Hi everyone, I’m 29 and overweight and decided to start the BSD to shift a few pounds (about 10) and also to give up carbs as I thought this would help with my PCOS (I had them diagnosed at 16 and they are not too out of control, but I am worried about potentially being insulin resistant and ending up with type II diabetes given there is a family history too).

I currently do relatively high-intensity exercise 4-5 times per week (indoor spin classes, thai boxing, weightlifting and running), and I have an active job too as a childminder (running after kids, lifting them up, pushing prams uphill etc). I have been on the diet for two days and I feel AWFUL. Yesterday I had to go home early because I had terrible nausea and I was so queasy I could not focus on anything, and basically spent all the evening lying down. This is not the first time I am in a calorie controlled or low carb diet but this seems a bit much. I recently lost 10 pounds by restricting calories in a much gentle way that also allowed me to include sports as I love them! My question is has anyone else had a similar experience, and what did they do about it? Should I just stick with it for a few more days to see if my body adapts? I am thinking of upping calories to at least 1100 a day for those days when I am exercising. 800 calories on a Friday when I do an hour of thai boxing followed by an hour of weight-lifting seems a bit absurd to me. Any advise would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Hello PaulaZ,
I wouldn’t know whether you’re eating enough given that I don’t do that much exercise, someone more on the exercise can probably help with that, BUT…
I felt exactly like that, WITHOUT doing that much exercise. To start with I felt so ill and could hardly eat. When I didn’t feel so sick, then I couldn’t eat enough and felt awful!
Plus the headaches and dizziness and tiredness, the list went on
It lasted about 6 weeks.
It was what they call the “carb flu” and getting rid of candida. It may only last a few days for you, and some people don’t even get the carb flu, I got the extra time for those that don’t… 🙂
If this low carb way of eating is vastly different than what you might have been doing for the last few months, it could well be it and has to be ridden out.

If it’s making you ill stop. Spend a couple of weeks slowly cutting down on carbs. Perhaps carbs once a day. I did this and had no side effects

Hello PaulaZ
I’m also 29 with PCOS and history of diabetes in the family so I can totally understand a lot of things you have mentioned. You losing 10 pounds already is fantastic!! And you seem to be doing a lot of exercise which again is brilliant. I’d suggest increasing your calories and carbs on your exercise days and back to 800 on your rest days. I do about 30-40 mins exercise 2-3 days and have a PT session once a week and I eat a banana in the morning as without it I wouldn’t be able to exercise. All the best!

Hi, on a slightly similar question. I think 800 calories is quite low and I therefore wonder if it’s ok to “eat” the calories earned from exercise. I usually earn 200-300 calories a day from walking, but sometimes on long day walks it’s 1000 according to My Fitness Pal. Is it ok to eat more calories on these days, providing it’s still low carb?

The usual answer is no, provided you are not underweight it will be far more effective to stick to 800 and do the exercise, even if your exercise totals more than 800 calories. Don’t forget we are adapting our bodies to burn the fat and we, if overweight, are unlikely to run out of that source of fuel. Regard the calories used by your exercise as a way of accelerating your weight loss.

Thank you. I think that’s where I’ve gone wrong in he past, eating too much because of calories burnt. I’ve been yo-to dieting for 30 years! Not massively over weight but I am worried about my health.

Interesting thread. I started on 800/day which was fine. I wasnt working and not exercising much. I started doing exercise with a PT twice a week which has been having great results, my muscle mass is increasing and fat decreasing (faster than the scales say). But then I had to start going to interviews and I was finding that on 800/day I was feeling faint and dizzy & could not focus. So on interview days and training days I up the calories to 1000. I find this keeps the fat melting and all the numbers heading in the right direction.

That’s really interesting. I think 800 calories may some days be too low. I work shifts, so on my first night shift, by the time I get homeI have been awake 26 hours. I do then need to eat Day and night. This is balanced when On the last shift. I think it’s also important to be flexible. I do need to lose fat. Years of low fat diets has resulted in my weighing a stone less than 10 years ago but my measurements and fat %age are much higher showing how my visceral fat has increased over the years. Love these forums.

Maryschoen it is good you have made the connection between exercise and eating to replace the calories. Most people over estimate the number of calories they lose during exercise as about 30% of those lost are from your basal metabolism which is what you use just to be alive, breathe etc. If you do 230 calories exercise about 69 cals are bmr, so you have actually used an extra 161 calories. If you ate just two chocolate digestive biscuits you would have regained that amount. Doctor Mosley suggests reducing the amount of exercise when you start this diet so you can adjust. Remember it takes 3000 calories burnt to lose just one pound. Having said that, it is my view that if you are not diabetic you dont have to be super strict with the calories and also you dont have much weight to lose. Also, if you are really hungry then eat something but keep away from the bad carbs.