So so interesting about the fats, Elle. JGwen is a genius in finding thought provoking
podcasts! I made it to 22:2 today. I know that it’s completely due to your thread, so MANY
thanks 🙂

Woohoo, that’s ace, Allie 👏🏽 It is so useful to have somewhere safe to share experiences. How was it this time and how did you feel after?
My main reason for trying out IF is to continue to lose a bit more, but I am also interested to read about the health benefits.

Wow Allie! You did it! 👏👏👏👍. How did you manage to conceal it from the bearded one? Or was he holed up in his study?

Congrats Allie!

It’s funny that there seem to be few of us “hiding” the fasting from our other halves 😄
I do it too, he works abroad so I always time my longer fasts around his work roster. He loves a good big pharma/bad food industry conspiracy but fasting seems to be a step too far for him and I can’t be bothered listening to him 😉

I’ve been losing inches instead of pounds these last 2 weeks, has anyone experienced this with fasting? I think I heard about it being quite normal for women in a Megan Ramos podcast.
Not that I’m complaining! It’s really nice to see the changes, hoping the weight will follow soon though! I did have a sudden big loss I couple of weeks ago but since then nada.

Also meant to say, once again I’m so grateful I found this way of life! My parents are normally so fit and healthy and active but at the moment need quite a bit of help with everyday things due to 2 very random accidents. I would’ve been in bits mentally and physically had this happened a year ago.

Thank you, thank you, ladies! The fates just seem to conspire yesterday, because I slept
much later than usual, so I decided it was the perfect day to push it and see how far I could
go 🙂 I felt fine, Elle! I will say that when it was time to have dinner (marinated swordfish)
it was the most superb piece of fish that I’ve ever eaten 🙂 For now, I only plan on doing
this 1 x week, and will switch off between 16:8 and 18:6 for the remainder of the week.

He WAS holed up in the study, Kazz! He’s more or less oblivious to how I spend the day,
but if I was doing this through the dinner hour he would certainly notice…

I’m fasting for the health benefits too, Elle. No more weight loss required 🙂

Oh Amarella! I so know what you mean!!! I had to be on the top of my game during OH’s
hospitalization last year, and pre-BSD I never could have managed it. Like you, I’m so
grateful to have found this WOL. I’m sorry about your parents, it sounds like a very
unsettling time for you. JGwen has had the same experience, inches gone but stalled
weight loss, and I hope that she will be along to share her experiences with you 🙂 Our
individual bodies are complex things, but inches lost is still a great thing…Congratulations!

Allie

Hi Amarela,
As Allie says, I have been going through a period of no scale change but inch change. – At one point I dropped a dress size but only dropped 1 kg. – I think the difference between my experience and that of Allie who consistently lost weight every week is lifestyle and levels of daily activity. – I have a physically active way of life. Currently it seems as if its my legs that are changing shape, and the irritating spare tyre is still there.
I recently came across an interview with Megan (I recently posted a link to it on the take a look at this thread) where she mentions that as a result of fasting to achieve increase in growth hormone, she has increased her the weight of her bones by 7lb. – Guess that’s the advantage of working in one of the labs with all the kit to monitor body changes.

Today, after my 24 hour fast yesterday, I’ve been sooo hungry! As it’s the first week after the 800, I was thinking I should stick to around 850, this week. But there was no chance of that today. I’ve eaten onplan foods, but around 1050. Anyone else find this after a fasting day?

I only achieved 22:2 yesterday, Elle, but today I had to go to 16:8. It’s only early afternoon
here, so I don’t know yet where I will end up calorie wise, but so far I don’t feel hungrier than
usual…I’m interested to know when your first meal (time wise) was today? Although I’m
2+ years into this WOL, I’m as new to extended IF as you are. Let’s share our observations!

Allie

Yes, Allie, I am very happy to share, and I am also interested to hear what others are doing. (Amerela and JGwen, I’d love to hear what you have tried, if and when you get a moment).
So, this is my week:
Sunday, 16:8, around 850 cals, as only the first day off the 8wks800. I made sure I ate enough fats. Finished eating at 6pm.
Monday, fasting day. Drank black coffee, green tea, water. Had a cup of bone broth at about 1.30pm. Light meal of fish and veg at about 6pm. Total cals were low, aiming for 500 but came in at around 400 max.
Tuesday, eating 3 meals today, was aiming for 850/900 cals but ended up eating 1050. Snacked on nuts after lunch. Was hungry most of the day until I’d had my evening meal, then I was suddenly full!
Wednesday will be 16:8
Thursday probably a 24 fast.
Friday 16:8
Saturday, probably 16:8 – family party.

NB: I am aware that some people see comments on fasting to be competitive. I would just like to say that, speaking personally, I dont see it that way at all. For me, I see it as supportive, like the rest of the forum, and I love to hear how others are doing it. If you do longer, or shorter, I would love to hear. That’s what this thread is for – people who have experience of fasting, and have found a way that works for them, or who are experimenting, or who want to know more. And yes, we know it’s not suitable for everyone. Okay, so, my back has now been well and truly covered 😉.

Just realised, wrote all that and didnt answer your question Allie. All you asked was, what time my first meal was today and I wrote you an essay! 😂
So I had coffee at 8am, and 9, lunch at 12, dinner at 6. Plus nuts in between.

Thank you, Elle. I’m so interested in how others reason what will work for them! I started
by asking JGwen how she allocated food in her 4 hour eating window, which was so
helpful. Krysia added to my knowledge by describing the extraordinary effects of autophagy
in tightening her skin. I don’t have a competitive bone in my body either, so I’m just looking
for my personal “best”. Every experience adds to my confidence, so I’m very interested
in hearing how things are going for you, and there is no such thing as too much information 🙂
I can’t really limit calories, or my weight will go too low, so I’m just chasing the health
benefits, and hoping for the production of human growth factor and some tightening of
the skin! Are you doing reverse dieting at the same time as IF? Have you determined an
appropriate TDEE for you that you are working toward? I know, I ask a lot of questions…
but I’m genuinely interested in everyone’s journey 🙂

Allie

Totally agree with all you said. So much out there to learn from other people ☺️

Yea, I was aiming to do the reverse dieting, adding 50 cals a week, as suggested (I think by you, Allie), but fasting yesterday threw it out today, so I’ll just go with it, and see what results I get when I weigh on Sunday. I still have a bit to lose to be healthy, but no rush. I’ll play around with the eatng, till I work out what is best. I dont know what my TDEE is, I guess I should go find a website that will tell me. Actually, I’m not even sure what it stands for, though I guess it means how many cals I should eat to maintain 😄

I also am very interested in the autophagy side of things and growth hormone etc. You would enjoy reading The Obesity Code, Allie.

Hi Ellem,
You asked what I have tried so far. – I started in October last year, first of all I cut out the “big white” all the main carb foods, bread, pizza, rice, pasta, etc. .
Then I moved on to counting carbs and using myfatsecret to log food and while weight loss was slower than I would have liked and than the figures would have suggested comparing energy expended v cals in, it continued.
As my appitite changed, and I stopped being hungry I went with it, having coffee in a morning before heading out to do chores but delaying breakfast until I felt like eating which initially slipped back to late morning, then lunchtime, then mid afternoon, until now I tend to have a break and sometime to eat around 4 or 5pm.
In May I reached the point where weight loss stalled completely, but inches kept on changing, so I dropped a dress size but only lost 1kg.
July and August are really busy times of year for me work wise, and because my work is physically active I have decided to step away from counting calories, and even occasionally have some carbs, just to see what happens and give myself a break.
So far I have lost 90lbs, and regained the opportunity to have a fuller life doing the activities I love.

So I am pleased with how far I have come, but also feel frustrated at how slow progress has been in recent months. I am taking the time this month to get used to some basic changes, like drinking water instead of coffee, (I confess that I don’t like the taste of coffee without a lot of cream or a spoon of stevia, so have been spending time working on breaking away from my 2 mugs of coffee before I get going in a morning habit so that I am sure I am keeping insulin low except when I eat. .)
I think the BSD has been very helpful in getting me on the right path, but thanks to the years (decades?) of counting calories while eating carbs, and the risk of my body adapting to low calorie input on the BSD if I do too many multiple cycles back to back, I need to look at other options. I am planning to move on to fasting and eating in cycles to break through this stall, and get rid of my spare tyre without ended up having to eat a restricted number of calories for the rest of my life.
I think I need to start to mix things up more, having a once a month 5 day slot of very low protein, ie, follow the fasting mimicking diet, as well as some days each month of TDEE with protein to try to get the benefits of autophagy while still averaging a cal intake less than burnt.
I still have a spare tyre to get rid of, and I want to increase muscle and loose flappyness of arms and legs. So I want to research how athletes are being advised to use autophagy to build muscle and burn fat. I saw a scary program last night about operations to remove loose skin followed by people who had lost a lot of weight, we are talking 200lb plus, one woman through the use of a gastric band, one man by exercise and diet. I don’t know which was worse, the views of the loose skin or the pain they were going through for months after the operations.

Elle, I’ve just emailed the library, and put “The Obesity Code” on reserve for when it’s back
on the shelves. Looking forward to reading it! TDEE just stands for total daily energy
expenditure. There are lots of online calculators out there. Everyone will be different
of course, but it is rough tool for determining what # of calories we shouldn’t go above.
Not everyone conforms to the norms, but I found it useful when using reverse dieting,
at the beginning of maintenance, as a guideline. Only we can determine our own tipping
point with respect to the carbs, however 🙂

Thanks JGwen, that’s really interesting.
Allie, I’ve looked up my TDEE and its coming in at 1300-1500. Good call on The Obesity Code. It’s not light reading, but fascinating. I read the last bit first, on the solution, then went back and read through the rest. It all adds to our bank of knowledge.

JGwen, was the tv programing that you saw American, by any chance? There are 2 shows
here, one called “My 600lb Life”, that follows a year in the life of super morbidly obese
patients who go through bariatric surgery, and another called “Skin Tight”, which follows
patients through skin removal. In both cases, the recovery time is protracted, and nothing
anyone would want to go through unless they were out of options. Both are difficult to
watch! (OH leaves the room 🙂 ) Remind me to show you via skype what I’m left with
at 148lbs gone. It’s really not too bad, in comparison to what I’ve seen on tv. The bingo
arms seem to be the most bothersome, so I’m hoping IF has some effect! If not, I’m
prepared to look upon it as a battle scar, and evidence of how I’ve changed my life and
my future….No skin removal surgery for me! I could never deal with 3 -4 months of
recovery for vanity reasons…I don’t do “pain” well at all 🙂

Good morning, friends!
Interesting conversation – I remember seeing UK programme years ago about a woman who had her skin removed. They basically cut her all the way around her waist. She never healed properly in that area and was left with a weeping wound that just wouldn’t heal, a lot of pain, and daily trips to have her dressings changed. Her arms and legs healed fine. She was probably in her late 40’s or early 50’s and had lost a colossal amount of weight. I’ve never forgotten it and always thought, not for me! live with the duvet of skin! But that’s me! I think procedures have improved a lot though over the years but I’m just too much of a scaredy cat to ever consider a full body lift type procedure. Autophogy is the only option for me.
Kazzeexxx

My second attempt at 24 hours didn’t go so well. I drank plenty of water, and made sure to take some salt, but I went out without having a coffee, and ended up with a banging headache at about 1pm. When I got home I had chicken broth, followed by ibuprofen. When the pain still didnt go, I eventually had a coffee with a little bit of cream, and thankfully, it eased off. I’m thinking it might have been caffeine withdrawal 😄.

Tomorrow is my sister and brother-in-law’s Golden anniversary party, so I’ll enjoy that and then have another go at a 24 hour fast, either Sunday or Monday. And will make sure I have a coffee in the morning.

Hi, hope everyone’s well!

Have been so busy lately haven’t even had the time for my internet habit, shocking 😄

Thanks JGwen for your reply on the losing inches instead pounds, very interesting. And yes I agree, I’d love to get some of those tests done!
Increasing growth hormone and bone density is definitely one of the things that interest me with fasting, my mother has osteoporosis and recently suffered a very bad fracture while having a innocent looking fall.

As for me and the things I’ve done so far, I started the BSD in April this year and have pretty much been doing intermittent fasting since then as I preferred 2 proper meals instead of spreading out the calories. Snacking just doesn’t suit me, if I snack I end up grazing nonstop! So was doing maybe 18/6 for a few months and then started throwing in the odd 20/4 or one meal a day, then the occasional 24 or 48 hour fast. These days I do either one 48h or 2 24h every week, otherwise keep my intermittent pattern. For me the key is to mix things up so every day is a little different.

All in all I’ve lost 66lbs so far since April and still have 20 odd lbs to go to goal. Lately my weight loss pattern has been a loss followed by a plateau of week or 2, another loss, plateau and on… in the last month I’ve lost “only” 11lbs but gone down 2 dress sizes! Whereas during the first 8 weeks I lost 45lbs but only one dress size. So inches are definitely coming off.

I’ve been increasing my overall calories on the non fasting days lately but keeping the carbs low, about 20g/day. I think the keto/fasting lifestyle will be my thing in the long run but at the moment I’m keeping an eye on calories too as I’m still overweight.

Going to hop on the scales tomorrow to see if anything has budged, haven’t weighed myself in 7 days which must be my personal record since starting to tackle my issues!

Awesome Amarel!

Bear in mind that I started this as a tall obese person, hence the impressive losses, I had a lot to lose!

That is very impressive, Amerela, a huge well done to you. The more I read about IF, the more interested I am, as there seem to be numerous health benefits. I think you are absolutely right, that it is important to mix it up. I’ve been doing 16:8, or 18:6, with a couple of 24s in the week. My last 24 was going swimmingly, so I carried on to 40 hours. It seems to help if I make sure I get planty of good fats the day before. Next 24 is tomorrow.

Wow, Elle!!! 40 hours? You are a star 🙂

Amerela – I agree that I do enjoy two proper meals – instead of spreading out the calories. Although I do have a couple of days a week that I can’t do that and spread the calories out over 3 meals. The restricted time eating seems so normal now that it just seems like normal eating. I do breakfast and lunch and it gives me endless energy right until I get home at 10pm – so it really works for me. The longer fasts are more problematic so I only do 20hr fasts occasionally.

Hi Alliecat, sorry for the delay in replying to your question on the tv program. – I had a few heavy work days after which it had slipped my mind that you asked about the skin removal program. – Yes it was on one of those oddball tv channels which shows American tv programs. – I think it was called Skin tight. – Both people they followed had to have the work done in two rounds of operations. – Each operation removed between 12 and 16 lbs of loose skin, the guy had to have his nipples cut out and repositioned as part of one of the operations and there was a lot of concern according to the doctors about if they would successfully graft in the new location. The surgeon explained that the difficulty with removing loose skin was reconnecting all the blood vessels which had to be cut – not sure on the logic of that. – Wouldn’t all the blood vessels connecting to the skin which had been removed no longer have anything to connect to? Anyway it was gross. It certainly made fasting to achieve autophagy look like the attractive option.
————
I have joined the weekly guided fast on the facebook group for Dr Fung this week, its a gentle program of 16:8, 18:6, 20:4, 23:1 (with the option of making that a 36 hour) followed by a 16:8 or 18:6. – They recommend eating windows which end at 7pm each day, which is a couple of hours earlier than my normal habit of eating when I sit down to watch tv after finishing work each day. Its interesting that I have found myself getting sleepy earlier as a result.

For the past three weeks, since I finished the 8 weeks @800, I’ve been eating on plan, but more of it, and doing a mixture of fasting – or time restricted eating would be more accurate. Mostly eating in a 16:8 pattern, then doing one meal a day some days, so 23 hours between meals, and once I did a 40 hour fast as I wasn’t hungry, so went over to the next day. I try keep my eating windows to within an hour, no snacking. It’s not pure fasting, by any means – I take a bit of cream in coffee, and on the longer fasts have a cup of bone broth when it would be a normal meal time. The result is 2lb loss over 3 weeks, so I’m happy with that. I’ve got another 7-10lbs to lose.

Hi everybody, how are things?

Glad to hear you’re doing well Ellem!

I’m having very blah time here… I guess it’s a mix of things, end of summer, back to the hamster wheel of work, kids school runs, activities etc but I’m feeling very low on energy.
I thought slightly increasing my calories might help as I’ve been on 800cals since April but that didn’t work and I actually gained weight for the first time since starting TWOL!
And that’s eating 900 to 950 cals a day, under 30g carbs, within a 6h eating window, come on!

Any words of wisdom from those who have successfully upped their calories to maintenance levels? I’m actually still a few pounds overweight and keep thinking how is it possible to GAIN weight on 900cals a day low carb?

Sorry for the rant, just feeling hungry and very dispirited!

On the plus side, had full blood works done as part of my work medical and absolutely everything has improved from last year!

It really shouldnt be possible to gain weight with that intake, Amarella. Atleast not fat weight, might be muscles if you have upped your exercis along with the diet. Bring out the measuring tape and look for non scale victories.

Oh, and maybe check with the medics so you dont have a thyroidea problem. That can mess with your metabolism.

Hi Amerela, I dont know whether it would be helpful for you, but I’m having success with continued intermittent fasting, combined with low carb, moderate protein, higher fat. I no longer count calories, just eat till I am full, no snacking. I’ve lost a further 4lbs in the five weeks since I finished the 8 weeks x 800, and got into my old size 8 (UK sizing) jeans.

I’ve found some very useful videos on YouTube by Eric Berg, and also by Jason Fung.

I know we are all different, but this is working for me. All the best with it, and hope you feel less “blah” by now.

Elle

Hi elle, so nice to see you out and about today! It sounds as if you have everything well in hand 🙂
I follow eric berg, too! I think as a specialist in alternative medicine, he’s very knowledgeable. I
think my ancient knees are past the point where I can jump on and off of 3′ high tree stumps,
however 🙂

Allie

Hi Allie, is that what he recommends? Good grief! I must not have got to that video yet – something to look forward to 😁

Part of his take on HIIT, Elle. He literally jumps up and down off a 3′ high tree stump in rapid succession,
somewhere in his backyard! I might be able to jump on and off a step, but 3′ in the air? Have you tried his
spinach, kale and blueberry smoothie? Berg has a lot of interesting things to say about the adrenals though,
and the effect that cortisol has on weight loss. So much to learn! Do you have an opinion on his categorization
of specific body types? According to him, I’m a banana, formerly a pear 🙂 He’s a firm believer in the benefits
of staying in a state of ketosis, also.

Allie

Hello ladies, I’ve been missing you all so thought I’d have a peek back at how you were all doing 😊
The reason I disappeared was that I felt a personality clash was having a toxic effect on the group. The difference of opinion only bothered me because bad and wrong advice was being given. Anyway, I’m back to see how it goes!
How are you all? I’m doing well, figuring out exactly what works for me and can’t believe just how very individual and different we all are. I came across the word orthorexia recently, which describes an obsession with being right, my way is the only way and dismissing other interpretations of ways of eaon’t ting as wrong. You see that a lot amongst Justin Fung followers and the admins of the BSD FB group.
The lovely thing about this forum is that there generally isn’t an orthodoxy beyond the basic principles. I’ve discovered that yogurt and berries don’t suit me for example, and lactose in general is a tricky one. I’m ok with the occasional slice of sourdough tho’!!
I’ve been looking at Jason Fung’s private group and find a lot of conflicting advice; there is an insistence that OMAD causes damage to the metabolism whilst fat adaptation theory says you won’t?
Anyway, looking forward to talking to you again (Allie, I grow Blue Deft hyacinths as well as Paperwhite and Amaryllis 🌾🌾🌾) and hope all goes well xx

MAGGIE! Welcome back!!! People do come and go on this forum, but your departure was deeply felt by
many of us. The sun isn’t even up in my part of the world yet, but reading your post today makes me feel like
I’m sitting in the sunshine! Very happy to see you, indeed, and resuming our chats 🙂 I’m sure that you remember
the “Positive Thoughts” thread? My first positive for the day is going to be seeing you back with us! Hooray!

Allie

Hi Maggie, am rushing around as usual on a friday, but wanted to say how good it is to see you back.

Maggie! Woohoo! You’re back! I am thrilled to see you again. 👏👏👏😁😁 You have been missed. Now we just need Marie to return! Am dashing around too right now but a little cat told me you were back so I just had to take a coffee break to see for myself! I’m off today and just deciding where to plant my parrot tulip bulbs. 50 Black nd 50 white with green edges! Now it’s looking like rain so I need to get my washing off the line which I only hung out 20 mins ago. Honestly, you turn your back for 5 mins……… ! 😁.

Maggiebeth, Verano, Sunny, Allie, California girl, really miss you guys when you aren’t here

I’m sorry that you have been missing us, Violinist 🙂 It’s a very safe bet that you will always be able to find us
on the weekly challenges,( into week 11 now) , Kazzi and Verano’s “road trip to Christmas” as well as “Positive
Thoughts”. Lots of us try to get out and meet and greet new members, but it’s nearly impossible to follow every
new personal thread, and still have time to keep up with friends we’ve made along the way. 🙂 I hope to see
you settling in with u s on the aforementioned threads! I’d dearly love to find you out during “insomniac hours”,
with me!

Allie

Thanks Allie, I did not mean I am missing you, I meant I would miss you if you were not here. And ya, I was up at 1 this morning and slept in yesterday!!!!!

Just read the good news that you are back Maggie – am so pleased that you came back.

Am catching up with posts after a two day visit to London. I was on a course and stayed at a super hotel next to the British Museum. Met up with daughters for a meal and had an absolutely lovely evening together. Also managed to fit in an exhibition at the Museum.

Ate late and a lot more protein than I would usually which resulted in higher than normal blood sugars. So back to intermittent fasting now I am home should being them back down again. Also – I don’t think the adrenaline rush caused by the fire alarm going off at 3.45am this morning helped – especially as I was on the 3rd floor. Luckily it was a false alarm.

Morning everyone
I posted on another thread that I was down from 94.2 kg to 93.5kg so another very slight loss but I am ok with that.

The sun is shining this morning and my marking is done so I can enjoy some ‘me ‘ time 😉

MaggieBath : you must be another BSD legend if the response to your return is anything to go by !

Keep talking to us about OMAD ( which I have been doing from very early on in the program) and metabolic damage please. I have also read Jason Fung’s books. It is true that there is a lot of conflicting advice and although we are all unique I do find it helpful reading how the experienced BSD ers have achieved and maintained their weightloss.

All the very best to everyone xx

Wendleg – there does seem to be conflicting information about OMAD. I couldn’t do OMAD because the limit for me seems to be 20 hours. Beyond that I get brain fog and just don’t feel good with very low energy levels. I am definitely not safe to drive after 19 hours.

I find IF of 16/8 or 18/6 works perfectly for me. I find that eating breakfast and lunch and nothing else except bone broth and coffee and cream leaves me with endless energy for my very active lifestyle and I can still drive home from work with razor sharp concentration at 10pm at night.

I have found though that doing IF for days on end doesn’t work as well for me either. My blood sugars start going up. So I have to mix it up with some days eating a more normal 3 meals a day to keep my blood sugars stable. It seems to be important to keep my body guessing.

It does seem that my metabolism is boosted with this regime and it really works for me. I lose weight now on 1500 calories a day whereas before I would gain weight on that amount.

So l wonder if this is such an individual thing that we are all different and that we have to – by trial and error – find what really works for us. OMAD doesn’t work for me but it very clearly does for many people. So there is no ‘one way is right for everyone ‘ .

Thanks so much for that Krysia: very interesting. I find I can cope during the day and my energy levels are fine with just green tea and water . I really enjoy my one evening meal but it is definitely true that I need early nights and can’t do late evenings. I am a very early riser though.

I am about to start on Week 6 and so I have 2 clear weeks where I will no doubt stay on OMAD. We are away the last Week of the 8 Week program so I will try to minimise any damage . I hope to be down to 90 kg by the end of the 8 weeks ( presently 93.5kg) so I will still have a good way to go .I am not diabetic but I had a blood test today to check my markers

My plan is to see how I feel on return from holiday and if my weight has stabilized to then either do another round of 8 weeks or IF so I can continue to lose weight.

You seem to have found a regime which works for you. That is fantastic. I hope I can see the day when I can lose weight on 1500 calories . Yes I think trial and error is the way but hopefully I won’t make too many errors !

Krysia where are you on the program ?. Did you do one round of BSD and now maintaining or are you still looking to lose more weight ?
Thanks so much for sharing your experience.it really helps me

So so good to see you back on the forums MaggieBath! What happened was irritating, to say the least — it will be wonderful to have you back posting.

MaggieBath really pleased you are back!
Violinist being in ‘small black hole’ at the moment I tend to only post on the ‘positive’ thread, and even then not often. Although I do read through the posts occasionally!

I have started to weight and count again using Fatsecret and it’s a real eye opener. It’s been revamped and some of the information you can get now is quite startling. You can see all the food you eat in a week, number of times for each food/drink and calories etc. used. It’s a bit frightening and will definitely pinpoint where you are going wrong if you get weight blips. That will only work of course if you are truthful!

Verano – I agree that fatsecret is so good. I find it really useful to plan my food for the day on it. Once it is logged into Fatsecret it seems much easier to keep to. I have a very strange brain – it’s almost as though I have programmed it and it doesn’t want to deviate from the plan.

Hope you feel a lot better very soon.

I was watching a podcast yesterday on YouTube about a women who says she has to mix up her intermittent fasting otherwise her metabolism gets used to the routine of doing the same every day and so she doesn’t lose weight. So some days her OMAD is at lunchtime, other days it’s her evening meal and some days 18/6 or 16/8. That way her metabolism is kept guessing and so keeps running on ‘high’. I skip breakfast every day but I’ve yet to do OMAD often enough to see how I’m affected. I will experiment I think as he autophagy aspect is of great interest to me.

Wendleg, I am in maintenance now. I started the BSD on 30/4/16. I was in a very bad place – T2D with retinopathy and macular oedema and a numb foot. 3 1/2 stone overweight and with muscle damage caused by statins. Weight loss was so painfully slow. I believe I must be the slowest loser on the planet. September 2016 I finally got to my goal weight. Will continue this post this afternoon as husband has just reminded me that we are supposed to be going out this morning.