Anyone doing the Fast Diet?

[The Mystery Machine]

I would not do it, but I am not in tip top health and could not do it. I exercise and am in physical therapy so I need calories.

You would have to disease, illness, and injury free for this to even be a consideration.

I have read that in older people it is a good way to "extend life". Meaning, the less you eat, the less taxing it is on your body more or less.

 

[lizabu]

I would not do it, but I am not in tip top health and could not do it. I exercise and am in physical therapy so I need calories.

You would have to disease, illness, and injury free for this to even be a consideration.

I have read that in older people it is a good way to "extend life". Meaning, the less you eat, the less taxing it is on your body more or less.

I think it's very natural to eat less as you age. I remember visiting my grandparents as a child and they would be eating a bowl of soup for dinner or a sandwich. I think as our metabolisms wind down with age appetite naturally follows.

 

[Poohforyou]

I didn't see the beginning of the show. I started watching when he did the 4 day fast. I would never be able to do that. I was interested in doing it for all of the health benefits, not mainly to lose weight. Weight loss it just a very nice bonus.



I think I eat a fairly healthy diet. Below is a typical day.

Breakfast - usually nothing because I'm often slightly nauseous at the thought of food in the morning. Sometimes I'll have a lowfat yogurt (190 cal.)

Lunch - a normal lunch for me would be a serving of carrot chips (35 cal.) and two servings of hummus (140 cal.) I'm eating this now.

Snack - a banana or some strawberries

Dinner - tonight I'm having grilled shrimp (5 oz), steamed broccoli (4.5 oz. no butter, just salt) and roasted potatoes (4.5 oz) with evoo and salt. Not sure about the calorie count.

Snack - once in a while, maybe 2 days a week, I'll have some chocolate. I think the serving size for Hershey Kisses is 9 and I never eat that many.

The only things I drink are water or unsweetened iced tea. Less than once a month I will have 1 regular soda, so I don't really count that. And I don't drink coffee, can't stand it actually.

You really aren't eating enough and most of your calories are consumed at night which isn't good either. I'd recommend getting away from eating the same thing all the time. It's like doing the same exercise day in and day out. After a while your body gets used to it and you stop seeing results.

I'd recommend mixing things up a bit. Look at your calories over several days or even a week and some days eat more than on others. You also should try to eat every 3-4 hours to keep your metabolism revved up. As for skipping breakfast, any nutritionist will tell you that's a big no-no. If you can't eat right away in the morning try having a mid-morning snack at least. Some carbs, fat and protein are your best bet for staying full.

 

[Zandy595]

You really aren't eating enough and most of your calories are consumed at night which isn't good either. I'd recommend getting away from eating the same thing all the time. It's like doing the same exercise day in and day out. After a while your body gets used to it and you stop seeing results.

I'd recommend mixing things up a bit. Look at your calories over several days or even a week and some days eat more than on others. You also should try to eat every 3-4 hours to keep your metabolism revved up. As for skipping breakfast, any nutritionist will tell you that's a big no-no. If you can't eat right away in the morning try having a mid-morning snack at least. Some carbs, fat and protein are your best bet for staying full.

I didn't mean to imply that I eat those same foods everyday. I may eat hummus 3-4 days in a row for lunch, but that's just to finish the container before it goes bad. I make a different dinner every night of the week. I usually won't repeat a meal (dinner) unless it's been at least 4 weeks since we had it last.

 

[LuLuO]

Today was my first fast day of the 5-2 but I'm capping it at 700 calories instead of 500. I ate breakfast, lunch and dinner. Feel good. I generally net 1600 to 1800 calories a day and exercise 4-5 days a week. Hoping the intermittent fasting will kick in a new round of weight loss. I have about 37 pounds left to go.

 

[Planogirl]

It would if they aren't eating healthy to begin with.

I'm fairly certain that a large amout of people who think they eat a healthy diet, and who are overweight, actually are consuming more calories than they think they are.

As I mentioned above, to maintain my weight, I eat 1470 calories a day. When I was trying to lose weight, I cut it to 1270 calories. When I go to the gym, I can add between 200 and 300 calories to my daily intake. I really recommend a calorie counting app. It was a huge eye opener for me.

I know a lot of people who think they are eating healthfully, but are consuming a lot of sugar, fat and calories in between the healthy meals. One Starbucks drink can add up to 1/2 of your daily allotted calories pretty easily. If you drink a Starbucks White Chocolate Mocha, you've consumed 660 calories. Pair that with the scone I mentioned earlier, and you've now eaten your entire daily allotment of calories if you're a 140 pound woman trying to lose one pound a week. I know nobody would claim that a mocha and scone is a healthy diet, but even if you're eating salads, fish, lean meats and lots of veggies, which IS a healthy diet....you're just adding extra calories on top of the 1200 you've already consumed for breakfast.

I'm assuming that an individual cuts back to a 'normal' amount of food and eats mostly healthy items. In other words, that person eats enough to maintain their weight. Your 1470 calories was probably a healthy diet but that by itself isn't enough to lose weight as someone suggested earlier.

Different methods work for different people. I don't believe in quick fad diets but eating certain foods and eating them at certain times can often help some people. Of course physical activity is a given.

 

[Christine]

I'm assuming that an individual cuts back to a 'normal' amount of food and eats mostly healthy items. In other words, that person eats enough to maintain their weight. Your 1470 calories was probably a healthy diet but that by itself isn't enough to lose weight as someone suggested earlier.Different methods work for different people. I don't believe in quick fad diets but eating certain foods and eating them at certain times can often help some people. Of course physical activity is a given.

Re: bolded part: that really depends.

I am just about 5'8", pushing 50 years old and was about 20 lbs over being a very desirable weight. I started tracking my intake on Sparkpeople. I *thought* I was eating pretty healthy but found that I was eating around 2500 calories a day. They were mostly healthy things but I had large portions and I was eating sporadic desserts (I never was a soda drinker).

I cut back to about 1900 calories but only slowly lost 2 lbs. Once I hit 1500 calories, the weight rolls off me. At 1200, I feel like I am going to die.

So I think it can be different for each person. I know that if I stay between 1500-1700 calories, I can consistently lose about 1lb a week.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Re: bolded part: that really depends.

I am just about 5'8", pushing 50 years old and was about 20 lbs over being a very desirable weight. I started tracking my intake on Sparkpeople. I *thought* I was eating pretty healthy but found that I was eating around 2500 calories a day. They were mostly healthy things but I had large portions and I was eating sporadic desserts (I never was a soda drinker).

I cut back to about 1900 calories but only slowly lost 2 lbs. Once I hit 1500 calories, the weight rolls off me. At 1200, I feel like I am going to die.

So I think it can be different for each person. I know that if I stay between 1500-1700 calories, I can consistently lose about 1lb a week.

I can't do 1200 either!

When I first started REALLY getting serious about losing my weight and tracking my calories, I was eating my calorie allotment for the day at breakfast. I love breakfast.

This time around, I am not even counting calories. Instead I am counting sat fat and I have a food scale to help with portion control. I am also exercising daily.

I made this final change because of health reasons. I am not "on a diet" anymore, I am eating and exercising for the rest of my life. The weight is coming off slowly. I am not "overweight" according to BMI however I am trying to get to 32" around my waist. That requires exercise and weight loss.

Weight is not the only measurement you should be concerned with. Break out the measuring tape, that is where the true "measure" of health lies.