Fasting Mimicking Diet Results

The chart above shows my morning weigh-ins starting on day 1 of the fast and ending the morning after day 5. I lost 8 pounds in those five days, which is pretty incredible.

The graph shows that the biggest drop occurred within the first few days, and it leveled off a bit on days four and five. This is because most of the initial weight loss is from glycogen and water, not fat.

Moreover, this rapid initial weight loss is common in extreme low-carb or low-calorie diets. So it’s essential to be aware that it is not “real” weight loss and that weight will return when you return to a regular diet.

Nevertheless, based on skinfold measurements, my body fat decreased by about 1 percent from the fasting-mimicking plan. That corresponds to 2.4 pounds of fat loss, which is pretty dang good in that short of a period.

The primary reason for this rate of fat loss is the significant calorie deficit created during the fasting-mimicking diet. On average, I burned about 1,500 more calories than I ate each day, for a cumulative deficit of 7,500 calories after five days.

Day	Calories In	Calories Out	Deficit
1	1,065	2,269	-1,204
2	939	2,216	-1,277
3	712	2,454	-1,742
4	712	2,309	-1,597
5	721	2,442	-1,721
Total	4,149	11,690	–7,541

Considering that one pound of fat contains roughly 3,500 calories, it makes sense that I lost a little over 2 pounds of fat. Because 7,500 calories burned / 3,500 calories per pound of fat = 2.2 pounds of fat burned.

In addition to weight and body composition, I tracked fasted glucose and ketones each morning. These measurements show how my body shifted from burning carbs for fuel to burning fat instead.

I was pleasantly surprised to reach nutritional ketosis by day three and optimal ketosis by day five. I honestly wasn’t sure if I would reach ketosis at all, given that the typical day had up to 100 grams of carbs with relatively low fat.

Overall, the fasting-mimicking diet was a unique challenge, especially right after completing a bulk phase where I was eating in one day almost as much as I had in the entire 5-day diet. I was happy with how my body tightened up and how much fat I lost.

After completing the diet, my wife and I spent the weekend in a cabin in the woods, and I didn’t count calories or exercise. I did notice I got full very quickly; it was almost like my stomach felt smaller.

I’ve returned to my regular meal plan and workout routine for the last few days. I’ve been tracking my calories and trying to break even on calorie balance. So far, my weight is back up 3 pounds from the end of the diet and I expect it will increase a bit more as my glycogen stores fill up.

I plan to transition into a nice and gradual lean bulk phase for the next two months, and I will be sharing my new hypertrophy training program designed to maximize muscle gains while staying as lean as possible.

Click here to check out my full review of the Fasting-Mimicking Diet Kit from ProLon.