• Focus on high-quality protein, including oily fish, prawns, chicken, turkey, pork, beef and eggs (and vegetable sources including soya, edamame beans, Quorn and hummus)
  • Eat more healthy fats and oils. As well as more olive oil on salads and veg. Use olive, rapeseed or coconut oil for cooking.
  • Avoid margarine and use butter instead. Full-fat yoghurt is good and cheese in moderation is fine.

5:2 diet -updated

10) Make sure you fill up on protein and vegetables on your fasting days. Protein is very satiating and you can eat a lot of vegetables for very few calories.

For some recipes and ideas to get you started click here to go to my 5:2 diet page. Alternatively, invest in The 8 week Blood sugar diet recipe book and log on to the website, thebloodsugardiet.com

4) It's important that you increase your physical activity if you want to keep the weight off. This means doing muscle-building exercises, such as press-ups and squats, as well as aerobic exercise such as cycling or speed walking. You should also try to get your pulse racing a couple of times a day (perhaps by running up the stairs) and take every opportunity you can to move more.

3) You will get much more benefit out of intermittent fasting if you switch to a low-carbohydrate Mediterranean diet, both on the days when you are fasting and when you are not. That means more olive oil and nuts, as well as plenty of eggs, oily fish, yoghurt and vegetables.

Ten Essential Tips

The Key: Fasting

8) Empty all the junk food out of the house. Getting rid of temptation means you are far less likely to cheat on fast days, and you are less likely to indulge in mindless eating on other days. Unfortunately willpower is grossly overrated and if you know the treats are close at hand you will almost certainly eat them.

'Intermittent fasting' is not fasting in the sense that you are going entirely without food. You are simply cutting back on your calories a few days a week. There are many different approaches, from alternate day fasting to the 16:8 diet (16 hours between eating, all food consumed in an 8 hour window)., but the 5:2 is the one many people find the easiest to do.

​Studies have shown that it can not only lead to significant weight loss but also trigger changes within the body that reduce your risk of a range of diseases. A recent article, published in the science journal Cell Metabolism, concluded that intermittent fasting 'helps reduce obesity, hypertension, asthma and rheumatoid arthritis.' It has the potential to delay ageing and help prevent and treat diseases.

(Source: Dr Michael Mosley - The 8 week blood sugar diet - extract from The Mail on Sunday feature March 19th)

So how does it work?

Many people find cutting their calories a couple of days a week more doable than being on a constant diet. A study carried out in Manchester; which involved more than 100 women, found that those on the 5:2 lost nearly twice as much fat as those allocated a standard diet. They were also far more likely to stick to it.

​Intermittent fasting also switches on repair genes, whose job it is to keep the body in good shape. We tend to treat our bodies like a car; we keep it topped up with high-calorie fuel and drive it hard. If you do that it will, eventually, break down. It's only when you go for long periods without food (around 12 hours) that the body switches to 'clean up and repair' mode.

​Going on a short fast is like taking your body along to the garage. Freed from their normal routine work, the little gene mechanics start doing urgent maintenance tasks. Part of that involves something called autophagy. Autophagy, meaning 'self-eat', is a natural process during which the body breaks down and recycles old and tired cells. It is important to get rid of damaged or ageing parts if you want to keep things in good working order.

​Fasting not only helps clear out damaged cells but can also spark the production of new ones. A study done on mice in California last year, showed that by restricting their calories for a few days a month, the mice could regenerate parts of their pancreas.

​This is exciting news for diabetics because your pancreas produces the hormone insulin, which brings down your blood-sugar levels when they get too high. In type 1 diabetics the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas are damaged and they no longer work properly, which means diabetics often end up having insulin injections. It is extremely exciting to see that fasting could reverse this damage.

​Intermittent fasting could also boost the immune system. Studies have shown that if you do a short fast and then eat, you get a rebound effect, with the creation of new, more active white blood cells.


6) But do keep an eye on the amount of calories that you are drinking. Smoothies have a reputation for being healthy but by the time you get rid of the fibre you are left with a lot of calories (well over 200 in a small bottle) as well as a big sugar hit. In a recent survey researchers discovered that out of 52 commercial smoothies, 41 had more sugar than Coca-cola and all had more calories..

7) And watch the alcohol. It is another way of consuming calories without noticing. A large (175ml) glass of red wine contains about 120 calories, while a pint of Guiness clocks up at around 170. You don't need to give up entirely, but a couple of days a week without is good for your health as well as your waist.

5) Drink plenty of fluid. A hot drink on an empty stomach is remarkably soothing. If you don't drink enough then you may well develop headaches and constipation when fasting. How much is 'enough'? The magic figure that is often quoted is two litres or eight cups a day. Tea and coffee count.

9) However, be wary of being in a constant state of self-denial. It is fatal to declare too many foods off-limits, as this leads to guilty, rebound overeating.

1) First the good news. You don't need to stick to 600 calories on fast days. Cutting down to 800 calories seems to be almost as effective and for some people much more doable.

2) If you want to do a really fast diet then you should eat 800 calories a day for a couple of weeks, before switching to 5:2. Studies have shown that if you do this you can expect to lose several kilos a week and most people say they soon stop feeling hungry. Contrary to what you have been told, rapid weight loss can be a more effective way to achieve your goals, both in the short and the long term. You must, however ensure that you are getting the right balance of protein and other nutrients.

Mediterraneanise your eating:

  • Eat plenty of different coloured veg and avoid too many sweet fruits.
  • Cut right down on sugar and sugary treats and minimise refined, starchy white carbs.
  • Switch instead to quinoa, bulgur wheat, whole rye, whole-grain barley, wild rice and buckwheat. Brown rice is OK.
  • Legumes such as lentils and kidney beans are healthy and filling

Essential 5:2 know-how

The basics in a box:

'The 5:2 approach is very simple. For 5 days a week you don't calorie count. Then for 2 days a week you cut down your calories.' You can do this on any two days of the week that suit you, but it is best to be consistent so you get into a pattern. Try consecutive days or you may prefer to split them - whatever works for you. In the original diet it was recommended men stick to 600 calories a day and women 500, twice a week. The updated version allows the count to increase to 800 calories, which shouldn't make much difference, particularly if you go low carb on the other five days. Dr Mosley suggests adopting a low-carbohydrate Mediterranean-style diet, low in starchy carbs but packed full of disease-fighting nutrients, healthy fats, fish and quality proteins and plants.