Fast Diet: How Does It Work?
Fast Diet
- It began with a humble British television documentary that aired against the
Olympics last summer. Even the host of the documentary about a new diet thought
it would be watched by a few, and then forgotten. But it has since turned into
Britain’s biggest weight-loss phenomenon. A word of warning: It’s arrived in
the United States. Another warning: It involves fasting.
Dr. Michael
Mosley, a doctor and television journalist, has tapped into a growing field of
research on the benefits of intermittent fasting. From that preliminary
research he’s written the best-selling book “
The Fast Diet.” It has dominated
Britain’s Amazon.com sales charts since it was published there in January, and
is currently number eight in Amazon sales in this country. The television
documentary, which can be streamed on PBS, launched the British craze of eating
five days a week and fasting for two. It’s become known as the 5:2 diet.
Fasting days don’t require abstention from food; 500 to 600 calories are
allowed. On the other days, recommended caloric intake for men and women
varies, but runs between roughly 2,000 to 2,500 per day.
Think of the
documentary as a reverse “Super Size Me.” Instead of gorging, Mosley tries a
number of fasting regimens that show rapid results for weight loss and other
health benefits. We talked to Mosley about his discipline and the diet craze he
created.
Q. You may
have noticed, but America is a country of excess. Do you think those of us who
love stuffing our faces with peppermint ice cream seven days a week can
maintain this?
A. That’s
the interesting challenge, isn’t it? The trials that have been done suggest
that they can. The basic idea is that you have to try things a bit differently.
People have been offering the same advice out there and clearly it has not been
taken up.
Q. Because
I’m a huge skeptic, this diet screams fad to me. So many crazy diets have come
and gone. Why do you think this one will stick?
A. You’re
obviously right. A lot of diets have come and gone and don’t seem to succeed in
the long run. That really is the test of this
fast diet, to see what happens in a
year. All I can say is that research, both in animals and increasingly in
humans, suggests over a period of 12 months that people are more willing to
stay on it more than a traditional low-calorie diet. But the proof is in the
pudding — or in this case not in the pudding.
I never
attempted a diet before, so I have nothing to go on. But I like the science
behind it and the logic behind it. I’m not only losing weight, but I’m also
reducing my risk of diabetes. A compelling amount of research suggests that
your body goes into repair mode when it’s not eating. A lot of the cellular
repair takes place in the period between meals.
Q. Can’t we
do this sort of thing without fasting? My mother told me a lot of crazy things,
but she also told me that if I don’t eat too much, I won’t get fat.
A. That’s
what I think needs more studies. But there is something about this particular
pattern that is better than eating three or five meals a day. One of the things
my mother said to me was don’t eat between meals, and one of the poor trends in
recent years is that people increasingly snack. Habits are driven by
compulsion, and so what happens is that we get a bit hungry, we fill up on
sugary things. The next time we get hungry, we want sugary things. If you allow
yourself to get a bit hungry on one of the fasting days, what you’re going to
fill up on is chicken protein and lots of vegetables, then you will reeducate
yourself that when you feel hungry, what you want is vegetables. That’s what’s
happened to me. I’m not sure if I’m typical or not, but I like the idea of it.
Q. Were you
surprised at the reaction in Britain?
A.
Astonished. Absolutely astonished. I was surprised at the enthusiasm for the
documentary when it came out it Britain. Newspapers started writing about it.
Quite a lot of doctors starting contacting me, saying they tried it on their
patients. I think it’s one of those things where psychologically it’s more
attractive because you think to yourself “Two days I can handle.” It’s
dangerous to give people too many instructions.
Q. Because I
have absolutely no willpower, I don’t have a sense of what 500 or 600 calories
looks like.
A. Nobody
does. In the documentary I don’t go into any great depth about it, but there
are recipes in the book. I typically have scrambled eggs and ham for breakfast.
That’s 300 calories. In the evening I eat a reasonable-size pile of vegetables
and some fish. The thing about vegetables is that you really don’t need to
count the calories. You can eat pounds and pounds of broccoli for 60 or 70
calories.
Q. Can I just
drink 600 calories of wine instead of eating broccoli?
A. I
wouldn’t recommend it.
Q. On the
days where you don’t fast, can you eat anything you like?
A. I
wouldn’t recommend that either. My recommendation is to eat normally. Don’t pig
out, don’t bury your face in the ice cream. but if you occasionally go out for
a burger that’s fine. I think the message is don’t feel guilty.
Q. I’m
intrigued, but terrified to try it.
A. Let me assure you it’s not that bad. Stay off the wine and peppermint stick ice cream on your fast days, and you’ll be fine.
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