The FastDay Forum

Dr. Simpson's take on The Fast Diet.

http://yourdoctorsorders.com/2013/03/th ... -5-fast-2/

[carorees]

Simplistic and misses the most important point of all: it looks like it could be sustainable and enable people to keep the weight off. Honestly people who write these things appear not to have noticed the obesity epidemic...they should embrace any diet that looks as if it might work long term. Are they in the pay of the food industry or something? What's that you say? "Probably"? Oh...

I doubt Dr. Simpson is being payed by the food industry. He is all about debunking pseudoscience. Have a look at the site.

[carorees]

Well he should know better then and look at the human studies that have been published.

Umm, I thought that was pretty much a fair reflection??

It's a diet, like all diets, what everyone eats is there diet, even Panda's have a diet of Bamboo. Diets work by reducing what you eat?

The eat what you like claims are very much bull plop as if you eat 10,000 calories a day on your "feed" days, you will still get fatter.

I should know better than to disagree with our lovely Caroline, but there you go feeling brave this morning! ( I admit I know nothing of the science, and I still love the 5:2 plan, it fits my mentality and I think I can keep it up, so I am a convert, but not blind to a bit of constructive criticism of some of the claims when taken out of context of the book)

I have just posted off my reply to him, and I bet he doesn't publish it. ( but I was quite polite, honestly, being an old granny who has to set a good example) . Where the devil is he living? Oh yes, I see, I think he 's tucked up in his gastric band operating theatre, making a mint out of poor souls desperate to improve their well being. Well, Dr M is doing a far better job by enabling people to have the where with all to be in control of their own lives, rather than submitting to a surgeon. He seems to have a problem with the marketing of Dr M's book and it being a best seller, at a fraction of the price of a gastric band. Oh, I am so annoyed!!!

Hi if you work out how many calories for the 7 day period you would have normally eaten (truthfully) before doing the 5.2 diet and then deduct the amount on the days you are fasting, the total calories for the week will be less so surely you should lose weight I think most people struggle with the thought of forever but I think most can manage 2 days a week

Think the good Dr might be worried about his future income

[carorees]

Hi if you work out how many calories for the 7 day period you would have normally eaten (truthfully) before doing the 5.2 diet and then deduct the amount on the days you are fasting, the total calories for the week will be less so surely you should lose weight I think most people struggle the the thought of forever but I think most can manage 2 days a week

Exactly...forget the book, it is not that brilliant, but the eating plan is!

Hi if you work out how many calories for the 7 day period you would have normally eaten (truthfully) before doing the 5.2 diet and then deduct the amount on the days you are fasting, the total calories for the week will be less so surely you should lose weight I think most people struggle the the thought of forever but I think most can manage 2 days a week

This logic only works if your weight is stable before you start doing it, if you can put on 1/2 stone a month eating normally ( Honest I really don't have to try) then the 4lb net gain of fasting means you would really only put on 3lb a month instead of 7lb.

Ok, I am out.

[carorees]

The point I was trying to make but was not clear about is that his stance was to pick holes in the book. Of course you can't binge on feed days (and the book says that once you get past the headlines). I agree that the IGF1 story may turn out to be a red herring. He could have highlighted the good things like its sustainability, the change in eating habits, the sense of control, the freedom from being scared of hunger, the freedom from obsessing about forbidden food, but, no, he chose to pick on the unimportant bits and make the diet seem ineffective and a fad which I don't think it will prove to be.

I had given up all hope of finding a way to lose weight AND KEEP IT OFF as every previous diet ended up with me heavier than before. My health was declining and I was depressed about my, probably short, future. This WOL has brought hope that I can have a future. Surely everyone in my situation should be offered this hope rather than dismissing the diet because the book could have been better written?

Rant over...

As I see it, we are doing the experiments to support (or otherwise) the theory. There are people on this forum losing weight and feeling better as well as failing to lose weight but getting slimmer. Some will give up, some will move to Paleo or other high-fat/low-carb lifestyles probably but as long as we keep recording our progress there will be a powerful body of evidence in favour of the basic premise of 5:2 fasting as a way to shock our metabolism back into line. And if even only a few of us benefit from the process it will surely have been worth the experiment!

This is not being dismissive.

Try it?

Yes, try it for a while. See how it does for you and if you like it. The science behind it- well, what is working for a few people may not work for you. But if it does, comment.

Like all diets – every single one: it works by you eating less. Just regulates it a little bit better

That is the bit I agree with.

And the facts that Caroline posted, 60 people lost on average a 1lb a week following this plan,shows it really works, but globally that's a few.

It's just that we have to guard against the opinion that no mothers ever had an ugly baby syndrome!

I am sure Dr M would agree! ( his initial skepticism about the approach is well highlighted in the Horizon prog)

[carorees]

It's just that we have to guard against the opinion that no mothers ever had an ugly baby syndrome!

I completely agree, but its hard when this seems like the only workable solution (for me). Long term results are needed but for some people waiting to get those results before starting they will come too late

I thought that it was slightly harshly worded but basically fair assessment of the diet. The science of long life, though more solid than he indicates, is still preliminary at best but as a weight loss method it's certainly worked for me, and he does not say that you should not try it.