The FastDay Forum

Thanks @annieDfor pitching the tent!

As it is my Fastiversary today I have been reflecting on my journey. My story is as follows:

I had been a naturally slim person until my thirties and if I'm honest I had been a bit smug about this and couldn't understand how people could get to be fat. I even lost all my pregnancy weight within two weeks of giving birth to my two daughters. However things changed in my thirties and my weight started to creep up every year. I told myself that this was just the way I was and it had happened to all the women in my family. My OH still told me I was beautiful and attractive which was lovely. I did try dieting but regained whatever I lost plus a bit more. I reached my 50th birthday in 2012 and my highest weight - 13 stones. This was two stones heavier than I had been at full term when pregnant. Size 16 clothes were feeling tight. I felt middle aged and invisible. I hated buying clothes as nothing looked good on me .

In August 2012 I saw the Dr M Horizon programme on 5:2 and decided to give it a go. I continued for a few weeks and lost several pounds but gave up when life got in the way.

At Christmas 2012 I had a really severe case of flu and was laid low for a couple of weeks. As I was really ill it meant that I ate very little and lost weight instead of my usual 5 - 7lbs festive gain. In January 2013 I decided to build on this unexpected loss and to start dieting again. At the same time Dr M's book was published. I read it almost at one sitting and decided to start 5:2 again. Through his website I found this forum and my journey began.

One year on I have lost nearly 30lbs, am lighter than I have been for over 20 years, and am size 12. I am so happy and full of self confidence again. I have bought lots of lovely clothes that show off my figure and I feel attractive and definitely not middle aged. I am sure that my new confidence also helped me to find a new job which is a big promotion and I really enjoy it.

I found it easy to lose weight following this WOE. I still can't believe that I reached my target and have maintained it easily, apart from a blip at Christmas which I have sorted out by going back to 5:2 for a couple of weeks.

I have said it many times over the last year but I cannot thank @Moogie enough for creating this forum and all the members who provide such amazing support and encouragement. My success is entirely down to you.

I hope my story and those of the others in the Fastiversary tent will encourage newbies and anyone who is faltering on their journey.

@gorba (18/1), I agree with @callyanna, @ballerina & @Tracieknits (8/1) ..... what are you worrying about? Your post is quite inspirational. I know I've done well & I'm reet pleased with myself, but I constantly fail to write such posts!

& whilst we're at it, @carorees (5/11/2012) .... well, how did you EVER start without this forum ????

@lesley54 you're a bit of a dark horse aren't you? 16.33kg and a fastiversary under the belt

@ballerina & @Sue.Q I love that you're here with us ahead of time too (oops, you're gonna beat me Ballerina )

I'm wondering what we should be up to in this tent?

Feeling like a party zone to me .....


Edit ... Thank you @windsinger123, I think that most of us reaching our fastiversary have similar stories (or we wouldn't still be here!), but often we don't take the time to write it all out ....

I hope my story and those of the others in the Fastiversary tent will encourage newbies and anyone who is faltering on their journey

...... how can it fail?

Can I join in , mine was November 12th. I didn't quite make my original target of 2.5 stone off for my fastiversary but I have done that now and have set a new target of 1.5 stone for this year - I'm on the scenic route

Today is my fastiversary. A year ago I weighed 68kg, and my waist measured ~82cm. Today I weigh 59kg and my waist is 71cm (~44% W:H). I have lost 9kg in a year and sticking to this WOL is not that hard because I know that if I still really want to eat it I can have it tomorrow and not feel guilty about it. (Providing I am still within TDEE).

In the last few months of 2012-Jan 2013 I lost approx. 4kg low carbing and although I had only been at it for a few months it really felt difficult to sustain and I was already struggling with a plateau that was starting to get the better of me and the weight was ever so slowly creeping up.

I googled something like "how do I kick start weight loss off a plateau" and a little bit of surfing took me to a fasting forum where people were into extremely long fasts. I thought that I would never be able to do that but I read a few forum posts just out of curiosity. One of the extreme fasting forum posters suggested on their forum for those who aren't into extreme fasting you should try short term fasting and gave a link to another forum that explained the in's and out's of 5:2 (not our forum as it was not yet created). For about two weeks I read everything I could get my hands on about fasting and having ordered the Michael Mosley 5:2 fast diet book from the UK (as it was not yet available in Australia) I found myself at the point where I was so excited I just started fasting before my copy of the book had even arrived. I never looked back.

In my first year of fasting 5:2:

I have learned to differentiate between when I am hungry and when I am thirsty/bored/emotional and therefore I now eat when I am hungry, drink when I am thirsty and do something nice for myself (not food) when I need an emotional pick-me-up.

I rarely snack in between meals and I don't miss snacking. I have saved a fortune not just in my weekly food bill but I no longer buy food when out and about e.g. a muffin, or ham and cheese roll as I can now easily go through my day on three square meals.

In the last year (I never thought I would ever say this) but I had a packet of chocolate biscuits (cookies for our friends in the US) go past their use by date.

I can pretty much see myself continuing this WOL and Deo volente I shall be back in this post this time next year telling you all about how I have continued my journey.

Today is my fastiversary. A year ago I weighed 68kg, and my waist measured ~82cm. Today I weigh 59kg and my waist is 71cm (~44% W:H). I have lost 9kg in a year and sticking to this WOL is not that hard because I know that if I still really want to eat it I can have it tomorrow and not feel guilty about it. (Providing I am still within TDEE).

.......

I have learned to differentiate between when I am hungry and when I am thirsty/bored/emotional and therefore I now eat when I am hungry, drink when I am thirsty and do something nice for myself (not food) when I need an emotional pick-me-up.

I rarely snack in between meals and I don't miss snacking. I have saved a fortune not just in my weekly food bill but I no longer buy food when out and about e.g. a muffin, or ham and cheese roll as I can now easily go through my day on three square meals.

.....

Well done you

Congratulations on your fastiversary & thank you for the inspirational words


Sometimes (ok, rarely, but still sometimes) I wonder if I may slip back to that dark place where I was before. But this forum, & tales like this, give me strength

Better pop in here now because I won't have time tomorrow! First fast was Feb 3rd last year so I have overshot the anniversary, but I found this site and signed up on the 8th, so tomorrow is my Forumversary. I admit to having a few days poking around the original MM website but hated it, this was a breath of fresh air and having real experts like Carorees and PhilT and Kencc as well as the comic content from you-know-who convinced me to stay, and contribute as best I could in my field of experience.
The actual fasting worked so well that I was in maintenance after less than three months, at a weight I never expected but found by experiment. Still there, near enough, but Xmas did add a couple of pounds briefly - I suspect we should have summer & winter targets because we need the extra insulation and the weather precludes exercising outdoors!
Anyway, I have really enjoyed your company over the last year. I might not be so active over the next few weeks as MrsPete's auntie died last week and we have an estate to sort out and property to clear and sell so my old habit of sitting down for a morning and reading the forum will have to be tempered a bit, rest assured I shall look in from time to time to keep an eye on the parkrunners!

Happy Fastiversary @CreakyPete Well done you've had a good year and yes what a brilliant forum and the one legged @ballerina Keeps us all entertained.
Good Luck with the sort out we are going through the
same nightmare.

Oh wow i am in awe never mind in Tent! All the fab success stories! I think i might get booted out coz i just wanted to report my 6 month anniversary today..now two stone down ..(tho in the 26 weeks,didnt lose for the first five,so ive lost 30 lb in 21 weeks. )
In the next 26 weeks i hope to lose 2 more stone and am gonna maybe need to be stricter on self to achieve that .. XX

@TheFrog just read about your out of date biccies! really!OMG!
To me,thats,like,the 8 th Wonder of the World! Respect! I dont think i could ever attain that status! X

Just one more thing before i leave the tent,bowing out backwards...have just read all the stories here and thank you all for sharing them.
us newer ones are so,fortunate to have the longtimers year long experiences to inspire us and keep us going ! X

@CandiceMarie Happy half fastiversary to you and congratulations on your weightloss in that time you've done brilliantly well. Good luck with the remainder
Sue

:heart: @CandiceMarie Happy half fastiversary to you and congratulations on your weightloss in that time you've done brilliantly well. Good luck with the remainder
Sue

I second that!

@candicemarie WELL DONE YOU 6-month fastiversary is for celebrating ....... heck a 1-month fastiversary is excellent too

I'm starting to get REAL scared, my fastiversary is 26/2 and I'd really like to still be on target. I'm so hard on myself that even a 100g slip will be a fail. I sometimes worry about that & wonder if I'm obsessing, but in defense, I also don't actally want to be any lower & I eat more in order to not lose any more! I guess the homeopathist that said (12 years ago) that I'm a control freak, was right! But at least my life is now back under control!!!!!!!

P.S. no-one gets booted out of this tent, all are welcome, this is the happy/party/celebrating tent

Thanks @AnnieDx
And please don't be hard on yourself,life is too short as they say to stuff a mushroom - or to worry about 100 gs! X
Well done on your fastiversary...fast or feast you ask! Well,as you also said,this is a party zone,so i declare your Annie- versary a Feast Day!

@CandiceMarie quote" Life is too short to stuff a mushroom" that is hilarious and soooo true. Where did that little gem come from? Can I use it?
I'll jump this post in a month on my fastiversary. Hopefully my weight will have started moving downwards by then. Funny thing is I'm not panicked as this is the way I eat now (5:2) it will all happen in its own time.
Xxx

Hee hee actually we're going out to my favourite restaurant on my fastiversary so I certainly will be feasting (especially since it's a businesss affair so all paid for )