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Wow, that was fast!!!

The basic idea is to eat a normal, healthy diet 5 days a week and fast (eating 500 calories) two days a week. There are many health benefits to fasting, but I would NOT recommend this for anyone that is under a year for sure. Your body is still healing from surgery and you need to focus on recovery and getting in as much healthy nutrition as you can at the moment.

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!

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!

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!

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!

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.

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

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 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!

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

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!

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!

Yeah!

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!!

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!