Does anyone here use a simple, cheap activity tracker? I’ve not found much help elsewhere on the forum. I don’t want to spend a lot or get too technical, just monitor steps and activity. I do have a smartphone. Thanks in advance.

I wouldn’t be without my fitbit, and it generally is very reliable with the app- some of them are less expensive than others, but I know there are cheaper trackers around than fitbit.

Hi RubyG

I’ve got a VeryFitPro wristband which measures steps, heart rate and can do other things but I don’t use the other features, it’s pretty accurate, I did some manual counting and compared it to the count step on the band and it was accurate. There’s an app you can download with it for free that tells you how many calories you’ve burned and distance travelled as well as monitoring your sleep pattern. About £25 on Amazon

Did you know if you have an iPhone it has an integral step counter under “Apple Health” – I think you have to turn it on, and most accurate if you keep the phone in your trousers pocket when walking, it’s not very accurate if you keep it in your coat pocket! (Band says 8000 steps today about 4 miles, iPhone says nearly 15000 😂 but was in a loose pocket when I went walking! I know I haven’t walked 15000 steps today!)

Lauren

Thanks, I’ll probably go for a £25-ish one and see how I get on. Hubby is fussy and doesn’t like the wristband ones, wants one that looks like a normal watch! I’ve put them on the wishlist and will order tomorrow.

Tulip1 thank you for the tips- some good measurements to aspire to. I feel grateful for my 5ft 5 ins height when I see your bmi normal weight starting from 6stone!! And I think just under 11 stone (top end of my bmi normal) is light! My name is what it often feels like day to day. I have two teens so decided it would be easier working from kitchen rather than study. If I had a time motion camera… kids come in every five mins, check fridge, eat something. I eat most calories vicariously and have now turned into a ‘feeder’. Have had cast iron Will but it’s starting to slip. Skittle I’ve had very similar progress to you. But I’m sure we’ve got this! Flora85 I tried your cauliflower mash yesterday with vege sausages and broccoli and a bit of gravy – delicious thanks.

Hi working!

That’s what I’m having tomorrow!! Except with sprouts and I’m going to roast some shallots too , really looking forward to it!

I am indeed a Neighbours fan! I blooming love Sheila. Are you a fan?

Workingfromthefridge- wow! That’s a challenge, being in the kitchen- but I see why re being there for the children etc. And yes- it’s been a long time coming where I’ve actually had to learn that no, I can’t eat as much as my husband, and tall people, and my growing teens…. 😂….I have (had?) a naturally big appetite that this WOE is doing a lot to curb 😁

Yes Sheila, I’m a Neighbours fan too …. have been for years. Like my daily dose of aussie soap, including Home and Alway as well.

Morning all

I’m feeling mega peeved/annoyed/frustrated today!! End of week 7, I’ve been strict, carbs always below 50g, and often 35g, not cheated, religiously walking 3 miles a day even though I hate it, religiously drinking boring disgusting water till I feel like I’m going to pop, avoided cold medicines this week even though I feel rotten, doing 16:8 TRE and I’m in ANOTHER plateau. Not lost any weight this week at all. Also just checked my measurements and waist and bust have inexplicably gone up but hips down???

I am at a complete loss now to be honest, I’ve lost 21lb so far which I know is great but to be honest not that much more than I would have done on a “normal” diet by now (I’ve experience of that too). I just feel so flat, I’ve still got another 5st at least to lose to be even grazing the top of healthy BMI, this is the third week out of 7 I’ve had no loss at all and measurements are clearly wacky. Weighing everything, tracking everything. Just feel completely stuck in a rut and like is it even worth it! I’ve got a planned day off on Sunday for Valentine’s Day and I’m going to have it but I’m really worried that I’ll put weight on and just not be able to shift it again.

Sigh!

PS SunnyB home and away is awesome but I stopped watching when it moved to Channel 5 😞

Lauren, you can do it! It was not unusual for me not to discard anything for 10-14 days at a time (I’m maintaining now) and it felt like everyone else was getting a nice even discard every week (they weren’t – we all hit a bit of a bump sooner or later). In fact, nothing seemed to go to plan. In the first week I put on a couple of pounds – the time when everyone else seems to be flying. I was also really strict – below 20g carb, so it felt incredibly unfair. But I hung on and the progress continued. The difference with this WOE for me is that it really did become a WOE that I enjoyed and found easy to live with, not a diet and perhaps it will work out that way for you too? It’s definitely normal to feel frustrated and disappointed when we are working so hard but having to wait for tangible progress. Even if you can’t see it all the time, it doesn’t mean that your body isn’t making changes that will add up and become apparent in due course.

I also found that my measurements didn’t always come out as I wanted or expected. I dropped 2 sizes on my hips before my waist even thought about getting a mm smaller. And I suspect that hormones had a lot to answer for when it came to strange measurements!

With the water drinking, lots of people find fizzy water (I get the cheap stuff from Aldi) a nice change and I put a slice of lime in it, or a fruit or ginger teabag in now and then. Maybe this would make it feel slightly less of a chore? Same thing with the walking – I wonder if there’s any way to make it feel more appealing? Could you listen to music or a podcast or talking book? (I just put one earphone in so that I’m still aware of my surroundings if I am walking alone). It’s horrible when we are doing things that we know are supposed to be good for us but they feel like a punishment!

Lauren …. first of all, a big virtual hug …. sounds like you really need it right now.
Secondly, I feel your frustration…. it must seem very unreasonable that there doesn’t seem to be positive results, when you are doing everything by the book. Think many of us have been there at one point or another.
However, weight loss is not linear and there will be times our bodies pause to adjust and these are the times to try to stay focused and press on, because the results WILL happen…. even if not by the schedule we desire.
Hold on to the progress to date and take a look at other pluses too …. is the walk easier than when you began with this WOE? Are your energy levels higher? Do you sleep better?
Bryla has put forward some good suggestions, mine would be to perhaps shake up the walking, with some kind of alternative exercise at home a couple of times a week.
And also to stop looking at the end goal and set some mini goals to help break things up and give a sense of achievement. These could be getting into a new weight bracket, or a drop in measurement, or some other non-scales victory. Would also suggest when you reach a goal, having some kind of non-food related reward planned. These strategies will help with keeping a sense of achievement and help maintain focus.
We none of us can expect to be 100% focused all the time though and when things aren’t going well, we need to be kind to ourselves.
Really hope you will be able to take space to breathe and review, before dusting yourself off and carrying on. Enjoy Sunday and don’t feel guilty about it, but come back fresh on Monday to continue.

Hi everyone, florob, looks like you have had some great advice. Your body is just taking a breather and the weird inch loss is part of that, shifting itself around. It will settle down. There is a time when many people give up on a diet because they think it is just not working for them but you just need to hang on in there and give it a chance. Keep on keeping on…

We all have our ups and downs and today mine was a down. Gone down under 12 stone, gone under 76 kg now at 75.9 kg. I am now at my pre-Christmas weight and on track for my Easter goal of 13lbs. Stones, pound, kilos – all a good excuse to write on my fridge chart.

Waiting to hear from my friend. She has had some bad nights when they have kept her awake to do turnings through the night along with the discomfort of an oxygen mask – word of caution for those who wont wear masks, these masks are much worse – but she seems to have come through the worst.

Thanks Ladies for the pep talk, sometimes needed!

Sunshinegirl well done on your loss and new goal, I hope your friend continues to improve – it can be a long old road but sounds like she is past the worst, she’ll probably do most of her recuperating once she is discharged – we all know hospitals are anything but restful! Good news is in the UK we have just been told our R0 is below 1 nationwide for the first time since July, so a tiny inkling of hope!

Re the water, I do actually quite like fizzy water and do drink it quite a lot, I buy the 17p bottles from Tesco! But I always worry that it’s not real ‘water’ – I know purists will always say it has to be just plain water, but that doesn’t make a lot of sense to me as fizzy water doesn’t have anything except carbon dioxide added! I also drink black tea and coffee as I actually prefer it that way, but I try to get the 2L plain water on top, it’s really tough when it’s so cold though!

Re the walking, well I do normally listen to music or an audiobook while I’m out and about, today however my partner declared he was going to come with me. Then proceeded to litter pick all the way round, which is admirable, but incredibly aggravating! Hence a stompy walk by a grumpy bear! I just find walking quite tedious and always have, but I’m generally not a fan of exercise in general, never have been, it just does not give me that ‘buzz’ that people seem to witter on about and I end up just feeling dirty and stinky and gross and shattered – not helped by having CFS/ME which means I have to be super careful about overexerting myself. But it is true I have noticed I’m finding it marginally easier now than I was a few weeks ago so maybe I’m slowly getting a little fitter. I think part of the trouble is at the moment in lockdown we are only supposed to stay local, and only leave the house once a day or if strictly necessary. I live in a nice little village but little is the key word and there are only so many routes! We live tantalisingly (but not walking distance) close to Thetford Forest which is gorgeous but it feels wrong to drive up there at the moment for a change of scenery with the lockdown! There is a nice little area to walk that is only a five min drive away but I nearly broke my ankle tripping over what could only have been an ant’s leg there two years ago and I’m irrationally scared of the path now!

Still onwards I go. I’ve just broken my fast with an egg wrap (which actually broke up into egg chunks) with ham and cream cheese, 8 roasted almonds and a glass of apple cider vinegar in sparkling water. Cauldron sausages with cauli/garlic mash, brussel sprouts and shallots and a smidge of gravy tonight and all in all 750 cal and only 22g carbs so not doing too bad today. I’ll keep on keeping on, just needed a rant I think and thank you for indulging me!

L x

Lauren, glad you’re finding the positives … feeling a bit fitter etc. I really don’t think it makes any difference if it’s plain water or fizzy, so do what you feel is right for you. If you prefer fizzy, drink fizzy … and switch it up with some cal/carb free flavourings if you wish.
I’m not keen on exercise either, so largely just do some at home, again, do what feels right for you and don’t stress about it.
This is absolutely the right place to come to vent and is a large part of why we’re here. It sounds like you have today’s menu sorted Lauren and are in control, so well done on battling on despite low mood.
SG, hope your friend makes a good recovery.
Best wishes to everyone for a good valentine weekend …. enjoy!

Hi everyone. We’ve just entered another 5 day hard lockdown in Melbourne/Victoria – hopefully this will be short and effective to get the new strain under control – but has thrown lots of peoples Valentine’s Day and Lunar New Year celebrations into disarray. I’ll distract myself with watching tennis on TV and perhaps some much needed weeding. Also am planning some fluffy lupin flour pancakes for next Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday). Esnecca* often mentioned lupin flour so I bought some online, but haven’t tried it yet. The pancakes are 80kcals each and about 1g carb – and I’ll make some chia jam to go with it – just berries and chia seeds. Something new to look forward too. Tonight is a small steak with anchovy sauce, and brocolli etc.

*For those not familiar with the wonderful Esnecca – Wendy re-posted one of her inspiring stories here https://thebloodsugardiet.com/forums/topic/one-week-at-a-time-beginning-march-10th-2020/#post-122793

Merry, sorry you guys are facing a snap lockdown, but as you say, hopefully it will have good results. Thanks for the reminder about the lupin flour, will be looking in to an online purchase of that myself now. Enjoy your dinner … it sounds delicious!

Hi all. Great to read all the posts and gain encouragement from shared experiences. I’m happy to report that the scales moved again after a hiatus, and I’m now 78.5 kg which is exactly 10 kg (22 pounds) down.
My current issues is dreadful constipation :(. I tried gallons of water, along with all my veg but no luck. I’ve started resorted to senna tablets, which aren’t good to stay on long term. Has any one got any ideas? I think I’ve read magnesium, but there seems to be so many types. Does anyone have one they recommend please? Im in Australia.
Thanks so much
Alison

Hi Alison … it’s magnesium citrate you need to look for, I’m sure if you do on online search, you’ll find an Aussie product. Things like psyllium, chia and flax might also help long term, as they all add fibre. Best of luck with it, I know from personal experience, it’s not much fun!

Hi Alison, I had the exact same problem last week, SunnyB suggested magnesium for me which I’ve now got but the thing that got me sorted last week was chia pudding – no other fibre seemed to help! I made chia pudding with 25g chia seeds and 85ml unsweetened almond milk, left to set for a couple of hours and then topped with added nuts and two prunes – it did work! I had it for lunch, all in all about 300 cal so not too bad and filling so I didn’t need anything else

Lauren

Hi everyone, yes chia seeds do it for me everytime although they do give me stomach ache before the event…

Just looking at my numbers since lockdown. I have lost just under 10lbs since this time last year, today I am just under my pre-Christmas 2020 weight and if I can lose another 5lbs I am matching my lowest weight ever on the BSD in the last 4.5 years. My current 2021 goal was 13lbs in 13 weeks and I am week 6 (on Tuesday) and 5.5lbs down, so nearly there. Slowly slowly was my reasoning and it is working fine. Chinese meal tonight so might do a bit of damage with the nems but been very careful through the day.

My friend is not doing too well and I am waiting to hear from her today to see if she is any better. Love her to bits, we have been friends for over 40 years.

Hi all,
I’ve just skimmed the posts, but good to see people really giving things a go. S-g, you are an inspiration as always, and amazing that you are keeping so close to your goal. Others on this thread are doing so well as well.
Thanks so much for the reminder about chia pudding. I make mine with almond milk and a couple of tablespoons of coconut milk. I will need it this week as I am now back on my iron tablets.
I’m feeling a little lonely at the moment. I think for the most part I have been coping quite well with our latest lockdown, as I keep busy with my horse and see the odd person at the yard from a distance and sometimes even have a bit of a chat. I haven’t seen as many people this week though as most people have stayed home in the cold weather or gone out midday to look after their horses when it is a bit warmer. I haven’t had that option until this weekend as I have been working all week. A work colleague invited me to go cross country skiing with her on Monday, which is a holiday, at a local ski area and I was quite excited to be able to get out and do something a bit different and to see someone different (I have only ever seen her in person 3 times, but we talk on the phone most days). But alas, I remembered that I have the farrier coming for my horse on Monday, so won’t be able to go. I think the disappointment combined with not seeing many people this week is responsible for suddenly making me feel lonely.
Anyway, I did get my skis out of their storage space, so I may have a go at skiing around my field in the mornings before work this week. It has finally warmed up to -12 C and may even reach 0 C by Thursday! I think I have finally become fed up enough with my stagnation to try to do something about it again. I’m going to attempt 2 strength workouts this week and will be doing an audit of my diet to see where I can improve. I’ve definitely had some carb creep recently, but that is usually down to cravings created by the iron deficiency, so hopefully I’ll be able to kick them to the kerb as my iron status improves somewhat.
KOKO everyone!

Aw big hugs Arcticfox, being lonely sucks – I think we’re all starting to feel it now with this interminable pandemic and endless phone calls, video conferences etc! I realised the other day I’ve only had actual physical contact with my partner now for a year, while I’ve seen others when restrictions were lighter ive not actually touched another person in a year, madness!

Hope you feel better soon!

Arcticfox- where do you live? It sounds very cold!!!!!

I agree- so weird not hugging friends!!

Hi all. Well done, Kiltgirl! Great start. Peeing like a racehorse was my experience too at the beginning! I’m sure going back and forth to the loo boosted my step count no end. Getting back comfortably into those newish jeans might be a great non-scale victory to aim for. I completely understand the junk food binge. You’ve had success with this WOE before, so keep believing in yourself – I belive in you too!

Great work, Sunshine Girl! I do hope you get a positive update from your friend soon.

Confession time. After more than 13 months I cracked and bought chocolate shortbread yesterday. And ate some. And again this morning. The good thing is that I have now consigned the remainder to the food waste bin. Last night I also ate to the point where I was uncomfortably full – can’t remember the last time I did that. I feel that I temporarily lost my mind! Why would I do that after all this time? Definitely feels like self-harm. Like ArcticFox I am finding the loneliness so very hard. I haven’t touched another human being for 11 months and the only bare faces I see are other dog walkers – much less footfall in my area during the cold weather just now, so even hellos and smiles are hard to come by. This has been building for a while now and I am trying really hard to fight it. Since the start of January I have really upped my exercise to try to improve my mood Cardio and weights. It works at the time and for a short period afterwards but I wish I could hang on to more emotional equilibrium and keep the lonliness at bay. I know it’s mind over matter but blimey, it’s hard. I’m not looking for any answers, but I know this is somewhere that everyone will understand here and it helps to get it off my chest.

I love chia pudding too. I make it with coconut milk these days, but I do find it so rich that I only want a bit. Definitely one of the things that helps me not to be bunged up. I remember having a couple of weeks of real desperation in that respect last year, but it did pass. I take magnesium citrate and I also think that milled linseed was good for me – I add some to full fat yoghurt, or even in cauliflower mash (actually improves the texture imo!).

Happy Valentine’s to everyone in every situation. I will be having a loved-up day with my dog. She is my rock.

Kiltgirl, welcome … thanks for sharing your story so frankly. It sounds like you’ve made a solid start and I’m sure those jeans will soon fit nicely. Keep posting and feel free to shout out if you need advice or support at any point.
SG, you’re really nailing it! Congrats on great progress.
Think a lot of people are finding this latest lockdown really hard. Wonder if it is because after the previous two, we thought that was all done with and normality would soon return? It is really hard not being able to hug someone and even harder not having real person to person interaction, even if it is just a smile or hello. Very isolating, so really think it’s important we are kind to ourselves in these crazy times. Big hugs to you all for a relaxed and cosy Sunday.

Hi everyone, might have had a little slip last night with the spring rolls – very carby. We also had some pre-made miso soup which was absolutely vile, too much fish sauce in it that it stank and was slimey. Yuck. I usually make my own but I have run out of miso paste which I normally buy in the UK and cant seem to get it here in France (help anyone out there who lives here). Even tried Grand Frais which has a massive Asian section.

I told my weight loss story to explain why I am happy with such slow weight loss. I have lost the weight and just now want to maintain but with an eye to getting a bit lower and doing it slowly means I can have a full life as this diet plan is forever for me. It controls my diabetes and while that is working I will stay on it whether I am losing weight or not.

My friend seems to be much better and I will have a virtual chat with her in a minute. Just want to cut into the boredom of being in a hospital bed and not allowed any visitors. Those of us in lockdown (and that is just about everybody) are feeling the loneliness and the boredom and the pressures but nothing like the total isolation of being hospitalised. We are now almost giving up hope of seeing our family at Easter. Hubby might have had his jabs – not had his first yet – but it is almost certain I wont have had mine even though I am in a vulnerable category. Doesnt just depend on that, it will need borders opening up again without the quarantine restrictions. Not trying to put a dampener on hope but trying to be realistic so I dont get yet another knock back.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and stay safe.

SG (and other long-timers), your perseverance is a great example to all of us newer to this WOE and aiming to make it our long term plan!
I’ve just made the greek tapenade with feta from the fast 800 book- love it!!!!! And it was a hit with the rest of the family too- I’ve been told to double the recipe when I promised to make more tomorrow 😂

Thinking of everyone in lockdown. It must be so stressful and isolating. Stay strong. We are stuck in our own state. NSW. By choice because we don’t know if and when state borders will open or close. We are ver lucky because we’ve gone nearly a month without a case. Missing our family in Tassie, though. We have cancelled 2 trips there. I was on edge wondering if we’d get there and then be forced to isolate. We couldn’t expect to isolate with our family as they need to work/ go to school. Still wearing my mask and keeping my distance. So we’ve now booked four short holidays throughout NSW for 2021 and booked Tassie for Nov. I am focusing on the first one, which is in April, and put all my effort into staying on track until then. Something to look forward to. I’ve put 4k on since Nov. and have been struggling as my husband is no longer doing this WOE. He is now retired, I have been retired 11 years, and wants to come shopping with me. He eats anything and everything. His weight is OK but he has T2D.
I have slept through the night 5 out of 6 nights in our new bed. Someone posted they ate cheese at midnight. I ate nuts. My stomach feels tight. They do help with the dreaded constipation that goes with this WOE. I will try the Chia seeds.
Keep your spirits up everyone. Sending hugs. 😊😊😊😊

Hello! Start Fast 800 in Jan and lost about 6lbs but fizzled out. Need to start again! Aiming to lose 1st 3.

I will be back later with a longer post but just wanted to wish Tulip / Clare 🌷 a very happy birthday today !

Have a lovely day Clare ! 😘
Wendy xxx

thank you Wendy 😍😍😍😍😍
(there will be cake, the less said about that the better, ooh and pancakes tomorrow!…..some serious fast days coming up later this week lol….and just started the day with v healthy breakfast)

Love to all, Clare xxxxxxxx

Happy birthday Tulip!

I’m back on the train after an enjoyable (and planned!) day off yesterday. We trialled the afternoon tea we’re having if we’re allowed to get married in 8 weeks (fingers crossed!!) and a m+s dine in for two deal (I only had two courses as my partner chose the rack of lamb for main and I hate hate hate lamb so I had the cheese tart from the starter as my main!). Sandwiches from afternoon tea were all a bit fishy (lots of salmon involved) and fancy pants so we will be asking them to just go plain, we aren’t fancy people 😂

All very enjoyable and I have to say I did not feel any ill effects at all (which is mildly concerning) although the carb withdrawal headache today is something else!

I had resolved to not weigh till next weekend because I knew it was going to be bad news, but I was a glutton for punishment and weighed – 5lb gain with ONE DAY OFF PLAN!!!!! 😱😱😱😱😱😱

I know most of that will be water weight – I certainly didn’t eat 20000 calories yesterday for that to be fat! But kind of depressing nonetheless and sad really because it just makes me miss the carbs even more because I know realistically I’m not ever going to be able to indulge in pasta or cake etc. again and I’m sorry but I still miss those things! I know our tastes are meant to change on this plan but mine haven’t, I’m not saying I don’t enjoy SOME of the food (some of the recipes I’ve tried are truly disgusting so I won’t say all!) but it is all rather tedious and unfortunately I was brought up on a diet of stodge and it’s still stodge that pushes the button for me, sigh I shall have to get used to it I guess. Those cravings for carbs have not diminished even a tiny bit over the last seven weeks so it really is a lesson in willpower for me!

So I’ve decided to start fresh 8 weeks today, wipe away the weekend and start fresh. New start weight
18st 1.6lbs (sigh it was 17.10 on Saturday)
Goal (eventually) 12st 7
Short term goal – get under 17st maybe in next 8 weeks

Eaten today:
Lunch – Greek yoghurt with walnuts and seeds
Dinner – chicken and roasted med veg with pesto and salad
Drank – about 89 gallons of water

Just keep swimming just keep swimming

Lauren

The day has flown by and I have been stuck in front of my computer screen all day with various bits of French bureaucracy to negotiate.

I should be used to it by now , ho hum !

Off to set up the new thread !

Happy birthday to Tulip