So, I am doing this as a lifestyle change as I am not pre- diabetic but I am about a stone overweight.
I am a veggie and worried about fat in my diet. I am aiming for about 1200 cals a day at the mo while I try and lose a bit of weight.
This is what I ate yesterday:
Breakfast- 150g Greek yogurt with a chopped up apple and some cherries and 6 almonds/ 2 Brazil nuts- came in at 370 calories
Lunch- 2 falafels, a carrot, 5 cherry toms, 40g houmous & 40g feta- about 350 cals
Dinner – mixed veg and butterbean Thai curry with courgette – about 400 cals so about 1120 cals plus I had a warm milk before bed.
Is that too much fat? It came in at about 70g fat, 50g carbs and didn’t calculate protein.
I won’t have the same every day obviously food wise but it was my day 1 and I was worried that I’m not getting it right.
Thanks!

Hi Welshgirl
Well done on deciding to make a change and check your weight before it get’s out of hand.
Don’t worry too much about the fat, as it is this that helps you to feel full and to stay feeling full and 70g is not a huge amount. Keep an eye on carbs though and try to keep these at or below the 50g mark per day. Be sure to stay hydrated – and as I’m typing this, I’m conscious that I have been slacking in that area myself today! As you get settled in to this way of eating, you might find you can pull the carbs down a bit, which will help to speed up your weight loss.
Good luck and keep us all posted on your progress.

It is very hard to have lower than 50g carb as a vegetarian, as many protein sources are also quite carby, but some people have successfully lost weight at around the 50-60g carbs amount. I wouldn’t be concerned as such about that amount of fat but it is important to make sure you are getting at least 50-60g protein as well, particularly if you are exercising. I used to aim at 77g protein, but this will be different for different people.

Welshgirl, as you are not diabetic or pre and you have opted for the Med diet, you don’t have to be quite so strict on the carbs as we on the 800 Fast BSD but decide on your calorie allowance and count them in. If you have cut out the bad starchy carbs then good carbs should be okay.

I am up over 100g fat at the moment on my reverse diet at 2100 calories per day, so it is definitely nothing to be concerned about. The 50g carbs is an often quoted level at which most people are in fat burning mode, but if you have a calorie deficit and a healthy diet you should still lose weight at higher amounts.

Hi again
I’ve had a pretty good week and seem to have lost 2-3lbs which is good.

I have another question- as I am doing this as more of a life style change but trying to lose initial weight (yet not on the 800 cals) – what sort of carb levels should I aim for daily? I’m on about 1200 calories daily.

I really like the slices of rye bread but they are about 25g per slice- and the Finn crisp rye crackers- are both OK a couple of times a week?

What sort of carb level should I aim for?

Hi.

I dont weigh the carbs or count calories as doing med style but I believe people on this forum who have been very successful keep carbs below 50g per day. Lots of great advice around the forums and I’m sure somebody will be along soon to offer some wisdom.

Hi – a lot of us aim for 50g or less, but some people find they successfully lose weight at 60-70g. For me personally, any cereal based item is too high in carbs and so I have banished them from my meals. I make my own little crackers using almond flour and they serve very well when I want something to nibble with a bit of cheese etc.

Those who have successfully lose on more calories, have almost all restricted their carbs and used their calories in other ways. It’s worth noting that the carbs are what drives the hunger, so keeping them low will make it easier to control your calorie intake.

Hope that helps in some way, but I’m sure others will offer advise too.

Hi Welshgirl I am a vegan and newly diagnosed as T2 – so this 8 weeks is a lifestyle change for me rather than a lose weight change for me (although massively overweight!) I’ve lost 6.6 lbs in the last 6 days and waist is defo smaller – skirts are not tight anymore. I have been adapting the diet to suit vegan food and yes I use lentils, pulses, which are in theory starchy carbs but I now take heart in the BBC news article yesterday regarding the US study about kickstarting the pancreas on low cal diet (very similar to Roy Taylors theories) but one thing they did mention is that a vegan diet i.e. nuts pulses etc seems to be the way to go – so I’m hoping that my altered diet will work in ‘reversing’ the diabetes. This first week I have not stuck to the exact 800 calories as it is week one and wanted to ease myself into it – but what I have done is eliminated ALL processed food and my staple of rice, pasta, potatoes, breads and it seems to be working. The reason I have not been too adherent this week is that on week 2 I quit smoking – so its a double whammy for me. So I wouldn’t worry about going over the 800 especially if you are just aiming at weight loss and use this week as a guide to getting used to cutting back. And to repeat what SunnyB said – carbs seem to drive the hunger and since cutting these I do not feel hungry at all.

Hi, Welsgirl! I think you have a nice progress in your diet. To lose 2-3lb that’s awesome! I can’t imagine how hard work you did to reach this result. I’m pre-diabetic and I can’t stay on a strong diet, but I try to avoid some food and especially coffee I threw away coffee from my life. So I drink only tea, my mom buys me special Anti-Diabetic Tea: http://siberianherbs.com/monastery-tea/against-diabetes-siberian-monastery-tea.html But I think you can drink some herbal tea also, for example, chamomile tea. Think about not only what you eat, but also what you drink.

Hi, I worried about eating fat for years and failed diet after diet. Now I worry about carbs and the weight has dropped off. Much of what we think about fat is incorrect. I read a couple of books by Dr Mark Hyman an American doctor after reading the Michael Mosley books, gave me the confidence to stop worrying about fats, for me personally Carbs are the enemy and have a much more negative impact on my health

agree with Krista77 about benefits of healthy eating. I also drink herbal tea for weight loss and I like the result. Of course, I combine it with regular trainings and healthy diet. And my trainer also advised me to drink at least 2 litres of water a day.

Dr Michael Eades has a useful blog about lower carb and higher fat among other things. https://proteinpower.com/drmike/