Hi all, I started last Tuesday, so day 7 today. I’ve just been having two meals a day, no snacks apart from cream in coffee twice a day. Found it really easy, haven’t been hungry…
This morning I was 8lb down from my starting weight of 210.8lbs. Hopefully a little more off tomorrow for first week total, but I am happy with that as my 10% target is 21lbs. Inches going also.
I think I found this WOE easier as I have 5:2 before and my body is now used to that. When I first did 5:2 I felt weak and shaky and lightheaded on the fasting days, but after my body adjusted I seem to be able to fast even after months of eating and not have any of those effects. Interesting…

Happy birthday, and definitely order the smaller jacket MK, I have sent far too many barely worn clothes to the charity shop.

Not for a night shift but I used to keep a mixture of nuts, seeds, cocoa nibs and pine nuts on my desk during long days with no time for lunch on a previous diet, maybe a few dried fruits as well, but be cautious with those as they are high carb. It was just nice to have something there that I could dip into and eat whenever I wanted.

Happy birthday MK, my turn in 5 weeks

Anyone who has been on this site for a while will know that I had a mini goal of throwing out some scruffy knickers. Well when I reached a certain weight out went 3 pairs. Reading your stories of clothes no longer fitting because they are too big, I bought a 5 pack of panties from Sainsburys (I can call them panties now as they are not big knicks) and picked up a size 14. On reflection I decided to take them back and get size 12. All well and good, got them home and they are too big but in this cold weather they will keep my midriff warm as well as the other bits.

For those of you suffering headaches, have you cut caffeine? Lots of people who did 5.2 used to talk about the headaches, but I didn’t suffer with that, but I never gave up caffeine either! I am waiting for the freezing shivers, by this time next week when I have shifted some pounds I know I will be wrapped up in 3 sweaters and a blanket! 😂

The ultimate no cook low carb breakfast most of us keep coming back to is full fat Greek style yoghurt with berries. I sometimes jazz it up a little by stirring a teaspoon of cinnamon in or cocoa powder, but this is one i never get tired of. There are so many variations I can’t imagine running out of inspiration. I have used fresh figs, cocoa nibs and pine nuts as well, it feels really decadent if you get creative, almost more like a dessert.

Thanks mixnmatch. Took painkillers yesterday but thankfully headaches are starting ease today.

Great post Happy Vegan. Thanks for the link! Very interesting. It must be so difficult for you to get your protein. Hopefully you’ll find it easier on your return. Great recipe ideas too. Thanks for your time posting.

Enjoy the strawberries 🙂

Approaching end of day 3. Feeling lighter.
Still experiencing headaches but not as bad as yesterday. Don’t have the dizzy/nauseous feeling anymore.
Very much looking forward to feeling great by start of week 2. Many have commented on that and I can’t wait!

Topcac and Jacks – thanks for the advice re headaches.

Well done everyone.

My husband is a wonderful cook and Sunday roast yesterday was a cheat day for me, twice as much carbs as I should have 😏 He made some home made soup and his soups are always delicious, he’s very supportive of my diet and understands the basic no bread, potato, rice, pasta so I never thought to ask him what was in it. After I’d eaten it I asked him what was in it. He gave me all the ingredients and ended with ‘…. and one small potato.’ He thought one small potato wouldn’t make that much difference but when I checked it actually has 24g carbs! So today has been a bit of a bust as well 😒 Need to pull my socks up tomorrow and get back on track.
Well done to all sticking with it despite the headaches. I didn’t suffer with any of that thankfully.
Val

Yay, almost at the end of day one.

So a bit more info about me, I am 44, 5’6″ weigh 13 stone 2 pounds (but this is a recent Xmas binge eating gain, have been 11.5 stone for last 18 months, but started emotional bingeing on carbs and alcohol a few months ago!)
However, after doing 5.2 previously I know I am happiest weight and healthwise at around the 10 stone 10 mark. And that is a healthy bmi for me.

I am very disorganised, throw myself headlong into diets and tend to like simple easy non faff meals at the start of any new eating regime, I know that after 2 weeks of this I will be finding it relatively easy, and then I can take some time to cook more thoughtful meals, but for now, I just need quick fixes of meals that fill me up with minimal faff!

So my day one menu has been:

2 eggs scrambled in microwave served with half an avocado, salt and pepper

Tin of sardines in tomato sauce!

2 fresh coffees with semi skimmed milk (need to buy cream instead this week!)

2 large slices of Aldi tourchon ham rolled up with full fat cream cheese, spinach rocket and watercress

1 walnut.

1 or maybe 2 cups of tea with semi skimmed milk

3 litre of fizzy water

Roll on tomorrow and hopefully a pound or 2 less on the scales!

Hi

NannyC, me too. Today hasn’t been too bad but like you the evening is my bugbear! However I’ve been good at clearing out my cupboards in preparation and plan on doing the 30min activity throughout the evening which hopefully will mean that I’m getting up and doing something every 30mins and therefore not time to ‘forget’ and be naughty. Hope you’re evening is OK.

Tyrefighter. I’m really hoping to lose a large amount initially so that it will, I hope, keep me motivated as I’m able to see a change. Definitely weighing myself daily – I’ve got some Withing scales so they also have my BMI recorded as well as weight. It’ll be interesting to see the changes.

JulesMaigret. Oooh, I look forward to that moment! 😉

We can do this! x

KrysiaD – weather tomorrow should be ok. 😃

Hope there’s no snow until Saturday – I’m conducting a funeral on Friday morning (a burial).

Maharani Kitten: Happy Birthday………..

Happy birthday and yes, send for the smaller and then buy that one!

JulesMaigret
Am very impressed with your step count today.

Captainlynne – hope you get a better nights sleep tonight. The weather today isn’t very nice – hopefully it will be better tomorrow. Although there is the threat of snow later in the week.

The stunning thing is that in a few weeks you will walk past the bakery section and have no interest. It is really an amazing change.

Hello SunnyB

I can’t drink coffee but I’m loving the sound of your chai with cream … Please do tell how you make it 😃

Thanks

Hi everyone

Just thought I’d update .. I’m still in week 1.. Felt so light headed and nauseous for the first few days, even though I normally drink loads water I drank even more and also added a little salt to my food which I don’t normally do and this has definitely helped.

I’ve reduced the amount of insulin units I inject as I’m finding blood glucose is coming down very nicely.

I feel fantastic today … I can’t remember the last time I had so much energy!!

From reading your posts I realise I should’ve planned my meals.. It’s something I’ve never done when trying to lose weight in the past and I think that’s one of the reasons where I’ve always gone wrong.

How do you plan your meals?

I hope you all have a great week!

Note to self.

Do not let that nurse take blood again!

I’ve just taken the plaster off and you should see the mess she’s made of my arm!😱

There’s not only a big bruise, but also a big lump!

Definitely a Monday to forget!

Thank you SunnyB for the helpful information!

I have been browsing through Amazon looking for Keto cook books/ LBS cookbooks – I want to try a few recipes from the official LBSD book first though. Specifically breakfasts for “on the move” as this is the biggest fail of my day. I don’t want to use up over half of my Carb allowance on porridge each morning. Can you recommend any ‘No Cook’ low carb options?

I made one of the porridge recipes today for an at work breakfast (generally around 10am) for 210cal / 34gCarbs. Then the Roasted Pepper and Hummus salad for 190cal / 10gCarbs for lunch.

My Partner is trying to support me which is lovely but he is cooking a Bacon, Mushroom, Spinach and Mozzarella Omelette for dinner and I only have 6g carbs left!

I intend to also download the “MyFitnessApp” I have seen discussed on the forums later. Counting Carbs and Calories is quite confusing for me as I am rubbish at maths. Keep thinking I am doing great on calories then realising mt carbs are way ups ha ha !

Looking forward to another loss!!
Libby 🙂

Thanks for the good wishes and advice re jacket. Have tried it on again with better bra and slimming slip and if I’m honest, it’s slightly roomy with a thinner jumper – although it looks great. I do really love it, perfect for Spring and Autumn, or milder winter days, smart, but looks great with jeans.
So am going to keep it, in case it goes out of stock, (this is always happening with LTS), send for a smaller size and compare then decide.
I’m like the little engine that could at the moment – I think I can, I think I can…. It feels almost scary to believe I can truly be the slimmest I’ve been as an adult – and feel so healthy. I’ve never been this shape, either. I have a thigh gap. My stomach is flat. I have a waist! I’ve never had a waist! What a lovely birthday present! MKx

To Anna from Tyrefighter. If you stick rigidly to the “no pasta, bread, rice or potatoes” regime you will find it fairly difficult to fit your meals to this but it can be done and it is well worth the effort. I found that I lost ten pounds in the first two weeks but then my rate of loss became much lower so I gave it a rest for a week and then started again with some success.
Use the Mediterranean diet as set out in Michael’s book, cut out all the snacking, have just one bottle of wine at the weekend, weigh yourself every day.
Bon Voyage!

To Inka from Tyrefighter. Hi Inka! We are going very well, thank you. On our members’ individual record sheets I put the first weight reading of 2017 in red inka to act as a datum for the year. I told them –
Write down your target weight and put it where you can see it.
Write down your target date and put it where you can see it.
Write down the number of weeks to your target date and put it where you can see it.
Write down how many pounds per week (or month) and put it where you can see it.
Use mental imaging for five minutes when you get to bed each night for about three weeks. Imagine that you have actually reached your target. Picture the clothes that you will be able to wear – they have been sitting in your loft for God knows how long. Imagine friends you haven’t seen for a year or two saying that they didn’t recognise you and how fantastic you look and how did you manage it? This will give your subconscious the job of making sure that you do achieve your target. Read the book “Psychocybernetics” by Doctor Maxwell Maltz. I bought my copy in 1960 in Oahu and I have lived by it every since. It is not a religion! You can still get it on Amazon at a reasonable price.
You ask about my time in Australia. In fact the last time I went there was flying some freight to Maralinga while I was in the RAF. It was a four-engine piston aircraft and it took us over a week to get there – Malta, Tripoli, Khartoum, Aden, Karachi, Ceylon, Singapore (day off) Labuan (Borneo), Darwin, Adelaide, Maralinga. It took us 13 hours to get from Darwin to Adelaide!
Hold fast to the faith!
Tyrefighter

Hello Anna Hope you get off to a good start. I have found today a ok but am wondering how I will cope during the evening which is my bad time. Haven’t had any bread and feeling good even though I keep running to the toilet as I am trying to drink a lot. Keep in touch and we will support each other. I think the forum is brilliant.

I’m just the same – like walking, but need it to have a purpose.

After just 3 hours sleep last night have done nothing more strenuous than (necessary) admin, so no walking today. Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow, and I’ll have had a good sleep tonight. Then I can get some walking in.

Hi All,
Rolling into week 2 and feeling much better. Lost 6 pounds during the first week and looking forward to a few more this week.
As so many have said, planning really helps!!! My biggest challenge has been dinner planning and keeping the carbs down. It feels odd to be eating such whole rich foods. Sometimes the whole fat dairy and all the eggs are so rich it makes me nauseous so I tend to stay away from it and have moved to 2% cottage cheese and am cutting back on my eggs and other cheeses. It’s just too much. Never thought I’d say that! I love cheese and rich foods!
Onward into Week 2!
Good luck everyone!

Happy Birthday Maharani kitten, hope your day has continued to be ab fab! The jacket sounds gorgeous given one you love. I too would swap for the smaller size. I bought pants recently, that I loved, and figured I would lose the weight to fit and sure enough, they are perfect now. In fact they are going to be too big soon, way this programme works. If you are on a mission to lose that stone then you will and a stone represents a size smaller, more or less. xx

The tube strike today meant I got my 18000 steps in today. Like Krysia I don’t like walking for its own sake, I like to “walk with a purpose” as my first boss used to say.

Major unplanned victory.

I was presenting at a client’s conference today in a nice hotel in central London.

Firstly due to the tube strike I walked to and from the hotel (18,000 steps) and secondly the buffet lunch had poached salmon, courgetti and caponata as an option – Big Win!

Captainlynne – that’s exactly what I have been doing lately. I have just walked from work to a cafe in a garden centre – I would have taken the car before and can’t think why I didn’t do this before as it is only a 15 minute walk.

I also like to walk somewhere with a purpose rather than just walk to get my steps – which I have to do a lot.

Today I had an absolutely full diary – no time for any breaks – but luckily it unravelled with clients not well – which is why I am relaxing in the lovely new restaurant with my cup of coffee and reading Saturday’s ‘I’ which I haven’t had a chance to read yet.

Hi Frog, Thanks for your advise. I’ll investigate what’s around and do some YouTubing. Anna

This isn’t an easy one and I can understand why you are in a quandary. I would say be cautious with the porridge, as this is high carb. Some people use porridge though, just keep the portion small. I would suggest trying something that includes some olive oil or nuts – something with a good fat content, as this will help you feel full for longer. Are you able to take a salad with you and some French dressing perhaps?

Hopefully someone who has experience of running the BSD with nightshifts, will be able to give you a better response. Good luck.

Hey Libbyohno – firstly welcome onboard. Secondly, sounds like you have made a good start – well done. And thirdly, you do not need to stick to the meal plans rigidly, you can pick and choose and even go off menu and create meals of your own design. The key to the BSD is keep the cals and carbs low, so as long as you calculate and record what you are consuming, that’s all you need to do. So limit your calories to 800 daily and watch the carbs – most of us aim for 50g or less a day.

Check out the recipe section on the website, as there are lots of meal options on there as well and of course, there are lots of low carb cook books out there too. Really, if you think in terms of a protein source and plenty of green veggies as main meals you won’t go far wrong.

Good luck for continued success and we’ll look forward to reading your positive results soon.

Hi Rebecca,

Yes it’s easy. I had a 2 eggs omelette for breaky. Same for lunch (still full now) and having Chicken Satay for tea with fresh cauli rice. total is around 700 calories and around 20G of carbs.

Satisfied!

Ooh – Sarah – we are all dying to know how you’ve got on – let us know when you weigh in !!!

Hi Seahorsesal – I feel your pain, the menopause did the same to me too and I ended up the heaviest I had ever been, excluding pregnancy – although it was close! Make sure you include good fats in your menu, as this helps to make you feel full quicker and for longer, which might help if you seem to be much hungrier these days.

Good luck with it and keep us posted on your progress. Be sure to shout if you need support or advise, as there are lots of great people on the forum and they are great at offering help and useful tips.

Hi Everyone!
Week Two, Day One. Feeling much better. I have lost 5.4 kg (12 #) and two inches around my waist. I took Sunday off from exercise, but most of the other days I got my cardio workout (just from walking) and my 10,000 steps. Several days my exercise burned more calories than I ate, which was amazing because I felt fine. Not too tired after the first couple days. I’m going to add in the resistance training this week. One thing we weren’t expecting was how much we love all the food we are eating. Food tastes better when you are hungry. 😀 Good luck to all. I hope you have a great week.

That is a trick I have recently learnt as well Granny, although I usually have a chai with cream, rather than coffee. Another option is a few nuts or a small cube of cheese, but I have to say I think the creamy hot drink is more satisfying.

Great advice TC, one thing i’ve found useful and feels luxurious……if youre feeling tempted mid morning and lunch seems a way off then have a coffee with cream, low carb and cals (surprisingly) but really helps fill the gap.

Hi Maharani

I had the same problem as Krysia – totally unworn suit currently sitting at home, a size too big, only bought it end of November. Bite the bullet!

Hi updating on my progress. Just finished second week
lost 7 pounds first week
lost 4 pounds last week
so far feeling pretty motivated.
Amazing to hear everyones stories the ups and downs. Lovely being part of the group.
anyone who has doen this longer did you ever get a red rash on skin because of eating so less carbs? woke up with a rash today. wondering if anyone has experienced it

Hi All, Happy Birthday Maharani Kitten. hope you have fun. I’m feeling good today, I have eaten too much but its all BSD friendly. ‘Im focused on my behavioral goals and I have managed to exercise for the last 3 days which is a first for me.It seems like every day I learn more about food and calories and carbs and just when I think that I have it mastered I over eat. fasting sugar is still too high but after today’s walk it was down.I lost.4 KG last week so its not much but at least its a start.I’m surprised to see all the new posts it seems like the secret is out and everyone is taking action.lets all keep it up, as we know it does work. cheers

Good advice topcac – thanks for the inspiration!

I’m inadvertently finding myself doing a 16/8 simultaneously, so having a late breakfast and not eating after 7pm whenever possible. I generally work from home so it’s easier to manage and get in the flow.

I agree, planning ahead works best to avoid a kneejerk panic when it comes to meals.

Definitely a lifestyle eating plan – and not a diet.

All the best,
Jacks

Hi Nettie58, I”m also in Perth, G’day, At first I just tried to follow the calories ,I use the S health app which comes with my samsung, Then, when I was not doing so well I started tracking the carbs.If I’m really disorganized I have 100gms of meat and a salad.Its not perfect but its better than eating a heap of carbs.what suburb are you at?would you like to get in touch?

Good luck blondebob

I started in September 2016 so, although I’m not as experienced as some on here, I do still remember my first week and because you don’t have the book yet some things may take you by surprise so here’s some tips I found useful:

Be kind to yourself in the first few days – the carb detox (also known as carb flu) will probably hit today or tomorrow. You may feel headachey, sick, dizzy, miserable and bad tempered. It’s perfectly normal and anyone who switches from burning carbs to burning fat will get it to a greater or lesser degree. It totally floored me at the end of day 1 and I had to take to my bed – having thrown up my dinner. I had the worst headache. This does not mean that this will happen to you LOL but just be warned that you may feel a bit off for a few days. Some ways to combat it are drink loads of water (for me this meant upwards of 3 litres – include tea and coffee in that) and to add salt to your food. Sounds weird but works 🙂 and rest and don’t be afraid to take a couple of painkillers either!

Plan plan plan – make sure you know what you are going to eat and shop for it – make sure, where possible, that you can rid your house of naughty stuff that may tempt you when you are feeling a little vulnerable in the first few days. If you do have the urge to snack make sure you have high fat/protein snacks like nuts around but remember that not all nuts are created equal – go for the lower carb ones like walnuts or macadamias

Don’t plan any exercise in the first few days – you may not feel up to it and you really don’t need the guilt! If you do feel OK, just have a walk.

Something that I also found useful was to try and wait as long as you can for breakfast. I now only eat in about an 8 hour window – so breakfast at 11, lunch at 3 and dinner around 7. It really helps the hunger pangs. Also, hot drinks suppress hunger pangs so if think you are hungry, have some tea!

Don’t just weigh yourself, also measure your body, especially chest, hips, tummy and thighs – later on in the diet, on those weeks that you may not lose as much, or anything, this will be a godsend because you will probably have lost inches – plus you can come on here and brag about it!

Lastly, if I’ve made it sound really crappy, I apologise but it is really only very temporary – by the end of week 1 you will feel fantastic! If you are really on it you should begin to see a difference on the scales in 3 days or so, so if you are lacking motivation just jump on and see what has happened.

That’s all I can think of for now – best of luck!
TC

Oh dear – those kinds of experiences don’t give you much confidence.
Lynn – I just tracked down your post about your colour day. It sounds fascinating. I have always fancied doing it but became doubtful of my local practitioner because she seemed to be adding a new business every week.
Not too sure about a great new start to the year (BSD wise) – I’ve been mostly good but there have been lapses! Nearly back to pre-xmas weight though and I’ve started running! I am surprised that it is rather enjoyable – who knew! Early days though – I’ve always been a bit skeptical about the benefits of high impact activity, but we’ll see. I have always enjoyed walking, especially long walks but I just don’t have the time in the winter. Re-reading the book for inspiration and ….carrying on!

Thank you granny for your reply, I really wasn’t about to jump ship. Honestly! Some fab losses coming through and I am hoping come weigh in Wednesday I will see a decent loss.
Wow people being advised by their doctor to do this too!!

Hi
I felt really washed out the other day but it passed. I agree with Mixnmatch – drink plenty of water to ease the headache.

Re the proteins – it is tricky for vegans. I find it hard to get enough protein (can’t get soya yoghurt and firm tofu until I get back to the UK next week) so I have been looking into this myself. I can make any number of sweet tasty recipes with silken tofu (which I can find over here ) but they all need sugar or maple syrup which I am now off obviously.. After advice on this thread, I tried using some silken tofu to boost my protein intake – have to admit it was awful. Today I came across a rare box of strawberries so tomorrow I might try them blended in to the rest of the silken tofu. Really I want to get away from desserts and sweet things all together so might just eat the strawberries on their own……

My husband’s favourite salad dressing is Goddess Dressing which I make from tofu so that’s an idea too. It certainly makes you think doing this plan as a vegan doesn’t it ?

Here’s a link to a page I came across which gives 25 sources of protein for vegans.
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/natural-health/vegan-sources-of-protein/
There’s a couple in there that were news to me – peas ??? I’d suggest you have a look at some of the recipes in the links on the webpage too – it’s a bit unwieldy but it made me think of other options and there are some interesting recipes like
MUSHROOM MUTTER MASALA: INDIAN MUSHROOM AND GREEN PEAS
and
MISO SOUP WITH GARLICKY LENTILS, KALE, AND MUSHROOMS.

I don’t know what you have tried with lentils ? I have friends who hate them (and beans) in any form. Personally I love them now – all colours and in many dishes but before I went vegan over 5 years ago I’d only really used them in my Mum’s chicken soup ! Lentil burgers go down well with non vegan/veggie friends, red lentil soup is a staple in the winter and one of my favourites for ease and taste is a casserole made using the large brown lentils cooked with onion, garlic, celery, carrots, tin of tomatoes, a little dried thyme, some hot smoked paprika and a little organic bouillon stock powder. It’s really tasty and warming.

Hope you feel better very soon.

Thanks SunnyB – I have a meal out this weekend too so looks like we will both be trying the ‘sensible’ route. I really thought that the last few pounds would be harder to shift but I lost fairly consistently thorough the whole 16 weeks that I was trying to lose. I put on a couple of times but there was always a reason and I firmly believe the reason I’m not there now is Christmas!! With that out of the way I’m sure we will both see further success

Onwards and downwards 😀

Hey TC – Well done on the 2lb drop whilst on maintenance. Will be good to have someone else on the final push – look forward to reading your posts along the way.

It is my birthday this Friday and we will be dining out, so I’m expecting a blip over the w/e, but I’m determined to keep it as sensible as possible.

Need to increase exercise levels, as this is always something I struggle with and know it’s a serious failing. Think shifting these last few pounds could depend on getting that sorted.

Good luck on hitting your final goal too.