I did read somewhere that salt triggers the appetite (which is why restaurants add so much to food, especially starters, not to promote thirst), which may account for why salted nuts are more “more-ish” than unsalted ones.

Well done bloke41.

Welcome back Verano. Congratulations on the 11 pounds. You’ll get this next mini goal – welcome to your lowest weight for many years.

Good morning

Will definitely try your recipe with blue cheese and spinach, Snoop, it sounds lovely. Not sure about the salmon one as I’m really not that fussy on cooked smoked salmon. I am definitely going to try and eat more courgette meals this week in an effort to reduce my calorie intake.

I’m still just logging what I eat with gay abandon but tomorrow I will be back on track again. I had less than 40 carbs yesterday and just less than 1000 calories and I think I might stick to those figures I’m finding 800/30 a bit low at the moment.

Angela06 you did well with your guests. It is doable if we try.

Last night I made a Thai green chicken curry which was very nice but I had roasted cauliflower rice with it. The ‘rice’ itself was quite good but it just didn’t go with the curry. Will have to rethink that one.

I looked at the lasagne recipe sunshine-girl but I’m not sure it’s for me even though I love lasagne. I think I might make my own Bolognese sauce, even with the red wine, and use courgettes instead of aubergine. I think it may have been Marsie who suggested using crème fraiche loosened with a little water instead of the sauce in the recipe, which I have tried but don’t like. In fact looks like I’m just rewriting the whole thing!!! Never mind will give mine a try and let you know.

Tonight I’m having courgetti with a similar ‘peppered’ type sauce to the one I made at the weekend but will add more vegetables to make it into a main dish. Maybe spinach and a spiralised carrot with asparagus as a garnish. Will experiment.

Have a good day.

Glad it’s not just me Angela!

With the nuts, it seems it’s the salted and/or flavoured ones that cause the problem for me. I read somewhere that plain unsalted nuts cause fewer problems. Unfortunately I could easily still eat too many. And cashews have so many carbs.

Thanks for that Angela.

It’s still a little unnerving when I’m away from home and can’t weigh daily. When I get home and get on the scales again it’s with nervousness – perhaps because of past experiences with slimming clubs.

I was wondering about cutting down daily weighing and recording but, in those immortal words, “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it”. Thanks again.

CaptainLynne…yes to the cream definitely. Had to throw out a half tub that was left after the pork in mustard sauce. I kept taking a spoonful here and there….but the nuts? Not a temptation or at least not yet!

Hi Mike

My first suggestion would be to reduce your carbs. Many diabetics on here have dropped to around 25g. That’s how I got my blood sugars down to the lower end of normal.

Also, are you drinking enough water? Are you eating enough protein and good fats?

It’s common for blood sugars to rise in the early days as our bodies react to what’s happening. But they do come down.

Oh, I’m 66 and 5′ 1″.

Hope this helps.

Just wanted to share this about daily weighing if may I butt in here?

We have an old friend whose weight/size never changes, never has changed since we’ve known him. I’d assumed he is just one of those lucky people till i met his brother who is seriously obese. Apparently our friend weighs every single day and if he puts on even a half a gram he adjusts his intake till he is back at his normal. He has never been on a diet but, recognising from his parents and brother that weight gain is for him a potential hazard, he always controlled his weight.

I still weigh daily, just to keep an eye on the weight. In the past, once I’d lost weight, I’d take my eye off the ball and the weight galloped back (often with interest). But daily weighing and recording everything seems to help.

Hi

Sorry I’ve not posted for a while I’m afraid ‘life’ just got in the way!

Around 4 weeks ago I posted my next mini goal as wanting to lose 4lbs. Well I did that and in fact have lost a further 11lbs!!! I have been ill so that may have something to do with it but hey who’s complaining.

So my next mini goal is just 1.2lbs to get me down into the next stone and the lowest weight I will have been for quite a few years. I hope to do this by Friday, easily manageable, so here goes.

Hope you are all reaching your goals too. Well done bloke41!

Morning everyone.

Angela – yes, voice back thank you. It was gone a week! Still not 100% because of virus, but lots better than last week.

Interesting to read of people having these problems with cheese. I’m not too bad with cheese, but my problem is nuts and cream. i’m ok with Greek yogurt, but not cream. I’ve tried different ones, double, extra thick double, and aerosol (ok, not single) and just want to keep eating it.

My nuts of choice have been cashews – preferably salted or Marmite flavoured. But I could eat a whole bag – just like I used to eat crisps. Not too bad with Macadamia, but they’re so expensive.

Looks like two more foods to keep out of the house – most of the time!

M&M that’s great to hear how much of a loser you are, careful now you don’t fade away?
How long has it taken the 8 stone to come off?
I think I need to refocus as I do well in the week but weekends seem to be my down fall, still keeping 3 stone off but the downward trend has really slowed down?

Don’t give up cheese, try to get individually wrapped portions of something instead to ‘train’ yourself. One 20g piece for a snack, two for a salad etc. That’s what I did at first. I probably eat too much but I am on more calories now and can afford it again, and the Baby-bel or similar types really helped me on the 800 part.

Oh, should have said – I am 79 years old and 6′ 1″ whihc accordong to BMI numbers is JUST not overweight
Mike

I have been following the 800 diet for 3 weeks today, but so far not with much success. Over the three weeks my averages ‘numbers’ are:-
Calories 764
Carbohydrates 64 grammes
of which added sugar 11 grammes (and all sugar, including natural 19 grammes)
Fibre 10 grammes
Protein 55 grammes
Over the three weeks I have gone from 13 stone 8 to 13 stone 5 but my blood sugar shows no overall reduction, I use an AccoChek Mobile monito twice a week and the readings , whilst fluctuating slightly, show no signs of coming down – it measures in m/mol and today’s reading was 7.1, actually a bit higher than for the last fortnight
As I say in the heading – what am I doing wrong?
\mike

So it’s not just me, Natalie! It’s funny but I gave up the rest with barely a backward glance but cheese…well, it’s going to be hard!

Lyn.g I haven’t had nausea but I find I can get very depressed on a low carb diet. People vary. My plan for myself (not that I’ve stuck to it well, so I can’t tell you if it works) is to have more healthy carbs – quinoa and lentils etc not crackers or bread. In the original BSD book there is no carb limit and a lot of recipes include healthy carbs. Many or most people on this forum limit carbs to 50g or less a day but that isn’t compulsory. You could try adding some low GI carbs to your meals and see if that helps.

Well done …I’m with you. Halfway through week two and I’m down 12lb. Have a good week.

I’m eating too much cheese too, Angela06. But we can’t give up everything!

Good morning everyone. I hope you all had a good weekend, that you’ve well and truly got your voice back, Captain Lynne and that temperatures in Australia have moderated. At least when it’s cold here we can wrap up!

My peaks for the weekend: our friends/neighbours came for a meal on Saturday. I was pleased with what I put together, roast lamb with a garlic and rosemary rub, ratatouille, and rice for them followed by some nice cheese with a leafy salad. I suggested ice cream and fruit for dessert after I refused their offer of bringing chocolate mousse but no one was interested. (I think they might have eaten the mousse before they arrived!)

The pit: All pretty reasonable it seemed but I still managed to gain 600g overnight! Probably because I’m now addicted to cheese and just eat too much. Grrh!

Peak: This morning those grams had disappeared and I’m back to Friday’s weight. So frustrating, so much time lost.

The biggest pit: I think this is the end of the road for cheese and me. It’s got to go, along with the chocolate, bread, potatoes, sugar, wine etc etc…

Have a good Monday (is that possible?)

The problem with me is that I have sugar and milk in all my teas and coffees.. just make some realise how much sugar and carb dependant my life has been.

I am at the end of week 4, and have lost about 5kg, 10cm off my waist and bloods have been good. All of those results happened very quickly and not much has happened for a while. It seems a very common occurrence and as my hubby is doing really well and really needed the diet, I am enjoying his successes with weight, cms, and in particular blood pressure which gave an almost normal reading on the weekend.
My biggest issue is that I am still experiencing nausea, randomly and on Friday resorted to my pregnant nausea solution of nibbling crackers to relieve it. I am 61 and definitely not pregnant.
I have been adhering to the 800 calorie diet (some days going under 800) and exercise program, quite strictly and walking most days for about an hour.
Didn’t want to increase my carbs, but have started having crackers and tomato for lunch , instead of celery carrot hummus and light tuna in springwater. It’s lower in calories, and makes my tummy feel much better.
Is anyone else feeling nauseous?
I have been doing the 5:2 diet for some time and haven’t had this and that was with two 500 calorie days each week, so just don’t understand it.
It comes and goes so it’s not going to put me off continuing and other than when I feel sick, I feel great and so much more in control of myself.
I’m inspired by all the stories on the forums and very thankful for having found this way to take control, as well as impressed by the way the rest of the household has taken to it, in their own ways. It really is a way of life for everyone. I have three boys. The youngest is very sedentary and computer bound, and has lost 10kg without being too strict with himself. The middle son is very active, playing a number of sports and training many times through the week and working on a 1000 calorie day and 1200 when he trains and is really enjoying the meals and has lost a little weight, but more changed his shape a bit. Th eldest son is a nurse and apart from a couple of social events where he has lapsed from the regimen, has been the most strict with calorie intake of all of us.
More power to you all.
As MM says, lapses are no big deal, just don’t let yourself relapse.
I am really impressed with those who have ‘fallen off the wagon’ and have restarted! Good on you 🙂

Hi Everyone. I’m back on the 800cal program again today after a “oopsy” few days away which, once I started it, I found was Very Hard for me to get myself back in line again and it’s taken me ten days. Ah well, lessons eh.

Shanshu – I hope you don’t mind me suggesting this as I’m certainly not qualified on dieting but do work as a longtime health practitioner. My understanding has always been that if one is feeling tired, particularly in the early stages of a food reduction/change, it is important to rest and not push with the exercise. And if this feeling continues, then it’s advisable to get some health checks done in case some levels have changed and you may need tweaking of medication or food.

Keep up the good work everyone. Still a heatwave here in Oz, phew.

Tuna, broccoli, diet jelly for lunch.
I need to ensure I get it more exciting than this or I shall definitely fall off the wagon ha ha.
At least there’s roast chicken for dinner 😀 😀

Hi Not giving up this time just my opinion but going cold turkey on caffeine as well as reducing the calories may be more pain than you want to take on at once This is my second go round with this diet I had great success but put a few pounds back on due to a surgery over the summer. I have been pretty inactive and kind of depressed so have been eating more than I should have for maintenance. I would say the thing that got me through my first eight weeks on the diet was a coffee in the morning and several espressos throughout the day. Really their are many health benefits to coffee I just stay away from lattes cappuccinos and other mainly milk based drinks. Best of luck

Let’s motivate each other to reach our respective goals. Let’s do it .. once and for all…

Intending to buy the book in my lunch break today..
Day 1 for me, no tea, no coffee, no sugar and no high carbs. Headaches are starting to kick in. On my third bottle of water now…
P.s I am a vegetarian.

Hi, I have started 800 cal diet around 28th Jan. I have lost around 3 Kg weight in 2 and bit weeks. I do not use any artificial shakes or mixes. I calculate every calorie I take in and aim to stay v close to 800 cal per day. Some days it goes a little higher. If I feel like having a very occasional drink on weekend, I take a vodka with slimline tonic rather than a pint… but have been largely off c2h5oh.
AFter a first few days I have settled in a rhythm now and not many hunger pangs but have to really really really be disciplined about counting calories in everything… including a polomint… I have 4 Kg more to lose to get to my target weight

Welcome Caroline and good luck 🙂
I am in my early 50’s also, and knew I needed a re-think, as each year over the last decade my weight has crept up and up!
I’ve found the forums on here really helpful and supportive.
Look forward to hearing of your progress 🙂

Have been following this WOE since beginning of Feb but have fallen off the rails over the weekend so am hoping that posting on here will give me the motivation to get straight back on.

Hi guys,
I had a few experimental meals last week, but am keen to start properly tomorrow. Buddying up with some other enthusiastic newbies would be fabulous for me!
I am going to have my usual porridge for breakfast though. I hate eggs and will need to do some research on non-white-carb-y breakfasts to see what else is available…
Good luck and happy eating to you all!
(PS I am in Glasgow, UK.)
xx

I am restarting today! Fell off wagon in a big way due to having no will power over siblings birthdays, winery tours etc. But I’m back baby! Day 1 and 2 boiled eggs for breakky down..here I am!!!!

Today is the first day since I started BSD I haven’t made my 11,000 steps target. It was just too cold to stay outside anymore. I could go upstairs and use my step machine but I’m too tired.

Today’s summary:
Calories: 786
Carbs: 28
Water: 2.5L
Steps: 10,196

I did a 48 hour fast not that long ago (water, salt and bone broth only) and still managed my 2-3 hour walks without feeling any different, but I am fat adapted and in full ketosis. Just persevere, you’ll be fine, it’s still early for you.
Cheers
Linda

I’m the same, having been on maintenance since September, I still weigh every day and find that I can tweet my daily diet accordingly if I fluctuate a bit. I no longer get demoralised by increases as I know it could be down to one of many things that have nothing to do with what you put in your mouth!
Cheers
Linda

Thanks sunshine-girl, Maharani kitten and AnnieW, I’ve been down the antidepressant route in the past and probably won’t go there again. My symptoms are getting better now that the super hot weather has abated, so I’ll persevere with the ‘natural’ supplements I’ve been taking along with the odd over the counter sleeping pill if I get desperate.
I really appreciate everyone’s advice and concern and love the way we all look out for each other.
It’s Monday morning now and today is expected to be a more manageable 27 deg, so I’ll be able to get out for a long walk today after not going for 9 days. Interestingly, I’ve gained 2 kg in that time without really changing my eating habits. Just goes to show that with exercise, we can eat a bit more and maintain, but cut it out and the weight increases!
Have a great week everyone!
Cheers
Linda

Great that you are planning on how you deal with your weigh going forward, Mixnmatch. Like you, I will certainly eventually be using the 800 to bring the pounds back down, when they creep back up. It’s feels good to know how to take control doesn’t it. And you are right about the weighing thing, there is evidence that weighing daily improves success rates. Regardless, I personally find that it keeps me focused and no matter what the results, it spurs me on and makes me more determined.

If you have dropped your carb levels quite significantly you may have a form of ‘keto flu’ which is caused by low electrolytes. Try upping your salt/magnesium/potassium levels. I find a cup of miso broth works for me but some people recommend a cup of hot bovril or homemade bone broth. Magnsium supplements can be useful (and help you to avoid problems in the loo department) and avocados and spinach both have a lot of potassium.

It does get better but if you are cutting back on carbs and drinking a lot of water you will be excreting more electrolytes so have to work harder to keep your levels up.

Hey KJ
Way to go!
Keep at it, before you know it, you’ll be s size 14 or 12 or 10 or ??
You’ve got the power to get wherever you want to be!
Cheers
Linda

I too weigh every day but I’d love to get to a point of weighing just once a week. Maybe when I get in the 10 stone something I’ll see if I can weigh just once a week… bit of a challenge but I do like the idea of it. I think it’s being mentally ready as anything else when you are trying to adjust to a new way of life. And eating this way is a way of life.

The recipe as in the book is just nasty. Very dry mixture with bitter cacao nibs. Probably needs major changes as described above to save this recipe

Hi, I’m also starting out – looking for a new me! Read the book, found some lovely recipes and shopped for the week BSD style! Also got some new walking shoes and a route planned that is do-able most evenings. Hoping to lose 3+ dress sizes and re-think life in my 50’s so here goes…

Thanks everyone for your kind responses. To be honest, I do really hate meal replacement stuff, but I am kind of desperate here. I am only 35, 2 young kids, husband and I both work full time and no family to support as such. BTW.. I am from Australia. Bought optifast so at least I have some structure to start with my weight loss… once I lose the initial 10-15 kilos… I would be sticking to real food and in line with the BSD diet. I am really looking for motivation and support during these times. I had gestational diabetes during both my pregnancies and now my blood sugar seems to be on the higher end. I really really want to reverse this and restart my life.
P.s – I have been an emotional/ binge eater and a sugar addict.
Looking forward to turning my life around ..

I am in let’s start and get it done!

I stayed on 800 BSD, low carbohydrate until I reached target – a lot longer than 8’weeks (9 months). I still keep my carbs low, but don’t stress too much about calories. Eating Mediterranean style. Since reaching target, I’ve slowly lost another stone. No plans to change what I’m doing – it woks for me.

It’s an entertaining, brief and practical guide to breathing meditation/mindfulness. I have read many books on the subject and listened to a bunch of recordings, lectures etc., but enjoyed this one so much that I felt compelled to put a review on Amazon.
It is very complementary to changing lifestyles as in BSD and grounded in knowledge like Dr MM’s work.

The Art of Breathing by Dr Danny Penman
“I first got the AUDIOBOOK as a free Amazon trial from Audible, having seen Danny Penman talking on TV, and heard Oxford centre 8-week course recordings. I bought the book for my daughter for Christmas. I found the audiobook was excellent. It puts things in a nutshell; thoughts and practices that you might have pondered for years are explained simply and concisely. Particularly useful are the 10 minute meditations in later Chapters. I use the Breathing meditation often c/o iPad when I want to meditate but not for ages. It is something you can return to regularly since DP’s voice has a pleasant, positive and encouraging tone. At other times I like to meditate for longer in silence or to a bit of ambient Eno or with the sounds of the sea etc., but I like this guilt-free, practical approach to breathing meditation. It’s a reminder to just meditate in the time available as a part of everyday life, not to strive for self-improvement, just to be more mindful of the moment.”

[I have no connection]

Mix&match, that is honestly such an inspiration. Last time I lost 3 stones I put it in a rucksack and went for the brisk walk I do morning and evening – only got halfway round! Imagine the reduced strain on every part of you! You’ve really spurred me on today. Amazing! MKx

That sounds like a great recipe for Huevos Rancheros, I will have to try it next Saturday. 2lb a week is about right, maybe 3 on a really good week. I lost 26 pounds over the 8 weeks, but some people have lost more, and there were a couple of weeks I didn’t hit the 2 pounds even.

Hi Northernbloke, great weight loss so far, and the lack of hunger pangs is the thing that distinguished this diet for me from all of the others I have tried. I remember only too well the classic ‘low fat’ feeling of emptiness.

Thanks JM, not a killjoy, just realistic and with probably more understanding than I have about lifting such heavy weights. I will be very cautious indeed. I have no desire to injure myself or anyone else, and even my probable failure to lift it more than maybe an inch or so from the ground at most would be very powerful in terms of showing me how far I have come. I certainly have no intention of wearing it at that weight, although I might give it a go with the 26 kg.

Just starting week 3 on the diet – weight loss is 1st, next mini goal is to lose next 4lbs and get to next stone down. as it were. Diet seems fine so far, not suffering with hunger pangs etc