Theodora, laughing at thought of stepping into Sainsburys and coming out with eggs sticking all over me…
Was almost derailed by a little malteser bunny that OH had left on my pillow ‘to keep me company’ while he’s away (bless him, he just doesnt get it…) but gave it away quickly to a small child who already had his cheeks filled, hamster-like, with cheesy Wotsits. Bad of me, but …

Krysia, my OH proposed to me in the gardens at Penshurst!

Butterlover, I’m giving you a hard stare. ‘I didn’t eat well’. ‘I gave in to some carbs’. ‘I lost focus’. ‘I put on weight, I don’t know why’. Hmmmm. Mkx

Maharani kitten – how romantic of your OH – Penshurst is so lovely. But how could he have left the little malteser bunny on your pillow! Still – it was a really nice thought – and well done for giving it away.

Hi All. hey MK your death stare had me laughing ,reminded me of my mothers look when I was naughty. It was just what I needed to get a grip.Today wt 83.4kg but I’m on plan and keeping busy in the house. I have another hectic week this week then a long break at Easter and back to part time work .Its interesting that working harder has been easy to stay on track during the day but old habits really came back in the evening when I’m like a zombie I’m so exhausted that eat anything I’m trying to plan a menu for this week that will be really easy and go to bed super early. lets see what happens.Again thanks MK for your support.cheers

Hello everyone, glad you’re all doing so well. Just checking in to let you know I still exist and still read regularly although I don’t post often. I’ve had weeks of family birthdays, engagement party, destination wedding during a weekend away and I haven’t stuck to the diet very well but I have certainly changed my eating habits from before BSD. I rarely eat bread, pasta etc now. Still maintaining my little loss, still planning to lose a lot more… one day… it is now two weeks of school holidays with Easter in the middle – I am girding my loins ready for two weeks of temptations!

Ah, Butterlover, as I know to my cost, work exhaustion leads to feeling sorry for self leads to feeling deprived leads to feeling entitled. As the spa man said, if nobody else seems to care, you can at least be good to yourself.
And it was a hard stare with a raised eyebrow! gorgeous day, just gorgeous, so I’m off out on my bike. Mkx

Hello everyone,

Taking it easy today after Saturday evening with friends. It seems I don’t do the late nights as well as I used to. Drank water all night which, as I’ve said before, is no hardship for me, with just one very small glass of a beautiful, sticky, dessert wine to round the evening out, sometime after the witching hour.

With this particular group of friends, 4 couples of us, we meet at least 5 times a year, each taking a turn to host for dessert & coffee at home after dinner at a convenient restaurant, and one swisho lunch at Sandalford Winery/Estate for our pre-Christmas get-together gift exchange. Old friends are precious friends. ..we started playing at the same squash club 45 years ago and so that we wouldn’t lose touch as active squash playing dwindled away we set up this format and we organise the next date before we say goodnight on the current one. Actually, this year will be at least x6 as the boating breakfast we enjoyed a few weeks ago was an added bonus for us. We’ve been to the wedding of the youngest couple (they were still in senior high school when they joined our teams) and, recently, of one of their sons, plus another couple of children’s weddings, 21sts, christenings…….. We’ve variously travelled together, shared much laughter, and also tears at the onset of serious medical conditions, been to funerals together. In other words we have serious history together. Love them to bits.

Goodness, all this before saying that I was 400gms up this morning, so have been very cautious so far and will be for the remainder of this day. My mantra is echoing in my head, this is good, one day at a time….

Which reminds me Busybee, I didn’t reply to your suggestion of a separate “one day at a time” thread. I wonder if that could usefully be the title of the next challenge? Or is it better left as a sort of sub-challenge, or personal goal within the challenge? What do others think?

This is such a long post, sorry😴

Just a thought but if you use it as a challenge what are we going to do after that? It’s a long term thing for me and sooooo necessary

ddraig_goch, I know what you’re saying, it’s more of an ongoing thing and I do quite like the way it’s developing in an organic sort of way. Worth is own thread ? Or would that dilute the challenge for this group of posters? Hmm, I’m inclined to leave it be but as its hardly an original saying I promise I won’t sue if anyone else should start such a thread 😉

Marsie I agree best left alone as it’s working really well. If it’s not broken why fix it as they say

I agree that it is best left alone.
Marsie, we too have a group of friends that we met when our boys were three and we also have girls the same age. Long term friends are so lovely and it’s great to grow old together.
See you tomorrow.
X B

Had a another lovely day with daughter and her family in Sevenoaks. We spent the day at the beach near Dymchurch- it was gloriously sunny and warm.

They have been so good – checking with me that the food they are preparing is BSD friendly. So I have had perfect BSD meals during my stay.

This morning am travelling back to East Anglia – have missed husband and dogs.

Today is my official weigh-in and have lost another 1.4lb which makes it 2.6lb for the week. Wouldn’t have hoped for that 2 days ago.

Looking over the numbers for the past 4 weeks since I started, I can (hopefully) see a pattern emerging: Wk1 -5.8lb, Wk2 -3.0lb (6 day plateaux),
Wk3 -7.6lb, Wk4 -2.6lb (5 day plateaux). I will be interested to see if this will continue going forward. If so I should be in for a good week.

What I find equally interesting is that I have also lost 6.5% BF and gained 6.2% LBM (in fact my current LBM is 0.6lb heavier than when I started) which means that everything I have lost so far is fat.

Just shows the BSD WOL works.

Happy Monday everyone and remember 1 week at a time LOL

So pleased you have enjoyed your weekend, Krysia – you certainly chose the right one, weather-wise 🙂 Safe trip home.

My personal 3 week challenge ends tomorrow, but I am going away today, so had to weigh today instead. A couple of weeks ago, I really doubted that I would manage my challenge of losing 5lbs, but I am pleased to report that not only did I manage that by last Friday, I have lost another 2 over the weekend, so 7lbs gone in just under 3 weeks (first week I was away on gourmet break, so am very pleased). I am not 2lbs below my target weight and intend working hard for the next few weeks to gain a bit of “wriggle room”.

Hope everyone else is doing well with their challenges.

Been very good on food and exercise this week but weekend BS has been wibbly wobbly again – seems to happen from time to time even though all other things are equal. Not just FBS – up all round. Odd.

No gifted Easter eggs so far today but out at an event this afternoon so the little b*ggers are probably lying in wait for an ambush… Mkx

So you should be pleased, Theodora, both with your results and with yourself for the achievement. Happy for you😊. Enjoy your holiday. 🐣

My morning weight was not so encouraging so today I’ve done pretty well with cals well under 800, carbs under 60 gms, no snacking at all today, although now, 10pm here, I’m feeling a little peckish. My mantra will see me through to bedtime I believe. So we’ll see what official weigh-in brings tomorrow morning.

With Easter, I’m lucky that I’ve never eaten hot cross buns or Easter eggs before the due dates. Not so much for religion but for tradition, in our family anyway. So haven’t been tempted. I have some GF buns in the freezer for OH but don’t feel remotely interested. Haven’t done my E. egg shopping yet. Need to get on to it as i do an E egg hunt for the grandies, complete with clues.

MK, just wait, they will come! Those choc bunnies can’t resist you but I have faith it won’t be tables turned……..

School holidays here and gorgeous 8yo grandson is keeping us company tomorrow. Warm 31 degree day forecast so probably will walk down to the beach. He runs us ragged so off to bed now for a good night’s sleep.

Night night all, see you tomorrow.

Euonymus your holiday Verona and well done Marsie for stepping away from the snacks.
Let’s hope we all see good results on the scales tomorrow.
X B

Week 3 update for me as it’s Tues morning here in Sydney (and a beautiful one at that – I just love this time of year).
I’ve had a great week with a 1.6kg loss so now I’m only 1kg away from my target weight for this 4 week challenge around. 1kg will see me move down into the next stone bracket. It is certainly going to be a challenge what with me
Usually losing weight slowly, and of course Easter!
I didn’t meet my step goal of 75,000 only got to 68,500. Last week was easier as I was off work, but I’m going to try and go for a walk each lunchtime, and should be able to go on a couple of long walks over Easter.
The ond day at a time mantra really helped. I did have a couple of slip ups over the past week and many temptations, but each time I thought “it’s just today I can’t have [insert piece of cake/chocolate/glass of wine!].
A guy selling raffle tickets in the mall yesterday offered me a Ferraro Rocher (my favourites!) and I said no thanks. He said “but I only have 2 left we could have 1 each” and again I politely declined, and told him I was on a no sugar diet. The funny thing was I didn’t even mind saying no. I’m hoping it will be that easy to say no over Easter!
Good luck to everyone else checking in this week 🙂

Ha! No egg or bunny ambush today. But was in M&S for a coffee and before I even realised it thei little shortbread biscuit they serve with it was down my throat. Bad kitten!
Still, favourite supper tonight as no need to cook for OH. Watermelon, cucumber and feta salad with mint dressing. Yummy! almost looking forward to scales tomorrow because I don’t care what they say. Put my favourite linen trousers on today and they fit beautifully, really pleased. Mkx

Maharani kitten – I used to absolutely love the little shortbread biscuit with M&S coffee. At least they are really small and it sounds as though it didn’t trigger a carb fest – so the carb monster failed again.

Great news that your favourite linen trousers fit beautifully.

Weighed in this morning and I have lost 2.25lbs this week. So now have lost 3 stone exactly. I am really happy as it has given me some wriggle room on maintenance. Weight now 9 stone 3.75lbs.

I wasn’t hungry while away so dropped to around 1200 calories a day which triggered the fast weight loss this week. It wasn’t water weight because I am still very low carb on maintenance. I wonder if it means that my metabolism wasn’t adversely affected by the weight loss phase of BSD last year – which has to be really good news.

It’s lovely to be back home and am looking forward this afternoon to visiting Sheringham Park with the dogs. I did miss husband and dogs and my Nespresso machine while I was away.

SueBlue – well done for winning the Ferraro Rocher challenge. It was actually quite a hard challenge because they were previously your favourites. I think you will just sail through the Easter challenge.

Well done for your 1.6kg loss this week.

Good morning fellow challenger’s.
End of week three and I have lost 1.25 lbs. a little disappointed as I feel thinner but not so bad after the 6 lb loss last week.
Now for week four which includes an Easter visit from DD and boyfriend so will have to wait and see whether the hot cross buns and Easter egg monsters win! This year, however, must be the first time I haven’t eaten any of these for weeks before the actual days arrive.
Keeping on one day at a time, only weighing twice a week and trying not to obsess about the whole thing!
Good luck for our last week.
X B

It’s been a yo-yo of a week: down, up, down, up, and again down, so luckily the yo-yo was on the downward trajectory at the right time. 62.8kg this morning ie 200 gms less for the week. Definitely going to need the “one day at a time” for our 4th week…a very social Friday “lunch” at a friend’s house. Meet at about 11am, unusual to start packing up before 5pm. Then, on Sunday, family to us for lunch after the Easter egg hunt. I set the hunt out with clues for 8-10 stations, (not all chocolate, I incl book vouchers for our “book look” day; pjs; mugs, new paints etc) usually takes half an hour or so and today the 8yo g/son was throwing out a multitude of hints about some special arrangement he has planned for Nana & Grandpa (us) on Sunday. Such fun, he could barely contain his secret.

Great to see the positive posts so far, very encouraging. Congratulations all. Good wishes for the 4th week and, pretty please, thinking caps on for the theme of the next challenge.

Good morning everyone

Sorry not really keeping up with all the posts at the moment but well done Krysia, it’s so much harder in maintenance, Busybee and all other losers and those, who just like me, keep posting no matter what!!!

So this week I’ve put on 1lb that makes a total 3.2lb overall. Not too unhappy because I know that a ‘short sharp shock’ when I get home will get me back on track. I’m managing BSD principles but I am having wine … say no more!!!

MK isn’t it great when clothes fit again. I know the number on my scales but my clothes seem to suggest a loss! You’re so right now to worry what the ‘number’ is if your trousers fit comfortably!

Have a good last week everyone!

P.S. Has anyone heard from JulesM on any of the other threads? He doesn’t seem to have posted for a while. Hope all is well.

So for the end of week three of my personal 4wk Bun & Egg challenge, daily average stats are:

Wk1 778 cals, 10592 steps (wk loss>2.5lb)
Wk2 543 cals, 13848 steps (wk loss>2.5lb)
Wk3 525 cals, 21365 steps (wk loss>2.5lb)

On track, only 7 more days to go, 1 day at a time

Hi all, some great results this week! After a disappointing ‘stayed the same’ last week, was delighted with 3.5 off this week, but feel I’m on a roll, clothes (and bra!) much looser. Happy with that.

Please send special thoughts for tomorrow. Am off to London in a tick – event tomorrow is held in a dedicated conference space that considers the way to successful learning is to offer a sweetie bar (imagine an old fashioned Woolworths counter with posher treats and a big bowl to put them in ) and an ice cream station, plus a fresh cake and biscuit bar at coffee breaks. OMG. Considering the ‘duct tape your mouth, Kitten’ option, but as it’s a discussion forum, strengthening vibes from fellow travellers on the BSD journey will be next best thing.
Snacks packed for train…
Adios, amigos! Mkx

Mjk, Congratulations on your loss and the loose clothing. As for London remember you CAN do it, one day at a time and put some mixed nuts in your pocket. Works for me every time . Have fun on your trip

ddraig_goch, take care of your health, won’t you? Your calorie numbers look very low?

Special thoughts on the way, Maharani kitten. You will be a shining light amongst all those carb-loaded foggy brains😇

Verena, I’ve wondered the same about JulesM.

Hope you’re enjoying your holiday.

Don’t worry Marsie, with all this wonderful excise and sleep I’ve been getting since starting BSD I have never felt better. My calorie count is dependent on mindful eating and whether I’m really hungry or not. But thank you for thinking of me.

NB: I have just realized the numbers I’ve posted include my full day fast i.e. eat 6 days average over 7. Maybe I should amend that to eat 6 days average over 6? Not sure which gives a truer picture really. Thoughts anyone?

Thanks, ddraig_goch, mind eased.

Not sure, maybe average the number of days you’ve eaten then note + the number of fast days? Might give you a clearer pattern when you review.

Just as well I edited. ..instead of “fast ” days, predictive text said “fat” days, ooops😯

Hi All ,great to see everyone’s posts. I’m quite happy to be 82.8KG today. its 1KG down but it seems like every time I celebrate a loss, it goes straight back on,so I’m taking it easy.I have been thinking about easter treats and I think I probably will want to have something on Sunday but the question is ,will it be enjoyable enough to make the consequences worth while? or if I don’t have any treats will I feel deprived and go for extra compensation on Monday? How much treat is enough for satisfaction? and which treat is the best?Maybe the treats are over rated and BSD is worth the effort.we shall see. cheers to All

Hi all, still in Santa Pola near Alicante, weather good but cool breeze from the sea. Cant say I have been good but tried my best although we are eating in once a day and restaurant once a day. Tonight I am making aubergine lasagne (dont know what my grandsons will think). Just got a taste for mojitos but I am on holiday. BG still good at around 3.8 to 4.2.

Not doing great with the Spanish – asked for una tavola for a table; should be una mesa – mixing up with Portuguese.

Keep on keeping on.

Thanks Marsie, hoping for no fat days except for 2 weeks time when I’m at my mums for a few days and have promised to cook a couple of special BSD friendly high fat recipes for family including my full fat cheesecake. There will be no chance for lots of exercise then either but am counting it as holiday and everyone is entitled to one of those. Luckily its the week after the Bun & Egg challenge ends so the next one will be 3 weeks long for me and all about undoing my ‘fat days’ haha.

Hi Butterlover, you should take a look at the end of the ‘This is the most depressing thing I have ever read’ thread. There’s an interesting discussion likening sugar to alcohol. Maybe it will help you decide if those treats are really worth it. Feeling for you as you tussle with your thoughts.

So. Down 1lb. Thought it would be more because of stomach bug but I seem to be a bit all over the place at the moment so not going to worry too much. Still on track but caught myself looking at chocolate and nearly picked it up. I’m not normally tempted at all. So I need to stay focused. Ate brazil nut instead! Good luck on this final week of the challenge everyone.

HI everyone- lost 1.5 lb this week. Weight 10 st 11 lb. Started this month’s challenge at 11 st 3lb and hoped to lose 4lb to take me into the 10s so feel very happy that I have had a good few weeks. I am on week 13 of BSD. I am planning on doing 24 weeks and hopefully should be near to a healthy BMI by then. See you all next week for the final scores in this challenge. Have a Happy Easter 🐣 everyone.

Weigh in this morning at 10 stone 10.2 pounds, so still a pound under my target weight, although up from my lowest midweek. Maintaining well 😀 Two and a half months now almost.

Well, after me saying yesterday that I had kept away from hot cross buns and Easter eggs the carb monster visited and won!
I went to M and S to buy the best ever spicy buns and gave one to Hubby who declared it delicious. It smelt and looked so good and I said ” ooh, I would love one of those smothered in butter” and the dear kind man replied “have one then, it won’t do you any harm)! So I did!!! Then I proceeded to eat everything white and sugary I could find though did stop when I felt very full – in the past I would have gone on until I felt ill.
Why do I sabotage myself like this?
But that was yesterday and today I will carry on BSD one day at a time.
X B

Hi all

Just been reading through the posts. Everyone seems to be doing really well. Saying no to Easter eggs and even giving them away. very impressed. I have been losing and gaining the same 2lbs for a few weeks now. It seems I need to be super careful with to get a result. The scales are not the best indicator though. My stomach looks as if it’s gone down a bit and my legs are a bit thinner so I’m ok with that.

I should post more often but my colleague and I share a computer and after a 12 hour shift I’m not at my most lively!! I am following everyone’s progress though and that keeps me going.

LindaA posted a link to a really interesting article on Facebook which is really interesting reading.

http://healthimpactnews.com/2013/sweden-becomes-first-western-nation-to-reject-low-fat-diet-dogma-in-favor-of-low-carb-high-fat-nutrition/

It’s nice to see one government has finally risen to the challenge of promoting what has been mainstream knowledge for years and not kowtowing to the weight loss, food and agricultural industries.

Shame the US and UK will never follow suite. Would help ease the crisis in the NHS no end.

Busybee – well done for stopping when you felt full and then getting straight back onto the BSD today.

Cara54 – l think your scales will catch up with your weight loss very soon. It is great to look in the mirror and see yourself getting thinner.

Well done Doodledootoo and ClarinetCathy on your losses.

Mixnmatch your continue to be an inspiration to us all.

Busybee, now you have a gentle reminder of why you are here. Don’t beat yourself up too much. I bet pre-BSD you would have gone longer than a day, so be proud of yourself that the ‘one day at a time’ mantra rules and today you will be back on track.

Thank you for all your kind comments and support, and yes I have been right at the front of the wagon today,. I just hope that not too much damage has been done.
X B

Krysia thanks for the link. It makes me feel better to know that more and more people are coming around to the notion that this way of eating is ‘safe’. The article had a link to another small study the ‘Spanish Ketogenic Mediterranean Diet’.

This study was based on 30ml of olive oil, 200-400ml of red wine and 3 portions of 200g each of green vegetables and salad per day. Fish was also a very important part of the diet but protein per say was unlimited.

The interesting part for me was that a maximum of 30g of carbs were allowed each day in the form of 1 portion of vegetables and 2 of salad. The low carb vegetables included broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, tomato and onion, amongst others. They didn’t appear to count the carbs in the wine.

Anyway, it made me realise that when I’ve tried to stay within 30g of carbs a day I still have my ‘slimming club head’ on and try to use my carbs for ‘treats’ like dark chocolate of oat cakes! It reminded me of a conversation I think we’ve had on this thread about how some ‘diets’ encourage you to eat ‘rubbish’ in your daily allowance. So after this long ramble I think I realise that not all carbs are equal.

I think that when I start counting carbs and calories again I’ll be more mindful of exactly how I’m using my carb allowance.

Verano – it makes me feel better also to know that more and more people are coming around to this way of eating. I have bookmarked the link so I can read it whenever I get worried that this way of eating isn’t healthy.

I especially liked the quote that if you eat potatoes you get the same sugar rush as if you had eaten candy. As a sugar addicted person that makes perfect sense to me.

Thank you for pointing out the link to the Spanish ketogenic Mediterranean diet – I had missed it. Very interesting reading.

Verano, you’re so right, and I think your post is timely as it speaks to all those who ‘plan to cheat’ by using carbs in a ‘creative’ way. Even a 50g allowance makes it really hard to include such ‘treats’ if you want to eat a healthy amount of veg and salad, and maybe, in time, a bit of fruit. As you know I did almost 5 years of low carb, staying very stable at BMI 26 – any less and I looked weird.

The key was changing my perception of what constitutes a ‘treat’. I ate well, for sure, able to choose from lots of my favourite things, but ‘treats’ were experiences, time with family, hugs and kisses, taking care of myself – regular pedicures in summer, a favourite magazine subscription through the post meant a treat delivered to my door, a regular beach walk with a neighbour’s gorgeous friendly dog, flowers in the house. I programmed myself to see chocolate, bread, pasta, pizza, spuds in all their forms esp crispy fries, which I’d loved, as very inferior in comparison.
It is a total mind shift, because it means you NEVER worry about food again, you just trust yourself completely to do the right thing, and do it, but one which I am happy to say that, following my spa lightbulb moment, I seem to have regained. Literally no food treat could have given me the delight of finding that my ‘go to’ summer trousers now look great, I was buzzing all day with the joy of it. Didn’t wear them at all last summer.

It was a different regime, but in five years I never counted a single calorie. Just carbs, and it was so much second nature that after a while, didn’t consciously have to count those either, Just did it. Liberating. Mkx

Am off to London this morning to see my son for the Easter Holiday. Last weigh in this morning and am down to 10.9! Won’t have access to scales whilst away but have packed healthy breakfasts, yoghurt and berries and am taking babybel and nuts as rations! . Also bought a egg and spinach pot for my lunch today as there probably won’t be anything BSD friendly at the motorway services. Am planning on staying as low carb as possible whilst away. Have a lovely Easter everyone and thank you once again for all the help and support that this forum provides by everyone’s contributions. X

Mk – I do so agree about “treats”. Even after only 12 weeks, I no longer view any food as a “treat” – except my healthy meals which I really look forward to, eat slowly and savour every mouthful. The type of treats you are describing last so much longer and many form happy memories. For example, I buy myself flowers every week and it gives me far more pleasure to see the house filled with flowers than a transient mouthful of any “forbidden” food could possibly do, and I spend no more than I used to spend on refined carb foods. Plus everyone else who comes to the house gets to enjoy the flowers too 🙂 And having the energy to walk long distances, run around with the grandchildren etc is a real treat in itself. And I can fully understand the buzz you got about being able to wear your favourite summer trousers again. (Sadly my fave summer trousers are now too big, so on the lookout for some new ones – but my “loss” will be the charity shop’s gain 😉 )

Because I wanted to get into this mindset, I have deliberately not made any substitutes in the carb dept. and not allowed myself anything like chocolate – even dark chocolate. I just no longer eat refined carbs. Full stop! And hopefully, I never will – and now I can honestly say I don’t miss them – apart from the occasional glass of wine, which I will allow myself now I am entering “maintenance”.

CCathy, have a lovely Easter with your son, and well done on having such foresight and taking food with you. I am away at the moment too, so no scales to check but am eating “mindfully” and not been tempted by alcohol yet, despite several visits to pubs etc. We are going to a supper party on Saturday evening though, so I may allow myself a couple of glasses then. Just hoping that the food is BSD friendly.

MK I think that’s a great philosophy. Non food treats are so much better and longer lasting. I’m looking forward to buying good quality clothes when I get to my target. So much better than the cheap stuff I buy now.