Hello there,

Just as a bit of background: I have recently been diagosed as pre-diabetic and summarily been put on a very strict Type II diabetes diet by my GP. Bought M.M.’s book yesterday to get a better grip on the diet and still trying to establish whether his is the best one for me to follow. It overlaps strongly with my GP’s in the sens of very low carbs, but hers is stricter than M.M., which is nt the issue.

What bothers me is the calorie restriction – level of. I could do with losing about 5-8 kgs, but reading MM’s book, I couldn’t help wondering whether 800 cals per day also applies to people who aren’t obese. Would it be totally unacceptable for me to increase my calorie intake to 1000 cals per day, which is still relatively low for someone needing to lose around 8 kgs?

My other question pertains to exercise, so far, the book does not mention whether you can eat back exercise calories. I go through periods being very active and it would be reassuring to know I could eat back at least some of my exercise calories.

I’d be grateful for input on this.

Many thanks in advance.

C.

Hi Cyberry and welcome to the community. Lots of people who go on this way of eating are only overweight and aren’t all diabetic or pre-diabetic. The point of it is to target the visceral fat which is the cause of metabolic syndrome for many. Of course there’s the 5:2 if you prefer something more relaxed.
I think the point of the BSD is a shock to the system by really concentrating on insulin resistance.
I’m interested in your GP’s diet – in what way is it tougher?
After the first week you should find that you have plenty of energy. The calorie limitation means that your body will utilise stored fats giving you as much energy as you need.
Maggie

Hello, Cyberry! As Maggie says, the Fast 800 is meant to target visceral fat around vital organs. The fact that
you have tested pre-diabetic suggests that is the case. You don’t need to be overweight at all to have this
problem. It’s referred to as TOFI, i.e., thin on the outside, fat on the inside. Michael Mosley was a TOFI, and
if I recall correctly, only lost 20lbs during his 8wk diet, but changed his diabetic status remarkably. Carbs drive
insulin which drives fat storage. The BSD is an 800cal low carb way of eating, and extra calories beyond that
constitutes a low carb mediterranean diet, but not the BSD. Additionally, you do not add back in calories
for exercise. It’s 800, pure and simple. Mosley recommends cutting back on exercise in fact, rather than
add extra calories at first if you need to, until you switch from burning carbs for fuel to burning fat stores.
After that happens (ketosis) you’ll have limitless energy, and you will feel fantastic. I hope this helps 🙂

Allie

The thing that’s amazed me most, Im in my third week, was that after the first two or three days I wasn’t hungry at all even on restricted calories. It makes it all so much easier. No drop in energy either, I’ve worked all afternoon in the garden, I’ve an absolute jungle to get back in shape after a period of neglect.

Many thanks for your reply, dn Allie.

My concern stems from the fact that I somehow have imprinted in my brain that I need a certain amount of (wholesome) carbs, largely in the form of grains, to feel satisfied and centred. And I am not one of those people who swears by ‘the importance of carbs’ , on the contrary. I find them imporatnt purely for the sake of balance. Wholesome in my book means wholegrain, organic oats, mutigrain Wasa crackers, and the odd piece of sourdough toast (I follow a fairly restricted diet due to digestive issues I’ve had since childhood).
n any case, these limited carbs are not at all allowed according to my GP. Dairy. Alcohol is also outof the question. I don’t mind any of ths, I’m just trying to wrap my mind aroudn it all – 800 cals on top of this is rather challenging. If it makes sense and yields results I am happy to simply discipline myself.

Thank you again.

Best regards,
C

Hello Allie,

thanks so much for your helpful reply. I think you and Maggie are right re the visceral fat; I have noticed my midrif expanding the past year and this is something that’s very new to me. Quite coincidentally, I concluded that this must be what it feels like to be fat aroudn the organs, since I had gained weight and grown in size but could not really see it; although I certainly could feel it.

Good to know that there is no eating back calories. Also good that cutting back on exercise is actually encouraged as I expect to not have much energy at first in any case.

Many thanks!

Best,
C.

Sorry Maggie, I incorrectly addressed my response to you as Allie…

Dear Arianwen,

Thank you for taking the trouble to mention the matter of energy to me – I think this is my biggest concern and a bit of reassurance helps so much!

Best,
C.

Hi Cyberry, to add to all the useful answers you have had already. We all are meant to believe that we need carbs and by that I mean grains, starches to function, to provide all our daily requirements and to feel full and satisfied. First of all, starchy carbs do make you feel full but they are a quick high to your blood sugar and you quickly drop back down making you hunger again quite quickly. The drop in blood sugar gives you that craving for more of what made you feel full and satisfied again, more starchy carbs. It is a vicious circle of highs then plummets – this is what is known as carb addition. As you are not really overweight you might, eventually be able to allow yourself some of the slow burn carbs like oats, lentils, chickpeas and even brown rice or wholemeal pasta, when you have got this under control. For now, to get your diagnosis reversed, ditch the carbs and give this diet a go.

As for feeling full and satisfied, this is where the fats come in. They have the ‘mouth’ satisfaction and they give you the calories you need to satisfy your hunger – although, remember, not too much as they are very high in calories. It is so much more satisfying to eat a full fat yoghurt that a low fat version, have full fat milk in your coffee instead of skimmed and to be able to cook your omelette in a bit of real butter rather than a synthetic miasma of chemicals called margarine. I used to be really afraid of butter and oil and now it is a wonderful treat. It is difficult to get your head round but it really works. My BG is down 50%, meds down 50%, cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressure also down. I am not so great on the weight loss as I dont have that much to lose (well maybe a bit) but in the first 2 weeks I lost 5″ from my waist and that is a great sign.

Hi Sunshine girl,
Thanks for your reply, but I’m not afraid of fats – I eat only full-fat yoghurt, I love butter and olive oil, nuts and seeds etc., it’s just that I like balance. And the reason for this is because I have been analysing and adjusting and tweaking my diet since I was a teen – due to digestive issues I’ve beeen struglliing with all my life – so I’m not new to the whole ‘healing through nutrition’ approach.

Oh and I like rather bigger volumes of food, which is another reason why the ‘feeling full on little fat’ really is no consolation!! 🙂

Best,
C.

Hi, I didn’t think I said you were afraid of fats. Your question asked where do you get that feeling of fullness and satisfaction that starchy carbs give you. My answer was fats. Not that you were afraid of them.