Let your pounds tumble with the 5:2 diet!

With the 5:2 diet you boost your metabolism, it’s a kind of intermittent fasting. We will explain how you implement this part-time fasting using an example day and a field report.

5:2 does not mean a result in sport, it is about a nutritional concept. This has already been recommended by many scientists. The idea for this came about in 2013, when the British research team Tony Howell and Michelle Harvie came onto the stage with a completely new concept.

The concept was originally intended for women who have a very high risk of breast cancer. The book “The 2-Day Diet” explains exactly how you can try the 5:2 diet.

Reading tip: You’re not losing weight? These five foods are sabotaging your diet success

Did you see that you also enjoy additional health benefits with this intermittent fasting? It will soon be easy for you to integrate this special diet into your everyday life. You can also lose weight in a targeted manner with this form of nutrition in the long term.

Get slim fast: This is how intermittent fasting works!

On five out of seven days you don’t have to do without anything and eat a balanced and healthy diet. This means that you can also sin in between, for example if you eat a piece of chocolate. Strict fasting is required two days a week.

You don’t have to go without food on these two days of fasting. As a woman, your calorie limit on these fasting days is 500 calories, men are allowed to consume a maximum of 600 kcal.

On these two days of fasting, it is best not to eat alcohol, snacks with a lot of sugar, potatoes, rice, pasta or bread. Otherwise you will exceed the calorie limit and will not be full for long.

The best thing to do on the two fasting days is to eat healthy fats, sufficient protein, and plenty of fruit and vegetables. Drink enough water or use the healthy alternative vegetable broth or unsweetened tea for needed hydration.

Make sure that you don’t do the two fasting days in a row in a row. For example, choose Monday and Thursday. By the way, the weekend is not recommended – statistics show a high dropout rate on days off.

These tips will help you diet!

On the two fasting days per week, you can spread your calorie quota over one or more meals.

Drink enough fluids, such as tea without sugar, water, vegetable broth, or miso. You should also eat a healthy and balanced diet on the other five days of the week. But there are no strict guidelines or plans. In any case, you should avoid a calorie deficit.

During these five days you can move intensively. For example jogging for half an hour, kickboxing or HIIT training. A varied meditation or yin yoga is suitable on the two days of fasting.

A healthy diet is the order of the day

Notice how you go about the five days without food. Do not exaggerate. You don’t have to make up for anything you missed on the two days of fasting.

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The 5:2 diet can help you lose weight quickly if done correctly. On average, women are happy about half a kilo per week, with men it is usually a little more. Make sure you don’t overeat on the five normal days. It’s helpful to keep track of your total energy intake on those days. Avoid too many calories.

The Benefits of the 5:2 Diet!

• You don’t have to do without anything! In your everyday life you have no problems with this special form of nutrition
• Neither a strong renunciation, nor a blatant change in diet are necessary
• According to Frank Mandeo from the University of Graz, brown or toxic visceral fat, which is usually located directly on the organs, and high blood pressure are reduced. Even cholesterol levels improve
• The 5:2 diet is a very flexible form of fasting, you can do intense sports on the five normal days
• The muscles do not break down due to the additional intake of protein on the fasting days
• The 5:2 diet stands for long-term and moderate weight loss. Therefore there is no yo-yo effect, you reach your ideal weight and can keep it
• Studies have shown an improvement in inflammation levels in the intestine
• The blood sugar level fluctuates less because the ketone bodies increase and less insulin is released. This improves the overall lipolysis, which also makes it easier for the fat cells to break down
• The 5:2 diet reduces the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease

Just for you – our sample day for the 5:2 diet (including recipe):

Here you can see interesting suggestions for three meals that meet the 500 calorie limit.

The 5:2 breakfast

Make sure that your breakfast consists of a lot of protein. Foods such as zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, low-calorie vegetables, as well as eggs and low-fat quark are particularly good for this. Try Skyr once in a while. You are also welcome to combine a berry mix with low-fat quark.

12 g of protein are normally contained in 100 g of low-fat quark. You can crush the frozen berries. As a result, the body is happy about additional antioxidants and vitamins. Use lemon, for example, to taste.

Nutrient: about 110 kcal; 13g protein, 0.8g fat, 14g carbohydrates

Book tip: 5:2 diet cookbook for beginners – 150 delicious recipes for the 5:2 diet in under 20 minutes.

The 5:2 lunch

Do not exceed your calorie quota, you may be hungry again by the evening.

For lunch, chicken is suitable in combination with vegetables, such as zucchini. Combine the 100 g chicken fillet with a little olive oil and you’ll have a total of around 250 kcal and lots of protein.

Vegetarian option: as a vegetarian, you can use Mediterranean peppers and vegetables in combination with a soft-boiled egg. In terms of taste, capers and honey are a good combination.

Nutritional values: approx. 260 calories, 7 g protein, 20 g fat, 14 g carbohydrates

The 5:2 dinner

Eat easily digestible meals in the evening.

Example broccoli with sesame:

250 g broccoli are steamed for this. The marinade consists of pepper, soy sauce and rice vinegar. In total, such a dish has only 101 kcal. If you like fresh salad, you can have a cucumber salad with radishes and a light yoghurt dressing.

Nutritional values: about 130 calories; 3g protein, 8g fat, 11g carbohydrates