Hi Yowzer, Sue and Nokie – lovely to hear from you.

Yowzer I hope that you get your tests soon and they put your mind at rest, and that your symptoms ease up. Thinking of you X. Let us know how you’re getting on. And thank you for your inspiration as always.

Nokie you sound busy! I hope you enjoy your time in Switzerland and that they are having better weather than the UK. Can’t believe how awful it’s been. I’m also trying to sort my house out though, so at least I don’t feel resentful about missing the sun!

Sue, you say you need to refocus : you and me both! I’m on school holidays at the mo and having a high old time. Lots of socialising which inevitably (ok, well not really, but for me seemingly 🙀) leads to over indulgence, particularly wine and snacks. I seem to develop the mentality of “oh go on then, just today, will resume WoE tomorrow” . . . then tomorrow the same happens again. My weight is pretty much maintaining but I really do need to up my game if I am to start losing the weight I want to in time for Mother of the Bride season. So I’m kind of disappointed in myself, but also not being hard on myself or beating myself up because it’s been a rough year and I’m enjoying getting out and about and stuff. But do need to rein myself in very soon.

I’ve suddenly developed a desire to learn more about Greek cooking. I’m not a very good cook but have promised my husband a Greek feast this weekend. As well as the food kind of calling to me for some reason, I’m hoping that it will help me get back on track as well. Will let you know how it goes . . . .

Hope everyone else is ok – do check in so we can help you on your journey.

Hey all

Clothes looser, face thinner, scales resolutely stuck on 71.6 kilos. Annoying. But I am doing what I can. Into the hard slog of it and the continuous making of good choices is boring. My ‘slips’ are things like 90% chocolate or milk in decaf coffee post 7pm – so tiny in the grand scheme of things but I guess they all add up. It’s not fair! But I’m less resentful than last time because I’m less in love with food than I was last time. Last time I felt bereft.

Went out last night. Had Thai salad AND a G&T – get me! And water, of course. Always the water.

But we can do it! I know we can, we just have to keep the faith. It’s helpful knowing I did it before (and got stuck around this weight for ages before too). I’ll know I’m there when I need a belt for my trousers 😁

Carry on Campers, Keep on Trucking etc etc

Jackie x

Hello everyone
Sorry I’ve not been posting – still not well with my electric shocks. Seen three GPS and spoke to my Foot Surgeon today who says it’s not a foot and ankle problem and not his expertise and he thinks it’s coming from higher up which is concerning with my previous Schwannoma history . I knew it wasn’t going to be something simple. I have now to be referred to a sarcoma clinic. He wouldn’t request the scans my GP asked him to arrange which was disappointing . Losing weight is not my priority at the moment!!.
Yowser I am sorry to read that you too are having concerning symptoms and I hope you don’t wait long for a diagnosis and some medication to help your symptoms. It certainly puts things into perspective. It’s like two steps forward and three back at the moment.
I had such a positive feeling that I would get into the 140s but I can tell that my clothes are tight and I’m not insulting myself by getting weighed. I think the stress is raising my cortisol levels!!
So we are again in August and I feel that I am in the same place I was this time last year and the year before and I am fed up of myself getting absolutely nowhere.
Good luck to everyone who is trying hard and all we can do is to keep doing our best.

CCATHY..so sorry youre not well. I do think anxiety about health concerns can slow/ halt progress..
I too feel like Im two steps forward and three back.
Apart from other things,sciatica at the moment is making me reach for comfort food. Also I get depressed about my misshaped legs due to lymphoedema.
I too feel am in same place as last year and the one before..all goes well then I fall again..its such a tedious cycle. Excuses excuses,but they feel all too real..several dousings with wet lettuces is called for i think!
NOKIE enjoy Switzerland!
DCT,enjoy your greek cooking!
Shout out to SUEBLUE JACKIE and everybody. Do your best like CCATHY said! XX i cant go back to previous page without losing this,so forgive me if Ive missed your comment 💕

Hi Yowzer and CC,
Sorry to hear that you are both having health problems.

Yowzer, it was an ECG which triggered my appointments with the cardiac team, from talking on forums with people suffering from long covid, breathlessness and chest pains are a common issue.

In my experience it will be beneficial to talk about low carb and fasting if the tests find any issues with your heart..

When my GP connected me up to an ECG after other tests such as x rays following my long covid, I ended up with the cardiac team for a while. The standard course of action appears to be to focus on getting blood pressure down with the aid of drugs. But those drugs seem to be focused on presuming that people are eating multiple high carb meals each day. The published research is that fasting is more effective than drugs for reducing blood pressure. Especially 1 x 10 day fast, but even a month of ADF is effective.

It was only after the cardiac team prescribed the first pair of drugs that I got a chance to read up about them and I discovered that the first drug caused acid reflux unless you eat little, often, and high carb and because it can cause fluid retention in your legs they pair it with a repurposed drug for diabetes which reduces blood sugar levels. to prevent fluid retention. – When you read the info leaflets with the drugs they advise you not to fast when taking the drugs.

The second time they prescribed drugs which also say specifically in the info leaflet that you must not fast when taking it.

I have found that by going intensively in for fasting because that is the best way of clearing the covid virus out of our bodies I have also brought my blood pressure back into the normal range, so don’t have to take any drugs.

71.1kg. Yay, lowest yet. It’s so SLOW but it is happening. Last night I dreamt I ate A LOT of milk chocolate. But it was more compulsion than pleasure, I knew it was damaging me even as I chomped through it. Was pleased when I woke up and realised it didn’t really happen.

If I can keep it up (nutty/seedy salad, black coffee, big gaps between food, smaller portion sizes, feeling hungry and drinking water instead of eating, yoghurt with chia, more salad. Bloody green leaves) then soon it will say 70.9kg and then I’m less than a kilo overweight. And THEN (when? When?) it will say 69.9kg and I’ll be officially in the healthy zone. If I can get to 68kg that’s where I feel and look optimum. Then it’s how to stay there, which has always been the hardest thing.

Ho hum. How’s it going everyone? I read all your posts when they come through on email and it really helps to know I’m not the only one.

Hi Jackie. Well done you! I’m so delighted that you are at your lowest weight. That’s great news! At this rate I bet you’ll be in the healthy zone in the next couple of weeks. Please let us know so we can celebrate with you. So lovely to hear some good news.

Being honest I’m not doing well in terms of weight loss – but it’s totally my own fault. I know what I need to do. And I know that when I do it, it works. I just seem to lack discipline then start making excuses. Every week I go off track, then decide I will start afresh next week, but always get derailed. I’m a complete muppet!! But, given my shocking lack of willpower, I think I will get back on track with at the very least doing 5:2 and see where that goes. I’m sure that even I can manage two good days a week 🙀

I’m thankful that at least I’m maintaining. I seem to have a new settled weight, which ok is 10 pounds higher than I want to be, but if I creep over that weight I can seem to bring it back in line quite easily by cutting carbs and upping exercise. So it’s not all bad news, I’m just frustrated with myself that I’m not where I wanted to be right now, especially given my supposed summer health kick.

Anyway enough moaning!! Hello to everyone else and hope you’re doing better than me?!?!

Hello Jackie well done that’s amazing!!
Hello dreams come true I am the same as you I start off ok at beginning of week then it just goes down hill I am so cross with my self I have no one else I can blame either I just have No will power
I have fallen off the bus 🚌 and can’t seem to find my seat 💺!!
I go to Switzerland 🇨🇭 to see my sister on Thursday until Monday I am hopeing to come back refreshed and start again maybe ad you say at least do 800 2 days a week I think my problem is I keep changing my mind either 800 or keto then maybe 800 every day I know it sounds ridiculous but I am not sure how to stick to something silly at my age 😊
I hope everyone else is going well i will be in touch soon thanks for the posts
Nokie x😊

Well done JACKIE! we are going to carry you shoulder high up and down the bus! 👏👏👏👏👏
Thats great…keep it up,you can do it! We need this good news to inspire us!
DCT I totally get where you are..I am the same. Complete lack of discipline,gahhhhhh! Inkeep making plans and telling myself that this time I am totally committed ..then a few days or a week or so after,I fall off the bus.
And NOKIE,you too,I totally identify with you.
I cant seem to settle on the best way to go about losing weight successfully so Im veering btw low carb,cal counting,,fasting,shakes.
Im worse than both of you tho as I have more to lose than you have. Wet lettuces arent doing the trick! I dont know what to do next. If i could stick to sthing for the rest of the year,its 21 weeks which shd mean two pounds a week off,wd be three stone down,and I wd be quite happy. Theres no reason why i shdnt be able to do that! I need to give my head a wobble. I shd be frogmarched right off the bus!
Love to all and im sorry for being a disgrace! XX

Hi everyone, sorry I hadn’t realised it was so long since I last posted, tbh my heart doesn’t seem to be in this at the minute.Yowzer I would ask for the wet lettuce treatment but I fear no amount of leaves would get me back on the straight and narrow.I hope your sciatica has eased.I have been reading posts off and on, JGwen well done on your NSV,Cathy I’m sorry you haven’t been well and hope you feel better soon,Jackie well done on getting so close to your healthy weight zone,DCT my willpower seems non existent too so congratulations on maintaining and not gaining, Nokie I too have definitely fallen off the bus and it is a tiny speck in the distance.I think my plan for the rest of this month is to give myself a break from trying to do this full on as I think that is why I’m faltering.I will up my water intake and eat in an 8 hour window and, for now, I’m going to be satisfied with those small steps.I’m away for 5 days at the beginning of September, just in this country, and will be doing a fair amount of walking so any progress I make before then should hopefully not be undone whilst I’m away.I will weigh myself on 31st August and it would be nice if I was less than I was at the beginning of July but I’m not going to beat myself up about it if I’m not.
My f-i-l still isn’t home after his fall way back in March.We’ve been told it’s early days in relation to a brain injury so we are still holding out hope and when I saw him last week I could see sudden progress from the week before so maybe something positive is starting to happen 🤞
I will endeavour to post more frequently and hope everyone has a good week.
Dawn X

Jackie- well done for your weight loss and being so near to your goal. You are the star of the bus!
Thank you for inspiring us all.
I am still undergoing tests and waiting for hospital appointments. I am sadly not going to be able to start my little college job. It’s a shame as I was looking forward to it.
All I can say is that I am trying!! My weight has increased again! I am two steps forward and three back. I am being sensible! Life keeps getting in the way of my plans and being worried and stressed are not conducive to weight loss for me. I am someone who eats more when worried.
Yowser- I hope you’re feeling better and have some answers for your symptoms :
DCT- you’ve always impressed me with how you’ve kept your weight steady. You lost a lot of weight and did not put too many pounds back on so I don’t think you need worry. When the time feels right you will get those pesky pounds off.
There are a few of us struggling to lose at the moment but we are still here and we know what we have to do. None of us are a disgrace – we are all doing our best- sometimes life isn’t easy and that’s when I feel we need to be kinder to ourselves.
I might not post as regularly over the next few weeks whilst I am being seen in various clinics trying to get a diagnosis but I will keep checking the forum and as soon as I know what’s going on I’ll be back with an update. Let’s just do what we can. None of us are out of control we are just having a little blip! This forum has kept us on the straight and narrow. We can only do our best. That’s good enough for us all.

Hey everyone,

It’s been so interesting reading everyone’s comments today (and thank you for cheering me one). You’ve all made me realise it’s where your head is that makes the difference – we all know WHAT to not eat/eat, after all, especially on this forum.

I’ve only had this hyper focus over weight 4 times I can remember (and when I lose it – guess what?! I lost the hyper focus and slowly let it all slide).

Each time, I’ve realised, were the same triggers: seeing photo’s when I didn’t look like I thought I looked, at the same time seeing photos when I did look how I want to, plus an impending event to focus on. That’s quite a rare combination.

The events I can remember are: fancying a very small, thin man and wanting to look small next to him (never did get anywhere with him 😂 but did lose weight), getting married and seeing self in dress about 6 months before the day and realising photos would make me look like a sausage, seeing fat self on holiday plus being so tired (pre-diabetic)

This time I have a whole bunch of cool new friends through online writing groups and I want to be cool too – we all met up recently and I didn’t look cool in the photos! (Please note they are not all thin. Some people wear weight well. I do not). Plus I’m getting divorced and want to feel in my prime to face the next 12 months. I’m seeing it very much as a fresh start not a sad ending).

I haven’t had as much to lose this time to get it back to being just a bit overweight, so I guess that’s progress.

Posted too soon, but just to say thank you again and it will happen for all of us once our heads are in the right place. I 100% believe in this way of eating. But you can’t force yourself into the right frame of mind – life events get in the way all too often and there’s zero point beating yourself up about it. But it WILL happen, I know it!

Take care of yourselves xx

Lovely to see a flurry of posts!

JACKIE it sounds as if you have a lot going on, so I’m even more impressed about your weight loss. I wish you well with your new start, and hope that the next time you see a photo of yourself you will be pleased with it. The photo thing I can really identify with. I hate photos of me now, and also looking in the mirror. I just seem to have aged a lot recently, and the extra weight is really not helping. So thanks for that great idea re motivation . . . I might even post photos up on the wall of how I look (and feel) at various weights just to spur me on!

CATHY sending you my very best wishes for your current health issues. I really hope that you can get things sorted and that you will then be able to focus on the weight loss that you want to achieve. Thank you for your kind words re my maintaining. I’m 10lb over where I want to be, but yes have kept most of the weight off. But I think it’s a body balance thing for me. Because I’m not particularly tall, and carry all excess weight round the belly I can look really short and dumpy very quickly, and clothes don’t hang well. And at the moment my hair is a right mess – not helped by some of the drugs I’m on, which can cause hair loss – and in general I just feel tatty and frumpy! But I will plod on and try to get my act together to sort all these things out!

DAWN, YOWZER and NOKIE perhaps we need to have some kind of joint effort here? I’m not sure what, but it seems we all want to keep going but are having the same kind of lack of motivation / discipline issues. So maybe we could do something like agree an initial 2 days a week when we make a pinky promise to be strict and do whatever works for us (fasting, 16:8, OMAD, 800) and really stick to it. Just a thought, and I think we might even have floated the idea before. But I’m always up for anything that will help! And DAWN I’m glad you saw some positive progress with your f-i-l last week. 🤞that continues x

JGWEN how are you doing? Any more appointments looming? I hope that your fasting is going well and that you start to see differences in the parts of your body that you want to. I remember you saying you are working towards some travel plans and I hope that you are nearer to achieving that goal.

SUE how are you doing? And how is your m-i-l? Hope all is ok with you and yours.

Hello to anyone else I’ve missed; usual situation that I daren’t scroll back to the previous page in case I lose all I’ve typed.

I’ll be offline for the next few days as heading up north again today to try and tie up some final loose ends on my mother’s flat. So have a good weekend everyone . . . . looks like we might even get a bit of ☀️here in the UK!!! . . . . and I’ll be back next week XX

Hi Dct and everyone

This will be short!! I am currently in a ✈️ waiting to take off to Switzerland 🇨🇭 i will post when I get back but Dct that’s a good idea 👍 I am up for anything that will get me back on track 🤣I am 10 lbs over as well
Have a good week all
Lv nokie xx 😘

DCT – I’m keen to lose 10lb too and would love to join in as I’ve completely slacked off lately and just have very little motivation.

Jackie – well done! Your words about motivation really hit home for me. Last year I was losing weight for my daughters wedding which seemed to make all the difference motivation wise!

Cathy – I really hope you get some answers soon! I think when we are going through health issues and other stresses perhaps it’s more important to focus on healthy eating and nutritious foods rather than weight loss?

I’m at work at the moment but will post again soon 🙂

Hi Guys I would be up for a team effort to support us all getting back on track. Not so much on healthy eating but on getting the hours of autophagy in.

I have been signed off by the cardiac team, their treatment options all involved taking drugs that were applicable for people on a carb focused, multiple meals a day, they have no prescribing system for people who fast and the information leaflets in the drugs they prescribed all said not to be taken if fasting. Through fasting I have got my blood pressure back to normalish, getting blood pressure down is the only “treatment” recommended by the cardiac team, so I have been put in the category of not needing repeat appointments but should contact them if I have any symptoms of heart failure.

I am still recorded as having severe heart failure in the NHS system. I am apparently on a waiting list for another echocardiogram because I requested it, so I may be low priority and it was a 4 month wait between a negative ECG and the first appointment. But I am being told by the nurses in the cardiac clinic that people do not improve their results. However, when they don’t have a system for supporting people who fast, they don’t have any mention of autophagy in their information pack, they have no training program on new research etc etc and all the processes are focused on supporting people to minimise the health issues of an unhealthy diet, so they don’t really give people a chance to heal.

I am feeling well enough to get back to normal life, and when I look around there are so many jobs to do. So I am catching up with chores around the farm. I do get tired but now its not after a few minutes but a few hours of work, so I think that is more down to needing to improve fitness.

I have got into the habit of having one meal a day the last couple of weeks and I know I need to change that to longer fasting periods .
I know that the more weight I discard the better for my heart and the more autophagy the better for the heart at a cellular level. At the same time I can see all these jobs that need to be done and now I feel well enough to make a start and I struggle to have the energy for physical work with longer fasts. So I need to aim for a rolling program of 36 to 42 hour fasts.

I want the readings with the next echocardiogram to be improved. Otherwise I am going to be locked into expensive travel insurance, I don’t know how long it will take before the next echocardiogram. Probably another 3 months at least. If it is 3 months then with the average fat loss rate of 0.5 lb per day of fasting I will not be at my target weight for the equestrian holidays I want to take. In the worst case I could always pay for an echocardiogram privately once I get to target if the improvement is not as much as it can be by the time of the next appointment.

Great idea DCT,I know us strugglers can help each other by a Group effort!
Ive been trying to understand just why I a) put a lot of weight back on after doing so well and b) why this time around,despite me trying to address the emotional reasons, I eat rubbish and cant commit the way i did last time.
When I lost all the weight in 2016-2017, i was dismayed to find that afterwards my legs were still fat. Went to the doctors and was told I had lymphoedema in my legs,and that I wd never have slim legs,and that there was no cure. They have got bigger and more misshapen over the years,despite me trying several ways to stop that happening. I have been quietly depressed over this,and I think its the major reason I have bouts of comfort eating. I need to come to terms with this permanent prob in my life!
So,over the last seven yrs or so,bad habits have set in again,and I can have a few weeks of following fast 800,low carb etc,then I notice my legs and lose heart. I need to be more positive.
And like our “Star of the Bus” JACKIE said,its all about gettinginto the zone,getting the right mind set. You hit the nail on the head Jackie! X
Lets try it guys! Group hug,group effort!xx
Love to all,keep on rockin!

JGWEN ive been catching up reading yr posts about fasting and yr heart probs and I admire you for your determinedness ( is that a real word!) on dealing with the heart team and their advice to you. You are definitely the Queen of the Fasters! I am gunning for you to reach yr goal before the next echocardiogram,so you can get yr travel insurance.
Well done on the collar bones! They look good even tho unhelpful when it comes to bringing down clothes sizes! The only part of my body i like is my shoulders as I never gain weight there ! My slim shoulders and big hips isnt a good look tho.
Its two weeks tomorrow since my chest xray and bloodtests,so i think they must be ok as I havent heard back from the surgery ( unless these days its just one more thing that doesnt happen fast any more in the NHS these days)
ECG is next week. I dont think my probs are long covid as i had covid 18 months ago,but chest pains/ breathlessness only started this year.
Its first thing Monday morning,so wishing all a happy healthy week ahead ..keep on keeping on! X

Hi everyone, just catching up after a hectic couple of weeks! It’s gone very quiet on here, and I hope you are all doing ok?

JACKIE how is it going? I hope you’re ever nearer to your goal? Wishing you every success!

YOWZER thanks for sharing about your lymphoedema, and I completely understand how that must get you down. I am always in awe of your lovely positivity on these threads, particularly when you are as you say quietly depressed over the situation. All I can say is that I’m sure it helps to have your body and weight in as healthy condition as you can. If nothing else, being at a healthy weight means that you can wear the kind of clothes you love, and which are flattering for your body shape. I hope that you are making progress at the moment.

CATHY how are your medical tests going?

JGWEN I hope that you are getting back to the levels of fasting you need. Fingers crossed that by the next echocardiogram you do achieve the weight loss you need. Your equestrian holiday sounds great – a very motivating goal to aim for!

SUEBLUE, NOKIE, DAWN I confess I’m currently in the naughty seat. Just keep going off plan. And have put on a couple of pounds this month. So I’ve given myself a good talking to, and YOWZER hope you don’t mind but I used your wet lettuces 😂. I’m going to start again, properly this time, from next Tuesday. Which is just before we set up the next thread so I hope to be fully on board by then in every sense of the word.

I think my problem this time round has been putting too high expectations on myself. I work part time in a school and had visions of me going back after summer a stone lighter, fit as a fiddle, perfectly groomed and with my home, admin and everything else in my life completely sorted and under control. Hmmm . . .

The truth is more like I’ve been completely knackered (it’s been a nightmare year) and just trying to catch my breath. On the positive side, I have actually done quite a lot in terms of getting home/life stuff sorted, and am also gradually getting into a better fitness regime too. The one thing I haven’t been good at is getting back on track diet-wise. But it is what it is, and rather than beat myself up about it I’m going to shake off the dust and start again. Which actually fits better with the Back to School mentality than the summer holiday one.

I have a busy few days socially – including Bank Holiday Monday – but from Tuesday am rebooting. And I will initially start on a 3:4 basis – strict 800:50 from Monday-Thursday and cut myself a bit of slack at weekends. I’m hoping that approach is more realistic for me and that, combined with the increase in exercise, will get things moving in the right direction.

Good luck everyone and hello to anyone I’ve missed. Do keep posting to let us know how you’re getting on X

Hello- Lovely to read your post DCT. I think there are a lot of us struggling for a variety of reasons at the moment. I am in limbo and trying to stay healthy but due to being stressed am not giving it 100%!! I had nerve conduction studies which were normal last week and am awaiting the results of a ankle MRI scan and an abdominal and pelvic MRI scan both of which were done last week on the NHS! I cannot fault the service I’ve received. One of my massive worries was that I would have to have my hair system removed prior to the scans and I spent many nights worrying about that. Turns out they were happy to do the scans without the faff of having to go to the salon for them to remove my hair system around the scans and then having it put back on again post scan. Would haven been a logistical nightmare! The hair system has aluminium clips so some radiologists won’t scan with the system in place: some of you may know I have suffered from alopecia since being a child. It happened after I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis aged 13 and when I was 50 I found an amazing salon in Manchester which makes bespoke hair systems- a life saver but expensive. So many sleepless nights unnecessarily worrying about how I would cope without my hair!!!! I am hoping the scans will be negative for anything sinister and am bracing myself that I might not find out why I am getting horrific electric shocks in my ankle. I’ll report in when I know and once I know where I am up to then I will hopefully get myself back on track. I have been reading a great book called “You are a badass” and I hope to be one soon!!!
My clothes are tight and I’ve not been anywhere near my scales. I hope to join in the next leg of the journey and return to being positive and successful very soon.
Hope everyone is doing ok. Even if you’re not doing great with your weight loss journey, it would be great to hear your news. Does the new journey start next week DCT? I might have some results by then.

Morning all, thanks for your posts DCT and Cathy 🙂 and good luck with your test results too Cathy. Your comment about being a badass made me smile – I lost an old friend to cancer this week, and she was a badass! She’ll be dearly missed.
When I say old I meant I’ve known her for 30 odd years, she was only 55 and has left behind 3 daughters who are similar ages to my 3.
Weight wise I’m maintaining/losing a little. When I last weighed myself about a week ago I’d lost 1/2kg (1 lb) so was moving in the right direction. I’m just not in the right headspace at the moment to focus on diet, have so many other things going on.
My MIL is going ok, she has to have a small procedure next week (skin cancer removal). Her dementia is definitely worsening and it is sad to see her deteriorating. Looking after her house and garden and financial affairs/medics appointments takes up time/mental energy too.
I’m still having issues with my hands (rheumatoid arthritis) but am seeing the specialist next week.
I’m on my way to work at the moment but will write a proper post soon!
Take care all x

Hello everyone
I was lying in bed thinking this morning and I’ve decided that I have to be positive and try to stop worrying and feeling sorry for myself. Today I am going to eat one meal. I am hoping that I might get some results this week. I’ve decided whatever they are I need to be fit and mentally strong and not feeling fat and fed up! If I need surgery then I’ll need to be in good tip top health and if my results are inconclusive then I need to brace myself for more investigations and that will mean waiting which means I’ll only be getting bigger and bigger if I don’t start being accountable now!
I want to be in the zone and sugar free when we start our next journey. So it’s going to be back to basics this next few days for me. Hopefully I’ll be in ketosis by Thursday.
SueBlue- I’m so sorry to read about you losing your friend. It’s certainly gives us perspective. It’s six months since I lost my friend and I think about her a lot.
Sending love to everyone on the bus. It’s been a rather tumultuous leg of the journey for so many of us. I hope we can all jump aboard the new bus feeling stronger and healthier and that we all get a much smoother ride in September.

Hi everyone, and hope all our UK passengers have had a lovely Bank Holiday.

CATHY you sound positive and motivated, and what you say makes perfect sense : you need to be the best you can be whatever the outcome of the tests. Good luck! I’m rebooting as of tomorrow. Going to do at least 4 strict days a week, on a 16:8, two meal a day regime.

SUE it sounds like you’ve got your hands full and I can empathise with the MiK related duties now that my mum is living close by. I hope that your hands will improve soon too.

I plan to set up a new thread from Friday for all those that want to continue. I really hope that this next thread finally sees me making some progress, and wish the same for all others that wish to do so, even if it’s been a struggle recently for whatever reasons.

When I set up the new thread I’ll also go back to one or two of our older threads and reach out to friends who were on the bus but seem to be taking a break, just to see if anyone fancies hopping on again.

Hope that you all have a good week X

I’ll be there DCT. Im starting tomoz so by Friday I might have lost some water weight and will take up less space on the bus! X

Cathy, DCT and Yowzer – I think we’re all of a similar mindset at the moment 🙂
On Sunday morning I had a bit of a ‘light bulb’ moment where I realised I have been blaming my recent health issues on the illness itself, but it could in fact be my diet making it worse! I remember the one thing that impressed me most in the early BSD days (even more so than the weight loss) was the significant reduction in inflammation I experienced, and subsequent improvement in disease symptoms … so now I’m wondering if my hands worsening is due to my diet not being the best lately? So I thought it’s definitely worth a try to get back on track with my diet to see if there’s an improvement in my health issues 🙂
I had cut down on portion sizes recently and managed to lose another 1/2kg (1lb) last week, but this week I’m focussing on reducing carbs and processed foods, and getting back into a 16:8 or 14:10 eating regime. Some of my medication has to be taken when I get up in the morning, and with/after food, and the same in the evening, so it makes the shorter eating windows more difficult.
I’ll definitely be on the next bus! And in the meantime am practicing healthier habits. I went shopping on Sunday evening and filled my trolley with fruit, veg, eggs and other proteins and completely ignored the foods I want to avoid.
I’m aiming on losing 2kg (4.4lb) first up which will see me back into the 80’s (kilos) again, then take it from there.
Hope everyone else has a good week 🙂

Cathy Dct yowzer sueblue

Well I agree with you all I am with you all !! Not sure what has happened to me this last bus 🚌 journey though I prob say this every time 🤣
I have had a few family issues and my dear old dad not well he is nearly 90 but I hate seeing him suffer he is in so much pain when he walks and can’t sleep in bed so sleeps in a chair
I seem to have lost my way AGAIN!!! So when Michael Moseley sent an email through saying there is now an app I thought as being a life time member I would pay £12 a month and rejoin the 800 for a while it might give me the incentive I need . I joined yesterday but cannot decide whether to do the new fast 800 2 days a week or keto! I would like to journey with you all on the next bus 🚌 I will let you all know how I get on I just need help and lots of it if I am ever going to loose this weight 🤣
All the people I have not mentioned sorry but you are all in my thoughts and I hope we all have success on the next bus
Sending big hugs 🤗
Lv nokie 🙏

Hey all

Checking in from Sri Lanka of all places – which turns out to be land of the Carb – I’ve had some v strange, almost pained, looks for saying ‘no rice please’.

Good news is its hot so plenty of water. Bad news is I bloat in the heat so hard to tell if I’ve lost weight and I can’t weigh or calorie count so its all a bit of a best guess.

Been so good to read all your posts and I sense a new resolve from people which is great! Look forward to the next leg of our bus journey!!

Jackie x

Hi Guys.
I heard an interesting piece of advice on one of the fasting forums about drugs that say on the packet that they have to be taken with food. – They recommended asking the advice of a pharmacist about the details. of the drug. Some drugs need to be taken with food to assist in absorption, but it may not need to be with a full meal. It could be that the advice to take with food is because some people suffer side effects if they don’t take with food, in which case you could try to take without food. Or you may only need a small amount of food which could be fiber or fat based to assist in your body using the drug rather than a full meal.

i have bought a set of scales because my doctors and the cardiac team are so fixated on monitoring weight. Apparently a sudden rise in water retention is a warning sign so I need to monitor. However its back to the usual problem. Scales seem to develop a mind of their own in my house, none of the floors are completely 100 percent level so that causes major fluctuations on the reading. A 11kg difference over 2 hours has no other reason. I am in the irritating stage of inch loss rather than kg loss, only 2 kg down in the last month.

I have an idea for lining up my next target for discard, it depends on how successful I am at the local auction today.

I can share the details of my next target now.

I have bought various items from the local auction over the years, its a good value method of buying solid furniture and of late I also buy myself some treats. Occasionally a ring or necklace catches my eye, or even a stained glass panel of the saint of beekeepers.

There was a batch of leather jackets in todays sale. One of them, a tan jacket from a good maker was just the style of jacket that I just went that’s just what I want to wear. I can picture myself going off to events or days out feeling really good in that jacket. I would like to team up with a smart pair of jeans and tee shirt but its a size too small for me, at present. So now it will be hanging up on the side of my wardrobe for the next month (or 2) acting as a constant reminder that I do want to fast.

New jackets from this company retail for around the £300 mark, and I paid £18 plus 20% commission for mine. Time to do some happy gigs around the room.

The leather felt soft, and it is a a just broken in state.

Hi everyone. Great to see some updates on here.

JACKIE – Sri Lanka!! How exciting. And well done for still watching the carbs. I’m sure with all the factors you mention that you’ll have at least maintained by the time you get back, if not lost.

YOWZER – I know what you mean about water weight. Good luck, and see you on the bus! I’m trying hard to end this journey at least at the weight I started. I’ve been very up and down, and more up than down the last couple of weeks, and I’d hate to end the journey heavier than when I started, particularly with all my high hopes.

SUE – Well done for your 1lb loss. Any loss is a loss! And I always get excited when you start meal planning as you come up with some fabulous recipes. Do share! And I reckon you could be right about your health problems being diet-related – I’d be interested to see how that goes. It’s like the conversation I had with JGwen about the healing effects of autophagy. I do want to build some longer fasts into our next journey to see how it impacts my other health conditions.

JGWEN – Go you! The leather jacket sounds fab! And I love the idea of treating yourself at the auctions. What a great motivation to boost your fasting and weight loss. I’ll be delighted when some of these excess pounds come off and I can fit into all the clothes that are currently too small for me.

NOKIE – let us know how you get on with the app? I usually tend to be very much a “go it alone” person so would not normally subscribe to an app, though I do use my FitBit for steps and sometimes for food tracking too. But I have found these forums really helpful over the years, and I regard you all as friends even though we have never met. So I’d be interested to find out what added value the app gives, and if it helps to keep you motivated and on track. Good luck!

Enjoy the rest of the journey everyone, and I’ll set up the new thread on Friday X

PS JGWEN I was also interested to read your post about taking tablets with food, as I’m in a similar situation to Sue in terms of taking different tablets at different times of the day, all of which are “supposed” to be with food. And I’d been concerned about how this would work if I do build in some longer fasts. So will look into this in a bit more detail and plan accordingly . . . . .

JGwen- your leather jacket story has inspired me. I bought a dress from Vinted that I loved. It is a size 14 but when I tried it on – I couldn’t zip it up! I have to say it’s a small 14. I therefore put it back up for sale on Vinted but after reading your post I have decided to keep the dress and I am using it as my goal! It might take a couple of months but I intend taking that dress on my cruise next year and it will fit me well. Today I am on day 4 of one meal a day. I am going to do OMAD for 30 days. I’ll be climbing on board the new bus on Friday and am looking forward to a new and happy journey . (No scan results available yet- hopefully next week). Going to do my best to be positive.

CATHY good for you with that dress. I think it’s a great idea to have some aspirational clothes to spur us on. Sadly, rather too many of mine are in that category at the moment! But here we are, ready for a new thread, and let’s hope it goes well for all of us.

I will set it up now and get that bus rolling!!