I finished 12 weeks of the 800 8 months ago, and transitioned to the BSD Way of Life. In many ways the way I now eat is similar to the 800 because I limit starches and sugars, I eat little during the day and I concentrate my food intake to supper and snack. I also exercise more to try and limit muscle loss.
However I am much more relaxed about calories when eating out or when travelling because I know that I have the tools to lose any weight I may have gained.
I still fill out the myfitnesspal food diary every day and try to keep my daily calorie intake below 1500.
I lost 36 pounds on the 800 and rebounded about 4 pounds when I went to the BSD WOL. So far that has been my floor but I can gain 4-5 pounds easily, like on a recent trip to Scotland where I ate a full Scottish breakfast, lunch and dinner for 8 days in a row, and then lost it quite quickly when I got home.
It is important to remember that you cannot go back to eating the way you did before the diet. However, you definitely can enjoy most foods if you are careful about how much or how often.
I used to have 2-3 drinks every day. Now I have a glass or 2 of wine or beer once or twice a week.
My wife is an excellent baker, and I used to have a nice piece of cake every afternoon with a cup of tea. Now I have some cake every 2 weeks or so.
I bake bread so I used to eat a lot of nice fresh bread. Now I have a couple of slices when it comes out of the oven about once a week, and freeze the rest for the family.
Eating this way means I feel I can still enjoy delicious treats and not feel that I am constantly denying myself pleasure, but I am careful to keep my overall calorie intake down.
I also am careful about “wasting” calories. If I am going to indulge myself, I am not going to waste it by eating a big mac or a bag of doritos. I’ll eat a beautiful piece of homemade sticky toffee cake with rum sauce. the same number of calories, but much more worth it!
Like Oscar Wilde said, “Moderation in everything, including moderation!”

Jande9, well done on maintaining for a year. I think your WOL since then sounds eminently sensible, and is pretty much what I am doing myself (been maintaining for 6 months after losing 42lbs, then dropping another 8lbs during maintenance). I am fortunate in that I have never had a sweet tooth so cakes, biscuits, puddings etc hold no appeal, BUT…………. freshly made bread? Now you’re talking my language😀

I no longer count calories, but do remain low carb most of the time, but definitely indulge myself if I feel like it when dining out or on holidays etc (though I often don’t feel like it). If I gain a couple of pounds, I know I now have the tools to get it straight back off again – I think not letting it “settle” is key, it would be easy for that 2 lbs to become 4, 6, 8 etc and before we know it, we’re back where we started. And I’m definitely not going there!

Congratulations jande9! You have reached the only remaining goal
that I have left: 1 year in maintenance. Will have to be patient
until April 2018 for that, however. Vigilant, also!

While I was overweight I wore a lot of fleeces because jumpers would accentuate the rolls of fat – but also made my boobs look a bit like Barbara Windsor’s in her heyday. Shapeless fleeces did hide a lot.

I wanted to wear jumpers ever since I reached maintenance on 10th December 2016 because the boobs are much smaller and the rolls of fat around the middle have disappeared. I have searched and searched the shops for jumpers I like since then and either I didn’t like the colour or the neckline or they were too baggy – I just couldn’t find what I wanted. On Friday I wandered into M and Co. and found 3 lovely jumpers that I absolutely love – and at very reasonable prices. I ordered a couple more – one in blackberry and the other in mulberry. They all had necklines that suit me and the colours are lovely – I am so happy and looking forward to wearing them over the winter. Just to say that I have absolutely no connection with M and Co. and am just a happy customer.

Although I did wear my fleeces today because we walked in Sheringham Park and there was such a bitterly cold wind sweeping across North Norfolk.

I went on a little sweater shopping spree myself last week. It’s getting colder quickly and since I lost my protective blubber layer I am extremely susceptible to cool temps. Low 50s are enough to send me running for warm layers these days. I opted for lots of color too, Krysia. Reds, purples, florals, one is bordeaux with a multicolored owl embroidered on the front. 😀

The order of the day is bright, happy, cozy, fitted and chic. After 20 years in plus size hell, I refuse to buy any more depressing blacks and questionable prints on synthetic fabrics that feel scratchy or slimey. If the fabric is thin or in any way non-functional as a sweater (found a lot of those, for some reason), it stays in the shop. Same goes for the other side of the coin. If the fabric and cut are bulky, no sale. I didn’t lose 10% of an imperial ton to get swallowed up by a sweater.

I reached my lowest weight yet this morning, 123.3 lb, btw. I might just make that ultimate dream goal of 120 lb after all. It takes a lot longer these days for me to drop a pound and to fix it as a permanent loss rather than a random fluctuation. About a month per pound, at best. I’m fine with it. I know I’m basically at goal and that maintenance is a marathon, not a sprint. As long as the overall trend is even or slightly downward, it’s all good.

Esnecca
Well done for reaching your lowest weight yet this morning. You are absolutely right that maintenance is a marathon not a sprint and as long as the overall trend is even or slightly downward – it is all good.

Your jumpers sound great – the colours are exactly the colours I love now. I agree that it is so good not having to buy the depressing blacks ever again. My work clothes for teaching pilates were black from top to toe. I had this forlorn hope that they made me look thinner and hid the rolls of fat. I would think that they probably didn’t.

It was so nice finding lovely jumpers because there are some truely horrible ones in the shops at the moment.

I’m so impressed that you taught pilates even when you were uncomfortable with your weight. I wouldn’t even consider joining a class because I was so self-conscious about fat rolls and people seeing me in weird positions. I never would have had anything like the courage to teach a class, even if I had the skills. Big kudos to you, Krysia. That took serious ovaries.

Man, so many terrible sweaters out there! The thin ugly synthetics, crappy stitching, drab colors, endless shades of grey… I couldn’t even find a simple colorful fair isle pattern across the chest and shoulders of a rib or cable knit. I swear the last time I was thin (20+ years ago, granted) you had your pick of a million such pieces come the fall.

Allie, given you were on the BSD for a longer stretch than many, did you have any nutrition issues especially with keeping up your protien? With so low a calorie allowance, I am finding it a challenge to “eat the rainbow” and get in enough of the key nutrients for a balanced diet. So much of the stuff the dietitians throw at us is not reseach based and more “tradition” than anything. Did you have any issue maintaining muscle mass? Did you take any breaks between 8 week cycles, or just powered on until you hit your goal? Ditto for the others, as I am no sure how many months others did BSD as well.

Hi Everyone – Thanks for starting a Maintainer’s Thread MnM, as others have said, it’s been needed. Hope it’s okay to tag along too, as I am keen to maintain and not slip backwards.

Having recently returned for holiday, I still haven’t quite got my head back in the zone, but I’m happy that I am below target and aim to keep it that way. Have started weighing daily again, which I find helps to keep me focused. Although I’m still below target, I’m keen to build in a few pounds wriggle room again, but have yet to get back to counting calories and carbs, which is something I need to get a handle on in the next few days. That said, I have broadly been sticking to the BSD principles, with a few relatively small transgressions – no major carb-feasts.

Exercise is STILL something I need to get a proper handle on and that is something else I am keen to sort out in the next couple of weeks. Like everything else, it is a question of habit and one I need to cultivate.

Well done to everyone who is successfully maintaining.

Luvtcook – How clever of you to find me over here! I bounce around
on a number of different threads, and haven’t had an opportunity to
get back to the one where we usually talk 🙂 I did go straight thru
for the 10 months without any breaks because I felt so healthy
and energetic that I couldn’t think of any valid reason to stop.
I did indeed worry about loss of muscle mass and optimal nutrition,
though. 18 years prior I was on a very calorie restricted diet (500-
600 per day) In retrospect, protein was probably 35gm a day. After
5 months I was getting brushfuls of hair in my hairbrush each day
so I choose to stop. Prior to beginning this program I did some
research on the net and found that the recommended amount
varied widely between bodybuilding/gym rat sites an others. Some
people use 50gm as a figure, but what I’ve found the best way
to calculate requirements is a formula I found on this site by
a poster I don’t see around much these days. It made sense to
me and I’ve been following it from June 2016. It’s 1 gm protein
for every 1-1.5kg of IDEAL body weight. A kg is 2.2 lbs. I just
divide 138 lbs by 2.2, arriving at @ 62gm of protein. I don’t
usually don’t get that much ea. day though, probaby 50-55gm.
The differential of 1-1.5 seems to do with how hard and how often
people lift weighs, etc. I mostly do brisk walks and lift 5lbs weights
a few times a week, so rely on the 1 kg figure, not 1.5. There is also
a website called World’s Healthiest Foods, whfoods.com that is
very useful for researching the vitamin/mineral content of vegetables,
etc. I’ve learned a great deal from it, and manage to include foods
that I think are lacking in the Fast800. I hope this helps! I’ll be
keeping an eye out for your posts!

Allie

Esnecca, well done on reaching your lowest weight to date. Have no idea how I managed to miss that fantastic announcement over the weekend!

Krysia, I’m with Esnecca – took real guts to teach Pilates pre-BSD. Take my hat off to you, well done.

Welcome aboard SunnyB, and congratulations yet again on returning from your wonderful, extended holiday still at target.

Personally, I still love black and I have bought some new black clothes – dressy ones to be sure, my casual wardrobe has seen a new injection of colour. Though, like you, all my new clothes are of the “skinny” variety, all super-fitted.😝

Allie, I eat approx. the same amount of protein as you, give or take a few daily variations. My exercise consists solely of walking – a lot of it though, 2 big bouncy dogs see to that. I have always given them 2 x 90 mins walks a day. That used to add up to approx. 6 miles in total, these days it is over 10 miles because I walk so much faster. When o/h walks with me, he used to complain about how slow I was, saying I didn’t walk, I ambled. These days, however, it is more likely to be him who is lagging behind (and he is super fit – thinks nothing of cycling 60 – 80 miles for “fun”!!!) I don’t do any weights though (other than carrying vast amounts of shopping), what with 3 hours a day walking, I don’t have time for any extra over exercise!

I don’t think I have got this maintenance thing sussed yet, despite 6 months practice. I don’t know about “starvation mode” my metabolism seems to have gone into overdrive. I am eating up to my TDEE (and beyond some days) but
I too am at my lowest weight since my 20s (40 years ago) and dropped yet another pound this morning. Weighed in at 110lbs (7st 12lbs ; 49.89kg), so 9lbs below target. I guess I am going to have to force myself to eat more, but I really don’t feel hungry and it seems pointless to eat for the sake of it – that’s why we all put on weight in the first place after all, and I don’t want to go there again! The days I don’t lose any seem to be the days I drink alcohol, but I would prefer to give my new, healthier liver at least 4 days rest a week, and I’m not sure I should be drinking alcohol in order to maintain (though I oh so easily could😜) Oh well, I’ll just have to eat a few more nuts, or cheese or something I guess, but hope my body adjusts and the whole thing stabilises soon. On the plus side, I cannot remember when I last felt healthier, more energetic etc. so all good there.😊

Oh Theodora, when I open my mouth I hear your words coming out!
Are you sure you aren’t my ventriloquist handler? I wonder if we
haven’t painted ourselves into a corner not wanting to go any more
below target but unwilling to gain either 🙂 I know that drinking wine
to maintain weight is neither wise or sensible, so I try not to do so
more than a few times a week, and like you I just don’t feel like
eating more. I have to force myself to put 1/2 oz. of nuts or 1/3
avocado onto my plate! I, too, feel wonderful and energetic and
don’t feel like eating for the sake of eating. Are we becoming
“nutters” do you think? 🙂 Nobody wants to walk with me either.
At 5’7” I have a long stride and my husband doesn’t do a good
job of keeping up either. By the time the walk is over I’m 1/2 –
1 block ahead of him so I’m walking alone anyway! I don’t think
that I’ve cracked “the code” on all of this either. But it feels
marvelous to know I’m not alone. Always great to chat!

Allie

Theodora and Allie how about a little cream in coffee or a few squares of dark chocolate? Won’t take up too much room in your tummy but will add a few calories.

Those are great suggestions, Verano! I’m just about to place my
online grocery order for friday delivery, and I’m now going to
add to it. Thanks so much! 🙂

Haha Allie, we’re BSD twins, obviously separated at birth and one whisked across the pond!

Verano, thanks for the suggestions, but I’m a bit of coffee afficionado (double esspresso) and adding anything at all to my precious cup, let alone cream, sounds like the work of the devil to me😱 And even before BSD I didn’t eat chocolate, but maybe I’ll give it a try. Mind you, o/h eats dark chocolate as if it’s going out of fashion, so I’d have to find a very obscure hiding place or he’d eat the lot in one sitting 😈

Allie, glad V’s suggestions sound more palatable to you, will be interested to hear how you get on. In the meantime, maybe I’ll have a glass of wine 😜

You’re naughty, Theodora, and a bad influence! 🙂 🙂 🙂

Haha again, Allie, doesn’t take much to lead us astray, eh?😄😉😄

But at 68, I’ll take being “naughty” as a compliment 😀

Cheers 🍷🍷🍷

There was an article in the paper (Toronto Globe and Mail) looking at a study on muscle loss as you age. They looked at high intensity workouts (H) and low intensity workouts (L).
They found that younger people benefitted from 3 H workouts a week, but as you get older a HLH pattern weekly was better, alternating H and L. This was because it takes longer for muscles to recover when you get older so your muscles don’t have time to heal when you do all H workouts.
They also found that your muscles don’t respond to protein as well as you age, so you require more to trigger your muscles into repair mode. They suggest .5 gram per kilogram of body weight per meal.

No need to find me elsewhere Allie, I know where you live. And I LOVE reading the posts on this forum. First of all….its full of “been there done that” so really great info and inspiration. And frankly I mostly love the warmth and affection you all have for each other. Half of weight loss is attitude….and you ladies have such a positive attitude in spades.

One thing that might be a great forum to start is just to have a place for everyone’s success stories…..anyone that has hit target regardess of how little or how much weight loss. And include ages and diet history. Because it is so comforting and encouraging to see that others like oneself (in my case over age 60, a lifetime yo-yo dieter, with 70 more lbs to lose) can see that it CAN be done. So many times the success storied are men in their 40s who lose fast and easy, and those of us that have hit brick walls over and over think that their experiences just don’t apply, whether thats true or not. But to hear that you all have succeded so brilliantly throws all the excuses out the window. As you have said, “If I can do it you can do it”….I am printing that off and taping it to the refrigerator.

You ladies are my heros and feed my soul as well. Maybe someday I can legitimatley join you as an “after reaching your target” member.

Don’t know if it helps, but I too am over 60 and have reached target, having used the BSD on and off over a 20mth period. During that time, I lost 30lb or 20% of my starting body weight. The beauty of the BSD is it’s very forgiving, it’s easy to get back to when things go a bit wrong, it’s easy to assimilate into almost any life style and produces positive results relatively easily.

I too had been yo-yo dieting for years and when I hit menopause it seemed nothing I tried would produce anything more than a few pounds lost. Finding the BSD has been a revelation and has completely changed my attitude and approach to the way I eat. I have been maintaining for a month this time, but am planning to try to drop a few extra pounds, to give me some wriggle room, having been away on holiday and gained a few pounds – pleased to say even then I didn’t go above my target weight.

There are plenty of us on the forum, who are older and have still managed to successfully achieve the losses we desired using the BSD. There is nothing special about those of us who have reached target, so there is absolutely no reason that it won’t work for you too, Luvtcook.

Set yourself some mini goals to help keep you focused and to give you a sense of achieving, while you are moving towards you ultimate goal. I have no doubt that you will get to where you want to be – best of luck.

SunnyB, thank for sharing your story. And yes it does help. Nice to know that this truely works for real people and not just the few that other diet programs feature in ads.

So far so good, and I totally agree with you about this diet or way of eating being very flexible. I have switched meal times around when I had to and found no downside. I had tried the 5:2 for about 6 months several years ago but always stuggled with hunger on fast days. With BSD I am never really hungry. I do hear the kitchen calling to me around 8:00-9:00pm as I had developed a bad evening munchie habit over the years. I have every intention to make that my one firm rule…eat nothing once dinner is done. If I have planned any type of “dessert” (yogurt with raspberries or other sensible thing) then it has to be budgeted and at the end of a meal. If I can tame that beast it will be a major acheivement for me.

Thanks for your kindness and encouragement.

Esnecca and Theadora – you wouldn’t believe how much better I feel about teaching Pilates since the BSD. I was incredibly lucky that my weight didn’t seem to affect my classes – but it is so nice now not to worry about my weight, especially when I meet a new client.

Luvtcook – I have also been a yo yo dieter (I started dieting when i was 19 and I am 70 next year). I agree with SunnyB that the BSD is very forgiving and it is easy to get back to when things go wrong.

Jande9 – that is a very interesting article. I definitely feel the benefit of eating a bit more protein – especially when I have been very active.

One quick question to all your experts: with Xmas coming up am wondering if I dare make any of the low carb cookies I used to. Do you ladies find any issues with the sugar replacements (my favorite being liquid stevia, and Swerve/erythritol if I must use a dry product)? Do you get stalls in you weight loss or extra hunger if you use them and still stay within your calorie and carb budget? I have cut way back on my use of those re. concern about effect on gut bacteria, but will like a few around Xmas or I will feel like a martyr.

I used to use stevia daily in my apple cider vinegar-sparkling water beverage, but over time I lost the taste for it. I can still tolerate it in modest amounts. Erythritol is a problem if there’s more than a couple of teaspoons in anything because the cooling effect makes me heave. The best option for my tastes is a mixture of erythritol, inulin and monk fruit extract (also known as Lo Han Guo). Zero blood sugar impact across the board, injection of prebiotics from the inulin to keep your gut flora happy and the combination obscures any odd aftertastes and deficiencies from the individual elements. https://www3.netrition.com/nunaturals-losweet-pure-lo-han-guo.html

I still have the occasional artificially sweetened beverage (Zevia Cream Soda is amazing) and some strawberry preserves with erythritol that I pair up with freshly ground peanut butter when I want a hit of that classic PB&J flavor. It doesn’t set me off on a mad sugar craving, but then again, I’ve been doing the BSD for a long time and I’ve gotten stricter as my tastes have changed. I don’t know if I could have hacked baking my first Christmas on the program. Having said that, I did manage to go to my favorite sushi place on Christmas Eve and stick with the seaweed salad and tuna sashimi while avoiding all the rolls and dumplings I used to love.

I don’t often make sweet things these days, but when I do, I use a combination of inulin and a small amount of honey or maple syrup. Yes, this does push the carbs up a bit, but I’m yet to find an ‘alternative’ sweetener that I can tolerate the taste of and as I can’t tolerate very sweet things these days anyway, the slight increase in carbs from the very small amount of honey or maple syrup used, is easily factored into my allowance.

I often make savoury almond crackers, which I flavour with various herbs, spices or extracts and find these much more enjoyable than sweet biscuits these days.

Hope you find a solution to your low carb cookie conundrum that works for you, Luvtcook.

Sorry, not much help on the sweeteners, I have never used any. I don’t have a sweet tooth anyway, but on the rare occasion I have anything sweet it’s just woth normal sugar, on the basis that
a) it tastes better
b) I’d rather eat a tiny mouthful of something good, than a big mouthful of something with a funny taste

However, I do realise that I’m lucky inasmuch as I have no cravings whatsoever for sweet things so don’t feel in the least deprived.

But I’m seriously going to have to increase my calories today, but really not hungry – may be trying V’s dark chocolate trick after all😉. Another half pound gone overnight and I really do not want to lose any more! 😱 Now whoever thought I’d ever be saying that this time last year?!! Maybe I should have had that glass of red last evening after all😉🍷

Thanks all for your comments on the artificial sweeteners. Even when I bake with them, I give half of what I make to my son (who is also a low carber) and would eat my stash very judiciously. I never felt it impacted me but MM is pretty down on them and there is a lot of speculation in the press as to whether they actually cause weight gain, so I thought I would check in with all of you. When the glorious day arrives that I have hit goal, I think I would do as your do Theodora, use regular sugar and eat sweetened things sparinly. I will forever use almond flour and flax seed to replace the flour, but hope to give up the artificial sweetners and simply have such things far less often.

Luvtcook – You’re up early today!! I’m an early riser too, but not
by choice. I’ve got an alarm clock built into my head that sounds
off between 3:30 – 4:00am each morning, whether I like it or not!
The coffee maker goes on, and I start the day finding out what
happened here overnight, coffee mug in hand. I’ve never used
artificial sweeteners so I have nothing to offer on that front.
A lot of us find that our tastes change eating this way though,
and the desire for sugar no longer has any appeal. The uniquely
american holiday of Thanksgiving is almost upon us, so time to
get a few strategies in place for the holiday! Have you given it
any thought yet? And are you responsible for the meal this year?
By the way, I don’t think age affects results with this WOE. I’m
a newly minted 69 yr old. I think you’re going to do great. You’re
well on your way because you’ve already found us maintainers! 🙂

Have a wonderful day!

Allie

When I do some baking (very rare) I intend to use glucose rather than table sugar as apparently the result is less sweet and the body can use it directly rather than all having to be processed by the liver like fructose is. I read somewhere that some chefs are using it to make desserts that are less sickly sweet which sounds good to me with my new taste buds. I think my first big test will be this year’s last minute Christmas cake variation, which I am going to do some BSD friendly modifications to, like switching to buckwheat flour as well. It isn’t lower calorie particularly using glucose but shouldn’t cause too much visceral fat rebound, being processed differently.

Allie, I am an early riser, and the change from DST has made it worse….will take me weeks to reset the clock in my head.

Yes, Thanksgiving all planned. I am the cook. A wee group of three we will be. My son who lives in town (DC), and my brother who is a Buddhist vegetarian driving in from PGH. Always makes cooking interesing. Turkey breast for the carnivores and stuffed portabellos for the veg head, and lost more veg that everyone can share. The only carby thing will be sweet potato souffle (sugar free, and not that carby per portion because you get more fluff than stuff). My moniker says it all…. I do love to cook, especially for family. Food shared with loved ones is the best kind. And 3 almonds may be about it for me as well before dinner (well maybe my standard glass of kefir for breakfast, but that will be it).

What do you have planned? I was so sorry to hear of the hard time you had with your sister. Those things are so painful. Hoping your husband is now doing well and you have a lovely holiday planned surrounded by loved ones that do appreciate and support you.

Goodness me, I’m struggling a bit on my maintenance!!

As most of you know, I followed Esnecca’s advice on starting maintenance, with reverse dieting, adding 50 cals a day each week. My average TDEE is 1700 cals, and I am now consuming that amount (albeit struggling to do so) and I am STILL losing weight! I believe Esnecca said that at one stage she got her daily calorie intake up to 2500 before starting to put on weight, and reining back? Am I remembering correctly, Esnecca? I’m really not sure that, at the moment anyway, I could manage to consume another 800 calories of food a day!! Could manage it with wine, no problem, but that would destroy all the health benefits I have gained from this WOE. I’m already eating to satiety, and I do want to stay low carb. But another 0.75lbs gone this morning, so my lowest weight so far (since my 20s anyway) and it really is too low (7st 9lbs)for my age – would be fine if I was 20 again! Tried the chocolate last evening – 2 squares – but didn’t really enjoy it, forced some extra nuts down, and had TWO smallish avocados, and the scales still registered a drop this morning. My metabolism seems to be in total overdrive!!!

I know my weight will go up a bit over the next week as, now that it’s Friday, I will allow myself wine for the next few days, then from Monday we are staying with friends, so there will be lots of food and alcohol involved. But that is not everyday life, and I would just like to maintain at 2 – 4 lbs beneath my target weight of 8st 7lbs. Hopefully, by the time we get home next Thursday, I will be nearer my target again, and will have to try REALLY hard not to let it drop again.

In the meantime, any non-filling, low carb but high(ish) calorie suggestions would be appreciated.

PS Sorry to moan about this, I feel a bit guilty when I know that so many are struggling to lose. But at least on this thread we have all reached our goal weight, so don’t feel quite so bad bringing it up here.

Theodora, I wish I had the solution to your problem, but I need the
answer to this problem too! Hopefully someone will come along
soon with ideas. I’m going to try V’s suggestion and use some
cream in my usual black coffee. I know you’re a “purist” in this
area, but I’ll report back on the experiment nonetheless…………
It sounds like you’ve got some fun days coming up. Enjoy!
If this isn’t too personal of a question, are you getting a lot of
pushback from your husband? Mine isn’t too happy. I seem to
have developed a pressure sore a bit above my coccyx bone
(tailbone) in a now bony area. He has put forth the theory that
it is result of some bony protruberance trying to push thru the
skin. I don’t think I agree, and suspect that it’s because I’ve recently
fallen asleep on my back and not my customary “side” position.
Will have to get some antibacterial cream from the pharmacist!
Have a great weekend 🙂

Allie

Theodora, is it worth going to the Dr and checking it’s not something unrelated to this WoE? I’m not medical, so not sure what that might be but 1700 cals a day and still losing, it might just be worth checking? Although I guess the average person supposed to be 2000 (but is that true? I don’t know!)

Anyway, don’t mean to be alarmist, and I am a hypochondriac, but it’s probably what I would do. Xx

Hi, Jackie! I know your post isn’t intended for me, but Theodora and
I are in exactly the same place. I’m 12lbs. below target, and it’s really
work, worrying each time I weigh in that I haven’t lost again. It’s
been niggling about in my mind that perhaps I’ve acquired some
problem totally unrelated to BSD. Thanks for posting your opinion.
Definitely something to think about!

Allie

Hi Alliecat – I hadn’t realised you were in the same place as Theodora – my fault for skim reading. Was a bit nervous to post, tbh, but it’s worth excluding anything else, at least, isn’t it? I’ve never had to google ‘can’t put on weight’ so don’t know what it can be an indicator of.

when I am 60kg I am going for a check up as certain things like BM have changed. I want to make sure my cholesterol is OK too. Like I say, I am definitely one of the worried well, but if it alleviates your concerns it’s worth doing, right?

Best of luck with however you decide to approach it xx

Yes, JackieM., I agree! How close are you to 60kg? It looks like
we’re definitely in the same goal range. I’m 5’7″, BMI presently
21.69, US size 6/8.

Best of luck to you!
Allie

Hey Alliecat, I am BMI 25 right now, currently 63.6kg (fluctuating up and down the 63’s at the moment, as is my way) and 5’3”. Size UK 12 I think, though still wearing size 14. Happily fitted into daughters size 8 coat the other day though! I think 60kg is about right for me but if I don’t get there I’m happy with anything under 64kg.

Currently eating disfunctionally due to stress of 11 year old son who’s too ill to be at school but well enough to be thoroughly aggravating. Eating low car, but disfunctionally!

Sorry you’re having “that kind of day”, Jackie. Eleven year old boys
wear me out! Hope things improve by evening. A friend of mine
who was an executive in the rag trade always says that “sizing” is
pretty much of a marketing tool anyway, which is why I always use
height and BMI to indicate where I stand. How can we compare
international guidelines anyway? BMI of 25 is fantastic, though.

Have a good weekend!

Allie

Hello Everyone

I achieved my goal weight yesterday 133lb as some of you are aware and I’d love to now join you all for further inspiration and support. I am aiming to lose a few more pounds as a buffer and am hoping for 3lb before Christmas. It has taken me a long time to get to goal because I’ve lost weight exceptionally slowly since June but in many ways it may make maintenance a little easier. I am going to read all the posts on here from the start and make notes of what things I need to do going forward. I am planning to do regular 24-42 fasts- am already doing 16:8 and hope that will help with maintenance. It feels so good being a “normal” weight. I know I won’t be silly and undo my hard work by eating the wrong foods. I love this healthy way of eating and never feel hungry so it suits me. I am looking forward to being part of this group and I already know some members because we have shared our journey together. It feels so good to have achieved my goal as there were times when I didn’t think it was possible. Looking forward to reading some top tips on here.

Welcome to the maintenance thread CC, good to have you aboard. Well done on persevering to getting to this point and hope you enjoy the new you – you deserve to revel in the new found you.

Like you, I am looking to lose 3lb before Christmas, to gain back my lost wriggle room, which disappeared during my recent holiday. I admit to having been just coasting this week, but intend to get back to paying proper attention to cals and carbs starting Monday. I know I should do it NOW, but I’m still under target weight so will allow myself a little latitude. Also like you, I work to a 16:8 pattern and that seems to suit me very well, but I need to give some attention to the exact cals and carbs I’m consuming for a few weeks I think, to ensure I drop back to my pre-holiday weight.

Anyway, hope you find maintenance easy to drop into. It feels a bit daunting to begin with, but actually, if you broadly stick with the BSD principles even if you are not exact about the cals and carbs, you should be fine.

Have a good w/e and keep us posted on how things go for you from here.

ClarinetCathy – Heartfelt congratulations on your achievement!
Savor it 🙂 I think it’s fantastic that MnM thought to start this thread.
I’m really looking forward to hearing another voice that is figuring
out what is in my opinion the more daunting task, MAINTENANCE.
You have some catching up to do, reading back thru the thread.
It must be wonderful to find some old friends here. Looking
forward to getting to know you!

Allie

Brilliant achievement Clarinetcathy – welcome to maintenance. You will love being on maintenance – it’s so good to be able to eat more of the lovely BSD foods.

Isn’t it great also to ditch the big clothes and to see a slim person when you look in the mirror. Although I must admit it did feel a bit weird in the beginning.

Jackie, thanks for your concern and, I have to admit that the same thought had crossed my mind. But I had my annual MOT with my doctor just 10 days ago, and they passed me A1 fit – were astounded at how much weight I’d lost and how well I was. I honestly think it is a result of the reverse dieting – I’m sure I remember Esnecca reporting something similar, and that she had to go up to 2500 calories per day before she started putting on weight. Please correct me if I’m misremembering, Esnecca.

But certainly, as it’s a phenomena that my maintenance buddy, Allie, is experiencing too, I’m not overly worried on the health front. I just seriously don’t want to get any thinner.

Allie, your mention of your coccyx made me laugh, albeit sympathetically. I said to o/h just last evening that I was getting more and more uncomfortable sitting for long periods. Not my coccyx though, it’s my pin bones that hurt – at least I always call them “pin bones” because that’s what they are called in dogs – but, having googled the correct term it is apparently my “ischial tuberosities” which are causing me pain! Have to feel for them, they have supported so much weight, with so much padding, for such a long time, it must have come as a bit of a shock to them!!

I have eaten and drunk far more than usual today, so will wait to see what the scales say tomorrow. I went to be measured for new bras today and was gobsmacked to be told I am now a 32″ C – down from a 34G when I hit goal weight, and a 39GG when I started BSD.

Really great to have my January buddy, CC, aboard. Cathy, well done on finally reaching maintenance – been a long old haul for you, but slowly, slowly catchee monkey, as they say. Huge congratulations for sticking with it, and gaining your reward. xx

****that was obviously meant to read 36GG in my previous post. Sorry for the typo.

Yay and giant congratulatory fireworks CC on attaining your goal! That is wonderful and I know you’ve been plugging away at it for a long time as I have read your posts and followed your progress.
This is wonderful news!! You go girl!

Lord help me, I cannot stop buying new clothes. The first shopping spree I went on was in September when I finally crossed the threshold into the healthy BMI category and it was still warm. Now it’s gotten cold and I have less than zero tolerance for it so I had to buy sweaters and silk long johns and waterproof boots and an ultra-warm coat. Then that led me to an insatiable thirst for cute booties to go with all my ankle pants and the cute cropped hems on my jeans! I can’t have my ankles exposed to the cold, can I? Obviously the only solution is to buy every bootie in sight, the more embroidery and happy colors the better.

I figure I barely bought a stitch for 20 years because the options were so god-awful and the process so humiliating, so now that I’m a normal person who can go into normal stores and buy normal clothes, I’m making up for lost time. 😀

Theodora, I believe it was MixnMatch who got all the way up to 2500 cals a day on her reverse diet. I’ve been doing my version much more slowly and am still below 1000. Like you and Allie, I have no desire to cram more food down my gullet, and I quite like that I can only tolerate small portions these days before I get full. It’s like a security system.

Your continuing losses are troubling, however. Since you seem to be more comfortable with a glass of wine than a square of chocolate, how about trying to drink your calories? It doesn’t have to be something sugary or acoholic or an additive to coffee. I had a lovely glass of hemp milk for dessert the other night with a drop of cheesecake flavoring and a teaspoon of vanilla powder. It was scrumptious. There are all kinds of unsweetened non-dairy milks out there that would make a delicious treat, and you can drink a lot more cashew milk than you can eat cashews.

Ooh! Now there’s a thought, Esnecca, thank you – plus a nice milky drink before bed may have the added benefit of helping me sleep. You may notice that I’m replying to your post in the early hours 😉

Sorry about muddling you and MnM, I knew SOMEONE had mentioned the metabolism boosting effect of reverse dieting.

I can empathise with you on the clothes buying front. It’s turning into somewhat of an addiction. Just yesterday, along with my new bras, I treated myself to another new dress (never used to wear dresses) a couple of jumpers and yes, you got it………another pair of really cute boots😉