The FastDay Forum

I lost a stone once doing no exercise - I exercise now, but not sure how much it has contributed as I did it before doing the 5:2. There was an interesting article on this a few years ago - as has been said in previous posts, people who exercise often eat more than they should so it counteracts any advantage
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/ ... lic-health

Hi Franglaise,
Thanks for the link, it's really interesting.
So, I think the bottom line is that we need exercise for health and to tone our bodies but not necessarily for weight loss.

Hi,
I don't exercise as I'm disabled and I've just lost 5lbs in my first week so in answer to your question yes it works without exercise.

I've just finished my 3rd week and have lost 7 pounds. This has been mostly without exercising. I fell off the wagon last May and have only exercised sporadically since then. However, I'm trying to get back into a routine. They say it takes 6 weeks to build a new habit!

Is Zumba popular in Britain? It's really popular in the U.S. among women (and some men of all ages).

I was 63, right on the BMI line of obese, and starting to walk like a "little old lady," according to my husband. I began going to Zumba class 3 times per week and kept it up for a couple of months before going to Europe with my daughter for 5 weeks while carrying an insanely heavy backpack. I would have died and been buried at the bottom of a 10 flight stair up a hill in Barcelona if not for zumba! I lost some weight while there and since I got home, and I've largely kept it off (2 years) through sensible but not onerous eating, walking fast when going places, and zumba.

But the most encouraging thing is that my belly is largely gone. I am basically a pear shape (always had a relatively small waist until about 10 years ago when I found myself stuck with a belly and muffintop). I was very discouraged because it didn't seem to be anything that I could change. But through zumba and fast walking, it happened. Even my hips and rear end are better. It is fun to look for clothes; I don't have to settle for the thing that looks the least bad.

A new WOE is cool, but for it to last, it has to be a new WOL. Zumba is so dang much fun that I look forward to classes rather than dread them. Give it a try! Commit to 3 or 4 classes; everyone goes at their own level--it's the opposite of those competitive classes. The changes in my body and the way I feel give me the encouragement to stick with 5:2. And, I no longer totter around like a little old lady!

Disclaimer: I am not a Zumba instructor, just an aficionado!

I bought a set of dvd's to learn how to do zumba,but sadly they are languishing in a drawer. I found it difficult, possibly something to do with having two left feet and sadly, no sense of rhythm. I would love to be able to do it and will give it another go(in the privacy of my living room) and if I can master a few steps go to a class - the back of the class I do go to yoga and have noticed I find some poses a lot easier since my belly has shrunk a little!

Depends what you call exercise! I do 20 secs x3 of high intensity biking 3 times a week...according to DrM's HIIT protocol as shown in his documentary "the truth about exercise" (link in resources). So that's only 3 mins exercise a week! I've lost plenty as you can see from my profile on the left here.

Hi Carorees -- how is that going for you? Have you noticed any difference? Do you feel better? I'm curious to know.

[carorees]

I think it does make a difference. I skipped it over the last couple of weeks because I was going swimming and other things but simultaneously my weight loss has slowed. I'm doing it again this week so we'll see if it makes a difference to weightloss.

I think it had improved something else though because I found the swimming much easier...I was able to take a breath every fourth stroke rather than every other stroke when swimming front crawl...either my technique unnoticed without me actually going swimming or the HIIT has helped!

I got myself two Labradors to encourage walking and if it wasn't for them I think I would be starting this diet at well over 20 stone whereas I was 19.4 stone when I started slimming world in Jan and now 17.6 stone starting on this diet, hopefully that will be 17.3 or something at first weigh in on fri!! I think you can lose weight without high intensity exercise, which is something I really don't enjoy. I think exercise makes you feel more ready to face the day and improves your mood. I suffer from depression and it is great for making me feel motivated

When I worked at a place which had its own gym, one of my colleagues and I used to spend our lunch hours working out on the various pieces of equipment there. My experience was that, after a hot and sweaty workout and a quick shower, the last thing I wanted was a substantial meal - half a sandwich and a lot of water were more than enough.

Also, on evenings when I had an aerobics class, I would eat very lightly beforehand, as aerobics on a full stomach is not a good idea.

So exercise certainly kept the pounds off in those days, if indirectly!

I think if you start exercising it's a good idea to keep a food diary, even if you aren't counting calories. Exercise can make you hungrier, and unless you're keeping track, you might not even notice. A couple of years ago I was running 3 times a week. Everyone said they thought I had lost weight (though I'm not sure because I wasn't weighing myself). I probably was trimmer, if not lighter. Then I had to stop because of an injury. And I gained weight. I wasn't keeping track, but I suspect it was because I was still eating the same.

Going back to the OP, I think the exercise you get incidentally is really good for you. I'm sure being on my feet in the lab all day helped control my weight (and contributed to my health) in my 20s and 30s. Alas, I'm usually at a desk these days (recently switched to a standing desk). All the walking you do if you use public transport is also very good. I have a car now for the first time in almost 20 years. I'm sure that also has helped pile on the pounds.

It sounds like exercise can really help for a lot of reasons: fun, mood elevating, stress busting, and when you're exercising you can't be eating! I always feel better when I leave than I did when I went in.

dhana, I'm not sure that if I'd started out with DVDs that I would have stuck with it (zumba). Going to the classes with a real live teacher to watch and imitate was what kept me around long enough to get over my own 2 left feet. It is so cool to watch women that come in without knowing what to do and then see how they just get better and better and have such a good time! There have also been some amazing body transformations over the months. I take the classes through our town's recreation department, but when I travel, I just go online and find a class wherever we are. It's fun even when the steps are a little different.

The young woman who teaches here began doing zumba after she was recovering from a mastectomy, chemo and radiation. She had gained a lot of weight and decided get the training to be certified. At first she thought she would wait until she lost weight, but then she decided to just start teaching even though she was heavy. She lost the weight teaching zumba. She's a positive person and a real inspiration.

Hi

I've lost quite a bit on this way of eating and I only get a little exercise.
I've been getting the bus and train to work instead of driving for just over a year and so have lots of small walks to bus stop. train station and then to the office and then back. Although that has helped with toning and strength it didn't affect my weight. I also do Pilates once a week in a class.

I only started losing weight when I started doing 4:3 (so one more fast day than 5:2).

However I have felt more energetic on this diet so want to move about more and get more exercise or even just stand up instead of sitting down. The increased energy isn't just because I am lighter - several years ago I lost a lot of weight and didn't feel any better (I put it all back on later) but this time I feel I have more energy. I nearly love that aspect as much as the weight loss.

I only swim laps twice a week for 20 mins. Interestingly I used to think swimming made me hungry, but now I try and do my laps on my fasting days and find it is fine.
Thanks Caroline for the tips on the bike excercise- I must have ignored that bit in the book, as I often do at the mention of excercise!Planing to try it on our neglected bike.
Years ago I lost 18kg with WW and I'm sure that walking 4k almost every day helped then, but of course I didn't keep it off.
I read an article today that said the average time for women to stay on any weight loss diet is 5 weeks and 2 days, so I'm very pleased to have been on this WOE now for 6 weeks and 2 days with definitely no thought of stopping!