Thanks for your applause Clickbeetle85. In terms of sticking to the plan, I think Michael Mosley says in the book that it’s not a diet but a lifestyle change. That’s how I view it.

It’s interesting that you have more energy on a fast day. I wonder how often that applies to other fasters. I have heard others who report an increase in energy levels. This also seems completely at odds with those who report that missing breakfast causes all manner of undesirable outcomes (e.g. dizziness, nausea, irritability).

I am really missing a regular breakfast and don’t know if I’ll stick with it. Like many people, I just love eating. That said, and like you, once the day is underway I feel fine and can last out without food for a long time with no obvious downside. When I first started doing it I remember I sometimes used to feel a bit breathless but that is no longer the case. Perhaps that is because my body as adapted to longer periods without food?

Thanks Himeczan. Your response also makes me wonder about the extent to which breakfast may just be a habit for many people. I was always brought up to believe breakfast was essential. The prevailing wisdom when I grew up in the 1960s and 1970s was that breakfast is “the most important meal of the day”. Perhaps this was a bit of clever marketing by cereal manufacturers or egg producers?

I’d love to see some research on the extent to which we can do without breakfast, and the pros and cons, and whether there is a downside for some, or all, of us. Somewhere in the 5:2 book, Michael Mosley references some research that states that people who don’t eat breakfast tend to eat less over the course of the day and feel less hungry.

This link…
http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/nutrition_news_information/should_i_eat_breakfast_when_i_m_not_hungry

^ …suggests not eating breakfast increases cholesterol, reduces ability to concentrate and makes people more moody – all in keeping with the narrative which I have always understood and which I question based on my own limited experiment of skipping breakfast.

There are lots of other links that extol the virtues of a healthy breakfast. This is the first one that questions that wisdom…

http://stronglifts.com/7-reasons-why-you-should-not-eat-breakfast/

^ …this one quotes a few studies though there are no links.

What I’m really interested in, is any anecdotal evidence from people (like the person in the final link) who was convinced they had to eat breakfast for whatever reason, only to discover that – after a period of adaptation – they could manage fine without and without any apparent negative consequences. Or indeed anyone who tried it for a reasonable length of time and discovered that the consequences were such that they had to go back to a regular breakfast.

Thanks DerbyGirl74. Good luck with achieving your goal. I think the trick to 5:2 or intermittent fasting, or whatever label you want to put on to it, is to make it permanent rather than something you do to lose weight.

I have now gone 10 consecutive days without eating breakfast and on my two low cal days I don’t eat anything until the evening.

I am now increasingly convinced that, after a period of adaptation, when my brain and body had to become accustomed to not eating until later in the day, it’s surprisingly easy.

Coincidentally, and I saw this video mentioned on “The Fast Diet” Facebook page, Mark Mattson at this TEDx Talk, and right at the end of the fascinating video presentation (which covers a lot of the same ground as the 5:2 Fast Diet book), states that you get used to skipping meals. I am sure it would apply to most healthy people and it just takes that period of adaptation…

http://youtu.be/4UkZAwKoCP8
Why fasting bolsters brain power: Mark Mattson at TEDxJohnsHopkinsUniversity