The FastDay Forum

I've been faithfully doing 5:2 for 8 weeks, and exercising every single day (every SINGLE day) except one in all that time. Last week I added 16:8 to the mix, and have faithfully kept to my 8 hour eating windows, though once or twice not having a 16 hour fasting window (sometimes more, sometimes less). I have been battling hunger and tiredness and crankiness and headaches and sore muscles. In all that time I have lost 3.7 kg (just over 8 lbs) but have been bumping along around the 65.5 kg mark for over the last month. I had hoped so hard (to the point where I was waking in the night about it last night, ridiculous, I know) that I might have finally broken through the plateau and started showing a real loss again but all I did was lose the pound I'd "put on" last week.

I know we keep talking about inch loss, and about how clothes feel, and about how people notice, as being "just as good" markers of weight loss as numbers on the scale. We say "muscle weighs more than fat" to console ourselves when we gain/plateau but ultimately it really does come down to the numbers on the scale moving south, doesn't it? While I am pleased my clothes are slightly looser and I have some more definition in my arms, I don't want to weigh 140+ forever!

And I am letting my disappointment really get me down, and taking it out on my family and work colleagues. I have a lot of other stress in my life right now, mostly job-related. I was just really hoping to have some kind of tangible progress in this area. I know I shouldn't let this consume my life. I also don't have an alternative right now to achieve what I want to do, so I will press on at least for another month. But I am losing heart.

It sounds like you are truley an overachiever when it comes to diet and exercise ! Wondering when you have been to the doctor lately for a checkup as some things can be medical ? Just a thought ?

A sore muscle is a swollen muscle, carrying more water and hence more weight.

I do think excessive exercise can be detrimental, even if based on apocryphal forum postings like "I'm eating nothing and working my butt off and the scales won't budge".

You talk of other stress in your life, so perhaps moderation in the exercise to every other day could help ? The 5:2 gives you the calorie deficit for weight loss, it isn't necessary to add another deficit on top.

I feel for you! I lost weight during the first 2-3 weeks of 5:2 and then hit a dreadful plateau during which I was gaining and losing the same kilo.
I tried 4:3 and counting calories but nothing worked. I do 16:8 most of the time (on weekdays) since I usually eat after 13.00 and before 21.00 but that is my standard so I won't count it in as a try to boost things up.

At the verge of losing all hope, I stumbled across Dukan's real weight calculator. I followed the procedure and after I was finished the website suggested how I should proceed with the Dukan diet. I had no addition to do so but I noticed the 4 phases and the fact that they suggested doing the Attack phase for 2 days and lose 780grms.
I said "why not"? and went ahead. Result? -1 kilo and I didn't gain it back! Since then (3,5 weeks) I do my version of 5:2, a 3:2:2 with 2 days of Dukan's Attack, 2 fasts and 3 normal days and I happily lost 3,5 kilos.

That's what happened to me when I got stuck. I was at 8 weeks and had lost 7lb in that time. I also woke up at night thinking about it and became a serial weigher but all of a sudden the weight loss has started again. Please don't be upset. Keep going and keep the faith. Patience is a virtue. I expect someone will be along to suggest you are eating too much and then someone else will suggest you are not eating enough. All well intentioned but I just found that confusing. I really hope it starts to shift again soon and I'm sure it will x

P.S There was a thread on here somewhere where other people were reporting coming to a standstill at about the 8 week mark.

[janeg]

Ah mummybunny - you sound so hacked off and are putting so much effort into this. It's not fair sometimes, is it.
A hug is called for ( not something I do very ofter- prefer the slapping around the head with a wet fish approach)
Now, as part of your planning, could you plan a week off? Give yourself a proper break from exercise unless you actually want to do it (not have to) and then do something you enjoy that's not tough?
And ditch the careful eating for one week. You don't need to binge but just relax off- only for a week.
Give yourself a week of planned breathing space, be nice to yourself. Hopefully, taking the pressure off this sphere will have knock on effects in the other areas.
Then, after a week, regroup and plan your next phase?
Just a thought for another approach....

Hi mummybunny2005,

I think it's great you've been doing all that exercise. You are one of many on here who is finding it hard to lose more than a pound a week, on average.

Why should you give up exercising? A lot of people would give anything to be able to!

Exercising improves our general health, and plays a major part in warding off many diseases.

I am probably the most unpopular member of the forum, but I will never change my views about low-carb eating.

On non-fast days, you shouldn't have to count calories. Michael Mosley never said that doing so was part of the plan.

I am so sorry you are feeling so miserable about everything. It could all be so easy for you.

I am sure you're not eating too much, but if you could lower your carb intake, you will start to see the weight drop off.

Hi there - I posted something very similar yesterday when I was feeling a bit fed up. Athough I don't do the amount of exercise that you do, I was finding that I lost around a pound a week to start with, but now it has slowed down.

Other posters on this forum are really positive and you can find lots of advice on here which really helps.

I have decided that I'm going to stick at it (after all, it's not that difficult (especially knowing that you can eat normally for most of the week) and the alternative is to go back to the way I was before which was even more fed up because I didn't like the way I looked. I know I can't do the 'traditional' style of dieting because I've tried that before and failed.

I'm convinced that this WOE will reap benefits in the long term - there are lots of success stories on here as evidence. And even if it takes a long time to shift the weight I want to, I know it will be easier to keep it off because I'll be sticking to the principles of this WOE and not slipping back into the old bad habits!

[carorees]

Tomtank is right...no need to give up exercise if you don't want too, but kencc and PhilT are right too...too much exercise can impede weight loss and then I think that janeg is right that you should be kind to yourself and allow yourself some slack for a while. You see, stress releases cortisol which can impede weight loss as it seems to worsen glucose metabolism. If that is the case, the low carb idea of the Dukan attack for two days as TML13 is doing or all week as tomtank says, may help get things moving again.

I know you shouldn't need to count calories on the non-fast days, but unless you have tried working out how many calories you are eating in a week and seeing how that compares with your TDEE according to the progress tracker, how will you know whether or not you are eating too much? Could you manage to count calories for a week? It may give you a pointer as to what to do next.

Exercise every day is not necessarily a bad thing as long as you are mixing things up and doing different exercises. I think you need to try and relax a bit about the scales, I've been stuck for the last three weeks but I'm not going to give up and I think today I've turned the corner again - 8 weeks and 8lbs is still the average 1lb a week loss. I think sometimes life just catches up and you need to try and focus on other things - clothes feeling looser is definitely not something to be ignored. If you've got other stresses going on this will only add to your frustration. A lb of muscle and a 1lb of fat weigh the same but just make your body shape different. Don't be disheartened, I'm sure its a temporary blip and you'll soon be on your way again.

Hi,
I think you are exercising way to much, and maybe eating to little on the other days.
and above all:
Stress can make things worse...
I do really hope and wish for you that you find your way in this 5:2 !!
I notice a bigger weight loss if I feed at least 2500 kcal on two of my feed day.
I wish you good luck! !

Hi. Seriously every single day?......way way to much exercising, your muscles need time to repair... That's why they are sore it's their way of saying "hello hurting here give me a break" are you training for an ironman triathlon?? Even if you were you'd know about resting muscles.
Stress.. Work stress, weight stress, general stress....it's one pound, yes it's annoying, but it's a pound. Sounds like you are over thinking, over stressing 5:2. And are you eating enough on your non fast days. This is a wol, let it take it's time and relax.

Hi all - thank you very much for taking the time to reply and share your thoughts. I exercise every day to keep myself in a routine. Many (most?) days it's no more than 20 minutes - the 30 Day Shred. Sometimes I add some time on the exercise bike or do a long walk with my family but certainly not every day. It's been a while since my muscles were really sore - they were when I started but not so much now. I don't spend hours every day at the gym!

As far as counting calories, you're right of course that knowing what you're consuming in a week is helpful toward being able to know why you are not losing weight. I have tried this, but find it extremely difficult on a very basic level to know how much I am eating of something for purposes of entering it into something like MFP. It isn't a problem of course when I eat at home (I have scales and volume measures), but in a "normal" week (which is what we're supposed to be measuring) I eat a few meals a week out, for example from our canteen. I try to keep my portions small/reasonable (I almost never eat a full one in any event) but I never know exactly how much I am consuming. This is one reason I struggled with Weight Watchers...

I know that, if I do nothing else, I really do need to relax and take a breath. Life feels very out of control at the moment - this was one thing I thought I might be able to control but obviously I can't.

Thanks again for the support.

Reading all the comments here I'm with Kencc, Phil, Janeg and Granny. I would follow their advice for a couple of weeks and if nothing happens then do what they say and add Caroline's advice in the mix.
I've heard many people saying that exercising a lot when you have excess weight won't help with weight loss. Even doctors say to first lose the weight and then work out to achieve firmer skin. I don't have the knowledge but perhaps they know what they are talking about?

You really need to chill out a bit. the more I stress about how much I'm losing the more my body hangs on to every last ounce! Use the exercise 2 or 3 times a week for toning and cardio-vascular benefits. Its a hopeless way to lose weight and just causes your body even more stress.

There is a definite trend if you read the posts for the weight to go in lumps with what can feel like an absolute age in between. Keep plugging on and it will shift again.