5:2 Fast Diet: get rid of unwanted belly fat

[Bull City]

I thought I would check in on this. My wife and I started this diet on April 8. My wife has done better than I have. I've lost 15 pounds and about an inch or so in my waist (35" pants feel better than my 36"s used to). My cholesterol and blood pressure have improved. I have more stamina and fleetness on the soccer field and in yoga class. Young women still don't flock to me on the beach, but I am nevertheless pleased. I'm deciding whether to go to one fast day per week.

To answer Scott's questions:

1) Fast day meals for me are usually this: breakfast is 1 boiled egg, 1 slice whole grain toast, coffee with cream & sugar; lunch is a bunch of strawberries or blueberries or some fruit other than a banana; dinner is 8 ounces of grilled fish and steamed or grilled veggies, or sliced tomatoes. I don't have booze on fast days.

2) The book is "The FastDiet: Lose Weight, Stay Healthy, and Live Longer with the Simple Secret of Intermittent Fasting" by Michael Mosley. He goes into the science and metabolic benefits and provides lots of menus and recipes with appealing photos.

Another helpful tool is the phone "app" called My Fitness Pal. You can keep a diary of what you eat each day and you can look up the calorie and nutritional data for an incredible number of foods. I think they must load nutrition labels into a database. I only use it on fast days.

This approach has had some side benefits for me. On non-fast days, I eat a bit less than I used to. Being 15 pounds lighter, I can exercise longer with less joint stress. I am more aware of how many calories one can put in one's mouth in a very short amount of time, and this is a good thing.

For example, yesterday I gave myself the rare treat of a single serving bag of delicious, but not nutritious, sea salt kettle style potato chips. As I munched my way to the half way point, I read the nutrition label. I saw that I was 150 calories into a 300 calorie treat and I was so horrified that I stopped eating them. I thought, a martini is so much better and it's only 187 calories!

[1xsculler]

I have read only the last post but I think the 24 hour fast, nothing by mouth except water for 24 hours, is one of the best self-discipline tools one can employ. It is useful in all aspects of life where self-discipline is needed which includes weight loss and drug abuse. You learn that hunger comes and goes during a 24 hour period and you can get through the hungry periods with no ill effects and little craving if you're patient and disciplined. Try the 24 hour fast once or twice per month and if you stick to it for the entire 24 hours I would expect you to learn that you can rule your body with your mind, i.e. mind over matter.

[Bull City]

By the way, in spite of all the positive things about the 5:2 Diet, it hasn't helped me keep my blades off the water.

[lt.wolf]

Fasting is not good for an athlete on any level. Always be eating, healthy if you can. A working body needs fuel .

[1xsculler]

I agree with Wolf that while one is training fasting is probably not a good idea.

[Bull City]

Fasting is not good for an athlete on any level. Always be eating, healthy if you can. A working body needs fuel .

Not sure I agree with this, but I want to clarify one or two points. First, the "5:2 Diet" is a partial fast: 600 calories for men (something less for women) on two non-consecutive days per week. I think this is OK for an athlete, if he or she happens to have a few pounds to loose. If fasting means zero calories, then I agree.

[bloomp]

Fasting is not good for an athlete on any level. Always be eating, healthy if you can. A working body needs fuel .

Not sure I agree with this, but I want to clarify one or two points. First, the "5:2 Diet" is a partial fast: 600 calories for men (something less for women) on two non-consecutive days per week. I think this is OK for an athlete, if he or she happens to have a few pounds to loose. If fasting means zero calories, then I agree.

Anything under 1200 calories is not healthy. For a non-athlete, you can get away with it for a day or two. For an athlete training 2+ sessions/day, that spells disaster for the body's ability to repair, recover and defend itself. Plus, you leave yourself very low on glycogen by doing such a thing. NOT a good idea for an elite athlete.

Better idea? Visit a sport nutritionist, get an accurate idea of how much you actually eat, then redesign your diet to cut out 200 kCal/day, and see steady weight loss over a few months.

[Bull City]

Fasting is not good for an athlete on any level. Always be eating, healthy if you can. A working body needs fuel .

Not sure I agree with this, but I want to clarify one or two points. First, the "5:2 Diet" is a partial fast: 600 calories for men (something less for women) on two non-consecutive days per week. I think this is OK for an athlete, if he or she happens to have a few pounds to loose. If fasting means zero calories, then I agree.

Anything under 1200 calories is not healthy. For a non-athlete, you can get away with it for a day or two. For an athlete training 2+ sessions/day, that spells disaster for the body's ability to repair, recover and defend itself. Plus, you leave yourself very low on glycogen by doing such a thing. NOT a good idea for an elite athlete.

Better idea? Visit a sport nutritionist, get an accurate idea of how much you actually eat, then redesign your diet to cut out 200 kCal/day, and see steady weight loss over a few months.

I don't know what the definition of an elite athlete is, but I suspect they don't have any extra pounds. For all you non-elite folks, who would like to drop a few pounds, this is a sustainable way to do it. You only have to "re-design" your diet two days a week. Think about what our hunter-gatherer ancestors had to do with the same body we have (starve for a few days, kill some meat, feast for a few days, etc.). From experience, I can say that a work out on a partial fast day will not kill you.