Sunny B
Thank you for this. I will start on it today, at least there are some changes I can still make, doesn’t feel quite so hopeless!
And yes I do need to look at how I relate to the stress, I can’t change the cause but at least maybe how I deal with it. I used to do a little yoga ( not sure why it’s lapsed!,) and it definitely put me in a better mind space if you like.
Thanks again
H

Sue, really pleased that you’ve got your head straight again and are back on track.

Our current 4 week challenge thread is called “Remember remember, low carbs for November: a 4 week challenge ending on 28th November”. Obviously we are half way into it now, but you’d receive a warm welcome nevertheless – never too late to state your short term goals and get support and encouragement to achieve them.

Towards the end of the challenge, a call will go out about starting a new one for December, so we always tend to have one on the go to keep us all motivated. So please do join (current one and the next) and let us cheer you on. 😄

Morning all,

today +0.7lb 😞

Have been slowly gaining for 5 days now and not sure why. Be interesting to see if I have any loss to post tomorrow.

The gains haven’t been huge and possibly TOTM although this WOE has knocked my cycle out of whack so never know where I am any more.

I am walking a little more and so hopefully there is muscle gain. Body fat isn’t rising so I guess that metabolically, things are still going in the right direction.

x

Thank you sunny B x

Hi Sue (Sheehy), it’s really nice to see you here! Like you, I’m finding
maintenance a somewhat daunting challenge. Losing 146lbs. was
pretty straight forward compared to this. I haven’t regained any
weight, and am inside a healthy BMI by 21 lbs and below my target
by 12 lbs. Like Theodora, my challenge is not to lose any more.
You have accomplished so much since Jan., 66 lbs is fantastic.
I know that it is easy to reach a point where weighing and measuring
every last living thing can become tedious. Some of us now don’t,
but we all keep a watchful eye on the carbs. We can figure this
out together, and the suggestions here are wonderful. I think
joining a thread is very good advice, you will begin to chat with
a group of people that you will get to know and soon come to
think of as friends. I’m looking forward to following your progress
here and on other threads. Welcome ! 🙂

Best wishes,

Allie

CCathy, SunnyB, KrysiaD and Theodora….thank you so, SO much for your care and encouragement!

Although it’s a wonderful place to live, Perth is one of the most isolated cities in the world – thanks for being such a great ‘community’ from all around the planet.

I had a day out on my own yesterday and got my head straight again. I’m in. Whatever it takes!

Where exactly is the thread for the monthly challenges? I had a look but couldn’t find anything current…..

Wherever you are, have a restful day/night!

Hey ancient weaver — I wasn’t casting aspersions on your comments — I just thought that your sleep pattern/issues were of a long duration — I’m sorry if I misread that it has changed a lot/many times this year (I can’t keep up well with the myriad posts so I sometimes misunderstand).
It would be interesting to hear your comments on sleep and food intake — I think others would find interesting too.
Allie, the points you raised are also interesting, vitamin D as a sleep aid and in general — we all need to go sit in the sun for twenty minutes every day with our skin exposed — now that’s my kind of recommendation!

Thanks SunnyB. I’m feeling a lot more enthusiastic and optimistic now following all your suggestions. The only thing I’m worried about now is will I have enough money to buy smaller clothes?! 😉

My precious sisters, look at us, we’ve hit 1500 in posts! I’m fairly
certain that this is some kind of new record!

Mary, what a beautiful day you have had. I wonder what food menu
your daughter is preparing today in your honor? Please
continue to share your stories about your daughters and Grandies.
Whatever brings joy to your life is something I enjoy hearing about.
I also think siamese are beautiful, mysterious, and highly intelligent
creatures, but keeping up with their antics can be a challenge
sometimes. There is always some disaster to follow up on that
they have created 🙂 They definitely have “our number”, that’s
for sure. I, too, spend more time than is probably healthy thinking
about our missing sisters. I can’t help but have concern for them.
I definitely have some thoughts, but I’m not comfortable talking
about it on an open thread. However, my email address was
posted back around the last week of Oct., with the high hopes that
I would be able to get together with Esnecca. Please email me,
using some sort of subject identifier, and we can continue our con-
versation there, if you’d like to exchange more intimate thoughts
on this. I think your daughter is spot on characterizing you as
an “Empath”. I think I must be one too! 🙂

Julia, I’m delighted that you enjoyed “a day in the life of” our pets!
You don’t know how accurate the cartoon on your refrig. actually
is. My Mother used to be horrified that they had free access to
the counters in the kitchen. They are such pests at the dinner
hour that they DO sit on the diningroom table with a luncheon
plate of their own that we flip scraps onto to keep them from
snatching food off our plates. It’s sick, not to mention mildly
unsanitary, but they seem to run the show around here. Sad,
I know, being outwitted by a pair of cats.
Hope you had a good weekend!

Allie
xoxoxo

Two pounds down then Andy, excellent news! Stick with it and I’m sure you will be reporting more positive results in those 33 days. Keep going!!

Right off, Martie, if you ditched the choccie bics and the crisp butties it would be a huge help! As JackieM says, keeping it simple works just as well as using fancier recipes and there is no need to eat three meals a day. Use your daily cal/carb allowance for as many meals as you like, three, two or just one – it’s totally up to you. I work pretty much to a 16:8 pattern, so 16 hours overnight fast and then two meals in the space of the remaining 8hrs.

Although I like cooking, most days I just keep it plain and simple – one small meal between 12 and 2pm, may be yogurt and berries, or a small med platter with some cold meat and cheese, veggie patties or perhaps an omlette; then an evening with a protein element usually meat or fish and veggies or salad – even if it’s bolognaise I’d have the sauce over green veg and cook some pasta for my OH. There really is no need to make things unnecessarily complicated.

I’d recommend giving it a try, think you’ll be surprised how easy it is to fit into you lifestyle and will be happy with the results. Keep us posted.

AnneF, that bread sounds wonderful. Anxious to hear if you feel it had any impat on your weight….great news for all if the answer is no.

And good to hear that you are maintaining well with a full social life….that’s what we all hope for in the end.

Hi Hatecakes – right off, let me say I not a medical expert and so am speaking purely from a layperson’s view point. Working on the basis that not all calories are equal, I would say that I would think it possible to use the BSD to adjust blood sugar levels, without losing weight. So, if you were to cut bad carbs – grains, potatoes, sugars, rice, pasta, bread, etc. – and don’t cut the calories, you should find it possible to have some impact on the blood sugar levels.

Try to pull your daily carb intake to 50g if you can, but keep your calories up by making sure you include plenty of full fat and protein in your diet. This would mean plenty of veggies (especially green and leafy veg), a decent portion of protein each day and including good fats of olive oil, nut oils, full fat natural yogurt, some nuts and seeds, avocado, butter and cheese are permitted too – so you see, it’s possible to keep the calories up but the carbs down. I don’t want to call it a Mediterranean diet, as these usually include plenty of bread and even pasta, rice or potatoes and all of these need to be avoided.

Final advice though, would be to try address your stress levels, even if you can only manage a few minutes of meditation a day, it should help. If you read the BSD book, you will note that mindfulness is part of this way of eating, so if you can take time out to focus and quiet your mind in some way, even for a short period, it would be helpful. Exercise can be part of this, as spending some time exercising not only benefits on a physical level, but on a mental level too. Have a think about how you can include a little mindfulness in your day – could even be listening to, or reading something inspirational on a commute.

Hope some of this is of some use. As I said, I’m no expert, but working on the basis that reducing carbs impacts on blood sugar levels, it should be possible to adjust the BSD way of eating to work for you – it’s like you’ll be going into maintenance right from the start.

Just wondering if this eating plan can help in reducing blood glucose levels when the cause may be due to cortisol / stress. I am at the prediabetic end of normal for a fasting glucose. I don’t need to lose weight and my bmi is 20., I am 5 foot 6 and weigh 124 pounds.
I don’t like most carbs, eat relatively healthy , but my stress levels are very high, and can’t see a way to reduce them.
I recently saw a hospital dr ( for something else)and he asked me if I was diabetic as my blood sugar level ( not fasting) had been 7.8 So what can I do to reduce my levels?

Thanks JackieM. I understand that the books suggestions are all understandably designed by nutritionist and the pics taken by professional photographers etc. but it’s good to balance that out with your down-to-earth suggestions etc. I’m about 80% there to be honest, I just need to go that extra mile now if I’m to start getting the results I want. Thanks again.

Hi Esnecca,
that is an amazing drop in weight, you must feel better for all that effort, and you are right about measuring every mouthful. I have now taken to weighing every mouthful and I am shocked by how inaccurate my estimates have been. I will make a great effort to get this right including more physical activity. I fasted from last night’s evening meal until my evening meal tonight and I find that I seem to manage better doing this every other day and during week one I have lost two pounds.

Have you been doing this WOE for the last 18 months, I am absolutely gobsmacked by your drop in weight, but as you are in a healthy range for your height do you still have to watch every calorie, and thanks for your insight.

Hey Martie – I definitely do not eat like that! I could not be bothered with it! I eat very simple thrown together meals – for example the sandwich filling without the bread and a bit of green on the side, or cauliflower with a bit of butter and grated cheese on top, or the roast meat without the potato but a bit of broccoli on the side.

Whatever you decide to do has to fit in with your lifestyle and how bothered you are by your tummy (I think that’s why you are doing this?) you will get fastest results with BSD 800 cals, but if it’s too extreme for you you can choose not to. In the book I seem to remember he says a low carb approach will work over time, especially on 5:2, but people with insulin issues need to do it fast to try and reverse their problems thus the extremely low calorie intake for 8 weeks. It does genuinely work though, and if you aren’t that overweight won’t take 8 weeks even.

If you do keep eating the high carb stuff on your free days I think it will slow things down and make the restricted days harder and you will be hungrier. That’s based on how carbs make me feel though. You have to find the balance that makes you happy.

Good luck!

Great results Luvtcook and 2BD! I am continuing to maintain weight, measurement and blood sugar levels despite having friends visiting for the weekend with whom I quaffed much red wine, but despite eating out I pretty much stayed off the carbs – not at all feeling that I am missing out.

Made some bread in my bread maker using rye, buckwheat, whole wheat and oat bran filled with sunflower, pumpkin, poppy, sesame and linseeds. Delicious and ticks all the M-plan boxes.

Good luck with your Thanksgiving preparations Allicat and Luvtcook 🙂

Week 7 here we come!

I’m also wondering if it’s worth me looking at the occasional meal replacement drink. I don’t usually eat breakfast and can easily make it to around 12ish before eating so one of them (sugar-free?) might be an idea with a bit of veg as a snack?

Can anybody recommend an good sugar-free meal replacement that’s available in the UK?

Thanks

Alipally, whatever question you have SOMEBODY on this site will probably have the answer. It is a very generous and supportive lot. Lots of “been there done that” to draw from.

Luvtcook – 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Very tempting, indeed!

Thanks also SunnyB and JackieM.

I guess what troubled me the most was when I looked at the picture section of the book and I just Sat there wondering when I was going to get the time and money to eat like that. Yes, I’m sure it’s not all that expensive but it’s REALLY difficult meal planning whilst holding down two jobs, and especially as I’m not that clued up on food (although I’m far from being a pie and pint can’t of bloke!)

I’ve already been doing the 5:2 diet for about 5 weeks and have lost maybe a pound and about an inch off my waist, which I know isn’t much in 5 weeks but I’ve been really ‘cheeky’ on the non-fast days and am way too fond of chocolate biscuits and crisp butties!

With all this in mind, I’m beginning to wonder, as I’m not diabetic, if I might be better off sticking with (and improving my efforts on) the 5:2 diet, maybe even shifting up to 4:3 and going increasingly medditeranian on the non-fast days as the BSD may be surplus to my requirements at this point??

Get on that shuttle…got an empty chair waiting for you any time!

Hi Martie, lunch for me is often pre-packed ham with salad out a bag, with a teaspoon of mayo, or pre-packed slice (s) of beef spread with cream cheese wrapped around raw spinach. I hate cooking with a passion so it has to be quick. A can of tuna with some red pepper and mayo. You are right, I don’t need to worry too much about budget (at this point in my life, that’s not always been true) but I would say our food bill has gone down because I’m not eating the secret biscuits etc etc. I certainly spend less on chocolate in a week, even though the quality has gone up the quantity has gone down.

What is it specifically you think will be hard for you to deal with? Not eating with kids, preparing special food, something else? If you can pin point what it is then people on here can offer specific advice on how they dealt with it if that would be helpful.

Wishing you lots of luck, I am sure you will figure it out so it works for you xx

Thanks for those replies, I guess I do have everything I need, I’m just going to have to be willing to do things differently, to change for the better etc. I read once that life’s little disasters are the genius of the subconscious mind, and my little rant certainly acted as a catalyst for exactly the advice I needed, so thanks again.

I guess it’s also because I’ve tried and failed with this stuff so many times in the past (I used to be a big fan of Gary Taubes books) and even though I’m already fairly healthy I just struggle to shift the middle-aged-middle, largely due to my love of sweet stuff and potatoes. I guess I’m just going to have to buckle down and give it my best shot (and feeling sorry for myself is the first thing I’m quitting!) 🙂

Hi Martie – we’re all different with different life styles, some have with more disposable income than others, but there is no reason for this way of eating being out of your reach. No need to be making different meals for you and the children, just don’t add the carby stuff to your plate and increase the veggies – as Verano said.

If you need packed meals, think salads, plain yogurt with berries/nuts/seeds, cold roasted Mediterranean veggies, veggie patties etc. And really, just do what you need to do and don’t discuss it with the nay-sayers – once they can see the changes happening, they may not be so keen to knock it. There’s no reason this WOE needs much more time than any other – yes you need to keep track of cals and carbs, but that doesn’t have to take up hours.

It all seems very daunting when your first start, but once you have made a start and begin to get your head around it, it very quickly becomes normal. Hope you give it a go and will use the forum to get advice and support. Don’t feel you are in this on your own, ‘cos we’ll all be here to help you along the way.

Best of luck to you.

Martie, you are right that it certainly is easier if you are only needing to cook for yourself and have fewer demands on your time and more flexibility about when and how you eat. I put off starting this diet for months until I retired for fear it would be too tough to handle with the job (God knows I was exhausted enough at the end of the day and the thought of less than half the amount of food seemed pretty daunting).

But in retrospect, with 3 weeks into it, it is soooo much easier than I ever thought it would be….but I was already low carbing so I had that hurdle over with.

And to me the good news about this diet is it is CHEAP! I had hummus and a bowl of meat free vegetable soup for lunch ( 4 cups of boxed chicken broth and onions, cabbage, green beans, some tomato paste and dried herbs…cheap!). The hummus batch serves 6 and my veggie soup has 5 servings. I reserving 1 serving of soup for tomorrow and freezing the rest. Make some food for yourself and freeze servings for your lunches. No sweat.

After lunch I took out a frozen serving of hamburger stuffed red bell pepper for dinner. Had an omelete and salad for dinner last night.

Nothing expensive or fancy about any of this stuff. In fact, I fully expect to save enough money on food to actually buy new clothes in a smaller size down the line. Most meals you can have everything your family is eating except the potato or rice. Just give yourself and extra vegetable (another idea I use is creamed spinach using cream cheese with herbs…make and freeze that in single servings as your “extra vegetable”).

And some excercise is always a good idea, but not necessary for the diet.

If you have not already been eating low carb, the first couple of days are challenging (you might start on a Sat ?). But after 3-4 days, you are going to find this the easiest and cheapest diet you have ever been on.

Hope it all works out for you….but do give it a shot. Extra vegetables now are a lot cheaper than diabetes meds down the line.

Thank you so much. I’ll look into the sites, invest in almond flour and try the Epica grinder. What a mind of information you are.
Alipally

Oh, God, luvtcook, I want to take the shuttle to D.C. and find a seat
at your table! You’ve given me some added focus, and I will spend
the rest of this beautiful afternoon pouring over my collection of
recipes. See you soon,

Allie

Allie, you are so kind to keep up with so many threads. I know your support and that of others means a lot. Each pound is a small victory so its nice that other BSDs celebrate with you (family would soon tire of hearing about it if shared at that level).

I too am getting a oranic turkey breast from Whole Foods. They allow you to order them ahead so you are sure of getting one, but be prepared for some sticker shock. Mine at 9-10 lbs will be $40! Ouch. But plan to have them saw it in half and freeze half for a later date. The 5 lb half should be fine for my son and I and still provide leftovers (which of course is the BEST part of Thanksgiving….the work free meal you get the next day).

My menu (excluding the two carby things I will make for my brother for his sole consumption) will the the turkey and thin gravy, cauliflower gratin (Jacques Pepin’s recipe with gruyere cheese….yum), the sweet potato souffle, grean beans with shallots and walnuts, and a spinach salad with apple, walnuts and blue cheese (contibuted by my son). Low carb desserts (pecan tart with almond flour crust, and an apple tart with sugar free apricot jam glaze). Nuts nuts and more nuts is the story of the day.

And I do encourage you to try the sausage and broccoli rabe frittata. I made it for the first time this week and really loved it. The next time I am going to add 2 more eggs and a bit more cream to it as I think it could actually strech to make 4 servings instead of 2….I couldn’t finish a full half of it. My idea of what a meal needs to look like has certainly changed.

Well, off to the gym and eliptial trainer (with golden oldies rocking along on head phones)…..and the start to Week 4.

You have a great week yourself!

Ok so to dismiss no1 myth not everyone who posts here, and we are just a handful of people eating this way, are ‘middle class professionals’, and/or married, with loads of money.

I live with a man who continues to eat ‘normally’ so there are always biscuits, crisps and chocolates etc in the house. I have chosen to ignore them for 98% of the time sometimes they catch me out!

Eating this way doesn’t need to be expensive at its very basic remove bread, rice, pasta and potatoes from your diet and substitute with vegetables. Vegetables can be frozen or whatever is in season and cheap. Just try and stay away from vegetables that grow under the ground.

This obviously won’t be as easy for you, as it would be if you were a ‘lady of leisure ‘ but it is doable and it just depends how much you want to do it! There’s loads of support on these boards and you will find a thread/people you can identify with. Dont give up before you even start. We can all find reasons to carry on with the status quo it takes a bit more effort to change your life. So take that first step and give it a try…. what have you got to lose!!

Good luck on your journey.

Thanks, I’ve just been reading the book in preparation for starting tomorrow and if I’m totally honest I’m not feeling confident at all because, at risk of sounding negative, I’m tired of reading accounts by people who are clearly middle-class professionals, married, and have enough time and money to make the lifestyle changes necessary to make a success of this. Unfortunately, I’m non of those things and really can’t figure out how I’m going to do this surrounded by people who think this type of thing is ‘gay’ (I wish I was joking!), running a home on my own (with two demanding jobs and three kids!), and with very little spare time and money! I’m going to have to find the strength from somewhere (and at least I saved £40 not buying a blood sugar monitor!) but it’s really not feeling doable at the moment. (Sorry, I know that was a bit of a rant, but better out than in!)

Hi, Luvtcook! I have to catch up with you where I can, so just
dropping onto this thread to congratulate you on your losses so
far. I’m delighted for you! I think that you have an excellent plan
for our upcoming holiday, and I’m completely intrigued by your
menu item, sweet potato souffle. To answer your question re our
holiday plan, nothing much is going on this year. What’s left of
my family is spread out over the country, so it is a rare and special
year when we have an opportunity to get together for a holiday.
If I can find a small enough organic turkey breast at Whole Foods,
I’m going to look for an herb inclusive method for roasting it. I
like to saute some pancetta with the brussel sprouts, so that
will probably part of the menu. If you have any other suggestions
regarding vegetables, I’m all ears! I notice your generosity in posting
recipes to the recipe suggestions here. The sausage, broccoli rabe
looks delicious – I know that my husband would really enjoy that
one. Your username does indeed describe you, and I very much
look forward to reading future recipes from you. Thanks! Thank
you kindly for your other good wishes as well. Husband doing
quite well at the moment. As you say, you know where I live,
drop by for a chat anytime 🙂

Enjoy this sunny Sunday. I’m in New England, Ct. to be exact.
It’s nice to have someone in my time zone.

Allie

Weighed in this week 9stone 7lbs (nearly 9st 6 but the scale jumped up at the last moment)one stone to go till 8stone 7 & only 33days to do it. Onwards & downwards

Oh and if you start now there’s a good chance you won’t like Xmas cake by the time you are offered some!

Good day, everyone. There are some interesting subjects being
discussed here today, i.e., bingo wings and sleep disorders. First
though, great news Verano that you’ve become comfortable with
the concept of 2 meals a day. I continue with 3, but fit them into
a 6-7 hour window. I do find it quite easy to keep carbs under <20
but you guys know I’m pretty hardcore on this, at least for myself!
I, too, have had a sleep disorder for 18 years. I occurred following
a diagnosis of Lyme disease. Although I have recovered from the
disease, the sleep disorder persists. All the conventional modalities
haven’t worked for me, but I completely agree with Californiagirl
(Hi Julia, happy to see you on this thread!) regarding diet and the
beneficial use of the supplement Melatonin. My sleep pattern
is 2 hrs, awake for 1 1/2 hrs, then hopefully 2 hrs more. Taking
melaton @ 1 hr before bed helps me tremendously in getting to
sleep. I don’t think the purpose has anything to do with artificial
light. Low levels of Vit. D during the winter months can have an
impact on fatigue and sleep. Some people take supplements
for it, but only after having a very simple blood test to determine
what your levels are. 80% of people are deficient during the period
Oct – April. For those of us who have been sleep deprived for
decades, it’s worth investigating.
There are many factors that contribute to how our skin ages.
Diet, exercise and genetics are but a few. Across the board,
collagen production, which decreases with age, is the accepted
reason. The amount of weight loss, as well as the age at which
we accomplish it, has a huge impact on where we end up, as well
as the factors previously stated. Vitamin A is the most important
nutrient in youthful skin, as well as hydration. Diet is key.
I don’t really feel comfortable with taking it in pill form, so I make
sure to include the foods highest in Vit. A in my daily diet. I’ve
also discovered that it is necessary to eat vit A rich food with
some fat for max absorption. Have a google for a list of “foods highest in vit A” for the daily recommended %. I don’t think
that carrots are a special entity of and by themselves, but they ARE very high in Vit A. For any of you interested, have a google for
“foods highest in Vit A” for a list. It might surprise you! Carrots
aren’t a super food, but they are very high in Vit. A.
At 146lbs lost, I do have bingo wings! I do some strength training
with 5 lb weights, but I’m not interested in building muscle, just
maintaining the lean muscle mass that I have. At the age of 69,
this isn’t a vanity issue for me, but more about feeling fantastic.
I can live with the “wings”, I just dress accordingly! 🙂

Have a great day, everyone. Keep on posting!

Allie

Hi there

I had a week of just not eating the obvious carbs and not calorie counting, then about half way through the next week. At that point I was doing things like making lasagne and scraping the filling off the pasta.

I realised the weight loss was slowing, so started using My Fitness Pal, which was really useful as you can look at carbs. I quite often went over 800 calories, but for a good 4 or 5 weeks I was on 20g or less carbs a day, and for a while I was on just under 800 calories and 20g carbs a day. I can honestly say I did not get hungry, once I was used to it. I tend to leave eating until near 11am and try to leave 4-5hrs between meals so your body gets to rest before the next meal. Prolonged fasting does not really suit me.

Then we went to France for a week, where I had steak with garlic butter and would check it was low carb, but did not measure calories at all. I did not once eat bread, cake, pasta, biscuits etc or root veg. I ate a lot of cheese and salami and full fat yoghurt and salad. We were in the mountains, so I walked quite a bit and that week I lost a kg, which was less than normal (but is still 2pounds). As someone said on here if I couldn’t find a low carb food, I didn’t eat.

To start with I did feel rubbish, I slept a lot, that I know now is ‘carb flu’. ThT lasted 2 days. As time progressed I got to understand some veg needed leaving out – onion, for example. That did make me sad! And I would have 100g full fat yoghurt with 10g flaked almonds, which looks tiny but does fill you up.

So in some senses I did not have a ‘break’ – I do not always count calories, but I do not knowingly eat carbs unless they come from green leafy veg, cream, or dark chocolate. A ‘break’ might be like yesterday when my steak came with wTercross salad with tomato and shallots and I didn’t scrape all the shallots or tomato off. When I accidentally eat too many carbs I get really tired, which scares me, so the motivation to eat differently is low,

Hope that helps. Dip your toe in the water, but you won’t get full benefit and will remain hungry and deprived feeling unless you bin all the wheat/sugar etc in one go. Then you’ll be really surprised how full you feel!

No worries, enjoy the diet – the first thing that happened to me was I lost 5 inches from my waist in the first 3 weeks and it has never come back even when my weight goes up on holidays etc. Should help you get rid of the belly fat but remember no diet can target specific areas.

Theadora – the chef actually came out of the kitchen to check that the changes he was making to my meal were low carb enough. They were so friendly and the whole place was so clean. We will definitely go there again.

Hope you have a lovely break in rural Dorset.

Hi Yowser- My sincere apologies for not getting back to you sooner.
There are so many interesting new threads at the moment that I
think I may be a bit overextended. I couldn’t be more sympathetic
to your challenges with CFS however, after dealing with it for 17
years myself. It’s been accompanied by fibromyalgia as well. At
one point the brain fog was sufficient to have me finding my cell
phone in the refrigerator, and I once made a quick trip to the market
in my bathrobe instead of a winter coat! I’ve never come across
much in the way of knowledge on the subject, and I was too disabled
by pain and fatigue to conduct a serious investigation anyway…..
My condition followed a diagnosis of Lyme disease, a tick born
bacterial disease that attacks the joints, cognitive and neurological
functions, sleep disorders and a hypersensitivity to noise. It took
at least 8 years of antibiotics, oral and IV, to get rid of the cognitive
and neurological manifestations, and I had somehow accepted that
post Lyme syndrome, chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, as well as
a prodigious weight gain were always going to be a part of my life.
BSD changed all that. Now I have returned to the ideal weight I
was 17 years ago, the pain has been reduced by @ 50%, and CFS
is a thing of the past. The miracle took place after I reduced carbs
to <20. I’m very interested in how this might work for you, too!
You clearly know how to lose weight, 100lbs, wow. Congratulations
on that accomplishment! Have you ever tried using ginger, turmeric
or cinnamon for their anti-inflammatory properties, or adding raw, un-
pasteurized kimchi/sauerkraut to your diet, or other fermented
foods? There are also many anti-inflammatory diets circulating
on the internet that might be worth investigating to see what BSD
friendly elements they have to offer. I haven’t been doing any research
lately, but I do remember a Dr. Weil who has published a lot on
this subject, and he’s even created an “Anti-Inflammatory Food
Pyramid”. If you find anything useful there, please let me know!

Best wishes,

Allie

SueSheehy, I can only echo what those above have already said. Your achievement to date is amazing, and you should be congratulated. You must be very proud of yourself (if not, you definitely SHOULD be) for having come this far and made such a difference to your health already. Just keep plodding on, and you will get there, though I know it can seem daunting at times – in the meantime, hoping to see you over on the current “challenge” thread, Remember, Remember….”

Krysia, been bitterly cold and windy here too, but we also had a lovely walk (2 actually) but fortunately no rain. How fantastic that you found a good care which was not only dog-friendly but low-carb friendly too!

As a footnote, I am pleased to say I have held onto that pound I gained yesterday, so maybe, just maybe my body is beginning to adapt. Will be away until Thursday, with no weighing facilities, and may not be able to post either, not sure what the internet situation is like where we are going (exceedingly rural Dorset). But I will be back……………😜

Hi Alibalibee

When I started BSD I didn’t know if I was pre-diabetic but I had a BMI of 32, was obese so most likely was heading towards it! My aim was to have a healthy BMI which I now have. I am a vegetarian and loved pasta. I have not eaten pasta or bread or rice or biscuits or cake since starting this way of eating and am amazed that I haven’t missed them at all. You might wonder what a vegetarian eats on the BSD but actually I have enjoyed all my meals and although I don’t have the same choices as a meat and fish eater I do eat healthy food and the amount of colleagues who comment at lunchtime that my lunch looks nice is amazing, it might be something simple like full fat cottage cheese and walnuts but the food is so filling and I can honestly say, I never feel hungry! . I am the thinnest I’ve been for probably twenty five years and enjoy cream in my coffee with a square of dark chocolate and I never feel like I need a biscuit or a cake. This way of eating is actually very liberating once you get into the second or third week. I hope you give it a go!

SueSheehy – what a tremendous achievement – 4st 10lb lost. Really good advice from Clarinetcathy and SunnyB.

I did several stints on maintenance during my weight loss journey and I think that it did help me when I got to true maintenance because by then I had quite a good idea of what I needed to do to maintain my weight.

Hope it is much warmer in Western Australia than it is here in the UK. We walked along the North Norfolk coastal path around Cley and it was so windy that we almost got blown off the path into the saltmarshes.

Luckily we found a wonderful cafe at Cley called Artemis before the heavens opened – we even had hail stones. Lovely food and really dog friendly. They made me a perfect BSD meal.

Alibalibee – absolutely superb advice from everyone who has replied to your post. If you follow it you will be successful – just as they have been.

Hi SueSheehy – CCathy is so right, you have made a huge difference and should be proud of your achievement. She is also right about making the quest for any further weight loss feel less daunting, by breaking it up into chunks and joining the four week challenges is a great way to do that with support and encouragement. It’s good to set some mini-goals along the way, to give a sense of achievement when they’re realised and to also acknowledge the non-scales successes – having the buy smaller clothes or getting into things you had to previously sideline, being able to exercise more, lowered blood pressure, etc., etc.

Returning completely to our old pattern of eating can only have one result, so we all need a new ‘normal’ to be able to maintain our slimmer selves. That’s doesn’t have to be a negative thing because we can allow ourselves some latitude, but we really shouldn’t expect to consume carbs in the way we used to do.

Finally, I really hope you stick with it and join us on the four week challenges – hope to see you there

Californiagirl, what do you mean, my sleep pattern is old?
It’s true I am old enough to have tried all the standard sleep hygiene advice many, many times, but my sleep pattern has changed so many times this year that I have lost count. Almost none of the standard advice is relevant to my problems.
As for melatonin, I have done a lot of research and personal experimenting, and for me the effects of artificial light is minimal compared to the effects of what I eat or don’t eat. I could go into detail but I don’t think it would be of benefit to anyone posting on this thread atm. If anyone reading this DOES have problems which have not been addressed by the standard advice, feel free to say so, and if I have any relevant experience I will share it.

Verano, until recently I had that same problem, currently I typically manage to get two chunks of three hours with only a minimal break between them but the second time I wake I really can’t get back to sleep. Celery stew makes that into one 6 hour sleep.
As it’s only sometimes, it is quite likely that your problem is diet or activity related, but activity is easy to correlate, so I presume you have ruled that out?
When you say ‘lately’ is that since being on the 800? Are you going to bed hungry*? If it’s not that, then it’s a matter of figuring out what you have dropped or included that can affect sleep and correlates with bad/good nights. If you are keeping a diary of food, it could be useful to look back over previous days/weeks and see if you can spot anything. I could give you lists of good and bad foods, or if it is only since cutting down to 800, you might prefer to just stick it out to the end of the 8 weeks and then recuperate before doing another session.

(*Eating too much of an evening can also cause problems for some people, but I don’t think that’s really possible on 800 cals! 😉 )

If we are going to lose weight and maintain that loss, it’s necessary to understand that this way of eating is for life, because to eat as we used to, will have the same results it had before. We can’t expect to maintain our lower weight, if we return to the old eating pattern. Obviously life happens and there will be special occasions when we will eat things not on plan, but generally speaking even for holidays and such, it is best to stick with the BSD principles as far as possible – definitely no mainlining Christmas cake.

By all means do as many weeks as you can at one go – better to start now than wait – have a break and then get back to the programme. Have you week off, but stick with the principles being sure to avoid the carb laden stuff as much as possible and those carbs consumed, should be consumed consciously – i.e. make a conscious decision to consume the carbs and don’t mindlessly guzzle through loads of high carb stuff, before realising what has happened.

Of course, taking breaks will mean that weight lose happens more slowly, but it will still happen providing the breaks are not a carb-fest. It’s how I managed my BSD adventure and it took time but I did eventually hit target weight and am now maintaining.

Hope your BSD journey goes well, but be sure to use the forum for advise and support – best of luck to you.

Hi SueSheehy

It made me feel sad to read your post because you seem to be so hard on yourself. You’ve lost an incredible amount of weight and should be so proud of your wonderful achievement in a relatively short time. We must have started about the same time. I do appreciate that the constant vigilance can be tiresome but the alternative is not worth considering when you’ve come such a long way. It has been hard for me to lose my weight, well not hard, but slow and at times I felt like you. Why don’t you consider joining the monthly challenge thread and break up your loss into monthly, doable chunks rather than look at the long term goal which I appreciate is like climbing Mount Everest. . There are some lovely people on the monthly challenge and it makes it fun and a little easier if you give yourself a monthly goal. At times I only lost 1lb a month but I enjoyed being part of the group and the encouragement really does help. I have no doubt that if you keep on plodding on you too will see it through to a place you think you can never be. I was one of those people Sue. Good luck with your onward journey, you’re in the best place for advice and support.

Cathy

Allipally, I do (or did before BSC) a lot of low carb baking and really like using the almond flour, but it has to be super fine. If it is a bit coarse and called almond meal, it wont work as well. A lot of the low carb sites call for a tiny bit of coconut flour added in as it absorbs the liquids better and gives a tighter product. I prefer the almond flour and ground flax recipes more.

Favorite sites are Sugar Free Londoner, All Day I Dream About Food, Low Carb Maven, lowcarbology, and I Breath Im Hungry. Lots of low carb baking ideas on those.

My favorite flax seed grinder is this one : the Epica. Nice big bowl and the cup can be removed to wash. Hope these work for you.

https://smile.amazon.com/Epica-Stainless-Removable-Strongest-Efficient/dp/B01I20TMGC/ref=sr_1_18?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1510497437&sr=1-18&keywords=coffee+grinder

“Official” weigh day for me, end if Week 3 and down another 3 lbs, total 13 lbs since I started BSD. For an historically slow loser, I am thrilled. I have started recording my daily weight drop as I find it so curious that it doesn’t drop off say a half lb a day 9 (which you assume is what you are truely, but instead all drops off within 1 or 2 days. For me 1 lb down 3 days ago and then 2 lbs yesterday. So odd. I would love to know what is really going on. But whatever. I will take it.

Since contemplating going on this diet I have read a lot about fasting, and of course watched MM’s Horizon program. I am considering adding in a 2-3 day water fast once a month for the health benefits, as well as extra insurance that the weight continues to come off. I assume even those on the BSD hit plateaus occasionally. I wonder if others have done this and how it went for them. Hoping some of the long time BSD maintenance folks can answer this.