2026 : We've Got This!

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posted by Dreamscometrue
on 27 Mar 2026 at 13:19

Hi all, just checking in. I didn’t make my below 150lb target this week, but to be honest it was no surprise as “Fridgegate” set me back in terms of food planning and preparation etc. I’m now back up and running so will dust myself off and hopefully get below it next week : I’m currently hovering around 151lb.

CATHY well done for yet more loss! That’s amazing and I’m so pleased for you. I think you should definitely aim for 140lb by the end of the 12 weeks – you’re on a roll! And I hope you get your wretched tooth sorted soon 🤞

MARIET it’s interesting what you say about the online plan. I’m enjoying the food planning aspect, and swap things round a lot to work with my ingredients and tastes. But I get what you’re saying about feeling bloated. I’m on the New 5:2 and if I stuck to all the set meals I’d find them too heavy (though, interestingly, still within the low calorie & carb range). Three meals a day suits my lifestyle at the moment, but I need two of those to be light and sometimes there’s what I would call a “main” meal for at least two out of the three set meals. So I tend to have a yoghurt-based breakfast, some kind of salad for lunch then a main meal early evening.

ARCTICFOX I’m sorry to hear about your work situation. That must be very unsettling. But that’s great advice from your colleague about trying not to worry about it unless it actually happens. Meanwhile well done for sticking with healthy eating and also getting some good exercise in. It sounds as if you have already built up a good rapport with your new counsellor too.

SUE I love the sound of that travel pass! I now have a free bus pass which I can use anywhere in the UK but I’ve not taken advantage of that yet. And I do use my Senior Railcard for the train : you have to pay for that but then get 1/3 off pretty much every train fare so it soon pays for itself, particularly as I go up to London a lot. Hope that you are recovering from all your injuries? Thanks for asking about my hand. I did get an x-ray last week as it was beginning to trouble me more, but thankfully nothing broken. They said it was a sprain and could take at least a couple more weeks to heal, and this week there has definitely been some improvement. So I’ve been starting to do stuff around the house and garden again which in itself has made me feel much more positive.

Hello to everyone else too. Do let us know how you are getting on.

Hope that you all have a lovely weekend X
posted by arcticfox2
on 28 Mar 2026 at 02:24

Hi everyone,
A quick update as I had my appointment with my GP today. He thinks that based on my history, I likely have ADHD and thinks it worth trying a medication. He said if the medication works, I likely have it. He messed up the prescription though and when I tried to pick it up from the pharmacy, they said he only put 2 tablets down and was that correct? He was supposed to give me 2 weeks worth! So now I have to wait until next week so they can talk to his office and confirm. Not the first time he has messed up a prescription either. I think he goes too quickly when he is writing it or just thinks everybody will understand what he means. Very frustrating!
He also gave me a requisition for blood work seeing as I’m now over 50 and he wants to check things every year. I’m a bit miffed that he used this appointment to do that though. I’ve really only been eating super well for the last 10 days, so I don’t want to get my HbA1c done yet. He did say that I could just fit it in whenever. What are the chances I can put it off for 3 months? I guess I could blame the ADHD and say that I misplaced the requisition!
I had a takeaway last night as it was a busy day, but it was a salmon burger in a lettuce wrap with salad on the side instead of chips, so I felt pretty good about that. I also picked up some macadamia nuts and Comte cheese for a bit of variety in the nuts and cheese departments. Tonight I repeated the broccoli, cauliflower and tilapia for a quick and simple meal as it was so good 2 nights ago. So I’ve had a lot of fish this week, but hopefully it is doing me some good and I don’t have weeks like this very often.
Onwards and downwards everyone! In my case, hopefully my HbA1c as well!
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 2 Apr 2026 at 14:29

Hi everyone just a quick check in to wish you all a Happy Easter. I hope you’ve had a good week?

I’ve been a bit off piste this week as I’ve had various events and family gatherings, which has impacted not just what I’ve been eating and drinking but also being out so much has played havoc with the whole routine of food planning etc. So still haven’t made it to 150 but am maintaining between 151-152 and aim to get to 150 or below by then end of next week 🤞

Hope that others have done better and seen some loss😊

ARCTICFOX I hope you managed to get your prescription sorted and that it makes a difference. Hopefully you can delay your blood test by at least a few weeks without any issue.

Right, I’m off to prepare a Fast 800 recipe for later (fish cakes) then off for a swim. That, I can do!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend X
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 2 Apr 2026 at 20:47

Gosh the fish cakes were dreadful! Curried quinoa fish cakes – and I’m sure I may have got the quantities wrong or something. But definitely not to be repeated 😂
posted by ADD6605
on 3 Apr 2026 at 09:23

Hi everyone,
I really haven’t had a good few weeks food wise which I’m annoyed with myself about as I was finding it so easy at first to stick to the 12 week programme and if I had continued in that vein I would have had a decent amount of weight off by now whereas I weighed myself the other day and had gained weight which really wasn’t surprising. I am, however, absolutely not giving up and will continue with the plan until the end of the 12 weeks, do the free month then will probably continue to subscribe (I think it’s £12 a month) as I could easily waste that amount on rubbish in a month and, when I AM following it, I really do enjoy it! I haven’t done the exercises for a few weeks but am going to start them again, I do read the knowledge box every day and often do the meditations. I don’t know for sure but I think if I subscribe I would have access to the recipes, exercise and meditations. It would be handy if I could still complete the weekly online food plan too. I have enjoyed a few new recipes (in between me going totally off track!) which I will definitely use again (DCT I definitely won’t try the fishcakes!) the Mediterranean Mozzarella chicken is lovely, I eventually got round to making the Curried Chicken Kebabs and the Cheesy Ham and Tomato Pikelets and enjoyed both, the Breakfast Traybake was good, I would probably make the Broccoli Florets with Parmesan and poached Eggs again (though eggs and green veg don’t’ ‘go’ together naturally for me). I tried the Plum Crumble for breakfast, it was ok but the serving is quite small, I made enough for three days but probably wouldn’t make it again. I will try to make a few new recipes in the last three weeks of the plan and hopefully find some more I enjoy. I hope everyone has a nice weekend. Dawn X
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 3 Apr 2026 at 09:45

Hello everyone
Nice to read the updates. It’s so hard week to week keeping strong. I’ve kept to plan all week and been rather hungry this week and feeling tired. I don’t think 800 calories is enough! I’ve stayed the same weight this week. 147.4 lb. I was expecting a plateau this last few weeks so I’m not disappointed. My clothes are feeling better though.
After a few phone calls and a lot of negotiating I have secured a slot for my dental extraction next Thursday morning – I am concerned because I am hopefully flying on 1st May but that depends on the jet fuel situation of course. Anyway, fingers crossed this tooth will be gone next week.
I need to have a think about whether to continue on 800 calories or whether to up my calories this week. If I can lose a couple of pounds before I go to Corfu on 1st May that would be nice. I would like to be 145 lb by then but I know things will be slowing down weight loss wise.
Have a lovely Easter weekend everyone. Make good choices. I’ll be having an apple and cinnamon muffin instead of a hot cross bun today!
posted by ADD6605
on 3 Apr 2026 at 09:57

I’m so pleased you have your extraction booked Cathy and hope all goes well. Great that your clothes are feeling better. Apple and Cinnamon muffins are on my list of recipes to try in the next few weeks. X
posted by arcticfox2
on 5 Apr 2026 at 21:23

Hi everyone,
Still keeping on keeping on here. I don’t feel that I’ve lost any weight yet as my jeans are still fitting the same, but I am managing to stick to the very low carb way of eating, so that is a win. Actually, it is 1pm and in spite of some hard gardening all I have had to eat today so far is a bit of cheese at 10am, so I should have some lunch. I started on my new medication today and it does suppress appetite as one of the side effects, so the pharmacist told me to watch that as people can forget to eat while on it. I am starting to get hungry though. I was quite worried about going on these meds as I’ve never been on a stimulant before and I can’t even have caffeine normally without getting jittery or it affecting my sleep if I have even one cup of tea after 10am, but so far I am feeling good. Just an enormous sense of calm, which is what is supposed to happen if you have ADHD, whereas if you don’t have it, you would likely get amped up. So the medications might confirm the diagnosis for me. I have to try them for 2 weeks and then we may adjust the dose slightly if necessary, but if this continues, they could actually be life-changing. Already today I have done a ton of work around the farm, potted up some of my indoor plant starts in record time and noticed that the compost pail in the kitchen needed emptying and just did it without procrastinating or getting distracted along the way. And I’m not exhausted or completely brain dead, so after finishing this, I will have energy to keep going instead of needing to crash on the sofa for a couple of hours to recover. Is this what it is like to be normal? Wow! Here’s hoping this is what I needed to help me make good decisions about food even after hard days at work!
posted by blueOcean
on 7 Apr 2026 at 00:30

Today is my first day of the plan. It’s the end of the day now and I am so shocked that 800 calories is managable with careful planning. I had many reservations before deciding to give this a go. I decided to modify my own recipes to fit the macros of the plan. The carbs have indeed called my name today and it’s made me realize how much bread and corn products are empty fillers in my eating.
posted by arcticfox2
on 7 Apr 2026 at 20:18

Welcome blueOcean. Yes, isn’t it surprising how daunting 800 calories can seem mentally before you try it? Keep in mind that it will likely get tougher as you go on. If you start feeling low energy or cold, you may want to switch it up a bit as those can be signs that your metabolism is falling and you don’t want that to happen.
I had an appointment at the optometrist this morning and I was rushing to get changed and pulled on some size 20 jeans I hadn’t worn in a few weeks. And after saying just a couple days ago that my jeans (my working outside ones) were not fitting any better, these were a bit loose around the waist but I thought manageable so I did not wear a belt. Well, after seeing the optometrist I went to the supermarket and unfortunately they started to slip down quite a bit! Anyway, I made it home without incident. I now have new contact lenses, new sunglasses and will have a new set of progressive lenses in a couple of weeks. So I’m all set for a while now as far as eyesight.
In other news, my counsellor suggested that I put my anxiety about potentially losing my job to good use by looking at what else I could do if that happens. Of course, I have the farm, which is not a big income generator yet, and my pottery which could become a nice little side hustle, but I don’t see either of those paying the mortgage. I had been considering becoming a counsellor, but honestly I’m quite turned off of it after my experience with my last counsellor, and I would have to do quite a few courses to improve my chances of being accepted to a Masters programme. So, I started looking into some other options and it seems I could do a Masters in Dietetics and from there become a diabetes educator even. What do you think? I talked to my godmother about it and she said ‘nutrition is such a strong interest of yours.’ I already have a minor in animal nutrition from my agriculture degree. The local health authority has lots of openings for jobs and are offering hefty signing bonuses for new graduates which would cover about 2/3 of the tuition, and private practice is an option too. A lot of dieticians work online now too which is more compatible with running my farm. Something to think about. I may sign up to do some introductory human nutrition and anatomy and physiology online as the university does not want to accept my animal ones as being equivalent. I should at least be able to get good results which will boost my chances of getting into Dietetics. The only frustrating thing might be that human nutrition is so far behind animal nutrition and a lot of the guidance is not based on very robust science as of yet. We all know about that, I think!
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 8 Apr 2026 at 10:44

Hello everyone
Hope you’re all well and feeling focused and had a nice Easter. I love your idea for becoming a Dietician ArcticFox. Sounds like a positive move. Such a good idea. How is everyone doing?
I am on week 9 of the online plan and am sticking with it. My family came over Easter and they enjoyed an indian take away but i abstained and made butter paneer and cauliflower rice. Didn’t feel like I’d missed out. Im getting a bit fed up with the same old meals but whatever has happened to me this last three months is working and i am almost 1.5 stone down- 21lbs, 9.5 kg! I can’t quite get my head around it. Clothes are loose! My summer clothes are going to be comfortable. I have treated myself to some Nespresso Caramello Coffee pods to have in the morning and I’ve also treated myself to having my nails done by my niece- I’m rewarding myself but the weight loss itself is a reward. It’s three weeks til my book club get away to Corfu for four nights and I hope to be 144 by then. As soon as I come home I’ll be straight back to 800 calories to offset any damage! I will have to be careful because I’ve not had any alcohol since New Year so I’ll be doing everything in moderation because it will be a shock to my system. Also, I’m quite happy being sensible!! It’s tooth time tomorrow (fingers crossed) I’ve been taking painkillers every day and I hope that once it’s out I’ll feel better. This issue has been going on since July last year! Enough is enough.
I’ll weigh in on Friday- I had a sneak peek today and I am 1lb down : I stayed the same last week. Today I was 146. I’m chuffed with that!
Looking forward to reading your updates.
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 8 Apr 2026 at 12:23

BLUE OCEAN welcome! Look forward to getting to know you and following your progress. Sounds like you’re off to a great start.

ARCTIC FOX I think it’s great you’re looking at other potential career opportunities. Your job change may not even happen but I think taking a positive view of the possibility is very healthy. And with your skills and determination I’m sure you can make a success of pretty much anything 😊

Talking of determination, CATHY you are on a roll! I’m so pleased for your ongoing weight loss. Really good news. And well deserved! X. I hope you finally get your tooth sorted tomorrow 🤞

I’ve been a bit off piste over the last couple of weeks but am getting back on track. So am not as far forward as I wanted to be by now but am still hoping to be at 148 by the end of April. It’s my birthday then and I’m going away for a few days so it’ll be nice to be securely below 150 by then. Will keep you posted!

Hi to everyone else too – do let us know how you’re getting on. Good luck everyone! X
posted by Newbie2026
on 8 Apr 2026 at 13:20

Welcome BlueOcean, I too am new hear and find these forums very good, everyone is friendly with lots of good advice and plenty of encouragement so keep on coming back and let us know how you are getting on. 800 calories is surprising when you plan well, keep on going 🌞
ArcticFox2 I definitely think its worth you exploring other employment options, you’ve got specialist knowledge and would be good to put it to use, even if you dont need to in the long run it will certainly keep the brain going.
Cathy thats really impressive, well done, great results.
posted by Newbie2026
on 8 Apr 2026 at 13:29

Dreamscometrue, well done for getting back on track, I think thats one of the hardest things is getting back in the saddle. You have a goal set so now you can work towards it and how lovely to have a reward in place ready, you’ve got this.

I’m plodding along and doing not so bad, trying to get in to a better routine and back on it after Easter. Hope everyone else is doing ok 😀
posted by arcticfox2
on 8 Apr 2026 at 20:53

Hi everyone, thanks for the encouragement on the career change. I’m getting more excited about it the more I think about it. I had an appointment with my counsellor this morning and she thought it sounded like a solid option as well. We did walk and talk again and went nearly 5km!
I’m still feeling very calm on my new medication, but almost too calm now as I have to be careful because I can get stuck on the couch and lose my get up and go. I think it means we haven’t quite got the dose right or perhaps not exactly the right medication. The fact that I am calm on a stimulant seems to indicate that this class of drug will work well for me though once we get it dialed in.
Still sticking to very low carb, but I do have to watch very carefully about remembering to eat during the day. Once it wears off around 6pm I can get very hungry and want to eat a big meal if I haven’t eaten through the day. My counsellor suggested putting myself on a schedule with alarms on my phone if I need to and to stick to it. I’m being very active around the farm at the moment so I should have an appetite, but the medication is really suppressing it. The good thing about it is that my compression tights are fitting a bit looser and looking at myself in the mirror I think I have lost some back fat.
Cathy – so pleased for you with what you have been able to accomplish so far this year. It is great to see you setting goals and hitting them after being so frustrated for the past couple of years. Best of luck with your tooth.
In the interests of not getting stuck on the couch, I will say goodbye for now. I need to get something to eat and then I am headed to the pottery studio for a few hours.
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 9 Apr 2026 at 17:30

Hello everyone
The tooth is out. HURRAH! Seemingly one of the roots was within the sinus cavity and that’s why it was complex and he had to be careful not to perforate it. He has put a dressing in and stitched the gum closed and hopefully a clot will form and everything will be secure. He said he may have to operate further in six weeks if my voice changes or liquids come down my nostril which indicates a problem. I had to risk having it out today or waiting til after my holiday so I took a chance. If it is perforated then I won’t be able to fly on 1st May. He said he was fairly confident it would be ok. What a palaver. Anyway, I’m keeping positive – no nuts or seeds for two weeks and soft food. So lots of Greek Yoghurt, scrambled eggs, soup for me.
I’ll weigh tomorrow and I’ll be a few grams lighter without that back molar! 🦷
posted by Verano
on 9 Apr 2026 at 17:42

Cathy…. all sounding wonderful. Keep positive!
posted by BeccaBSD
on 10 Apr 2026 at 02:42

Gosh, Cathy, what a stressful and probably painful thing. I hope it’s all over now and will heal up just right and allow you to go on your trip. Also a hearty congratulations to you for your excellent result with the online program. You’ve been very disciplined, despite it having been a real challenge. Again, I hope you can really enjoy those great results on your trip, and at home, too, of course!

Welcome to Newbie and BlueOcean, and how nice it is to see fresh “voices” on here. Wishing you both a successful experience. Actually, Newbie, you’ve already accomplished so much in how far you’ve brought your A1c down. I wonder if you realize that those kind of results normally take quite a lot longer, so kudos to you.

ArcticFox, I LOVE the idea of you becoming a Diabetic Educator and helping us all navigate the path toward remission or at least improvement! Go for it, please! Maybe Fast 800 Online will employ you!

ADD and DCT, I’m right there with you as far as having been a bit lost in the woods recently. I have a bad habit of always trying to tweak and improve and personalize whatever plan I’m on, and it nearly always causes me to backslide. Well, both the over-analyzing and also the chocolate. : /

I’m starting a fresh 12 weeks tomorrow, hoping to stay very low carb. I must admit that low carb is kind of depressing to me, but that’s usually because I try to take the carbs too low. Will be careful of that this time.

Hope everyone has a lovely spring! I’m cheering you on!

–Becca
posted by arcticfox2
on 10 Apr 2026 at 04:57

Cathy, so happy that you finally have your tooth out and that it has gone well so far.
So after reporting about getting stuck on the couch and wondering if the medication was doing enough, I’ve had a bit of a realization after going to pottery. I am working on finishing up a special project I have been working on that has been taking a lot of concentration and I have to book back to back sessions so that the clay doesn’t dry out too much while I’m working on it. So I was in the studio yesterday afternoon for 3 hours and this morning for 3 hours. Two weeks ago I did the same and I was completely wiped out after. I had to hyperfocus to get it done and was irritated by others in the studio constantly walking past me, etc. I just came home and crashed and couldn’t get anything else done. Well, I guess I can stop wondering if the medication is doing anything other than making me calm because this time I had what I can only describe as a nice, peaceful, open focus. I could concentrate but also chat and laugh with the other people. I noticed them going past me but it wasn’t distracting so I wasn’t getting irritated. And because it was so much easier to concentrate, I was nowhere near as tired after. I was doing better with remembering to eat and drink today. I have had a headache since starting the meds but not sure if it was them or the fact that I was dehydrated. It has eased off today, so I guess I have my answer. I made the savoury cheesecake from The Stone Soup for dinner (it is in the recipe section here if any new people wish to search for it), but substituted two duck eggs for the 3 chicken eggs. I think it was better than the chicken egg version. Duck eggs make everything so nice and fluffy.
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 10 Apr 2026 at 17:43

Hello everyone
I slept well following my tooth extraction and went to the hair salon today which was pre arranged weeks ago but the least said about that the better! They dyed my hair system the wrong colour and now i am brown instead of salt and pepper silver grey! She apologised but the damage is done and I’ll need a new system. I am so sad!
In other more positive news I was 2.2 lb down this week. 145.2 lbs
I need to calm down after my hair disaster so that’s all for now. I’ll be back!
posted by BeccaBSD
on 11 Apr 2026 at 05:02

OH, my gosh, Cathy, that’s terrible. I hope they waived any charge and offered you a free re-do (if a re-do is possible). I mean, you deserve some kind of compensation other than, “Oooops, sorry.”

Congratulations on the excellent weight loss this week!

ArcticFox, I hope you continue to settle in well with the new meds! And I’ve never heard of savoury cheesecake, but want to learn more, am intrigued!

–Becca
posted by Yowzer49
on 12 Apr 2026 at 17:30

Hola chums! I amstill crawlin and creepin about like a snail and havent got muchto say except mainly CCATHY,I am so pleased to hear that the tooth is out. Also well done on the weight drop! If anyonedeserves it,its you xxx
Enjoying reading everyones posts.
Love to all and specially to the newbies,you are very welcome xx
Enjoying the blossom but sad it doesnt live very long xx
Thought for Monday morning..
This is the beginning of a new day.
Youhave been given this day to use as you will.
You can waste it or use it for good.
What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it.
When tomorrow comes,this day will be gone forever.
In its place will be something you have left behind.
Let it be something goodxx

🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿 🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿 🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷🌿🌷
posted by Pootle
on 12 Apr 2026 at 17:50

Yowzer that is a superb ‘thought for the day’!
Thank you! 💐💐
posted by arcticfox2
on 13 Apr 2026 at 00:24

Thanks for the thought Yowzer. It certainly applies to my situation this weekend. I was enrolled in a teapot making workshop at the pottery studio. Saturday was just dreadful. I was struggling with my clay being too wet and soft and did not mesh at all with the instructor’s teaching style. I really wanted to just be able to pick up some tips and tricks, but in the end was upset at myself for getting frustrated by it all. It was so interesting that I just wanted to get off the wagon after and have some very high carb/high fat treats. So I said to myself, what could I have that would feel good? I was too tired to cook, so I decided on palak paneer out of a packet and went to the supermarket to get some. It hit the spot and I avoided buying things I shouldn’t have. Then I called my godmother and had a good chat. I went back to class today and although I still wasn’t meshing with the instructor, it went better and I got more out of it.
I stopped at the organic market where I get my soy free tofu and duck eggs on the way home and I did splurge on a few things that will just make my life a bit easier now that I am headed into busy season on the farm. They were supposed to have gluten free keto bread on special, but they didn’t have any left, so I did get some buns and a pizza base instead. Also, I got some almond flour cookies and some hemp seed protein bars. Then I found cauliflower oven chips! They are pretty highly processed, but very low carb, so will do for an occasional treat on a day when I don’t feel like cooking from scratch, and will be nice with the fish filets I have in my freezer. So hopefully all these things will allow me to stay on track even on busy or upsetting days.
So, there were times when I definitely would have used being upset and tired as a reason to abandon this way of eating, but I’m quite proud that I remembered what kind of weekend I would like to be having eating-wise and how I need to stay on track for at least 3 months to meet my initial goal and I’m only on week 5. Actually, next week will be week 6, so half way!
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 13 Apr 2026 at 12:44

Thank you Yowser for your thought for Monday morning. What a wonderful, inspiring post.
I am feeling so much better since the tooth has been extracted. No earache and no gum ache. There.does not appear to be any involvement with the sinus and everything seems intact! Phew! I’ve been very lucky and so thankful to the wonderful Oral Surgeon who was so kind. Am so grateful for his expertise.
I still can’t believe how well I am doing to lose 22 lb in the last few weeks – I am the lightest weight I’ve been since June 2019! This morning I was 144.2 lb. All those years of getting absolutely nowhere! The difference has been sticking rigidly to 800 calories and doing keto and NOT CHEATING ONCE! I am lucky to have a superpower of willpower! I’ve eaten fresh food for the last 10 weeks whilst doing the online plan. I can’t eat nuts and seeds for two weeks til things start to heal up in my mouth and I’m missing them. I’ve had no crisps, chocolate, chips, cakes, biscuits, bread, crackers. Not even a crumb or a rogue chip that fell off my husband’s plate! I really hope my HbA1c reflects my effort at the end of April. I’ll keep going til the end of April then take a few days off for my book club holiday to Corfu and then get straight back to basics. My plan is to enjoy holidays, festivities etc and then in between eat keto and be mindful. Let’s see what happens. I know maintenance will be hard.
Have a good week everyone. We’ve got this. I think we really have!
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 14 Apr 2026 at 07:08

YOWZER lovely to hear from you and thanks so much for the positive thought. It can be easy to fritter away time or spend it in a negative frame of mind whereas we should really be grateful for every minute and put it to good use – even if that means taking time to care for ourselves and rest and relax. I’m very good at being busy for busy’s sake, if that makes sense!

CATHY very well done for your ongoing loss. That’s fantastic! Are you noticing changes to your body and clothes as well as on the scales? I’m so pleased for you. Also good to hear your tooth is now gone. And I hope you get your new hair system sorted quickly.

ARCTICFOX well done for staying on track despite a disappointing weekend. It’s so easy to turn to eating or drinking all the wrong things when we feel fed up or frustrated, even though that then exacerbates the negative mood!

BECCA I’ve lost track : have you been on your holiday yet or is that still to come? Either way, I hope you have/had a wonderful time!

I had an unexpected gain of almost 2lb this morning which was disappointing. But then I had a thought. I’m on antibiotics at the moment and I Googled it and found that they can cause weight gain due to messing with your gut microbiome. Things like probiotics and fermented food can help so I’ll look out for those when I go shopping today, and the antibiotics are only for a couple more days so hopefully any effect will be short lived anyway 🤞 (btw it turns out that after my fall in NYC the broken tooth is still embedded in my lip! It has become slightly infected so the antibiotics are to deal with that. I’m being referred to a dental surgeon to remove it. Will keep you posted . . . )

Hope that everyone has a good week. Here’s to more losses 🙂. I’ll report back at the end of the week X
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 14 Apr 2026 at 19:49

DCT- I can’t get over the tooth being embedded in your lip! I hope you get an oral surgeon as good as the one I had last week and don’t have to wait too long. How on earth did you find out it was there- can you feel it? Sorry that you had an unexplained 2lb shock this morning- thats rubbish! Whenever I am prescribed antibiotics I always buy BioKult from Amazon and they help my gut biome. I always take them when I travel too. Antibiotics always mess with my microbiome and I always get thrush. I really try to avoid them but my dentist prescribed them when he didn’t know what my dental issue was many months ago. Hopefully you’ll be feeling better very soon and those extra pounds will be gone for good!
After my hair disaster on Friday I calmed down after I got home. I was devastated as my new system isnt due to be replaced for 18 months. I have accepted that a mistake was made and in the big scheme of things it’s not really important. Worse things are happening in the world. Because of my alopecia I’ve been wearing a hair system for 15 years and I always say, things can’t really go wrong because I can always get a new system but it’s £1500 a time and the maintenance is expensive. I am considering wigs for the future and may have a mooch to a wig shop in Manchester for a chat after my holiday.
With regard to whether I’ve noticed the weight loss, I can see my wrists are tiny and my hands are slim and clothes are looser and I can see my legs are slimmer too. I’m more excited to see if my HbA1c is normal and I’ve got my blood test booked in for a few days before I go away!! Wise move!!!
I’ve already decided that when I get back from Corfu I am not going to get on the scales. I’ll go straight back to keto and weigh myself after a month. No point in striking myself with a second arrow! I am hoping I will eat healthy food in Corfu and I plan to stay sugar free. I don’t think my pancreas would cope with sugar now!
Have a good week everyone .
posted by BeccaBSD
on 15 Apr 2026 at 05:25

Dreams, how awful to learn about the piece of broken tooth in your lip! I hope the surgical fix is sooner rather than later. Am a bit surprised that your lip would be considered dental surgery..? Anyway, I do hope you get things all fixed up and can put it all behind you.

Oh, and yes, I did do the Arizona trip already with my daughter and granddaughter and had a lovely time, thank you. Gained some weight, though, and am now back to low carb/low calorie to get it off and continue moving downward.

Cathy, very smart of you to plan your A1c test for before your trip, especially since you have been SO disciplined! I wish I had done my test before my trip. Instead I’m having it in 4 weeks, so it will be impacted by the carb-fest on my trip. I didn’t realize the test would be coming up that soon.

Also smart of you to decide to stay off the scales when you get home. It was very demoralizing (but not surprising) for me. On the other hand, was a good motivator. It’s hard getting back on low carb when you’ve been away from it, but I’m a few days in now, so those first few days are behind me.

I can see now more of the big picture of your hair appointment gone wrong. Didn’t realize it was such a hugely expensive process. But you seem to have made peace with what happened, and that’s probably for the best, for your own well-being. Will be interested to hear if you do go check out the wig shop. I have extremely thin hair myself, as did my mom, and she got into wearing wigs later in life, so perhaps now it’s my turn to look into it.
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 15 Apr 2026 at 09:51

CATHY and BECCA thanks for your good wishes. Yes it’s the most bizarre thing! The lip took a long time to heal, but as it did I’d been noticing a hard lump just underneath it. I initially assumed it was scar tissue, but feeling both sides I began to suspect it was the broken tooth. Thought I was probably just being fanciful but it then started to feel a bit swollen and tender so I did an e-consult with the doctor (like you Becca, I assumed it would be them) and they said to go to my dentist. I was a bit worried I’d end up being fobbed off and passed to and fro between them but she was lovely and did an X-ray and there it was! Though she said she personally didn’t feel confident to remove it. The antibiotics seem to have done their job so far, as it feels ok again, but I now have to wait to be contacted about what happens next!

Becca I’m so glad you had a wonderful time. What a beautiful place to visit. And lots of happy memories I’m sure. And hopefully the weight regain will begin to come off again.

Cathy thanks for the advice re antibiotics.Some of the weight gain seems to have come off this morning and I finish the course today, so here’s hoping it was just a blip and I can get back on track. I was hoping for 148 by the end of this month but am now back at 152 so we’ll see. I’m not too concerned as there is a gradual ongoing loss, but what I may do is switch to the Fast Keto programme for a few weeks in May when I’m back from my Devon break, just to boost things up a bit.

Good luck Cathy with your HbA1c test. You really deserve to see some much improved results. And then it will be your trip to Corfu which sounds lovely. I was going to ask, is it purely a social trip or is it based on a particular book you’ve read? I think travelling to the location of a book is quite a thing now (I’m sure it has a proper name but can’t think of it!). Anyway, enjoy! And I hope you find some good hair options when you get back.

Hello also to everyone else reading this and I hope you’re all ok and having a good week.
posted by arcticfox2
on 15 Apr 2026 at 18:10

Hi everyone,
I’ve just reached week 6 on eating very low carb. I was on the ADHD meds for just over a week, but have come off them for now until I talk to my doctor on Friday as they started giving me extremely vivid nightmares, suggesting that the raised dopamine was interfering with my REM sleep. I was doing better with eating more to a schedule and that eliminated the headaches. Interestingly, I think a big benefit of doing low carb and being on the meds at the same time was that the low carb mostly took away any urge to binge on carbs, unless I had a very disappointing day like on Saturday at pottery, but then I think it was the meds that gave me the ability to slow down my impulses and to think of other ways I could comfort myself. So I’d like to talk to my doctor and maybe try a different medication. Not ready to give up yet. Interestingly, the drug I am on is approved to treat binge eating as well as ADHD, and I can see why it works. I wasn’t having to look to food to get a dopamine hit when the drug was raising it for me.
Out in the garden, I have radishes and snap peas coming up now. I planted out some brussels sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower plants yesterday. They will take a while, but something to look forward to. Not many of the local farms around me grow broccoli and cauliflower, probably because it gets hot so quickly, and so many people still buy into the myth that we can’t plant anything out until late May. I will have to protect them as we will be down below freezing again tonight. Once I have my own veggies producing, it will be so much easier to keep eating low carb. I only have spinach right now, and while it is nice to have something fresh at this time of year, it is getting a bit monotonous.
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 16 Apr 2026 at 08:55

ARCTICFOX it sounds as if you’re really getting to grips with your medication and its impact, and I hope you have a productive discussion with your doctor tomorrow. Your forthcoming veg crop sounds amazing. Fresh veg always taste so much better than shop bought.

Just checking in quickly to recommend a lovely breakfast I had today – coconut chia Bircher. Very filling and tasty, and only 228 calories. I assume the recipe is online or in one of the books but if not let me know and I can put it on here.

Have a great day everyone xx
posted by arcticfox2
on 16 Apr 2026 at 20:04

Thanks for the breakfast idea, DCT. I looked it up and only found a chia breakfast bircher that uses oats and passionfruit. I have come down with a wee bit of a cold (my first virus of any kind since Jan 2020, can you believe it?!). Nothing serious, but I was at a local fruit and veg market yesterday as my throat was getting sore and got a watermelon and saw they had a deal on passionfruit, so I picked up 2 thinking it would add some novelty (and crunch!) to my Greek yogurt. So I think I could modify the chia bircher by eliminating the oats, adding some hemp seeds and shredded coconut and greek yogurt in place of the oats and coconut milk (haven’t got any in at the moment). I’ll let you know how it goes. And I hope you are able to get that tooth removed from your lip soon!
In spite of not feeling terribly well, I went to my counselling appointment today. We were doing walk and talk again around a local park near her office so I figured that was better for not spreading my virus around compared to face to face inside her office and I just asked her to go a bit slower than normal. It went well. We spent a lot of time talking about my horrible pottery session on Sat and how I had realized that the feelings coming up and the urge to binge are tied to rejection sensitivity which may be from the ADHD but also could easily be from the CPTSD. My counsellor said to make sure that I tell my doctor that the meds are having a big impact on preventing me from binge eating. She is going on holiday for a couple of weeks and I said that it was good timing because I am getting busier on the farm so wanted to take a bit of a break anyway. I’m feeling so much better within myself than I was at the beginning of the year in any case, and she was commenting on how well I’m doing with the self-care and that even when I’m having an upsetting day like on Saturday that I am able to bounce back from it more quickly than I would have.
Anyway, I’m pretty tired now so have decided it will be an easy day with plenty of rest. I am on the couch under my electric blanket at the moment and the cat is keeping me company. I will have to go outside later to deal with the horses, but they are finally out on pasture so the chores are easier at least. Hope everyone is doing well!
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 16 Apr 2026 at 21:55

ARCTICFOX that’s interesting about the Bircher. I checked the recipe and it’s apparently adapted from the 8 week Blood Sugar Diet book. Basically for this version you need to combine oats, chia seeds, coconut milk and water. Leave overnight in fridge. Before eating add passion fruit, berries and hazelnuts.

Hope you enjoy your version of it. And I’m really glad the counselling is going well too X
posted by arcticfox2
on 17 Apr 2026 at 02:39

Hi DCT, yes that sounds like the same recipe that I found. I am not eating oats at the moment as I’m trying to stay lower carb than that, so that is why I said I will adapt the recipe, but I think I can still get the same flavour profile with coconut and hemp seed.
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 17 Apr 2026 at 20:25

Hello everyone
Weigh in this morning and I was 144lb! I am the lightest I’ve been since June 2019. I lost 1.2 lb this week. Two more weeks on the 12 week 800 calorie keto plan to do and then hopefully a five day holiday to Corfu. When I come back I’ll change plan but I don’t really know what happens then. I plan to keep paying for the online subscription for a few months to keep me on track and to learn how to maintain. I will be happy to maintain at about 140 lb. I am 65 in June. I do not want to go too low with my BMI. Currently it is 27 and I am happy with that as an older woman with confirmed osteoporosis, I think a bit of fat on my bones will be protective.
To answer your question DCT our book club (8 of us) like to go way together for three nights or so once or twice an year and we decided we all needed some sunshine so we picked Kassiopi. We are staying in a beautiful villa for four nights. At Christmas we went to Buxton for a couple of nights and last year we went to Harrogate. We are a mix of ages and most of the group are social workers ( like to party hard). My sister in law introduced me to the book club about 10 years ago ; it was her and her social worker colleagues who had recently started the book club and they were so lovely and welcoming to me. I was having a really difficult time at that time being bullied at work and subsequently I introduced a colleague from the hospital where we worked at together and the rest is history, me and Liz are the pensioners! We won’t allow anyone else to join because we are frightened that our wonderful dynamic will change. We all get on so well and I remember when we went to Harrogate I didn’t realise I had shingles but felt really unwell but still laughed so much I thought I had broken a rib! We will do a lot of laughing. We have chosen our latest book club book and it’s set in Italy, not Corfu. We are going to read The Home Made God. I am the book club swot and keep all the scores etc but my sister in law in particular isn’t really a reader! It really should be a wine club!
DCT – I can thoroughly recommend the 800 keto way of eating. As I am vegetarian I follow the veggie plan and I’ve enjoyed the lovely food. Check out the plan online and maybe try it for a couple of weeks. It really works and you know how difficult I’ve found losing weight over the last few years. I recently read a book by Professor Taylor called Life without Diabetes as I wanted to read how to reduce my blood glucose level as I was diagnosed with prediabetes and I found it really interesting and he suggests doing a three month intensive weight loss campaign using low calorie to reverse the numbers. It’s an interesting and informative book and that as well as the online plan really have inspired me and I’ll be interested to see my result at the end of April.
Have a lovely weekend everyone and please do come on and let us know how you are getting on.

.
posted by ADD6605
on 18 Apr 2026 at 08:00

Hi everyone,
Cathy I’m just popping in to say well done on your brilliant weight loss using the 12 week online plan! You have achieved what I was hoping to. It’s my week 12 this coming week and I’ve messed around too much so won’t have lost anything near what you have but hopefully I will still be lighter than when I started. I will be continuing with the plan at the end of the 12 weeks. Hope everyone has a nice weekend. Dawn XX
posted by arcticfox2
on 19 Apr 2026 at 00:19

Well done Cathy! Must feel good to be down below 145 again!
I’ve been down for the count the last couple of days with this cold, unfortunately. It has been a struggle to make sure I am drinking enough fluids, so I did go a bit off plan and bought some zero sugar root beer and some pudding cups. I will need to dilute the root beer going forward, and I don’t think I will be able to finish the pudding cups as they are just too sweet and I can taste the chemicals in them. They have helped to soothe my throat but I definitely will not be buying them when I’m healthy. Good to know that my tastes have changed so much in 6 weeks.
DCT, I tried the modified chia bircher and the texture was nice but my taste was still a bit distorted so I will have to try it again and report back. I also tried the cauliflower oven chips that I bought last weekend and even with not being able to taste them properly, I know I will not be buying them again. The texture alone was pretty disgusting.
I had the phone appointment with my doctor yesterday and he agreed that the signs were positive for a stimulant working but that I might not be on the right drug yet, so I am now going to be trying a different one. I picked it up at the pharmacy today when I went in for some more tissues. I go back to work on Monday so it will be interesting to see the difference it makes in a work context.