Back in February, after just starting my 5:2 journey, I recall reading Snorvey's '6 Month's in' log, and being completely truthful, it inspired me enormously.
Now that he's recently amended it to his '52 weeks on the 5:2', I've re-read it, and not only is further inspirational, its prompted me to start my own post here in this section.
Like Snorvey, my own status was one of 'gradual creeping excess', and reaching 50, the realisation that all those years of 'putting off' the serious stuff was now behind me,
I've never been 'Fat' per se, Ive always been 'Big Build', Rugby player type build, and at 5'11", carried my 15st frame well. In fact, whenever weight came up with friends or golf mates, most were genuinely surprised that I weighed that much. But I did.
In fact, by Feb 2013, I weighed 15st 7lbs.......and without a doubt, even walking the dog in the hills close to home, I felt it sometimes, and was increasingly concious of the 'creeping gain'.
Summer of '12. The programme.
When I saw the Programme advertised on TV, I was immediately interested, and so it was recorded that night.
But, for some reason, we never got round to actually watching it, and it sat on Sky+ for months, until early this year, when perhaps feeling the effects of another Xmas excess, I insisted we watch it.
What a fascinating hour that was, as we all now know, and I decided there and then that it was for me, and that it 'had to start on Monday'.
The First Couple of Weeks
Lets be honest, after 50years of 'eating normally', when we should, 3 times per day, or more, constantly fuelling our bodies as the Programme pointed out, ....... to suddenly Fast is always going to be a little bit of a shock to the system, and I was no different.
The first 2 weeks were 'tricky', thats all, more of a mental test than a body shock, learning to ignore those natural tendancies to open the fridge at lunchtime, and getting used to the feeling of 'emptyness' as I'll call it.
But strangely, thet 'empty' feeling started to feel good, and as I stood on the scales and saw the definite weight loss, I learned to like it more, and the Fast days became totally insignificant and easy.
So whats your method ?
Us blokes are simple creatures, the Simplicity of 2 Days Fasting and 5 Normal Days was what drew me to this, and I guess I'm no different in my eating preferences.
Like others, I prefer to simply abstain totally on a Fast Day, liquids excepted, before perhaps a light meal in the evening.
Sometimes Soup, sometimes 1 slice wholemeal bread with Beans, sometimes a Jacket Potato and filler, or sometimes just a very lean plate of whatever my wife has cooked for her & the kids, - both adult anyway so it was never Fish Fingers !
Now being honest, and looking back carefully now, I can see I have made some mistakes......
I've seemingly been at a bit of a Plateau recently, and thats made me re-assess where I can better my weekly intake.
Usually, on a Fast Day, I'll have a cup of DeCaf tea when I get up, semi skimmed milk, and 1 suger, I need it to get started.
During the day, I'll perhaps have another 2 cups of tea too, - one of the hazards of working from home, but hardly too bad perhaps.
BUT - in our Kitchen also sits a Nespresso Coffee Machine, and thats been a failing - all too often I'll let perhaps 1/2 Latte's with 1 sugar also creep down.
Not good I fear, so that will change - see later in this post.
Excercise
I've always been reasonably active, without being a fitness freak. In fact, from mid thirties to mid forties, I did a lot of Mountain Biking, Coast to Coast rides and regularly 30+ miles on a Friday night.but these last 5/6 years, my only exercise has been regular Golf, and walking my active German Pointer 2/3 times per day.
Interestingly, even on Fasting Days, I havent ever felt 'drained' or 'wasted', and on these days, I'm as active as any other day.
In some ways, I actually feel better when I'm playing Golf or walking on these days, that 'lean and mean' feeling is good.
Sleep
I see quite a few posts about Sleep, and how it may or may not be affected by the 5:2.
But - I sleep fine, any day, any time, & havent noticed a difference at all.
These days, I'm sometimes 'dead beat' by 10pm, and crash out, and other days, I'm still channel hopping at 11.30pm, so no idea why that is.
Its certainly not to do with the 5:2 in my opinion.
Family
I generally just get on with this myself, and no-one is affected. I get some miffed looks from my wife when she's planning something particular on a Mon or Wed evening, and I remind her that I'm Fasting, but this has been going on long enough now that she should realise anyway.
I had seriously hoped that she would join me in this, as she's been, as a lot of women are, on a perpetual diet for years, with little or no success.
She did start it, and then after no more than 2 weeks, said that she found it 'too hard'.......so I simply havent mentioned it to her again.
Perhaps I should hope that my own reducing frame would prompt her to try again, but it doesnt seem to be going to happen, and I'm past trying to persuade.
So where are you now ?
As I said earlier, I started this 5:2 journey at 15st 7lbs........and as of this morning, I'm 14st 9lbs. So nearly a Stone lighter.
I feel better than I have done for years, my clothes fit better, I climb hillls with dog a heck of a lot easier, - in fact, yesterday, I noticed that on a rather steep little climb that we do in the hills, it was my thighs that hurt rather than my lungs !!
From here
Could I have done better ? Definitely - those Milky Coffee's on fast days are now binned, and i'm going to limit myself to 2 Cups of Tea only, & water.
& the light evening meal.......
I see a lot of people also 'Calorie Count/Restrict' on Feed Days too, and I have posted about that recently.
For me, the essence of the plan is that for 2 days, I fast, and for 5Days, I dont care, 'relatively', and that simplicity is what makes this whole way of life so easy for me.
(You'll note that I said 'way of life', rather than Diet, - for me this is about the potential health Benefits as much as the weight loss)
What I am going to try and do is reduce the portions of my 'normal' meals, - very often these are just too large, and that 'bloated' feeling after gorging on another Sunday dinner isnt a good one.
I'm sure that 20% less on my plate on any day/meal will be virtually unnoticeable, and perhaps over time, assist greatly.
I'd like to get to 14st, and re-assess from there. If I do, I'll be lighter than when I left school as a very well built Rugby playing 18yr old, and that would be accomplishment enough.
That said, I'll know when/if I start to look a bit too slim, but thats a long way off.
I hope I can get to a point where I can perhaps amend this to a 6:1, but as Snorvey says, perhaps thats a slippery slope .........so we'll see.
Overall.
Couldnt be happier - very gradual weight loss over 6Mths, which IS the way to do it.
As Humans, we are an impatient species, and want to lose a 'Stone in 3weeks,', but that isnt realistic or healthy, - its taken years to go on so why would it come off any quicker ?
Keep going all, and keep the faith, as I will, and I'll update again as & when I've more to report........
Now that he's recently amended it to his '52 weeks on the 5:2', I've re-read it, and not only is further inspirational, its prompted me to start my own post here in this section.
Like Snorvey, my own status was one of 'gradual creeping excess', and reaching 50, the realisation that all those years of 'putting off' the serious stuff was now behind me,
I've never been 'Fat' per se, Ive always been 'Big Build', Rugby player type build, and at 5'11", carried my 15st frame well. In fact, whenever weight came up with friends or golf mates, most were genuinely surprised that I weighed that much. But I did.
In fact, by Feb 2013, I weighed 15st 7lbs.......and without a doubt, even walking the dog in the hills close to home, I felt it sometimes, and was increasingly concious of the 'creeping gain'.
Summer of '12. The programme.
When I saw the Programme advertised on TV, I was immediately interested, and so it was recorded that night.
But, for some reason, we never got round to actually watching it, and it sat on Sky+ for months, until early this year, when perhaps feeling the effects of another Xmas excess, I insisted we watch it.
What a fascinating hour that was, as we all now know, and I decided there and then that it was for me, and that it 'had to start on Monday'.
The First Couple of Weeks
Lets be honest, after 50years of 'eating normally', when we should, 3 times per day, or more, constantly fuelling our bodies as the Programme pointed out, ....... to suddenly Fast is always going to be a little bit of a shock to the system, and I was no different.
The first 2 weeks were 'tricky', thats all, more of a mental test than a body shock, learning to ignore those natural tendancies to open the fridge at lunchtime, and getting used to the feeling of 'emptyness' as I'll call it.
But strangely, thet 'empty' feeling started to feel good, and as I stood on the scales and saw the definite weight loss, I learned to like it more, and the Fast days became totally insignificant and easy.
So whats your method ?
Us blokes are simple creatures, the Simplicity of 2 Days Fasting and 5 Normal Days was what drew me to this, and I guess I'm no different in my eating preferences.
Like others, I prefer to simply abstain totally on a Fast Day, liquids excepted, before perhaps a light meal in the evening.
Sometimes Soup, sometimes 1 slice wholemeal bread with Beans, sometimes a Jacket Potato and filler, or sometimes just a very lean plate of whatever my wife has cooked for her & the kids, - both adult anyway so it was never Fish Fingers !
Now being honest, and looking back carefully now, I can see I have made some mistakes......
I've seemingly been at a bit of a Plateau recently, and thats made me re-assess where I can better my weekly intake.
Usually, on a Fast Day, I'll have a cup of DeCaf tea when I get up, semi skimmed milk, and 1 suger, I need it to get started.
During the day, I'll perhaps have another 2 cups of tea too, - one of the hazards of working from home, but hardly too bad perhaps.
BUT - in our Kitchen also sits a Nespresso Coffee Machine, and thats been a failing - all too often I'll let perhaps 1/2 Latte's with 1 sugar also creep down.
Not good I fear, so that will change - see later in this post.
Excercise
I've always been reasonably active, without being a fitness freak. In fact, from mid thirties to mid forties, I did a lot of Mountain Biking, Coast to Coast rides and regularly 30+ miles on a Friday night.but these last 5/6 years, my only exercise has been regular Golf, and walking my active German Pointer 2/3 times per day.
Interestingly, even on Fasting Days, I havent ever felt 'drained' or 'wasted', and on these days, I'm as active as any other day.
In some ways, I actually feel better when I'm playing Golf or walking on these days, that 'lean and mean' feeling is good.
Sleep
I see quite a few posts about Sleep, and how it may or may not be affected by the 5:2.
But - I sleep fine, any day, any time, & havent noticed a difference at all.
These days, I'm sometimes 'dead beat' by 10pm, and crash out, and other days, I'm still channel hopping at 11.30pm, so no idea why that is.
Its certainly not to do with the 5:2 in my opinion.
Family
I generally just get on with this myself, and no-one is affected. I get some miffed looks from my wife when she's planning something particular on a Mon or Wed evening, and I remind her that I'm Fasting, but this has been going on long enough now that she should realise anyway.
I had seriously hoped that she would join me in this, as she's been, as a lot of women are, on a perpetual diet for years, with little or no success.
She did start it, and then after no more than 2 weeks, said that she found it 'too hard'.......so I simply havent mentioned it to her again.
Perhaps I should hope that my own reducing frame would prompt her to try again, but it doesnt seem to be going to happen, and I'm past trying to persuade.
So where are you now ?
As I said earlier, I started this 5:2 journey at 15st 7lbs........and as of this morning, I'm 14st 9lbs. So nearly a Stone lighter.
I feel better than I have done for years, my clothes fit better, I climb hillls with dog a heck of a lot easier, - in fact, yesterday, I noticed that on a rather steep little climb that we do in the hills, it was my thighs that hurt rather than my lungs !!
From here
Could I have done better ? Definitely - those Milky Coffee's on fast days are now binned, and i'm going to limit myself to 2 Cups of Tea only, & water.
& the light evening meal.......
I see a lot of people also 'Calorie Count/Restrict' on Feed Days too, and I have posted about that recently.
For me, the essence of the plan is that for 2 days, I fast, and for 5Days, I dont care, 'relatively', and that simplicity is what makes this whole way of life so easy for me.
(You'll note that I said 'way of life', rather than Diet, - for me this is about the potential health Benefits as much as the weight loss)
What I am going to try and do is reduce the portions of my 'normal' meals, - very often these are just too large, and that 'bloated' feeling after gorging on another Sunday dinner isnt a good one.
I'm sure that 20% less on my plate on any day/meal will be virtually unnoticeable, and perhaps over time, assist greatly.
I'd like to get to 14st, and re-assess from there. If I do, I'll be lighter than when I left school as a very well built Rugby playing 18yr old, and that would be accomplishment enough.
That said, I'll know when/if I start to look a bit too slim, but thats a long way off.
I hope I can get to a point where I can perhaps amend this to a 6:1, but as Snorvey says, perhaps thats a slippery slope .........so we'll see.
Overall.
Couldnt be happier - very gradual weight loss over 6Mths, which IS the way to do it.
As Humans, we are an impatient species, and want to lose a 'Stone in 3weeks,', but that isnt realistic or healthy, - its taken years to go on so why would it come off any quicker ?
Keep going all, and keep the faith, as I will, and I'll update again as & when I've more to report........
