Liz – That’s good to hear about the weight loss. I’ve started to up the calories, but only by 50 cals per week and intend to go up to 1000 to begin with. I’ll be happy if I keep losing – don’t mind if it’s less quickly. Will see how it goes.

The only thing I know about hair loss is I remember my Mum’s GP telling my Mum to have a square of jelly every day when she suffered hair loss. She swore it helped her hair recover, but don’t suppose it’s very blood-sugar friendly. Not sure what was in it that was helpful, if anything.

I did watch Tom Kerridge and had hoped he was going to cover more about his lower carb approach, specifically. I was bought his Dopamine recipe book for Christmas and while the recipes sound delicious there’s a lot that I can’t use as they are (they’re too high carb for me – I stay <20 g at the moment) but I’m going to pick out the one’s I can have a go at to begin with. Yes, I’m definitely going to try the roasting mince suggestion.

It was definitely a mixed message he was giving out, and it does irritate me if I think people/the public are being underestimated, but I did like the fact that it’s people from his local community that he is helping. I’ll see how it goes next week.

OK – I’ve just been told dinner’s ready – OH cooking tonight.

Allie and Kazz – will catch up with you soon.

Jackie – brilliant you’ve posted your recipe – will make them this weekend and catch up with you next week to let you know the result !

Well, actually to o/h’s wallet – it was his credit card I used🤦🏼

But thank you.

Oh dear, poor you Allie. I hope you get a thaw soon – don’t think we have any snow forecast, and this far SW, with our maritime climate, it tends to fall as sleet or rain anyway – hence the appalling mud we have at the moment.

BTW, I obviously meant that I hadn’t had a menstrual cycle in almost 20 years. It’s been even longer since I had a roommate😉Not a female one, anyway – that was way back in college🤓

PS – think it’s spelled with a “ph” – at least on this side of the pond. Over there, you seem to have all sorts of weird spellings, so who knows?😜

CAULIFLOWER SOUP WITH HAZELNUTS AND BACON

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cauliflower-soup-with-hazelnuts-and-bacon

6 servings

Creamy puréed soups always benefit from having crunchy things sprinkled on top. This recipe is from Waterfront Wines, in Kelowna, British Columbia.

INGREDIENTS

½ cup blanched hazelnuts
1 medium head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into small florets
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
4 slices thick-cut bacon (about 4 ounces)
1 small fennel bulb, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
⅓ cup dry white wine/vermouth or water
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
¾ cup heavy cream
2 bay leaves

RECIPE PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350°.

Toast hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 10–12 minutes. Let cool, then coarsely chop.

While the nuts are cooling, increase oven to 400°. Toss cauliflower and 2 Tbsp. oil on another baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing once, until florets are browned all over and tender, 30–35 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut bacon crosswise into ½” pieces. Heat a heavy pot over medium and cook bacon, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, 10–12 minutes. Transfer to paper towels.

Cook fennel, onion, and garlic in drippings in pot, stirring occasionally, until onion and fennel are very soft, 8–10 minutes. Add wine and cook until mostly evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add roasted cauliflower, broth, cream, and bay leaves; season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until cauliflower is very tender, 20–25
minutes. Pluck out bay leaves; discard. Let mixture cool slightly.

Working in batches, purée cauliflower mixture until very smooth. Strain back into pot; season with salt and pepper.

Just before serving, ladle soup into bowls; top with bacon and nuts and drizzle with oil.

Do Ahead: Soup can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool; cover and chill soup and bacon separately.

Great idea, Allie, particularly as most youngsters love to cook.

Both my sons are excellent cooks and have been since they were in their teens. In fact my youngest, when he finished Uni and before he started his “proper job”, was offered 6 month summer job as first mate aboard a luxury 70ft charter yacht in the Med, only 2 crew but chartered out to 10 guests at a time. His job, as well as sailing, included cooking fairly gourmet food for the guests, so he came home an even better cook. He still loves his mum’s roast dinners though😊

So Sarah, give your daughter her head and let her learn to cook, she may just surprise you and really enjoy it (and take a load of the work off your shoulders as well) I’ve never yet met a youngster who wouldn’t eat what they have prepared themselves!

Brief summary of today – lost more weight, been walking, eaten clean – managed to convince the Board to do a ‘Clean 18’ campaign for healthy eating and fitness across the company and I’m in charge! That means no more having to endure cakes and sweets outside my office, extra time allowed for walking at lunchtime, in-house boot camp once a week (not sure about that) and weekly weigh-ins for those that want to.

Bring it!

Simple Veg Quiche with Kabocha Squash “Crust”

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/simple-quiche-with-a-sweet-potato-crust

3 RATINGS 4.67 out of 5

8 servings

The Topanga Living Cafe in Topanga, CA, inspired this gluten-free quiche that uses caramelized sweet potato or kabocha squash instead of dough.

INGREDIENTS

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for pan
1½ pounds sweet potatoes (about 4 small), peeled, cut into ½-inch or smaller pieces, OR can use kabocha squash for lower carbs
Kosher salt
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 small bunch curly kale, stems removed, torn into bite-size pieces
12 large eggs
4 ounces / 115 gm sharp cheddar, grated (about 1 cup)
1 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
Freshly ground black pepper

A 9-inch springform pan

RECIPE PREPARATION

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium. Add sweet potatoes or kabocha, season with salt, and cook, tossing occasionally, until well browned around the edges and just slightly undercooked, 10–12 minutes. Transfer potatoes/kabocha to springform pan and let cool; reserve skillet.

Lightly coat sides of pan with oil. Flatten potatoes/squash slightly with the back of a spoon, packing into the seam where 2 parts of springform pan meet.

Preheat oven to 300°.F or 150°C

Heat remaining 3 Tbsp. oil in reserved skillet over medium. Cook onion, tossing occasionally, until softened but not browned, 8–10 minutes. Add kale a handful at a time and cook, stirring, until just softened but not limp, 5–6 minutes. Season with salt. Let cool slightly.

Whisk eggs, cheese, and yogurt in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper. Set springform pan on a parchment- or foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Top “crust” with half of kale and onions, then pour in egg mixture. Gently press remaining kale and onions into surface of egg mixture.

Bake quiche until edges have puffed up slightly and top is just set with no liquid egg remaining, 55–75 minutes. Let cool before slicing.

Haha, Essie and Theo! Feramones (sp?) in synch??? I had that self same
experience in college, when my room mate and I were constantly together
apart from the time we spent in classes. This winter is chilling me to the
bone! Digging out again after 8-10″ of snow yesterday…Is there any prospect
for a Jan. thaw so that I can abandon this self imposed lockdown? It feels
like “house arrest”!

Black and white is always snazzy, Essie. It’s not happy, but it’s dashing and dynamic and I’m all for it. Also you can never have too many jackets, and the moto style that’s so trendy right now rocks. I can’t believe the bargain you got! You really had no choice but to buy it, Theo. Your hands were tied (to your wallet). 😀

Funnily enough, Essie, I nearly wrote exactly that in my previous post, about roommates and menstrual cycles, but sadly I haven’t had one of those in almost 20 years😄

And you may well be right, about it being the cold – we don’t have snow and ice here atm like you do, but the temperature has dropped quite dramatically over the last 36 hours, and is set to continue that way for the weekend. Oh, dear, I may have to have a bit more cheese (and I do have some very nice stilton left from Christmas)😜

Thank you LTC – and yes, harmony is a beautiful thing.

It is interesting that your bodies are telling you “fat” is what you need. I do find that when I am especially hungry that I often post a nice weight loss the next day or two….so I have come to almost look at it as both a challenge and a positive sign.

I think it is wonderful that you both now feel you and your body are in sync and working together versus at odds as many of us have felt in prior diets when despite our best efforts our bodies refused to give up the extra weight.

Harmony is such a beautiful thing.

Ok thanks guys I have the recipe book the woman did and have began to follow the 8 week meal planner they have put the cals in each dish so I just stick to that and weigh myself once a week to confirm it’s working . I only have 2 stone to lose so I will ditch the onion and finish off my apples lol also in regards to nuts I only eat the ones in the book figured it would not be there if I could not have a handleful and they really help especially at work where there is always treats.

Afternoon everyone and thank you to all our posters today. It looks like it’s a bit of an up and down week so far but so much positivity which is great and I know that those ups are only slight blips and so much depends on water weight, what you ate yesterday – as long as the underlying trend is downwards, do not feel downhearted – I know – preaching to the converted.

My carb flu has subsided significantly and when I jumped on the scales this morning it was evident that the fat burning has kicked in with another loss so I am delighted.

Clare07866, I am totally with you on the weekend thing. My weekends tend to be all or nothing, if I have no social plans to speak of I can just have two large-ish meals and be happy with that. However, if we are entertaining or being entertained, I always seem to fall off the wagon, be it the crisps before the meal, bread or booze. SO…for the next 8 weeks I’m keeping it simple and have kept social occasions to the minimum. I know what my triggers are so I am going to avoid them if at all possible until I am mentally fit enough to resist.

Park Run tomorrow – my first official one – actually looking forward to doing it. Followed by a big breakfast – egg, bacon, sausage, tomato, mushrooms, spinach – it’s in the recipe book – delicious!

Happy weekending all – speak soon x

I do love reading everyone’s positives, BSD related or totally unconnected. Sunny, really sorry to hear about your headache, really hope you are feeling better now? Well done for finding positives anyway.

Mine are……

1) Been out most of the day but came home an hour ago to the news that o/h thinks (hopes) he will finish his bathroom tomorrow and that it will be useable by Sunday morning, so back to “his” and “hers” thank goodness! Phew!!! No divorce yet then😜

2) Was out food shopping today when I just “happened” to notice a clothes shop with a knock down sale, and somehow or other I unearthed rather a nice black (sorry Essie) and white tweedy biker style jacket,. They only had one, and it was a size 8, perfect fit😊 Well, what’s a girl to do……………………….? So one more jacket in the wardrobe😋 And the price? Wait for it………..knocked down from £68 to……………………….£15😍

3) My favourite niece rang me, her mum lives abroad, and they have never been close, so she is kind of my surrogate daughter and I love her to bits. Unusually we haven’t spoken for a few weeks, so we had a lovely long catch up.

Feeling blessed.

That’s so cool, Theo. We’re like roommates whose menstrual cycles have aligned. 😆 You know what, I bet it’s all about this blasted Frigidaire weather. You and I both suffer the cold terribly. I think our bodies must have registered that we needed to up our fats to survive the tundra.

Sarah, both my nephews were presented with a beginner’s cookery book at
the age of 12. In no time at all they learned how to become self sufficient,
competent cooks. A big hit with ladies too, when they were older 🙂
Empower your daughter, and let her help!

Clare and Lorna, a very warm welcome to both of you! I understand that
it can be a bit overwhelming to just “jump in”, but it’s the best way to get to
know this generous and very knowledgeable community, and for us to get
to know you 🙂 Sunny’s excellent reply reminded me that it might be time
again to share my experience with the effect alcohol had on my weight loss
journey. This is purely anecdotal, but very indicative of why I went “dry”
during that 10 month period. Six months in I made a “mindful” decision to
enjoy wine with no restrictions at a holiday celebration, after forgoing it
for so many months. On that occasion, I ate only BSD friendly food, and
probably came in well under the allowable calories for that day. Prior
to this I had been losing a very consistent 3-3.5 lbs. a week. Following
the festivities, my weight had jumped by 1.5 lbs, and it took an entire
week to lose it. I repeated the exercise on Christmas eve, with exactly
the same result. Basically, 2 weeks with no progress. Fortunately that
was enough for me, my body and I got the message! For me, like Sunny,
wine is an impediment to weight loss. As we maintainers all have learned,
it’s not about the calories or logging them into our journals, but that not
all calories are created equal. The theory of calories in, calories out, as
well as the low fat mantra, has finally been kicked to the curb, to the benefit
of us all!
Good luck, everyone…Happy to have you here 🙂 🙂 🙂

Allie

Hey, great to see you have taken the plunge and joined us here, Julia.

Victoria, I’ll watch out for you on our soon to begin Futurelearn course, I am now following both you and Julia..

How lovely, Essie.

I do think we are all learning to listen to our bodies on this WOE, which can only be a good thing. Funnily enough, I had the munchies yesterday too, and yes it was fat (though until your post, I hadn’t actually analysed that fact) but I craved, and allowed myself to have, extra yoghurt, cheese and nuts. Lo and behold, my scales registered a 0.5lb drop this morning. So I feel as though, like you, just listening and taking note was the right thing to do – and you and I are obviously in synch!!😉.

Thanks to everyone for the help and offers to help further. My GPs have recommended that I cut the carbs to try to lower my blood sugar, my consultants are concerned about my weight gain due to steroids so this seemed like a logical choice for me.

At the moment I am pacing most days, but as any parent knows that becomes a challenge in the school holidays. I am a single Mum, so it’s all down to me!

I think if I pace the food prep it is something that’s achievable and the monster is now 12 so can help!. Lunches will be soup which I can do well in advance when there is extra energy and also for those days when the thought of cooking is too much.

I have a slow cooker, however my daughter is not a fan of the results and I end up making something extra for her! So will have to try a few different recipes to find what works for us both, however I think some tough love may be in her near future 🤣

This week I’ve had several days in a row of craving fat like crazy. I ate ounces of nuts, cheese, yogurt, toasted coconut flakes and cacao nibs (unsweetened, of course). I just rolled with it, trusting that my body was communicating a need. I was nervous about it, but I don’t have cravings like this very often so I thought it was significant. Besides, I figured even if I gained a few I could correct with a quick 24-hour fast. This morning the scale told me, to my amazement, that I weighed 116.3 pounds.

I found it oddly moving. I put my body through a lot in the last couple of decades and vice-versa. For so long there was a diconnect between my will and my biology. Now it feels like we understand each other, that body and mind are working together seemlessly.

Hello again Sarah, ladies! Some of us have/had some pretty large medical
challenges that have all been significantly improved with this way of
eating. However, none of us are medical doctors, thus not really qualified
to give medical advice. What we are qualified to do, however, is support
you in every way possible, and that includes suggesting strategies to help
you make this WOL work for you within the limitations of your disability.
In addition to CFS and Fibro, I also had fluid on the lungs, as well as cardio-
myopathy (enlarged heart). I couldn’t stand for more than 10 minutes, and
bending over to retrieve something from the floor caused an inability to
breathe. If you share the manner in which you have been preparing your
meals up until this point, and what you can and can’t do physically, we
will do our best to try and help come up with solutions for you. Your
post here was about CFS initially, but there are obviously other things
that have a greater impact on your life. We’d like to help, Sarah, but need
just a bit more info. I know that the community would be happy to help:)

Allie

Sounds as though you’ve made a goot start, Nick. Keep it up.

Julia, fatigue is very common in the early days of cutting out the carbs. People often report feeling tired, having body aches, headaches, a variety of side-effects that are known as the carb flu. It’s a detox phenomenon and it’s really a good thing because it means you are switching your body’s energy burning mechanisms to a new system, fat, not carbs. Once your body figures out it needs to burn the more dense stuff than the easy carbs it has been lazily subsisting on, you will find your energy skyrocket.

It can be difficult to get past that initial detox period, but it very rarely lasts most than a week or so and you just have to power through it. Make a big batch of something easy (slow cooker chicken and greens with Indian spices is my current favorite) and eat it throughout the week. Drink water, tea, coffee like you’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name. If you like it milky, consider non-dairy substitutes like almond milk or hemp milk. Don’t worry about exercise for now. Keep things simple and allow yourself to go into low energy mode. Just don’t allow yourself to keep eating bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, sugar, cereal, grains. That beast needs to be starved to death or you’re not going to get past the hump into a fat-burning state.

I saw on your profile you’re not much for planning and calculating. Have you tried using an app like Fat Secret or MyFitnessPlan? They do all the math for you, but you still have to know how much of what you’re using in order to get accurate data. Given the complicated combination of T2 and fibromyalgia, it’s important, I think, that you know with some degree of precision what you are eating so you know what you can do should you need to course-correct at any point.

Good luck!

Hi all,

I’ve just registered on the discussion of 8 th Jan course as VM and have liked a few of the BSD names that are registered. I’ll go through throughly and pick up the rest of the names later.

What is about weekends that triggers the carby eating, Clare? Is it social occasions or private rituals like cocktails or mimosas for brunch or not wanting to cook so you order a lot of takeout? If we can eliminate some of those triggers, we can set you up for success. There’s nothing inherent in the days of the week that makes Saturdays and Sundays ideal for scoffing bread and sugary alcoholic beverages. It’s just a habit, and habits can be broken. 🙂

Hiya Julia, I’m so glad you decided to pop in and say hi over here too. Do you have any particular interests you’re hoping to explore in the Science of Nutrition course?

Marsie no I think 19 hours might be just a stretch too far for me too. I’m ok for 12 or 13 and then I get cabin fever! I have been to Australia both ways, stopping for a few days and just getting off one plane and straight onto another. Either way it’s a long long way! But worth it!

Hi Julia and welcome. I don’t know how much you have to lose but there are some very inspiring stories here and more importantly there is a group of ‘maintainers’ who have lost weight and stayed at their goal for 12 months and longer. Have a look at the ‘Take at look at this’ thread for some websites/apps for counting carbs etc. Just type a word or two into the search box at the top right of the page and you will find lots of really useful information and much inspiration. Join one of the challenge threads there’s an 8 week’s one that started last Tuesday of a 4 week one that started the week before.

Don’t worry too much about exercise at the moment there are many of us who, for various reasons, can’t exercise but have still managed to lose weight and reverse our T2. Best of luck, enjoy the journey and ask away if you have any questions.

That’s a big challenge, for sure. I imagine prep is difficult too? For example, how long can you stand comfortably at a counter cutting up veggies or sauteeing something? We need to come up with some solutions for you that pare down the amount of lifting, bending, standing, running around. I did some of that when I was 300LB+ and every little thing was physically taxing, but it wan’t oxygen deprivation or anything like the profound exhaustion you have to deal with.

Off the top of my head I’m thinking the slowcooker/crockpot could be your magic bullet. Toss everything in, turn it on and walk away. Do you have one?

Oh lornajacobs, bless your hubby for looking after you and taking your diet into consideration and you too for still being on this. Hope you get well soon.

Clare07866 – welcome and stop lurking, we dont bite, in fact we hardly eat at all – joke. Make sure you have no rubbish around in the house (unless you have little ones). As for the will power thing, I try to plan delicious tasty meals and only eat at mealtimes, sat down at the table and savour every mouthful. As for the alcohol, I always have a full glass of water on my side table and it fill it back up as soon as it is empty and I really enjoy the taste. You could add some mint and cucumber and pretend you are enjoying a cocktail. Weighing is a daily event for me and keeps me motivated as there is usually some downward movement at least every other day. We officially admit would weight every Tuesday on this thread. Good or bad.

You will get lots of support here. Good luck to you both.

Hello all, I’ve been lurking in the background all week soaking up all the tips and advice. I restarted the diet on Tuesday after rather a long break (May) and having regained all I had lost 😮

As for the diet so far so good, I remember feeling much worse on the first week last time so maybe better prepared mentally this time. However my downfall has always been weekends. So any tips on how to survive my first weekend low carb and alcohol free without caving in and eating rubbish?

Also how often do you guys weigh in? I’m thinking weekly but the temptation got the better of me and I jumped on them today! 7.5lb lost though so very pleased with that. 🙂

That beef dish sound yummy LTC. Will definitely be giving that a whirl at some point. Thanks for posting it.

It is very difficult to know how to proceed when you have other chronic conditions to consider as well, I do feel that was one of the shortcomings in the book people were just dealing with T2

My autoimmune disease attacks my lungs which means at present I am only getting 54% of the gases with each breath, the knock on of that is very little exertion has a massive impact. I don’t have the energy to cook so it will be interesting to see how I get on with this diet, the quick easy recipes don’t seem that quick, especially when just shoving something in the oven can be exhausting.

SPICY BEEF AND CUCUMBERS WITH BLACK VINEGAR a wonderful stir fry

From Bon Appetit https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/spicy-beef-and-cucumbers-with-black-vinegar

Cooked cucumbers are terrific in stir fries and the slight bashing allows them to absorb the flavors from the sauce. The herbs on the top at the end are critical….add the freshness the recipe needs.

4 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 medium English hothouse cucumber or 3 kirby cucumbers (about 12 ounces total)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound ground beef
Kosher salt
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 red chiles, finely chopped
1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons black (Chinkiang) vinegar, or 1 tsp other vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar…use sugar substitute
Freshly ground black pepper

Steamed rice, cooked ramen, or chopped romaine (for serving)…for low carb can use cauli rice, shiritaki noodels or spiralized daikon radish “noodles”

1½ cups tender herbs (such as mint, basil, and/or cilantro)

Lime wedges (for serving)

RECIPE PREPARATION

Cut cucumbers crosswise into 4″-thick pieces. Using a rolling pin, meat mallet, or the flat side of a chef’s knife, lightly crush cucumbers, then slice crosswise into ½”-thick slices; set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet, preferably cast iron, over high.

Add beef and a pinch of salt; break up meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon then spread out in pan to create a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, until bottom side is browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Break up meat with a spatula and turn over pieces. Cook until other side is browned and crisp and meat is cooked through, 5–7 minutes.

Push meat to one side of pan and add garlic and chiles. Cook, stirring often, until fragrant and softened, about 2 minutes. Mix garlic and chile into meat.

Add shallot and reserved cucumbers and cook, tossing occasionally and scraping up any browned bits, until cucumbers are softened and translucent, about 4 minutes.

Remove skillet from heat and stir in vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar.

Set skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring, until sauce is reduced slightly, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Spoon beef and cucumbers over rice and top with herbs.

Serve with lime wedges for squeezing over.

1) the shower. Godsend on days I need to get away from family and/or food. And such a GOOD hot shower.

2) the cleaners. Complete indulgence but as soon as I had a job I had a cleaner and one of the conditions of being a stay at home mum was the cleaning people continued (he’d need one if he was single I figured). That and no ironing. TBF he’d rather I didn’t do his ironing and he knows cleaning is not a core skill of mine. However I know that compared to (for eg) my mum I am blessed to have the money to do this and a husband who gets why I want to.

3) sunshine today. Glorious walk with dog and friends. Daughter outside practising her gym skills in garden.

Bonus points:

4) kids ate homemade tomato soup 2 days in row with no complaint and that means we are 3 veg in today already. Plus protein from cheese (and carbs from bread but hey, baby steps)

5) finally made epic (1.5hr round) journey to collect bricks for wood burning stove that I ordered in August and only just got energy/time to collect. Mission finally accomplished!

Hi, I am new to this group-well , I think I joined some months ago, but have not interacted at all before. In theory I started my 8 weeks on Tuesday, that was when I was committed to start, but I have actually been in bed with flu since Tuesday morning, so I am not sure what I have been eating, other than- not a lot, and all prepared by my other half, armed with the original book and 4 week diet plans. He just cooked a version of halloumi salad with courgettes, which I think is the Friday lunch,which was fine. Just hoping I feel better soon, as my level of exercise at the moment is getting showered then dressers, then knackered and back to bed! Currently at 210 lbs. Really hoping to stick to it and lose at least 2 stone.

Crikey. That’s A LOT!

Hi there

I was diagnosed as insulin resistant at 76.6kg in August 2017, bMI 30. I am now 60kg (lowest 58kg when ill on holiday before Xmas) and seem to go up and down the grams according to what i’ve Eaten. This seems to be my default weight now, BMI about 23, but it’s where I sit without measuring cals or carbs (but keeping on the low carb end of the spectrum, barring accidents like chestnuts – who knew! – well, probably most of maintainers on here actually!) I do find out how many carbs in 100g of whatever and try to keep below 15g (so 15% of total intake carbs, I figure). Not v scientific, but scales are not fluctuating much and if they do I will reign back.

In the early days I definitely noticed some foods made me slump after eating them – generally when I thought I’d gone low carb when eating out but there were hidden glazes etc. This scared the life out of me, so it keeps me honest in relation to high carb stuff. I haven’t drink alcohol much for ages it makes me sneeze, but have the odd glass of champagne or Gina and soda water (0g carbs) when I feel the need.

I am waiting to hear whether my BS levels are back to normal. I have decided to eat more veg than I was doing, to keep my fibre up, including some medium starchy veg, and am monitoring effect this has on weight. So far OK, especially now I’ve stopped eating peanuts (too many peanuts!).

I suppose the main difference is that I’ve started to bugger up my pancreas, so it probably isn’t ever going to be as efficient as someone who hasn’t done that. A bit like an alcoholic whose buggered their liver will always have to be careful around alcohol. Or maybe they do self repair? Does anyone know?

I’m very interested in this thread since I have fibromyalgia, as well as T2 diabetes, & fatigue is a big problem. When I previously tried reducing carbs, I became extremely tired & cold, which meant I was very inactive. I’m concerned about this happening again. I think I may have been eating too lttle as I wasn’t following a plan as such. Since I rely on carbs so much, when I reduce them I’m not sure what to eat instead, or how much of it to have. Carbs encourage me to overeat them, whilst protein & veg are sort of self-limiting, if that makes sense.

Very reassuring to read that energy levels improved with weightloss and that a gentle approach initially is ok.

Squidge,I think I’ll just serve it up. See What they make of it. Although I am going to do them roast potatoes but roast celeriac for us,and tiny portions! We too are not going to buy anything else we shouldn’t eat…. makes it easier. My husband is like yours not as much to lose and finds it easy to be strict. He has lost 10lbs in 4 days.

Hello Fellow Futurelearners!
I posted about being uncertain about trying this diet &, as you see, I have now registered. I am following Verano, Theo, Esnecca & anyone else on Futurelearn who mentioned BSD.

Good to see everyone still posting. Well done on another loss SG and don’t panic about that small blip upwards Laska, stick with it and you’ll probably find that’s gone again tomorrow.

Nick, Allie is right that alcohol is a no no on the Fast 800, but then I think quite a few of us have the occasional transgression and had the odd drink but taken the cals and carbs into account on our daily records. Red wine is possibly the least damaging I think, or a small spirit, trouble is there is always that temptation to have more once you’ve had the one. Guess it depends how well you feel you can manage the temptations. I personally always find alcohol really impedes my weight loss, so I’d advise avoiding having that drink if you can, especially early on.

Scales were kind today and the blip upwards has gone along with a little more. I’m hoping I can consolidate that in the next couple of days and have a good result to report at the first week weigh in on Tuesday. Have a good w/e everyone.

Thanks both of you.

OH is doing OK. He’s sneaked a few naughty snacks, but doesn’t eat those where I can see, so as not to tempt me. He’s got less to lose than me and is mostly doing it to support me so I’m not nagging him about it. He’s happy with the meals I’m making and OK with no alcohol too, so his diet is healthier than it was. We’re not going to buy anything else we shouldn’t eat, so it will keep improving.

WillotheWisp, I hope you have fun with your friends and they enjoy their low carb lunch. Will you tell them, or just serve it up?

Thanks Marsie it’s been a couple of tough days. Hoping tomorrow is better.
At least I get Sunday and Monday off from hospital this week! I really want to focus on the diet. I know I’m eating the right things but my meal times and quantities are out of whack still.
Tonight was another assembly dinner. Seafood – prawns and crab with a small salad and walnuts followed by raspberries and cream … mmm… was feeling a lot better, late, so I really enjoyed that. Tomorrow’s another day…
it’s still a far cry from the other white stuff at least. I’ve only been a bit tempted for pastry once so far and I managed to resist. As others have said “ cheese and nuts” are my weaknesses. I’m limiting myself to walnuts, Brazil and almonds. I find the oldest, tastiest, vintage, black wax cheeses and cut a small amount into a tiny condiment dish and eat it with celery and cucumber straws. Sometimes it works and other times I go back for more…
Wherever you all are in your quest I wish everyone a good night or morning and success x

Morning Folks – reading the positives has helped me find some of my own, which has been made difficult as I went to bed with a headache and got up with one. It’s not poor hydration, ‘cos I was all over that yesterday, but I can’t decide if it’s low carb related or a migraine brewing. Either way, pain killer haven’t helped and I’m feeling well under par, however, here are my positives for this morning:

1) Last evening enjoyed sitting in front of our log burner with OH and relaxing.
2) The sun is actually shining here at the moment – a rare event given all the storms we have had recently.
3) Scales were kind to me today, so things headed in the right direction again.

Despite feeling cr++py, I will be staying BSD 800 today and hoping to feel better tomorrow.

hi marie123 thanks for that, unfortunately I am only just getting over doing course after course leading right up to 3 days before Christmas that I promised myself a break. The cyber course sounds hard going but I will check it out and maybe reserve it for the next run. I dont know how I was hacked but leading up to Christmas I kept getting spurious emails from Amazon but not uk, but .com which I never use as that it the American branch and actually has no link at all with UK site. They kept telling me I had forgotten my email address and sending me a code to get into my account as long as I clicked on the link, also emails saying I had posted reviews and would I like to read them in full, go click on the link and then those that said my parcel had been delayed and I could, yes you’ve guessed it, click on the link to track it. I am not stupid and I never clicked on anything. I did forward a few of them to the genuine A site as they have a spoof stopped section.

Anyway, couple of days after Christmas I had an email saying thank you for advising us of your change of email address from ????? to a serious of meaningless numbers. Rang A straight away and they said I didn’t have an account. I do, no you dont, not under that email address, no someone has changed it, that must have been you. It went on and on, they wouldn’t check my account as according to them I didn’t have an account. They got into the account but wouldn’t talk to be about who was using it and what was the new email address. Then I remembered I had kept all the order confirmation and despatch emails from things I had bought leading up to Christmas and they accepted that this was, in fact, my account. It was so frustrating. Then I remembered I had a credit card registered with A so I could do ‘one click’ Kindle book purchases. Cancel credit card and still waiting for new one. Turned out they didn’t get access to my credit card as they didn’t have the 3 digit code on the back. My account was recovered in less than 12 hours and everything is okay.

Lesson, do not register credit cards with online accounts – pay as you purchase then delete the details.

Thanks for the update marie.

Great memories Natalie. I’m lost with it all now. The last cricket I watched was indoor and I wasn’t really watching the game, just the boyfriend!😂

Well done Squidge. No loss for me today but I am happy I have lost 7lbs in 4days. Friends to lunch tomorrow determind to try and fit it in around this WOE.

1. lost more weight
2. feeling great
3.found a house sitter for our cruise dates

Just so happy to be back home and back into a sensible routine.