Hi Verano,

OK, will do, I’ll set it up for later in our week so we can move smoothly over once we’ve weighed in on Tues 21st.

The next 4th Tuesday will be March 21st. Does anyone have a suggestion for a title?

Hi
Does the book/programme offer a list of the correct foods as I find I am not keen on most of the recipes .

Marsie

I’m amazed you can find any restaurants that will serve you more than once!!!!

Could you possibly expand on your ‘Thai seasoned risotto’ a little please. I love Thai food.

Hi Marsie

I was really hoping you would continue! I think it helps lots of us to have a specific thread to focus on so it would be a shame not to carry on. Maybe you’ll reconsider I’ve done quite a few now and this thread has been great. I wish I could have contributed more but such is life.

Sorry about the rather imprecise topic heading but I couldn’t think of anything more direct or pithy.

I have a problem in understanding the relationship between obesity, diet and health as set out in Michael’s book and here on the web and I’d be interested to learn how other people have approached this question: if obesity is generally a consequence of eating too much carbohydrate (and particularly of sugar), it’s not clear to me why a marked reduction in consumption (about 800 calories) should bring about weight-loss — and particularly, fat-loss. Why is the ‘quality’ of the diet best reversed by the ‘quantity’ of the diet?

Gary Taubes, who has recently written about weight-loss and specifically the deleterious nature of sugar, challenges the view that a “calories-in equals calories-out” approach makes any sense as far as understanding obesity is concerned. Many other commentators have said the same thing. But, I wonder, doesn’t the 800-calories a day solution help to reinforce this energy-equation view? From the point of view of diabetes reversal, what would be the consequence of a “normal” high-quality diet (say, 2,000 calories a day) that had the same amount of carbohydrates as the 800-calorie regime?

Please understand that I’m not challenging the underlying argument of the BSD — there is enough evidence, both anecdotal and scientific, on the web-site to substantiate it. But I wonder if other people still don’t find some questions hanging in the air.
Best wishes,

Norfolkgal~ Congratulations on the wonderful weight loss! That must feel so great to reach your target weight goal. :–)
Sorry to hear about your eye infection. Those are miserable!

Theodora~Your walking holiday sounded like a great trip! I love the fact that you enjoyed yourself, spent time with your dear friends, and lost a good amount of weight. Impressive!

K8sgettingthin~So nice that your blood pressure was normal at the doctor! That is terrific!!!!!

Angela~You are a brave woman to get rid of all foods but the vegetables and condiments! I can just picture you grazing on radishes :–)
I hope your energy returns quickly! Must feel strange after all the walks you’ve been taking. So nice that your weight continues to drop.
Did you manage to avoid the stomach bug? It is going around here and I’m hoping to dodge it. A woman that I work closely with has it and is on day 12. She returned to work but still has to run to the bathroom constantly! Yikes!!!!

PEAK: “Gal”entine’s Day turned out great! We had to eat at the bar because there was no room left in the restaurant, but it was fun to catch up. We were just happy to have a seat! There were so many people celebrating at all the restaurants and the parking lots were packed. I got home about 8 pm and went straight to bed because I knew I had to get up early for work.
In spite of going out for dinner and not having time to do any formal exercise yesterday, I managed to lose half a pound. So hopefully the gained weight from the weekend fun continues to come off.

PIT: Missed seeing my husband on Valentine’s Day!

Mmm, liking the look of many of the recipes on here.

SueBlue (love the moniker), I’m also shellfish allergic and OH has Coeliac Disease and lactose intolerance. When we eat out as a family we make waitpersons blanch as added to our needs, one son has adult onset T1D, one sister is intolerant to anything that has worn a feather, other sister, despite obesity, has so many “can’ts” its almost impossible and her son has serious nut allergies. Catering for weddings, parties, etc is interesting…. lol.

Anyway, food: last night I made a “Thai seasoned risotto”, talk about mixing cultures, delicious flavours, lots of good veg dropped in. I kept aside a portion of veg and sauce to put onto my cauliflower rice while OH had actual rice. Added smoked Tasmanian trout at the last moment. Delicious.

While lentils are high carb they are not the junk carbs we really need to completely eliminate such as sugars and white flour. At 800 calories it seems hard to imagine it being possible to overeat in the carb department. In the original study done with shakes people had success and there is a lot of bad stuff in those shakes. In eight weeks when you are looking fantastic and on increased calories in a maintenance phase the counting of carbs would seem more important.

Good enough for that downward move Verano. Happy for you:)

Hi everybody,

So well done, Theodora. In an earlier post I did agree that the walking, extra walking, would stand you in good stead, pleased for you.

It’s a pleasure, Rosebery.

Hi Verano, feel free, I won’t be upset. This one was started in the spirit of opening up my house for a party that all the attendees would organise and contribute to. (At the time, everyone was so concerned about your absence, explained later, of course, that I just went ahead to give anyone who wanted it, an outlet.)

You may or may not know that in Australia we have a saying when inviting friends to a casual get-together i.e. “bring a plate”, meaning bring a plate of food to put on the table, and I have to say there have been lots of tasty plates (conversations) brought along to this party. Thanks everyone, still 6 days to go……..

I’m in to my third week of the Fast 800. The progress up until now has been fast. I stopped taking meds on day 1 and have gone from 8,4 in fasting sugar to as low as 6,1 a couple of days ago. At the same time the waist has gone from 108 to 100 cm and the weigt from 93 to 87 kg. But now the last few days I’ve come to a stand still in weight and waist, and even a raise in sugar (up to 7 this morning).
Does anyone have this experience? Any recommendations?
I’m pretty strict with fast carbs and snacks, but the calories might somedays be 800+ , but not more than 1000.

PS Just thought of my PIT for today:-

Sadly, despite dumping 16lbs (7.2kg) in weight in 4 weeks, and my jeans now bagging round my backside, my waist measurement remains stubbornly the same 🙁 Grrrrrrr!!

And my backside wasn’t THAT big to start with – it was my boobs and waist I wanted to lose from! Grrrrr!!

Hi Norfolkgirl, yes OF COURSE happy dances count towards our daily step target – though I hadn’t actually thought of that little ploy myself 😉 Thanks for the idea though 🙂

We were walking the SW Coastal path which, if you live in Norfolk, which I assume you do, is a long old drive!! Also, if you are used to flat Norfolk countryside, the hills may be a bit of a challenge too – we go on walking holidays a couple of times a year – always out of season, because I hate strenuous walking when the weather is warm. We do the SW coastal path and the Lake District, so both hilly options. Though I must say that most pubs good walking areas, and in Cornwall, in particular, are incredibly dog friendly 🙂

So pleased your new pooch is settling in well – is he a pup? My dogs aren’t keen on long car journeys either, but have to tolerate them for the greater good – they would hate being left at home, and IMO, what’s the point of a good long walk without a furry four-legged friend by your side? (apart from reaching our step target of course 😉 )

Toby, Well done! thats amazing, wishing you lots of luck with your next stage of weight loss, and maintenance of lower blood pressure and blood sugar levels, You know where we all are if you need inspiration and support, I think maintenance is always the hardest part for me, so mentally hard not to go, Yay, I reached my goal and now I can relax, please pop back and let us know how you are doing in a few weeks/months.

My plan after reaching goal will be to relax more at weekends (the booze and social food enjoyment) with still really strict weekdays to try and counterbalance.

Lovely to read of all your varying successes – well done everyone.

Sunshinegirl, I can certainly understand what you mean about feeling amazing and all scrubbed up like new after your swim. Lucky you, with the sun shining, cold, wet and miserable here today – though milder than it has been of late. Not warm enough to tempt me to go for a swim though, but I have taken the dogs out for a 3 mile walk, and come home wet, cold and bedraggled, so I’m feeling quite envious of you. 🙂

Back to the challenge. I have just returned home (last evening) from a 10 day holiday so, what with having had a plateau of several days and a 10 day holiday in the past few weeks, I was really doubting that I would come anywhere close to achieving my personal 4 week challenge. Absolutely dreading getting on the scales this morning – first time since we left home 10 days ago – but, and I couldn’t believe it myself, so turned my scales off and on a couple of times and weighed myself again, I have lost 3.25lbs (1.47kg) while I was away 🙂 Must have been all that extra walking (up to 15 miles a day) along the hilly coastal paths of the West Country, because we spent a lot of time eating (though tried to keep it BSD friendly

So, that means that, with 6 days of the challenge still to go, when the 3.25lbs is added to the reduction in weight before we went on holiday, today I have achieved my personal 4 week challenge of losing 3.6kg – chosen because the challenge was set at the beginning of my 2nd BSD week, and I wanted to double it in the following 4 weeks. So doing the happy dance here.:-)

Now I have just 2lbs to go before hitting 11 stone, so I am wondering if it may be possible before the end of the challenge…………………………….???? May be a bit ambitious in 6 days, but we will see.

Hi Miniaturemojo, I’m in my 5th week of following BSD and have lost 3.5kg. I take prednisone daily, but a lower dose than you are on (5-20mg, depending on how bad my joints/inflammation is).
One thing I have noticed is that my pain levels have decreased over the last few weeks and I’m managing on 5mg prednisone. I had put on 3 stone in the last 5 years, and some of that I blame prednisone as I have been on quite high doses some of that time.
My weight loss is slower than others on here, not sure if that is in part due to prednisone, but a loss is a loss – I just figure it may take longer to get to my end goal that’s all. Good luck 🙂

Thank you Theodora, I will do a happy dance for you too – does it count towards my Fitbit 10K steps? 🙂

Where have you been walking? Sounds very energetic, 15 miles is certainly going to work off some extra calories. I am thinking about planning a UK holiday for the late spring/summer to include some nice walking, preferably by the coast, not too far away. New doggie is not very keen on car journeys but he seems to be settling in, so hopefully will be ok by then.

There’s another thread going at the moment about alcohol, lots of wisdom, tips, and stories, it’s well worth a read, and really shows up how different we all are around alcohol!
Mary

Hi Minaturemojo, I have no experience with steroids but I have been injecting insulin for the past 10 years. My doctor calls it the fat magnet and, although he was always saying I should lose weight, was of the view that it would be very difficult but possible, so not much hope really. However, although I don’t lose weight at the rate of others I was only 3 stone overweight (only!!!) I have lost 1st 8 lbs of which I lost 1 stone in the first 8 week run and half a stone in the next. After that, probably because I am happier with my weight (need to lose another 1.5 stones) and my BG is well under control, I have taken the indirect route of losing then putting some back on over Christmas, losing that, then regaining because I had a weeks bread around my birthday and now losing again. I will keep going. What you might have to accept is that you are not going to see the big losses but there is hope that you will be able to lose weight over time. Don’t get impatient and give your body a chance to adjust as you lose it little by little. I can be done.

Ouch, TC!! That was certainly not by halves, but so pleased you are back to the regime today. And we all know, the damage is likely to be much less than you fear anyway, so I’m sure if you stick with it through to Monday, you’ll be seeing something to be proud of. I’m wavering between 8st 13lb and 8st 13.4lb, so things aren’t happening for me right now, but I haven’t been counting cals or carbs over the last couple of days, as I have had grandchildren staying and it was just easier to stick to the principle but not weigh and measure. So like you, I will be getting back to things properly tomorrow and hoping for something positive on Monday morning.

Don’t worry about yesterday, it happened and now you can move on and see a win on Monday.

Anybody got any tips regarding alcohol, I know if anything this will be my downfall?

Yes Angela it was a nightmare from day one. Never travel on a Costa Cruise, should have known when they hit the rock near Italy because the captain wanted to wave to his mates. We are giving it another chance and cruising the fjords of Norway in May but going 1st class all the way on P&O Britannia. Booked everything well in advance and even a table in the Indian restaurant of Atul Kutchner. Fingers crossed it will be the trip of a lifetime and I will be drinking.

Hi all, just got back from a swim at the local pool. It is amazing how good it makes me feel, not just the exercise but the clean skin and newly washed hair (not that I dont shower at home). The sun is shining and we are at about 17 degrees, hubby has hung the washing out and I am nearly ready for my lunch.

Lost 2.5lbs since Thursday (when I got back on it after my birthday binge) and bloods are steady around 4.5 and 5.0 so keeping everything as is medication wise. I write all my numbers in a book every morning and I have to take it with me when I see the doctor. So I looked back at my weight on the date of my last visit and I am half a kilo lighter, so not bad considering I have had Christmas and my birthday to content with and with 4 weeks to go so I have a new determination. Chinese pork balls on the menu tonight, not tried before but we do something new every week.

Have a good one and keep on keeping on…

Oh, well done, Norfolkgirl – doing the happy dance for you, what a great achievement. 🙂 Do hope your eye infection clears up quickly though.

I returned last evening from a 10 day walking holiday – for which you can substitute pub crawl as, whilst we walked the coastal path every day except one, when the weather was just too inclement (heavy rain and gale force winds) every walk seemed to be planned to arrive at a pub in time for lunch, and another pub for a quick jar at the end of the day’s walk! And the one day we didn’t walk, we (4 of us, and 4 dogs) holed up in front of a roaring fire in a gorgeous old pub all day. Testing times!!! And then there was dinner to contend with every night. So………………………

PEAK – got on the scales this morning, first time since we left home 10 days ago, absolutely dreading the reading. But, a loss of 3.25lbs (1.47kg). WOOHOO – RESULT!!! 🙂 Must have been all that extra walking – up to 15 miles a day. If I wasn’t already doing the happy dance for Norfolkgirl, I’d certainly be doing it for me! 🙂

PIT – none so far, (though only 11am, so there’s still time) but I think the fact that I went on holiday hoping just to not put any weight on, but actually came home over 3lbs lighter will carry me through almost anything today 🙂

Have a good day everyone.

Hi

Monday fine, yesterday not Valentine’s and all that. No excuse I know. 🙁 Back on it today.

Laughed out loud at Thisisit!

Well I have done 6 weeks and I am going to officially call it a day. I was pre-diabetic and am now not, I had high blood pressure and now do not. As a 6 foot man I was pretty fat (16 stone 3) now only overweight (14 stone 6) and 4 inches off the belly. My target is 13 stone but I now no longer feel the necessity for such a strict regime and to be honest am starting to feel a bit run down with frequent hunger. While I have only lasted 6 weeks rather than 8 and cheated to a degree (1000 cals on average plus booze at weekends) I consider the diet to have been an outstanding success. I will now switch to a moderately low calorie (1500ish) and low carb (as in avoiding obvious refined carbs like bread rice pots and pasta) until I reach the desired weight and continue to follow the principles to stay there.

Thanks to all on this thread for sharing the journey and best of luck to you all.

I too love cream and treat myself to two teaspoons in coffee every morning. I count this as 50 calories ( I hope that is right) and the fat keeps me going until lunch. Delicious!
X B

Hello to all 4 week challenger’s.
I am late posting again as we have been away for the weekend. I am half a pound down on last week so am pleased as, although I chose BSD food, alcohol as usual featured heavily over the weekend. One more event next Saturday and then our soscial life calms down so any new challenge will be welcome to help me crack this weight up and downing and get on with the job of losing more lbs before a wedding in May.
X B

PEAK: Target weight of 9st 7lb reached this morning!!! Not been this light since before I had kids and I used to go to the gym 3 times a week – feeling very pleased!

PIT: I seem to have brought an eye infection back from holiday so not very happy about that – doc has given me some drops which seem to be working slowly.

PS when refusing a drink I just say “oh I’m on a diet” and maybe because it’s obvious that I need to be on a diet I’m left alone!

Sunshine girl: your cruise sounds like the stuff nightmares are made of!

I drink very little and it doesn’t seem to cause a problem but my daughter who’s 29 has never drunk alcohol and finds the pressure to do so so intense that she refuses invitations to girls’ nights out etc. And she’s often nervous that someone will pop a vodka or something in her fruit juice….Shocking, isn’t it?

In reference to another comment, I really hate having my glass topped up before it’s empty….

And back to my original post about alcohol and food addiction generally; I’m fast coming to realise that I’ll never be able to eat carbs, that I’ll have to be on my guard always because “one is never enough”. Funny how these things percolate round your brain then suddenly you know….

Oh God – yesterday turned into an absolute disaster – Two chocolates turned into an eventual tally of 3587 calories and 232g carbs. Well, I don’t do things by halves, that’s for sure.

Back on it this morning – kicking myself royally up the backside – didn’t weigh in (no kidding!!) and won’t now until Monday – let’s see if I can save this week!!

ARGH!!!!

Hi all,
I have just finished reading The Case Against Sugar by Gary Taubes – it is a shocking eye-opener. Taubes goes through the history of sugar and its likely impact on human health, including the current obesity/diabetes ‘epidemic’ we are facing. So much of the research into low-fat diets and the exoneration of sugar was directly funded by the sugar industry, including the famous Ancel Keys low-fat ‘research’. There is also a well-hidden link between sugar and the tobacco industry.
It’s not the easiest read because Taubes is so detailed in presenting his case but when you have read it, you wonder why you would ever want sugar again.
SSB

It was interesting reading your posts sunshine-girl and captainlynne. It started me thinking about the people we know and their drinking habits. It took me a while to realise that whilst we do have many friends who have the odd glass of wine when they’re out but wouldn’t necessarily drink at home we only have four who ‘don’t drink’. One is a recovering alcoholic, the second I’m not sure about, she could be, and the last two just don’t drink out of choice.

So, in effect, most people we know do drink, a few quite excessively, so they are the rule rather than the exception. That being said it’s hardly any wonder that ‘non-drinkers’ are viewed with ‘suspicion’. You have to consider that some people may be really envious of your ability to ‘not drink’ and secretly wish they could be like you!

Cream and nuts ….. that’s an interesting one Lynne!!!!

Humankind: yes me…I’m almost exactly 1 kg heavier before I go to bed and can almost predict my morning weight from that. It’s not 100% accurate but almost…as you say, weird.

I think I will need a break from the constant weighing and planning by then. I won’t be making any drastic changes to what I eat and drink even after that, why would I when everything tastes so good, and I feel fantastic, but there will be occasions when I indulge. Thankfully I am comfortable with moderation after testing myself over the last few months. I am moving towards a kind of 5:2 but more like 5:1:1 with one ‘free’ day a week. I don’t have to indulge on my free day if I don’t want to, and I figure it should be balanced by the 800 fast day every week. Occasional glasses of wine will be allowed on the 5 days as well, but not going over my TDEE. I found a diet called Slow Carb diet which used a BSD friendly low GI diet and a free day for those people like me who aren’t happy if they try to exclude things permanently, but I will never put this all back on again. I can’t even imagine going back to eating all the rubbish even on a free day, it will be more for social occasions and the occasional (not too sweet) dessert..

I weigh 1kg lighter first thing in the morning than I do last thing at night.
This amount is weird to me.
Does this happen to anyone else?

Great news Verano. 💐

Off to do happy dance for Verano 😀

If I had ever thought about skin removal surgery the sight of all those scars would have put me off.

I still weigh myself daily when at home. I’ll see how I feel about it in a few weeks when I get home from Italy after a week there. *thinks* – I always used to weigh daily when at slimming clubs – don’t seem to like weekly weighs!

So – might stay with daily, might not. Not a problem either way.

Good morning, my challenge was to get back to sticking to the diet more carefully and I haven’t really done that yet – I have been following the principles but more at a maintenance level than 800 calories. My exercise has also gone to pot this week for one reason and another. Anyway, the other bit of my challenge was to get into the 10 stones and I edged it last week and am 10 stone 12 1/2 lb now so definitely into the 10 stone bracket. The top of the normal range for me is 10 stone 2lb so only 10 1/2 lb to normality!

Reading the posts I can see how useful a dog would be in getting one out of the house and walking regularly but I don’t think we will be succumbing because we are often away from home. Maybe we need a virtual dog?

Blood sugars have risen a bit this week but I think it is stress about our daughter who is desperately trying to find a new job having given in her notice and who is currently contemplating a claim for constructive dismissal. My morning blood sugars are stubbornly about 6 despite late night snacks and apple cider vinegar but they have been lower and I think it is being on edge. Come to think of it I haven’t been doing my mindfulness stuff so probs need to do that!

Butterlover, we are in a similar position, small losses and slightly elevated sugars – and the determination to do better! good luck!

Thank you Marsie for organising this thread.

Lentils are fine, but be really careful with your portion sizes as they are quite carby. If you are at the 50g mark on carbs it is possible, but any lower would be difficult.

Hi

Well I’ve lost my 1.2lbs, which I know is no great shakes, but it does get me down into the next stone so really pleased about that! I’m also now half way to my ultimate goal!

My next goal will again be quite modest just 3lbs by the end of February.

Hope you are all reaching your goals.

MK I had salmon yesterday, very similar recipe to yours but I oven baked it in a little parcel of baking paper. I placed the salmon on a bed of spiralized zucchini (courgette) & carrot, and some finely sliced spring onion, then sprinkled sesame seeds on top. Only took 15 minutes in a 200 deg oven.
The only thing I’d do differently next time is marinate the salmon first – the recipe I had said to pour the sauce over the fish, which I would do again but after marinating. Sauce was ginger, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar & toasted sesame oil.
I’m not a big fish lover, and am
Allergic to shellfish, but I did enjoy this meal 🙂

Good morning/evening

Sunshine-girl I know you’re right it just seems so unfair that you eat all these ‘healthy’ vegetables but in the process stuff yourself with carbs. Yesterday we had griddled steak and vegetables so no harm there. How did the ‘champagne’ go down??

MK I love fish but am not a lover of salmon unless it’s been ‘played with’. That recipe sounds lovely. Another easy one I do is to put the salmon in a small dish and add soy sauce, sliced spring onions, sliced ginger and chilli, cover with tinfoil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Tasty and easy!

Today I’m having a ‘cook in’. I made some space in my freezer yesterday so I’m going to make broccoli and stilton soup and Bolognese. I looked on the internet and it’s Jamie who uses crème fraiche let down with a little water instead of white sauce. So tonight I’m going to make lasagne with courgette ‘sheets’ and crème fraiche with mozzarella and parmesan. We will see!!!

Have a good day.

Hi Marsie

I see that this challenge is in its last week now and I was just wondering if you’re starting a new one or if you’d like me to do it?

Hi all. I’ve just joined and would be really interested if anyone who has gained weight by taking steroids has been able to lose the weight on the blood sugar diet. I have addisons disease an have to take 50mg of hydrocortisone daily for the rest of my life. The 3 stone weight gain is provided very hard to shift.

Good morning,

Jmarie..welcome back from your trip. I hope you had a great time visiting your family and friends. Now you’re back into routine it shouldn’t be too hard to lose those pesky pounds. The idea of a gal entine is sweet. I certainly do appreciate my friends and the support from these forums. Is it still raining there?

K8 great news on the blood pressure!

And to all cream, cheese and nut lovers….my fridge is now empty of all but vegetables and condiments. If it snows and I can’t get the car out, we’ll starve!

Peaks (and pits) the cheese has been eaten and I turned the cream into ice cream. The only thing left to graze on till next shopping day is a bag of radishes! Desperate times need desperate measures. In spite of cream based sins I managed to lose 700g. I’m on holiday from work and was hoping to walk more but somehow can’t find the energy to do more than the minimum. It’s been a bit of a struggle to walk and also to understand what happened to my energy.

Have a good day.

Well done Nancy, Chrissie and everyone else who had lost this week. Thisisit thanks so much for making me laugh – I can SO identify with your behaviour on the scales as I do a similar thing 🙂
Seasidenana I’m thinking along the same lines as you. I still have over 50lb to lose and obviously this isn’t going to happen in the next 3 weeks… I’m thinking that I could stick to 5 days at 800 and 2 at 1000-1200 quite easily long term.
And Chrissie how lucky to be going to the UK in April, I can’t wait to go back there (was born there and moved to Australia 36 years ago). Maybe next year..
And to everyone who like me had small losses last week, every bit counts. A few days ago I made corned silverside for dinner and before I cooked it I trimmed off all visible fat. Out of interest I weighed it, it was 125g. I then realised that it was a sizeable lump of fat – so the weeks I only lose a few hundred grams is still a few hundred grams of fat gone 🙂
I love reading these forum posts – always someone I can identify with, and others experiencing similar things, don’t feel quite so alone 🙂

Day 3 seems to be better. It’s past 2pm here and my headache has settled a bit.

Wanted to ask if we are ok to have limited amounts of lentils on this diet, like cooked dal-? I am an Indian vegetarian and I am really struggling with options other than salads. Any advice would be helpful.

I hope everyone is feeling okay today. I haven’t had breakky..it’s 12:30pm..not hungry but feeling a bit crappy and wondering if some food might pep me up at bit!