We've been told to eat proteins. We've been told to eat like cavemen. We've been told to eat at intervals timed down to the nanosecond. We've been told not to starve ourselves.
According to NPR, the new approach involves "mini-fasts." The 5-2 diet has been popularized by British physician and television broadcaster Michael Mosley and promises increased energy and decreased appetite.
The 5-2 method calls for two consecutive days of fasting - 14 to 16 hours of an average of 600 calories. The other five days, you get to eat as you normally would.
The Los Angeles Times ballparked a 600-calorie day:
- Breakfast: 1 cup of cornflakes and a half cup of 1 percent milk
- Lunch: an apple
- Dinner: 3 ounces of chicken, a baked potato (3 to 4 inches in diameter) and 1 cup of broccoli
Or, you could eat one Big Mac. (Please don't eat one Big Mac).
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Manchester and published by the National Institutes of Health (NCBI) states that "intermittent energy restriction may result in greater improvements in insulin sensitivity and weight control than daily energy restriction," in overweight women.
So, fasting for two days and eating normally for five days yields more benefits than limiting calories seven days a week, the study suggests.
