The FastDay Forum

Hello, I would like to get some advice, I’ve been doing this diet for the past 2 months and I didn’t lose any weight during the first weeks, but now I gained almost 2.5 pounds!

I’m 35, 1.65m, 57kg (was 53kg a year ago...), and walk a bit 3 times a week (40 minutes to school), the calorie calculator says I need to eat 1740 for maintenance, but only 4 times in the past two months I have reached/exceeded that amount.
During fast days I have tried both eating 500 calories and below 300.

I’ve kept a very strict diary of everything I eat, it’s usually around 1600 calories, and that’s already binging for me. Also, I must confess that a great deal of what I eat is cakes and bread, but it’s still not even 1700 calories.

I’m very sad, I don’t know if I’m doing everything wrong, I eat plenty of vegetables and fruit, I don’t like meat but I eat cheese and eggs regularly, so I don’t know what the problem could be.

Just curious, with a BMI of 20.9 (which sounds pretty good to me, but I'm not you of course ) I'm wondering what your goal weight would be, and just how much weight you want to lose (or were you just trying to maintain 53kg?).

Also, if you haven't seen Caroline's very-useful "why am I gaining weight" post, check it out:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1006

Good stuff in there!

You would seem to have a BMI of 20.9, which most on this forum would be very envious of. I don't know why you have gained weight unless the TDEE calculations are wrong for you but I would suggest not eating so many grain products - look up Peter Attia or Mark Sisson on the net for more information about grains and carbs generally...

Hmmmm, you don't have much to lose, me thinks...

According to this: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm with little exercise your TDEE is 1518. Perhaps you're eating too much on your non-fasting days.

I must confess that a great deal of what I eat is cakes and bread

If you graze as well your blood sugar and insulin are probably permanently elevated which is no great aid to taking fat out of storage.

Eat a bit less in total and a lot less flour & sugar.

Thank you BruceE and CreakyPete for yoru replies, I’ll be checking out that info in a moment.

As for the weight, yes, I want to go back to 53kg, I was 100% sedentary in those days, so it really puzzles me that I’m more active now, but heavier.

PhilT, I guess that could be an issue too, I eat 2-3 times a day, but some days I do eat a lot of bread with each meal.

TML13, thanks also for your reply. That’s actually the calculator I used, so could it be that walking 40 min. 3 times a week could be considered 'little/no exercise'?

Edited to add - I decided to research the distance I walk during those 3 days, and it says it's 3,40 km (each day).

I walk 20 minutes 5-7 times a week and put Basal Metabolic Rate. Unless you are increasing your heartbeat, it's little exercise, IMO.

Unfortunately and very sadly, as we age our metabolic rate declines, if i'm not mistaken by 10% a decade, so it is no surprise that you need to work harder to maintain your weight, I monitored my caloric intake very carefully and when I got to the age of 39 I had to go down from 1700 to 1500 in order not to gain weight and when I got to 41 or so I had to go even lower.... It is very very sad... However with the 5:2 diet I am eating more and losing. More research is needed but I know that for me it probably increases my metabolic rate otherwise, 1+1 is not 2
by the way I have been exercising all these years and this has not changed.

I'm not in a position to exercise so I can't speak from personal experience but, from what I've read on other people's postings, it seems exercise as an aid to weight loss is not all its cracked up to be so its best seen as a bonus rather than counted into your TDEE. I appreciate its value for health and toning but it just seems that a lot of people over estimate its value for actual weight loss.

I don't think the calories in/calories out equation is that clear cut either. There seems to be value in the theory that not all calories are equal. I would also recommend checking out Mark Sisson's site. Its very informative with regard to grains.

I appreciate its value for health and toning but it just seems that a lot of people over estimate its value for actual weight loss.

I don't think the calories in/calories out equation is that clear cut either. There seems to be value in the theory that not all calories are equal.

Sad but true!!!

Einatbl, I see..., I'm thinking I'm going to try to keep it to 1500 instead of 1600.
I did 1200 for a while, before the 5:2 diet, but my weight didn't change.

Miffy49, that is very interesting. So yes, more proof that I should be lowering the calorie intake .

Thank you all again for the very helpful replies.

As for the weight, yes, I want to go back to 53kg, I was 100% sedentary in those days, so it really puzzles me that I’m more active now, but heavier.

If you are more active now than you were then, it's perfectly possible that you will be heavier as you will now have more muscle.

In my personal opinion, once you get down into the healthy BMI range you should be measuring yourself against how you look and feel rather than against a fixed amount on the scales.

Toci,

If you have gain weight over the last two months, that would be a strong indicator that you have been eating too much. The weight doesn't appear out of nowhere, it is because we eat too much of the wrong foods. Either you are eating too much on fast days or feed days or both. It could be you are under reporting how much food you are taking in every day, or you have set your TDEE too high and you need to eat less. My guess is you are under reporting. (This is usually the case, according to what I've read.)

Cakes and breads are probably NOT a good source of calories. I know that I cannot eat them because they make me want more cakes and breads. Sugars messes with the insulin and drive up the appetite. Better choices are lean meats and lots and lots of green veggies, which make you feel full. Cheese is nothing but fat. Try and stay away from it. In terms of fruit: berries, berries, berries. Fresh or frozen. They are low in calories, high in fiber, and have lots of antioxidants.

When I stay on a diet of scrambled egg whites, salads and veggies, my appetite naturally decreases. When I start eating bread and chips, all is lost.

I would suggest a change in eating habits and see what happens from there.

<<When I start eating bread and chips, all is lost. >>

Same here! When I start eating bread and chips, all the bread and chips is lost!

One more thought: 2.5 pounds total weight gain is only about 2% of your weight before the gain. Also, 2.5 pounds is about 39 ounces of water. You can temporarily "gain" 2.5 pounds right now by drinking 5 cups of water, but it's not a weight gain I would be worried about.

When you are relatively stable at a given weight, you can fluctuate by more than 2% over the course of two months. I take daily weight measurements (I don't recommend this, by the way, I'm just a little obsessive when it comes to numbers sometimes because I'm an engineer) and I can easily fluctuate +/-2% or more over the course of a week, let alone two months, and this WOE will cause some strong fluctuations in your daily weight.

That is, while +2.5 lbs is less-fun than the -9 lbs you want right now, I wouldn't read it as a weight gain just yet. Be careful not to lower your average feast-day intake to a point where you are lowering your BMR in your quest to get that last few pounds off.

Also, if you are exercising where you weren't before, muscle weighs more than fat, so the weight gain may be a good thing.