The Fast 800

on a slice of rye bread (add 55 cals) or wholemeal sourdough toast (add 72 cals).

Walking is a cheap and safe way to exercise and the best time to do it, if you can fit it into your life, is first thing in the morning, before breakfast. That way you not only manage to rev up your metabolism but you also get exposed to early-morning light. Bright light in the morning helps reset your internal clock, which in turn will help you sl

Some people find it easier to do 2:5. You fast during the week and eat healthily at the weekend without worrying too much about the calories (but sticking to the principles of the Med diet).

Valter and his team have created what he now calls a ‘Fast Mimicking Diet’ (FMD). This is not a full-on fast, but a five-day diet where you live on about 800 calories a day. It is a moderately low-protein diet made up of a carefully balanced mix of vegetables, olive oil and nuts. If you want to find out more about the FMD then I recommend you get V

One of the commonest ways that people do the 16:8 is by skipping breakfast and not eating until at least 12pm. Before that time you can have black tea, black coffee, plenty of water, but no actual calories. If you are serious about doing TRE then do try to eat your last calories at least three hours before going to bed.

You are on blood pressure medication. This may need to be reduced or stopped as blood pressure improves.

Cut right back on sugary starchy foods, such as cakes, sweets, biscuits, crisps, fruit juices and soft drinks, as these rapidly turn into sugar in your blood, causing sugar spikes, a surge in insulin and weight gain. Aim to have them less than twice a week.

As well as cutting down to 800 calories a day, I recommend adding in a Time Restricted Eating (TRE) programme. This means, from the start, aiming for a 12-hour overnight fast. More on how to do this on page 139.

This means eating generous amounts of foods such as oily fish, seafood, chicken, some red meat, eggs, tofu, beans, pulses, dairy and nuts. If you are a vegetarian or vegan there are alternatives (see page 101). You need at least 50-60g of protein a day, every day. As you get older, you need more.