I had four desert spoons of chia seeds in smoothies yesterday Shalimar 😳 Live and learn 😂

The surprises never end. We had our family movie night, and I’d given myself permission to have a couple of squares of dark chocolate and also a tiny bag of almond cranberry bites. I had ONE square of chocolate and then decided that was enough! Even though I was “allowed”, I just didn’t feel the need for any more treats. Will wonders never cease.

Thanks for that hug Shalimar, posted yesterday. I’ve just seen it, and it’s stopped me in my tracks, heading for a mooch in the kitchen !! Saved by the hug …..have one yourself 😀

Good morning Day 21. Nearly through week three!

Plan for the day:
B: omelette
L: tuna and salad
S: half an apple
D: no idea – family dinner at sister-in-law’s house. I’m sure there will be something I can eat, and I’ve told everyone I’m not eating any junk until Christmas so maybe I won’t have dessert forced on me (one time I had to say “no thanks” so many times it got quite funny)

Hi everyone, its me Granny 😎 home from my hols and thoroughly enjoyed reading through all the posts, strange i know but i kinda missed my virtual friends! Well it sounds like you are all doing great and there has been some FAB weight losses, its encouraged me and I am raring to go and feel inspired by you all. I know I am behind the group but still feel ‘part’ of it so if you dont mind i’ll stick with the 10/10’s 😊.
Good news is i’ve only put on 1lb, tried to do more daily walking to compensate for extra food intake, not to mention the sangria! Anyway somethink has worked😀. My plan today is greek yog and raspberries, mushroom omelette, pan fried salmon with lots of salad and hopefully no snacks. As the clocks have gone back 1hr here in the UK, i am writing this post at 5.45am! Good luck today everyone :-))

Welcome back Granny! I hope you had a great time.

My family dinner was cancelled due to illness so I ate at home. Finished on 984 calories and 18g carbs. Calories were high because I had broccoli with cream sauce and cream is so calorific! With milk and cheese as well, the sauce alone was more than 200 calories! Whoops. But delicious. Carbs very low today.

We went to the movies this afternoon – Dr Strange. Pretty good for a superhero movie. Rated M but it was fine for my kids. And they shared some lollies but I only had a handful of peanuts. I think I did well overall, especially for a weekend day.

And three weeks finished!

Good morning Week Four, and Day 22.
Starting weight: 83.8 kg
Week one -2.3kg
Week two -0.3kg
Week three -1.0kg
Current weight 80.2 kg
No change to waist measurements this week.

Plan for the day:
B: cheese, half an apple, cucumber, tea
L: rotisserie chicken and salad
D: zoodle (courgetti) bolognaise

HUGS everyone!!

Thanks for the movie review ….since i love my some Benedict Cumberbatch i was hoping that Dr. Strange would be good.

Haven’t been near a scale yet … should be able to get to aquabics and the gym this week.
Not really strictly dieting … but no junk food. But did have a few apples in the last few days.

Just coffee and cream so far … but may have some eggs with ham and green onion later. Will start on a new soup with some chicken and bok choy. Never cooked with bok choy before but since i like it in chinese food it should be pretty good. Will add some celery and spinach. Didn’t get cauliflower because i couldn’t carry everything yesterday.

I bought some ketostix today (despite reading on one site that they are useless for determining if you are in “fat burning mode” and that isn’t really what they show) and peed on one: got second-darkest pink so if they do show what I hope then I am definitely in fat burning mode. Not that I really needed confirmation, I can tell by the scales and how my clothes fit. I do feel a bit thinner. Onwards and downwards.

I finished today on 804 calories and 31g carb so I’m very happy with that. It even includes a square of 70% chocolate. I know some people have moved on to 90% because 70% now tastes too sweet, I’m not there yet. And I still don’t enjoy my tea without sugar, but I’m persevering.

I managed a walk today and I’m on 7216 steps. Better than I have been doing lately, but I know I can do a lot better. We have a beautiful week coming up so no excuses. I also forgot to drink all morning and don’t have time to catch up, I’ll work on that tomorrow. Progress not perfection.

HUGS everyone.

Good today … Coffee with cream. Have some chicken in the soup pot … may add some bok choy.

Practicing mindfulness while watching some beautiful figure skating. It’s really difficult to keep the mind from wandering!! 🙂
Did the body scan on the Palouse Mindfulness site last night and was more than a little disturbed when i kept catastrophising about a particular problem. But …. actually worrying on it and thinking about stuff from that site i came to a state of acceptance and even some ways of mitigating the circumstance. Still thinking about it but i am way calmer about it.
I have resolved to watch this video until i have it stamped on my soul. 🙂

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2n7FOBFMvXg

HUGS

I added garlic to that soup …. it’s taken over!!!

Forgot it was Halloween …. it’s only 4:30 and i’ve already had some trick or treaters.

Did NOT buy any candy. I will give out quarters and other small change. Even at 50 cents per treater i should be okay as some years i only have a couple …. and it’s cold and rainy.

79.9 kg! I am under 80kg!!!!!!!!

We don’t really do Halloween in Australia. I had some leftover fun-size chocolates by the door just in case but no knocks. The shops decorate more every year but I don’t think it’s catching on, thank goodness.

My plan for the day:
B: yoghurt with strawberries
L: Asian chicken salad OR if I’m still out at lunchtime a calamari salad at a cafe I know
D: beef fajitas in lettuce leaves instead of tortillas

79.9 kg! I am under 80kg!!!!!!!!

79.9 kg! I am under 80kg!!!!!!!!

79.9 kg! I am under 80kg!!!!!!!!

YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

Congratulations shalimar 🙂

Congratulations on breaking the 80kg mark, hope it spurs you on to have a good week!

That was NATALIE that is under 80 kg!!!

YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE NATALIE!!!!!

Lol yes it was me! Thanks Shalimar, and fairy face and fit my jeans, I’ll just transfer your congratulations to myself.

Congrats Natalie! That’s brilliant news 🙂 Perseverance wins!

Hi everyone. Brilliant news, Natalie, under 80kg is a real milestone! Who else is meeting targets this week?

Early start for a flight to London meeting yesterday so am weighing a day late and reporting a further 3lb loss – a total of 16lbs – amazing. Blood sugar remains stable with FBS around 5 every morning now, and that’s without one of my meds.
The proper, proper good news is that after months of surviving on no more than 3 hours of continuous sleep each night, plus fitful dozing, my sleep is finally settling — real proof that low carb is good for me as this has been my past experience and when I know my metabolism is changing. I’ve had three nights of 6 hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep and a couple of hours of restful reading, and I feel like I could conquer the world this morning. Am really hopeful for that 28lb loss by Christmas, which seemed impossibly ambitious 3 short weeks ago, and I know this thread has helped to keep me on track. Next week’s challenge is to be down one BMI point. Very close this week!
Thanks – choose well today! MK x

Great news about the improved sleep Maharani kitten, that is something I struggle with too. I’m hoping losing weight will reverse my sleep apnoea. The last couple of weeks I’ve been ok during the day but suddenly crashing soon after dinner. I’ve had a few very early nights!

I finished the day on 816 calories and 39g carb. Staying on track.

Congratulations Natalie, welcome to the under 80 kg club. 😀

congrats on everything Maharani kitten …. especially the good sleeps!! A restful deep sleep is just the best!! 🙂 HUGS

i was thinking of going on a short fast just to rest my innards … but i have a family dinner on Sunday. Our family is great about people selecting whatever they want to eat and at least 1/2 of us refuse desserts … and you can have wine or not … but i think i better eat something so i am going to put off my fast until next week. Not going to be a total fast … going to drink broth and have some vegetable juice when i exercise. Still going to have coffee and cream … i should be around 400 calories. This time i am going to be prepared and enJOY my fast.

Wow, I can’t imagine enjoying a fast! I’m not hungry most of the time, but I do get very hungry as meal-times approach (as it should be) so I wouldn’t want to go without! Then again, I never thought I could be content on 800 calories a day, so who knows?

But some hunger is good. Most of us eat by the clock, or because some food looks good, or because we are emotionally hungry and eat for comfort. It’s good for our bodies to actually experience real hunger … that’s when skinny people eat. Of course we have to eat by the clock somewhat … if you don’t eat at lunch hour when working you may not get another chance for hours and hours. And your family members want their meals when they expect them.

When fasting and i feel hunger i usually drink something. I really only have the veggie juice on hand when i am feeling a bit sick as well. Since i am carrying at least 70 extra pounds my body doesn’t really need calories all the time. I will stop if i don’t feel well.

Crikey – I’d not even think about fasting! Just planning to slog along for my 8 weeks and 800ish low carb calories!

One of my big problems has always been a dislike of thick drinks – yuk to milkshakes and protein drinks, yuk to soup you drink, rather than eat from a bowl with a spoon, yuk to vegetable smoothies – can just about stomach fruity ones! I know lots of people who can easily lose with meal replacement shakes, but yuk. Yuk yuk yuk!

Hi Maharani kitten 🙂

I don’t mind smoothies … but my aunt used to hate this meal replacement drink called Boost … that her doctor said she should have. YUK i don’t even want to try one of those.

I think my love of fasting is a bit unusual and i didn’t enjoy my last one all the time … i think it was because my blood sugar was out of control when i started. I find i enJOY being very clear headed and almost euphoric. But i learned my lesson and a) will stop if i feel ill and b) go off of the fast slowly. I don’t recommend it to other people though … especially if they haven’t read up on it and are mentally prepared.

I’d need to wire my jaws together….

Good morning Day 24.

I remember trying to do the 40 hour famine when younger – raising money for charity. I felt so ill – not euphoric! Other times if I’ve gone too long without food I’ve become miserable, shaky and “churlish” (grumpy and irritable and rude). Even though my blood sugars have never been in the diabetic range (“only” prediabetic) I seem to be sensitive to swings. Hopefully this WOE will help that.

That just brought back a sharp memory of one of my early dates with my now-husband, I went too long without food and became obnoxious and said some quite nasty things to him. So lucky he stuck with me! And he learned when I say I need food but soon after don’t seem to care and become unable to make decisions, well he needs to get some food into me.

Anyway, if you enjoy it Shalimar you go for it!

Plan for the day:
B: omelette and cucumber
L: roast chicken and veges
D: satay vegetables with quinoa

Natalie …. 🙂 I guess you DO need your food at regular intervals.

Well my plans for the day are fluid … depending on if i get to aquabics. I might have a late lunch out in that case. And i may get some groceries in the mall where my gym is.

I do have some soup in the fridge and the makings of scrambled eggs with some shopped ham and green onion. Also have some grape tomatoes and a nice fresh cucumber. So plenty to pick from.

The first 48 hours of a fast are the worst …. the good feelings come after you get through the two days. And who knows i may not get through the first two days. That’s okay though i will just do the 800 calories. No problem either way.

Have a great day everyone!! 🙂 🙂 🙂

I finished today on 945 cals and 41g carb. I don’t mind having the occasional day a bit higher calories, it’s all good healthy food. Though a bit too much fat at lunchtime made me feel all greasy.

Good morning Day 25. My weight is up a little this morning which is confusing considering I had a bit of an upset digestive system last night and I thought I would lose weight after so much time in the bathroom! But no.

Plan for the day:
B: cheese and salad
L: leftover satay vegetables and quinoa
D: pork and sage casserole

Actually it’s not the best day for a casserole, such a beautiful warm day. We’ve been having them every Thursday over winter as we get home late on that day and it’s ready to eat and so yummy when you come in from the cold. But we’re halfway through spring in Australia and I think I’m going to have to come up with something else for Thursday nights. This might be the last casserole for a while.

I wouldn’t worry – -if you have a minor stomach upset your body will horde water against the risk of dehydration, so that may account for the weight!

Thanks JulesMaigret, that might be it.

Morning all, sure the scales will adjust tomorrow Natalie as you are sticking to the plan. My problem is late night snacking! For some obscure reason I feel the need to have a snack before I go to bed and I just cant get past that mindset, its infuriating! I usually have a plain cracker which is not alot of cals/carbs but nevertheless after doing so well during the day I feel I let myself down 🙁 The good news is that I definately feel lighter after my hols and for the main am keeping under 50g carbs. Good choices today everyone 👍

Turning really cold now here in Scotland after a few days of warming sunshine, so I’m glad I got my winter woollies out from storage last weekend. Unfortunately I seem to have changed shape, and not in a good way!

Trousers fit, but rather oddly. My bottom and thighs have shrunk and clothes hang loose there, but waistbands are tight, never a problem before, but would seem to indicate my feelings are right, since starting T2D meds 4 months ago, I’m now storing fat round my mid-section. Not that happy as I know fat here is more unhealthy. Puzzled! How can that happen? Will talk to trainer at gym to try to fix, but…. MK x

ouch – that sounds really frustrating Maharani Kitten
when are you due your next diabetic review and HbA1c tests? – If it’s ages away, is it worth scheduling that?
If your GP practice is anything like mine, that will take 3-4 weeks, so you’ll be nearing the end of the 8 weeks, or certainly well into it.
If your bloods are normal, you’ll be able to discuss stopping or drastically reducing your medication.

I’ve definitely heard that diabetes medication can cause weight gain, especially insulin. So the sooner you can get off medication the better.

I was hungrier than usual today and ate a little more, still good stuff but I need to tighten that up. I don’t like going over 1000. Finished on 1034 cals and 34g carb. Maybe I was hungry because I didn’t drink enough – only five glasses! Very remiss. I usually achieve eight glasses (2 Litres) but rarely go over that.i find the urgent need to pee when I drink more leads to some awkward situations and I want to build up slowly.

Husband had to get up super early for work today which of course woke me up, so I’m very sleepy this evening.

Hi Frog. Next blood tests are the day I finish my 8 weeks on this plan but ordinary glucose testing for FBS has shown too low now for a couple of weeks so doc has taken me off glicozide (the one that reduces sugar fast) as I drive for work and department of transport guidelines say you mustn’t drive at less than 5.
Will wait till 8 weeks are up and hopefully present 28lbs lighter – 5 weeks and 13lbs to go – and with much lower numbers.
Am hoping for that, anyway, as my GP simply didn’t believe I’d a) stick to 800 cals and b) stick it long term, so would like to poke him in the eye with a success on both counts! He also thinks low carb is a bad way to lose weight long term but I’ve fought that battle for 7 years and won. Feels nice to be slimmer, even if my waist isn’t playing ball. It’ll have to come off eventually! Hopped on scales today and have broken the 180lb barrier, very pleased with that. MK x

Hi Maharani Kitten

You’ve lost more than half your target in three weeks, you’re doing really well.
My HbA1c results dropped dramatically in 4 weeks, and were back to normal with a test after about 12 weeks, and I dropped metformin on the 4 week one, so you should be fine.
Another 5 weeks of not being quite the right shape isn’t the end of the world – especially if you’ve been heavier than you’d like for a while.

Lots of luck with the next few weeks

Day 26 – third day in a row I’ve gained weight! Grumble grumble. I’ll push on, tighten up calories, drink more, exercise more. Still seems crazy I can gain weight on 1000 calories. Hope that doesn’t stay true, because I do want to increase calories when I get to maintenance.

Plan for the day:
B: yoghurt and strawberries
L: rotisserie chicken and salad
D: salmon and roast veges

Thanks for the encouragement, Frog. O would LOVE to be off Metformin because it makes me feel so awful – nauseous, indigestion, reflux, stomach cramps, digestive disruption, and , I’ve sleptI really badly since starting. My story is I lost a quarter of my body weight seven years ago on a no/low carb regime, kept it off, too, felt great. Five months ago with no symptoms at all, but at the same age as my mum was diagnosed, a routine test showed very elevated blood glucose – My way of eating was still low/no carb, but T2D was diagnosed and I was immediately put on 2 meds, 8 pills a day. What happened next was upsetting. I followed the diabetic dietician’ advice (because I was scared and wanted to give myself the best chance) and added starchy carbs. In 8 weeks I’d gained 19lbs. So here I am, back on low cal, low carb and losing, back where I’m the boss of food, it’s not the boss of me. Winging it a bit, feels like, as neither doc nor diabetic nurse believes in this way of eating. I KNOW it works, but I want to be safe. Too much to live for!

Natalie, step away from the scales for a week. Put them in the shed. You’re doing the right thing, results will come, so don’t let minor gains derail you. You’re doing SO well!!!! MK xx

fingers crossed! Are you taking the ordinary metformin, or the extended release one?
i had huge digestive problems with the first ones I was taking – to the extent that they couldn’t have done any good because they’d have passed thru me so quickly – but with the extended release ones I was absolutely fine, no side effects at all.

I cut down on my metformin on my own. It is supposed to control blood sugar but if your diet is controlling your blood sugar it seems redundant to do both??? When i was fasting (virtually no sugar coming into my body) there was no point in abusing my body with metformin. I take some metformin now because i have been eating …. but since my original doctor prescribed 5 500 mg tablets a day when i was eating 3000 calories so does it make sense to still be taking 5 pills when i am eating 800 to 1000? It seems illogical. I have informed my doctor and the pharmacist and Diabetes North.

I do test …. and take metformin when i am on the high end of normal or a little above normal.

Just realized there were days when i was way over on carbs … when i had my sinus/cold/sore throat i was chugging the tic tac mints …. i was taking in 20-40 extra carbs!!

I think i have to increase my variety of foods …. chicken, eggs etc. seem to be loosing their attraction.

Anyway … that is what seems logical to me …. and i am testing and reevaluating all the time.

Maharani kitten, if you had elevated blood glucose while on low/no carb I don’t know if you’ll be able to entirely control it with diet (it will help though). I think you should test carefully if you are going to reduce medication. You don’t need to follow their diet advice though! They told me the same thing when I was diagnosed with insulin resistance- keep eating plenty of carbs with every meal and snack. What nonsense!

Hi Natalie. I’m pretty sure my t2d is a family thing, too many parallels with my mum and maternal aunt so am not expecting to be off medication completely and will reduce meds on medical advice.

Frog, Good call on extended release Metformin, not heard of it but I’ll ask about that though my doc generally goes all ‘who’s the person with the medical degree’ when I make suggestions based on external info! I it’s the sickness that’s my biggest problem, have experimented with medicating at different times of the day, doesn’t help!

I hear your logic Shalimar, but with a busy job and life, dont have the time, opportunity or patience to be constantly testing – also, makes me feel like an invalid! I’m honestly not in denial, but want to get to a place where my t2 has as little impact on my daily life as possible and if this eating plan does that, happy, happy, happy to continue.

Here I am, wide awake at 4pm again, tummy cramps and nausea, after 5 hours sleep.Grrrr.

Maharani kitten HUGS …. 12:30 a.m. just after midnight here …. but i am listening to some interesting talks by a Buddhist monk (on the internet)…. even though i am not Buddhist.

No one here suggested the time-release tablets … and that does seem like an interesting thing to at least try when and if you can.

Sorry about the lack of good sleeps 🙂 HUGS

Do what is best for you is definitely the best.

Hi Maharani Kitten

Google extended “release metformin vs regular” to see the options – brings up a mix of academic research options and blogs/forums – but it will give you a better understanding and some ammunition if you need it for your GP.

I have a feeling that when it was first prescribed my GP said diarrhea was a common side effect, and the slow release was an option – but that may have been a later conversation. I tended to stop taking them simply because the side effect were so unpleasant.
the ordinary one is preferred first option, because its cheaper – but if it makes you unwell with side effects that don’t settle down after a few days. then it’s not really doing the job.

NICE guidelines state
Start with a low dose (for example, 500 mg once daily) and then increase gradually as tolerated, to 1500–2000 mg daily. If the person is intolerant of standard metformin consider using modified-release metformin.
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/PH38/chapter/1-Recommendations#recommendation-19-metformin

I had quite a stressful day, suddenly had to organise some urgent things at the last minute, but got that done. Then I was having salmon and vegetables for dinner, I like these veges a bit overdone so I left them in the oven while eating my salmon, and guess what? Burned to inedible. After an internal battle, I decided to just eat the leftover potatoes from what the family had had – only to find my husband had already eaten them! I started to feel quite miserable, I needed more food and rely on the bulk of vegetables to fill me up (also a few carbs keep my mood on an even keel) but I didn’t want to prepare anything else. Ended up eating half an apple. Not feeling very cheerful, but not as bad as before the apple.

Total calories 808, carbs 36g.

Really hungry today and was feeling the cold as on a video shoot outside. Ravenous all day and for the first time felt really deprived while all around were wolfing down thick soup and big chunks of bread , butter and cheese. Also, felt just freezing. All day.
So am with you Natalie, on the ‘feeling sorry for ourselves ‘ vibe!! Came home chilled to the bone and had a hot bubbly bath, put a hot water bottle in bed and am now snuggled down in clean sheets before 8pm with a hot cup of spiced apple tea, fluffy pjs. and my kindle. Would have been easy to raid the fridge, bit I didn’t. And that’s progress. Lessons learned? Next time, have porridge, not yoghurt, for breakfast, take a flask of veggie soup and have a hot, filling dinner cooking away in the slow cooker for my return. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Winter’s here! MK x