Im having trouble losing this last 25 lbs and have been thinking of trying the 5:2 diet.

I know many of you have been using this diet as a tool. ive searched the forum and didnt get any hits. isnt there a support group for this topic? I cant find it anymore.

Questions:

Are you currently on this diet? (or have you been?)

What has your experience with it been like?

Any links you can recommend?

What do i need to know?

Great job everyone...we are doing this!!!! Oh how I miss those frozen dinners like WW and Lean Cuisines, nothing like that here in Holland. I had forgotten all about them! Lots more choices like that in the US, but lots more junk too....I eat pretty much all natural fresh stuff, not because I'm such a purist (far from it!) but because my choices are so limited. I remember the last time I went to the US (for my 60th in 2013) I went into a grocery store and almost had a meltdown seeing all the many foods I used to love! Guess it's a good thing I'm here.

But I am happy that we are doing this. Even with my PERFECT 5:2 day last Monday, and a very decent one yesterday, I am still down barely 1 lb, but I feel good and I'm encouraged!

@@Queen of Crop great job! I agree it is such a good feeling to be able to do and succeed at it! Funny how people survive just fine without all the junk food and packaged/prepared food we have at our disposal here. I try to avoid a lot of it, but it does work its way in here.

I've had a stellar week. Came in right around 500 calories both fast days, and right around 1000 on the feast days. I GAINED 1.5 since last Friday. Sigh. I was surprised because my clothes are looser and I look like my abdomen is about 6 inches thick from a side view. My arms feel tight though, and I know my legs are still swollen, but I really did expect to drop a little. Now I'm remembering why I weigh this much.....because it won't come off! I think the 1000 calories must be the culprit. I have said over and over that I have to go below 900 to lose. I guess I thought the 500 calorie days and intermittent fasting would help, but maybe not. I can't exercise yet either, so that doesn't help either. Maybe I need a 4:3 plan lol!

I'm hoping you are all doing well and have better results than me!

I just weighed this morning and after two fast days and pretty good non-fast days I'm down 4 pounds over the last two weeks. I'll take it! I'm being honest- not nearly as easy this time as last but I'm thinking it's because I allowed myself to eat so much junk and really "graze" all day.

On a good note, though, I am enjoying the taste of REAL FOOD so much. Veggies, a few fruits I allow myself now and again are delightful. ????. I'm especially on a cabbage craving kick right now. Ha!

Although, I had a piece of birthday cake for my Grand's 10th BD last night I had included in calories so came in about 650. High for a fast day for me but so much better than previous weeks! It's all good.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend. I am going on a wknd jaunt with my YAYA girls. There are five of us long time/lifetime friends and we've done MLK wknd for several years now.

Hopefully, it will be decent food wise since most of us are trying to be health conscious. Just a "pj", veg out weekend but I hope to get some walking in.

Michiganchic, isn't that weird?!! I'm sure your is mostly edema but really, why is it so freaking hard to LOSE the weight we can seemingly put in so quickly! Ha!

It's ree dic u laus, as my Dad used to say!

And yes, it's true, our bodies handle calories/carbs/food differently now I believe so our threshold is lower. If I'm AT GOAL and trying to maintain anywhere in the neighborhood of 1300 I WILL gain! Slowly but gain. But then again, I stopped exercising as much either. ????

I'm just tired and stressed somewhat right now And I tend to want to just lay!!!! LOL.

EXCUSES EXCUSES EXCUSES.

But we will persevere, right gang?

Hey, Lynda, where art though and HOW art thou?

I netted 571 calories on my Thursday fast day yesterday. I found it to be much more difficult than the Monday fast day. I think that's because on Mondays, my three littlest kids spend the day with a sitter, so I'm not dealing with their meals and Snacks all day. I find I'm far less tempted to snack when I'm not doling out snacks constantly. I also manually cut and hauled tree branches for a couple of hours yesterday afternoon, so my carbs were a bit higher than they were on Monday, where I spent the entire day running errands. I did 900 calories the day before per @@MichiganChic suggestion, and I'm down almost 2 pounds for my first full 5:2 week. I wish it were more since I'm still up about three pounds from my pre-Christmas weight, but a loss is a loss, and I'm happy for it. Thankful for it. Fingers crossed this week my body decides it LOVES this program and drops 6 or 7 pounds. Haha!

Somebody asked about post plastics swelling. It isn't intestinal bloating, it is edema and it is very common post plastics. for me, it was caused by the lower body lift and sorta came and went for about 4-6 months. I hear it can go on for a year. Now, one thing that is kinda weird is I still have numbness in my lower belly and so it sometimes "feels" swollen when it is not.

Well, I went skiing yesterday and maybe overdid it as my weight bumped up a few pounds. I have very tired muscles today and i believe that tends to be related to Water retention.

Michiganchic, I know you didn't have good results this week... but give it a few more weeks. With water retention issues, you might find that it takes awhile to show up on the scale.

fasted yesterday, and started the day up a little... this morning stayed the same. I know I had too many carbs and salt yesterday, so still calling it good... but going pretty slow this time around... I hope the 5:2 kicks in at sometime soon! I need to get in more raw and lower carbs... I think that is the ticket. I just ordered some high protein low carb items on netritioncom today to stock up the pantry.... some black bean pasta, some chicken NOT! strips, both pretty high protein and tasty as well as some other stuff. Love that place!

http://www26.netrition.com/explore_asian_organic_black_bean_spaghetti.html

25 gms protein...

and

http://www26.netrition.com/dd_chicken_not.html

25 gms protein

@@VSG AJH yay for you! So glad you dropped some.

Georgia and CGJ, It is edema, and I do know that, but I was feeling sorry for myself this morning, lol. Thanks for the encouragement. I'm going to stick with it. I am secretly hoping I'm losing fat under the swelling, and some day that will go away and I'll wake up at goal!! It's just like the old days when I was fat and wished every day that it was just a bad dream and wanted to wake up thin, lol.

Honestly, weekends are such a struggle for me. I look forward to them and being away from work, but I dread them a little because there is ample access to too much food, and the wrong things. Always somewhere to go, something to do, people coming over, doing nothing so thinking about food....the list is endless why I have a hard time keeping my intake under control. Does anyone have this problem? How do you deal with it? It was ok when I was recovering from surgeries and maintaining, but now I'm feeling like I really want to get goal so I have to be strict.

Today I tried to do my first fast in about a month. I came in at 690 cal. I have been trying to for a few weeks to get a fast in and have been feeling defeated and overwhelmed as I have been unable to do it.

This weekend, I moved my home office from the Family Room (off the kitchen) to the Living room and I think that may have been a contributing factor and exactly what the doctor ordered. My Water consumption was lower than i'd like to see but I'm going to work on that.

My carb monster has been out recently something fierce lately with the holidays and feeling quite lazy to boot. I am hopeful that getting back into 5:2 will help me to control that "uncontrollable" feeling that I get when I have been having more challenging days and unable to eat clean.

So, I ask myself, what is the difference? Well, it's no longer my TOM and also I am feeling really very grateful for everything (literally everything....) especially this gift of been given of my sleeve.

I better get to bed soon. I have become a night time eater and a "eat when I'm tired" eater (bad combo) so I don't want to succumb. I'll let you know what the scale says tomorrow AM.

@@windycitymom Your stats look great, congrats. I often think that if I worked from home I'd be 300 pounds again. Having easy access to food all day would be too great a challenge for me, I fear. It's one of the reason I struggle on weekends. I agree that moving your office should help.

I also tend to eat when I'm tired. It's like a switch that goes on at 9 pm. I'll get a sudden urge to eat and then realize it's about 9. I always say nothing good happens after 9 pm, lol! I seriously go to bed every day right around then.

It makes me a little sad to know that after 2 years and massive weight loss, I still struggle like that. Still lose control sometimes - and I absolutely pay the price on the scale when I do. I had hoped that by now, new, better habits would be stronger than the old, bad ones.

Anyway, I had a bit of a rough weekend, and both days I came in between 1500-2000 calories. I'm paying, because I'm up 3 pounds. I was going to fast yesterday, but didn't make it - came in at 850. So, that's more in line with a normal day in weight loss mode, so I'll try to hit 500 today. I'm just pissed at myself because while I didn't go crazy, it doesn't take long to hit 1500 calories, and I know what will happen when I do.

OK, I'm going to shut up and move on. I know what to do. Hope everyone else is doing better than me!

HI everyone....but especially to windycity and michiganchic....stop beating yourself up! First, I think you are both doing great...you are doing the right things and recognizing what has to be done. Look how far you have come. I have come to realize that most normal weight people have to keep on their toes just like we do now. Sure, there are probably some people who can eat 2200 calories + in a day and not gain weight, but most people who stay thin, are not on the FFA eating plan (Free For All!). They do splurge, but then cut back, and stay away from certain things and move. JUST LIKE WE ARE LEARNING TO DO!

I just had my 3rd successful FAST day yesterday and am feeling happy and strong. But I have been where you two are as well....my office is near the kitchen, having a pity party for myself that I am STILL struggling with keeping my weight in check (did I think this was going to be a free ride?). One of the reasons I am having some success with 5:2 is because I design my two FAST days (M and TH) to include things out of the house...errands, visiting a friend, yesterday we went to the movies, things where I know I will not get distracted.

We need to start loving ourselves more and recognizing how far we have come. We have nothing to feel bad about. If we were where we were a couple of years ago, sitting on our butts and eating gallons of ice cream, THEN we should feel crappy. Not now! We are strong women and we are just getting better all the time!!!!

Can we just say that this weekend was not my finest?! LOL. Annual trip with YaYas and it was,"what and when are we going to eat now?" Ha! Love my girls, though, and I have forgiven myself today and moved on to a new 5:2 fast day Along With the brand new horrible cold I have also! ????.

GOT to get my non-fast days cleaned up! I'm sabotaging myself. ????

New day, new week. Gonna do it and get more exercise in too!

Happy Tuesday, All!

Edited January 20, 201511 yr by Georgia

Here are my Yaya buds and I at Keeter Lodge in Hollister, MO. I'm the far right.

Thanks MichiganChic! I'm glad to hear I'm not alone.

I'll never forget what a great man once told me. "Ya know, i can operate on your stomach to make it smaller but I can't operate on your brain"....... Dr. Alberto Aceves February, 2012. I still think about this statement almost every day and I understand a little more every day as I "grow into" my new tummy (almost 3 yrs later).

I find myself grateful for my new tummy that reminds me when I am grazing and reminds me when I've had enough or when I've made some unhealthy decisions. For me it's the mental/emotional hunger game that challenges me. For the first 1 - 1.5 years post op, I rarely thought about food as I really could do anything with the thought. In the last 1 - 1.5 years (yrs 2 and 3 post op), I can actually do stuff about it, I can chose to carb graze, I can chose to eat unhealthy foods, I can overindulge but the difference in my mental state is that if I have a rough day, the next day when I wake up in the morning my stomach has forgiven me. The question is will I let my brain's "sabotaging thoughts" overrule my tummy and make me have another bad day.

Every day, i have a new choice and the great news is that I get another "new day" tomorrow. 3 years ago, if I had a tough day, it could last me for months or longer sometimes (mentally). I would beat myself up and make it too difficult to make healthy choices for myself. Post Surgery, I have some days with healthful choices and other days I do not. The key for me is to decrease the amount of tough days and try not to hold a grudge. The 5:2 plan allows me the opportunity to feel in control (when I do it) which also works my "self sabotage recordings" inversely so that I have the confidence to make good decisions for the rest of the day.

I like where I'm at today (mentally) and I am learning how to use my strengths and challenges to help me get a healthier lifestyle. I weighed in at 138.9LBS this morning and hope to continue with the 5:2 lifestyle so that I can continue to work on my brain and feel in control while making healthful decisions.