ARCTIXFOX thanks for the info. Am now following you on Facebook and also Instagram (which I’m much less familiar with : only use it for writing work and stalking my daughter 😂). Not sure if you can see followers, but my photo is me and my dog 🐕

Hope that you get your glucose monitoring sorted 🤞

I’m a bit all over the place with gyms. I liked the first one (close but expensive) so much that I nearly didn’t bother going to see the second one (further away but cheaper). But when I did was blown away by the setting and grounds and nearly signed up. But since then have thought carefully about how dilapidated the actual gym and pools are, and how much further away I would have to drive. I know myself very well, and any excuse can make me bottle out! Have also chatted with a former colleague who used to go to the posher gym (but moved away) and is still totally in awe of it. So I think I will go for it, ie the nearer but more expensive option. I have to sign up for one year so if I’m not making the most of if I will cancel after that. But I do feel the need to “elevate my life” – sounds a bit pretentious I know 😂. – and start really looking after myself. Otherwise I can visualise my semi-retirement years just getting frittered away and me ending up doing my bit of work then just spending the rest of the time as a couch potato.

Will report back in due course ……

Hi everyone,
Garlic harvest is still ongoing. Made some good progress yesterday and hopefully some more today and tomorrow. I took Monday off work just in case I don’t finish tomorrow, but really hoping to and then I’ll be able to have Monday as a rest day.
DCT – I will hold back around 1/4 of the crop to have enough to replant, and will sell the rest. If you and anyone else would like to see photos of the harvest and my farm and you are on facebook, it is Whistling Fox Farm. I am on instagram too, but have not been posting much there lately. Good that you have been checking out gyms. It is so hard to do that analysis of what is better, cheaper but further away vs. expensive but closer. I once ended up doing the more expensive and further away option, but it was worth it because they had classes with fantastic trainers and I got super fit and healthy while I was doing that. Only stopped because I had to move away for work, and never been able to find anything like it since.
I am also a 2017 veteran. I lost a lot and was within 5kg of my goal weight, but couldn’t sustain it. Peri-menopause plus my accident really wreaked havoc on my system. I am finally at the point where I feel like my hormones have stabilized enough that it is time to get serious again. I am starting to wear a continuous glucose monitor again as that was really motivating before. I decided that it was worth the out-of-pocket expense. I applied the first sensor on Wednesday, but it didn’t work. The company is sending me a replacement for that one but it won’t arrive for a couple of weeks, so I got a new one yesterday and will activate it this afternoon as it needs about 24 hrs after being inserted in your arm to give accurate results. I got the tip about inserting it the day before you activate it from an online diabetes forum. The sensors only last 14 days, so this saves you from using up a whole day with inaccurate results. Fingers crossed that this new one works. I’m not looking forward to seeing the initial results though. I know my insulin resistance has increased since I last used one, as I have new skin tags and a bigger waist circumference. But I just have to think of it as keeping my eyes on the prize and how much it will help me. I really want to beat the binge eating and get back to being more insulin sensitive. I have just over 2 months to go until my leg surgery and I think it will only help with the healing if I am healthier.

So have continued my walking, now do it 6 mins quicker than when I started.
Lost 2lbs this week which is double my goal. Doing my “10 weeks, 10 lbs” target for holiday. But part of me is a bit disappointed ….I shouldn’t be i know. But I have been so busy and not strayed from the diet at all. But when I looked up 2 lbs of fat it actually looked a lot.
Losing has definitely become harder. The 2. 5 stone came off quite well but that’s weight ive out on in last couple years. Now im back to my original need to lose weight size its a lot harder .
6 lbs off 3 stone now. Feeling positive. And walking is helping with the stresses and strains.
My mum isn’t coping very well and its a struggle for me im not going to lie. But im feeling strong and trying ready for hols. Hope everyone is OK. Xx

Morning all!

POOTLE I am so impressed with your ability to lose so much weight twice. Very well done – you are an inspiration! And I’m so sorry to hear about your brother, particularly the awful circumstances of his death and the limitations on your grieving. That’s so sad. And it feels so strange now to look back on those times when everything was so very different. I’m so glad that you have managed to move forward in terms of your own health and wellbeing since those dark days.

HEIDI you have also done really well to lose your weight twice, and how lovely to be able to put away those larger sized trousers and look good in the 16s. I hope that at some stage you might start needing the smaller ones too – especially as sizes vary so much. So don’t rule them out : you are really on a roll right now!

CATHY it sounds like you are doing all the right things and I’m so disappointed for you that weight is not coming off. I wish I knew what to suggest. I would only echo what HEIDI said in terms of increasing protein (which is often difficult for vegetarians) and also VERANO’s advice to check the carbs. But I think your attitude about getting as far as you can this year then accepting yourself as you are is a very positive one. Whilst on the one hand doing all we can to keep fit and well is really important, on the other hand we don’t want to be completely obsessed with it to the extent where it is interfering with enjoying day to day life. As MARIET said “my longing to achieve my goal was robbing me of life happiness.”

MARIET do let us know how you get on with your hand surgery. You’ve had a rough time recently in terms of medical/dental intervention. I do hope that this will be the end of it for a while. And I’m so glad that your mother is feeling less anxious now. I used to find it so hard seeing my mum struggle in terms of decreasing mobility and ability to do things. She did her best to put a brave face on it but it must be so awful to be in that position. I hope that she is now able to enjoy some of the good things in life again.

ARCTICFOX how is the garlic harvest going? I so admire your resilience! What will you do with all the garlic? Is it all for home use or do you sell some of It on? I’m always in awe of your growing and farming abilities, and that you manage to keep your eating on track at the same time.

I’ve had a pretty good week so far. No further loss, but after a bit of a regain over the weekend, I am now maintaining the three pounds off from last week. So here’s hoping more will follow. I went to see a fabulous hotel pool / spa / gym yesterday which I think I may join although it’s very expensive. I’m off to see another one later which is cheaper but is further away whereas yesterday’s is only 10 minutes away from me, so no excuse not to go every day! Will report back in due course.

Hope the rest of the week goes well for everyone X

Mariet- good to read your post and so sad to read about your mum’s recent anxiety episode. How sad for you to see her suffering. I’m glad she is feeling better. It must be very scary getting old and feeling vulnerable. I hope your surgery went well today. I do feel we are lucky to live in the 21st century with the wonders of medical science. I hope you have not ended up having the amputation and that the surgeon was able to fuse your joints . Get well soon. I am having my big toes fused later this year. I am slowly being rebuilt!
It does feel so much harder to lose weight now and so like you I am coming to terms with new goals and looking forward to maintenance next year. Whatever I weigh at the end of the year I am calling it a day and accepting that weight and will then ensure I continue to maintain. It feels like a good decision for me. I am grateful to everyone for your kind advice and wise words .
How is everyone else on this thread? Yowser, I hope you are OK? SueBlue- how are you? I’m going for a brisk walk around the top deck and I hope to see you all out and about.

Hi everyone. Happy Wednesday.
1) my supermarket delivery came yesterday. As I was manhandling a pack of 6 x 1.5 litre bottles, I realised that I have now lost more than that weight since 25 May. A good feeling.
2) a friend asked me on Monday if I had lost weight. Good to know that there is now a difference to spot!
3) hubby and I have a lovely quiet day today, enjoying each other’s company. Looking forward to chilling and enjoying the garden.

Have a good day everyone.

Hi everyone, haven’t looked in for a while but I’m reading so the posts and always meaning to reply but some how time gets away from me. My mother (91) who lives with my younger brother but is quite independent has just come through a horrid period of crippling anxiety which seemed to come from nowhere and take over her life. She couldn’t put it down to anything initially and of course, when you most want them, doctors are away or appointments unavailable. Anyway after some really hard weeks she has been started on an anti anxiety med which has done wonders for her and she’s just about back to normal.
She told me the other day that she thinks it came from two things, one that her BIL (also 91) fell and broke his hip and was hospitalised and won’t be able to go back to his own home. The other was her own birthday and the sudden fear that this kind of episode might be in her own future. I can see how scary that must be but I hope never to go through that with her again. It’s terrible to see such suffering and be totally unable to relieve it. All my siblings except the brother she lives with are out of Sydney and with all the will in the world, couldn’t be here with her.
I’ve been reading the troubles that so many on our cruise are facing as well. I feel so much for you and am amazed by the toughness and bravery of how you cope.
C Cathy, another 2017 veteran here and I remember the happiness e all felt as we hit our targets then. I don’t know why it was so much easier the first time and do hard now. I am the same height as you and much the same age. I’ve also reconsidered my goal which previously was 62kg or 136lb. Now I am trying to maintain at 67kg or 148lb. Yes there are still some bulges that I wish were not there but I also came to the conclusion that my longing to achieve my goal was robbing me of life happiness. I don’t have your health challenges and only you can decide but it’s hard to describe the lightness I felt when I accepted this weight as the end of my weight loss goal. Now the equally challenging maintenance goal is here for the rest of my life!
Tomorrow I am going to hospital for the seventh and final operation on my hand for Dupuytrens disease. If successful some fingers will be fused in a curved position, if unsuccessful they will be amputated at the first finger joint. The surgeon is hopeful but realistically there is a good chance I’ll have a stubby hand from tomorrow on. Luckily it’s my left hand and I’m right handed!😁
Congratulations to those seeing progress and thinking positive thoughts for all who are struggling xx

Wow Verano, that sounds delicious….hope it turns out well!! Sorry you are struggling to find positives, but that is a really good one!

On a positive roll with food:

1) I found a brilliant recipe by Luv2cook on this site, Broccoli sandwich bread. It has really given me a boost…I can make my packed meals so much more easily with this and it has filled a ‘gap’ in my repertoire, that has been a problem since I started the BSD. Still to try the Cauliflower version, but the Broccoli one is delicious!!

2) in the Life Without Diabetes Cookbook, I found a chocolate mousse recipe that is giving me a change from Greek yoghurt as a ‘dessert’. I have to have something to finish a meal…and was getting pretty bored with yoghurt!

3) My Celeriac plants are doing well….I’m now talking to them…telling them that I expect them to grow very big and strong! (First time I have grown Celeriac!)

Hope you are all finding some positives in your day!

Hi Cathy, You have a huge amount of issues to juggle, and I am full of admiration for your determination. You are already at the high end of a healthy BMI for someone over 60, as I understand it. So you should be patting yourself on the back for what you have achieved so far. My post was taking issue with your mention of “defeat” if you choose eventually to recalibrate your goals. I thought you were being hard on yourself . But it looks from your final paragraph as if I was reading too much into it. Wishing you all the best in the run up to your cruise!

Yes I guess I should ‘pop in’……
Very difficult at the moment to find a positive but I will ….. making duck and watermelon salad for dinner tomorrow. A wonderful dish we ate on a cruise and am now going to try and replicate tomorrow and the bonus is its very low carb!

Cathy can I just pop in here and say it’s not weight per se that affects ‘diabetes’ but carbohydrates! Please forget your weight for the moment and take a look at the amount of carbs you’re eating. If you can stay at 50g a day you might find a great improvement in your bloods.
Just give it a go.
Good luck!

Time for more positives …..
🙂🙂 lovely catch up with youngest DD over lunch today.
🌹🌹 had notification from a seller, that a particular rose I’ve been seeking is now available again and have successfully placed an order. Now I just have to wait until early winter for it to get despatched.
🌦🌦 have been enjoying the rain showers and the garden is definitely appreciating them too.

Hope plenty of positives have been littering your day too.

Hello Heidi
To answer your question about why i feel I want to throw the towel in and accept defeat- I’ve been battling with trying to lose about one stone for a very long time. I’ve tried fasting, time restricted eating, counting calories, keto, low carb. I’m fed up of trying to get my weight to about 145 lb. I am currently at 155 lbs.The weight doesn’t budge. I want to be as near a normal healthy weight as I can. My BMI is 29 and I’d like to aim for a BMI of 27. I have arthritis and being overweight is no good for my joints. Am 5’2” and being small I don’t carry weight well. My HbA1c has risen to 43 so I am now pre diabetic and I know I am carrying too much weight and my cholesterol was also slightly elevated so I have been advised to eat less fat so I’ve gone back onto skimmed milk and 0% Greek Yoghurt! . The aging process as well as my feet issues – plantar fasciitis and hallux rígidus have slowed me down and I find I can only walk about 7000 steps a day. Having said that I did 13,000 steps this weekend!! I’m paying the price now! Maybe you’re spot on and I am fighting with my own body. I will try and up my protein intake. I eat Greek Yoghurt, eggs, cottage cheese, nuts, tofu but have eliminated cheese in an effort to try and get my cholesterol down. I have also stopped eating butter to try and get my cholesterol back down. I won’t take a statin. Can you see why I feel I am battling? Sugar doesn’t play a part in my diet and I’ve just read the new edition of Life without diabetes by Professor Taylor and it’s clear that I’m pre diabetic as I am carrying too much fat. So I’m trying to reduce my weight, reduce my cholesterol, reverse my pre diabetes. I am limited to what exercise I can do because of my painful feet so aim to walk 7000 steps a day . Today I ate my first meal at 1.30 pm and had Greek Salad with feta and a nice lemon dressing and I’m making plant based chilli tonight which I will have with tender stem broccoli and strawberries with Greek Yoghurt. I’m giving it my best shot before heading off on my cruise on 8th August. I will never take my eye off the ball where my health is concerned but maybe trying to achieve my “ideal weight” of 145 lb (revised since 2017 when it was 133 lb) is too much of a challenge.
I am not stepping off this cruise but I might have to readdress my goal! I want to step off this cruise ship in December knowing I did my best this year and whatever happens then I will accept that. I’m going to focus on maintenance from January no matter what happens and if my set weight is 155 and my BMI is set at 29 then I will accept that. I can’t keep beating myself up year after year jist because I can’t get my weight down to where I want it to be.

DCT Go for it! We are all worth it. x

Hi POOTLE, and thank you for your kind words and encouragement. I am really sorry to hear of your brother’s death and in such awful covid circumstances. That must be incredibly hard to live through. I was very encouraged by your weight/health story though. I am just sorting through my trousers, which vary in size from 12 to 20. I’ve put away the 12s, 14s and 20s and one of my goals is to look good in the 16s! It does take a real act of will to do it all over again. I have now lost 3 stone three times over, twice with WW and once with BSD, and I know I will be healthier in all sorts of ways if I get back to a sensible weight. It’s difficult sometimes not to beat yourself up for the pounds creeping back on. But that is water under the bridge.

CATHY “Part of me wants to throw in the towel and accept defeat”. That left me wondering what battle you are fighting, why and how! Only you can work out what is best for you. But if your choice is for a different goal, or different method, or whatever, it can be a positivie choice surely, not a defeat? Your will power is clearly beyond doubt, and you are eating healthily. It sounds a bit as if you are at war with your own body, rather than with sugar/ultra processed food etc. Have you had a look at the amount of protein you are eating to see if you should be raising the level? I know I bang on about it, but it just makes sense to me that the job of the brain is to ensure you are sufficiently nourished. If you don’t have enough protein, it will message to hold on to available stores. How many grams do you have a day? All that said, the weight figures you mention are beyond my wildest dreams, so (as before) who am I to comment!

Like you, Cathy, I felt with BSD that I had hit the jackpot. I don’t expect to get back to the weight I reached then – the lowest in 30 years at the time – but if I can get to the top end of my healthy BMI at 60+, then that will be my healthy “why” accomplished… So 4 kilos to go for that first goal. Keep on keeping on…

Thanks for bumping the Good Eats thread, Pootle. It made me remember about the cauliflower tortillas that I discovered way back when. Now I’m realizing that they were gluten free. I am struggling with shop bought wraps not holding together and a lot of them don’t have great ingredients either. This original recipe uses eggs, which I’m still not coping well with, but I have had success substituting flax in other recipes, so may give that a go with this one too. Just have to finish harvesting all the garlic so I can get my life back for a few weeks before I have to clean it all! About 1/2 out of the ground now.
https://www.wholesomeyum.com/recipes/cauliflower-tortillas-recipe/

Thank you very much Kath & I hope you are sleeping better now?
My return to much lower carb eating will have to wait awhile until I can stand & get back in the kitchen! I am very grateful to my husband helping me so much & I don’t know how someone living alone could cope returning home after knee replacement surgery.
Amusingly when we first got married my husband was the more adventurous cook having completed a Cordon Bleu cookery course! But we soon adopted the more usual pattern of me cooking & doing housework things whilst he has always been good at practical stuff being an engineer & gardening because I don’t have very green fingers although my house plants have survived well😂
I may challenge my husband to cook a meal from scratch to see how he gets on perhaps starting with an omelette ?😀
Keep on going everyone & take care.
Margaret xx

Yes seem to have given up so much. Have t drunk wine ina long time due to the calories etc. But I do love a short, like rum, vodka, gin etc. With coke zero or something.
Need to rein that in a bit, got into a habit of enjoying the evening sun and having a few glasses.
So strictly weekends only from now on. 🥲
It’s definitely not helping the weight loss.
However I am still getting up most days and heading for my walk. 2.2 miles around local reservoir. Non stop. It’s so beautiful. Free and helps the soul.
Not going today as have the house clean to do so that will keep me active.
I have 10 weeks until my holiday and have devised a pound a week loss in my head.
I think I can do it ,.onwards and upwards. X

Just come across this thread, so bumping it up … I think extremely useful as I try to maintain !! 😄

Evening all, I hope you don’t mind a ‘newbie’ butting in. I know ow that all the old hands have soo much more experience than I do, but I want to let you know that you aren’t alone!

Heidi, I wasn’t on the BSD or Fast 800 in 2017, but I was dieting! Not only because, over the years, my weight had climbed, but also to help husband lose before an operation. From January 2017 to July 2018 I lost 56lb and went down 4 dress sizes…however even then my pre diabetic numbers were climbing. I kept the weight off until late 2020…the pandemic and the death of my only brother ( not permitted to be with him, or even see him through a window still hurts) made me gradually start to put weight back on. In July 2024 I had put on 70lb, gone up 5 dress sizes and become diabetic. I am sad that you ‘feel ashamed at putting your weight back on”.

We are all human, stresses and emotional events will affect us in different ways, but they will affect us! I think having the courage to recognise that you are ready for another go is brilliant.

CATHY, taking the time to think about why you are trying and what you want as an outcome, is part of making the right decisions for you. And don’t forget, it is ‘YOU’ that is important. Not what anyone else might think or say. Anyone with empathy and experience will applaud you for taking control.

DCT, I think taking control with changing the venue for your exercise is a great step….can’t wait to hear how you get on.

Heidi- thank you for taking the time to post about my dilemma! You have definitely not spoken out of turn and I am grateful for your advice and helpful comments. I lost 42lb in 2017 and put back on 20lb. I don’t even know how I managed to get so low as 133 lb but I did and my couldn’t maintain it. Like DCT I am intrigued as to who you were and I hope I would remember you 😊 It’s sad that you felt shame and therefore felt you had to change your name. I feel I have the most willpower out of anyone I know- my fiends tell me the same! Through thick and thin I’ve tried a variety of ways to lose weight and when i found the BSD I hit the jackpot and lost 3 stone albeit slowly. For the last couple of years I can’t seem to lose except a few pounds and then they go back on and then they come off and I’m getting fed up. I’m going to think about the why? It’s a really interesting question. I am vegetarian and eat a healthy diet but I feel I am constantly battling to keep the scales from creeping up. Anyway, just wanted to say thank you do your thoughts and I am going to seriously think about my why! Part of me wants to throw in the towel and accept defeat.
DCT- I’m really pleased your treating yourself to something lovely. You deserve it.

Margaret, Brilliant to hear you have had the op and are home! Keep up the good work and heal quickly! Give your husband a great pat on the back…mine would find cooking for us an impossibility! Thinking of you and wishing you a speedy recovery!
xx Kath.

Hello S-G & very kind of you to message me. My op was now one week ago & I came home after the third day. I’m ok but trying to balance pain meds with the side effects & unfortunately still as usual spending lots of pennies through the night which exercises my leg of course but continues to interrupt my sleep. I am tired & Tramadol of course is a soporific & also causes constipation which is inconvenient 🤔🙁. My leg is very swollen & black & blue because of the blood thinner I have to take for another week & I do wish I wasn’t pear shaped with my extra weight on my thighs & legs 😀.
I’m pleased to hear that your cousin is doing well & I have a check up in a weeks time when I’m told the clips will be taken out & I will be reviewed in the physio department. I am doing all my exercises & my husband is doing stirling work feeding me & supervising me exercising 😀. We are eating more M & S convenience meals to make catering simpler but also lots of veg & pulses.
I sympathise Pootle with your dessert eating because it is very difficult to resist when placed in front of you. My husbands idea of portion size is also much larger than mine😂
Take care everyone & take it day by day doing the best that you can 👍
Margaret xx

HEIDI I completely agree with everything you say. And now I’m intrigued as to what your previous username was 😊. Lovely to interact with you as your new identity, and we probably know each other also from 2017!

I’m having a serendipitous weekend! Having been low carb all week, the social scene has kicked in and brought its own challenges. The buffet at a friends party yesterday made me realise how brown many carby foods are! And a slug of Prosecco – which I usually love – just tasted like liquid sugar. Between them though another pound has jumped back on 🤬 Lesson learned. I feel like I’m on the brink of another step forward in terms of breaking bad habits. Here’s hoping 🤞

On a more positive note, I’m going to look round a couple of local hotels with pools this week. I’ve been a member of a big chain gym and pool for quite a while now but have gradually stopped going because I just don’t like it any more. Noisy, blokey and smelly!! So I recently cancelled it rather than continue to throw money away. But I want – and need – to have somewhere to exercise, so have been having a big think about what is important to me. And have concluded (I think!) that if I’m going to pay to go somewhere I’d rather pay more and go somewhere nicer. A bit of a breakthrough for me as – a bit like ARCTICFOX has said – I’m always reluctant to put myself first and do things for me. But I thought as long as I’m still doing freelance work after retiring why not splash out on myself. So will be looking at nearby hotels with pool / spa / gym to find a place I can swim, exercise in peace and also rest and relax. Will report back in due course!

Hi all, time for my weekly check in. I have enjoyed another week of healthy eating with no major wobbles – just one small baked potato. I have discovered Lidl’s 85 per cent chocolate which is absolutely delicious. Particularly when crunched with a walnut…. That aside, I am not having much in the way of cravings. For me that is the most important benefit, since I had gone so far off track because of comfort and stress eating. I lost a kilo this week, so am now down 9.1 kilos since 25 May.

CATHY I have been thinking a lot about your post and whether to add my twopence worth. We both joined this site in 2017, both lost a lot a weight (me 20 kilos from Oct 2017 to I think June 2018). But you managed to keep a lot of that weight off. I, on the other hand, put most of it back by the end of COVID, and then added more after my husband’s diagnosis. So not sure if I have the right to comment. I even changed my user name out of shame!

Clearly there is no conflict between appreciating all that you have as well as eating healthily. It is the next step of depriving yourself by lowering calorie intake.. JGwen used to talk about the WHY. Why have you got a particular number in your head? BMI healthy ranges are so wide now, that you may already qualify as healthy? Is there a particular wobbly bit that bothers you, and would targeted exercise be better? Do you want to get into a a particularly swish outfit? Give yourself wriggle room for the holiday…?

Once you kinow your WHY then perhaps look again at the HOW. As DCT says, maybe you are reaching your settled weight, which may be different now from some years ago? Or could you be eating too little protein and thus holding on to reserves just in case? As you say, life is there to be enjoyed. A satisfying healthy diet is an integral part of that. Your friend’s death, and my weekly visits with husband to chemo are confronting experiences and do make us appreciate all that we have and how precious life is. And how life needs to be supported and enhanced by feeding ourselves properly. I do wish you all the very best in the balancing the arguments. And I remain in awe that you, unlike me, succeeded in keeping some of the original pounds off!

I hope I haven’t spoken out of turn. And am also sending lots of good wishes to Arcticfox, DCT and Dawn and all others in the group.x

Good afternoon all!

An interesting weekend….very sleepless night on Friday, (about 2 hours in total!) Weather as unpredictable as my weight etc !!

Husband said ‘let’s eat out’ yesterday…so lunch of steak and salad, then I completely spoiled my restricted carb intake by having a chocolate brownie with cream…it was huge, and I ate it all!!! (If only husband would have one and let me have a spoonful taster….but he won’t! Once I have whole dessert on a plate in front of me, my self control just evaporates!)

Today, as we left church, he suggested Sunday Lunch out too. This time I was much more focussed! Roast beef and turkey, cauliflower, broccoli, swede and a few peas…no stuffing, or potato and only ate half the Yorkshire pudding! We didn’t have dessert! Came home for coffee!

I have been browsing the recipes on this site…found broccoli or cauliflower bread…so going to try that this week!

I hope you have all had a great weekend…not mentioning you all individually, but know that I am thinking about you all!!
xx

Just popped in to say hi to Margaret. When you posted on 6th July you said surgery this Saturday so I assume it was last week. Anyway, you should have had the op by now so wishing you a speedy recovery. My cousin had the same op a few weeks ago and it doing well.

Daughter sat in East Midlands airport with a lager waiting for their flight so we will be leaving here in 2 hours to pick them up. All the best to everyone and thank you Pootle for keeping it going.

Thanks Articfox, I will try the things you suggested and see how I get on. I hope you manage to get the garlic harvest completed without too many more interruptions. The EMDR sessions sound as though they will be really helpful but I would imagine can be exhausting too. I’m pleased the second X-ray of your hand confirmed it isn’t broken.
Dawn XX

Hi everyone,
Checking in quickly. I’m in the middle of garlic harvest, well not the middle, I’m only 1/4 done but had to stop because of the rain making everything too wet for now. Hopefully will be back at it tomorrow.
Heidi- well done on your loss so far.
Cathy- I hear you on the weight that won’t budge. Once I get through the garlic harvest, I will focus more on building muscle. I think that will help me the most as I age and hopefully might end up burning some extra calories for me too. I was slim-est (not lightest) as an adult when I was weight lifting regularly.
Dawn – I’ve had to go lower fat too with my gastritis. Saturated fats in particular seem to set things off, so I use more olive and canola oil. I also use high fibre foods like flax and chia and legumes to fill up instead of the fat. Hope that helps a bit.
So, I had a really tough EMDR session yesterday around the feelings of not being cared for that lead to binge eating. Turns out it is heavily tied to not feeling worthy or not deserving care from others, and it is amazing how far back this goes. The EMDR digs a lot of stuff up from very early childhood. The memory we were working from was when I was probably not much more than 2 years old. I thought we would be working from memories from my teenage years or just before because that was when I started binge eating, but the feelings of not being cared for are from much earlier. It turns out that my teen years were just when I started having access to the foods to comfort myself because my mum was working and I could strategically raid the cupboards. Before that, she was always at home and maintained pretty strict control over the fridge and cupboards, and we were never given any pocket money so I couldn’t have bought any food myself. We’ll have to see if this session has any effect. It sometimes takes a while for the reprocessing to happen after a session.
Anyway, I had to have a second x-ray of my hand this week to confirm for sure that it isn’t broken. They were seeing a shadow on the first x-ray, but it seems it was an old partial fracture that has healed and is stable. No idea how or when I did that! Anyway, just soft tissue to mend. Unfortunately, due to the garlic harvest, I can’t rest it right now. Wearing a snug glove helps though.

Thanks DCT, I’ve been on the MFP app this afternoon tweaking things on my nutrient goals and think I’ve managed to work out which percentages would work to make my food plans lower fat for the time being but still low carb and high in protein so will see how that goes🤞Dawn XX

DAWN so sorry you are having all these glitches. I hope that you can get back on the system and get fast tracked for your gall bladder removal. So frustrating!! I’m not an expert but would have thought the BSD WoE would be fine for your diet for now, but maybe with lower fat options if that is recommended. But do see if you can get clearer guidance from someone involved with your care. I really hope that you get some resolution on all this soon.

Best wishes, DCT X

Hi everyone and well done on the 3lb loss DCT.
I’m having a bit of a frustrating day, 2 weeks since I left hospital and I still haven’t even received a discharge letter(there were no staff available to properly discharge me on the day so I was asked if I would mind if it was done by post which I was fine with) and nothing to say I was on a list of any kind for my gallbladder removal. The consultant had told me I could either stay in hospital to wait for the operation or he could put me on an outpatient list to have my operation within the month as he said it was unlikely the acute pancreatitis would recur within a month. I decided to ring the hospital today, I didn’t want to be a nuisance but I had a niggling feeling I may get ‘forgotten about’ especially as there was nothing on my NHS app records regarding my transfer to a different hospital from A&E. I eventually got to speak to the consultant’s secretary who was very nice but there was no record of me being on any list or discharged (or I got the feeling, of even being in that hospital but I may be wrong, when I speak to her again I will clarify that) it’s all very worrying as the consultant is now on leave for 2 weeks so goodness knows when my gall bladder removal which needed doing ‘within the month’ 2 weeks ago will now get done. I said ‘so if I get the pain again should I just go to A&E’ and she said yes. She also said to watch my diet and keep to low fat food. Everything I read about pancreatic health says to eat low fat dairy etc which goes against everything I’ve learned in the past few years about eating healthily so it’s hard to know what to believe. I’m just feeling confused about it all at the minute😩 Dawn X

CATHY I agree so much with what you say in your post and didn’t find it negative at all. I think each one of us needs to find the right balance between being content and grateful with all that we are and all the good things that we have, whilst at the same time working to make positive improvements to our health and wellbeing. I’ve been thinking along similar lines to you in that I definitely do need to lose weight and body fat at the moment, but do I really need to doggedly pursue my long term target if that isn’t achievable or desirable/healthy for me? Right now I’d be happy to see some significant loss and end up a few pounds over my original target weight if I feel healthy and am happy with how I look at that point. I don’t want to be obsessed by numbers, but by wellbeing.

I read something else interesting today about “settled weight”. I’m sure it’s been mentioned on these forums before. But, as I understand it, your body kind of wants you to be a certain weight and if you go below that it will gradually ensure that you put the weight back on again to get back to your settled weight (though, sadly , I don’t think it works the other way round!). That may be a rubbish explanation, and it’s something I want to look into more but don’t have time today. But yet more food for thought so to speak . . . .
Anyway CATHY just to say you are not being negative and I think many of us are on the same page : wanting to achieve our best weight , health and wellbeing whilst also enjoying every moment of life the way we are now. And I hope that you get good results from your appointment next week. Will be thinking of you X

Well done on your 3lb loss DCT. An interesting fact about keeping weight off. Despite life’s ups and downs over the years I am still 20lb lighter than I was when I started the BSD in 2017. However, I’m finding losing weight incredibly difficult these days and part of me is thinking that maybe I should accept myself for what I am instead of constantly fighting a losing battle. Don’t misunderstand me, I will always be mindful of what I eat but I don’t know whether I want to keep punishing myself trying to lose weight that simply wont budge! I feel I want to be kinder to myself instead of constantly punishing myself for feeling a failure. I am 64 years old, my mum died aged 57 very suddenly with septicaemia so I am always grateful for the extra years I’ve had that she didn’t get to enjoy. . I’ve got a long list of medical issues one of which is rather concerning and I’m back at Christie Hospital next week for my scan result. I have a lovely husband, two lovely boys. a lovely cat, a lovely home and a happy contented life so why am I constantly chasing a number on the scales that I can’t achieve. It’s interesting isn’t it? Sorry if this seems a negative post- I’m not feeling negative but feeling I need to be realistic and thankful for the positives in my life and maybe I need to accept me for me. Thoughts?

Good morning from Florida!
Hello to you, Verano! Shetland, this website recipes are good. Wendy, good luck with surgery on your knee. Please do let us know how you are.
I use My Fitness Pal for posting my menus and day-to day-activity. My A1c is borderline at 5.7 so I am focusing on low-moderate carbs most of the time. I started on this website at 170 lbs in 2018 and thru the years lost 20 lbs by changing my foods and tastebuds and staying active. I am 69. It is amazing how many of you are still here all these years!
Has anyone seen Alliecat?
Catherine

Pootle …. your post has reminded me I should be posting some positives, especially as I’m feeling a bit low today, so an ideal time to look at the plus points in my life ….
🌹🌹 lunched with eldest GS yesterday and then had a long chat with his mum in the evening … good to catch up properly with family
🌹🌹 rose feed arrived, so have been out this morning dosing all my rose bushes. It’s a little late to do it, but think they need the boost after being a bit neglected while I was away.
🌹🌹 all upcoming birthdays sorted … cards and gifts in hand, just need to write and wrap.

If you’re not feeling overly positive, take a moment to identify at least one … believe me there’ll one and finding it will help to give you a little lift.

Good morning all,
As it has been a week since I last posted on this thread, I thought it was time to ‘bump it up’ the listing!
So a couple of positives:
1. Heat wave has past, and it has rained here…so watering no longer a priority! ☔️💧
2. Butternut squashes forming… first time I have grown them. 😄
3. Enjoying a second cup of delicious coffee, having a slow start to the day! ☕️

I hope everyone can find a positive in their day!
Kath. Xxx

Hi everyone – can’t believe another week has just flown by.

HEIDI some lovely words in your last post. I’ve. been on this journey since 2017 and sometimes I feel ashamed and frustrated that not on ly have I still not got to goal, but that – particularly recently – I have put back on some of the weight I had lost. But healthy eating is a lifelong commitment, and it’s worth it. I’ve always cut myself a bit of slack for treat days and special occasions, but in recent weeks have just let things slide too much and have seen the consequences.

So this week I’m back on track. Have cut out all white carbs and am really enjoying making recipes from the BSD recipe books. Not only are they low carb and calorie but I also find them delicious, and it’s so nice to try some different recipes (food planning is not my forte!). I’m also doing mostly 16:8 and 2 meals a days. Anyway I’m delighted to have shed 3lb so far this week, even though I know it’s mostly a water weight hangover from my recent sloppiness (and btw, the reason I didn’t put on weight on holiday is because I’d slapped it on before I went. And on holiday I was pretty active and it was so hot I think I sweated it off 😂). But a loss is a loss, so I’m feeling positive and hopeful I can reverse my recent trends and habits.

Also I read an interesting fact in a newspaper article yesterday that only 3 in 1000 people keep weight off after they have lost it. Now I have no idea if that is true (the article was about someone who has lost a lot of weight naturally – no jabs – over the years and has managed to keep it off) but I will look into it further. And wanted to say a great big WELL DONE to all those of us on this forum who have lost weight and managed to keep at least some of it off. We are awesome 🙌

Have a great weekend everyone, and hope you are doing well X

Hi Lucy,
I told the doctor “When I became allergic to the sulphites in wine, 🍷 I gave up drinking alcohol. When I developed a cough, I gave up smoking 🚬 . When diabetes struck, I gave up eating sweet things 🍰, bread 🍞, potatoes 🥔 , pasta 🍝 , pastry 🥐 and rice 🍚 . Don’t ever tell me I cannot have a good strong coffee!” ☕️
I have a bean to coffee machine, and really enjoy a strong black coffee every morning and when ever I feel in need during the day. It is my daily indulgence!! I am dreading the time someone says it is damaging my health and I have to stop!!
The 1lb could be because your body has suddenly decided it needs to conserve fat again… I am certain your perseverance will pay off!
Keep on keeping on,
Kath. Xxxx

So I put on a lb this week. Despite walking most days and adhering to diet.

The only thing I can think is enjoying a few drinks a few of times sat in the garden.
So need to rein that in now too.
Wow life is tough lol, gave up smoking, strict diet and cut down alcohol!!!
Hope youre all doing better than me! X

Hello to you too, Verano. And hi to everybody else!

Pootle, thanks for the tip about the recipe book. I’ll take a look. I’m still learning the ropes as far as balancing carbs and protein is concerned, while trying to make sure I have enough fibre every day. And it sometimes feels like I’m spending half my life inputting foods into a calorie calculator lol! But I’m losing weight, very slowly but it is coming off, so I must be doing something right 😉

Have a relaxing weekend, everyone!

Lacy xx

Hello!

Just want to say welcome back to Violinist and welcome to Shetland Lace and Heidi 24 and Charlotte.

Sorry I’m not very active on this thread at the moment but Pootle you are doing a great job in keeping this thread going!

Have a great summer everyone.

Looking forward to being more accountable here in the autumn.

Good morning, Pootle, and all!
Yes, meal planning is going well. I will have surgery next Friday so I have been overcooking and freezing.
I will stay close to home this next week so I do not catch anything going around.
Pootle, it can be problematic when on a roll losing weight and trying to slow it down. You get used to certain food favorites and your appetite decreases after a while. It doesn’t help to “treat” yourself to add a few pounds if your focus is also bloodwork numbers.
Have a great day, Folks!

Catherine

Good morning all,
Violinist, I hope your menu planning has paid off and you are on track!

Shetland Lace, how is it going? I came across a couple of interesting recipes in Emma Porter’s Life Without Diabetes cookbook ( based on Prof Roy Taylor’s 3 step plan.) up until now I have either used The BSD or the Fast 800 recipe books OR adapted my own recipes using the calculating tool!
But I have been looking around for new ideas!
As I am on maintenance re weight but still need to have low carb, I have been struggling a bit to find a variety foods in my diet to manage the balancing act!

S-G enjoy your time with the family…. Hope to see you again when you feel like popping in!

Margaret, have you had the op yet? If so, I hope all has gone well…if not, good luck! 🍀

Heidi, hope all is well with you!

Charlotte, how are you doing… Hope you are making progress.

Verano, hope the summer is going well for you.

So, I know this won’t be popular but I need to stop losing weight!!!! 🙄😩🫣
Weighed this morning and I am down to 9st 11lb!! I wanted to be 10st 7lb, but thought I could hover between 10st and 10 1/2, whilst restricting carb intake. (To have some leeway) 🤪🤪 why is life so complicated????? I am no longer counting calories, just carbs….. keeping to around 50g carb per day from veg etc.
well, back to the recipe books and try to work out meals that will help to keep my weight steady!!

I hope you are all keeping on…
Xxxxx

I hope you have a lovely time with your family s-g. And that the weather behaves!

Hello 54.
I’m still here… maintaining weight and 🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞😉🤞😉keeping the diabetes in remission.
Eating sensibly… keeping away from high carb foods and generally being boring! 🤪🤪🫣
Great to know you are still on track!
Pootle.

Helloooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Anybody out there ????????????????????????????????

Still losing weight people ? I hope so if youre trying and hope not if maintaining !!!

Im still heading down with I hope 6 months left to target weight after July 2024 reset

Little but often is my weight loss moto !!

Hope you are all well

54

Hi all, hope you are coping if you are having a heatwave.

Pootle, the difficulty for me is that my weight affects how much insulin I have to use and my insulin affects my weight so it is a very careful balancing act. Insulin puts on weight and when I gain it is not because I have come off my diet. I am on this diet every day of my life and a even when I allow myself a treat it is not usually of the carb type, maybe a glass or 2 of wine (which is technically carb) and I am only human. Tonight I am going out for a meal with my husband and even if I don’t eat the bread or have anything more than a mouthful of dessert just to try I will put on weight, hubby wont. I think I gain quarter of a pound for every 10 units of insulin and I am currently on 17 units. I have to stay well within the 800 to 900 calories every day if I can. So I cannot just let the diet slide or I will gain and then I will have to use more insulin and so on and so on…….

Anyway, I am going to stop obsessing so much and stay off the site for a short while although I know I will be tempted to look to see if anyone needs diabetic advice. Although we have a good diabetic example of how well this works with Pootle and a couple of others so I will try to keep my head down. Daughter and grandson arrive in 6 days and we have a very full schedule so I will be rather busy.

Stay true and focussed and keep on keeping on…

Good evening all,
S-G don’t you think we sometimes have to work out a priority and stick to it. Great that your BG is steadily improving and so the insulin is coming down! That had to be good!
I am maintaining a steady weight and still resisting the carbs, so my carb monster is just grumbling away in the background. At lunchtime today I very nearly succumbed to a slice of buttered granary bread I had prepared for husband…I even put it on my plate with the salad… thinking; “that little bit won’t hurt “ ! I had second thoughts when I got to the table, and handed it over! I am sure it would have led to more!!!

I hope everyone is surviving the heatwave… this time it has hit us in West Wales also… unusual not to have rain for so long!!!
Wishing everyone a good week ahead…
Xxx

My post just vanished, so apologies for any repetition if it reappears.

I was just appreciating how nice it is to be part of this forum and wider BSD community. I feel surrounded by people committed to improving and maintaining good health through sensible healthy habits. It is so inspiring to see those who have been here for 7 or 8 years and so committed to their own health and supporting others. You know who you are!

Sending best wishes to all, who are plugging on despite shingles (how are you doing YOWSER?), cat-astrophes (ARCTICfox), accidents and medical challenges (probably all of us!). Clarinet it must be lovely to be aiming towards an imminent holiday, I hope you have some lovely holiday outfits in mind. And well done DCT for enjoying a healthy holiday.

For my weekly check in, I am now down 8.1 kilos, so nearly a kilo off this week. I had a wobble in the week when we had wine-loving friends for lunch. But otherwise I have stayed low-carb and no rice pasta bread potatoes. On on!