The FastDay Forum

Looks like 90% on here are ladies, so here's my thoughts on my first month as a bloke, if there are any other cavemen thinking of 5:2-ing.

Very suspicious of ANY diet, but this has totally blown me away with the ease of it all.

Started 12 stone 9 and at 5 ft 9in a bit chubby tbh. One month later and I'm back in the 11 stones albeit (11 st 13lbs) but so, so excited that I have changed my life.

For men its pretty easy, just don't go over 600 cals and mealplan your first 4 fasts. Drink, drink, drink water and then drink some more. I go for 5 x LITRES OF WATER A DAY + black coffees and green tea.

The first 4 fasts are nasty but gets way easier. Only side effects are being bunged up in the toilet department and not sleeping well on fasting nights.

The biggest thing for me is BEING IN CONTROL of my weight, even though I also started on the 5:2 because of the other health benefits.

Good luck to mankind.

Hi 'Bruce' and welcome to the forum! Great first post!

I concur with almost everything you say, including unfortunately the 'bunged up' bit (but, er, it passes). I don't go quite so overboard on the liquids and I haven't noticed that I sleep any worse on fasting nights (though I sleep pretty badly generally). I have always stuck to one evening meal on a fast day, partly because it gives me a 'true fast' of c.22 hours, but mostly because I find it easier. I used to be ravenous by early evening but now I am quite equable even then. I have almost always fasted Mondays & Thursdays (but did my first 'home' fast on a Sunday this week).

I absolutely agree about the sense of control, before I started this my weight had drifted upwards over the years and although I was only on the edge of the normal-to-overweight BMI I had pretty much resigned myself to getting steadily bigger and even to the idea that this probably meant an early grave. Which seems pretty pathetic in retrospect...

Like you I started this way of eating primarily for the health benefits. I wonder now whether I found the idea of a 'diet' a bit namby-pamby, a bit girly. So maybe subsconsciously 5:2 was attractive because it was a way to lose weight but I could say to myself "I'm not being vain or obsessive, I am doing this for my health". Quite a male way of looking at it I suppose. I only just thought of this!

It's fair to say we guys are in a minority here (I'm not complaining ladies BTW!) but there are still quite a few of us so I look forward to reading the observations of others with those XY chromosomes...

Hello, it's nice to see another gent amongst our weight warriors. My husband did it for a month and lost a stone but gave it up as his blood markers were not good but he has other health problems so it is not easy for him.

Great to hear how you lovely menfolk are doing, makes a change from loose bras, etc if you know what I mean, anyway, keep going and keep posting and geed luck.

Thank you Dominic for your help with my avatar, just another cute kitten, I know, but us shape shifting girls love that sort of stuff,

Ballerina x

Hey ballerina how did you get in here didn't you see the sign on the door?

I love your avatar BTW, we are cat crazy in our house too (one Maine Coon and one Birman)...

Hi chaps - and Ballerina! - I agree with all of you, except for the 5 liters of water (there is some research on the dangers of over-hydration for marathon runners, not sure if it applies to dieters but I could not get through all that anyway).
For me, the fasts have become enjoyable despite being no longer necessary for weight control so I have effectively taken up Ballerina's eating window method for fast days and it seems to be working well so far. Off out on my bike soon to pass the time to lunch...

Was very disappointed that this post wasn't about the gentleman s periodical that was popular with my teenage contemporaries back in the '80s.

Also as there will be no ladies reading this post due to the title, is everything I hear about Essex girls true?

Re your 5:2 questions, I echo Dominic re drinking liquids. I also stated if'ing for the health benefits, primarily reducing igf1. After 8mths have lost about 5 kg and still not had an igf1 test. don't know how it compares to other diets as have never done one. I often ask myself why I keep doing it as I feel like I have lost the focus of why I originally started. I think the main reasons for doing it now are that:
Subconsciously I think it's doing me good (nice vague reason...)
I believe it's good to give your digestive system a break 2x pw.
I don't think I'm as dependent on carbs as an energy source as I used to be.
The self discipline of 5:2 on fast days is good for me
I suspect if i stop i will regain some weight.

Whether I keep doing it for ever more remains to be seen. Came very close this winter to jacking it in due to cold on fast days. There are also fast days when I ask myself why I do this especially when the family are having a tasty meal. Despite the many posts on here that say its easy, I don't think it is. Would like to give paleo/primal a crack but think it would be too intrusive on family life. Am also interested in having a go at 16/8 but not sure if the health benefits are there.

Hurrah, a thread for men. Not that I have a problem discussing the diet with anyone at all regardless of sex, but it'll be interesting to get a direct perspective from other fellas.

Well done on the first month, I'm three weeks in (so on my 6th Fast day today) and am still struggling a bit. Mainly with just 'wanting to eat' as opposed to feeling hungry which I guess is probably 90% of the battle.

I've yet to see if today will result in "Angry Tuesday" again, but so far I've not woken up particularly hungry.

Hi fellow men, good to hear from you.
I've been doing 5:2 for 12 weeks now and have managed to lose 36lbs so far. Glad to see others are also doing well.
Kev.

Well done to the OP, had meant to set up a similar thread a while back as there's so few blokes on here.

This is my 9th week since starting, I've lost 12 lbs so far but had a few 6:1s and one week off during that time. Have recently started running 3 times a week which has accelerated weight loss again after stalling.

Would definitely agree this is a more male orientated diet than others, not wishing to sound sexist. The fact I can do it on 2 workdays a week and still conduct my social life in the same way at weekends in the pub and eating good food is a massive bonus. It's helped also that my housemate is doing it as well so we're able to help each other on fast days.

I find myself intrigued and amazed by the mesmeric number of threads concerning the diet. I am guessing it is bloke thing but to me it is an incredibly simple regime to follow. For two days a week I eat 600 calories but how I choose to do that varies according to how I feel and how hungry I am.
Plan A is to go throughout the day without eating, have a meal about 7pm and then go to bed. Plan B is to get into the afternoon and eat a couple of hundred calories and then have the rest in the evening. Plan C involves 3 meals spread throughout the day and Plan D is to pick another day if things are not going to plan (not had to do this yet but it is always an option).
Apart from that I drink lots of water and black coffee and, overall, it has been a relatively easy journey. I am now 22 pounds lighter and have an easy way to control my weight going forwards. I will soon be changing to a 6:1 maintenance programme to allow my body to adapt, but I know that if my weight creeps up ,or I decide I need to lose more weight, I can go back to 5:2 and deal with it.
However, I love all the stats and reading people’s stories and I am now a massive advocate of the 5:2 and find that I am being asked more and more about it. Many myths and fears have been dispelled by the thousands (millions?) of people who have been following it but I am equally aware that as yet we do not have any long term data on the effects. Personally I feel great and for the moment that is all the data I need.
Happy fasting.....

Hi guys! I would love to know how I can get my son to take up 5.2 - he is currently doing the Dukan diet, which I find very restrictive but it does seem to appeal more to men than the fairer sex - all that control perhaps, (and meat of course!). He married a lovely lass from Sardinia 3 years ago and has been enjoying the good life of lots of pasta, pizza and a thickening waistline! We are holidaying together in Sardinia in August and I am hoping by that time I will be slim (well, slimmer) and that will impress him. I am planning to take my bible, I mean The Fast Diet book, as holiday reading and leave it lying around, strategically. Hope it will persuade him to join you !

Hi guys, I'm just two fasts in and have about 4.5 stone to lose so I'm in for the long haul! I've always found "dieting" a pain - it's the daily restriction I struggle with. On the 5:2 the fact that the "pain" only lasts a day makes it so much easier. The other thing is that actually, looking back, I spent most of my late teens and early twenties skipping meals and only eating in the evening - I had better things to spend my lunch money on than food! I was thin in those days so all I'm doing is recreating my yoof!

Simon, I find that quite interesting too, given the simple premise of "Roughly 3500 calories is a pound, so if you eat 3700 fewer calories a week, you'll lose about a pound a week". That's regular and well established science.

There's no magic secret to the diet over any other, it's just putting in an enforced and slightly radical deficit, rather than calorie counting all your meals throughout the week.

HOWEVER (and more importantly) there are clearly other benefits to Intermittent Fasting other than weight loss, which need some ongoing discussion. For me, at least, the psychology of WHY we eat so much, being one of them.

Hi Guys
this is my 4th week, diet days mondays and thursdays which is great for me. My partner and I can enjoy the weekends.
The thing I love about the diet is not calorie counting, I don't eat fast days, just have tea, coffee with a little milk and water.
Its working for me so far, losing on average 2lb per week.
We are going to the lake district for the bank holiday weekend, so I am likely to miss a diet day and eat quite a bit more that weekend
So will see what happens

Hey ballerina how did you get in here didn't you see the sign on the door?

Aw come on dominic - brucewillis's subject line is like a red rag to a bull... or maybe it's just me. Sorry to gate crash but it IS nice to see you men bonding My hubby is on this with me - has lost nearly 2stone since Christmas and is practically at his target weight of 12st - he's over the moon ..... and that includes the chocolate hob nobs that he eats on feast days - not quite sure how he's managed it - but he is VERY strict on fast days - only one meal in the evening which is often about 250/300 cals worth. Good luck to you all - I'll try and stay away in future