I’m trying to psych myself up to start the 800 cal, 8 week diet, but I cook for my family and I am seriously wondering how doable this diet will be?

I have successfully lost weightbefore, 3 stones (and put it ALL back on again!) on a low carb diet, by eating family meals, but substituting the carbs with salad or green veg for myself and this seems to be more workable, rather than following the diet plan to the letter, which would necessitate cooking separate meals for myself.

If I still keep to 800 cals per day, but don’t follow the diet plan in the book, will I still achieve the same results?

Depends on what results you are hoping to achieve.

The research that inspired this diet used 600 calories of liquid meals + 200 calories of low carb veggies. It induced diabetic remission in 100% of the obese, newly-diagnosed diabetics. The follow-up study was less successful (somewhere around 50%, I believe), with high success in newly-diagnosed (<4 years) and much lower with longer-term diagnoses. A third study is in progress to see if it is as successful with home implementation (less monitoring).

If you are only trying to lose weight, 800 calories of twinkies will accomplish that – at roughly the same rate as following the diet. You’ll probably struggle more (a lot more) with sticking to the diet – since twinkies often trigger cravings for more twinkies.

The beauty of this diet (for most people who are unable to stick to diets without feeling starved) is that it removes/minimizes strong hunger triggers (carbs) and replaces them with things that make you feel satiated for longer (fats and proteins & to a lesser extent certain complex carbohydrates). [This is not universally true – for me, fats trigger cravings, as does the lack of carbs. So I actually struggle more with this diet than with other diets. I’ve learned to sort out which fats trigger cravings (bacon, for one) and avoid them. But it is largely true for most people]

They beauty for long term maintenance is that you can easily scale up the principles (what foods to eat lots of, what to avoid) to a higher calorie level because you are eating real, healthy, food. You don’t have to make a change to non-diet food once you reach your weight loss goal – you just get to eat more of what you’re eating to lose weight.

You might be better off in the long run by feeding your family this diet, perhaps supplemented by things you shouldn’t eat – and just eating less of what you are feeding them. This goes to the last point I made – this isn’t diet food. It is food everyone can eat and enjoy that would generally contribute to better health for all of your family.

This is definitely doable 🙂 I think doing exactly as you described is a great option that will fit in with your lifestyle with minimum disruption, which will make it easiest for you to stick with. I’m nearly 3 weeks into this (lost 12.6 lbs week 1, and 4.8 lbs week 2) and haven’t used a single recipe from the book. Instead I carefully record everything and stick to the principles of 800 calories per day and less than 50g of carbs (all coming from veg and pulses etc, no bread rice pasta etc etc). Go for it, you won’t regret it!

Hi Whoopsie Daisy
I have not stuck to the diet menu, but have stuck to the spirit of the diet, eating 800 cals a day, keeping an eye on carbs and making sure to keep fluid intake up. Think many on the forum are working this way and seeing good results, whilst training their bodies to accept a new eating regime to stand them in good stead going forward. So yes, cook the meals you normally would for the family, but keep your portions in control, so that you meet the 800cals (or there abouts), using leafy veg and salad to replace carbs. Make sure to keep you fat intake up, as this really helps to keep you feeling fuller for longer and helps your body to kick into fat burning mode.
You can do this and be successful. Use the forum for advise and support and to post your results.
Good luck!

I cook for a family and have not followed the recipes in the book. I’ve been really obsessive with calorie counting though and have stuck rigidly to avoiding all the rubbish. As a result I’m now starting week 7 and my blood sugar readings have halved plus I’ve lost almost 20lbs.
The testing thing for me at present is avoiding temptations as am on holiday in Cornwall and am surrounded by fish&chips, pasties and cream teas.Doing well so far as taking packed lunch out and have resisted everything! !

Hi Whoopsie Daisy,
I cook for my fairly large family and have so far managed to stick fairly well to the diet. I haven’t used the recipes because I’m not a recipe kind of person, more a chuck it together and hope for the best type.
I personally find it hard to face a plate of meat and salad without the carbs I’m used to, so instead I use a big noodle bowl. First I put in plenty of leafy greens, then add whatever veg we’re having (cooked or raw) & the meat/cheese or whatever cut up into small pieces. Last I drizzle with homemade dressing like olive oil/lemon/yogurt/mustard etc. and herbs., or even a squirt of BBQ Sauce (I’m in Aus., I think you call it Brown Sauce in the UK) and some seeds and toss it all together.
When I eat this way I don’t notice how much salad/veg I’m chewing my way through and each piece of meat or cheese etc. seems like a little bonus. Also using the bowl stops me noticing how my meal compares to everyone else’s.
I know it’s the same food I would have spread on a plate, but it somehow feels more decadent and I don’t mourn the loss of the potatoes/rice/pasta so much. I’m slowly weaning my family off the large portions of carbs as well.
I’ve been able to do this with almost every dinner I’ve cooked. The exception is ‘pasta’ night where I serve myself bolognese over spiralized veg which I also add to the family’s pasta.
Leeanne, you could probably do the bowl thing at a restaurant too if you order a side salad & entree or kids portion of protein with veg instead of chips.
Just a suggestion, hope this helps.

Oh and as for results, I’m just starting week 7 and my fasting sugar has come down from 17 to 8, I’ve lost 8kg (17.6lbs) and my waist is down by 22cm so making up your own meals can definitely work.

I’m the main cook for my wife and two kids (5 and 2 yo boys). I’ve stuck to it despite cooking stuff for them I aren’t eating.

Ironically, I’ve been making the best roast potatoes I’ve ever done! And can’t touch them! Also did home made Fisk and chips for the kids… Smell was delicious! Lol.

I cope by making bad jokes/taking cheap shots at my wife – every serve of mash or roast potatoes is dismissed by me as “white death”, for example. And I feign outrage whenever she suggests I have ever treated my body as anything other than a temple…

Hardest thing is my Saturday morning ritual of making pancakes with my eldest. We’ve been doing it since we was two, and it’s lost a little magic, as he’s a it puzzled as to why I’m not tucking in with him and his brother. But he knows it’s so I can lose my “big fat tummy” (kids get right to the heart of an issue, don’t they?)

Seriously. The weight falling off is enough to stiffen any resolve. You can do it!

Hi Toofastblack, could you do the pancakes out of gram or coconut flour? You could eat it as a brunch maybe, with cream or yoghurt and berries. That would keep your son happy. Use one of the flatbreads recipes on this site perhaps. 🙂

Thank you for your replies. I think that I am going to use the principles of med-style, low carb eating and use MyFitnessPal to record calories/carbs/fat.

Am I correct that the maximum number of carbs per day is 50g? I’m also confused about the meaning of “net carbs”, maybe I need to post separately to ask that question!

Hi Whoopsie Daisy
the amount of carbs isn’t actually mentioned in the book.
The 50 gram figure came from some research that shows that level of carbs per day will put you into ketosis or fat burning mode although it is still very possible to lose weight with an intake of up to 80 grams. The 50 does promote faster weight loss though.

Hi, I’ve been doing this too. It isn’t that hard. The whole family is eating more vegetables and slightly less carbs at family meal times (they still eat the same amount at breakfast and school or work), which I think is a good thing. We also have more brown and wild rice than we used to, no white rice – I have a tiny portion. When they have pasta I have the same sauce but with grated carrot or courgette – it isn’t as nice, but it is okay. Similarly when they have jacket potato I have grilled mushrooms as in the book. We are all eating more apples and berries rather than tropical fruit, again I have a small portion. We have added some other whole grains too. For some meals I simply miss out the potatoes – it is important for me not to cook too many so that there are no potato leftovers.

Hi whoopsiedaisy, I often have non BSD friends round and just don’t have the carbs, sometimes I make a bsd meal and people don’t seem to notice 🙂