5:2 Diet

PlymouthSeagull

PlymouthSeagull

Subs Bench
My good Lord what an amazing thing. I lost a stone a month. Then the miracle stuff. It cures type 2 diabetes. Creates growth hormone for weights. The only way in nature to grow brain cells. after 12 hours of fasting your cells start to self repair. The BBC iplayer horizon special is worth a look. The first time you dont eat from midday until next breakfast is tough but you rewire your brain. It is awesome.
 


I found the 5:2 really hard to stick to beyond a few months, but it's about 4 years since I did it. Feel much better at the moment doing time-restricted eating (8 hours to feast, 16 hours without eating a day, 5 days a week). I've gone from 11st 7lbs to 10st 9lbs over the last 6 months and the hardest bit to shift has been this last 4 lbs and it's the TRE that's done it for me, mostly by making me aware of what I eat. I have, however, cut the booze out mostly and been training like an absolute bastard so they've obviously contributed too.
 
The biggest difference for me over the past month has been eliminating tea and coffee with milk and sugar/sweeteners as I associated them with eating crisps, chocolate and biscuits.

I now drink ginger tea in the morning, green tea and fruit infusions during the day, sometimes chamomile before bed. I have a black coffee before the gym which gives a bit of a kick.

Another side effect is that I now go to bed at 10, get up at 6ish and don’t wander around like a zombie until I get a caffeine and sugar fix.
 
Stevie Freestein II said:
The biggest difference for me over the past month has been eliminating tea and coffee with milk and sugar/sweeteners as I associated them with eating crisps, chocolate and biscuits.

I now drink ginger tea in the morning, green tea and fruit infusions during the day, sometimes chamomile before bed. I have a black coffee before the gym which gives a bit of a kick.

Another side effect is that I now go to bed at 10, get up at 6ish and don’t wander around like a zombie until I get a caffeine and sugar fix.
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I've totally changed my habits too, particularly around sleeping and drinking booze.
 
andysafc85 said:
Havnt done 5-2 but do intermittent 16/8 Mon-Fri and find it easy tbh.
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If it’s helpful to anyone I’ve been doing the 16/8 ‘properly’ for the past 2 weeks and I’m amazed by the amount of energy that I’ve had.

I usually eat an evening meal at 8pm ish so I don’t eat again until 12-1pm the next day.

Yesterday I ate some yoghurt + fruit to break the fast at 1pm and went for a 3 mile run an hour later. I always thought that I needed plenty of fuel before any run but I managed a PB over that distance. Plus I did loads of walking over the day and was still full of energy at 10pm when I walked home from a quiz night.

I haven’t weighed myself but I feel like a racing snake.
 
Stevie Freestein II said:
If it’s helpful to anyone I’ve been doing the 16/8 ‘properly’ for the past 2 weeks and I’m amazed by the amount of energy that I’ve had.

I usually eat an evening meal at 8pm ish so I don’t eat again until 12-1pm the next day.

Yesterday I ate some yoghurt + fruit to break the fast at 1pm and went for a 3 mile run an hour later. I always thought that I needed plenty of fuel before any run but I managed a PB over that distance. Plus I did loads of walking over the day and was still full of energy at 10pm when I walked home from a quiz night.

I haven’t weighed myself but I feel like a racing snake.
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Yeah very similar to how I find it.

And when I get to a weight I'm happy with I dont fast every day, some days I'd have some oats or a protein shake. I find fasting is ideal when you've had a holiday, weekend away or been on the p*ss for a few days, helps cut back down quite quickly.
 
andysafc85 said:
Yeah very similar to how I find it.

And when I get to a weight I'm happy with I dont fast every day, some days I'd have some oats or a protein shake. I find fasting is ideal when you've had a holiday, weekend away or been on the p*ss for a few days, helps cut back down quite quickly.
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My plan is to lose weight before my holidays so that it’s not too bad if I have an extra ice cream or fish + chips.

This is interesting - suggesting a 7am to 3pm eating window.

Intermittent fasting: Surprising update - Harvard Health Blog
 
Stevie Freestein II said:
If it’s helpful to anyone I’ve been doing the 16/8 ‘properly’ for the past 2 weeks and I’m amazed by the amount of energy that I’ve had.

I usually eat an evening meal at 8pm ish so I don’t eat again until 12-1pm the next day.

Yesterday I ate some yoghurt + fruit to break the fast at 1pm and went for a 3 mile run an hour later. I always thought that I needed plenty of fuel before any run but I managed a PB over that distance. Plus I did loads of walking over the day and was still full of energy at 10pm when I walked home from a quiz night.

I haven’t weighed myself but I feel like a racing snake.
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Yeah, I find this the best approach for me. Usually try to fast at least 16 hours a day, it's a good way to drop a fair bit of timber.
 
Idlewild Mackem said:
Yeah, I find this the best approach for me. Usually try to fast at least 16 hours a day, it's a good way to drop a fair bit of timber.
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Have you reduced calories over the 8 hours or just eat the same? Or are you still being more aware of what you eat?

I have cut out a lot of chocolate that I was eating almost habitually, and I hardly drink alcohol now. But I haven’t been starving myself at all.
 
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Stevie Freestein II said:
If it’s helpful to anyone I’ve been doing the 16/8 ‘properly’ for the past 2 weeks and I’m amazed by the amount of energy that I’ve had.

I usually eat an evening meal at 8pm ish so I don’t eat again until 12-1pm the next day.

Yesterday I ate some yoghurt + fruit to break the fast at 1pm and went for a 3 mile run an hour later. I always thought that I needed plenty of fuel before any run but I managed a PB over that distance. Plus I did loads of walking over the day and was still full of energy at 10pm when I walked home from a quiz night.

I haven’t weighed myself but I feel like a racing snake.
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So do you count calories when you do it, or aim for a certain amount, or just don’t eat between 8pm and 1pm, but eat when you want?
 
Stevie Freestein II said:
Have you reduced calories over the 8 hours or just eat the same? Or are you still being more aware of what you eat?

I have cut out a lot of chocolate that I was eating almost habitually, and I hardly drink alcohol now. But I haven’t been starving myself at all.
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Sorry, meant to reply and forgot. I eat less, but purposefully as I'm in a competition in 10wks and need to weigh 67kg by then. Generally I can change calories to suit what I'm aiming for - I was eating 3000kcals easily in 8 hours by roasting things, having peanut butter, olive oil and loads of seeds. It's definitely good for when you want to lower calories though.
 
Idlewild Mackem said:
Sorry, meant to reply and forgot. I eat less, but purposefully as I'm in a competition in 10wks and need to weigh 67kg by then. Generally I can change calories to suit what I'm aiming for - I was eating 3000kcals easily in 8 hours by roasting things, having peanut butter, olive oil and loads of seeds. It's definitely good for when you want to lower calories though.
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Ta for answering it was very decent of you.

HellsBells said:
So do you count calories when you do it, or aim for a certain amount, or just don’t eat between 8pm and 1pm, but eat when you want?
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No I haven’t kept a log of calories, I used myfitnesspal around 3 years ago when I first decided to lose some extra flab that I’d gained.

I have a rough idea of the macronutrients that I consume but it’s been a case of reducing the amount of alcohol and chocolate that I eat, plus I’ve been doing loads of running and some weights.

On a Friday when I’m not at work I eat at 1pm and around 6pm then not again until 12-1pm on Saturday. I really think about what I eat now, whereas I would usually have eaten a ham toastie and pancake & Nutella each morning. That amounts to maybe 400+ cals of nothing much useful and it isn’t particularly satiating either.
 
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Stevie Freestein II said:
Ta for answering it was very decent of you.


No I haven’t kept a log of calories, I used myfitnesspal around 3 years ago when I first decided to lose some extra flab that I’d gained.

I have a rough idea of the macronutrients that I consume but it’s been a case of reducing the amount of alcohol and chocolate that I eat, plus I’ve been doing loads of running and some weights.

On a Friday when I’m not at work I eat at 1pm and around 6pm then not again until 12-1pm on Saturday. I really think about what I eat now, whereas I would usually have eaten a ham toastie and pancake & Nutella each morning. That amounts to maybe 400+ cals of nothing much useful and it isn’t particularly satiating either.
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The biggest impact for me has been cutting out just a snack/beer late on, which may lead to a couple more. It's also made me very conscious of what I'm eating, as I don't want to eat something for the sake of it... Loads of nutrient-dense stuff now rather than just stuff that's at hand.
 
Idlewild Mackem said:
The biggest impact for me has been cutting out just a snack/beer late on, which may lead to a couple more. It's also made me very conscious of what I'm eating, as I don't want to eat something for the sake of it... Loads of nutrient-dense stuff now rather than just stuff that's at hand.
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Are you body building or power lifting?
 

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