The 5:2 diet....

The 5:2 diet

(or how to get rid of pounds gained from being in DC and free food/drinks at hotel at night) 

December 16, 2017

I’m writing this while doing some of my favorite things like making some soup for lunches this coming week.  From about Thanksgiving to New Years I think I seem to eat all things “orange.”  I have lots of recipes.  But, we will save the “all things orange” blog for another day.

The FDA sits in a spot far away from any hotels.  The nearest ones are in Silver Spring the end of the Red Line (or maybe Glenmont is the end, nevertheless is it way out).  This is about 5 miles away.  I was going to stay at the Hilton Homewood Suites there, but it was more expensive than the one I actually used and they were going to charge me an additional $20/day to park my car.  So, I stayed on the other end of the Red Line at Shady Grove.  An FDA shuttle ran a few times a day to/from Shady Grove Metro directly to the FDA.  I would catch a bus in the morning to the station and usually walk back in the evening. 

In any case, the Hilton Homewood Suites would offer FREE food and alcoholic drinks from M-Th in the evenings.  So, of course I had to imbibe because then I would not have to make dinner or go out to dinner.  Despite often walking back from Shady Grove station to the hotel (about 2.5 to 3 miles) almost every day, I still gained a lot of weight while being in DC.  I am sure the free comfort food and drinks did me in.  Free breakfast in the morning probably did not help, either.  I gained at least 10-15 pounds in DC.  I guess this was my Freshman 15 since I never gained weight in college.  I actually lost 15 or more pounds my first year at Evansville.  Anyway, I know it was bad when my clothes don’t fit very well.

I have been heavy nearly my whole life.  And, I really hate diets and dieting because I ALWAYS feel hungry.  When you have a job that is intellectually demanding all day, it is hard to feel hungry and be present for students. 

I do not remember why I decided to try the 5:2 diet. Maybe I figured I would only have to feel hungry twice a week.  Nevertheless after returning to Fayetteville in July, there was no doubt that I needed to lose some pounds.  The premise of the diet is to basically ‘fast’ twice a week and eat normally other times.  The fasting is supposed to be only 500 to 600 calories.  I don’t think I ever hit as low as 600, probably more like 700 and maybe 800 calories.  I decided I better eat from packages or boxes else I will way underestimate calories like I always do.  (I can easily eat a good cup of trail mix with peanuts and M&Ms and consider that a serving even though it is really 4.)   So, I ate ProBars usually in the morning and they are actually higher calorie than you think - about 360-370 calories.  I think I just ate celery or cucumbers at lunch.   One time a colleague saw me eating celery at lunch and I guess he felt sorry for me and brought me things from his garden.  (I did not tell him I was fasting.)  Of course, the garden thing is ironic because I think my garden is bigger than his.   Anyway, dinner was always a box as well.

I decided to do this on Tues/Thurs because I like to cook on the weekends.  It was hard the first few days, but I quickly realized what I needed to do in order to prevent some of the problems that show up when you “fast.”   The biggest problem is headaches.  I am not sure why they show up when fasting, but eating a banana at lunch stopped this problem.  It obviously has something to do with potassium, but I don’t really understand it because I am not really sweating too much and was still eating raw vegetables (sweet peppers/tomato/celery/carrot, etc) with dinner. 

Anyway, it did the trick and got me down to the weight I was before I left for Washington DC.  Then the semester hit in August and I got back to my old ways.  Tues and Thurs did not work for different reasons and I teach MWF.  However, I have to figure out a way to maybe incorporate this back into my routine. 

I thought there were many benefits to doing this approach.  It definitely made me far more mindful of my food choices on the “5” days.  Often on those other 5 days, I would not eat until I felt hungry.  I definitely stopped the mid morning and mid-afternoon snacks that we are supposedly to take to keep our energy up.  It did not change anything with respect to work performance.  While I ‘hate’ eating out of packages or boxes, it helped me be mindful of how much food comprises a certain amount of calories.  I think it also provided general thinking clarity some days.  However, the hardest part was not really feeling hungry, but rather the tired feeling in the afternoon.  Maybe that can be remedied with using more protein at lunch, not sure.  In general, I really felt better.  Recently there has been a resurgence about fasting.  An interesting article about it in general is in Outside Magazine. Even doctors now prescribe it.  I read that fasting releases growth hormones just like exercising.  Apparently this has been known for a long time. 

There are many other “fasting” diets now, but I think this one is pretty easy to follow.  It will probably be used again after all the feasting during the holiday season.