The Five Two Fast Die

The five two fast diet has swept the world on the tails of a BBC documentary, Eat Fast Live and the successful book of the same title. It followed the current scientific research into how the way we eat, affects our weight and our health

The end result of accessing the various ways of achieving from fasting, to calorie restriction, to alternate day fasting and finally settling on a programme which involves eating what you want for any five days of the week and eating only 600 calories for any two days for men and 500 calories for women

I calculated that by doing this there is an overall approximately 20% calorie reduction in any week. I can see several benefits

1. With only two restricted days per week, psychologically you are only ever a day away from your favourite food
2. The research showed that you really could eat what you want on the five days and not only lose weight, but improve virtually all markers of health from blood sugar, to cardio vascular to reduced cancer risk
3. It takes only a little planning to eat on the low calorie days
4. Instead of spending more to lose weight, on diet shakes, or meal replacements, supplements, you actually save money
5. A low calorie day isn't fasting in the true sense and so hunger isn't a big issue if you spread your food intake
6. Several people I spoke to found that instead of eating extra on the five days they were easily ably to reduce their normal food intake as they just weren't hungry
7. It has also been reported that people feel a sense of mental clarity. It could be that a 20% calorie reduction equals a 20% dodgy chemical reduction, and a 20% fat reduction making it easier to think
8. One day on a low calorie diet doest send your body into panic fat preservation mode. And after a few weeks physically and mentally there is no longer any stress

The biggest challenge on the low calorie days is not hunger but the changed routine. Most of us have very set times when we eat and how much we do eat. So it can feel a little weird to not be sitting down for scheduled meals

When I first heard of this diet via the popular media it sounded a little nuts, but after having read the facts and the science there seems to be a strong basis for eating this way. After all in the hunter gatherer days it would be common to have days of feast or famine