Chances are you’ve heard about the 5.2 diet at some stage. With everyone from your colleague Susan to JLo raving about the eating regime, it’s pretty likely you’re familiar with the basics: you eat well for five days a week (1800-2000 calories for women and 2500 calories for men) and partially fast for two days, only consuming 500 – 600 calories (500 for women, 600 for men).
There have been many discussions about the benefits and possible setbacks of diets using this structure, but experts have pointed out that intermittent partial fasting is particularly effective for weight loss and many who use the diet, (see JLo and Susan above) swear by it.
We spoke with Dr Joanna McMillan, a consulting dietitian from Dietlicious about all things 5.2 and what you can expect to get out of it if you’re hoping to drop a few kilos.
When it came to the research available on the 5.2 and weight loss, Dr McMillan shared that:
“Fasting has long been used around the world for health or religious reasons, but more recently it has been studied for weight loss. The key difference between fasting and conventional kilojoule restriction dieting is that you need only think about reducing your food intake on two non-consecutive days on the 5:2 diet. Many people report finding this easier to comply with, in turn making it easier to stick with the diet for longer.”
“Other research has shown that fasting has beneficial effects on the gut microbiome and this may contribute to the health and weight control effects. Giving the gut a break from a continuous flow of food allows different gut bugs to flourish, helping to create a better microbial variety and balance. This seems to be key for a healthy microbiome and healthy gut.”
But isn’t eating too little bad for your body? Well, yes. But that is not what this diet encourages. On this and the question of whether or not the diet impacts your metabolism, Dr McMillan said:
“Not to any measurable effect that we currently know of [does the diet slow the metabolism], but of course we don’t know much about long-term effects yet as that hasn’t been studied.”
“Fasting for a much longer period of time will certainly affect metabolism as your body enters what is sometimes called ‘starvation mode’. This is a survival mechanism to allow the body to survive times of famine. However, fasting for only a day does not constitute a famine! We are well able to cope with such a relatively short period of time without food.”
Obviously, a major reduction in calories does have an impact on your body to some degree, so there are things to be mindful of, Dr McMillan shared. For active folk who enjoy intense workouts, it may be worth swapping out your regular training sessions for something less rigorous on low-calorie days:
“Intense exercise will pretty rapidly use up the body’s carbohydrate stores and so if you exercise at an intense level on a fast day you may end up feeling more worn out and recover less quickly than usual. I’d be especially careful of this for those with diabetes or trouble with low blood glucose. In general I’d advise doing light exercise only – taking a yoga class or going for a walk is absolutely fine.”
One of the most common misconceptions about the 5.2 diet is that because you’re partially fasting twice a week, you can then eat anything you like on the remaining seven days. This is the wrong way to go about it if you’re looking to get the most out of your diet:
“You still need to get all the nutrients you need and limit junk food – so eating healthily on the those days is key. After all, you have fewer meals to get all your nutrients into!” said Dr McMillan.
If you’re keen to kick off a new health kick with the 5.2 diet, but aren’t all that great with counting calories and planning out meals, Dietlicious is a simple option that might work for you. The service delivers meals weekly and they offer meal plans that follow the 5.2 diet scheme. The food is tasty, there’s a wide variety of meals on offer and it means you don’t have to spend time weighing every last piece of chicken before you cook it.
Just remember, while a great option for many people, intermittent fasting may not be for everyone. Dr McMillan advises that:
“Fasting is not recommended for those taking insulin, during pregnancy or while breastfeeding, or for those with other medical concerns that may affect their ability to cope with a fast. For most people, however, a one day fast is no big concern and indeed may be beneficial.”
If you’re still unsure if this diet is for you, have a quick chat with your GP just to be safe!
You can learn more here.
Image: Getty, HBO
