I know that we're all different, but my experience of the 5:2 diet has been very different from Skibs. I'm a great fan of it. I thought that I could never manage the hunger from eating only the recommended 500 calories a day, so discounted it. My friend lost 3 stone on it in 3 months though, and kept it off, so encouraged by her, I thought I'd give it a try. I tried doing 500 calories a day and failed miserably on the second day, because I was ravenous and succumbed to yummy chocolate cake when I couldn't bear it any longer ha ha!
I decided to allow myself 800 calories and see how I got on, as that seemed more doable, and cut down a bit more when I felt able to. The extra 300 calories made all the difference, and I was able to sustain it. I ate between about 650 and 800 on my "fasting" days, which I did 3 days a week. I found the first week was the hardest hunger wise, but by the second week it was easier, and didn't seem like a very big deal. I was amazed that I lost about 3 pounds a week on it. When I did Weight Watchers I lost 1/2 pound a week even though I cut down a lot, especially on the sugary stuff. It was a long slog to lose a stone that way, it took months. I did keep it off for a long time, though. Then years of comfort eating followed, and I put the stone back on, plus another one!
On the 4:3 diet, not only did I lose 6 times the weight per week, I also lost 5% body fat, I didn't lose so much fat on WW, I think it was 3%. I kept all the weight off for many months, but after having a very difficult year, I put on 10 pounds of the 20 odd that I had lost, through serious comfort eating again. Having braved the scales, I decided to gird my loins and start afresh yesterday. I looked and felt so much better after the weight loss, and I know that I can do it quickly and fairly easily this way. I had more energy while doing the diet, and saved quite a bit on food too, so the gains were great for just a little effort, and some (bearable) hunger. I didn't eat super healthily either, I did it by improving my diet somewhat, but one of my staple low calorie dinners was 3 fish fingers with oven chips! You do tend to get a few withdrawal symptoms for the first few weeks as your body detoxes, but it wasn't too bad, just a bit of a headache, sore throat and fatigue. I found it easier to fast on days when I was busy, as it helped to take my mind off being hungry. The Kate Harrison books on the 5:2 diet are great, very clear and motivating, and the Michael Mosley Fast Diet book is also very good.
As you can probably tell, I'm a great proponent of the diet as it's been so effective for me, so just thought that I'd share my experience of it in case it might help others who have reservations about trying it, or tried and failed. For me, the key to success was adapting it to suit me, to make it as easy as possible, and sustainable. Sorry for the essay, but I wanted to explain in detail in case my experience might help others.
