I am still here! But I still felt very depressed for no reason on the Sunday as well as the Saturday. This was cured by hummus.
I have decided to stop trying to fast for 15h overnight and go back to having porridge early in the morning, at least until my period comes!!!! Sorry if tmi.
It may not be the diet’s fault but I have had low mood and increased infections so I am going to go a bit easier. I’ll still stick to the foods and try not to eat between meals. I suppose that is called the bsd way of life….
Thanks for the support!
Readytochange enjoy your holiday!!

End of week 3 I have gained 600g since last week but waist measurement stays the same. So total loss 3.3kg and 5 cm off my waist. According to the internet, ketosis can cause low mood in some people. So for the time being I have increased my oats and beans and a bit of fruit and probably stocked up on glycogen stores causing the weight gain. I had about 1100-1200 calories yesterday and def felt a lot better.

I tried to cook the crab cakes which tasted OK but they fell apart – kept getting smaller and smaller which each step of the cooking process!

Into my third week on the bsd.

Lost half a stone so far but more importantly…….

No longer officially obese and fasting bloods down from 9 to 5.

Still having a drink every night though, martini and glass of red.🙄

Actually cooking my own food which my wife thinks amazing. Occasional snack lapse but not as hungry as I expected to be.

Still waiting for the waist to go down. At the gym three nights a week but still the tummy.

Mike from OZ

Re low mood. I’ve suffered from depression for years and take medication, which smooths out the worst of it. But I try to eat seratonin-rich foods such as turkey, which is very lean so fits in with this eating regimen (not calling it a diet anymore). Definitely getting the sunshine helps too.

Crabbycams

Thanks crabbycams re depression. It came on over just a few days, like the flu! And went away when I ate a bit more carbs. So I am blaming my metabolic/hormonal state. But I agree about the sunshine. I’ll look into the turkey. I think we can buy sliced cooked turkey at the supermarket but I don’t think it keeps for long.

Now I am feeling better again I will try going stricter again but I’m not going back to the 15h overnight fast, unless it’s by accident!

Mike congrats on moving out of the obese range! That’s one of the milestones I am looking forward to.

Well done to everyone on their great results! Falldown7times, hope you’re feeling a bit better now – I went through exactly the same feeling of awful low mood and weepiness for a while in Week 2, which went away when I stopped being quite so strict.
As predicted, my Week 3 weigh-and-measure this morning was a bit of a wash-out – I’ve only lost 0.25lbs since last week, making my total overall so far 5.25lbs. Not bad I suppose, but I’ve only got another 3.5 weeks until my hols, so I’m really going to have to up my game from now on if I want to shift another 4lbs (which I’d really like to – this would bring me down to 9st 9lbs, which I haven’t weighed since I was in my early 20s!). This week’s rubbish result was definitely to be expected, since I had a major junk-and-wine binge on Friday night and then I was travelling for work all day yesterday and airports just bring out the snacker in me… The thing I really don’t understand is that – aside from 2″ off my waist in the first week – my body measurements have stayed virtually the same ever since, and I can’t see any difference when I look in the mirror; but I CAN feel my clothes fitting better and I’m now getting back into things that I know only fit me when I’m slimmer. So figure that one out! Anyway, back onto the strict 800 cals from now on for me (unless I’m really really desperate)…
Falldown7times, I tried cooking the Pear and Brazil Nut chocolate brownies from the BSD recipe book as a sweet treat – I didn’t much like them and ended up throwing half the batch in the bin. I’d be really interested to hear of any other recipes people here have tried, that are actually nice and tasty, and quick – I’m getting a bit bored with salads… 😉

LynnyPinny I quite like recipes. I have been testing them. From the diet book though, I don’t have the recipe book.

Recommended:
French fish stew
Spicy chicken and lentils
“Trout” (I used different fish) on lime and coriander-crushed peas
Courgetti prawns
Lime and ginger chicken breast
Salmon steak with soy sauce and spring onion
Portobello toast with goats cheese and pine nuts
Veg frittata
Baked eggs with minted peas and feta salad
Mexican hash
Courgette and feta salad

Not recommended:
Griddled chicken on white bean mash
Harissa chicken
Foil steamed fish
Sardine dip 😖
Lettuce cups with crab and mustard
Skinny kedgeree
Portobello toast with wilted spinach and chickpeas

Taste good but technical difficulties:
Steak with Creme fraiche
Crabcakes

Probably just reflects what I happen to like! So may not be that useful to you.

HI all, been away from the forum for a bit so great to catch up, some interesting article links! I’m now in week 4 and have lost 11lbs so far and feeling really good about it. I have tried lots of the recipes and found a system that seems to be working for me. 2 meals a day mostly, a brunch and a dinner, as not really a morning eater, much prefer a couple of cups of coffee. I still allow myself proper double cream in my coffees as I had gotten the habit during my Atkins year. I try to drink a minimum of 1 litre bottle of water a day, flavoured and fizzy but all sugar-free. I know that I should stick to plain old tap water but I can’t, and if I try to force myself then I’ll be miserable instead of motivated. I love to drink Beanies flavoured coffees and have some sugar-free syrups for coffee too. If I keep my sweet tooth sated with those then my eating habits improve.

LynnyPinny – my favourites from the recipe book are:

Simple Egg Muffins
Easy Quiche
Red Thai Curry
Pork Steaks in Mustard Sauce
Bolognese
Chilli
Chicken Biryani
Cottage Pie
Speedy Spicy Beans

My new personal target is to improve my exercise regime. Got myself a FitBit which reminds me to get up and move around every so often, need that as my job is a lot of desk-work. Trying to fit in some Aquarobics and out on my bike when I’m not working weekends.

I had a wardrobe clear out yesterday, in the last year I’ve gone from a 24 top and 20 bottom to a 20 top and 16 bottom! Feeling really good about the changes. This recent 11lb loss was needed to get me comfortably into the size 16 bottoms, so motivation is high at the moment, aiming to be at least another size down before our family holiday in August 🙂

Tracyrees72 it sounds like you are doing really well! Great feeling having the wardrobe clear out. I am going to get the recipe book once I’ve tried most of the recipes in the first book so your recommendations will be useful. Exercise sounds great. I’m working on sleep 😴

Last day of third week happens to be Mother’s Day here.

Complete binge on pastries, chocolate and booze.

But here’s the thing. Bloods 7.2 at 6 pm after snacking all afternoon. Expecting at least a twelve!

Back on the regime tomorrow.

Mike from OZ

Just following my last post.

Put on a kilo, sigh🙁

Fasting bloods 6.1, not so bad.

I think it shows that my insulin resistance/ glucose intolerance is abating.

Any thoughts?

Mike from OZ

Well, you know how glucose is stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver? My theory would be that you ate all that sugar, you made insulin which did its job of tucking the sugar away instead of leaving it in your bloodstream, so yeah, improved insulin sensitivity.

Hey all, lovely sunny morning here in Northern Ireland – hope everyone’s well? Anyway, just did my Week 4 Wednesday Weigh-In and I’m really pleased with the results. I knew I’d lost this week as I could see and feel it, regardless of what the measurements would say, but they have backed me up: I’ve lost another whole 1lb and another inch off my waist. That makes my total losses so far 6.25lbs in weight, 1.5″ off my bust, 3″ off my waist and 0.5″ off my hips (those pesky hips aren’t quite shifting, but I always know I’m on the right track when my boobs start to shrink!). I’ve been reasonably good food-wise this week, although I did have another huge wine-and-junk binge on Friday night; but I’ve upped my exercise a little and am including a good bit more strength and resistance training. I can now plank for 1 minute 20 seconds, which I’m pleasantly surprised by, considering I couldn’t even hold the position for 20 seconds when I started this regime… My dodgy knees aren’t enjoying the squats, but I’m aiming to continue in this way for another 2.5 weeks and hopefully shift another lb or two, and another couple of inches. If anyone has any tips for shifting stubborn poochy belly fat, I’d love to hear them! I have to say, though, overall (minus those awful week 2/3 blues), this has been the easiest, most stress-free weight-loss program I’ve ever tried and I’m very glad I decided to give it a go.
I now have to go and take my car for it’s MOT test, so I’m really hoping my good day continues – fingers crossed! Would love to hear how everyone else is getting on?

Hi LynnyPinny,

Broke out the micro fleece leggings today in sunny New Zealand. It keeps getting colder, but oh well, soup. And can pretend to be romantic novel character when I walk on deserted beach in howling gale.

I have lost 4.5kg total and 6cm off my waist in the 4 weeks. Yay! Really hoping to pass the 5kg mark in the next week which is also the switch from obese to overweight.

I’m starting to walk more. Can’t seem to talk myself into biking to work again.

New recipes to recommend are
Gingered pork with stir-fried vegetables
Beetroot hummus
Poached egg and salmon stack
Courgetti with salmon and creme fraiche
👨‍🍳

Falldown7times, that’s great! Brilliant results and props to you for doing this diet in cold weather – I know I would be finding that a lot harder as I always put weight on over the winter months. Keep it up!

Just have to report that this morning my weight is down 5.2kg, giving me a BMI of exactly 30.00000. Hurray! It will probably be up again tomorrow morning but I am now very close to overweight instead of obese. Actual weight is 79.8 so also just gone into the 70s. So very milestone-y day today.🎉

Hurray! BMI 29.8 today.

Well done! 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀 I remember how pleased I was when I got rid of that ‘obese’ label.

End of first four weeks.

The good and the not so.

Decided to do bloods all day. Worst result was 7.6 two hours after lunch. Used to get twelves.

Average for day 6.4

Until I succumbed to my son’s saffron rice for evening meal. Bloods over 8 and now 7.1 this morning.

Anyway four weeks to go.

Mike from OZ

Still an improvement from twelves, even after the rice. Are you pleased? Would you break your son’s heart, if you didn’t eat his rice? Or did it just look delicious?

Hey folks, apologies in advance as this is going to be a really moan-y post… Not a good week so far; I had a crappy day at work yesterday, it’s ‘that’ time of the month and I am feeling so bloated, flabby, disgusting and low. I was doing quite well, was pleased with my results last week and then, literally overnight, it all went to poo and I feel like I put on about a stone in 24 hours. I’m really hoping this is just the hormones in action, but I’ve done my Week 5 weigh-and-measure this morning, and the results aren’t great. I’m showing a half-pound GAIN in the weight department, and none of my measurements have changed, except that I’ve lost another half-inch off my hips (finally – the squats may be working). Pretty disappointing all round, as I had been fairly good this week 800cal/food-wise and have stepped up the toning exercises as well. The only plus point I can find today is that I’ve been taking photos of myself since week 1 and, comparing them with today’s pics, I can actually see a small difference, especially in my tummy which is starting to look a little (and I mean LITTLE) flatter. So I’m clinging onto that and hoping that I’ll see a turnaround once this dreaded ‘lady’ week is over. I flipping hope so! I haven’t been dieting for five weeks just to see it all go down the tubes right before my holiday!!! Anyway, apologies again for the ranty post – I know there are plenty of people in the world who have a lot more to be upset about but it’s just been one of those weeks. I’m keeping everything crossed for better results in the coming days, and sending good vibes to everyone else for their efforts.

Oh LynnyPinny, you know that it is the hormones and fluid and all that. Stick with it and in a week or so there will be a big whoosh and the scales will look great and you will be happy. But that can’t happen if you give up so don’t give up!

My weight was 4.8kg down at the end of week 5 but I didn’t want to report as had been 5.6 kg down earlier in the week. Stupid fluid and poo and hormones etc. Also maybe my new habit this week of eating a lot of nuts. Less than 3 weeks until the end of this push. I think I can white knuckle it and forgo alcohol, snacks and seconds for 18 days. Well maybe I will just start with tomorrow.

Aw, thanks Falldown7times – I’m feeling much better today. Got the crappy work issue sorted out (hopefully) and feel like maybe the bloat is starting to subside! Weight back down by half a pound this morning, so am just trying to stay back on track.Your results are amazing – keep up the good work. Like you say, only another few weeks to go. 🙂

Week six starting.

Bloods still good, six or less.

Weight seems to have plateaued though but at least just under bmi 30.

Know how linnypinny feels. How does eating 1/2 lb of food make you put on two? LOL.

Anyway it’s now time to get serious about my booze intake.

Mike from OZ

As hoped for, a much more positive result this week – the monthly bloat has finally gone again (for now) and I am actually feeling slim today! Week 7 weigh-and-measure this morning showed that I have lost 2.5lbs since last week, plus an inch each off my waist and hips and 1.5 inches off my bust (like I said before, I KNOW I’m losing weight when my boobs start to shrink…)! Anyway, that makes a total loss of 8.5lbs since I started, which I’m really pleased with. I had been extra good for the past week and had upped my exercise a good bit, so it seems to have paid off. I’m heading off to Ibiza on Monday for a week, so no doubt I’ll be putting quite a few of those lbs back on again (I can’t wait to indulge and eat and drink whatever I want on holiday, although I will try not to completely overdo it). My upcoming hols were the main reason I started this regime, but I have actually found it relatively easy and have every intention of keeping it up when I get back, although not in such a strict way; I might try the 5:2 instead, or I might just try a more moderate version of my own devising. But all in all, it really has been worth it! I feel lighter, it’s got me back into exercising more again, my cravings for sugar have died down a fair bit, I haven’t missed my red wine too much, and I’ve enjoyed cooking for myself and trying new combinations, rather than just taking the easy option of the nearest ready-meal.
I’ll probably do a final weigh-and-measure on Sunday before I head off, just for my own records and to see where I need to get back to when I come home, but other than that, I’m done. It’s gone a bit quiet on this thread – hope everyone else is having great success and sticking with it too! 🙂

Hi LynnyPinny & Mike,

I forgot to check in on Wednesday. Looking back I was total 5.2kg down then, but I have had a little whoosh in the last few days and I’m 6.2kg down this morning. Yay. I am thinking whatever weight I am at the end of the 8 weeks I will do maintenance there for 1-2 months.

It may just be coincidence but I think the secret to my success in the last few days was I did some of that high intensity training before breakfast. So I will try to continue that.

LynnyPinny I hope you have a fabulous time in Ibiza! It is now officially winter here of course. I am very jealous. It is 7 in the morning, pitch black outside and I am sitting in bed with 2 duvets and my fleece dressing gown on.

Hey all, hope everyone’s doing well? Back from my hols and, having eaten and drunk myself silly for a week, I’m now ready to re-start this thing tomorrow morning. This time, I’m aiming to be slightly less regimented (well, maybe strictly 800 cals for a week or two to get back on track, and then a bit less so) and try to take more of a Med-style or maintenance approach to see if I still see good results. One thing I found kind of concerning on my week off was how quickly I put weight back on, and how fat and bloated I felt with the re-introduction of carbs and sugar. I’ve put 2lbs and a couple of inches back on in 10 days – this seems rather fast to me! Has anyone else had experience of rapid weight gain once they stopped or slipped up on the 800 cal diet? One thing that I’m hoping will make a difference is going back to drinking 2 litres of water a day, which I haven’t been doing since I went away. Would be good to hear any opinions or advice on re-starting!

The really rapid weight gain is water retention and replenished glycogen stores. This will fall off again just as rapidly when you restart, and is nothing to be concerned about.

Thanks Mixnmatch – that’s really useful to know. And also something to look forward to! 🙂

Last day of eight week diet.

Waist has gone down a couple of inches.

Weight stable at around five kilos less than at start.

Bloods mostly good, not above ten even after some carbs.

Question is where to from here? Keep going on 800 a day, admittedly more like 1200 last couple of weeks or go onto 5:2? Do feel like I can stay on modified BSD 800 still.

Mike from OZ

Hi Mike
Are you at your goal weight or do you want to lose more?

Once I reached my goal, I kept my carbs low, my protein to 1g/kg of lean body mass (your weight – your fat) and simply increased my fat to satiety. This has kept my weight stable since September last year.

Hi LindaA

My first goal was to get BMI below thirty.

If I can loose four kg I will be same weight as I was when I was at uni (long time ago).

Need to loose eight more after that to get below twenty five.

So a way to go yet.

Mike from OZ