Hi WindyJulz,,

Right hold on to your hat here I do doing a full Aspie style data dump. – With regard to sharing this information on the forum, I think lets do that, horses are deliberately given a high sugar diet to create Laminitis, then are killed so that experiments can be made on the structure of their hooves. – I feel therefore that the more everyone learns as a result of the experiences of those horses the better. But first some background information.

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A couple of decades ago my horse developed Navicular, (pain in the heels of the front hooves for the none horsey people on the forum). He reached the point where the vet gave me two options, bute (heavy duty pain killer that damages organs if given too long)
for up to 6 months and then shoot him or shoot him now. – I didn’t like those options so I searched for an alternative solution. It just so happened that a German speaking Canadian had gone through a similar experience with her horse, had discovered the work of a German Vet, followed the procedure herself, and was so impressed that she decided to share / translate the information in English online. The principle was that you pull the horses shoes and trip the hooves to allow the hooves to return to a healthy shape. I talked about the ideas with my vet, and she said, well you have nothing to loose. I talked my farrier into following the instructions I had printed off the internet, and the upshot was this horse who couldn’t walk downhill in a straight line due to pain was within months trotting down hill and jumped a 5 bar gate to get in for his feed one night.

During this period one person had travelled from the UK to Germany to study the professional barefoot hoof care course with this vet. – She then went on to organise training courses in the UK. I was so impressed with the improvement in my horse that I decided to study so that I could care for my horses hooves for myself in future. First I went on an introduction to trimming for horse owners, and then a 2 year long professional hoofcare orthopaedics course. During my second year, there was growing publicity on the techniques so people started to contact the course tutor for help. and she would pass on my contact details to people who lived in South Wales and contacted her for help. These were all horses in pain, and I ended up spending my spare time going out to help them.

One of the people who contacted me ran a racing yard. – I started off going to help one particular horse and eventually ended up working on all the horses she bought in. She raced Arabs, but also bought in thoroughbreds with fantastic breeding but they were on the scrap heap as three year olds because they had turned out to not live up to expectations in races. – Many of these horses had feet that looked like dinner plates. much larger and flatter than a healthy hoof should be. – It doesn’t matter if you are talking about a miniature Shetland pony or a shire horse the angles of the hoof and its shape should be the same and these were not a healthy shape as a result of being kept in and fed a high sugar diet from an early age. I realised that all these horses were recovering a healthier shape hoof with the new shape forming from the coronet band and growing down in a way that wasn’t happening with other horses. Yes I was helping other horses recover, but these you could literally see a change in angles and quality of horn which gradually grew out. from the coronet band (the point where the hoof wall joins with the leg) I studied everything she was doing to work out what could be the difference.

At the same time I was helping someone else who had a Section D cob with laminitis, so severe that his owner spent lots of time managing in detail every element of his fields, he was only on native species grasses, no rye grass. no hard feed, (Native grasses are between 8 and 14 % sugar levels, rye grass has been deliberately engineered to create species which are 48% sugar to bulk up as many beef and lambs to slaughter weight per acre as possible . ) No matter what she did we would start to make progress and he would be walking a little more comfortably and then wham, he would be back to being down with all four hooves inflamed. All the training I had had on hoof care was not enough, we had the hooves perfectly balanced so that there was no uneven pressure anywhere on the hoof.

So I ended up search for the latest research online which is when I came across the research published by Queensland University. – A horses hoof wall is made of lots of individual tubes of horn. each connected to the surrounding tubes. When the hoof wall grows the tube disconnects from the adjoining tubes grows and then reconnects. – A Professor had identified that when a particular bacteria responsible for digesting sugar existed in the gut, then a chemical element was found in the blood stream. When that element came in contact with the structures responsible for hoof growth it caused rapid hoof growth. When hoof wall growth is very excessive, so many horn tubules are disconnected that the structure becomes weak. If the heels of the hoof are too high then the forces cause the connective tissue between the front of the main bone in the horses hoof and the hoof wall to give way and the pedal bone rotates inside the hoof capsule if the hoof is balanced and the angles correct so the horses weight is spread evenly over the joint, then the bone is ripped away from the whole of the hoof wall and drops within the hoof. Wincing yet folks? Horses are regularly deliberately put through this in the Queensland University and then they and and the horses on a different diet are killed so they can study the damage to the connective tissue. in their hooves.

So then my search went on to research the bacteria responsible. I found there was a particular acid which appears in 2 natural situations. Its in milk, particularly in the early milk production and seems to be involved in the prevention of mastitis, (it maybe has a role in helping the development of a new born’s got bacteria mixture) the other natural occurrence is in coconut. At this point I had a light bulb moment. My horse training client was the distributor for an animal feed made from coconut meal and she fed that to all the horses in her yard.

I went over all the research materials I had found and shared photographs I had taken of the progress of the horse trainers horses hooves with the owner of the Section D. I brought a sack of the feed over for her and we tried it. – We started to see really positive changes in the hoof walls of this horse. It was a stressful time, the Section D’s owner had decided that she should not put him through further pain and if this attempt didn’t work he would be put down. But after a couple of months his progress was such that I started to share the information with the owners of other laminitics. – I saw the same success with all bar one horse. – I discovered that the owner of that horse was so hard up that she was struggling to buy hay, but she worked for a bakery and was bringing home sacks of left over bread every day to feed to her horses.

What I noticed with all the horses was that no matter how closely the horses owner controlled their diet, even those horses which didn’t have a laminitic attack had hooves growing faster than they should. In every case feeding coconut changed that. Some where the owners were reluctant to feed much, or the horses were reluctant to eat the coconut went through a two step process, with a positive result when they first incorporated coconut meal. better, but not right. and then as they gained confidence and indreased the amount of coconut a second improvement. Others had one dramatic change in angles and a sudden correction in hoof growth.

————–

So why does the coconut feed work? – Well as I mentioned there is an acid in coconut which kills the streptococcus bacteria named by the researchers at the university.

Other research into the health benefits of coconut came up with a description of how it cures leaky gut. – Apparently yeast infections in the gut result in the yeast roots entering the gut wall and then larger particles can pass from the gut into the blood stream. Coconut oil kills off the yeast infection.

Finally I can’t remember where I read it, but I understand different gut bacteria thrive at different PH’s. A balanced gut bacteria occurs with a neutral ph. Apparently the manufacturers of the coconut feed. discovered that the Ph of the horses gut changed to a neutral PH when they were on this feed.

Interestingly, there are multiple articles online about coconut oil being used to reverse insulin resistance and T2.

—————————

So there you have it. I did say at the start here we go with a data dump. – My horse was 14 when he suffered from Navicular, he did return to soundness and we had another 14 years together exploring the countryside before he had to be retired due to ill health put to sleep after a heart attack. All of the laminitics returned to soundness, and the owners no longer had to use muzzles and starvation patches to control access to grass, except 2. The one who was fed bread and the one where the owner was not willing to wait until the pedal bone had reconnected enough to the hoof wall to enable the horse to carry her weight. (The horses hoof capsule distorts under pressure as a shock absorber, put too much load on the hooves before the connection between the hoof wall and pedal bone has healed and it rips apart again.

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WindyJulz, the product name is Coolstance, it consists of minced up coconut meal which is the flesh left over after pressing to produce oil. but it still contains a high level of oil. It has been dried, and you need to soak it before feeding, but it does not take long to absorb water. I recommend for a horse at least 1 feed size scoop a day of soaked Coolstance as well as controlling sugar levels in feed the rest of the time.

So the next quest will be does coconut help those of us who have been on a high carb diet long term. Don’t know that’s what I am experimenting with at present. – I am going through 2 small coconuts a week. That’s why at present I have stopped calorie counting. I can confirm so far its good for helping to control the carb cravings.

Queensland University has had for many years a

6T, thank you for sharing that quote. It really is in the small things. I kind of believe it’s a bit like the ‘take care of the pennies’ saying …. so if you can find joy in the little things, joy in the wider world will automatically become apparent. Not sure I explained that too well ….. anyway, positives from me …..
🌳 More lovely family time. Someone here asked age of youngest granddaughter …. she’s ten (going on 20) next month and a complete joy!
🌳 Have been really enjoying having gd’s cockerpoo here too …. she’s a real little character.
🌳 Out of hours walk around a wildlife park, where we were scrutinised by a grey wolf.
🌳 Was gifted some plums, so planning so make small batch of chutney tomorrow.
🌳 Latest veg ferment is ready to decant.
🌳 Rain has made for a cooler day today …. more importantly, less humid.

Wishing you all a very positive weekend.

Hi everyone, I’m new to Fast 800 and this forum. So cool to read people’s experiences and support on here. I’m aiming to lose 10kg in total and have lost 3kg in my first 8 days which I know will slow. Until I started Fast 800 I exercised 3-4x a week for an hour strenuously. I gave myself the week off when I started so I didn’t use exercise as an excuse to overeat when tired. I have been eating 2 meals a day, 12pm and 630pm and sticking to under 800cal, I still get hungry but just drink more water and it’s manageable. I’m going back to the gym next week, I do classes as I get bored working out on my own. I’m curious if anyone else is doing classes and what they’re doing and how it’s affecting their energy levels. I usually go at 6am and I work full time

In the words of Virginia Woolf, “Let us not take it for granted that life exists more fully in what is commonly thought big than what is commonly thought small.” New washing machine has been doing its thing; i have been weighing myself plus myself and single duvets to make sure they are not too heavy for it to manage. Results all round. Verano used the phrase joie de vivre on another thread. maybe we should use that as another acronym alongside BSD/WOE…JDV. I am very pleased to have nice clean stuff, and in a fit of efficiency, also ironed. It IS all in the small things.

Hi FireAntNl,
mind you, I didn’t up my intake to a certain amount of calories, I simply stopped counting and weighing. I trusted my body would tell me when I’ve eaten enough. And it does. I have honestly no clue how many cals I eat right now, but it feels like a LOT. As long as I am not gaining weight, I don’t feel the urge to start counting. If I do gain weight, I’ll try adding a fast day and /or one or two 800 days per week, for a few weeks but so far so good. I know it’s scary, been there, but I think you’ll be all right. Keep an eye on the scales, be honest and trust your body. Je kunt het!
DD

I found this documentary on Amazon Prime video, which sums up some of the current theories pretty well! It’s called Fat Fiction link: https://amzn.to/3iHJOQJ

S-g I feel for you and sympathise., but yes maybe it is time to “press play’ ( wonderful phrase) and move on. I know how disappointing it must be for you to cancel yet another family get-together but you must GO OUT & DINE!
My first outing since February 26th, when we were invited to dinner with friends, was last Tuesday, and it was mixed safety wise. BUT, my goodness it has so given me back my ‘joie de vivre’!
Please go out and eat safely. Enjoy! Get back your purpose for living …. mine had disappeared even though I hadn’t realised until I got back a ‘purpose for living’!

The other thing to remember is that the bacteria which depend on sugar are able to send signals to our subconscious to prompt us to teed them. So if I get a craving for carbs I just think about some ugly fat bacteria in my gut being the ones demanding they get fed and its easier to step away from the kitchen.

Hi SG, I think your dining out options sounds fabulous, and you should definitely treat yourself to some new clothes (and shoes😊).
It is easy to put life on pause in the current situation but you are right that we need to press play and get on with the new normal.
I hadn’t seen my parent (just over 70) in 6 months, but last week we managed to arrange for them to come and stay with us. We live 5 hours away, so not really possible in a day trip. They got their own part of the house and we spent most time outside, all meals outside. Both me and my sister and our children could spend time with them and I could see it meant the world to them (and us). My in-laws are in the UK and we have not seen them or the rest of the family there for over a year. We were due to go at Easter but of course it was cancelled. Can’t see that we will be traveling anywhere this side of Christmas.
We can only wait and see, but in the meantime we can do the best we can to be in the best health possible to tackle the virus if needed.

Thanks sixturkeys and Olive, as for crying, my husband is very much of the ‘pull yourself together’ brigade, so even if I do cry he gets quite angry – just his way. Nice thing about eating out here in France is there is hardly ever a carb in site so no potatoes or chips but occasionally some pasta or rice in small portions. I can always ask for extra veg or salad. Also, the restaurants I used to go to have nice big terraces. I have been living in a state of suspended something or other, everything waiting until we can get together with my daughter and 2 grandsons. Just had to ask for a refund on the panto we were going to at the Birmingham Hippodrome although they offered us seats for Christmas 2021. Our grandson will be too old and this was going to be our last. We have been going for 8 years. Older boy dropped out last year so no more panto. So trying to lose weight, not buying new clothes, my indoor shoes are falling off my feet, so there’s a treat waiting to happen. I have to start living in the now and get on with life as it is a new normal.

Oh SG, I really feel for you. I know the disappointment.
I would go out if I were you, now is the perfect time as you can sit outside with (hopefully) lots of space, and I’m sure you could make wise choices. Seeing friends is such a good consolation if it is possible.

I’m feeling quite frustrated. After sailing through my 4 week holiday without any problem with food/weight I’m back at work (or rater at home at work) and not moving around as much and I’m hungry all the time!!! Feel like I’m blobbing out!
Thought It would be breeze to go back to skipping breakfast and longer fasts. Turns out no – not easy.
I blame the heat a bit as I have trouble sleeping and that upsets a lot for me.
Am struggling on here…

I’m really sorry SG that you have had this further disappointment; it must be so frustrating and upsetting. Yes all fingers crossed that you will be reunited soon. It sounds as if meeting up with friends for a meal out might give you a boost, I’m sure it need not be wildly out of kilter with your WOE. And maybe just letting go and having a good cry rather than trying to hold back.
Also, Bryla, hope all is well with your dog. The sardine treats went down, well, a treat, with my two and as you say, the one batch makes lots to keep in the freezer. Well done to everyone else! I am feeling slightly leaner – as before I can first feel it round the hips/bottom.

I wondered that. Today is so much better so whatever it was, it’s got better. I love the mental image of all those gut bacteria popping off because I’ve given up sugar and eaten minimal carbs!

Dont know what to say, we have just cancelled our 4th attempt to be with our family. I can hardly talk as my throat hurts with trying to hold back the tears. Will officially cancel our September sailing and keep our fingers crossed for Christmas.
I know it goes against the diet but I am seriously thinking of planning a meal out with some friends. The last time I went out was for my birthday in February then in mid March we were locked down. Since then the farthest I have been is the supermarket so I really an not living, just existing. As long as everyone stays well I suppose that is the best we can hope for right now.
Take care everyone.

Hi greg1, I think you will find a lot of us here have tried the pee sticks and, if you go into ketosis and the colour changes and you stay on the diet your body will eventually shift to fat burning so you wont be discarding the ketones. That is when it gets disheartening as you think you are doing something wrong. So it is an initial way of showing that the diet works but has little use after that.
You BG testing shows you are normal i.e. not diabetic. If you want to continue testing then it should be occasionally. Honestly, I have to finger prick daily (sometimes twice if I have a wobble) and 1. it hurts, 2. it causes scar tissue to form on the fingers so you lose sensation, and 3. can be a source of infection. Alway prick on the side of the finger not on the tip to avoid 2.
I was on 40 mg statins before this diet and now take 10 mg. I was reduced because I started having cramps so doctor took me off them completely and my cholesterol went straight back up to around 8. He put me back on but 30 mg but, in the meantime, I had found this diet. He finally said I could stop completely but I chose to stay on a very small dose as I am diabetic so probably at high risk of stroke. My cholesterol levels are around 3.8 and 4.0 – so dont worry about the fat in this plan, it is mainly healthy fats (olive oil, nuts, avocados etc) and even the stuff we believed to be bad like butter, full fat cheese, etc are used in moderation so do not cause a problem. IMO the chemicals in low fat substitutes are more of a problem for the liver to deal with than real fat.
Keep on keeping on…

How are you getting on, Patricia?

I’ve lost 2 lb, which is a move in the right direction!

Thanks V! When I booked,the restaurant sent a list of their safety measures,they seem to be following it all quite closely…Not great is it,if some places arent.. Safety is paramount,we all have to look out for each other. I just keep these four words in mind ..It Hasnt Gone Away…and try to balance caution with attempting to slowly return to some semblance of a normal life again! 😄
~* Thinking of positives as its a positive thread, I believe if we werent before, we are now all on what’s sometimes called a Hero’ s Journey ..each persons personal path thru life…and we’ve all had a big wake up call.
Hopefully tho the world looks like its at such a precarious stage,this could be a fresh start for us..after all,we’re supposed to be entering the Age of Aquarius, a new paradigm after the collapse of the old Age of Pisces! 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻💜💜💜
Good luck at the hospital V! Hope all goes well xx

Yowzer if you haven’t already it might be worth asking the restaurant what measures they have in place. Looks like there’s a huge difference in safety measures from one place to another. That may reassure you a little.
I have a hospital appointment this afternoon and I must admit I’m a little more nervous about being in a hospital than in a restaurant!

Brilliant – thank you! 🙂
do you want to share via email instead? Is there an easy way to share my email address with you?

Hi WindyJulz,

I am happy to share more information on the coconut feed and equestrians Its a bit of a long story, so will write it up this evening if thats OK with you. If you want to research the food, look for Coolstance. It is widely sold in feed merchants.

Hi WINDY and VERANO,so glad youve got yr bubbles in place! Im floating along in mine…!
V of course,i had forgotten that the scheme only runs Mon – Wed til end of August.
I found that lots of places were fully booked right up til the end of August, but we managed to squeeze in at the end of the month. Which suits me fine as Im still very wary about doing much.
But the small steps Im making,Im really enjoying…things that used to seem quite ordinary can now feel like big adventures!
Have wandered along Lark Lane which was a delight to see all our old haunts again.
Havent been to town yet,missing Bold Street a lot,so a masked stroll down there is on the cards soon,sanitiser in hand! XX

Yowzer, I’m glad you enjoyed your bus ride – and there were fun things to see. Interesting bubble idea!
WindyJulz – it’s going to be a good day!
Verano, you’re right we need to listen to our bodies when it comes to eating, and to make our own decisions about going out etc. What’s right for one person isn’t right for everyone.

Squidge 16:8 is ok once you get into it. I very occasionally wake up ‘hungry’ so have yogurt with berries or eggs. I think you have to just follow your own body and if it’s telling you to eat …. why not! I can understand your issues with eating out. I’m ‘vulnerable’ and have been locked up for 5 months but made the decision that yes I’m ‘alive’, but I’m not ‘living’ so bit the bullet and ate out on Tuesday. Yes, I was a little nervous and wasn’t overjoyed by the safety measures in place in that particular restaurant, but you know on balance it did me good. So I’ve taken a chance and may live to regret it but I think now we just have to get on with things. Life is too short, especially at my age, to be too frightened to step over the door!
Yowzer, no it wasn’t available in the restaurant on Tuesday, not every restaurant is part of the scheme. Yesterday was Thursday so a day too late!
Love your ‘bubble’ ….. mine’s in place too!🧘🏻‍♀️

Yowser – your golden bubble of peace just made all the hairs on my arms stand up! Bubble in place – Friday, I am ready for you!
🙂

JGwen – can i jump on your post re horses and gut PH please???
Sorry – i realise this is not a horse forum and this will not make sense to non-horse people but I totally need to know about the coconut feed!
I have a horse who was chronically laminetic last year, he has been sound and well for 12 months now thanks to a muzzle limiting his grass intake, he’s been tested and does not have cushings. However he is leaner than i would like and just looks a bit under condition wise (he’s 17yo IDxTB). I have increased hard feed and included linseed but little difference (although he is delighted about a bigger bucket as he’s been on a diet most of his life). I’m too scared to turn him out on grass without a muzzle tho as the sugar scares me.
So what is the coconut feed? Never heard of it at all. And do you think it would allow me to get him short duration turnout on grass with no muzzle and to help with weight and condition??

I do often take learnings from horse health to try and apply to myself – if i looked after my own health and body the way we do horses I am sure I would be so much leaner and healthier for it!

Fascinating thread though – thanks to all those who are contributing.

🙂

Howdy all ! 💖🌈💖🌈💖
SUNNY so glad youre feeling upbeat again,and turning cartwheels!
Enjoy yr visitors..how old is yr grandaughter?
Nice that you can still have yr date night this week
VERANO, did you do Eat Out Help Out?
SQUIDGE work sounds promising!

~ * Had a little bus ride,my bus journeys are few and far between these days,but I took the little circular bus that takes me from outside my door to the Post Office and supermarket,and back again. En route it was nice to see a few cafes have now got little tables set up outside..gives a festive carnival feel,specially as theres a lot of bunting around too..

~ * Saw a sign outside a pub that made me smile (relating to recent LFC football win after thirty long years)…
“Lost property now returned after thirty years “
Also,” My wife doesnt mind me going out on a Saturday with these two birds…“
And a picture of the Liver Birds

~ * Booked a Eat Out to Help Out lunch for 26 th August. A meal out at last! 😋 Living the dream!….
¸¸ 🐝*•.¸🌼¸¸.•*¨🦋¨*•.¸¸💞¸.•*•¸🌿.•*¨¸ 🐝*•.¸🌼¸¸.•*¨ 🐝*•.¸🌼¸¸.•*¨🦋¨*•.¸ 🐝*•.¸ .•*¨🦋¨*•.¸¸💞
“ Before starting your day,take a moment to create a healing bubble around yourself. Simply envision a golden bubble of peace and protection around you. Its amazing how effective this can be” (Emmanuel Dagher)

Just wanted to say hi Greg and good on you getting involved with this way of eating, I’m so sorry about your father, my dad is 84 and over weight and so a bit of a worry, we have been very lucky so far.
Best of luck and good wishes on your journey, you will feel so much better for it. Salt and fluids will keep you feeling right.

Julz

Good morning.

Glad you had a better day, SunnyB, and you had a nice day out, Verano. We’re being cautious and still not eating out, or mixing with others except at a distance outside – which does have the benefit of making sticking to the diet easier. We both work mainly from home, and our parents are ‘vulnerable’ so it seems sensible in our case.

My positives –

* I’ve got used to the 16:8 fast now and hardly notice feeling hungry. I hope that means I’m in ketosis and my body is not telling me I need food, as it’s burning fat.
* Something hopeful happened with my work.
* Weather is cooler.

Good morning!
Good to see all the positives which, as usual, bring a smile to my face.
Yesterday was a pretty good one for me …..
🥗 Lunch out with sil and niece. Enjoyed a good ‘super green’ salad with grilled chicken.
🌶 Restaurant had good social distancing with only three out of seven tables being used in the section we were in and disposable menus. Felt very reassured.
🥒 Notice more and more people are becoming conscious of ‘carbs’. I remember in the early days how we used to fear eating out and asking for no potatoes or rice etc, Now we are the ‘normal’ ones!
Today promises to be a good one for me, hope it is for you too.

Hi may I suggest you search in the box above, top right for ‘maintenance’ threads. There are lots of them and you may just find the experience of others that you are looking for.
Enjoy the journey!

Hi JGwen, DoubleDutch,

Thanks again for the advice and the sharing of your experiences. I don’t feel there’s enough experience of the stage between ending the diet and starting maintenance (i.e reverse dieting or simply upping food intake in one go to recommended calories as DD and Freester did) captured on the forum.

Now that I have been reverse dieting for the past week, and after having talked through my ideas and plans & used your experiences where possible to refine these plans, I feel less worried about this element of the process.
I was quite worried before. I didn’t want to lose a number of the things I’d gained over the past 11 or so weeks; Weight-loss (obviously!), body’s acceptance of such low calories, the loss of most sugar-related cravings & most carb cravings, the sense of positive movement, etc, etc… I really feel this is a risky stage, setting me up for the rest of my life, and I wanted to make sure I got it right!

Here’s hoping for a soft landing at the desired weight / waistline just as my calorie intake reaches the number I’m expecting to maintain weight…
I’ll post the odd update here for others interested in going from dieting to maintenance…

Hi CC and DCT,
I’ll be in that.. anything to keep me doing the right thing and having goals😊
Stay safe, health and happy 😊🖐️

Thank you for responding -good advice which i have seen also elsewhere.

Greg

Thank you for your reply. Yes I’ll avoid diaralyte. Your comments on keytones surprise me. I’ve been following Mr Mosley on Channel 4 as he takes candidates through a three week programme . Last night was end of week two and he checked their Keto stick reaction which was in some cases still high up the scale. Acccording to him “the sticks never lie”.

The fact that I’m measuring everything is probably novelty mixed with commitment. I am not diabetic but I sometimes wonder why not in that a week ago I tipped the scales at 16 stone 6 and at 65 have not been my normal weight since my late twenties. So the commitment is for the sake of my health and also I some fear of Covid. Sadly my Father was taken by it on April. He was 84 and overweight. So I can’t make myself any younger but given the time I can be a lot lighter.

So I’m on the 8 or perhaps 12 week plan. This morning I was 15 Stone 11 .So the measurement of blood sugar is probably not needed but I find it fascinating. Fasting today was 5. Then after a mushroom and bean lunch it rose to 7.2. But was back to 5 after 2 hours.

I’ve also had blood pressure issues and have been on meds for 15 or so years.

It too is now dropping and I would love to get it a point where as Michael suggests I can come off the meds as well as the ubiquitous statin.

So hopefully 12 weeks and at least 2.5 stones.

Sorry for the length of this and thanks again for responding.

Stay safe. Greg

I started in October 2017. Most of the time keeping carbs low, I and vary cal intake depending on my aims (and mood) at the time.

6T, Squidge, Krysia, Yowser and V, thank you so much for all the positives posted.
Yowser, excellent quote from Mr Lincoln.
6T, hope the new washer is in, up and running.
V, sounds like you are all spruced up and enjoying a refreshed look.
Squidge, every little pound disposed of, is one less to worry about.
Krysia, well done on your 3 days of 17hrs fasting.

My positives for today….
🌺 Yesterday’s gloominess kicked to the curb. 🤸‍♂️🤸‍♂️
🌺 Last min prep for visitors complete by 9.30am.
🌺 Lovely afternoon, with family and friends.
🌺 Granddaughter has settled in just as if she lives here 😄
🌺 At last we have had some rain …. relatively light and no storms, although I’m hoping we might get one overnight.
🌺 Had thought we’d need to cancel date night this week, but our guest have had a change of plan and will leave here Saturday instead of Sunday, so we can have date night after all.

Wishing you all lots of positives…. and fingers crossed you’ll have time to tell us about a few of them.

Thanks Squidge
And yes, absolutely, the programme is still motivating—after all, it got me motivated to give this another go so it’s definitely doing something right.
And yes, you could be right about ketostix demonstrating that a lower carb diet works differently—I hadn’t thought of it that way. 🤔

Yes definitely like the idea of a longer term Christmas thread. Maybe that from September to December instead of a monthly thread? Would that work for others too?

Thanks for the encouragement Cathy. You’re right – we CAN do this. Finally!!!

3.5g of glucose isn’t the end of the world as regards ketosis in any case. There’s more in a full fat Greek yogurt or a portion of raspberries. But the salt alone would probably have done the trick—sometimes a cup of Oxo or bouillon works wonders in the early stages.

Don’t forget the 800 cal diet is short term. You can plan a 1200 cal day and eat very well. I was shocked to learn how much sugar is in a ripe banana!
Sugar is the key but while you cut this out you can increase your weight loss by exercise. Simple power walk for an hour and if you have an outside step do a series of step ups. Really simple stuff. I’m lucky as all my family are on with the low card diet so we’re all eating right and eating less. The test is long term. As our low carb is going to span one year (Florida next August). I plan to lose 4st.

Me, just over 4 years but not permanently on the weight loss plan. As I diabetic I use it to control my blood glucose and by not eating carbs I have remained fit and well – actually better than I ever was before. The diet is meant as a 12 week plan (according to Admin) and you should not follow it strictly for longer than that. Lots of people go on and off by doing it strict then going into some sort of maintenance plan and coming back to the full diet when they need to.

How long have you been on BSD (or form of)?

DCT- we have been in our journey together now since 2017 and I reckon if we both get ourselves sorted out we can give ourselves the best Christmas Present EVER this year by getting to goal. We are not that far off now and I reckon it would be reasonable to “go for it”. I am aiming for 138 lb by Christmas- I think 133 was too low for me to maintain, I bet there will be others like us who are within say 1stone of goal weight who would like to join us. It might be something to think about from September onwards maybe starting a thread called “Goal Weight by Christmas” Something to think about? I really do want to stop messing about and want to get the job done!

You are good at maintaining too and were so close to goal. We know we can do it if we get ourselves sorted. I’ve been 130 lbs so is know it is possible. We know that our bad habits got us here in the first place. Enjoy time with your mum and that toasted tea cake! I’ve been enjoying crumpets!!

Keep going everyone..we are all on a mission!

Hi Cathy

Great to hear from you and that you’re still doing ok in spite of everything. I had not put two and two together about you being in local lockdown. So sorry that your meal got cancelled 🙁 But I do hope it can go ahead soon.

Good luck with your continued progress and willing you onto 145 by the end of this month. I still need to watch the MM programme – its recorded but not got round to it yet. I’m hoping it will fire me up a bit as I need to work harder if I want to lose any more weight. I’m maintaining ok but am still around half a stone heavier than this time last year, and also – like you Cathy – 10lb higher than I’d ideally like to be. But bad habits have crept in: particularly wine during the nice sunny weather, but also chocolate and bread more often than is good for me. So I definitely need a bit of a reboot! I’m visiting my mother again next week so will likely be given toasted teacake for breakfast again, but at least can escape from the wine culture for a little while …..

Hope everyone else is doing ok and seeing some positive progress towards your August goals? X

Ah – perhaps The other me means chillies are their favourite vegetable? Reading it again, I think so.
I suppose my favourite is onions, as I use them in so many meals. And tomatoes and mushrooms.

Squidge the poster asked about the ‘veg chilli’ so not sure if they meant the meal of the actual vegetable.

Hi greg1, I would say the diaralyte is a bit drastic and should only be used in severe cases of fluid and electrolyte loss such as illness (diarrhoea). You could try Andrews Liver Salts if you are in the UK – yes they do still sell it, but only to be used infrequently as that can cause diarrhoea. Best thing to do is to just add a little (just a sprinkle) on some food you might put it on anyway i.e. boiled egg. As you noticed the glucose you are obviously aware that it should be avoided. I’m not sure about ketosis as it is a bit of a myth, you might show ketones after 3 or 4 days on the plan but once your body gets used to converting the fat for energy you wont show ketones. Why are you going to test your blood sugars, are you pre or diabetic. If not then it is a total waste of time as it shows nothing except the fact you have or have not eaten. (I read that on your profile)

Four days into the diet, I experienced what appeared to be symptoms of Keto Flu. Eventually took a sachet of diaralyte as an electrolyte replacement and relief was almost immediate. Then noticed that as well as the salts it contains 3.5g of glucose? Is this likely to compromise ketosis or is it an acceptable remedy for electrolyte depletion in early stages. Thanks

Lily, that’s an amazing loss! Even if you don’t lose more this week and just keep that off, you’ll have done really well.

I thought the ketostix things might be to illustrate there’s more to this diet than just cutting calories – it changes more than our weight. I do like the emphasis on overall health, rather than doing it mainly for looks. I’ve found the way he and his guests say making changes reduces the chances of things like dementia and heart disease to be motivating.

Ellie, well done on the smaller waist! The programme got me thinking about doing more exercise than walking too.

Hello Everyone

I am just popping in to report that I am still following you all via the forum but don’t have much to contribute at the moment. Living in Greater Manchester we are under imposed lockdown rules and I was gutted when a meal I had booked for me and my husband And my son and his wife had to be cancelled at short noticed due to new restrictions. I haven’t been anywhere since March. I am not gaining any weight which is good and seem to have sussed out maintenance. However, I want to be losing. I am 10 lbs from where I want to be but the Michael Moseley programme has inspired me to go back to basics. I do intend to be 145 lb by the end of August. I am walking every day and drinking plenty of water. The hot weather has helped curb my appetite and increase my water consumption.

I have followed this way of eating for a long time now and it is second nature to me but I guess I have become a little too relaxed. My plan for the rest of August is to be stricter than usual so that I am no more than 145 lb by the end of the month. I know that is definitely achievable.

Hope everyone is having an awesome August. In the current climate we are all to be congratulated for keeping on but never has it been more important to be a healthy weight to give ourselves a fighting chance should we be infected with Covid. We have all had a massive wake up call about our health. I am keeping an eye on my BMI and I want it to be 24. I am currently in the overweight category. Good luck for the onward August Journey.