Nico
Sportwissenschafter
Intermittent fasting is on everyone’s lips. It is said to be healthy and to “renew” the body. But there are different forms of intermittent fasting.
Many people do not eat for 16 hours a day and use the 8-hour window to eat. Others abstain from solid food two days a week.
Here we introduce you to Intermittent Fasting 5:2. It is simple and not too strict. You fast two days a week, but are still allowed to eat small amounts.
This way you can lose weight quickly with the “Fast Diet” and keep it off afterwards. Find out here what the 5:2 diet is exactly and how you should eat.
Intermittent fasting 5:2 is very simple: You can eat normally on five days per week. Fasting takes place on two days. The two fasting days should not follow each other.
However, “fasting” does not mean “starving”. You should eat a small amount of calories, especially in the form of protein. This counteracts the breakdown of muscles.
It also gives you the energy you need for the day. It is recommended that you do not fast on weekends, but on normal working days. The weekly routine should always remain the same.
You can eat normally on non-fasting days during Intermittent Fasting 5:2. However, you should stick to a balanced diet with plenty of fruit, vegetables, proteins and healthy carbohydrates.
If you feast after the fasting day, you often eat too many calories. You need about 1500 to 2000 calories per day. If you do sports, it is a little more.
On fasting days, you should eat a maximum of 500 calories for women and 600 calories for men.
A healthy breakfast is the basis for an active metabolism. A light muesli with low-fat quark or yoghurt is ideal. Eat some fresh fruit with it. Depending on your appetite, you can then have either lunch or dinner.
Lean meat, tofu or eggs with vegetables are allowed. There are only a few carbohydrates. Potatoes or oat flakes are good choices. Drinking plenty of fluids is a must, as it stimulates the metabolism.
One advantage of the 5:2 Intermittent Fasting is that it can be practically integrated into everyday life. Unlike the 16:8 method, you don’t have to go without food every day.
Moreover, with Intermittent Fasting 5:2 you lose weight constantly. As a rule, fasters lose about half a kilogram per week.
The dreaded yo-yo effect is usually absent with this diet. Like any other Intermittent Fasting, it also has the following effects:
It is also discussed that intermittent fasting cleanses the cells. This may help prevent or treat cancer.2
The Fast Diet was popularised by the British journalist Dr Michael Mosley. He was named Medical Journalist of the Year by the British Medical Association back in 1995.
Over the years, he has presented numerous award-winning television programmes. In 2013, he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
He wanted to escape this and lose weight in a healthy way. So he lost nine kilos with the Fast Diet and documented his way there. It was only through him that science became aware of the method.
Intermittent Fasting 5:2 is not a permanent way of life. It is intended as a diet and works like one. You can lose between two and four kilos a month.
Blood sugar is low on fasting days, often also blood pressure. This can lead to:
It is also possible that you are not taking enough nutrients. But this only happens if you don’t pay enough attention to a healthy lifestyle. On non-fasting days you should really eat enough.
Intermittent Fasting 5:2 is suitable for healthy people with a normal BMI or overweight. First of all, you should consult the BMI calculator.
If you have high blood pressure or diabetes, you should seek additional advice from your doctor before starting the diet.
Intermittent fasting is not suitable for people
You should practice the 5:2 Intermittent Fasting for as long as you want to lose weight. After that you can switch to the 6:1 or 16:8 Intermittent Fasting.
Finally, we show you how a fasting day can look like. We have also linked some interval fasting 5:2 recipes.
For breakfast, for example, you can treat yourself to a low-fat VERIVAL porridge, which you can garnish with fresh berries.
For lunch, Bircher puffers are on the menu. They contain curd cheese and egg, which means lots of protein. The dough is refined with VERIVAL Bircher Porridge, served with yoghurt or fruit puree.
If you stick to a small portion, you can have a snack in the afternoon. Small muesli bites containing oat granola and banana provide energy for the rest of the day.
Drink plenty of water or unsweetened tea throughout the day. In the evening you can have a warm vegetable or miso broth.
It is better not to work out on fasting days. But you can do a little yoga or go for a walk. And the next day everything goes back to normal!
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