maximum suggested daily intake for each fast day. (Click on the calorie calculator link on the right-hand side of the page, under the red heading ‘helpful site links’, just under the book adverts, and read the information/ instructions there.)
An average female’s TDEE is given as 2000 cal. You seem experienced at calorie counting but maybe you need to think more about which mix of foods constitutes a balanced diet. Certainly, the simplest mantra for a 5:2 fast day, as Mimi S says, is ‘mostly Plants and Protein’, i.e. lots of leafy green vegetables and some fruit with things like chicken (without the fatty skin), fish, eggs, beans and pulses, nuts and seeds for protein.
Here’s just one website which gives some information about healthy eating and the various, necessary food groups – ChooseMyPlate.gov (US Dept of Agriculture):

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/

Hopefully, you will have time to read around various topics here on the forum and get some good suggestions for how best to proceed. I wish you happy eating and all success in your efforts.

Thank you Jeanius. I did suspect that apart from vegetables I eat mostly carbohydrate and dairy and not enough protein on NF days but was hoping to get away with it! I have also eaten THE SAME on all fast days for 1/2 year now and surely need to get less lazy with planning my meals. The fast day calories need to be reduced by a third too – goodness knows how:) but my NF days’ calories may need to be increased (although I have never really kept count). Getting on this blog has really helped take a fresh look at things; thank you all and good luck!

Hi all in the family…I, too, have not lost any weight since starting the FastDiet three weeks ago. Have strictly followed the 600 cal for men, sometimes even on less, and have found it fairly easy to do. As I CANNOT sleep on an empty stomach, though, I have 1 or 2 cups of cottage cheese before I retire (about half or 1/3 of my allotted 600 calories). Even on my non-fast days, I have noticed a reduced need for food as well, but sometimes I eat past that, with generous amounts of red meat protein, or bbq chicken (w/o skin, of course). Have yet to add fish (and chips). Perhaps I should NOT eat past my lack of interest in food, and just wait until I am really hungry. Have always heard one should get protein right away to kick start the metabolism, so I just don’t KNOW how to go about my non-fast days. On my fast days, I tend to grab a handful of almonds, and 4 oz of orange juice to take with my daily vitamins and Avodart I must take for an enlarged prostate. Then, I will do a couple strawberries or some blueberries mid day, and a non cheese salad for dinner. By the time I get to bed, I have about 200 or 300 calories left to indulge in. I eat salads often, with not very much shredded cheese, and easy on the croutons, diet dressing, and soy bacon bits. Drinking water, but not urinating a whole lot, so maybe need to boost my water intake? I always think that my breakfast is going to be HUGE on my non-fast days, but have no more than two pancakes with a sprinkling of walnuts and blueberries, a pad of butter on each, and low sugar syrup, along with two strips of bacon, which stays with me until mid afternoon, or dinner time.

I have been a heavy eater for the last several years, until about a year ago. I noticed that I just don’t have the capacity to eat two plates of spaghetti as before, usually only ONE or TWO pcs of chicken instead of half a chicken, and instead will eat two cobs of corn with it. Perhaps I just have not given this enough time. I have noticed an improved sense of well being, but may be just wishful thinking. I weigh 193 lbs, and I am 5′ 8″ tall, 57 years young. Moderate activity daily. Please, if I could get as much insight as possible, I want to be slender and trim. Hoping to lose approx 30 pounds. Thank you.