Well it’s soon back to school time ( not that I have to worry about that these days 😉 , the summer will be drawing to a close in this part of the world .
September is always an important month in my year as it marks the beginning of my BSD venture , back in 2018 . So I always see September as a sort of reboot time .
Wherever you are , whether you are coping well or struggling, we have to keep going .

Sunshinegirl is busy with family this week …..have a great time SG ! We are all thinking of you !

Looking forward to seeing as many as possible checking in !

Wendleg, SunnyB,sunshinegirl xxx

I think there is just shammy to add to the list ?

wendleg, Sunny B, sunshine girl
JGwen
sixturkeys
Starina
Verano
ADD6605 ( Dawn)
Riccoh
Russianroulade
Tulip1 ( Clare)
Mifoz
MerryMelba
Maryanne Carlos-Mascarenhas
WindyJulz
articfox
Olive1
lauraknits
Marsie (Marilyn)
EllieAllegra
EC:Erin
Hello66
Jordana
Alipetunia/Alison
RubyG and hubby
Ditchedthemet
Dizzychicken
SlinkyTinks
LonelyAdipose
Emzijw
Barefoot girl
Life Diet
allicat1A ( Allie, formerly alliecat !)
RedRooster
nhatha3432
sprox
skittle
Daisybean
workingfromthe fridge
Bombalone
PSL68
ScottM
florobo85/Lauren
Tamara1
MillieMoo/Claire
SummerTwinkles/ Summer
Sheila Canning
JustKeepFasting
Bryla
kiltgirl
Deb2003
Donnadoobie
HappiR
WilLuck
PaulaZ
Faithlyn67
Onetowatch
nicnocgee
Smead01 ( Samantha)
Goforgoal
Britta
Mokovex
DebOflo
Riverrock
HopefulinOz/Donna
Quetzal
Onnipinoy
Magicbean
Pashasmum
avisamuelgrey
scotsgirl57
Annamarieboo
peanutbutty
erinmc82
Kat2020
xx1flump1xx
Ncij678
LizzieTOFI
Jeremy Fisher
Green and White
Garmmcns
Chrissybabe63
Reuby19
Elle-Mae
Bissell
Puddingtoast
Steph2
Antigone
LifeUniverseEverything
ellie666
Buffylover /Rebecca
Stilltrying
Nokie/Lynda
Onestep
Mizztraveller
Antigone
JoeyBee
OrangePandaMomma
California girl (Julia)
shammy

Is anyone else confused about the information coming out favouring high protein these days ? We had been used to thinking of BSD /Fast 800 as low carb, moderate protein and higher in healthy fats.

Diet doctor is endorsing high protein

I think we need JGwen !!!!!

Hello. Amz here.
This week was another wash. A couple good days sprinkled between a bunch of not so good ones.
Because of a sudden change in circumstances, I’m staying with my father temporarily, which has honestly made it hard to eat healthy since they aren’t that type of people.
I should be back home Wednesday. I’ll work on the same goal for now.

Morning everyone. Just wondering what people’s thoughts are around diet/cravings during premenstruation. For 7 days before my period I have what I refer to as insatiable hunger! I try to eat +++protein during this time, but all my body wants is carbs! I know it’s probably related more to needing the seratonin, and I already take SSIs. Just wondering if anyone else experiences this and what they do to avoid the carb calls.

Apologies for a rather late checkin. Had a very busy family weekend, from which I’m still trying re-ground. There was some overindulgence and I stopped weighing between Friday and today ….. mainly outbof fear 🤭. Have to say the reading this morning was kinder than expected.

Anyway in an effort to rebalance, I did a 28hr fast …. ate a large breakfast with my parents before they headed home yesterday and broke fast at 14.30 this afternoon, making it my longest fast.

So bottom line is, I still have a couple of pounds extra, but remain content with the status quo, confident that when I’m ready to focus properly, I’ll be able to achieve target and maintain.

Amz, as we said last week, don’t put yourself under pressure, do what you can …. a couple of good days is better than none at all. And just maybe the ‘not so good’ days, weren’t as bad as you feared. Look to make small changes and I’m sure you’ll see some positive results.

Joey, sorry not to be able to help with your issue, having only found BSD post menopause. Hopefully someone will drop by with empathy and advice soon though.

Hope to see more of our week-by-week folks posting here soon and if you’re new and hesitating, please just jump right in and join our merry band.

Right evening all.
I basically gave up for summer, as I’d had such a tough year with the fertility. However I’ve hovered up and down 5 pounds and I’d really like to see the back of them completely.
Our next round of fertility treatment starts in mid September. So even three weeks of BSD should make me feel a bit better and hopefully a bit healthier in the run up

Had a phone consultation with the dietitian today. She was happy with my progress. She felt that a low carb diet was not sustainable in the long term
She was telling me that once I got to target I would need to reintroduce carbs such as bread and basmati rice to each meal. I didn’t disagree with her but will continue with this woe.
Russianroulade good luck with the fertility treatment.

Russian, sending positive energy your way for you fertility treatment and the lead up.
Ella, of course we all have choices and have to decide for ourselves what works for us, but there are plenty of us here who have eaten low carb long term and continue to do so. It is not necessary to return to regular intake of bread, rice etc. in maintenance, but we increase our carbs a little using healthier sources, like onions, tomatoes, sweetcorn, some carrot etc. It’s important to remember that returning to old patterns if eating, will inevitably have the same effect as it did before. Apologies if any of that sounds preachy, but this perpetual misguidance from health professionals who are still churning out the flawed government guideline, really pushes my buttons.

SunnyB It made my blood boil too 😃 I have watched the video Fat Fiction which was fascinating, her training is flawed but she has spent time becoming a professional so I didn’t want to antagonize her. I can see people on here have sustained this woe for years. She asked for a breakdown of what I was eating but didn’t seem to pick up on the fact there are carbs in vegetables she just went on about carbs for energy and needing fibre. I did expect the phone call (which was also a very bad line so made it difficult to have a conversation), to go this way and had decided to just listen and agree and then to continue with the BSD.

Ellie, glad I didn’t offend and that you are on the same page. It is so frustrating that what seems like the majority of professionals are playing catch up in this regard. But then they are up again decades of established government guidelines, so hard for them to take the alternative route, even given the solid scientific evidence that the high carb low fat route is disastrous …. as the current obesity epidemic proves.

Anyway, really glad you are not deterred and will continue on the low carb path.

Elle,
I think it is likely that you are getting carbohydrate from healthy sources— such as vegetables and fruit. Those are perfect sources for people struggling with weight management and diabetes. They have fiber and are low glycemic-load.
Dr. Ben Bikman (highly regarded) says that we only need fats and protein — carbs are not essential nutrients.
But of course, he recommends carbs from vegetables and whole fruit.
I know that conventional dieticians recommend returning to carbohydrates after a short period of low-carb. You need to listen to your own body and pay attention to yourself — if you take that advice and start to gain again, or stop the weight loss, simply realize that you might be a high-insulin individual that does better on low-carb (for now, or for long term).
It’s not an exact science — all bodies are different and some of us tolerate carbs better than others, and as you lose weight, you might tolerate more carbs (as I did in my personal experience, although I have to limit “white carbs” to this day)
Russian roulade, there is excellent research on fertility and keeping your insulin levels low (very low carb intake). See Dr. Ben Bikman’s book, “Why We Get Sick” — lowering insulin is key. Good luck

RubyG and hubby still here, but been away for a few days and clinging onto some form of maintenance at best.
I’ll try to pop back on later in the week with an update.
ODAAT everyone!

Hi everyone, I’m back, hope it’s ok to jump back in x

Lauren x

Lauren, welcome back, always okay for you to be here with us. Hope things are good with you, will look forward to your update.

Hi SunnyB, and everyone else!

Well. I am back. Some of you might remember I took a break earlier in the year because I was starting to become overly obsessed with numbers and carbs and calories etc. and having very limited success. I also was suffering (still am) with my mental health so I stepped away for a bit. It’s been a terrible few months I’m not going to lie. I’ve been very much suffering with my mental health – now officially diagnosed with depression and PTSD, and I’ve been on and off medication which has had horrendous side effects. Now just having a lot of therapy but I am going through a massive phase of repressed trauma and self-loathing so I’m feeling quite fragile but maybe just starting to come out of it.

I also for a while went onto the dreaded Slimming World. I wanted something with a bit less control but still being careful. Needless to say (should have known really) I’ve had zero success, I lost a little initially and then it’s just gone back on, so I am now here back to where I was a year ago before I went back onto BSD the first time, which is not great!

So line drawn, I feel more robust this time round and determined to shift this weight for good and help my overall health as well. I am determined this time to not be so obsessive about it, so I am going to track calories and carbs, but I’m not going to worry about going as low as 20g to start with at least. I actually feel more positive about getting back in control than I thought I would, although I have to say I’m not looking forward to the next couple of days – I know from past experience I suffer dreadfully from carb flu so I’m not going to feel well for a week or so.

I hope everyone is doing ok, I look forward to being back on this journey with you all

Lauren xx

Lauren … sorry to read about your continuing struggles, but positive news that you have a real diagnosis now and that therapy is helping. And of course, great that you feel strong enough to rejoin us here.

My advice is to bring your carbs to between 100g and 50g initially – you can always reevaluate as the weeks go by. It’s definitely not necessary for everyone to push as low as 20g daily carbs, so don’t put that pressure on yourself.

Hope the carb flu won’t be too bad, but if it hits you hard, take things gently and be kind to yourself … and of course we’re here if you need us, even if it’s just to vent.

Thank you SunnyB, it’s nice to be back amongst friends 🙂

Hello. Amz here.
Yesterday was a good day in my opinion. I chose proper food choices and completed a short low impact video.
As some of you know, I’ve been suffering from severe depression for over a year now… it might have been longer but i was too scared to put a label on it. I’ve seen my doctor about that and the related insomnia, but the meds did not make a significant difference honestly… So, i have been thinking and praying about putting more effort into my health, one day at a time, with the current goal only to try my best to improve a little each day. The crappy foods i was eating only made me feel worse and left me with even less energy, so i want to consider this fact before i put anything in my mouth. The body pain i experience has worsen as my muscles grew stiff from lack of movement, so i want to increase my daily activity even if it’s just small things like drinking out of a small cup so I’ll have to get up to walk to the kitchen for a refill more often. I want to find my own sort of happiness and improving my health is definitely part of it.
Sorry, my thoughts came out a bit scattered.

Hi Amz,

I’ve only just come back to this forum after a longish break due to mental health worries, so I just wanted to say hi and I absolutely know what you’re going through so big hugs and if I can be any help or whatever just let me know, you’ve got a kindred spirit in me

Well done on what sounds like a fantastic day on plan x
Lauren x

Welcome back Lauren and continuing hello to AMZ,
I have advocated for years that we can “work our way into” a this healthy diet — you don’t have to start perfectly, or even very organized — just start at the next trip to the grocery store, buy the most beautiful organic veggies you can find and some full fat yogurt, maybe some heavy cream and a lovely bit of protein — leave the stodgy, sabotaging carbs on the shelves and congratulate yourself as you check out with a bag of healthy food. Walk home with your head held high and keep planning toward a better eating pattern.
If you eat “off plan”, don’t panic. Even those of us who have lost and kept it off have had days where we ate things we wished we hadn’t.
It will not derail you — just start again and think deeply about WHY you ate that thing at that time, and figure out a strategy to avoid such a situation in the future. I used to practice ordering sparkling mineral water in the car on the way to a restaurant lunch, just so those words would slip out first before I said, I’ll have a large glass of Chardonnay!
It takes a while!! But every day you stay thinking about it, it will add up and get easier. And you really will start start to crave healthier food and your mind will stop pushing you to the treats.
If you get hungry, eat some protein! It really cuts the cravings.
Tell yourself, “self, we are going to really get this under control”. Talk to yourself! Your body is listening to your brain.
You want to be here and have a healthy future — I know this because YOU keep trying!
Just start wherever you find yourself right now, at this minute, at this place.

Thank you Californiagirl, I’ve had to make do today with what I have in because I haven’t had time to go to the shop yet but I’ve not done bad – did just veggies and cottage cheese for lunch and then stuffed peppers for tea, I made a Mexican spiced mince mix, mixed it with some cauliflower rice and stuffed the peppers with a tiny bit of cheese grilled over the top, and lots of romanesco cauliflower with it. Was actually surprisingly tasty. I seem to be doing ok with carb flu so far, but it’s usually day two for me! I feel surprisingly zen at the moment and sort of pleased to be back in control a bit

L x

Hello everyone . So lovely to see Lauren back with us and I am so sorry that you have had such a difficult time. Just do what feels right Lauren, take it slowly and don’t put too much pressure on yourself . California girl has given you some sound advice ( thank you Julia) . Remember you are not alone and we will always be here to support you during tough times .

Amz, you know we are here for you too. I am so glad Lauren has reached out to you as she fully understands your struggles . I really feel for you both but you are strong and fighting . My heart sings when I see you both back here because that means you trust us to be a safe place . Eating healthily will for sure make you feel ‘better’ and weight loss will certainly relieve pressure on the joints and help with mobility but I recognise it’s not always that simple and if the demons are circling it must be horrendous to stay focused . Just do your best my friends and always know you can talk to us here . Tulip/Clare will be really happy to see you back too,Lauren .

All the very best to you Russianroulade . Thinking of you and sending the biggest hug .

Such difficult times we live in . It’s hard to stay positive sometimes but I am trying to be grateful for small things .Thanks everyone for maintaining the wonderful support and empathy in this thread . I hope the weekend is decent .Some people are a bit quiet this week ( Quetzal, Hopefulinoz( Donna) .Articfox, hope you are ok ? I always wonder about Britta and Bryla too and of course Erin in Tasmania . Love to everyone xx

Thank you for such a lovely message Wendy x

JoeyBee – I don’t know you as you’ve joined after I took a break so I hope you don’t mind me butting in, some of the long timers will remember I’m generally regarded as one of the resident science geeks (I teach anatomy and physiology among other things for a living!) – yes carb cravings around the time of premenstruation are due to your bodies drop in serotonin (this is also what causes the moodiness in some people) and you also have high cortisol at this time due to the stress on the body which also drops your serotonin. Unfortunately the easiest way for us to get serotonin in our diet is to eat sweet stuff like chocolate, however eggs and cheese also boost serotonin and there are some nuts as well – I believe Brazil nuts are good at boosting serotonin, personally i think they taste like mud but they are meant to be really good! Hope that helps! If by SSIs you mean SSRIs (sorry if I’m being ignorant) – they won’t actually increase your serotonin levels, they only prevent you destroying what you already have, they prevent reuptake by the cells, so that might not be the whole answer x

I’ve got to go through my cupboards today and work out what the hell I have in and then go shopping. Also still have heaps of marking to do, sigh

L x

Just popped in real quick to catch up on the posts.
Thanks for the encouragement, everyone.
Lauren, how do i make stuffed peppers?

Hi Amz !
Here’s a recipe I often use for peppers and halloumi

https://divaliciousrecipes.com/wprm_print/15854
Wendy xxx

Hi Amz

I think there’s probably better ways than my method but this was mine:

-Cut the pepper in half down it’s length and scrape out the seeds
-pop in the oven for about 20 mins (to be fair I got bored waiting so did about 10 mins then microwaved for a couple of mins) – you just want it soft enough to eat but not floppy – still needs to hold its shape
-while the pepper is cooking make your “stuffing” – I used:

125g lean mince beef
Half an onion diced
A bit of sad pepper I had lying in the fridge, would have chucked it if not used, not essential
Spice mix – 1 tspn cumin, 1 tspn dried oregano, 1 tspn paprika, 1 tspn chipotle paste, 1/2 tspn cayenne pepper, crushed garlic and 1 tbpsn tomato purée

Soften the onion (and sad pepper) in a frying pan
Add the mince and brown
Add the spice mix and just stir through

Cook cauliflower rice (I use microwave stuff)

Stir the meat mix and cauli together

Stuff into the peppers and top with a little cheese (I used a slice of plastic cheese because I didn’t have anything else in, not really BSD but it did the job)

Bung back in the oven for about 5-10 mins until the cheese melts and it’s as brown as you want it

I used that time to cook my romanesco cauli – just steamed it

Serve and enjoy!

Hi guys, just stopping in to say hello.

Back last year when Wales went into lockdown it was almost like someone had switched off the power supply to the treadmill for me. I spent some time just zoned out once I no longer had to keep putting one foot in front of the other to run the business.

Then I had an interesting time hosting people through the workaway scheme. As I couldn’t host paying guests I took in three or four people at a time who had joined up to a scheme where hosts provide accommodation and food in exchange for a helping hand with tasks around the property. – Quite a range of people from those taking steps away from being homeless, to those in their 50’s questioning their future plans, to foreign students stranded due to lockdown and those who would have gone on gap year travels. – Lots of interesting discussions around the table. As most people stayed 1 or 2 months there was a constant flow of people but at the same time an opportunity to get to know them. ——————– I will now formally take my hat off to those in the group who have followed this path while their family do not. That is such a hard journey to follow. So often there were people wanting to share their preferred cooking styles and cook for everyone making it so difficult to stay keto. On my part some increases in waist measurement, but equally lessons learnt about incorporating fasting with feasting.

Just at the time it was looking likely that we were going to come out of lockdowns in stages and the volunteers had left I caught Covid. Despite being double jabbed it did hit me hard. Not hard enough to end up in hospital, but weeks of coughing with your whole body until you vomit and the fatigue continued for months afterwards. I am still not right, get breathless easily with physical activity, but this morning was the first when I woke up and felt like myself for months rolling out of bed excited to do some work rather than dreading it.

Confession time, I stepped off the waggon yesterday, – I was checking my bee hives yesterday and had to remove a clump of comb filled with honey that the bees had built under the lid of one of the hives. It was the first time I have tasted honey from my own hives and it just had to be done.

Just wanted to send virtual hugs to JGwen, sounds like you’ve really been through it x

Lauren x

Hi everyone really great to hear your thoughts and progress. I was shocked to see my blood pressure had gone from normal to high have been given a monitor for a week. It shocked me so much that I’ve been back on intermittent fasting 16/8. We all have good days and bad days and whilst being shocked is not like deal it’s got me back on bsd wagon. My physio says success is getting back on the wagon quicker than last time ! Good luck all xx

Hi shammy . Keep going, you have the biggest incentive there. Shout out to us any time

So good to see JGwen back with us . She is never far away but I was so sorry to hear how ill you had been . Like articfox and many incredible women on here you are truly amazing, fighting through whatever life throws at you.

Just wanted to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to windyjulz from all of us !!!
Have a great day, stop running for a minute and enjoy your day ( only joking !!)

Off to see the rhumatologist this morning for hubby’s dodgy knees but I will be back later to set up the new thread .
Wishing a great bank holiday Monday to those of you in the UK xx

Hi All, seem to have a thing about suddenly remembering to join in on a Monday when its nearly time for a new thread!
Lauren! Hooray, sooo glad to see you are back 😍
Amz, another mental health struggler here (I have bipolar- hence rather up and down), hugs.
JGwen….sounds like a similar experience for you with covid (I had it March 2020 pre-jabs so was v glad to just about stay out of hospital)…..
Hiya Wendy, Sunny and everyone else….
I’ve had a not-so-great week with an unexpectedly sore shoulder and of course here in the uk a 3 day weekend….how are these related? Well, I haven’t been able to get myself dressed (lol 😂) as too painful…..so on weekends I don’t get straight in the shower but have a leisurely brekkie, so when I weigh myself 1st thing I then have to get dressed again….well obvs couldn’t face that palavar twice so haven’t weighed since Friday….ooh, and it was already bad then, much carbage…..so I need to seriously restart as of….now! Lunch has been healthy….and I will weigh pre-shower-pre-work tomorrow and see where I am at…..was middle child’s bday mid week and we just had surprise guests so we got the extra cake (I made double) out of the freezer to feed them with morning coffee…

I really feel positive about getting myself sorted….have gained at least 8 lbs over the summer so v ready to aim back for goal, feeling generally rubbish atm, I know such a weird range of ‘excuses’ and pitfalls I’ve had, but there we go……I like the idea, Wendy, of a September reset..I am going to try to post daily here to help me keep on track- please encourage me!!!!

Love to all, Tulip xxxxxx

Hi Clare x – we’ll encourage you! Lovely to hear from you too x

L x

Hi Tulip. Think of it like new school term starting, kids back to school Tulip back on track. Good luck 🍀

Hi Clare ! So about your shoulder, I commiserate . You should know what to do 😉 My physio is on holiday until next week which gives me a break from the shock waves treatment !

Hubby has had his knees injected and has to take it easy for 24 hours .

Time to set up the new thread !

lol, yeah, it is improving with some self-treatment!
How is yours? xxx