5.2

Yes Urmstongran, I ate the last of my M & S meals, with runner beans, tenderstem broccoli and roast butternut squash. I then couldn't resist mopping up the gravy with a small slice of bread. Brunch was 2 rashers and an egg. In between I had a few berries and a caramel rice cake taking the total to about 800 cals. Anyway, I am another pound down this morning so can't be bad.

Ooh I can eat today ha! Such a nice thought ...
I’ve lost 1lb but it will probably come back on today or tomorrow but I plan a fast day on Thursday so that should hopefully keep it off. It was just good to see a different number on the scales! Proves they are not stuck. ?

Actually does anyone weigh themselves in kgs? Curious.

Can't bear the things, there's so many more of them

Excellent comment GPR! How did you get on BTW after your fast day (veg curry - great idea) on Sunday?

Listening to people talking about hunger pangs on fast days. When I first did the 5:2, I decided that as someone who is a real foodie. I like to eat a really wide range of dishes and didn't want to find myself, two days a week subsisting on baked beans on toast and lettuce sandwiches, so I have been really active collecting as many recipes as I can that do not exceed 250 calories. I have also adapted existing recipes.

Today is a fast day. I am having a boneless chicken drumstick at lunch time. It will be in a tomato and herb sauce with a breadcrumb topping. It will probabky be under 250 cals so I will supplement it with fresh verg and posibly a small (tiny) orange. DH is not on the 5:2 so he will get potatoes with his portion, plus he will have his usual dessert, stewed fruit and plain yoghourt.#

This evening will be basalmic roast cherry tomatoes on whole meal toast with Fetta scattered on top. DH will get extra toast and more cheese.

Both these are new recipes so I will have to see how I go. I find Fast days are much better, if I know I am going to have some really nice food that I look forward to eating.

Those meals sound delicious MOnica, especially the roasted tomatoes.
I felt ok on my fast day, just a bit hungry in the night, then overdid it the next day, feeling ravenous all day.
I'll have to watch that.
Does anybody remember being earnest & young at church youth groups, and being encouraged to fast one day a week in order to 'save' the starving poor, (usually from Africa)?
I was very fervent and stuck to it, feeling faint at school, not telling anyone, but believing my sacrifice was going to make a difference.
I doubt if it did though!
Nowadays it would be considered irresponsible, which it was!
And now full circle with no higher cause other than my waistline ?

Urmstongran, I do kilos. When I try to lose weight I sometimes like to convert kgs into lbs since 2lb sound more impressive than 1 kg ?
I am fasting today holding out until 3pm and then eating 2 slices of bacon 1 egg and 1 sausage with a massive green salad containing among half an aubergine and a yellow pepper. I am stuffed. That should last me until tomorrow without getting hungry, I hope.
Not sure what the calories are (700?) but I have done this a few times and it seems to do the trick.

My Dr Moseley blood sugar recipe book came today.Its brilliant!The Aim is to eat 800 cals a day for 8 weeks which I definitely won’t be doing but will be using the recipes several days a week.Would definitely recommend it for ideas for fast days.

Fast day for me too. I put off eating anything until 13.00 as once I start eating I feel more hungry. I'm another who uses M and S low calorie meals. Just find it the easiest way to keep my calories consumption low. Usually add extra vegetables. Looking forward to my dinner. I find the evenings quite hard to get through without nibbling on anything.

Thank Susan56, It sounds like it could be a great motivator for you.
Evenings are the hardest. I mustn’t be too hungry or I can’t sleep. That is why I eat as late and as filling as possible (within the limits).

I agree Lumarei about eating late.I can’t bear going to bed hungry.I seem to manage ok during the day but evening snacking is my downfall.Am determined to get back on track though.

Just shows ladies where our weaknesses are.... evening snacking (in front of the tele?)

We must remember :
LITTLE PICKERS WEAR BIGGER KNICKERS!
?

Or even nibbling in front of an open fridge. I read once that foods consumed there contain no calories. I wish!!!
When I did WW many years ago I would save a fun size packet of Maltesers until 9pm and always looked forward to it!

Well I’m feel pretty dispirited this morning. I’ve put 3.5lbs on in ONE DAY. Aargh! What am I doing wrong? Must be overeating on my non fast days.

I’m off to listen to Dr Michael Mosley this Friday evening. He’s giving a talk at the Bridgewater Hall.

I need to find out where I’m going wrong as this was my weight mid January and the way I’m feeling this morning this isn’t working. I’m so disappointed!

Urmstongran I have just checked my 2014 figures . The most I put on in two days was 4lbs and 3lbs of it had disappeared 2 days later. 2 more lbs disappeared over the next 4 days and week on week I was down a 1lb.

It is depressing when these sudden jumps happen but there are all sorts of reasons (and none at all). Water retention is one, which bears no relationship to what you drink or eat.

I find that, whatever Michael Mosley says, I need to eat within limits on the non-fast days. I try to make my maximum calorie intake about 1,400, lower if I can manage it, The exceptions being high days and holidays, when I just try not to overdo it.

I am off to visit DS and family this weekend and will not even try to calculate what the calorie value of my food is.

Thank you for that MOnica it helps. And I’m sure you’re right about calorie counting.
But.... I didn’t want to have to count or be aware of them every day.
??
I thought the beauty of all this would be hard-core for 2 days and ‘no need to think about it’ for 5. Seems I’m wrong and I’m feeling fed up.
DH is doing it too. He’s lost a stone.
He eats more than I do.
But he doesn’t drink. ???
Maybe it alcohol?

Urmstongran, I feel for you but as MOnica says this is not unusual however annoying.

In 2012 I did 4:3 successfully but I realised quickly that Dr Moseley had (understandably) made the whole intermittent fasting thing easy to understand by the masses.

I looked back at the original study on which Dr Moseley based his book/BBC programme of how many calories can be consumed on a fast day for health benefits and weight loss. It said 25% of your daily calorific needs at least two days a week. On average women’s daily calorie needs are 2000cals = 500 cals.

My needs are 1400cals if sedentary due to my age and height. That means I should have 350cals on fast days. If I do 2 fast days a week I save 2100 cals and with 3 fast days I save 3150. If I don’t over eat (stay within 1400caks) on other days I should lose under 1lb per week doing that.

The 800 calories on two days a week now suggested by Dr Moseley (for me a saving of 1200 cals per week) would be merely maintenance and counteract unintentional overeating. I would have to a daily restriction of 800cals in order to have any effect.

This is not supposed to be depressing, just calculations. For me intermittent fasting is still easier than daily calorie restriction of 1100-1200cals because of having to be veryvigilant every day. But for someone else daily restriction may be easier.

I envy of course anyone less challenged by height and age (I could eat about 25% more when I was young) who will find far more encouraging results with two days’ fasting a week.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201902/medium-937941-cal-counter.png https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201902/medium-999959-carbs.png

It was an eating day yesterday. I went to M & S again for a few more low cal dishes. While I was there I was tempted by a family-sized strawberry compote trifle (they are lovely) and ate the lot over the rest of the day, a total of around 1000 cals, over and above normal meals . I was dreading standing on the scales this morning but lo and behold I had lost another pound! There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the losses and gains. I mustn't be naughty again though.
By the way, if anyone is interested in a good calorie counter book I can recommend this one, available on Amazon. It gives carbs, fat and fibre counts too. It lists basic foods and made-up dishes, very comprehensive. I know most things by heart by now.

I was feeling a bit down as scales not moving!! This morning I'm down 4 lbs but for the wrong reasons. Had dreadful sickness and diarrhoea during the night. Feeling wiped out this morning. The thought of eating anything makes me feel nauseous. So I think I'll be doing an extra down day today.

Oh Urmstongran I feel for you ! It's so depressing isn't it.I've abandoned the 5.2 diet or 4.3 as I was doing its just not structured enough for me. Leaving me to my own devices on non fast days, meant I was eating too much of what I'd felt deprived of on fast days. I've started slimming world, not going to classes yet, I've got the books from 3 years ago, although I have learned some things have changed , so I've been bringing myself up to speed.
It'll be interesting what you learn on Friday.I'll look forward to hearing about it .I suppose I better dip out of this forum now I've deflected to the other side lol . If you interested I'll check in now and again with any weight loss ( fingers crossed)
Good luck with the 5.2 everybody is different I suppose. I do think it would be great as a maintainance diet, when I've lost a good amount of weight, but I really can't be bothered counting calories everyday, which it seems you need to do on the 5.2.

Sorry to see you go. Please come back occasionally and let us know how you get on. We all have to find and tweak what works best for us.

Poor you Urmstongran, there's nothing more dispiriting, but don't despair, we're playing the long game here, and it takes a few days for weight loss to show on the scales. Your very disciplined fast days will show next week I'm sure, so keep going. I bet a horlicks has never been so appreciated!
Historically, when I have managed to lose weight, I've cut out ALL butter/spread/oil in everything, e.g. using low fat mayo on sandwiches, skimmed milk in mash, & spray oil for frying etc. It's always been quite effective, hard to maintain, but might possibly help on non-fast days?

Urmstongran, remember the earlier posts. Give it time, it will work.
If you are overeating on the nonfast days you will adjust once you really get into it.
Hope you enjoy your evening with MM and learn a lot.

Sorry you haven't had success recently Katyj, sorry to see you go, especially as you instigated the thread. Please keep posting, it will be interesting to make comparisons with SW.
I bought the SW bumph on ebay a while ago and gave it a go but it wasn't for me. Meetings are my worst nightmare so I wouldn't join properly.
Good luck. Remember every plan works if you stick to it so I hope it goes well for you.

Thank you lumarei, and Shysal.I will be back ! Hopefully with good news. Good luck to you all.