The FastDay Forum

I did not know I was to check in on Sunday. Rookie error.
So week one for me did not go well.
I was new to fasting and I managed to go through the day no problems but struggled at night.
I counted it as easing in and learning the ropes.

So Sunday night was 115.3kg.
Not a good start, but learning about myself and the 5:2 diet.

This week is already going better. Bring on next weigh in!

@BABrisbane, you can check in when you like, but many aim for a weekly check in.

I am doing my first check in, I only started the challenge just over a week ago. Very happy with it, no overindulging and 3 light days... The latter only possible because I had so many "heavy" days the week before.

Having the FODMAP restrictions seems to be helping. Although in principle I don't like strict rules, I do admit that in the short term at least they can be very helpful!

Welcome @autumnkathleen! As you say, 4:3 isn't all that common compared to 5:2. @Maryann is someone who had success with that strategy and could give you more info on how that went. I do recall comments - maybe even some data analysis - from ages ago that showed that weight loss on 4:3 wasn't all that different to 5:2 - about a pound a week on average.

Some people make their trackers available for others to look at, so it is worth looking at a few - do note the timeline at the bottom though (you will see that mine stopped some while ago when I stopped weighing). Lil for example has a great trajectory but many are much more varied.

It is very normal for weight measurement to vary from day to day, and I think quite common for a loss to be shown a couple of days after the fast day.

Good luck and best wishes and keep us posted on your progress.

Hello all! I have just been catching up on this thread and agree with @Sassy1 and @autumnkathleen that I show no weight loss immediately after my fast days but generally do on the day after that - provided that I haven't eaten too much on the non-fast days of course! I am currently showing a loss for this week but, because my 'official' weigh-in is always on Sunday, (and has been for the last forty years!) anything could happen between now and then.

I am trying a new approach to getting some exercise into my life. I have dug out my very old cross-trainer and put it in my study, next to my desk. I set a timer for 55 minutes and then do five minutes on the cross trainer before re-setting the timer for another 55 minutes. I tried it yesterday and couldn't even do five minutes without my legs aching and getting out of breath. It just shows how unfit I am, so I really want to persevere. Actually, given my apathy towards exercise. it would be more accurate to say that ought to read 'should' persevere not 'want to'!

Anyway, good luck to all on this challenge. Stay strong! I am off to find the Fasting Today thread. I need to be distracted from my rumbling tum!

Hi @AutumnKathleen and welcome!! It sounds like you are doing well so far! Maybe you want to try to weigh yourself once a week to avoid the "bouncing" on the scale. Or I also use an app called Libra, in which you weigh yourself every day but it gives you your trend weight. Good luck!

@Tracieknits - that's great you are working. I find I do much better when I'm working! At least all the birthday celebrations are in one day and not spread out over the weekend! Enjoy your cake!

@BABrisbane - as Sassy1 said you can check in whenever you want! I check in on Mondays, since that's my official WI date! It definitely could take a little time to get used to fasting. Some people spread their calories throughout the day when fasting, that might help. I have a hard time fasting every day, but I am very comfortable now doing 16:8, which means I eat every day in an 8 hour window. But, you just have to experiment and find what works best for you!

@Sassy1 - glad you are doing well this week and the FODMAP is helping!

@Fat_teacher - we haven't heard from you in a bit, how are you doing?

I am doing pretty well this week, but today is Rosh Hashanah and I have the day off! It is a gorgeous day and I'm so excited to be able to get in a walk. I will still be going into school for a bit and to Starbucks to work on my college class, but it will be a more relaxed day. For some reason, I woke up really hungry, so I decided to have breakfast. I'll be getting a salad for dinner tonight, so even with breakfast my carbs and calories are within my goals. However, I'm also feeling like I might need a chai latte today! Calorie wise, I'll still be just over 1000, but it will push me over my 100g of carbs. We'll see how it goes!

This weekend, I have dinner plans on Saturday before seeing a Beatles cover band. I don't know where we are going to dinner yet, but I hope it's the place that has the salads I really like! I have to try to be good on Saturday, because on Sunday I'm going to the Big E, which is a big New England Fall Fair and there's tons of delicious, but terribly unhealthy food there!! At least there will be a lot of walking too!

Have a great weekend everyone and good luck with your challenges!

[Tracieknits]

Ack! Thanks for the reminder about the Big E - I guess at least we will be warned that traffic on the 30th will be horrible. we have to drive through Springfield to get to my mom's house.

I hope you have a fun weekend and can keep it mostly in check. Why not suggest 3 places to the group that you know are places where you can eat on plan? Then let them pick from the list. That's what I've been doing and nobody seems to mind.

I just bought keto sticks so I could test myself and see how many carbs are too many. I did mostly buy them for my husband who seems to really be struggling with the plan.

I already did suggest some places and am waiting to hear back. I actually don't worry too much about being "on plan" on the weekend. I can find something reasonable most anywhere, but my goal is to be very good during the week and splurge a bit on the weekend. But, if we go to the good salad place, I'll be happy to get a salad! if we go to the Italian place, it'll be a gorgonzola steak pizza! Either way, I'm good with it. We'll see what happens. I will plan to be good the rest of the day on Saturday. For example, I am "allowed" to get a chai latte before my class, but I will not get the chocolate croissant to go with it!

It'll be interesting to see what the keto sticks say!

Thank you everyone for the wonderful welcome messages! I am looking forward to learning more about everyone and sharing experiences with this intermittent fasting plan.

[tag][/Sassy1tag] thanks for all the tips. I didn't know about the trackers. Just set my up and will look at some others for sure. You are doing wonderful with your maintenance! Are you strict with your 5:2? Do you also do low carb? I've heard the 5:2 has very close results to 4:3. Not sure why I picked 4:3 to try, but I will keep with it for a while to see how I do and then maybe switch.

[tag][/StowgateResidenttag] yes, my weight definitely jumps around. I have noticed over the years that I do better to keep weighing myself once a day. If I'm up I usually know why and it doesn't really bother me too much. Good job on your cross trainer - really! Every little bit adds up. Is there any other exercise you like a little more? I actually do like most forms of exercise, but I'm limited right now due to an injury and working through therapy. Therapist is allowing water aerobics on top of what training I do with her. The water aerobics have been so nice. You know you're working out but feels relaxing at the same time.

[tag][/cblasztag] thanks for all the tips, too! That Libra app sounds interesting. I'll check it out. I definitely do better when I focus on my weight trend. But for some reason, I have to see that number every morning, just to see. That fall fair sounds so nice. I love fall, by far my favorite season. Hopefully all your walking will help offset any extra food. Enjoy your weekend activities!

My weekend will have lots of eating events, too. Dinner out both Friday and Saturday. I expect the scale to be up on Sunday for sure, but will concentrate on keeping the rest of the days very light with veggies and protein. Tonight is my water aerobics class, looking forward to the movement and burning some calories.

Hope everyone has a great day! (P.S. Not sure I'm tagging correctly, guess I'll see)

Hi, @autumnkathleen. If you want to tag someone you need to use the 'post a reply' button not the 'Quick Reply' one. Then include their user name in your message, making sure that it is spelled correctly and with spaces and capital letters where used.

Then highlight it, either by double clicking, click and drag etc. Once it is highlighted simply click on the 'tag' button above the box where you are typing. The name will then have@in front of it and at the end. You cannot tag anyone by just typing these characters around their name, you must use the 'tag' button.

If you want to see whether your tag has worked, use the orange 'Preview' button below the box where you are typing and you will get a preview of your post. If your tag has been successful it will have @ in front of the name which will (I think!) appear in colour.

Hope that this helps!

Lots of posts since I was last here - lovely! We have a glorious Spring day and I am sitting outside with a cuppa waiting for another load of washing to finish - and someone has just started a bonfire nearby. That means smoky washing, most annoying. I live in an area where burning off is allowed, as it is a high fire risk area. So I have gone inside and shut all the windows, just when it was a great day to air the house. I think I will defer hanging out the washing and hope the fire doesn't go all day. (Well, the previous was the situation when I started this post, but it has taken me hours to get around to finishing... )

Anyhow...

@Stowgateresident, good for you with the cross trainer! Are you able to watch TV or something on a notepad while you exercise - that helps me when I am on the treadmill!!

@Cblasz, enjoy the concert and the weekend activities, they all sound good!

@Tracieknits, I have never heard of keto sticks, how do they work? How are you finding the low carb - how much does a glass of wine count...

@Autumnkathleen, btw you can edit your posts after you have submitted them if you want to fix up errors you didn't notice in preview mode. Thanks for asking about my situation - though you won't have to read too many of my posts to know just where I stand on everything!! One of the reasons I said to note the timeline on the tracker is you will see mine stopped some while ago. As mentioned, I don't weigh myself, haven't in ages, but judging by how my clothes fit, I think I have put on around 5kgs since reaching goal. I guess I am around 60kg, about 9 1/2 stone. This is still a healthy weight for my height. I stopped regular 5:2 a couple of years ago when I realised I was having to fast just to maintain, which meant I was overeating on the other days. (When I was fasting and aiming to lose weight, I did find that I had to be pretty strict with the protein, fat, fruit, grain and starchy veg cals on fast days in order to lose weight and keep it around 500 (ie not let it creep to 800) - though I never weighed anything just guessed the cals based on my knowledge of approx calorie content.)

Since I stopped regular 5:2 I have been trying to eat according to hunger, but have had a battle with the habit of eating in the evenings for other reasons. I do still fast from time to time, as I believe that fasting has benefits aside from helping with weight loss - and as an antidote to overindulgence... I do not follow a low carb diet, since, as a result of weighing (!) up all the varied opinions from the reading I have done and the professionals I have consulted, I do believe that grains, fruits and all sorts of, including starchy, veg (in appropriate quantities) are an important part of a balanced diet. That being said, I acknowledge that for people with certain health issues, the amount and type of carbs consumed do need to be more carefully monitored. And that low carb can help with weight loss. But if we all cut out / severely reduced processed foods, especially those with high added sugar content, as well as refined grains, then most of us probably would not need to go low carb. (You will wish you never asked!)

Best wishes to all challengers!

I don't think Fat_Teacher is with us anymore. His blog has disappeared, which is disappointing because I really enjoyed reading it....

I don't think Fat_Teacher is with us anymore. His blog has disappeared, which is disappointing because I really enjoyed reading it....

It hasn't disappeared, he just hasn't posted in a couple of weeks. He might just be busy!

Checking in on my regular weigh-in day. This week the scales showed 10 stone 8.6 pounds - that is 148.6 pounds in American! That is down 3.2 pounds since last Sunday, compared to the week previously in which in which the scales didn't move at all. It just goes to show that keeping on does have some rewards! Hopefully it won't be too long until I can change my tracker back from 'trying to lose weight' to 'maintaining my weight'. Only 1.4 pounds to go but next Saturday I am having lunch out with my sisters followed by afternoon tea at a 50-year reunion with some old school friends, so I can imagine what the scales will show next Sunday!

I have been very strict with myself on my non-fast days this week and have kept treats to a minimum. Unusually, I have also reduced my carbs, not abandoned them entirely but a salad or soup at lunchtimes instead of a sandwich made of two slices of bread with butter and filled with protein. The reduction in carbs has meant a short term loss of fluid but I must also have lost some fat because my 'back fat' has considerably reduced since my return from the last cruise, as has the fat from other parts of my body. I have also tried to increase the amount of walking that I do and the reintroduction of the cross trainer into my study may also have helped, even if only a little. Even if it hasn't helped with the weight loss, it should be providing benefits in other areas of my health.

Better go, my cross trainer is calling me because I have been at my computer for an hour. I am a slave to my timer! Keep on keeping on, folks! Still plenty of time in this challenge to lose more weight and remember to keep posting even if things aren't going to well. They will improve!

@StowgateResident - Congrats! Sounds like you are really doing great!! I'm sure you'll reach your goal at this rate!

I ate more calories and carbs than I should've yesterday, but I also got in 15,000 steps! I had a very busy day. I'm exhausted today, but headed up to the Big E soon. The scale is up a little bit today from yesterday, so hopefully I won't make it much worse today!

Thanks, @cblasz. I would have been pleased to have lost anything but I am already preparing myself for no loss, or even a gain, next week. However, I have no intention of giving up although I have noticed that temptation can come out of anywhere and can strike at any time! Sometimes I give in to it but very occasionally I can ignore it and go on my way. It does make me feel good when that happens!

I am sorry but I don't know what the Big E is but it sounds as if you are looking forward to it, so I hope that you have a good time. Well done on all those steps yesterday! I am still struggling to get to my daily target of 7500. I haven't managed it once this week but at least I have walked every day. So that is something of a win! Have a good day!

Well, I'm up .3 lbs. today, which isn't really surprising based on the eating I did this weekend. Hopefully it's just temporary!