Weight fluctuations

This topic contains 6 replies, has 4 voices, and was last updated by Stef. 8 years, 10 months ago.

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AurumMetallicum

2:08 pm
5 Jun 15
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Hello,

I am a 30-year old woman who has been on the fast diet for the last 1,5 year.
The first year was wonderful, I lost 5 kg and I felt wonderful.

For the last 6 months the weight is creeping up again, in spite of me doing the (seperate) two days fasting as usual (max 500 kalories). My routine is otherwise as before in terms of eating habits on the “normal” days, work out routine, salt intake, etc.

In general I am finding that after a fasting day I’ve lost some water weight, but this sneaks up again the day after when I am eating normally. So I am not losing weight, I am gradually gaining (water)weight..?

Stats:
Hight 172 cm
Weight: 73 kg
Basal metabolic rate: 1500
Total daily energy expenditure: 2300

Might I have lowered my metabolism so severely that it no longer responds to the fasting lifestyle? Am otherwise healthy and energetic.

Does anyone have hints/tips/ideas?

Thanks 😀

Stef.

12:51 pm
6 Jun 15
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Hi there,

Weight plateaus are normal! Have you re-calculated your new TDEE since you have lost the 5 kg?

You might want to shake things up a bit to get the weightloss moving again. Can you introduce some form of exercise? Perhaps you do for a week or two three fast days per week? What about 16:8, where you eat all your calories within a time window of 8 hours?

I am in maintenance for several months now, but I can tell you…from my 10 kg weightloss, the first six came off in two months and the other 4kg took me over a year.

Weightloss unfortunately does not follow a straight line. I see it as a life style change and patience is key!

If your weight really creeps up again and it is not just water, than you might be eating slightly more than you think. I use the free Myfitnesspal app to log everything I eat and it helps me tons.

Best of luck
Stef.

HappyNow

1:29 pm
6 Jun 15
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I did 5:2 by the book from Jan-May 2014, lost 30lbs, and have been maintaining now for a year mostly by eating 16:8, the occasional fast, and low processed carb/ sugar. I don’t do 6:1 or 5:2 on a regular basis now because I lose 1lb per fast day and I’m as thin as I want to be (59kg at 5ft7).

I think if your weight is increasing again, and there is no medical reason for it, then it seems likely that you must be overeating. The TDEE calculator is only a guide, and it may be that your personal TDEE is in fact lower, or perhaps you are overestimating how active you are (which would give you a too high TDEE).

Whatever the reason, if you are gaining weight then you will need to eat less to maintain, let alone lose weight.

I don’t think you will have lowered your metabolism by fasting. Certainly that is not my experience.

AurumMetallicum

8:58 am
7 Jun 15
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Hello Stef. and Happy Now – thanks for Your reply and kind pices of advice 🙂

16:8 sounds interesting – could you tell me some more about it?
Is it better to alternate fasting days as oppose to for instance doing two fasting days in a row?

I have not re-calculated my TDEE, these are the numbers from my current situation. When I started the 5:2 diet I never counted calories on fasting days, just had some fruit or vegetables if I was hungry. The weight fell off and I had reached my goal within a year.

Was then doing maintenance on 6:1, but then the weight was adding on.
I have a slightly underactive thyroid gland (hence water retention).

This responded earlier really well to 5:2, but now seems to have changed.

Exercise: I run for an hour three times a week and generelly walk a lot.
Have read on this forum that exercise does not necessarily help fat burning. The running makes me hungrier – maybe give it a rest and focus on lowering calorie intake on eating days?

fitnfast

9:05 am
7 Jun 15
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I second and third the motion for 16:8. Eat within an 8 hour window while staying under your tdee (which is usually high…I use tdee for my goal weight), and nothing to eat for 16 hours (or close to it). No snacking during the fasting period, just liquids (coffee, tea, water, broth) I chew sugarless gum too. Easy on the carbs and sugar. If I even have a piece of whole wheat bread or crackers, they go right to my belly!

It doesn’t work for everyone, and not everyone agrees, but it obviously works for some!

http://Www.leangains.com

AurumMetallicum

9:23 am
7 Jun 15
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Thankx fitnfast 🙂

Sorry I am a bit new to these expressions and abbrevitions: when you say 16:8, you mean to eat the appropriate amount of calories for the fasting or non-fasting day? Or both?

How does the body balance fat-burning vs. getting rid of excessive water?
After all, the human body is made up of 70% water.

Stef.

10:40 pm
21 Jun 15
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16:8 is valid for both, fasting and non fasting days. You makes sure that ALL your calories of that day are eaten within an eight hour period. So for example: if you had your breakfast at 10am you would eat your last bit of food for that particular day before 6pm. There are other variations of this: 20:4 = you eat all your daily food within 4 hours…

The benefit of this is that your body gets a rest from having to digest food and it can concentrate on “repair” work.

Just give it a try and see how it works for you?

Best wishes
Stef.