The FastDay Forum

So I started 5:2 (well for me it's been 4:3) last week, fasting on tuesday, thursday and sunday, and eating normally for the other 4 days. I was pleased to find that eating 500cals in one day was a lot easier than I expected... but I got on the scales this morning and haven't lost an ounce!

Don't know if I have been doing anything wrong so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as it's disappointing to not lose an ounce of weight on week 1 when people are meant to see the most dramatic weight loss! (or so I've heard)

@millymayDon't despair this WOL is so unpredictable and many members post that it's sometimes weeks before a loss shows on scale have you measured and maybe a change there, its still early days for you so keep doing what you've been doing and the scale weight will show eventually its got to!!!

Did you take your measurements at the start compared to today?
Sometimes the measure tape tells a better story!

What have you been eating on your 4 x 'feast' days?

HI Milly

Please don't be disheartened - you body will be adjusting but when you say you were eating normally do you think you were keeping to an average of 2,000 kcals a day?

A lot of people don't monitor what they eat for the feed days and lose weight etc but I do as it's actually quite easy to eat 2,000 kcals and not realise it, I am speaking from experience as I count during the week as its eaiser as im in a routine because of work and at the weekend I don't which I feel slows down my weightloss. i'm going to write down what I eat over the weekend too this week and see if it makes a difference with my weightloss.

As I said - don't despair this week is a new week - good luck x

Try to relax and let your body get used to your new approach on food. Like Sue said, maybe you should try your measurements. Do you feel any difference on how your clothes fit ?

[Betsysgr8]

Sorry that you haven't seen a change on the scale but as Sue and Rob suggested, take measurements as sometimes it's weight just shifting around. Also, is it that TOM? If it is, then the water retention would mask any actual weight loss. There is a very good thread by Carorees titled "why do the scales show in increase when I've been so good?" not-losing-weight-f27/5-2-diet-weight-gain-t1006.html , this explains alot on what the body is doing or not doing. Be patient, the loss will come.

[Betsysgr8]

Oh! and Milly did you weigh in the same manner as prior? Be sure to weigh under the same circumstances ie: no clothes/ or same clothes, after visit to the loo, first thing in the morning before drinking any coffee/tea/water. A glass of water can add .5 - 1 lb on the scale.

It was a month before I lost anything, so my advice is to keep going. You should also monitor your eating on non fast days also so you stay within your TDEE and don't undo your good work.

Stick with it! Dramatic results will follow. Just not after one week.

The average weight loss is one pound a week. I'm one of those people pulling down the average, taking over a year to lose the 31 pounds I wanted to lose. I'm not saying this to warn you that your loss may be as slow - I was slower than average because of the way I chose to do it, and if you are doing 4:3 and sticking strictly to your 500 then I'd expect you to lose quicker than me. I'm saying this because the difference to my life that getting to goal has made is every bit as dramatic as you could possibly hope for. Looking and feeling like a new person, that's dramatic. Numbers on a scale - well, some people might call that dramatic but it wouldn't be winning any Oscars with me.
You're doing everything right. The happy ending is waiting for you. Don't even think of giving up - that would be a tragedy.

I feel you Milley. from reading these boards it almost seems like 5:2 is Magic but if you drill a little deeper you'll see that one thing that keeps coming up is this is a very slow way to lose weight. it will happen if you keep up with it. I have to remind myself of that - sometimes 5x/day! you'll get there! think about how you feel, that's what makes the biggest difference to me. I feel so much better - more energy, more alert & that's as valuable to me as losing weight. Good luck & keep it up...we're here for you:)

Due to the slow (safe!) weight loss of ave 1lb per week it might be worth while weighing yourself fortnightly or monthly?
I wouldn't be able to detect a half or 1 lb loss on my scales so opting for less regular weigh ins. That was also will register bigger loses!

Hi thanks for all the support guys! I haven't been measuring myself but I might start and hopefully see some change there within the next few weeks... don't worry I'm not giving up on this anytime soon, it's just disappointing not to see any results this week but I will try to be patient and hopefully will have some more positive results to report next week!

fingers crossed

Hi:

What did you do wrong?

You started without an understanding of how diets, and 5:2 in particular, work. 5:2 was not developed as a weight loss diet. Unlike commercial diets that are designed to have large initial water weight losses, 5:2 works differently and slowly on everyone.

Hopefully as you stick with 5:2 and read the information on this site you will become more comfortable with slow weight loss. In the meantime, here is how my weight loss pattern proceeded - I did not lose any weight on 5:2 for my first three weeks! post71147.html#p71147

Good Luck!

Do you eat a lot of carbohydrates on your normal eating days? It might be that you are retaining the extra fluid that your body needs to process them.....