I am anxious to loose a 10 kg as I’m far too heavy for a 160 cm, diabetic, 67 year old female. I live and work in South Korea where cuisine, cultural and social obligations differ significantly. I’ve an extremely busy work schedule and I haven’t cooked in over ten years. Carb, calorie counting and recording give me the chills. Of course, would love to have a buddy to go through this sea-change, but not possible here. Any /all advice on how to begin, the pitfalls experiences etc is most welcome. Thank you

Hello ML,
Welcome to the gang!
If you don’t feel like calorie counting, you don’t have to – I never did. I limited myself to recording my weight in an Excel spreadsheet so I could see the downward trend. Never bothered measuring myself – I went by bagginess of clothes. And by how much better I felt when I lost a few pounds. If you click on my name you should be able to read my profile – please do.

The BSD is a very flexible way of eating – I didn’t do the 800cals, or the 5:2, I kept it simple by following the principles of the BSD, i.e. choosing from the recommended foodstuffs, cutting out the extras I’d habitually been eating, tried to eat my last meal by 7pm in order to extend my overnight fast, drinking plenty of (non-alcoholic) liquids.

So you haven’t cooked in years – a good opportunity to restart! But if a busy lifestyle hampers your “you time”, soup & salads are a great help. Look at the recipes on this website for ideas. We are not really aiming for Michelin Star grade meals – just something tasty & filling that keeps the carb-wolf from the door. The simpler the better.
Some ingredients may be difficult to obtain where you are, but you will probably have access to different things that we in the UK don’t have but which would work just as well.
In the new BSD recipe book, there is a recipe for kimchi – which I believe is a Korean staple.

Cutting out sugars is the basis of this plan. Also, no matter what part of the world you are in, carbohydrates are carbohydrates – so do what you can to cut down on them as this will help.

The cultural & social side of things in Korea I can’t really help you with – but I understand it is difficult when you are at a function of some kind that you won’t want to cause offence by refusing what’s on offer even if it is not conducive to your weight loss plans. But the occasional straying from the path is not the end of the world – just start up again the next day. If you are with good friends, perhaps you can explain to them your plans, get them on board with what you want to do. Who knows, they may have some ideas & be very supportive.

Pitfalls to watch for are after an initial good start comes a period of possibly feeling rubbish, the weight loss stalls – my advice is to work through it & persevere. There comes a point when your body fights against and then accepts the new way of eating. Keeping your intake of water up is essential – dehydration can fool you into thinking you need food when you don’t. Yes, you will fall off the wagon occasionally but, as stated above, just dust yourself off and start again.

I would advise planning your meals before you go shopping rather than just winging it.

The beauty of this forum is that you can ask questions & someone will probably be able to help out. Use the search facility in case someone has posted a similar query.

I am sure you will find a way to lose your 10kg – good luck!

Thank you for the encouraging words and the cautions. Since I posted I have been on a quasi version of the diet, gone off metformin, lost 1.5 kg and my BGLs are significantly improved (2hrs – 90=120) except for the morning when the reading is still high 130=139. I’ve been suspicions for sometime that the 500mg of metiform was not very effective and I think this confirms it but will monitor closely. I was feeling rubbish on day 4 and cold but that may be due to something else as so many around me are suffering from a cold.

I’m still looking for a good record keeping method/form but that too will be solved.

I’ve stocked the fridge, will be making a huge pot of soup tonight, increasing my 1k daily walk to 2k and cancelled all social engagements until Nov 29 and I’m ready to give it a go.

Cheers, and again, thank you for the advice.