The FastDay Forum

I ask because my stubborn body seems to refuse to lose anything even after 3 weeks of fasting and I've been toying with the idea of trying a liquid fast to see if that makes a difference. I have seen different thoughts ranging from it does help weight loss to others who say that liquid fasting is more useful for the health benefits associated with fasting.

Can anyone clear this one up for me?

Hi HopefulHeart,

There are so many variations on the forum as regards liquid fasting, but it's not the fact that you are taking calories in liquid form, but rather how many calories are in the liquid!

Some stick to just water, while others have soup etc.

Technically speaking, you can take in vast amounts of calories in liquid form. I think it can be a bit misleading when we talk of liquid-only fasts.

Reading the posts on here, they vary from zero calories, to the permitted fast-day amounts.

Mathematically you should lose more with zero calorie fasting than with 500 calorie providing there isn't a compensating effect on your feed days.

On the other hand you should be losing weight restricting to 500 per day twice a week anyway, so if that doesn't work is begs the question "why not".

Doing a bit more of the same thing (calorie restricting) may or may not help. What are your feed days calories and foods like and what do you do on fast days ?

Hi HopefulHeart
I did liquid fasting last month for 6 fasts and I lost 3kg in that month. It was because I stalled and I wanted to up the ante so for the first 5 I had teas coffee with milk and strained homemade broth and the calories came in around 300 -350 for the 5:2 fasts. The last one i tried to have next to no calories and it was not at all comfortable for me I felt completely whacked. That for me was enough and I havre returned to 5:2 with a twist

Other liquid only fasters seem not to have any problems. Check out the liquid only thread as there are a few people on there who would reply to you

I would continue regular 5:2 for a bit longer as someone else said have a think about your other days. I found after a while on 5:2 that a later breakfast suited me and stopped the mid morning munchies, this saved a lot of calories. I used to think I needed breakfast as soon as I woke, but actually 5:2 taught me this wasn't true. I have since moved onto liquid fasts (zero calories) but not until I realised one fast day that I wasn't actually hungry! Take this as a process, some weeks you won't lose (I haven't lost every week), but overall I have (just over 1lb a week). Remember to think of it in terms of weeks, have you lost more than 3lbs in 3 weeks? If so, you are already ahead. Good luck whatever you decide :0)

HopefulHeart, I have been on 5:2 for 12 weeks and for the past four weeks my Monday fast has been liquids only (water and black coffee, no calories). I have been losing weight consistently since the beginning but wanted to do 'proper' fasting one day a week just to see if I could, and now it just feels like a good way to 'reset' my body at the start of the week so I've stuck to it. Obviously it means I'm consuming around 400 calories less over the week but I was already averaging around a kg/week loss in the eight weeks until then, so it doesn't seem to have made any real difference for me. Of course everyone is different, so the only way you'll really know is to try it for yourself and see. Good luck!

Thanks for all your advice, I like the idea of doing 1 liquid fast a week just to clear my body out. I'll give it a go on Monday if I feel ready for it