Hi there,
I can’t help but keep at the back of my mind the fact that research indicates that 95% of people will regain the weight they lose. I have also noticed s return to these threads of people who have regained. Does anyone think that the. BSD circumvents this in anyway?

We will only regain weight if we do not treat the BSD as an eating plan for life. This allows us to do 5:2, general Mediterranean or dip back into 800 cals per day. As mentioned often on here, on this eating plan we do not crave many of the things that have brought us down previously. For people like me whose BGLs have returned to normal (at least for now) we really don’t have a choice, so that ‘s a great motivator.

Actually this is addressed in Michael’s 8 week blood sugar diet.

I’m going to be one of the 5 percent that keeps it off …. and we all can be in the 5 percent.

I have been one of those people who’ve been on other “diets” when i decided to stop …. now i am committed to the plan. I’m determined to beat diabetes as well.

Once i actually get determined that i really, really, really want something i get it. My mother always said i was as stubborn as a mule. This will now come in very handy!

I believe that the issue with regain is that too often we see it as being ‘on a diet’ for a period of time and after that revert to previous ‘non-diet’ habits. the Fad very low calorie ones – like cabbage soup etc – are not suited to prolonged use (if could even stand it) and do nothing to teach better habits.

BSD has the quick hit but changes patterns of eating and then there is the road map to the maintenance pattern of healthy eating, no guarantees about not regaining, but it has all the ways to limit that and as noted about – getting off meds and onto a healthier state is a pretty big motivator.

Regarding the 95% – I wonder how that statistic spreads itself over the different cases? The stone down stone up stone down….etc dieter may be very different in behaviour to the radical life changing weight loss person. Just a thought.

Hi Lucyjane

The ‘returners’ to this forum (and I speak as one of the relatively longterm posters 😉 ) tend to be those who have done 8 weeks, and, having more weight to lose, return to have another go to kick more of the pounds. This reflects a great experience on the BSD rather than a fail on maintenance.

I’ve not yet seen anyone who did BSD earlier in the year who’s put weight back on – unless they’re simply not posting!

So while I wouldn’t say anything is proven, I do think that for many people seeing the effect of giving up refined carbs could be a way of operating for the long term.

the “95% regain weight” statistic – if indeed it is true, now I start to want to see statistics for all these comments! – would reflect ALL diets, and I believe that the data for Roy Taylor’s study is in fact different (off to look it up to see what the results are after the length of time his trial has been operating).

I finished BSD back in July and am at the same weight as I was then. I like reading the forum as the wonderful success stories inspire me, and sometimes I think I may be able to add some info which will help people.

In terms of how I’ve been…..
I am not eating much bread – will eat really good bread, but not particularly yearning for it, as much of what’s on offer isn’t great.
I’ve not been eating potatoes – again many other things which I prefer. I cooked some for family with a special recipe I use, and had a couple which were lovely. Didn’t want lots. Will have roasties at Christmas!
No need for rice, at all, haven’t missed it despite many spicy Indian type dishes
Gave up sugar in tea/coffee in May which I am still feeling triumphant about!! Have had some desserts which were absolutely lovely, but I found I didn’t need/want too much of them.
Pasta? No worries, don’t want or need it.
Fruit – eat this, but more consciously than I did before. Always used to think eating several apples at a time/per day was ‘negligible’ but have now been educated otherwise.
Alcohol – yes, drank during the BSD and have done since. More consciously, though. And aware of the effects!

The major gain is that I am more interested in flavours and cooking than I’ve been for years. We’ve topped up our spice drawer, bought loads of chillis (Mexican, Thai and other), and I cooked my first daal yesterday with plans for another which I am half making-up myself from a couple of recipe inspirations. Everything tastes absolutely great. OH (also did BSD) used to cook a lot, and then got fed up with it, now is planning lots of new recipes again.

So in summary, I think that as others have said, if you have a conversation going on that this is just a ‘diet’ that you are ‘enduring’ for 8 weeks, then of course you will find it a struggle because that’s what you’re telling yourself. And when you stop, then you are thinking to ‘reward’ yourself for all the ‘pain’ you’ve been telling yourself you’ve been going through.

If you are a pasta/potatoes/rice/pizza family, then it will be difficult to avoid having lots after you complete your 8 weeks, which is why Michael says you should try cooking for yourself/not doing the BSD completely on ‘shakes’, so that you can practice cooking/finding meals which don’t have so many refined carbs in. My family have loved ‘non refined carb’ food, and have declined them when offered as an addition to meals.

I think the jury’s out on long-term success. It would be, of course!

But if you think you will revert, then maybe you will. I think there is power in the conversation you have with yourself about not reverting. Michael also says that sometimes he avoids eating something even though he ‘feels’ hungry, so that he can prove to himself that he is stronger than the ‘hungry’ conversation. I like that.

I’m in agreement with the previous posters, it’s a change of lifestyle that’s required. There can be a whole host of reasons why people put back the weight they have worked so hard to lose: new health issues, stress leading to comfort eating, tiring of the regime, and thinking that reaching the weight loss target is the end of the diet. If losing weight & keeping it off was easy then obesity, diabetes, heart disease etc, etc wouldn’t be a problem. The fact is that we are each responsible for what we shovel/pour down our throats.
Keeping motivated seems to be the key. I’ve been losing weight for most of this year via the BSD (not following it religiously, though) – I’m currently in a state of stasis whereby I’m hovering within a window of give or take 2-3lbs, not losing but not going too high again. I have relaxed things in recent weeks because, admittedly, I have tired of some of the things I’ve been eating when I was losing weight. I’ve revisited the BSD book and tried some recipes that I haven’t used before in an attempt to make sure my weight doesn’t go rocketing back up again. I have to say that the BSD hasn’t “cured” me of sugar – I’m still more than capable of devouring a box of Magnum ice creams, and I still like to bake cakes – so I have to be vigilant about what I eat, and the quantity. For me, variety, keeping food choices interesting will be the key to staying on track & not returning to my former blubbery, unhealthy self. But I think the BSD is a very maintainable way of eating.
Good luck with the weight loss, and the maintenance!

Absolutely agree with many of the people on this post.
Igorasusual and RozyDozy particularly reflect my own experience with the BSD diet.
Lost 3 stone in weight starting earlier in the year and since July have maintained a stable weight.
Have relaxed the BSD rules slightly in the last 2 months but haven’t gained weight. Still avoiding processed carbs though.
Completely determined not to become part of that 95% weight-gain statistic.
There are too many advantages to having lost that weight.
In no particular order……I’m……
1) Healthier.
2) Fitter.
3) Reduced medication.
4) Blood pressure much lower.
5) Blood sugar in normal range…..no longer diabetic range.
6) Looking and feeling better.
7) Able to walk further, faster, and longer.
8) Can manage more intense exercise easily. (My Fitbit records longer time spent in Peak.Cardio and Fat Burn zones) !!!
9) Have lost flab and fat on body and arms.
10) Stomach is flatter.
11) Can buy clothes in normal sizing.
12) Love wearing some of my new clothes.
13) Feel younger……..Not sure about this…… but my scales record my Metabolic Age as 15 years younger.
14) Not afraid of having my photograph taken.
What is not to like here?
Think some of my list of positives overlap a bit but they are all part of my personal motivation.

It is great that so many people on this thread are able to report weight loss and no immediate regain.
We have to keep our positive attitudes and the determination that made us start this diet in the first place.

Very best of luck to everyone.

Thanks for all the replys. I have been thinking about this a lot and the lifestyle changes I can make to ensure I don’t fall into the same old traps. I think the big one for me is alcohol and wine. Some people seem to be able to metabolize it well but not me. I have been carrying this extra 15 kilos around for the last 8 years and its time to go. But it is sooo hard for me to lose weight after years of dieting that I can’t bear the idea that if I actually manage to lose it I will regain it. I am only on day 2 of week 3 but so far have only lost 2 kilos so I am expecting that at the end of 8 weeks I will only have a loss of 8 kilos if I am lucky…I really want to do this as I have no health problems as yet but expect I will if I don’t lose and also I am only 42 and have an amazing wardrobe of clothes that are all a fraction tight and don’t sit nicely:-( So this post was really about trying to grapple with how to be in the 5% who keep it off. Gluck everyone.

Hi Lucyjane
Just keep going. Your weight loss sounds fine. Think how much you would lose if you carried on at that rate for months.
You will soon fit into that wardrobe if you don’t have much to lose.
Many of us long-termers have the opposite problem……nothing ……absolutely nothing…in our wardrobe fits anymore.
Sorry…..wrong….socks do 🙂

Good luck everyone. We are not just a number.

Hi Caramba,
Thanks for the words of encouragement. I have a good 16-18 kilos to lose. I am 175cm so still a good whack to lose but 10 kilos would make a massive difference. I can see that if I don’t change my ways nothing much will fit quite quickly…

I was worried about this but in the last 6 months since reaching my goal weight of 57kg, I have put on 1.5kg only. I relaxed on the amount of calories and have had treats but have kept to the general principles of the types of food and have carried on doing an average of 10,000 steps per day. In March after the initial 8 weeks my HbA1c was 39 ( started at 54) and the latest test last week showed a result of 36. I am so grateful to have found a sensible way of managing this horrible condition. I was initially diagnosed with an HbA1c of 93 in December 14 and struggled for a year without any real plan before I was introduced to Michael’s book in Jan 16. Although I did well with exercise and loss of weight after diagnosis, I couldn’t get any consistent advice from the NHS. Michael’s book has changed my life and I couldn’t be more grateful. I feel that at last I have a real handle now on my health and I am in control. This is so empowering!!

Hi Lucy Jane,
I have been on the bsd diet since February, I lost two and a half stone, had a ‘rest’ then got back to the diet, while I was resting a did a bit of an experiment, so one day I ate all my favourite foods from pre bsd! Banana butty, chocolate fudge cake, porridge chocolate, ice cream, that sort of stuff, the following morning I had only put one pound on! I then relaxed a bit more carefully and over the two weeks only put a total of three pounds on, which went up or down depending on what I ate that day. I started back on the strict bsd on Monday and have already lost a pound each day, today I even went out for lunch with friends and managed to have a bsd meal.
So good luck, I’m sure if you keep to the bsd principles you will be ok, I think we have all worried wether we can maintain our weight.
Christine.

These above posts inspire me… Igorasusua.. I am hoping this will be like you in 6 months time. I am only on week 2 but reading stories of other people’s success will keep me going. And like you I would like to see the evidence of 95% relapse.

I guess if you go totally off the rails for, say, one meal, then you are not going to put all the weight back on. It’s when the one meal sneakily turns into almost every meal that does the damage. I have noticed that all the thin people I know seem never, ever to let down their guard. Some of them pretend not to worry about what they eat, but just pay more attention and you will see that they never eat a casual calorie. If they eat a plate of chips, that is probably the only food that passes their lips that day – in fact I think they are the opposite of secret eaters, they are secret fasters. Losing weight and keeping it off is a 24/7, 365 days per year task and that is something I find quite difficult to come to terms with.

I don’t see any need to worry … why not be one of the 5 percent????

And there is a maintenance plan …. if we gain more than a couple of pounds …. we can just go on the 800 plan or the 5:2 plan until we are stable again.

If the plan is to go back to the way we were eating before …. eventually we will return to the problems we had before BSD. That’s why the BSD is also a 3 part plan …. food, exercise and mental health (mindfulness).

I do not think I will be one of those people- because I am now viewing food-( I have done 5 weeks so far) with different eyes. I had to place my Christmas order for online delivery and I struggled to reach the minimum spend as I simply did not want so much that I would normally order. I finish the BSD on 27/11 – so that gives me 26 days until Christmas Eve to stay on a diet- albeit not a s strict and lose some more pre Christmas- so that can achieve my aim to weigh the same on Jan 2 as I do on 28/11- so treats but all in moderation- and mainly because I no longer want so much sugar- some yes- but not as much.

I started this change in my life style 34 weeks and 2 days ago. I have managed to lose 16 kilograms (or around 35 pounds). There has been no upward trend apparent. I know that, as long as I maintain this change in my eating regime, I can keep the weight off.
My GP agrees that my Type 2 diabetes is gone and will remain so as long as I keep away from the carbs.

Jim

I’m re-opening an old topic.

I did 5 weeks of the BSD in May/June this year, and lost 7kg. I started “cheating” as summer came, but kept up the basic principles and many of the low carb, higher protein recipes, regular (but not excessive) exercise, but with occasional beer, wine and sweet treats. I continued to lose weight slowly over the summer.

Now I’m more sedentary as my job is desk-bound, although I still run 5 km 2 to 3 times a week, and walk every day. My sweet treats have increased, and my weight has slightly increased. I haven’t regained my lost weight, but I have to stop and make some changes again.

I think it’s unrealistic to say that I will never again have a sweet treat, but I do need to ban them from the house. I tend to reach for the sugar to face the work that stresses me. Strangely, when I get into some work, I forget about food.

So, I don’t want to be one of the 95%. The good thing is that this diet really changes habits, but also changes how my body uses food. Insulin seems to be working better.

I used to be one of the 95%. I’d lose a bit (0.5 to 1st) then stall and find it harder to maintain a steady weight than previously, and before I could find the energy to try and lose some more, I’d actually put on more than I had lost. It would usually be around 6 months or so to be stable again, almost always fatter than before.
It’s been 5 months now, since I discovered BSD, and the BSD800 for losing weight, and while I have not managed to stick out the 800 for anything like 8 weeks (more due to laziness than hunger), I have not regained more than 3-4lbs at most, and none of it has stayed back on for more than a week. I’ve lost far more than I’ve ever managed before, and considering how long it took to get to my maximum weight, I can’t see that I will ever put that much weight on again, even if I forget everything I have discovered about how to lose weight healthily and permanently. Apart from the yo-yoing, it was only life events and medication that really made me put on weight in the first place. When I had reasonable peace of mind, I maintained a steady weight quite easily.
There may be something in the notion that those who have lost a lot of weight need to eat fewer calories permanently, but I suspect that even that is because eating healthier makes you need fewer calories, and you have to eat healthily to avoid putting on weight. At the beginning of this year, (before I discovered the BSD), I had increased my protein intake, and rapidly found that I had to seriously reduce my total calorie consumption to stop putting on weight. My calorie consumption went from 1800 to 1200, just to maintain my weight, and this was long before I actually lost any weight.
Another possibility is that those who had a lot of weight to lose should always have been eating fewer calories, even before they lost the weight.
In any case, BSD keeps the weight off! So, I will be one of that 5% too. 🙂

I too worried about this (don’t we all!). I lost over 30 kilos using a Nutritarian approach, which is 90% green leafy veg, raw and cooked, fruit, seeds, nuts, beans. That’s it. No oil, salt either. It was doable for me, as I was highly motivated. But I also had to cook for my family etc, so lots of double cooking, and I could never just eat out, or share a ‘normal’ meal with those I love. I felt good until about 8 months in, my iron stores had fallen through the floor, and weight loss stalled. I started to eat a very healthy but more inclusive diet. I gained a kilo a week. Eventually I gave up, totally frustrated. A few years on, I’d regained everything , with interest.
This time, I can eat with everyone else, they can eat what I cook – lots of yummy new recipes. After nutritarianism, I feel like I’m sitting at a banquet table! And the weight is coming off, so far 10 kilos in 4 weeks. I know this is a sustainable approach for me, and that is what matters.
I also realise that now that I was eating a (healthy) high carb diet, which was not good for me. No wonder I ballooned when I added anything else whatsoever to it.

Well done Seelie!
The good thing about this diet is that after loosing weight, our insulin levels seem to reset, making weight gain harder (but not impossible if we go back to old bad habits). Carbs a scalable too, so we can increase them somewhat after dieting without overdoing them. We also become aware of what to eat.

Good luck, I may get back on the diet soon!

Thankyou for opening this up again, I loved reading the older stories, am in the same boat of thinking this is for life and happy it is after a 15kg weight loss since August. 4kg to my ‘optimum’ weight, great to read all the posts.

Like all of you above I too was worried about once again regaining all the weight, since that has been my history over many diets.

It was a real eye opener to read some of the work of Dr. Jason Fung and watch some of his videos. He is a Canadian nephrologists working with diabetics and has done some wonderful talks that are available in videos. Here is a link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iatPAjf5I_Y

He cites research that shows that those that were placed on a mild calorie restriction diet saw their metabolic rate drop with each round of dieting they were on, and like the US show the Biggest Loser, nearly all regained the weight that they lost.

HOWEVER……those that lost weight through intermittent fasting (like the 5:2 diet or the BSD) did NOT see their metabolism drop.

This is a game changer which means that keeping the weight off no longer means staying well below a normal TDEE (see 5:2 diet site to calculate what is your Total Daily Energy Expenditure allowance, or how many calories you need to stay a stable weight).

And as many of you pointed out, the fact that there are so many mantainers on this site that have kept their weight off for over a year speaks volumes. Unlike dieters on other programs, these maintainers are still hugely enthusiastic about the BSD and feel it is a WOE that they can maintain for a lifetime. The 5:2 presents the other alternative….1 to 2 days of 500-800 calories a day to shed a pound or two as soon as you see you have gained a bit.

All good news.

I great thing about this program is that it gives you the tools to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. It is empowering to know that you are in control of your body and not simply a helpless bystander.

I love walking through the supermarket and being able to recognize how much of what is available is pure crap. Shelves and shelves full of profitable stuff that simply should not ever be part of a person’s diet. You can stand in the breakfast food section and marvel at how about 98% of what is for sale is actually bad for you, or in the frozen food section and see that maybe 80% should never be eaten. You look past the seductive packaging and you realize that most of it doesn’t even taste that good.

There are a lot of people who have reached their weight and health goals and who have fundamentally changed their relationship with food through this way of eating. We eat real food and we embrace moderation.

They say that a diet is successful if a person can keep the weight off for 5 years. It is still early days but there are a lot of people on here who have made a great start and who are determined to reach that goal.

Jande9 yes I think you are right about BSD fundamentally changing your relationship with food. I’m on holiday at the moment and was eating an Indian meal out tonight. Before we went out I had decided to have onion bahji and possibly even a little rice. When we sat down I couldn’t eat either rice or bahji just had chicken tikka and salad ….. so yes tastes do change and I think that without the simple carbs we can all probably stay close to our goal weight for as long as we want.