The 5:2 Diet - 'The Fast Diet'
‘The
Fast Diet’ is now “being promoted as the key to sustain weight loss… [and
associated with] wider health benefits” (Trueland, 2013, p. 26). This
method of diet has become more known for its health and fitness reasons, after
the paleo, keto and other trends you often see, the 5:2 diet has become “the
next big thing” (Capritto, A (2020), para 5).
WHAT IS THE DIET?
In this diet, you eat normally for five out of the seven days in the week, whilst restricting the number of calories that are consumed on the other two days, this becomes your ‘Fast Days’.
The word ‘Fast Days’ is a method used to describe when we limit the amount of food we intake to just ¼ of how much our bodies need for only two days of the week, allowing you to eat to your liking for the rest of the days. Generally, this is about 500 calories for women and 600 for men – you still get three meals a day! Consuming a lower number of calories… you loose weight!
This diet allows your body to repair its cells, preventing diseases such as:
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia
- Type 2 diabetes, and
- Cancer
Many
have also reported better results in health tests such as blood pressure and cholesterol
testing (5:2 Basics, 2020, para 3 – 5).
THE BENEFITS
1. You are not being from restricted from eating your favourite foods
One of the reasons 5:2 has a huge fan-base is because, despite having to refrain from the amount of calories you consume, it doesn’t exactly follow the ordinary diet, you are allowed to choose what you eat to your liking. This may, instead help you with focusing on your eating plan, the time you eat, helping you in the long-term to make more wise choices around your diet.
2. It’s in your control!
You get to choose the days, you get to choose what you eat, according to your daily activities. You may find it easier to follow the diet twice during the week than sticking to it on the weekend, when you may have a family or social gathering.
3. May also lead to health benefits
There have been trials conducted that support the 5:2 fasting diet provides you with more chances in weight loss (Varady et al., 2009), assisting in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, also indicating, the lowered chances of the risks of cognitive disease.
THE DISADVANTAGES
1. Side effects
When commencing the 5:2 diet, it is likely that you will experience side effects, this can include:
- Tiredness
- Experiencing headaches, or
- Moody behaviour
2. Not everyone can participate
The requirement of constricting calorie intake to 500 or 600 calories may not be ideal for everyone, especially if:
- You are pregnant
- Have type 1 diabetes
- Have diagnosed nutrition deficiencies, such as iron-deficiency
3. May be difficult to develop a routine
It may be difficult in the beginning as it requires a significant amount of attention to adapt to this change. Till your body adapts to it, you may experience side effects (as mentioned above). However, the good news to this is that, once you develop a routine it is easier to maintain it.
A more detailed overview of the benefits and disadvantages of the 5:2 diet, can be accessed https://www.verywellfit.com/intermittent-fasting-pros-and-cons-4688805
A GUIDE TO EATING ON YOUR FASTING DAYS
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An important thing to remember is, there are no set rules! It depends on how you function and when you feel like you need to eat the most.
Generally, these are the two meal patterns that is popularly followed:
1. Three small meals: Usually breakfast, lunch and dinner
2. Two slightly bigger meals: Only lunch and dinner
Two things to note: Try not to drink beverages other than water (on fasting days) and focus on consuming high-fibre, high-protein and nutritious foods that keep you full without consuming too many calories, examples of such are:
- Whole grain foods: rich in fibre and vitamins, a little cheat to keep you full and stay away from being hangry! This can be wheat breads, pasta, brown rice
- Vegetables (Brocolli, Cauliflower, Sweet Potatoes) – another cheat; consuming vegetables in soup is said to fill you more than the vegetable in its original form (Bjarnadottir, A. (2018)
- Fruits: this can be citrus fruits, starchy fruits, berries
(Capritto, A. (2020)
If you need some inspiration for your diet day meals, click here (https://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/food/5-2-diet-meal-plans-what-to-eat-for-500-calorie-fast-days-108045)
You
can also find all sorts of information about the diet, by going onto this page (https://thefastdiet.co.uk/)
COMPLIANCE WITH THE AUSTRALIAN DIETARY GUIDELINES (ADG)
Guideline 1 ensures foods are wisely chosen to meet your energy needs and that you are physically active.
Whilst
the 5:2 diet doesn’t prescribe physical activity, it isn’t discouraged, however
it is up to you and how well your body can cope. This diet does not meet the
criteria of meeting energy needs as on fasting days you are only consuming 25%
of your energy needs.
Guideline 2 ensures you are consuming food from the five groups every day.
The 5:2 diet encourages the 500/600 calories to be a variety of whole grain foods, vegetables and fruits, hence, you are consuming sufficient amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, ions and calcium, abiding by the ADG.
Here
you can find more information more regarding the Healthy Eating Pyramind. (https://nutritionaustralia.org/fact-sheets/healthy-eating-pyramid/)
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https://nutritionaustralia.org/fact-sheets/healthy-eating-pyramid/ |
Guideline 3
The
5:2 diet does not encourage the consumption of saturated fat, added salt/sugars
and alcohol, hence this can be achieved.
References
1. Australian
Government: National Health and Medical Research Council. (2019) Retrieved from
https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life/healthy-eating-infants-children-and-teenagers
Bjarnadottir,
A. (2018). The Beginner’s Guide to the 5:2 Diet. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/the-5-2-diet-guide#section4
2. Capritto, A. (2020). What Is the 5:2 Diet? Retrieved from https://www.verywellfit.com/5-2-diet-pros-cons-and-how-it-works-4770014
3. Docherty, E. (2020) Weight loss with the 5:2 diet: requires willpower but can be powerfully effective [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.t3.com/features/5-2-diet-intermittent-fasting
5. Putney,
J. Weight Loss Resources [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/diet/plans/5-2-diet-7-day-meal-plan.htm
The Australia Nutrition Foundation. [Image]. Retrieved from https://nutritionaustralia.org/fact-sheets/healthy-eating-pyramid/
7. Trueland, J. (2013). Fast and effective? Nursing Standard, 28(16), 26-27. doi:10.7748/ns2013.12.28.16.26.s28
8. Varady, K.A., Bhutani, S., Church, E.C., Klempel, M.C. (2009). Short-term modified alternate-day fasting: a novel dietary strategy for weight loss and cardioprotection in obese adults. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, (90)5, 1138-1143. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.28380
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