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Someone PLEASE move this thread to the vets forum before people hitting a normal plateau less than a year out start screwing with their bodies needlessly! Or before newbs start to think this is the way to eat all the time. I think that combining 5:2 with the sleeve is too much, honestly, and that this is a method that is better suited to maintenance or to shedding weight several years out. Just my opinion, of course, but I can see there being issues from this post being here.

So, I'm doing 5:2 and pretty frustrated. I lost ten pounds in five days last week. I got sick. I didn't eat very well for a few days. Just not many calories in general, and when I would eat I'd eat most of my calories in one meal. Between that and the antibiotics and maybe just being sick in general...all ten pounds came back.

Big frowns, all around.

It doesn't matter if I really gained (or lost) anything. I would rather the scale hadn't moved at all than see it dip down into the promised land only to fly back up and put me in weight loss hell again.

Loss phase sucks.

In any case, back on a fast day today. Sipping green tea and doing a decent job of things. I have to space my calories out into four small meals for fast days to be easy on me. Otherwise I have a problem with my sugar going up and down.

How do ya'll make fast day dinners work with your family? Normally I'd just eat whatever sitting at the table with my little ones and my husband but my stepkids are in for the summer and they (the girls in particular) pay attention to every bite I put in my mouth. I hate to rig up my calories to be heavy at the end of the day so I can eat dinner with them but seriously, they're kinda freaking me out. I guess I can just spell it out for them, but sometimes they try to emulate the way I eat anyway, and we're trying to avoid any issues. Their older sister (not here this year) is very troubled and anorexia is a part of that. From time to time the younger gals have tried to eat along with her, too, or with their mom when she does her crazy diets, so I want to avoid any trouble.

I was also working out until getting sick (it's in my lungs now, YUCK!) but I've been on my feet a lot and have been finishing up some move-in things so it's not like I'm being a lazy bones. I feel like I'm losing a part of my soul saying it, but I actually think I miss doing my evening video. It's like I'm losing my mind around here!

Anyway, fast day for me, not too tough to stay to 500 calories when you feel crummy and your meal plan is set.

Hope everyone else is doing well!

~Cheri

I always eat chicken and veggies for supper on my fast day. I can eat a small chicken breast and either some salad or some other veggies. So it actually looks like I am eating a lot, but 1 chicken breast has around 110 calories, and broccoli for example has 31 calories in a cup. Then it looks like you are eating a lot, but you are staying low on calories.

I would be in favor of moving the thread to the veterans forum because in reality, this type of plan is for a person that is more than a year out, not the newly sleeved.

On a positive note, I completed my first day of my third week yesterday. The end of the day was a little bit of a struggle, oh I wanted to snack so bad last night and I was a little hungry, but I resisted! This morning I was down a half pound. I have been bouncing around a bit, down 5 lbs, then it jump back up to 2.5 pounds, now back down to 3 lbs lost. I hope it holds! I would be averaging 1 lb a week, which is alright...I will take it!

This is a great idea. But for me, not so great in practice. I love to chew gum but if it's super flavored I will eat it like candy and keep popping new pieces in my mouth. By the end of the day, I might as well have had a 100 calorie snack! The only way I'll stick to one piece and chew it to death is if it's mint of some sort.

Ah, disordered eating. I mean, who else eats gum like it's food? When I was a kid, I'd eat toothpaste, too.

~Cheri

I wonder how many calories are in toothpaste? Just wondering! He He!

It could be acid, it might be worth checking into. But it could also be genuine hunger. For a lot of people, hunger does return. I am over 2.5 years post op and I get hungry. I wouldn't say it was the same as before surgery, but if I have gone a long time without anything to eat, I feel it!

It's hard how much focus this takes. I mean, I really thought I'd reach goal and then just...I dunno...BE THIN and not have to work at it or worry about it.

My stepkids flew in last week and promptly spread the plague around our house. It happens every time! A few of us got hit with bacterial pharyngitis and while I didn't go off the rails at all, I didn't pay much attention to the scale or to my tracking over the last few days. My scale is still in hiding but I had my husband dig it out for me. And WTH? I'm up again...every pound I lost is back on again.

See Cheri. See Cheri curse and gnash her teeth. See Cheri beat her head on the wall in frustration. See Cheri throw the damn scale out the window.

Uncool. Unfair. Very disheartening.

I can only imagine the meds I'm on and our non-stop rainfall (and resultant humidity) are to blame here. I promise, there's no way I ate an additional thirty thousand calories over the last few days.

I'm going to search out that 5:2 thread (I swear I saw one here) and start posting for advice there. I'm back on a fast day today (super easy, since this infection is still plaguing me despite the antibiotics I'm on) and we'll see what comes of this.

If I had to guess, I'd say my calories have been too low. Or perhaps the way I've been eating with big dips up and down in my blood sugar is to blame. When I'm not structured about my food I tend to forget to eat and then overcompensate. "Oh, I missed Breakfast and lunch? Well, let me just eat this rather large slice of freshly baked banana bread and have a big cup of creamy coffee to wash it down." It's the same number of calories, true. But the quality is lower and I'm doing what I did as a diabetic and letting my sugars spike after dropping. No good.

Have I mentioned lately how much I hate maintenance? I need to find a more peaceful way to balance this or I'll make myself crazy trying to do this forever. Just get be back to goal and I swear I'll be fine, I swear!

How's everyone else doing today? Has anyone heard from Globe lately? She was giving 5:2 a shot; hopefully she's had better luck with the scale than me!

~Cheri

You are not alone! I have pretty wild fluctuations in my weight, and it was medication that made me gain the weight in the first place (almost 8 pounds in 3 weeks). Yesterday morning I was down 5 pounds since starting the 5:2, this morning I am 2.5 pounds back up. What I eat and where I am in my cycle really mess with the scale.

I feel like you. I was so happy where I was, not gaining and maintaining with what I was eating. Then, BAM! Now I hate struggling to get the last few pounds off...again! But I do like the 5:2 diet, I don't really feel like dieting because I know tomorrow I can eat normally again.

And Globe hasn't posted in a while on the 5:2 thread or the Get to Goal thread. I hope she does, even just for the support.

Now you have me craving Peanut Butter with apples!

Okay, I'm craving Peanut Butter but its got so many calories for so little and I know it has Protein but I think ill overdo. Has anybody used PB2 stuff and honest reviews?

I have used it in shakes and protein cakes and it gives a nice flavor and is not gritty at all. However, I never tried mixing it with Water and turning it back into "peanut butter", so I can't comment on that. If I am really craving peanut butter, I have some natural stuff in the fridge that I sweetened myself with stevia. I warm up a couple of tablespoons in the microwave and have it with an apple. Then you still get the peanut butter without eating half the tub and the apple really helps to fill you up!

Quest bars are good to eat and nothing wrong with eating them on a daily basis........However, I do find that I am addicted to them. LOL But they are really good.....

They are like crack to me, I can't eat just one and they trigger all sorts of crazy cravings...I have learned not to buy them anymore!

There are a lot of health benefits to intermittent fasting, just google it and you will find a lot of information. I started to 5:2 diet 2 weeks ago. If you search through the threads, you will find a couple that have good discussions on it. Those of us that are using it are typically 2+ years out of surgery and have a few pounds that we would like to lose. Unfortunately, the sleeve is not a magical solution, and some of us have found this as a great solution for us. The fast days are relatively easy and I have not felt like I was "dieting" when doing it...especially compared to all the crazy things I have tried in the past! That being said, you have to find what works for you and you are so newly sleeved, it is not something at this point that you should be contemplating (of course, just my personal opinion). Right now, just work on still healing from your surgery and making lasting changes to your lifestyle.

My son and I on our ride yesterday

Challenge June_SummerChallenge.xls

You are both so cute, and you look like you are having so much fun!

Georgia...you know I'm not 100% sure. I know they want people to call in and make appts when they are experiencing regain. I sort of lost touch with my every 3 month appt approach after I hit about 18 months post-op, so I have resumed seeing the NUT every 3 months starting in Jan of this year...(which is good but isn't making the regain magically disappear.) They also have a structured diet (ketogenic diet??? thinking Medifast-ish) that you use to replace food for a while. You don't just get to say "oh I'm sick of it, I'm OFF" so I think they slowly wean you off the diet and back to real food. Beyond that I'm not sure. I've thought about the Keto diet but haven't jumped in because I honestly think it will be hard to mesh eating "my food" with feeding my family etc. So not sure, but I know he speaks about the "After 2 Year Gain" in his seminar and how part of his practice is focusing on eliminating that. I think most people tend to slink away when there is a gain and that is when you NEED him (surgeon) the most. Just like people slink away from here with a regain. Sigh...

I am glad that your surgeon has this for his patients and he is realistic. Sometimes I feel that the sleeve is sold as a "magic bullet" and that the lose will be forever. When in reality, it still takes work!

OregonDaisy, it is really good to plan what you are going to have. The first day I did it, I sort of winged it, and even though I managed to stay at the 500 calories, it was a struggle all day and I felt like garbage at night.

I found what works best for me is not eating breakfast. So I might have a later snack the night before, around 8 or 9, but then I don't eat until 12 or 1 the next day (extending the 12 hours). I usually have greek yogurt with berries and Fiber One Original. Then nothing until supper, which is usually chicken and veggies. Lately I have been coming in under the 500 calories and will have a small snack after supper even. Then I don't eat until 8 or 9 the next morning (depending if I had a snack the night before and what time). Now that I figured out what works for me, my fast days have actually been a breeze. I have been doing it for 2 weeks, first week I did Wed/Fri and then this week I switched to Mon/Thurs.

The good news, so far as of this morning, I am down 5 pounds since I started. And the craziest thing is that the last couple of weeks, my non-fast days have been out to lunch. We have had so many gatherings, family visiting, and my hubby and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. I have eaten way more foods than what I normally eat, but still stuck to my fasting, and I am still losing. Not that I am suggesting reckless abandon on normal days, I plan on getting back to my normal routine starting today! If it hold, I am only 3 lbs from my happy weight that I was at before I started the medication that made me gain 8 pounds in 3 weeks! I am actually thinking I might stick to the 5:2 and see if I might get a little lower even, 3 or 4 lbs, but I will see!

I'm 10 weeks out & only 34 lbs. down...50 total (inc. presurgery) Is it too soon to do this program? Or would it be ok to try? (I feel like my results are much slower than everyone's & this might be something I should try)

I am always sad when someone says I'm "only" down so much. You have done amazing...put in perspective, you have lost over 3 pounds a week for the last 10 weeks. If I was you, I would just wait on trying any diets and focus on making healthy changes and healing from your surgery. All of us on here working with this diet right now are over 2 years post op and fully healed.

And my biggest piece of advice...do not compare your weight loss and your journey to anyone else. You will drive yourself crazy! I am not sure how much you need to lose, but everyone loses at different paces. Someone that needs to lose 80 lbs will likely lose slower than someone that needs to lose 180lbs. I was a slower loser and it took me 18 months to reach my goal weight. When I stopped comparing and just started accepting, I felt much better and much more at peace.

I am on Thursday too, Mondays and Thursdays. As crazy as it sounds, some fast food places have great options (McDonald's salads with no cheese, dressing or nuts...most come in under 200 calories). I am not promoting eating fast food, but if you are eating out....

So far today, greek yogurt with strawberries and All Bran at lunch time (actually more like 1:30, but I was busy). Making some chicken for supper with some veggies.

Have a great Fast everyone!

Yes, I think this has either got to be one of the biggest myths on VST, or you and I are freaks because all my slip ups are the result of enjoying things in moderation. I hear it all the time...everything in moderation. But when I think back to my failed weight loss attempts before surgery, or my nasty carb binge that I just recently squashed, they all resulted from slowly trying to incorporate small treats into my life. Small rewards for a job well done....which lead to bigger, more frequent rewards which lead to throwing the rule book out the window and eating crap everyday. For me...it's sweets. I cannot indulge myself. My alternative is a chocolate Protein shake. I actually am a freak because I love my Protein shakes. Closest thing to chocolate milk I've found. So when I feel a need for something sweet, if I'll make myself a shake it takes care of my need, but in a guilt free healthy way.

Clearly, others do well with the moderation approach. I wish I did. But it's clear to me now that moderation is one alternative....but not the only one. Abstaining can be very liberating....much in the same manner that fasting is liberating. You free yourself from the pressure of thinking about how much can I have and when.

At least you realized it before it became a real problem. I know there are things that I can't eat. And I never keep them in my house. The worst for me is chips. It they are there, I eat them. We were out last night, and they had some at the party we were at. I did eat some, and they tasted so good. But I know that I can leave them there. If they were withing reach, I would have no control.

When I say I eat things in moderation, for me, moderation is food not in my house that I do not have access too. I don't eat bread, except the odd occasion we are out and there is garlic toast, then I will have a small amount. Same goes with any other food that I have restricted from my diet. And sweets are a trigger for me as well, once I have some, I start wanting more and more and it is difficult to get back on track.

I think everyone needs to find what works for them. You have done phenomenal Butter and you are an inspiration to many

thought I would try and post some pics, they ain't the best, you you can see that the apron has gone! The tummy area looks good with clothes on, pretty flat. Without clothes, there is still room for improvement and I am hoping exercise will help with this.

I look 'ok' now, but still a bit 'thick', if that makes sense... If I was taller ...lol...

You are so super cute and sassy! And I love your hair!! You look so good, I would never look at you and think you are "thick"...you should throw up some side by sides to remind yourself how amazing you look!

We will be back on the 3rd of July..

Oh that sounds like fun! We were just in Vegas 2 days ago! HOT HOT HOT! But fun!

You better snap pictures and share!!

I will just try and forgive myself the next couple of days and know that when I get home I can get back to my normal eating (5:2)

Ok I must go and join the athletic masses in Colorado now!

Have a good day guys!

It is so hard to let go of the guilt around eating isn't it? I am always so sad, even for myself, that we have spend so much of our existence feeling bad about what we eat that it is so difficult to let it go.

Try to have lots of fun on your vacation and enjoy it! Soon you will be back home and back to routine. And allow yourself forgiveness!

Well, I wasn't down anything after my first fast day of this week, so that was a little disappointing, but I wasn't up either. Then, once again, yesterday felt like a very bad day. We had a little party that we went to with tons of food, everything I normally don't eat, but it tasted oh so good. My weight held steady this morning, but I am having a hard time shaking the sugar cravings. I find the more I eat, the more I crave. Plus I am PMS'ing, which for me, makes it even harder...I just feel like I want to stuff my face!

Tomorrow is my second fast day of the week, and I am actually looking forward to it! I find I can assert much more control on the fast days. And I actually told my husband what I was doing. He was away last week when I started, so I just didn't mention it. Not sure if he is really on board, but I explained a lot of it to him, explained some of the benefits of fasting not just for weight loss but for overall health. He knows that it wouldn't matter what he said anyways because I am just too stubborn and will do what I want anyways!

Well my first week over and down 2lb (this takes me back down to my lowest), had a busy eating weekend so I am delighted with this loss. Fast day today.

Yeah!

I've been lurking on this thread, but I guess I'm going to be brave and step into the fray.

I'll start by admitting I have serious eating issues. About a year before I had surgery, I felt so out of control with binge eating, and helpless to do anything about it, that I sought professional help. It was an interesting process, but one that helped me with insight (why), rather than with strategies (so, now what?).

When I decided to pursue WLS, I did so with the clear understanding that it was not going to be a fix for my eating issues, just a tool to help me manage the physical hunger. The first 6 months or so post-op felt fairly easy, and I surpassed my surgeon's goal, I became an avid runner, and completely changed both what and how I eat, with every intention of making those changes permanent. But carbs and sugar began to creep back into my diet, and it took me another 6 months to lose 14.5 of the last 15 pounds to get to my personal goal.

I suspect I could have been one of those people who struggles a bit to quit losing, if I'd stuck to eating what I'd planned, but I'm struggling again with binge eating, and as of this morning I'm about 23 pounds from my personal goal (I hate to admit it,but I've been quite a bit higher than this).

I've tried CBT, and I read everything I can get my hands on dealing with emotional eating, sugar addiction, etc. I haven't made it to an OA meeting yet, but I know where and when the nearest meeting is, and I'm seriously considering it.

Does this mean I don't "have any 'smarts' at all", since I regained quite a bit?

...Ouch....

I frequently see discussions about regain that comment "sure, if you're sucking down milkshakes and ice cream all day you can regain", and "you can eat around the sleeve if you're determined to", the implication being that those of us who don't maintain well are stupid, or stubbornly choose this path. I understand the fear of regain, and the desire to feel "safe", to think "I'm too smart to do that, so I'll be ok". But I'm a confident, well-educated woman, with a graduate degree and a good career in an intellectual field. And I'm very self-aware of my eating issues. I get on the scale every single morning, even knowing I wasn't going to be happy about the number I'd see there. Yes, I was scared about regaining. Yes, I knew I needed to address those few pounds before they became more. But I haven't got this figured out yet, and some days my old habits win. I'd venture to say that a good percentage of us have work to do on the mental/emotional side of this journey, and I feel a bit lost on that path.

Still, I have no regrets about having chose surgery. I'm out hiking every weekend I can be, up at 5am to head out in the mountains with the birds and the squirrels (I'm a grouchy hiker with hermit tendencies, so I gotta hit that trail before the chatty groups show up!) I'm much happier, and more confident in my body, even with the regain. I can't fit into all the skinny clothes in my closet, but I still believe it's possible to get there, and I'm not giving up. And, I'm pretty proud of the 80+ pounds I haven't regained, and I know without a doubt that without surgery, I'd probably weigh even more than I did pre-op.

Thank you for being brave enough to post this. I had posted some stats earlier in the thread about regain. And the other thing from one of the articles that was also important was that EVERYONE has 100% convictions...they will not be the one that regains any weight. The truth is, it is not that hard to put the weight on, and it has nothing to do with drinking milkshakes all day. I think the people that tend to say those things are very narrow-minded and not that far out from surgery. I would honestly say the first 2 years are dare I say the "easiest". The easiest in the sense that people lose a lot of the weight they wanted to lose and can maintain. After that, it gets more difficult. Like Cheri said, we are human and life happens. We enjoy food just like almost every other person on the planet.

I also do not have a great relationship with food and I am trying to deal with it day by day. It is a lifelong commitment. It might mean re-evaluating every once and a while, changing goals, and making things work for you. And I don't think that anyone that has any amount of regain is a failure. Like you said, everyone should be proud of the weight that we have kept off!

The Fiber cereals really help fill me up and help with digestion, thus I don't worry about the carbs. Laura, it reminds me of putting granola on my yogurt (I was making sugar free homemade granola, but it was becoming a slider for me, so I had to quit!)

Yesterday was my third fast day, heading into my second week. I came in just under 500 calories and felt really good. Not eating breakfast is the key for me! Although I was not down this morning, I am holding steady at around 2.5/2.8 lbs lost, so that I am happy for. And I feel a lot less bloated during and after a fast day, and I like that feeling!!

One thing I've noticed here from all trying 5:2. When you do a shake or yogurt Oma NORMAL day (prior tostarting5:2) did it hold you for the allotted time between meals? It wouldn't me. I don't really get hungry between meals on on the fast days but I eat either oatmeal or eggs for breakfast then usually a string cheese around noon then a good dinner. Yes, I know the high Protein level in Greek yogurt is supposed to help with hunger but it really doesn't for me. Just a thought if you find yourself getting hungry. To have shakes, yogurt, etc. all day would NEVER enable me to long term handle it and we are trying to establish long term lifestyles I think. At least I am. Just a thought.

And Laura and Coops, happy vacay!!!!!

I don't have the yogurt by itself. I buy plain, sweeten it myself, mix in berries (usually raspberries or strawberries) and Fiber One Cereal or All Bran Cereal. That way it is super filling and lasts me a long time. I think if I just ate it by itself, I would get hungry quickly. shakes fill me up initially and can last me a couple of hours, but I don't think it would last me as long as I need on fast days.

And on a note, I have not been eating any breakfast. I am not usually that hungry in the morning and find it easier to not eat. If I do eat, then I almost get more hungry than if I don't. So I usually do not eat until noon, but on my normal days I usually have a small snack before bed, maybe around 9:00. So my fast first is usually 14-16 hours, second fast is usually the typical 12 hours.

Well, the bad news, my feast days were not great this weekend. My hubby has been away and I was getting very stressed taking care of my children (3 and 6) alone for a longer period than what I am used to (8 days). Plus I am hormonal, so I found myself turning to junk. Not like the the old days before my sleeve, but still more than I usually do. Thank goodness that I don't keep junk food in my house, or it would have been a disaster!

Now the good news. Even though my feast days weren't great and my weight did bounce up a little, I am still down a total of 2.8 pounds. Today is my fast day again and I will stick to what worked for me the last time. No breakfast, lunch of yogurt and berries and then supper. I am going to try fast days of Mondays and Thursdays. I like having them a little further part in the middle and a little closer from end to start. I think if I had 4 days in between, I might struggle a little more than having 3 days (Friday-Sunday) and 2 days (Tuesday, Wednesday).

Keep posting everyone, your posts are keeping me inspired!

Question for all of you: Would 5:2 diet be a good way of eating even if I do not have any scale weight to lose?

One of my present goals is to lean out more for increasing lean muscle body composition. however, i do not wish to drop any scale weight beyond maybe 5 pounds. I want to be fairly honest about one thing. I eat all the time. Every hour or two I try to eat some lean Protein in order to feed the dietary needs of muscle (.92 * 180 ideal weight = 170 g a day). My current weight is 180 and I have good body fat composition of 15%. However, I am always on the look out for trying better and more efficient approaches to maintaining health through diet and efficient fitness. Not eating much on two days would Los help my budget as eating lean Protein and drinking shakes is expensive.

I could not imagine *not* eating for long periods of time. As stated above and in other threads i really do try and eat TDEE - 300. However, I do end up falling short due to most of my diet consisting of lean protein through meat or supplementation. It is a Paleo diet that works fairly well for me. Would this fasting 2 days a week actually benefit my fitness goals and also promote even better health?

I am not a gym rat ( not for me), but do put in 20 minutes or so a day of hard core fitness exercises at home with 20 minutes on both ends to warm up and cool down in addition to 2 cross fit sessions a week (also has roughly a 20, 20, 20 timing structure). How would there be energy to be active on those fasting days? I primarily do body weight fitness exercises now which is very intense, yet extremely effective in terms of time management.

Appreciate any insight you have as the non scale health benefits of 5:2 you all talked about in the last few days sounds intriguing.

Check out this guy's site:

http://www.leangains.com/

He is very fit and does intermittent fasting. I think it would be a good resource for you. From what I have read, it is especially good for abdominal fat. The maintenance schedule is fasting only 1 day a week, so this might be more up your ally?

I am so happy for everyone! And the more research I do on intermittent fasting, to more positive I think it is. And doable!