I know there is 5:2 but is there such a thing as 2:5?

We seem to be good Monday to Friday and have a blow out on the weekend. Find it so much easier to diet during the week, that way I can still have drink and slip up on the weekend. IMHO it makes more sense to be dieting more days than normal days (although probably aiming for 800 calories rather than 500)

I think we should start a new fork to the 5:2 Diet

Weightwatchers might suit you you get daily points then a weekly amount you can save...but then I'm dure you vould do the same with sw?

I find is so much easier to keep to a diet if I know that I have a day (or two) coming up where I can relax and enjoy some of the things I like. Otherwise, I end up feeling so deprived.

The weekends are for slipping up

From what I've read, there are several variations of 5:2. You could do 2:5, or 4:3, if one of those would work better for you. I'm more intrigued by the 8:16 version which allows you to eat what you want (in moderation, of course) for 8 consecutive hours on a daily basis and then fast for the remaining 16 hours of the day. You can choose eating from 8 am - 4 pm or 12 pm - 8 pm, or whatever 8 hour period suits you best, then fast the remaining 16 hours. On this version of the plan, you don't ever have to limit yourself to 400-500 calories/day on any particular day.

I like where you are going with this, the idea of fasting more often, is great. I like Caffeinated's idea, I'm a huge advocate of a 16:8 fast, so basically every day, skip breakfast, eat 2-3 meals a day from midday onwards.

It works exceptionally well, and many people seem to be very comfortable skipping breakfast and eating at noon.

For females, sometimes a modification to 14:10 can work better, but it is a truly useful system for managing food intake, controlling hunger, and still being able to enjoy a few treats.

Check out my signature. I've written extensively on !F, the book covers a range of options, but I really despise much of the 5:2 books that are out there. Even Michael Mosely's book is telling us we can 'eat WHATEVER we want for 5 day' and fast for two. That just does not work for a lot of people.

Check out my book, only 58 pages on Kindle, it will give you EVERYTHING you need to get going and see some good results.

I've never been a breakfast eater, so an 16:8 type of plan appeals to me. A 14:10 sounds even better, but could it really work? My biggest problem is eating too much at night. I've heard from many sources that's the worst time to eat/ consume calories. So if my eating window was (for example) 12:30 pm - 8:30 pm, would I still be able to get results?

Firstly, eating calories at night being bad? What are your sources? It's complete rubbish, an old wives tale that has just hung around like a bad smell.

If you eat less calories than you expend during the day you will lose weight over time. In fact, if you're weekly average intake is less than your weekly average expenditure, you will lose weight over time.

That means that having some BIG days and some small days can work too for people.

Seriously, download my ebook, it will answer all your questions, I've get people getting great results from it, who have struggled to lose weight for an age. It is on Amazon for 97 pence, but also free on my blog at a pdf or epub

IF has some possible health / cellular / hormonal benefits, but for most ofus, calorie control is the real upside.

And once you have the quantity of food sorted out, split your evening meal so you are eating when you whould be bingeing :-) Just try to give yourself a couple of hours between food and sleep.

So Stephen, you're saying that even if I were to eat the bulk of my daily calories in the evening, as long as the total calorie count does not exceed what I need to lose weight, I would be able to lose weight?

All these years I've thought eating at night was a huge no-no.

Er....yes, basically. At the end of the day, or preferably even the week, a deficit in calories will result in weight loss, surplus, weight gain, balance, no change.

It makes sense of course when you look at it rationally ??

I think that balancing macros, so protein, fat, carbs to suit your personal circumstances is important, and too few people do that, or even understand the concept.

This is why daily fasting is something that I enjoy, first meal at noon or so, then a whopping meal in the evening, or sometimes split in two if I choose.

The critical things is the numbers, when you take them in is something of an irrelevance, although eating a lot of carbs for breakfast will turn off fat burning for a lot of the day, so there may well be some benefits in either skipping breakfast, or at least keeping it more protein and fat based rather than carbs, but you can still lose weight as long as the calories are below expenditure.

Re eating main meal at night, no problem, but leave 3 hours or so between meal and bed.