The 5:2 diet is one of the easiest diets and often the one that beginners choose, although it is a little more extreme than some of the other methods in that you fast for a full 24 hours two times a week.
Eat for Five Days a Week
On the 5:2 diet, you eat normally five days a week. For most people who do intermittent fasting, that means that they eat a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet. However, you can try other methods too. There are plenty of high-carb vegans experimenting with intermittent fasting too and getting great results.
Fast for Two Days a Week
On this plan, you fast for two days. In this case, that means you fast for a full 24-hour period, although you can also extend that to doing the full 48 hours at once so that you can just eat the rest of the week without any concern or worries – as long as you’re also eating healthy food while avoiding snacks between meals.
You Choose When to Fast
The cool part about this plan is that you can choose when to fast and you can move the days around too if you want to. For example, on a normal basis, you may choose to fast during the week so that you can enjoy your weekends more. However, if a special trip is coming up and you know you want to enjoy the food, change the fasting days.
Lots of Flexibility for Newbies
As you can see, this does offer some flexibility for the newbie. During fasting times, you only drink water, nothing else, so that you can stay hydrated. When you do eat, you want to eat high-quality food that is low in carbs and high in veggies and nutrition, in the right calorie amounts for your body.
Drink Water
It is not recommended that you drink or eat anything, but keep in mind that you should pay attention to your body signals. If you feel weak or sick, it’s better to eat a healthy 50-calorie snack than to get sicker. However, it is easier to just say no for 24 hours straight for a beginner than it is to do it other ways.
If you want to try intermittent fasting, while there are easier programs to use, this one is the easiest to keep track of. Give it a try for a month or two so that you can see the results that it will have on your mind and your body. You can always try one of the other methods once you realize you can get results from this one.
