Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Fast 5
I've been experimenting with trying out the Fast 5 eating style. It's a plan where you fast for 19 hours and then eat in a 5 hour window in the evening (or whatever variation thereof you choose 20/4 ... 21/3 ... etc.) It hasn't worked too well for me! My weight has been gradually creeping up, my face is puffy and I feel depressed and moody. Of course, it could also be PMS. It is nice to switch things up like this once in a while. Many people have had great success with the Fast 5 diet and it's much easier to do than alternate day fasting. But, I miss sitting outside in the morning sunshine having breakfast on my eating days. This doesn't feel as natural or as healthy to me. I find myself looking at the clock seeing if its time to eat yet. With alternate day fasting, I don't have to pay any attention to the clock. My fasting day is a day to focus on healing, letting go, releasing, cleansing and it works best for me.
20 comments:
Hi there, I've been eagerly waiting for you to post! I started ADF in November and stumbled onto your post. I read it from the first post until now. Great information in there and thank you for blogging! I follow JUDDD. I really want to fast on my down days, but I end up eating between 300-500 calories (which is ok according to the plan). Did you find you had to ease into the fasting (other than water/tea etc)? Or did you find it pretty easy? It seems sometimes I'm not even hungry, but I just want to eat something.
Pam,
Thanks for writing! I don't have the willpower to stop after 300-500 calories. I have to go cold turkey (or go "Without" the cold turkey to be more accurate). Once I start eating -- that's it.
How is JUDDD working for you? Are you losing weight?
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
I only had a little weight to lose. I was sort of counting calories every day and I felt like I was starving each day. I got back to my pre-pregnancy weight (I have twins) but I knew I couldn't maintain it by merely counting calories. I sort of stumbled onto JUDDD and it is a perfect plan for me as I am an all-or-nothing kind of dieter! I think I am like you, and the 300-500 cals on my down days are too much freedom. I find myself sneaking more. I am also not good with variety, it's almost as if I'd be better with shakes or liquids and not "real" food. Too much variety on my "fasting" days leads to cravings of the emotional kind. I think if I were home alone I could do it, but it's hard with my husband and kids eating. He is very supportive though. What do you do when your son and bf are eating on your fasting days? I think I am going to give it a go and see how I do with cold turkey. What I do like about this way of eating is it has really liberated me from emotional eating. On my diet days, I know I can't eat my feelings away, so I have had to deal with them. It's been very eye-opening. Wow, I wrote a ton! Thanks for reading and taking the time to respond!
Pam
Pam,
I agree with you about the emotional eating thing. Alternate day fasting has forced me to deal with many of the issues that led me to eat. Sometimes I think it might be easier to do this if one lived alone, but then again, maybe we would eat MORE because we might be lonelier.
I try to occupy myself in another room when they are eating. It is a good time to take a bath or take the dog for a walk.
Wow, TWINS! That would be so much fun. (and so hectic!)
Hi Muse-
Thank you visiting my blog and for leaving such a nice compliment:) I tried Fast-5 in the past and my weight started creeping up too. You have been so amazing and sucessful so far, are you just trying to maintain your weight loss now?
~Starla
Starla,
You luck so vibrant in that photo, it's lively -- I like it.
Well, I WAS maintaining until I tried the Fast 5. Now, I need to lose a few pounds again. It's rough being a shorty in my fourties...
Muse - yes, my twins are amazing, but they can be exhausting, as any mother knows toddlers can be (they are 3). I should have specified before that when I started JUDDD I didn't have a lot of weight to lose. I was following the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet to lose my pregnancy weight, but I was always hungry! At least with ADF I am only hungry every other day! And the more I follow this way of eating, the easier the fasting days become. Thank you for documenting your journey, I have picked up some great tips!
Pam,
Yes, I remember how exhausting little ones can be.
It's a little rough getting into the routine of alternate day fasting at first, but I agree with you, it gets easier as time goes on. It was hard for me to break out of the Fast-5 routine and go back to ADF. It's just so easy to give in at the end of the day ... just this one more time. Writing a blog really helps with the motivation.
I think the vibrance was just good make-up :D I was feeling pretty good that day though. I hope all goes well for you losing those few lbs. from Fast-5. Maybe we could help keep each other motivated.
Starla,
Yes, let's help keep each other motivated!
Hi again, I forgot to ask if you take any supplements or if you found you were lacking in certain nutrients. I ask because I was getting toe cramps and when I went online to investigate I read mostly that it could be potassium, sodium or even calcium/magnesium deficiencies. I eat organic too on my normal days, and I don't eat a lot of meat or dairy. Just wondering if you looked into this or experienced something similar as well.
Pam,
Ouchy!
No, I don't really take any supplements regularly -- although I probably should. I used to take handfuls of vitamins, minerals & other supplements before I started doing ADF. Occasionally I will take something, but it is pretty random. Finances are so tight right now, they seem like a luxury purchase. But if I was having cramps -- I would definitely be taking some again. I used to take these really delicious chewable calcium citrate wafers (I think they were made by Twinlab). They were kind of like oversized sweet tarts. Definitely a fun way to get calcium!
I do get cramps in the arch of my foot every once in a while. I generally eat a banana and/or take a magnesium citrate capsule. It seems to help.
Theresa
Raw chocolate is high in magnesium content. Nibbling on cacao nibs is a fun way to add magnesium to your diet.
Hi, I just wanted to stop by and see how you're doing. By the way, I love raw Cacao! I like the powder the best. I have a big jar of it in the fridge. I like to make raw chocolate milk with it (1 tbsp. raw cacao powder, 1 tsp raw honey, 1 glass raw milk).
Yum, sounds good. Thanks for the tip. I have made a conscious effort to eat more foods high in potassium and magnesium on my normal days and I find that is helping.
One great thing I learned from your blog is how to switch for social situations. I used to do two normal days in a row, and then suffer the weight gain (sometimes as much as two pounds). But then I read you do a low-cal day, and I find that a much better solution for me, when I have to switch.
When I started ADF I was also worried that I wasn't eating enough on my normal days. I try to eat when hungry and stop when satisfied. Like you I choose organic nourishing foods (most of the time). Do you ever worry your cals are too low?
No, I can't say that I ever have had to worry about my calories being too low. If anything -- I'm starting to wonder if perhaps my cells aren't part plantlife. Photosynthesis would certainly explain why I have so much trouble losing weight normally. My body has secretly found some way of creating its own food source. LOL
Thanks for your blog. I hope to see it updated soon! I've recently started IF, and I'm blogging about it at http://eatingandfasting.blogspot.com/
Tom,
You have a great blog there! Love it!
Theresa
Hi
I'm not sure if you'll see this - but the Fast-5 model would raise insulin levels - 9too much food at once) that is why It doesn't work rm some people.
I do JUDDD - i was off it - gained back the weight - now back on it. It helped me cure asthma.
I do the 500 cal. but I fast part of the day and have 2 small meals...
I've loved reading your blog from time to time.
Take care
Mary
I tried fast 5 as well.....and just couldn't do it! I also was gaining weight from it and didn't lose...
ADF is great!
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