Hi all,hope you’re all having a great day. I’m normally an optimist, but today I am truly a miserable SOB !. I am having severe withdrawal to coming off the carbs, I’m logging all my food and keeping my carbs sub 20g, so OK on that count, I’m drinking around 3 ltrs of water a day as well. This is day 3,and I’m not joking, I feel permanently ittitable .So far, I have shouted at both my kids, for no real reason,and am constantly having to bite my tongue if you know what I mean?.
I am absolutely committed to this WOE,as I know it will transform my health.
I have about 4 stones to lose, so a fair bit, but I’m committed to stay on track until the target is reached.
I went to a Diabetes UK talk last night (I’m ‘only’ pre-diabetic but know that I’m probably not far off from the real thing), there was a great guy there who was doing a presentation on how he lost a significant amount of weight and cured his Type 2 Diabetes. I know this works, but seriously ?, I feel like somebody else. I had a chat with the diabetes nurse who was there last night, and she said that it’s likely that I’m suffering so much because I’m severely addicted to carbs, just keep on and the symptoms will subside. I’m so sorry to moan and groan, but how bad were your symptoms ?, I feel like I have flu,headache,irritable, nausea and can’t stop thinking about food (Carbs). I honestly feel like a recovering drug addict ?, Over the top I know, but any advice would be so appreciated !!

Moan over….

Normal service will be resumed after I’ve gone ‘Cold turkey’.

Hi seadog, and welcome.

It sounds like a severe case of carb flu to me. Trust me, it will pass.

I started this WOE 9 months ago and almost gave up in the first week or 2 because of how awful I felt. Plus it was January and I had never felt so cold in my entire life!!!

However the wonderful people on this site kept me going and I have now been in maintenance for over 4 months.

You can do this, hang on in there and you will be amazed at how good you will feel – empowered, in control and, ultimately, thin😃 Trust me, it’s a great feeling and you CAN do it. Just don’t give up.

Hi Seadog …. this is the place to come and vent and we just don’t care how much anyone rants and we don’t think it’s moaning. We all need to be able to offload from time to time and this is the place to do it.

You really do have a bad case of carb flu by the sound of it. I’m no expert, but I wonder if you could perhaps allow yourself a little more lea way on the carbs, until things have settled a bit maybe try bringing them up between 20 & 30g, or even a little higher as a lot of people are able to lose weight as long as they are sub 50g. Once your body has adjusted and your symptoms have subsided, you can slowly drop the carbs back down again.

Don’t be frightened to take some painkillers for your headache if you need to – given you’re feeling nauseated paracetemol would probably be best. If you’re experiencing hunger pangs, make sure you are including enough fat in your meals, as this really helps with keeping hunger pangs at bay – dress salad with some olive oil, cook with a little rapeseed oil etc. It’s even okay to have a snack of a small cube of cheese, or a little full fat yogurt, even a coffee with 5ml of double cream can work wonders for making one feel satisfied. The only thing to remember, is that everything consumed needs to be logged and included in your calorie/carb allowance for the day.

Sadly though, the best advice is to ride it out, but it’s not excessive to compare your experience to drug addiction, as essentially this is actually the case. We have all been poisoning our systems with high carb diets for years and years, so it’s not surprising our bodies rebel when it’s withdrawn. It’s cold comfort I know, but it will get better and actually, it will probably happen sooner than you think.

Do please rant on the forum anytime you need to, this forum has kept me going when things have got rough and I’ve been struggling. There are lots of helpful and inspiring people on here and they will offer encouragement and support.

Best wishes to you – hope you will soon be through the worst of your carb flu and feeling more energised and in control.

Oh Seadog! I am very sorry for you but you are already almost there so don’t quit!! This is like the proverbial “breakthrough” and when your body adjusts to burning fat, you will just suddenly be in a different place.
SunnyB has a good suggestion, maybe “up” your carbs or even calories for a couple days (just a little) then as you adjust, cut back down again. It can take the pain off — or, if you can, without losing control, eat a regular day of calories (not your OLD regular day! Ha ha) then start again the next day.
I used coffee with heavy cream, aspirin and wine to get myself through bad days in the first month or so and I STILL achieved my goal so don’t be hard on yourself — it’s OK to take a bit of time to adjust. Your body doesn’t know what’s going on!!

I felt ill and not quite right for around a week and a half and after that absolutely fine. Better than usual actually. Keep at it you are nearly through the worst and will come out the other side so much more positive.

Thank you all so much for your truly great comments. I was in a real mess last night, felt absolutely awful. Fortunately my OH went out to see Craig David, so it meant I could sit and feel miserable and have no one to shout at ha ha !.
Anyway….update. I feel a lot better today, much brighter, not there yet by any means, but slightly less angry !.
I’m following the plan to the letter, but am only having two meals a day, lunch and dinner, because I like to have two decent meals a day. Michael does mention about this, so In effect what I’m trying to do is get the benefit of this plan and some of the many fasting benefits, as I won’t be eating from 7pm till 12 the next day, 17 hours fasting. I know this works for me, as I’ve never really eaten breakfast and don’t miss it. I do have a coffee with cream when I wake up though, so I get some fat in my system. I know this may be at odds with some of you, but I find that if I have a small ammount of breakfast, say greek yoghurt with berries, it seems to make me think about food for the rest of the day. Odd ?. This is very much a voyage of discovery for me, so I’ll see how I get on with that. For lunch I’m having a couple of heck sausages and creamed cabbage with extra butter, dinner will be a chicken pesto recipe that I’ve found. I’ve just input all of that into MFP and its showing as within the calorie limit and looking good for the nutrient ratio.
Anyway. It’s great to feel less angry today. I actually shouted at a delivery driver yesterday for slowing me down, I never do that normally. Unfortunately I wouldn’t be able to find him so cannot apologise !.
I mentioned about the meeting I went to hosted by Diabetes UK, overall a great session, the guest speaker was great and very interesting. I was amazed at the reaction of some of the crowd though, at the Q & A afterwards, people were saying it sounded too hard, too extreme etc. Also, one guy actually said that he had been told by the Weightwatchers lady that the plan was extremely harmful to health !. To be honest, a few people were genuinely interested, most were not and just wanted to follow the conventional diabetes advice. It did tickle me when I got there, they were giving out bourbon biscuits with tea/coffee, and there was a raffle made up mostly of huge bars of chocolate !.
The diabetes nurse was banging on about the ‘Eatwell’ plate, basically made up of a third carbs. Now, if that is’nt blatant hypocrisy then what is ?. I mentioned this to the guest speaker, and he said that the NHS takes on average 10 years to bring in change. This is even with solid empirical data from Dr Taylor ?.
I looked around me at the crowd, there was one guy with something called a ‘charcoal foot’.Basically the bones are crumbling in his foot, and yes its awful to see. He was my age, late forties, and he was one of the people who said it would just be too hard to follow the plan ! I mean FFS his life is severely compromised, surely he should try the plan ?.
So, there it is, day 4 for me and hopefully I’m further down the road being a recovering carb addict !.
Thank you so much for your comments last night, they came at a really low time for me, and stopped me from eating a large slice of pizza left over from the kids tea last night !. I made myself a green tea instead and felt miserable !!.

Thanks guys,I look forward to sharing my journey with you, and reading about yours x

Sounds like your head is in a much better place today, well done on avoiding that pizza, I so wanted some toast last night and was such a grump.
I’ve come across the same attitude from people with fibromyalgia, when I realised that what I ate made such a difference to my condition (kinda obvious really with hindsight) but so many fellow sufferers would say things like “oh I can’t give up my chocolate (or whatever), my life’s difficult enough I need some pleasures” & just couldn’t see the irony in what they were saying. I’m just so relieved that I’ve found I can influence my condition for the better, become healthier & lose weight whilst avoiding a truckload of daily medication.
Have a good day 😊X

Glad you are both feeling more positive and feeling better today. It takes a bit of time to settle in to this WOE and there will be tough days, days when it all goes swimmingly and then days when it all feesl like doom and gloom, even further down the line – especially when the scales aren’t telling you what you hope for. Secret is to offload it on here and then try to let it go, don’t get bogged down in the negative. Be assured that things will come right and what is important is sticking with the regime and looking for the positives.

Good morning Seadog
Really pleased you are feeling more positive today, well done on avoiding the pizza.

Really good advice from SunnyB.

As far as people at the meeting thinking this WOE is too extreme…………err, and losing a foot isn’t??😨

I’m fortunate that I’ve never been diabetic or pre diabetic but one thing I know for sure, if I was and I was offered the choice a great, healthy, sustainable and delicious way of eating instead of taking meds for the rest of my life, and possibly losing a foot or my sight,…..well, in my view, it’s a no brainer! At the very least, it would have to be worth a go.

Seadog, if you can stick with this for a week or two, you will be amazed how much better you will start to feel which will be a powereful motivator to keep going, so hang on in there.

Hey Seadog – big love coming atcha

This is a bad case of carb flu but everyone is spot on – this will pass. When I started this plan, a year ago (can’t believe that), I was actually physically sick in my first week. My body did NOT like the lack of carbs which steadied my resolve that this must be the best thing for it. I reached my goal of 2 stone off after three months and have not looked back. I do have days where I just can’t stick to it and the results are always the same, I feel crap. Some good advice that I got was to actually up my salt intake when I felt rubbish and drink shed loads of water. You need to drink the water but the upshot of that is that you do deplete your natural salt stores and that will make you feel crappy. So you could try that – a few salted nuts (a FEW – they are high in calories) might help

Stick with it – you will be a shadow of your former self (in a good way) in no time

Good luck!! TC xxx

Hi again,

Thanks for your words of support, they have been really helpful. So, here I am on day 4. I feel better today, but still anxious, it’s almost like my body is trying to convince me that this is all a silly idea and I should go back to eating rubbish. Well body, ain’t gonna happen. Suck it up, and get on with it this is for your benefit. Right, so now I am having an internal monologue with myself….
Anyway, I’ve been feeling loads better today, I’ve stopped shouting at everyone which is good, and I’m really trying to work out the best way forward. I had a proper moment earlier where my blood sugar crashed mid afternoon, so I tried something that I seen on another site. IF, and only if you feel like you are going to make an awful decision and eat carbs because of low BS and then descend into catastrophic eating, have a couple of dextrose tablets. I did that, I know they are not great and contain sugar, but they did stop me going totally off plan. Within a minute I felt human again. So, I’m going to do this only in an emergency for me, and only for the first week. It’s 5pm now and I’m absolutely ravenous, but I feel much more measured and quite happy to wait until 6:30 when we will have dinner, and not snack like I did before.
I’m really starting to realise how bad I have become, I’m not diabetic yet, but seriously do not think I’m far off if I continue on making bad choices.
Like I said before, seeing the poor people suffering the ill effects of Diabetes is terrifying. I can recommend attending a meeting just to have a cold, sharp shock about what it does to you in the long term. I can’t get the image out of my head of the guy with one leg, the other amputated due to Diabetes, he was only in his fifties.
Sorry to put disturbing images in your heads, but this is a really serious condition isn’t it .

Oh, for dinner I’m having chicken filled with cream cheese and wrapped in a piece of bacon, with broccoli. Delicious, and I’m spot on for my daily limits and nutrients. I’m using MFP, I can see me getting a bit obsessive about this…

Think a lot of us get a bit obsessive on the BSD, but really it’s not such a bad thing, if it gets us to the end goal. Sounds like you are coping pretty well. I think you are wise not to use the glucose tablets to the point of reliance, as I think there is a danger your body will just start to demand them and trap you in another cycle. If you need something, I’d suggest opting for a small cube of cheese or a small portion of full fat natural yogurt instead.

The Diabetes meeting seems to have really set a fire under you. Think if you can hold on to the resulting determination, you’ll do just fine. That dinner sound delish – we are having an odd mix of leftovers from the freezer, as I want to use up some stuff before our holiday. Will think of you tucking into your chicken!

Just popping in to second all you have heard and tell you that as someone who cannot stop once I start on the bread, rice, pizza etc – I really prefer now to steer well clear. I made the mistake of slipping on these foods this week and I feel rotten- bloated and gassy and miserable- so I am back at carb flu now- clearing it all out!

I’m on an early shift at work today which meant getting up at 3am, I must admit I’m struggling a wee bit, but I’ve just had some scrambled egg and that seems to have taken the edge off. I’m definately feeling better as each new day comes, but feel like I’ve got an uneasy truce with my body at the moment. I’m going to take each day as it comes, and ensure that I plan each meal for two days ahead, so I’m not making bad choices. One of the problems I have is that I have two young girls who have big appetites, I’m certainly not going to inflict my WOE on them, but my wife is showing some interest, she is’nt overweight but sees the benefit of cutting back on Carbs. I’ve more or less found a weeks worth of meals that we can all eat, I just don’t have the carb side, so for instance we all had stuffed chicken and wrapped in parma ham with broccoli, my kids just had some mashed spud with it as well. What I’m trying to avoid is cooking a different meal for me, as that just won’t work, I just want to adapt meals to what I need. It was lovely going to bed last night without a bloated tummy from all the carbs, really great. I’m avoiding weighing myself for a little while as I can be a tad obsessive with things like that.
On the exercise front I’m trying to walk 10,000 steps a day, and I’m really keen to start a HIIT regime when I get up each day, I’ve found a 7 min one on an App, I’ll start low and work up.
Thanks for the advice about the dextrose tablets, not a problem now as my youngest daughter found the packet, thought they were sweets and ate them. She then said she felt sick, so thats that then. I’ll use a little bit of cheese or a handful of mixed nuts if I go into panic mode now.
I’m already feeling like I have an increased zest for life, I’m liking this a lot and can see it getting quite addictive. The best thing is that I have worked out my end date for 12 weeks will be early December, just before the party season starts. I’m not drinking alcohol until the 12 weeks is over, as I can’t be trusted with making decent food choices then, but it will be nice to have a few drinks in moderation over Xmas, feeling trim and in control. I quite accept that I can’t eat to excess over that period, but the thing is I don’t think I’ll want to anyway ?, I’m actually quite looking forward to being the person in the room who just does things in moderation because they respect their health too much.
So there we are, another day forward on this fantastic journey. It’s great to post on here, as I can offload those inner thoughts and get advice from you lovely people !.

x

Sounds as though you have things sorted, Seadog. Well done.

I started in January, did 2 back to back 8 week rounds of 800, lost 47lbs and have been maintaining ever since – in fact this morning I am a 0.5lbs lower. You are right, after weaning my body off refined carbs, eating them makes me feel bloated and uncomfortable. I very occasionally pinch the odd chip from o/h’s plate if we are dining out, but mostly have lost the taste for refined carbs. I do now allow myself a large(ish) glass of wine most days! If I gain a pound or 2, I revert to 800 for a couple of days and it melts away. This WOE is doable for life.

I think it is very sensible to all eat the same meals with bsd adaptations for you and it’s great that your wife is being so supportive.

Keep going, make sure you keep drinking the water and by Christmas you’ll be half the man you are now😉

Hello Seadog. My 12 weeks is also up at the beginning of December – off to the other side of the country to see some former work colleagues. They have posted pics. of themselves on Faceache – I refuse to until I stop looking so darn bloated.
You seem to be getting it all under control, and write so interestingly about the trials and tribulations you face with the children and fitting in family meals and your new lifestyle around work etc. Coming from a family man, I reckon there is a best selling book in there somewhere! We read a lot about single ladies / young mums getting slimmer and healthy, and men who have decided that they want to lose weight ( they all seem to want to become Personal Trainers )…. but a story coming from YOUR perspective may resonate with men in your situation who need a push in the right direction before they have serious health problems. Just a thought…. I shall be off to the Whale Weigh Station ( town centre loo’s with the huge heavy scales, 20p a pop ) tomorrow, and I hope to find I am doing as well as you.

Ha ha faceache, love it !, sounds like you have the same love/hate relationship with social media as I do. You made me laugh about the thought of becoming a PT, nope not me, Im not having a mid life crisis, I’m quite happy in my chosen profession (Marine specialist).
It’s interesting about my daughters thoughts towards food, I have to be careful they don’t see any ‘freaky eating’ as my eldest would call it, I’m all to aware of teenage girls troubles with body image etc, and I certainly do not want to confuse them. For me, not eating carbs is the way to go, for them not so much. From a blokes perspective, this prescriptive WOE is relatively straightforward.
The figures about diabetes are terrifying, the effects even more so. That is enough to drive me on, I’m not ashamed to admit that I actually had a nightmare last night that woke me up, it concerned a surgeon with a saw…
It’s early days for me, but I get the feeling I’m going to be OK, I definately need the support of this site, it’s fantastic. Just being able to sound off is great. I can’t wait to see the weight come off it’s going to be a real gem of a moment. I recently bought a new set of fancy schmancy scales (my wifes words !) that record body fat and visceral fat etc, they were in the sale. Great buy, but when I used them the frst time and realsied that I almost have the same fat percentage as a pork scratching I was a bit sad !.
I’m realising now that Carbs are extremely addictive, more than I ever imagined. It’s not such a bad thing to admit to myself that I have an isue, and avoid them like the plague. BTW, my wife is really understanding, that’s half the battle is’nt it.
If there are any people out there who are thinking about this WOE, DO IT NOW !.
Good luck at the ‘Whale weigh station’ ! Let me know how you got on !

Oh, and the thought of a book ?, you’ve got my attention now !

x

Great positivity, Seadog. Think you are tackling family meals in the right way. My OH has exactly what I have, but with the addition of a carb element – although sometimes he opts to go without and is quite happy to do so. The days will get easier as you go on and I’m sure you will be facing the festive season as a trimmer version of you. It’s great that you recognise you can’t indulge over that period, in the way you probably have in the past and you are right, you probably won’t want to either.

Keep going everyone, have a good w/e.

Hi,

I wrote a post yesterday but it seems to have vanished ?, obviously eaten by the carb demons…
Anyway, I’m doing OK. Yesterday was a real struggle, it was a long day because I got up at 3am for work, and felt rubbish all day. I was thinking about food ALL day. I’m OK today though, obviously the lack of sleep played havoc with my hormones.
I was chatting to my teenage daughter last night, she’s been grumpy all week, and she opened up and said that her ‘friends’ had called her fat at school, seriously, she’s a lovely weight. Kids are so cruel aren’t they !. Anyway, this is why I need to be so careful with my perceived eating in front of my daughters.
I hope you are all doing OK as well ?, I’m going to post every day, even if It’s just a few lines, as it does me good to vent my feelings to an anonymous audience.
So, today I have my meal plan all worked out, good to go. I’m drinking loads of water, and wearing a path in the carpet to the loo !.

I’ll check in later if I get time as busy day today !

x

Ref: the ‘Eat Well’ plate you mentioned in one of your earlier posts, Seadog, while looking for something else online today, I stumbled across this quotation:

“The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd; indeed in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind, a widespread belief is more likely to be foolish than sensible.”
– Bertrand Russell

What a lovely and powerful statement !, so true of many things in today’s world.

Well, I’ve really struggled today. It was another early shift at work, one more to go. It plays havoc with me as I get so tired and make bad food choices, I know and accept that. I’ve done fairly well today, minimal carbs but way over on the cals, I kind of accept this though, as I’m still learning and my body is adapting. The main thing is I feel much more positive, back to my old self. I’m going to treat up to now and tomorrow as a settling in period for this WOE (I’m not going to use the dreaded ‘D’ word), and from Monday I will be sticking strictly to 800 cals. I’ve removed the carb’s that’s the main thing.
I’ve got loads of lovely recipes worked out now, tonight for dinner we had grilled sardines and they were lovely !, just with some lemon juice, black pepper and some asparagus and cauli rice. I love cooking, so I’m OK on that front, no problem spending time in the kitchen.
I’ve started mindfullness as well, I can recommend it so much. Just 10 mins a day to stop and take stock. Please, if you havent tried it then do,I’m using the ‘Headspace’ app. We all have busy lives, just take a bit of ‘me’ time. I’m finding with hunger that it comes in waves, I feel absolutely ravenous, and then it subsides. It’s just a sensation isn’t it , using the app, it teaches you how to remove yourself from the sensation. I get anxious when I get hungry, I’ve started deep breathing for a minute, it works. Anybody else used mindfulness ?.
BTW I’m writing this while my family are watching X factor, which I HATE….
So, there we are another day gone and I’m closer to where I want to be. I’m really enjoying using this forum, there are some lovely people out there. We can share our journey, and do this !.