8 week Fast 800 'reboot' starting 2 January 2018

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  • posted by Mixnmatch
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    Hi sunshine-girl, I feel like I must take part of the blame for people thinking they can just mess around with the diet and it is still the diet, but I think that it could be only that you feel this way because they are posting in Fast800 forum. The blood sugar diet itself does encompass a great many variations and flexibility, but they have their own, usually quiet forums so I guess people just go where the crowd is.

    My story always included a lot of messing around with what I eat and still does, I chose my name for a good reason, and have always mixed up Fast800, med style and 5:2 with many intermittent fasting variations, and mostly at a far higher carb level than those who had medication issues or serious insulin resistance. I have even adapted other diets to a more BSD way of eating framework, like the carbohydrate addict diet, the reverse diet and the fasting mimicking diet. I may start a challenge thread next time in one of the other forums to see if they gain any traction for those who are less extreme, although I do like the inclusiveness of this forum generally, and would not like to start discouraging people from posting on any thread they like if they have something to say.

  • posted by Californiagirl
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    Hi Everyone — this discussion is WHY I have pretty much stopped posting (and have become a lurker, enjoying your posts but not really participating).
    The run up to Christmas, as Allie notes, with all the talk about treats and partying and then the moaning after the holiday about the gains and the failures just finally broke my heart and I thought, this is driving me crazy — I don’t want to participate when the person on the other end is not even trying (and planning to fail) and I’m supposed to be SUPPORTIVE?
    I am with Sunshine girl — I just started to become grumpy and found myself wanting to lecture instead of offering support!
    I also found that it was upsetting my OWN ability to remain focused and calm on my maintenance journey.
    Luvtcook has a good point that we just want to save them 3 months of wandering in the wilderness — of course, I wandered for two months before I really clued in and I learned some good lessons on the way.
    But I understand how utterly frustrating it all can be!
    My final position has boiled down to “just start again”.

  • posted by Luvtcook
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    Hey sunshine-girl, what is this about T-shirs! Where do we sign up? How did I miss that part?

    Maybe best left until I lose a bit more in my upper arms. Nobody wants to be looking at those peeking out from under short sleves right now.

    Good luck on your last 3 lbs. Two weeks to go? You can do it.

    LTC

  • posted by marie123
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    Excuse me everyone for interrupting. I’m hoping to catch Californiagirl if I can.

    Californiagirl,
    I wanted to thank you (and Allie) for recommending the Gary Taube’s book ‘Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It’. I finally read it all the way through last week. It’s definitely helped me continue to get my head around things and will be one of my ‘go to’ books from now on. I’m moving on to another off your recommended reading list next, The Grain Brain.
    Cheers. Marie

  • posted by Laska
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    Ah…. 29 carbs today ! …better. (I shouldn’t have had the frozen blueberries this evening … ) also quite surprised at the amount in cauliflower .. but its a learning curve .. and they are full of good vits and trace elements

  • posted by Verano
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    No loss for me this week but still keeping on keeping on …….

  • posted by JGwen
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    Better progress to report this week, down 1.8kg this week. So total loss now since starting in mid October has reached 4.5 stone. I am now 7.5kg to go to my initial target, which was the weight I was when I was a healthy dress size. I am pleased with progress, but at the same time puzzled. Its obvious that my body wants to have a different target weight, but I don’t know what will be. –

    This will sound crazy, I am not sure where the weight is going from but its not from my waist or hips. Whenever I have lost weight when counting cals, (or gained weight) one stone has approx equalled one dress size, but not with this WoE. I have only lost one dress size so far out of the target of dropping 4 dress sizes. so I don’t know what my weight will be when I get to my emerging butterfly moment. I will just Koko until I reach my target dress size.

  • posted by Laska
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    No weight loss this week . But i expected that.. am koko also !!

  • posted by caronl
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    Hi rebooters. Congratulations JGwen! And yes I join you, Laska and Verona in KOKO. Six weeks achieved and two to go. Today I’m 77.4 (90.5 October, 83.1 start of this challenge, 77.6 last Thursday) – so a tiny loss this week. I’m still hoping to reach 76 by the end of the challenge. Have a good week everyone, and good luck with the the 20g carbs, Laska.

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    Morning everyone, still here with renewed motivation. No loss this week and only 2 to go so must koko. For me this is the blood sugar diet and is a way of life for me. Being almost constantly on very low calories though not always 800 outside of these challenges, I dont expect to have big losses but I am mainly interested in keeping my blood sugar levels down and reducing my medication. All of that has happened. After a slight rise to BG and insulin over Christmas and New Year I am now back down with both numbers – low BG at around 4.5 and insulin back down to 24 units. To me that is success. To lose a bit of weight for me is a bonus.

    Here’s to another week.

  • posted by Natalie
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    Great work JGwen, commiserations Laska and Verano (or congrats for maintaining?). JGwen I’ve never lost a significant amount of weight before but I was surprised that it’s taken a 12 kg loss to squeeze into the next size down (just). I’m sure that at this weight on the slow way up I was in a smaller size and used to have a waist – which I seem to have mislaid. I’ve gone from hourglass to apple.

    I’m feeling much less flu-ey (and so a bit less self-absorbed) and also my course of study resumed today so I have something to do other than staring at the walls which helps!

  • posted by JulesMaigret
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    No loss, no gain this week but not too bad following a quite un-BSD trip (not sure that Guinness fits into BSD too well!) to Twickenham on Saturday. So, blind persistence for me for the next couple of weeks.

    Good luck all!

  • posted by JGwen
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    Hi Natalie,

    I seem to be going through a period of being the opposite to hollow legs. My body is working its way my legs loosing weight in about 4 inch sections, currently its the 4 inches above the knees. 26.5 kg loss has resulted in a drop of a shoe size and just one dress size.
    Which means that the 11 month pregnant look is getting more pronounced as my legs reduce. Maybe up to 12 months now. :-}

    Oh well hopefully it means that when waist and hip measurements start to change hopefully it will happen in a rush rather than repeated shopping trips, and for the butterfly breakout moment I can move straight into leg flattering shoes and skirts.

    I have been wondering if what the body does is loose fat from the muscles in use, so maybe time to take up belly dancing.

  • posted by SunnyB
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    Well done to all those keeping the faith and managing to continue to report losses this week. For myself, I am 1lb up on this time last week and can attribute this to a couple of cocktails at the w/e.

    I have decided to bow out of this thread, as I have not been sticking religiously to the 800/20. There are members who are miffed that some of those of us who do not have a blood sugar issue, are not as focused and stringent about following the exact letter of the BSD, but still post. I have not be sticking closely to the 800/20 as I had planned at the beginning of the challenge, so will take a step back, but continue to aim for the planned lose by April, but not post on this thread.

    Best wishes to you all for successfully completing the 8 week challenge.

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    Hi JGwen, there is no fat in muscle for the body to burn. If you start burning muscle you have gone into myophagia which is technically the body eating its self but you would have to be into serious starvation for that. While losing weight you can have some muscle loss and in order to counter this you should be doing 2 or 3 times per week weight training. Nothing too difficult but something that will work the muscles like squats, press ups, triceps dips and so on. I use an aerobic programme that includes some of these and on days I dont exercise I have a set of dumb bells that I use to exercise my arms. Also, the opposite effect is, if you do lots of muscle exercises you will built big muscles and gain muscle weight. This is not true unless you are a man or taking steroids. Women do not have enough testosterone to build bulky muscles.

  • posted by Verano
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    SunnyB please don’t take the ‘chat’ personally. You are in maintenance and there is room for everyone on all the threads if it helps to stay on track, whatever that track may be. I don’t stick to 800/20 but still find it really useful to be ‘accountable’ as it stops me gaining weight and undoing all the good work.

    I think the issue is probably with some people who see this WOE as being very difficult, and it is, especially to start with, but who want to rewrite the rule book, without giving the diet a fair go.

    There is room for everyone here and your help is always appreciated.

  • posted by Nick C
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    Hello all,
    Been a couple of weeks since posting but had a few things going on. Last couple of weeks my weight loss has slowed almost to a standstill but my waist/hip fat is going!!!!! Will need new jeans very soon, a couple of pairs are too big now, tucking in my shirts/t-shirts is done with a smile and not a sigh when looking in the mirror.
    I’m somehow only eating one meal a day because i’m not hungry, this is dinner then a snack in the evening, some nuts or maybe some cheese. I’m going to try and eat a breakfast though, while I’m not hungry i not sure I’m running at hundred percent eating this way and maybe in turn having a counter effect on my weight lose.

    Will be getting some XCT oil this week and seeing what benefits this brings (Stay Tuned)!!!
    Planned my low carb valentines meal from watching Sundaybrunch at the weekend, new scales in a couple of weeks which seem to do everything but make coffee.

    I could post more but work to do, i will say though life can be short and cruel so lets come together here and keep the support going by posting your thoughts and comments. Yes disagree and have your views that’s what thousands of people fought throughout the years.

    Stay positive people!!

  • posted by JGwen
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    Hi Sunshine-girl,

    You are quite correct in one way, I was not being strictly accurate when I said that I was loosing fat from areas where I was using muscles, there is clearly a pattern of dimensions reducing one area of my body at a time, but being realistic, I use all of the muscles in my legs as I walk not just the 4 inch section above the knee which is where my body has chosen to focusing on remodelling this week. – I was just trying to be light hearted. – I spend about 5 hours a day on physical activity, feeding and caring for the animals and property maintenance. Today on top of the feed rounds through the fields, its planting fruit trees now that the rain has passed.

    On a factual level though, there is fat within muscle strands, when you look at a cut of beef, or lamb what is known as marbling are the veins of fat running through the muscle areas. This fat is highly valued by chefs as its the fat which improves the flavour of the meat apparently, (I wouldn’t know about that as its the fat which switches me off from eating meat.) Interestingly, research into supporting livestock farmers produce meat which has the highest market value indicates that once the sugar levels in grass start to reduce from September onwards, cattle will loose the marbling effect within the muscle masses within 2 months. So the recommendation is to add first cut silage (so grass cut and stored at the time of year of highest sugar levels) and feed that to cattle where its important to maintain the threads of fat running through the muscles. – Obviously I don’t intend to be a volunteer in any such research, but as I started the BSD in mid October, I would guess that by now my muscles will have started to have reduced marbling, so any cannibals out there wouldn’t value my carcase as highly as that of a sugar eaters.

  • posted by alliecat
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    JGwen, I really enjoyed your cannibal comment! To take it one step further, I don’t think I’d be much
    prized at that feast either…mostly bones and a mouthful of loose skin, and definitely no
    marbling! 🙂 🙂 🙂

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    Hi SunnyB, if I am to blame for you feeling that way then I am very sorry. As Verano say, it is not people who go on this diet and fail or stumble or get up and try again, I was just a bit miffed at 3 posts in a row on the same day saying they were going to do the diet but had completely changed the calories, carbs etc to make it a diet unrecognisable as the BSD. I also have no issue with people not being diabetic and doing the diet. DrM says it is for anyone who is T2, pre, or just wants to lose either a lot of weight or lose weight. In other words it is for anyone who wants to follow it. I guess those are the words for me, wants to follow it, even able to adapt or adjust, just not change it out of all recognition. As for my comments about the diabetes aspect, that is just my reason for being on this and I sometimes feel a failure because I am not losing masses of weight but I stick to the principles of the plan to regulate my BG numbers not to lose weight although that would be nice. Please dont leave the site – we are all worthwhile and welcome here no matter what our motivations are. I should have just kept my gob shut while I was feeling negative about a couple of posts. I have apologised to those people for me comments and even had a note back saying my comments were helpful and helped put the plan into perspective.

    Can we just have a time machine moment and go back to how things were a few days ago before I put my foot in my mouth. Can I start again please………

  • posted by JackieM
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    You’d make a good broth though Allie! 😂

  • posted by SunnyB
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    Thank you Verano and sunshine-girl, I admit it was in part the comments and general ‘chat’ that spurred me to say I’d bow out of this thread, but it is also because I have been feeling I was here fraudulently, given that I have not been making a real effort to stick to the 800/20 regime for the last couple of weeks.

    As I’m in maintenance – admittedly now wanting to drop an extra couple of pounds – it is probably best that I return to posting on the After Target thread, rather than on an active challenge thread. I had hoped being on this challenge thread would push me to really make the effort to stick with the 800/20n regime and drop those extra pounds, but it hasn’t happened. When I get in a better headspace for dropping those extra pounds, I might look to join a challenge thread again, but for now I think my contributions with a pound lost and then regained in turns, is probably not of benefit to anyone.

    Time machine accepted though sunshine-girl, comments forgotten – this decision is much more about where I am right now, than what was said.

  • posted by alliecat
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    Haha, what a great comment, Jackie! Very funny 🙂 Come to think of it, I do look quite a bit like
    an old stewing hen! Needless to say, all nude beaches and nudist colonies are safe from me….. 🙂

  • posted by JGwen
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    By the way Alliecat, they eat dogs in some countries, are there any where cats get added to the stew pot?.

    Shhhh, Alliecat, and Jackie, we had better bring this discussion to an end before Luvtcook notices it, otherwise we will some surprising recipes.

  • posted by Steadyloser
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    Well, back to it today, struggling with chocolate cravings after 4 days of eating @£”* – not that that was unexpected… Pilates attended, stir fry eaten, net carbs well under 20. Now just to keep going one meal at a time, with11 stone and a pair of new boots as a reward at the end of it, hopefully by Monday!

  • posted by Luvtcook
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    Very Funny JGwen. You are now on my naughty list.

    No cats and dogs for me unless hot dogs. I am a through and through cat and dog lover (general animal softy to the core).

  • posted by Laska
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    Sunny I am glad that you are staying around even if not on this thread .. but I think your posts have always been very motivating . actually when i joined I didnt consider it a challenge thread just a community starting or restarting all on the same day .. .. Maybe i misread it …

    So..any way ive failed the BSD again today .. I f’d up the 20 carbsgood and proper today -with a pancake earlier – had no sugar on it though, I just mixed spice and lemon , but yes it would have had white flour in o it ( i didn’t make it) … And then I f’d up the 800 by putting more cheese that I should have had on my cauli (given the pancake earlier) this evening! .

    20 carbs is ruddy hard though.. ( even without pancakes!) and its not a requirement .. just a goal

    Anyway its not a competition is it ? I am 11 lbs lighter than i was on Jan 2nd.. and thats good and I will be carrying on after this .. are we planing to ‘reboot again after the 8 weeks?

  • posted by Laska
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    Actually I havent gone over 800 cals.. but I have eaten over 40 carbs!!

  • posted by caronl
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    Laska you took the words from my mouth. I’m in this group for the company, support, challenge and timescale. I can’t claim to be aiming at 20g , more 800/40. I really appreciate Sunny’s helpful comments – and shall continue to follow her via recent posts. I am not sure yet about signing up for another 8 weeks after this – I may go for a 4 week go to round off by Easter. I shall see if I reach my goal in our last two weeks. I hope you enjoyed the pancake at least!

  • posted by Luvtcook
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    To all the above: if you are losing at a rate that you are happy with eating roughly 40 carbs, more power to you. I wish that worked for me. I was hoping after my initial loss that I could cruise for a while at 50 carbs but the weight started coming back on. I found I could maintain on 30 carbs….needed to go to 20 to lose.

    I hope I am not being presumptuous in saying no one would feel you should be at 20 if you didn’t need to, only that if you staying at about 800 calories and NOT losing at 40 carbs you should try 30 and if that doesn’t work, join the rest of us slogging along at 20.

    And the company on these groups of forums is pretty fabulous. Makes the slog darn near worth it.

    Best to you all. LTC

  • posted by Laska
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    Still the same .. still the same.. Well its not going the other way anyway! I am feeling positive though..
    I have visitors from tonight for all of this weekend ..

    The Plan.. No alcohol.. I can do that .. ill get a ton of ice made up and as long as i can have a ‘drink’ of iced water with lemon or lime I find i dont miss wine.. ( saintly hat .. it wont last for many weeks !!) .

    I can also have a faux ‘G&T’ – Seedlip and Feverfew light tonic .. if you’ve not tried Seedlip I do recommend it as a non alcoholic drink to have at a party . Seedlip Garden is the one I have bought.. its expensive but really good as a no calories ‘drink’

    Lots of yummy things like cooked chicken and ham and salads , nice cheese .. a big roast.. maybe lamb..with a pile of veg..
    Things like bread and spuds served separately . I will not be offering snacks with drinks ( or only things i dont like .. like honey roasted peanuts.. bleugh!) . Luckily I am not a great lover of sweet stuff ..

    Do-able i think .. breakfast is fine they can have granola or toast . I’m happy with eggs or just coffee.. if they want a fry up they can do it themselves!

    So that is the Plan!!

  • posted by Laska
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    I do think i need to be much less than 40 carbs to lose weight .. usually I’m around 30 but that’s mainly because of the veggies.. .. but the 20 is harder .. I’m also prone to (ahem) , ‘Stasis’.. if i try and LC too low… need a balance.. more cabbage maybe rather than cauli or broccoli? Cabbage is quite low and fibrous . I did make some sauerkraut and it was really nice..

  • posted by JackieM
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    Laska I have had those … issues …. 😬

    chia seeds and flaxseeds and Linseeds are very effective, low carb and not too calorific in teaspoon quantities. Also spinach.

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    Morning everyone, I am back to my pre-birthday weight loss of 7.5 lbs so hoping to see better by Tuesday. If so, I am well on track to reach my 8 week goal of 10lbs. I didn’t set it too high as I knew I would be celebrating for a couple of days which ran into 4. Tout est bien qui fini bien as the French say – or alls well that ends well as we say. BG is up slightly to around 5.3 which is still perfect but I want to be better than perfect. I have had a couple of lows in the afternoon at around 3.8 and felt the need for a sugar rush and had one Werthers Original (my go to) on each occasion – I dont thing there can be that many calories in one sweetie and I only do that when I am really getting flaky.

  • posted by caronl
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    Congrats sunshine-girl for getting back on track. I can’t quite believe that our 8 week end date is drawing so close! It will be a bit of a push for me to get to 76 kilo in 12 days. Maybe I shall have to follow Laska’s example and head towards 800/20… We shall see. Have a good rest of week.

  • posted by alliecat
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    Congratulations, s-g. Would you mind answering a question for us non-diabetics? I’ve learned so
    much about what T2D suffers must watch out for each day…When your levels drop to 3.8, what
    symptoms do you experience?

    Thanks!

    Allie

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    Hi alliecat – the textbook symptoms of hypoglycaemia (very low blood sugar) fall into 2 categories and have different causes. Sometimes adrenalin can mess with the glucose levels and include anxiety, palpatations, sudden hunger, sweating, trembling, going really pale. These can lead people to think you are drunk as you lose the ability to think straight or to coordinate your thinking with your actions. The second set of symptoms caused by the brain not receiving enough fuel (glucose) are neurological symptoms such as confusion, fatigue, headache, loss of concentration, irritability (including temper), visual disorders like blurred vision or double vision, then unconsciousness and/or convulsions and finally coma. You do not have to have not eaten enough, it can be caused by many things like infection, stress (the adrenalin response), hunger, too much exercise and not enough food. I have only experienced 2 full black outs in 12 years. First when I was newly diagnosed and had a terrible toothache and didn’t eat, went to a restaurant and managed a sip of soup and blacked out in the soup bowl. Of course, everyone thought I was drunk. Second time there was absolutely no reason. I had just finished my pre-BSD breakfast of 2 Weetabix with milk and sweetener. I was sat in the chair and I felt myself go very strange. I shouted to my husband to bring me my testing kit but only managed to say ‘can you bring…… and wham, I was vomiting fresh Weetabix, mildly convulsing and unconscious. As quick as that. That is why sometimes a quick sweetie or chocolate is needed before your brain cant tell you what to do.

    For me, now knowing my body very well, I used to run with BG around 5 to 6 which is okay. Now I run at around 4 to 5 which I like better. I test first thing in the morning then again around 7pm just before dinner. Sometimes my evening test is very low at around 3.8 and I know I am starting to get shaky but not feeling very much else by way of symptoms so I just say ‘dinner will be in 10 mins’ and it doesn’t bother me. When I get regular lows under 4 I start reducing my insulin, which is what this diet is all about. Other times I can feel myself getting shaky, weak, hot sweats, blurred vision and numbness in the lips – that is when I grab something quick. It is a risk I take as having many low’s can make you ignore them with the risk of missing the big one coming but then you have to really know yourself and know how to take care.

    Big risk factors for hypoglycaemia are – taking insulin or other meds, particularly sulphonylurea meds like glicacide (I take both). Metformin is a much lower risk drug but makes me sick. Other risk factors are old people who forget to eat or forget to take meds, people who dont eat at regular intervals, people who fast, alcohol (what a shame), too much exercise, very low HbA1c’s, previous regular hypo episodes (my last one was 10 years ago).

    Hope that is enough to inform you without boring you to death.

  • posted by Verano
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    Thanks s-g that’s a really good clear explanation. The nurse wanted to put my OH on a glicacide three months ago as metformin didn’t agree with him either. I’m so pleased I talked him into the BSD route now. Hopefully he can keep his BG within a relatively normal range.

  • posted by alliecat
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    Thank you, s-g, for that wonderfully detailed answer! I’m very interested in increasing my knowledge of
    what my BSD friends must deal with every day. I can well see that it is critical to develop a keen
    understanding of your own body and how it reacts, to keep you out of danger . Your reply has been
    so helpful, and I’m sure that the newly diagnosed will benefit greatly from reading it too. I really
    appreciate your time 🙂 Thanks again.

    Allie

  • posted by JGwen
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    Hi folks, I would like to add my 2 penny worth to the discussion on newbies and support while they get their heads around sticking with the 20/800 plan.

    When I started down the path of this WoE in October 2017, I felt really daunted by the changes in eating patterns it involved and if it hadn’t been for being able to initially focus on just doing it for 8 weeks, I wouldn’t have set foot on this path.

    I have three friends / family members who are suffering from major health problems linked to their weight. Two need walking sticks/frames, 2 have open sores on their legs because of poor circulation, one is on diabetic medication. I would love to be able to help them start on this journey but for them the step from their current way of eating to the BSD is just too large. I have tried giving the BSD book ( it was passed on to a friend), providing links to the amazon page in an email, and just sitting talking about various diet programs. But taking that step onto the BSD path is too big a jump for them right now.

    As I see it, there are a range of people on these forums, from those who have been strictly following this way of eating for a while and have blood sugar levels that make it essential to follow the letter of the law of the BSD for their rest of their lives, to those who only have a few pounds to loose and don’t have blood sugar issues but want to loose weight without lowing their metabolic rate.

    What worries me is that there is a percentage of the general population who have health problems or weight problems, who need to be encouraged to join us on this path who could be turned away from changing their WoE and breaking away from their health problems if they were told that the only option is to take a great big step all at once and there was no support for them if they wanted to take it one step at a time. So If there are any moderators reading this post I would like to vote for the idea of having a thread that newbies are directed towards, where people would be willing to find out why newbies are thinking about trying to modify the BSD and what scares them about this path and talks them through it.

    ——————

    I came across an interesting piece of information on how food and eating patterns is interlinked with all sorts of other aspects of someone’s life yesterday which may be helpful when the topic of ‘lower carb’ versions of meals and special occasions such as Christmas comes up in future. I have been watching a very informative lecture on utube by a Aspie psychotherapist who has made a study of social patterns that are hard wired into a neurotypical brain. One example he uses is of the first time a son’s new partner joins his family for a meal where the family don’t realise the new member of the group is a vegetarian until about 10 minutes before they sit down to eat. Why does the person who cooked a roast dinner get upset because there will obviously be vegetables included in meal so there will be something for the person to eat and it would clearly be illogical to criticise the person who has cooked the meal for not providing a vegi alternative when they didn’t know in advance that one person doesn’t eat meat. – It turns out that there is a very strong instinctive drive within humans to not only share a meal, but to share the same meal because humans build connections with other humans by eating the same thing together. The bonds created within that setting would be the strongest if the person preparing the meal had enough warning so that they could produce a vegetarian meal that everyone could eat, than the option of making a special dish for the vegetarian and everyone else ate the roast. If we apply this to a low carb diet, then there is a reason why there were so many discussions on the forum coming up to Christmas about sharing the same meals as people who don’t have a low carb diet, and why people jump off the wagon at family and work gatherings involving food. 98% of the population have brains hard wired to feel very uncomfortable if they can’t eat the same dishes as everyone else at the same table.

  • posted by Verano
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    Interesting topic JGwen. We have a few vegetarians in the family and , allthough I’d not realised it before, I do always cook a veggie meal for all of us when they are here.

    I understand what you are saying about this being a huge step, one too far for many, but there is the 5:2 that could be adapted even further. Also maybe the notion of just removing one simple carb at a time could be the way forward. If you have a really carb laden diet it must be daunting to think of ‘giving up’ everything you know and love. But at the end of the day this is a LC/HF way of eating which we know isn’t easy, but you do need the motivation to begin with and you can’t really give that to somebody. A bit like smoking, until you are ready yourself to give up, no amount of cajoling or scary health stories will make you stick to this WOL.

  • posted by Esnecca
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    Like Verano and s-g have pointed out, there are plenty of options for people who want to attempt a lower carb lifestyle, whether it’s the 5:2 or just cutting back on white/refined carbs. I did that for six months. I stopped eating all the obvious ones — pasta, rice, cereal, starchy veg, grains and pulses — and found it not at all onerous, much to my surprise.

    I only started the BSD when my weight loss stalled and I realized I was going to have to do something more drastic to take control of my insulin resistance. I had no idea what 800 calories would look like as I had never weighed and measured before, and was doubtful that I could accomplish 8 weeks of it. Within days all my trepidation was gone and 14 months later, 200 pounds were gone too.

    So it’s not that I don’t get that people want to inch into a major lifestyle change. I’m a BSD fanatic now but I started out with a gradual approach to low carb and only then dipped a dubious toe into the Fast 800. However, I still think once you get to the point where you’ve decided to do the Fast 800, you should do the Fast 800, not some sort of wishy-washy version that is largely indistinguishable from any other lowish calorie and lowish carb diet. There’s a reason for the 800 calories and very low carb count. That’s how you achieve the goal of losing 10% of your body weight and quickly boosting your health markers.

  • posted by alliecat
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    Hi, JGwen. A newbie thread would be helpful, I’m sure. In fact, at least 3 a week have been started
    since the beginning of the year! What I see on them consistently is an exchange of flawed or mis-info
    between newbies however, who haven’t gotten their heads around the key points of this WOE. The best
    advice that I have to offer is that they join an active thread that is visited by members who are at all
    stages of the process, from newbie to maintainers, such as one of the 4 week challenges. With respect
    to your friends, or anyone else who feels the need to start off slowly, I think the forum on the med style
    diet accomplishes this. I hope that you can be an inspiration for your friends 🙂

    Allie

  • posted by sunshine-girl
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    permalink

    JGwen you will be waiting a long time if you want the ‘admin’ team to provide us with threads, it will be up to us. A long time ago some of us asked for a FAQ thread as the same questions get asked over and over and it just never happened. We tried to do one ourselves but it got lost in the ether. Any such thread would need someone (or all of us) to keep bumping it up to the top of the forum. I usually refer newbies to the Search engine and ask it a question but, as we all know, if we dont really know what we are asking, it can be daunting. I for one constantly answer question and really dont mind doing so and, yes, there would have to be many variations depending on what the person wants. Also we have lots of different views about what the diet should be i.e. I have never counted carbs but never eat white carbs anyway. Some people can get away with the odd piece of bread whereas others would be sent into a feeding frenzy of finishing the whole loaf. It is a big ask and a massive task but you might just have volunteered yourself to start it. 🙂 🙂 🙂

    From answering a recent newbies question today might I suggest that the advice be broken into which plan they want to follow and why i.e. diabetes or other health issues, obese (hate that word), just wants to lose a few pounds. Although lots automatically post in the BSD section they might be better suited to say 5:2 or Med if they just want to lose a few pounds and eat healthier or they might be willing to go all out and do the Fast800. No one diet plan suits everyone as I keep finding out and not everyone has the staying power that some of us whose lives depend upon it have. Just some thoughts.

  • posted by JGwen
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    Hi Esnecca I fully understand your point on the Fast 800 should be Fast 800 only,, and I understand alliecats concerns about new threads being started by newbies that result in exchanges of flawed or mis-info.

    Rather than just looking posts on particular threads I tend to use the latest posts on all threads option each time I come to the forums and start reading through time wise. I have seen a trend where newbies have asked a question and then they disappear. It may be that the newbies who asked a question, go back to lurking and reading research and find their own way. But the discussions a few days ago on the forums has left me worried.

  • posted by alliecat
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    permalink

    Reading all the threads is a great strategy, RGwen. I think I read along for 2 months before I even
    began posting 🙂 It would have never occurred to me to start a thread about my own journey ! I
    surely understand all of the very cogent points that you have articulated here, and I enjoy all of
    your posts, not to mention your quick wit! It does indeed trouble me when newbies depart after
    10-14 days. Sometimes it makes me feel so inadequate! I’ve just had to accept that some are
    not really ready to put in the work or commitment to making changes of this magnitude in their
    lives. The bright points of light are posters like you, however!

    Best,

    Allie

  • posted by Verano
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    There is no point in worrying about something over which you really have no control. Having been on these boards for nearly 18 months I’ve seen lots of people come and go. I think some people see this WOE as a quick 8 week fix but they don’t actually realise what it involves. As Allie says some people are not ready to put in either the work or commitment to make this succeed. We know this isn’t a diet to ‘start and finish’ but rather a new ‘way of life’ . If you don’t make a permanent change then it’s back to ‘yo-yo’ dieting.

    I understand the frustration on these boards especially when you have worked so hard yourself over a period of time. This is not a quick fix and when people start to change the diet until it no longer resembles the fast 800, those who have, and do, work really hard to succeed, get a bit hacked off, rightly or wrongly. Human nature I guess.

  • posted by alliecat
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    Stated with grace and wisdom, Verano, as usual! Will I have these skills after 18 months? I’m
    celebrating 6 months on these boards today, as well as a double anniversary of 10 months in
    maintenance Long may it prevail!

  • posted by Steadyloser
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    permalink

    Getting through to Friday and I’ve just invented cauli rice with yoghurt, whole grain mustard and lemon juice dressing, with venison and avocado. A treat, but needed it today 🙂
    Having lurked a good long while, I’ve very much appreciated the hive wisdom.

  • posted by Laska
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    permalink

    I like the idea of cauli rice with yoghurt, whole grain mustard and lemon juice dressing.. am going to do that .. I think it would be lovely with Salmon and pesto …( wants for dinner).

    I had a migraine yesterday – first one for about 3 years – and so didn’t eat much .. and this morning I am……….. exactly the same weight as before .. …….. BUT I am NOT giving up ! <dogged>

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