I started the 8wk plan five days ago – actually consuming more like 1200cal as My Fitness Pal adds “available calories” from my walking.
From Day 3 I ache all over. Feels like flu or over excursion stiffness. Also had diarrhoea and stomach cramps, and not sleeping well. On the bright side, I have lost 3.5kg, which may have been more had I kept to 800cal. So /moanoff here’s the question: am I going to be on tramadol for this body ache for the next 8 weeks? What am I missing?

You’re detoxing from carbohydrates. It’s so common an experience that it even has a name: the carb flu. It doesn’t usually last more than a few days or a week at most. Tough it out. Your body has been used to using carbohydrates as a shortcut for energy. When it figures out that it needs to burn your fat stores instead, the flu will vanish and be replaced by more and steadier energy than you ever had when you ate lots of carbs.

Good luck!

Thanks for the encouraging reply! I’ll hang in there!

Hi Youngster, do be careful with the Tramadol (unless it was a joke) as it is really heavy duty pain relief and highly addictive with continuous use. You might just have to put up with a little discomfort but it wont last long, deffo not the full 8 weeks, more like a week.

Thanks Esnecca and Sunshinegirl, my ‘carb flu’ lasted about 30 hours. I felt better after a slice of cheese (so good!) and a brisk 4km walk. Feeling much better – not hungry at all, and not craving. I even turned down a delicious ice cream dessert without flinching! (Ok maybe I thought about it). And my calorie intake is coming down ‘toward’ 800 cal.
Result being, I’ve lost around 5kg in my first week! Very happy. Thanks for your support in my hour of need.

Now 5 weeks through my first experience of BSD. Have dropped 6.6kg and I’m just about to receive results of my HcN1B test. Happy with progress motivated to keep going!

Good going Youngster. Hope the blood results are good. Keep doing what you’ve been doing and there will be more positive results to post.