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Awesome work on the diet. I'm nearly at my goal weight, although I did not have much to lose. I find the 5:2 diet easy to follow, and it works. I'm quite pleased with the results.
I started this regimen (ADF) in August of 2012 and now it is how I live.
It is so ingrained that sometimes I briefly forget which day is fast or feast.
That's one of the benefits I like - it is not a "diet" that has to be tended to daily like a sick child.
After 8 months I have stabilized as I reached my goal size in about 5 months (I don't ever weigh myself). So now I eat ad libitum at least 4 days a week, sometimes 5 if it suits my social life.
I find my food intake naturally tends towards paleo - greatly reduced gluten, but NOT eliminated, carb intake leaning towards root vegetables and potatoes vs bagels and breads, beer almost eliminated, but not wine, (this may change because I love brewskis in hot weather!) and a tendency to eat nuts and seeds and lettuce in the pm on fast days, because it's easy. And I always eat protein - an egg or herring or an oz. of cheese - on fast mornings.
And I just realized that my joints have felt better (esp. knee) since I eat this way. May be due to weight loss, but I don't think so. I am a convert, but it may not suit everyone. What in life does?
I started this regimen (ADF) in August of 2012 and now it is how I live.
It is so ingrained that sometimes I briefly forget which day is fast or feast.
That's one of the benefits I like - it is not a "diet" that has to be tended to daily like a sick child.
After 8 months I have stabilized as I reached my goal size in about 5 months (I don't ever weigh myself). So now I eat ad libitum at least 4 days a week, sometimes 5 if it suits my social life.
I find my food intake naturally tends towards paleo - greatly reduced gluten, but NOT eliminated, carb intake leaning towards root vegetables and potatoes vs bagels and breads, beer almost eliminated, but not wine, (this may change because I love brewskis in hot weather!) and a tendency to eat nuts and seeds and lettuce in the pm on fast days, because it's easy. And I always eat protein - an egg or herring or an oz. of cheese - on fast mornings.
And I just realized that my joints have felt better (esp. knee) since I eat this way. May be due to weight loss, but I don't think so. I am a convert, but it may not suit everyone. What in life does?
Hi Tjarado,
This is all very encouraging. I normally fast Mon/Thur, but last night (Sat), I went out and drank two pints of Guinness and ended up eating some type of huge grilled sandwich and a mountain of French fries. I am not a big person, so I felt ill when I got home. I am thinking of fasting today (Sunday) instead of Monday just to clean out my system. The overeating made me sick.
Do you think I should try and cut out the beer? I love it so much, but it is dense with carbs. I may have to switch to wine and drink beer only on occasion.
I am about 120 pounds and only need to lose 5. Some folks gave me a hard time telling me I was too thin to go on this diet, but the reason I am thin is because yes, I do watch my weight. I am not going to wait till I'm 100 pounds overweight to have to justify going on a diet. I think it is much healthier to be lean and slightly underweight. When you start the fasting diet, you body naturally burns fat, not muscle, so you do become very thin and lean.
People in this world don't know what a healthy weight is anymore. They look at thin people and think they are unhealthy or sick, when it should be the other way around.
Anyhow, sorry for the rant. I'm going to have to watch the beer.
And I just realized that my joints have felt better (esp. knee) since I eat this way. May be due to weight loss, but I don't think so. I am a convert, but it may not suit everyone. What in life does?
By the way, even with the few pounds I have lost so far, I feel lighter and healthier. I have lost that puffiness and bloated look. When I run, I can run farther. I just can't tell you how much better it feels to be leaner. I can't even imagine how awful it would be to be 40 or 50 pounds overweight.
I can't imagine being 50 pounds overweight - I would freak out!
But that won't ever really happen because I have morphed into an "eat-when-hungry" and "don't eat when NOT hungry" person.
All it takes is patience, which, admittedly was not my strong suit in my 'yute'!
Now I'm on a 3-day/week light fast and all systems seem stable.
Like i said in my OP on intermittent fasting, it is very liberating.
Why do you think more people are not doing this?
Is it really that hard or does it just 'fit" a few peoples natural eating style?
I can't imagine being 50 pounds overweight - I would freak out!
But that won't ever really happen because I have morphed into an "eat-when-hungry" and "don't eat when NOT hungry" person.
All it takes is patience, which, admittedly was not my strong suit in my 'yute'!
Now I'm on a 3-day/week light fast and all systems seem stable.
Like i said in my OP on intermittent fasting, it is very liberating.
Why do you think more people are not doing this?
Is it really that hard or does it just 'fit" a few peoples natural eating style?
I was 50 pounds overweight, and I didn't freak out.
I ate when hungry - but I was hungry often, so I ate often. And most often, I ate things that were unhealthy.
There is no such thing as "all it takes" when you're dealing with weight loss and return to health.
More people aren't doing an intermittent fast, for a few reasons, combined:
1. it isn't enjoyable.
2. it isn't necessary.
3. it can be risky to health
4. it isn't easily sustainable
5. it involves intentional deprivation, which goes against human nature.
You combine all five points together, and you have the reason why IF isn't popular.
Why don't YOU just eat healthy in modest portions every day, instead of fasting twice a week? You'd only have to endure 3 out of those 5 reasons (1, 2, and 3).
Personally, I'd much rather NOT deprive myself ANY day of the week, eat what I want in modest portions, and get healthy. That's why I don't fast twice a week.
I want to respond to your concerns, because I think they are common reasons why people are not fasting. You wrote about IF:
1. it isn't enjoyable. -- A lot of things in life aren't exactly "enjoyable" but we do them because in the long run they make us feel better. 2. it isn't necessary. -- Well, I guess going to the gym isn't necessary either. It is a choice you make to feel good and look good. 3. it can be risky to health. -- This is a myth. As long as you are healthy and not pregnant or lactating, fasting has several health benefits, which are backed by scientific research. 4. it isn't easily sustainable. -- All diets fail, pretty much. However, results from human studies show that the 5:2 fasting diet appears to be relatively sustainable in the long run. It is much easier than other diets, because you only have to diet two days a week. 5. it involves intentional deprivation, which goes against human nature. -- I am not sure what you mean. The human body was actually designed to go for periods without food. I find the fasting quite easy, so it hasn't gone against my nature. It actually has given me a lot more control over my weight and what I choose to eat.
You combine all five points together, and you have the reason why IF isn't popular. -- The 5:2 diet has become extremely popular in the UK. Whether it takes off in the U.S. or not remains to be seen.
Why don't YOU just eat healthy in modest portions every day, instead of fasting twice a week? You'd only have to endure 3 out of those 5 reasons (1, 2, and 3). -- Most people don't know what healthy is. They don't know what modest portions are. I think you proved this point yourself when you said you had become 50 pounds overweight, right?
Personally, I'd much rather NOT deprive myself ANY day of the week, eat what I want in modest portions, and get healthy. That's why I don't fast twice a week. -- What you eat and how you diet is totally up to you. However, before you decide you are adamantly against it, you might want to do some more research the benefits of fasting before you make a final decision on it. I think the 5:2 diet may (hopefully) help a lot of people in the long run.
I can't imagine being 50 pounds overweight - I would freak out!
But that won't ever really happen because I have morphed into an "eat-when-hungry" and "don't eat when NOT hungry" person.
All it takes is patience, which, admittedly was not my strong suit in my 'yute'!
Now I'm on a 3-day/week light fast and all systems seem stable.
Like i said in my OP on intermittent fasting, it is very liberating.
Why do you think more people are not doing this?
Is it really that hard or does it just 'fit" a few peoples natural eating style?
I agree with you completely. It is extremely liberating. I finally have control over my weight and I make better choices about what I eat. I am not afraid of being hungry anymore. If I do overeat, I feel sick, and I know to stop eating the next day.
I cannot say enough about the benefits of fasting. I hope more people soon discover it. We have an obesity epidemic in this country. By the time people reach the age 50 and over, they end up taking all kinds of pills to control blood pressure, sugar levels, and cholesterol. I don't want to be one of them.
I want to respond to your concerns, because I think they are common reasons why people are not fasting. You wrote about IF:
1. it isn't enjoyable. -- A lot of things in life aren't exactly "enjoyable" but we do them because in the long run they make us feel better.
Not applicable by itself. Respond to what I wrote in context, and you will see that.
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2. it isn't necessary. -- Well, I guess going to the gym isn't necessary either. It is a choice you make to feel good and look good.
Not applicable by itself. Respond to what I wrote in context, and you will see that.
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3. it can be risky to health. -- This is a myth. As long as you are healthy and not pregnant or lactating, fasting has several health benefits, which are backed by scientific research.
Not a myth. It CAN be risky to health. I didn't say it IS risky. I said it CAN be risky. And it can.
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4. it isn't easily sustainable. -- All diets fail, pretty much. However, results from human studies show that the 5:2 fasting diet appears to be relatively sustainable in the long run. It is much easier than other diets, because you only have to diet two days a week.
All diets fail. You should just leave it at that. ALL DIETS FAIL. It doesn't matter how much easier it is than other diets. As soon as you go OFF the diet, you gain the weight back. The only thing that does NOT fail, is maintaining a healthy daily dietary regiment, combined with exercise. Not dieting.
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5. it involves intentional deprivation, which goes against human nature.
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I am not sure what you mean. The human body was actually designed to go for periods without food. I find the fasting quite easy, so it hasn't gone against my nature. It actually has given me a lot more control over my weight and what I choose to eat.
I mean what I said. *Intentional deprivation* means to wake up in the morning and say, "I WILL NOT EAT TODAY. I WILL DEPRIVE MYSELF OF FOOD, ON PURPOSE." The human MIND is not designed to choose to deprive itself on purpose. It is designed to allow the body to adapt to change. And so if food isn't available for a few days, the body will adapt, UNTIL it starts to shut down. That is not the same thing as intentionally starving yourself, when healthy food is available, as a method of losing weight.
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You combine all five points together, and you have the reason why IF isn't popular.
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The 5:2 diet has become extremely popular in the UK. Whether it takes off in the U.S. or not remains to be seen.
Just like many diets that started in the UK, because of unscrupulous doctors and salesmen who know that Brits are easily fooled into following the latest trend. And Americans eventually catch on. And a few months later, the next trend replaces the old trend. And the "doctors" who sell books and supplements get rich. Just like Eat Right for your Food Type, and Paleo, and SlimFast, and pills, and Twinkie, and grapefruit, and diet supplements...they are all FADS. And they are all forgotten by the masses and clung to by the desperate, once people realize they don't work.
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Why don't YOU just eat healthy in modest portions every day, instead of fasting twice a week? You'd only have to endure 3 out of those 5 reasons (1, 2, and 3).
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Most people don't know what healthy is. They don't know what modest portions are. I think you proved this point yourself when you said you had become 50 pounds overweight, right?
I gained 50 pounds over a decade. The last several years I gained the most, because I quit smoking and rejected common sense. NOT because I didn't know what modest portions were, or what healthy was.
Tuesday Mar 12th weight in : 179.5lbs
Tuesday Mar 19th weight in : 176.4lbs
Net loss : 3.1lbs
Very happy with the results so far, given it's only 1 week. I DON'T MISS THE FOOD. I still exercise regularly and eat well during the week. I do drink on weekends, mainly 1-2 vodka martinis , although I'll do red wine once in a while.
I was actually looking forward to fasting this week. Now that I understand there isn't this urge to eat constantly throughout the day it becomes very doable.
While it's great to lose the weight, Ive been in pretty good shape most of my life. I'm not doing this as a weight loss program but simply as a cleansing program. Remember, we still eat on fasting days, just that your intake is limited. Nothing hard or bad about it. Dr. Mosley is very clear in stating that 1) this is not for everyone 2) this is not for folks who are already on medication, pregnant or have other health limitations. I'm not Vegan or a Vegetarian. I'm a huge foodie. My wife is a chef for over 12 years so I know food. Good, clean and delicious food. Organic, local when possible.
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, although I'll do red wine once in a while. 
