The FastDay Forum

after My wife and i watched the horizon documentary we decided to give the 5:2 a go.
so far its been pretty good and i have lost 2 kg. Ill keep my progress charts going on here as i plan to lose around 4 stone in total over the next year or so.

Well done mattster and welcome to the forum. Great to hear of your success though - if you saw the documentary when it originally aired in August - 2kg is (how shall I put this?) quite a gentle start - but it's progress which is the key thing, and you are getting the health benefits. Let us know how here you get on!

thanks for the reply. i should add that the start date should be the 1st feb and was a typo on my part.

In that case, 2kg in 12 days.. impressive!

Hello,
Just joined for some advice etc. I'm very impressed by your weight loss mattster - I've been on and off 5:2 since the summer with no great results. I seem to last a month haven't lost more than a lb (I tend to fluctuate by 6-7lbs during the month anyway) so give up for a few weeks, start again... Just completed my 7th fast of this new start and haven't lost a thing, body fat % is between 29 and 26% and changes every time I measure (2xweek). Quite frustrated by the whole thing, but I do feel better when on a fast regime. Anyone else having no real weight loss, any ideas?
Thanks!

[carorees]

Hi Stoat and welcome to the forum

The first thing to say is that we would need for information to be able to suggest how you might be able to make some progress. However, the first thing to do is to check whether you are eating over your TDEE on feed days (there is a link in the FAQ [link to FAQ in my signature]) so you would need to keep a rough calculation of your calories on feed days. If your TDEE is below 2000 you would also need to adjust your fast day calories down to 25% of TDEE.

If you have a history of dieting, thyroid disorder, diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance you metabolism may be slower than predicted by the TDEE calculation.

If you would like to tell us a bit more about yourself and how you have been doing 5:2 we will put our heads together and have a think!

Hi Caroline, thanks for your reply, it's quite likely that I go over my TDEE on feed days - however before I begun my weight was stable and my eating hasn't changed, i.e I'm fairly sure I'm not over compensating. However I do have an underactive thyroid, and am on thyroxine (100mcg) for it.

My 5:2 regime has been generally fast until lunchtime on fast days then have about 250kcal then another 250 around 7pm. I was thinking today that maybe I should try around 225 at breakfast and the rest at tea time?? I find it tough when at work though to not have lunch.

Exercise-wise I do a couple of 1/2 hour spin classes a week, circuits once a week and around 3-4hrs of yoga plus extra cycles/ a short run / hill walk depending on the weather. I work 2.5days a week in an office and am fairly sedentary at this time of year. I'm 33 and was diagnosed with M.E/C.F.S 5 years ago, I've been getting better/recovered for 2-3 years though I still have to watch my energy levels and plan things so I'm not running on empty. I have a bad habit of using sugar to boost my short-term energy to get through the day when I'm tired... I'm sure many people can relate to that! I also have a bit of a history of binge-eating/secret eating that was very much tied into the M.E - i was one of the people who got fat rather than skinny with it.

I do find that despite not amazing results, doing 5:2 does make me feel better and more energised, I particually like my morning porridge the day after a fast!

Thanks again, any help, suggestions etc much appreciated

[carorees]

Hi Stoat

I think it is important not to go over TDEE on feed days regularly (of course if you are over on a couple of days and under on a couple, that's fine). The calorie restriction on 5:2 is only modest (about 3000 cals per week) and as 1lb of fat is worth 3500 cals, you only have to overeat by a bit or (or have a lower TDEE than you think) to result in no weight loss. I make a rough estimate of calories on feed days using the www.fatsecret.co.uk calorie counter. Using this I can see that my average cals over the week is around 1500 which I know should be enough for weight loss. As you know your body fat % use the second TDEE calculator link in the FAQ and select Advanced options, choose the calculator that allows you to enter your body fat%.

Although you say your weight was stable before starting 5:2 it is important to realize that your body resists changes in weight so you can overeat for quite a while before the weight increases when you are in a steady state. If you try to lose weight your body also resists too . Having lost some weight, however, then when you overeat you do put weight on readily.

So, to lose weight you have to ensure you are not overeating! As you have thyroid problems the weight loss will be even slower I'm sorry to say. It will be important for you not to use sugar to boost energy. It immediately prevents fat burning

If you have only really persisted with 5:2 for 1 month at a time and together with your thyroid problems plus the changes in body weight associated with dieting etc (please see my recent post about why the scales can show an increase even if you have not overeaten in the Frequently Asked Questions Board, link below) then I expect, sadly, you will need to carry on for a fair while to be able to see a difference on the scales.

In order to speed things up there are several things you can do: a) work out your TDEE and ensure you are not going over plus check the 25% allowance for feed days b) consider restricting calories on some feed days to get a bigger deficit by the end of the week c) consider adding an extra fast day.

Also, have a look at the thread on IF and thyroid disease to see how others who are on thyroxine have got on.

It's great that you are feeling better on the 5:2. Whether or not changing around the calorie distribution (breakfast vs lunch) would make a difference I don't know. While many of us prefer to save all our calories for dinner and believe that this brings greater health benefits, we don't know if it results in faster weight loss.

Hope that helps

Thanks Caroline, that is very helpful advice, I couldn't cope calorie counting on feed days as I'll become obsessive which is terrible for my mental health BUT I will keep a closer check and cut down on cake and booze! You've really given me the confidence to keep at it though, much appreciated. I'll blame the thyroid for things going slowly! And take your advice and check out the IF thyroid thread.

Thank you again,

S

First timer registering on a forum, ever. Started this approach to eating 11 Feb; no problems so far, but am interested hearing from others who also have underactive thyoid issues, and whether they have been able to reduce their medication dosage.

[carorees]

IF and thyroid thread: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=710