The FastDay Forum

Hi all,

I have been doing 5:2 now just over two months (9 weeks to be precise) and in that time I have lost only 1.36kg. As you can image this is really frustrating and I am on the verge of not bothering with this WOE anymore.

I have just over 13kg that I want to lose, my TDEE is 2313 and I can eat up to 579 calories on a fast day.
On feast days (when I have checked) I (mostly) stay under my TDEE limit and if I do go over it is only once in a blue moon. On fast days I aim for 500 calories even though I can technically have more so that I have a buffer to fall back on if I'm having a really tough day.
I sit at a desk all day at work but I have started the 30 Day Shred (one week in and so far so good) and failing that I try and get to the gym 3 times a week.

I am at a loss for what to do now. Do I carry on? Will it get better? Will the weight start coming off again? I absolutely do not want to go back to calorie counting or any other sort of diet and I understand that this a slow way of losing weight but should in the long run be more effective. But is it normal that I have lost so little? Am I missing something?

I really want this to work so any advice/motivation will be greatly received!!

Maria

Keep your chin up this is a way of life, the results will come but if you just get into the mind set that you will be eating like this forever the scales won't be so important. You are not gaining weight so it is going in the right direction. good luck for the next few weeks.

Maria you are having a slow loss, sorry but maybe more news will come but you do seem to have to mix it up a bit. Unfortunately it isn't always smooth downward trend for everyone, some of us have to mark time waiting for losses, keep the faith so to speak. There are a few people who have long plateaus. All the best though it is a way of life. Oh What about your clothes and the tape measure rather than scales

Hi Maria and Welcome
Sorry this WOL is'nt working so well for you and can understand you losing motivation, as for calorie counting i dont either but i'm getting the good results
I'm doing 4:3 and also 2 @ 16:8 because i'm not hungry morning after a fast, i've also reduced my carb intake which kickstarted a plateau all these things helped me and dont know if you'll be able to use anything but i do believe it does our bodies good to mix it up every now and again.
I'm now repairing a holiday gain of 5kg now a 4kg.
So this week my mix is 3 fastdays plus 3 @ 16:8 because i'm eating out one night in the week Good Luck Sue
Edit sorry have you measured ? coz some weeks its inchloss not pounds lost

Hi Maria. Welcome. Ummm, that IS a slow loss. I started the day after you and I can understand why you must feel frustrated. What do you eat? My TDEE is only 1433 and to get the pounds to shift I am doing 5:2 with 16:8, no sugar and limiting my carbs to below 150g a day. The carb thing seems to make a difference as SueQ suggests. Well done on your exercise - this might help as you get into it. Don't give up

Feel for you Mara but think cutting the carbs like Karen/ Sue suggest might help..and also like Sue said,have you been measuring to check for inch loss? Sometimes we can obsess over the scales and actually not know we've lost inches here and there x

Hey Maria, have you had your doctor check to make sure you don't have an issue like hypothyroidism that might be undermining you? My mom was berated for years for putting on weight and turned out to have Cushing's Syndrome! Doesn't sound like that's a concern for you (or you would likely still be gaining) but maybe there is something more too it for you than the calories in, calories out math.

I had lost about the same as you after nine weeks. Sometimes it does take time to get going in the first few weeks for some people, we are all different. Have you measured yourself? I lost about 4 in off my waist while losing very little weight in those 9 weeks. Do your clothes feel looser? It's difficult to judge without more info about what you eat / how you eat etc, as people like carorees (currently on holiday) and @moogie would probably be asking you for a bit more info, in order to make any suggestions. I only have my own experience to share, but there are some on here who can bring a more scientific approach to bear. So I shall just say what the others have said above - keep going. You are not putting any weight on, and persistence will pay off in the end.

My weight is not shifting either but the inches are so I am happy. No one knows what I weigh if I don't tell them but the mirror shows a shape I am happy with. I never want to formally diet again so if I stay the same that is good because I am not losing and gaining like I used to.

That TDEE seems awfully high. Its more than I have and I have 100lbs still to lose. You must be exercising a lot or be tremendously tall.

If you are exercising a lot have you measured yourself, waist, hips, thigh etc? You could be losing fat, but putting muscle on. As muscle is 3 times 'smaller' than the same weight in fat, you will be shrinking and getting healthier but not showing a difference in the scales.

Hi Mariajes! Don't lose faith! I really relate to how you are feeling, I started 4 months ago and have definitely had some downs, ups, and flatliners. Despite all that, overall, I'm down (in kgs) just like you are.

The times I've felt my mostivation go is when I have a gain, or no loss - it's then I find it really helpful to think that if I hadn't started this 4 months ago, I'd probably be sitting at a higher weight today and have so much further to go.

I've had a bit of a breakthrough in the last couple of weeks, I can really feel this WOE working for me. I have to hold onto this feeling to keep me going in the weeks that don't feel like this My wish for you is that you keep on going and find the same happens to you.

My TDEE is 1900, which I enjoy to the full. I do the occasional day of calorie counting just to check that I'm getting my portions and choices right - particularly after a holiday or a few days of indulgence.

For weight loss, this WOE is definitely a long game!

All the very very best to you.

I agree with Julieathome that your TDEE seems to be too high! Maybe you are overestimating your activity level, you can try to eat smaller portions on your eating days and making sure you eat no more than 500 kcals on your fast days (as you are doing now).
Good luck! and keep going!!!!

Hi and welcome:

If you don't do 5:2 are you going to go back to gaining weight?

Weight loss with 5:2 is not steady and predictable: post71147.html#p71147

You also have to remember that TDEE is an estimate, not a fact. However you measured it, it may be wrong. You are losing weight, but if you want to lose faster you will have to eat less. This may explain why just a few calories over here and there can slow your weight loss: 5-2-diet-chat-f6/topic6600.html

Good Luck!

That TDEE seems awfully high. Its more than I have and I have 100lbs still to lose. You must be exercising a lot or be tremendously tall.

Agreed. Are you sure about your TDEE because that seems like a massive amount to be eating?

[Moogie]

I would agree that the TDEE estimate seems to be a bit on the high side- and unless you're vastly underestimating how much you actually (and therefore going way over the already high TDEE) I imagine your problem is that your TDEE isn't as high as you've calculated.

Try calculating based on a sedentary lifestyle and see if that makes a difference using those figures. Remember that TDEE calculations can be out by as much as 30% as in reality we are all different and no one calculation truly suits everyone, even if it is applicable to most it may not be right for you. I'd suggest you stay under 2000 on your feeds and 500 on your fasts, taking it 'back to basics'.

Do you have any medical conditions which might be causing a slower loss?