Hi spotter the only people i have told about 5.2 is family im new to this way of eating and plan not to tell anyone else unless they ask. My family tho are very supportive altho prob because i explained to them that its not a diet its a lifestyle change i of course was told yea you will lose weight but as soon as you stop it you will put it all back on again my family and i dont believe in silly fad diets. When i explained that its a way of life has health benifits and will change my whole attitude on food they understood and are on board with me doing this. Hope this helps a little

Yes, unfortunately there is always going to be uneducated people putting forth their uneducated opinions on 5.2. I’ve read the book thoroughly so I am armed with all the scientific evidence that I need to answer their questions. Don’t let people sway you and good luck.

I haven’t started yet, but I am not really planning on telling anyone. If what I have read so far is correct you can have 500 calories on a fast day, for a woman, so just make sure your co-workers see you eat something. Doesn’t have to be a donut! I plan on having a very low calorie soup (homemade) at lunch, and no one will question me. It’s not their business anyway, but this way I won’t have to deal with any negativity.

I mean didn’t realise how heavy I was lol

Hi guys, I started the diet today and stuck to under 500 calories. (Monday – yesterday that is now) i’m 18, 11.7 stone and 5’5/6.. Any idea how much weight I could probably lose in 2 weeks?

I didn’t mention it to anyone until about 2 months in. I was doing it for the health benefits and didn’t really expect it to affect my weight beyond the few lb of visceral fat I expected to shift (as Michael did in the documentary). It was only when I noticed my trousers were fitting better and decided to weigh myself that I started mentioning it to friends or family members. None of them had noticed that I’d lost more than 1 stone in 2 months but I couldn’t blame them, as I hadn’t noticed myself. However, a few people had noticed my clearer skin already, so whenever someone made a comment I would tell them why I was looking better and about the 5:2 lifestyle, the health benefits associated and to hammer the message home I had that extra stone ‘no longer’ under my belt as ‘proof’.

It does sound stupid to most people because they have decades of rubbishy ‘fad’ diets rattling around in ther brains and lots of false assumptions about having to eat to keep your blood sugar levels etc. in check. You’re not going to cure them of that in one conversation and unfortunately you’ve harmed your argument a bit by leaving the lifestyle once already and regaining some weight as a consequence. All you can do is say, “This works for me and this time I’m going to stick at it – you’ll see!” mean it and do it. Don’t see it as a diet – it’s not – if you take up 5:2 then you have to accept that this is it – your lifestyle forever. You might one day go down to 1 FD per week or you might up your calories on your FDs a little once you get to maintenence (whatever works longterm) but you’ll have fasting as a part of your life forever and that is how you keep the weight off longterm. This lifestyle is not for everyone. Many would see fasting as part of their forever lifestyle as a massive never ending nightmare but for those of us who are up for it, it’s an ‘easy’ fix to our longterm weight struggles.