What can I say?

Long term sugar addict and yo yo dieter am starting the BSD for health reasons, though won’t be sorry to see those excess pounds go.

Am too depressed and scared to weigh myself but am taking measurements to measure my progress.

I know this won’t be easy but the forum seems a great place for tips and inspiration.

And I am just so fed up with feeling ill.

Here goes!

Welcome Tryinghard.
You can do this!
As for measuring, well that’s one of the best ways.
Shout if you need advice and don’t give up. Remember, its best to eat too much of the right foods than any of the wrong foods!
And my biggest success tip was to drink water water water. I am trying to renew that this week!
Looking forward to your progress.

Welcome Tryinghard – well done on taking the decision to make a life change to improve your health. Taking your measurements instead of weighing is okay if you really can’t bear to know what you weigh right now. Clothes becoming too big will be a good indication of progress, as your weight falls. Hopefully you will be able to brave the scales at some point, as seeing the pounds drop is a great encouragement to sticking with things.

Yes, you can expect sticking points and in the early days possibly carb ‘flu’, but if you persist, you WILL see positive results. Use the forum to vent when things are not going well and someone will offer support and encouragement – equally let us know every little success too, as we love an excuse to celebrate as well. Use the search box in the top right corner of the page if there is a particular issue you want to find info on, as there are lots of threads on here relating to all sorts of issues people have struggled with, but if in doubt just shout, someone will respond.

Wish you all the best and hope to be reading positive results from you soon.

Well, easier and harder than expected!

With planning it was easier than I thought to get three meals out of 800 calls (though I did use the slim rice which I’m not that keen on).

But I did feel empty in the evening and had dinner an hour earlier than usual.

But the after dinner cravings for something sweet were very powerful. I had saved 20g of almonds but it was HARD to stop eating.

I am wondering about going to two meals a day, breakfast and a late lunch. Does anyone do that? It seems that the act of eating stimulates my appetite!

Well done on a successful first day, Trying hard.

As Barristagirls and SunnyB have said, measuring is fine, instead of weighing, but it further down your journey, it seems a shame not to know exactly how much you have lost, because it is very motivating, particularly when you hit a plateau (and you will) to be able to look back and see just how far you have come. I found this to be so, anyway, but each to his own.

Two meals a day is fine – I generally have a late breakfast (circa 11am) and an early supper (6pm), leaving a 17hour fast in between, and this has worked for me (I’m now in maintenance) and in fact, the fasting can have many positive benefits. Do a search on this site, there are lots of threads about it. Lots of people routinely do 16:8, so only eat within an 8 hour window, fasting for 16.

Well done on completing your first day and good luck tomorrow, and all subsequent days – don’t forget to drink the water..

We all need to find the best way to make the 800 cals a day work for us, Tryinghard. For some it’s having three meals and maybe even saving a few cals for a snack; for others it’s two meals and a longer overnight fasting period. In the early days, I found I needed three meals and sometimes a snack too, but now I am comfortable with two meals and that longer fast period.

Hunger pangs are very normal in the early days – and I think most of us can identify with finding it hard to stop eating when we know we’ve had our calorie quota, at least occasionally. The hunger pangs will decrease as you adjust to the new regime and your body gets used to not having the carbs it used to get – ride it out and in a few days these will die down, making life easier.

Anyway, no matter how you decide to use your 800 cals each day, remember we are in this for the long haul, so it important to find a way to blend it into your life in a way that causes the least disruption and that is trial and error. Good luck!

Stay strong and ignore the cravings or try to fool them with something on plan like a small piece of cheese or peanut butter on the tip of a teaspoon. The carb monster doesn’t like being ignored and tries to prod you into feeding him (or her). Distraction can be useful as well, find something absorbing to do every time they strike. The good news is the cravings go and don’t come back unless you go back over your personal carb threshold, after a couple of weeks and then you begin to recognise that most of what we thought was hunger was actually just the cravings.

Thanks for all the messages, they have been really helpful and encouraging.

I bit the bullet this morning and weighed myself!! Not as bad as I feared. Phew!

My first test out in the real world today, going to dinner at a friend’s house. I have nominated myself as designated driver, so no alcohol, but have no idea what’s on the menu. Will try and fill up on veggies. I have had a late breakfast, 230 calories, and hope I have saved enough for my dinner.

What do you folks do in this situation?

Thanks.

Hi – think when eating in other people’s homes, we all just do our best to stick to the principles – little or no alcohol, non bad carbs (unless you absolutely have to have a mouthful or two of dessert). My other advise is to avoid soft drinks and juices, as they tend to be high in carbs – to be on the safe side, why not take a bottle of sparling water with you, just in case.

Finally, don’t panic about being a bit over on the calories, its’ that carbs that was more of an issue. Even if you are over on cals, it’s unlikely that it will have much impact on results when you weigh in, as long as you have controlled the carbs.

Have a lovely evening with your friend and try not to stress about things, you can always compensate a bit tomorrow, if you feel this evening was a little over the top.

Hi there, I agree with SunnyB but would like to add, could you not tell your host in advance what you are not eating, i.e. potatoes, rice and pasta and ask if there could be extra veg or salad for you. As a host it is better to be prepared, and I always ask my guests if there is anything they dont like. Having said that, we went to stay with husbands sister and her husband with strict instruction that I didn’t eat carbs and I dont like fish. It was a Friday night so she made up FISH AND CHIPS. I asked her to cook the fish without batter and I forced it down, no chips and asked for some salad so she gave me a pre-prepared coleslaw which was 10% cabbage 90% marie rose sauce. Fortunately, they took us out for a meal the following evening so I could chose for myself. You just have to remember, it is only one meal.

I’m with sunshine-girl and I now always tell folks in advance what I’m doing and what I eat. I also say that I don’t expect them to do anything special just for me and that if it’s easier, I can bring a salad or something to replace any carbs they are cooking. Of course these are all good friends so I don’t feel too awkward about asking.

There’s another great benefit I’ve found to telling people – unlike previous diets where I have been reluctant to say I am trying to lose weight, I have been very open with friends and at work about the BSD, which in turn has made it easier for me to stick with it (maybe cos I now don’t dare fail having told them all!).

I found Miso soup really helpful, just 17 calories (I think) for a mug and surprisingly satisfying. I never thought that watery soup would be enough but it really helps fill a gap sometimes!

I’m not doing the 800 diet but a low carb under 1200 calories a day version, I have 3 meals Monday to Friday and two meals at the weekend, brunch and dinner which works well for me so you should do what you find works and suits you.