Great news MaryMoo – keep it up!

Hello again Jacanne,

The caution with veg is making sure you don’t eat too much of anything that grows in the ground as they tend to have a much higher carb content than other veg. So think leafy green, cauliflower, broccoli etc rather than carrots, swede, parsnips and so on.

Hi all
I’ve been sooooooo good! 4 days almost down and I haven’t had my usual glass of wine while cooking dinner, or run into the bakery for a quick fix when hungry during the day, or wasted my calories on a flat white coffee or eaten all my birthday chocolates I’ve hidden at the back of the cupboard!!! I am weighing myself every morning and it’s looking good.
I find that snacky stuff & wine my biggest downfall. I’ve had 2 pots of tea instead of my usual flat white coffees in cafes this week. I’m probably also making more cups of tea at home than usual but that’s all Ok. I also enjoy a “herbal ” tea at night. I love the Licorice one but have a bit of a collection to choose from as my evening “treat”.
I count my calories but don’t stress about counting carbs too. I just follow the BSD guidelines rather than making it any more complicated. Im enjoying the low carb food and love looking at new recipe ideas to try……so many 200 calorie low carb meal ideas out there in cyberspace!

Have fun with it everyone!

We appear to be a pretty busy bunch – with such disparate things to keep us happy. It’s lovely to see – from opening a new bank account (one of those things that can niggle away at the bottom of a to-do list for far too long), to rediscovering the joy of (in my case LOUD) music and a wiggle, to simply enjoying the weather.

Apparently, we Brits, have the biggest mood lift in the world on a sunny day …

Positives for yesterday:

1. Did the run thing again … first 15 mins still more of a forward stumble, but then a more natural jogging feeling kicks in. That’s 8 runs now. Hoorah.

2. A cake I’d baked – with a lot of love and care – was very well received at the elderly residential home (daughter’s school volunteering). Lovely to hear that the extra effort was appreciated to make an old classic Victoria Sponge extra light and springy.

3. Hearing my 13 year old daughter’s tales of visiting in the residential care home – it’s for people with varying degrees of dementia. She loved their stories, and was tickled by some of their eccentricities, and memory lapses – but in a very lovely, genuine fashion. I love how her kindness and caring nature are reflected in being able to take people at face value, even when they are suffering from something so many of us are afraid of. Her friend has a ‘lovely pair of legs’, ‘no point talking to her, she’s deaf; I just sit here to keep her company’, ‘I was born in the house opposite yours 86 years ago’, It’s heartwarming and uplifting to think that these ‘cool’ teenagers would happily pop in every week to share stories, home-baking and a sing-song.

Pouring with rain here today – so very reluctant to take the very fluffy dog for a walk. But it’s gotta be done, I s’pose.

Dear Yowzer49
I have uploaded the mynetdiary app and I can work out most things. What it doesn’t record is carbs. How do I do that please. Thanks.

Hi Antigone
Your stats yesterday were super – it is funny how we sometimes feel thinner but the weight loss doesn’t show up on the scales until later.

I teach pilates – a lot of it is rehab stuff. When I first trained in London – nearly 20 years ago – one of my teachers (an ex ballet dancer) said to me that she didn’t know why I was training because I was so fat I would never get anyone to come to my classes. On the train home I was so upset – the course was superb but very expensive and I absolutely loved it. I phoned my daughter and she told me to ignore it and carry on. I avoided that teacher and only sought advice from the kinder teachers (and actually none of the other teachers ever mentioned my weight). She was absolutely wrong as my weight never affected my classes and I am still going strong after all those years.

But the weight is an issue now because the diabetic complications were threatening my classes. If I can’t drive I can’t run them. So the BSD had to work for me – this is my last chance. I want to stay healthy and continue doing what I love. The problem with my voice is that I talk a lot (probably too much) as I explain how to do stuff. So a sore throat always ends up with me losing my voice because I don’t take enough time off to recover.

I also had headaches on and off for the first three days, I think it was sugar withdrawal in my case! I’m on day four and fine now.

Baristagirls, are we secretly twins??! 😉 Peanut butter is the BEST! I love it. I’ve also found a peanut and coconut butter which is nice but not sure of the consistency yet. Always has to be crunchy PB, never smooth! Definitely something to look forward to… *puts head on desk and dreams of PB*

Thank you Antigone

Joined Bootcamp last week, which is really good fun. Hopefully this will help with my weight loss and toning. As you say, its best not to get hooked up on weight loss as the over all benefits out weigh that. I am still craving sugar, but I have not yet given in to it. Congratulations on reaching week 9 – you are now a pro at this. Thanks for your support.

Good luck on the scales Jacanne. But keep going whatever they say – you’ll be so glad you did. I’m on my week 9 this week and I am feeling really confident about being in control after completing my first 8 weeks. I had ups and down and sticking points etc but it’s taught me so much about which foods I actually need – you’ll tweak as you go and figure out what works for you. I have no sugar cravings at all anymore – don’t even think about it. If you are feeling discouraged just go and try on some clothes and that will cheer you up!

Day Four completed! 795 cal, 35g carbs. I’m so amazed with myself I hardly know what to think! Four days!

And btw my dinner tonight had a tin of tomatoes in it (not all in my serve) and I’m still only 35g carbs for the day. It all depends what you want to spend your carbs on, I suppose. I haven’t been having any pulses or beans etc, just lots of veges.

Hi abbv213, of course you are welcome!

Found out times for tomorrow’s day surgery (uterine fibroids removal), I have to fast from 7am for op at 1:30pm! Hmmm, I usually get up at 7:30 but that would mean missing breakfast and lunch! Don’t think I could cope with that. I’ll have to get up early so I can have breakfast, and only miss lunch. The only other time I’ve had general anaesthetic I felt quite sick afterwards, so I don’t know if I’ll be having dinner either! We’ll see.

Looks like today is a bit of a brain fog day for some of us – is it a full moon yet?
Verano and Greenjanet – good job yesterday 🙂
Krysia – hope you feel better soon. What classes do you run (singing would be difficult lol)
My stats for yesterday
Cals:786
Carbs:22
Walking, gardening, riding all day yesterday too.
Feeling virtuous but no loss on the scales this morning – think it’s payback for my week off! A funny thing, which some of you may have found, when the scales stall (like now) I tend to FEEL thinner than when they are showing a loss – bit strange. Right, off to muck out the stables and go for a ride 🙂
Sort yourselves out ladies 🙂

Hi Frog – Verano could be right about a warmer quilt helping you sleep – I have slept much better since we put on the warmer quilt. It feels so cosy.

I got out my water proof and windproof winter jacket yesterday. It is too big but looks fine because it drapes nicely over my shoulders and doesn’t stick out past my shoulders like my leather coat. Last year if I put a fleece on as well it was so difficult to do up and really uncomfortable – but yesterday I put on a thick fleece on underneath and it was so comfortable. I could even put on another fleece as well – so I am all sorted if we have a very cold winter.

Verano – I am getting my charts ready for my diabetes doctor appointment and it is really interesting looking at how I progressed from meds to no meds. It wasn’t a slow gentle curve towards coming off the insulin. It was literally one week I was on full dose of insulin with rubbish fasting numbers and mealtime spikes. Then over just 3 or 4 days I was off all insulin with fantastic fasting numbers and no mealtime spikes at all. I know everyone is different but for me it was like there was a tipping point where before it my pancreas and liver were not working properly and then there was a certain point where enough visceral fat had drained from them so they were able to work – and I dramatically was able to stop all insulin.

Dear Snoop

Thanks for your message. I have definitely seen a change in my clothes and how they look. To loose weight is great, but I have also found that my head is less fuzzy, I am sleeping a lot better (actually slept the whole night last night, first time in around 10 years), feeling less sluggish, more positive about things, not quite so hormonal, which is not easy being a women and hitting 50. All in all, this diet is making me feel generally a lot better and more positive about this. Yipeeeeeeeeeee.

I think I will look into the 50g carb and monitor my portions a little more. Have new batteries for my scales so I might surprise myself tonight as I haven’t weighed in for around 4 days. x

Dear Yowzer49
Thank you for your very helpful message. I will look into the mynetdiary app today. When you say, keep an eye on the veg too, can you explain. I tend to eat quite a lot of raw veg with a small amount of humus. Perhaps I need to rethink this?

Love my fruit, so I am finding this harder to give up them cakes, sweets, etc. Quite sad to think that an apple is a treat! Heyho – onwards and upwards.

I used to get horrible headaches on the 5:2 diet, which made me quit. So far on the BSD I only had a headache on day 1, but been fine since. It has never been down to not drinking enough water, but I’m still not sure what caused them. Good luck, hopefully they’ll ease up when your body adjusts.

I started just yesterday – 12th October – so two days later than all of you but hoping that you’ll accept me for some support 🙂

Hi everyone.

Congratulations Imp 😃💐

I’d been overweight for so long I had saved no smaller clothes. If I had they’d probably have been more suitable for a museum than for me to wear😱

It took a long while for people to comment on my weight loss (probably around 3 stone loss). Even then they were reluctant because they wondered if I was ill. The usual opening comment was “are you ok?” Now it’s, “don’t lose any more weight”!

As Imp says – it does work 😃 As slimming club leaders over the years have said “the plan works, if you work the plan”. For me, I followed the plan, and it worked. Is still working. It’s now a way of life.

Best wishes to everyone on your BSD journey.

Hi Lottie

I also have fibromyalgia, among other medical conditions. I was also type 2 diabetic.

Since starting the BSD on 19th December I’ve learned st 7 stone (98 pounds) putting me in my healthy BMI for the first time in many decades.

At the age of 66, with various health issues, I now feel much better than in many years. Aches and pains have decreased, energy levels higher, thinking more clearly and better concentration.

If you check out my profile and/or my old posts you’ll see my BSD journey as it happened. Any questions please ask.

Best wishes for your BSD journey.

Yep, Lesley P, 16g for tinned toms isn’t bad. I’ve just got used to avoiding them even on low carb maintenance as an easy way of saving a few carbs here and there. Intend to ‘go for it’ on the low carb front for the first 8 weeks to get into new habits for later.
Day 4, and I’m down 4 lbs ( I know it’s mostly water) and FBS this morning is 4.8. whoop, whoop!! It works!
How often are people weighing?

Hi everyone
Haven’t been on for a while as crazy busy with work – but still managing to stick to the plan. To be honest it’s just life now and I don’t have to think about it much any more 🙂
I’m in my 12th week now and have lost steadily rather than quickly and have just reached the 1.5stone lost milestone and happily at 11st11.
Nobody has noticed for me either though, well they haven’t commented anyway! Still got about the same to go to get to my maintenance weight but at least now I’ve got more clothes that fit me (I refused to buy bigger ones so had a very limited wardrobe of one pair of jeans (thank goodness it was the summer hols!).
Well done to all you fellow losers, it’s satisfying isn’t it 🙂 I used to get frustrated when the scales didn’t move but the key is to measure as that’s where you things that you didn’t realise were happening!
Just keep the faith, it does work (even for me and I’m a heathen that doesn’t strictly count calories 😳) – as the ever-inspirational Captain Lynne would say: Keep on keeping on!
Love to you all,
L xx

Verano – that was a really good day yesterday. I agree about the guesstimates not being very accurate. I weigh everything also.

Yesterday a good day also 27 carbs and 812 calories. Weight the same as Tuesday – but that’s ok as I lost so much over the last two weeks and I am off work with a virus so not been very active and keeping active is very important for my weight loss. Voice has come back a tiny bit today – it was impossible yesterday as I could only croak. The sensible thing is to cancel classes on Friday and Saturday so my voice can fully recover. For once I will do the sensible thing.

Morning everyone, just love catching up with how everyones coping with all the BSD throws at us! Dony worry Shalimar, sure it will happen to us all at some point, todays a new day💃🏻. Feeling ‘lighter’ at the start of day 4 but nervous bout my first weigh tomorrow😳. Cant believe i dudnt think to google ‘low carb veg!’ 😂, thanks for the tip. Good luck today everyone, we can do it! I’ve never been this motivated before so thanks for all your support 👏

Are you drinking enough fluid ? A glass of water can sometimes help,in the first couple of weeks I had frequent headaches and ocular migraines ..thankfully they have disappeared.

You’re just going to sleep as I’m thinking about getting up!! Maybe you should try going to bed early. I usually go about 10pm and am asleep by 10.30 … sad!!!! But then I’m awake by 6 at the latest! I’m definitely a morning person.

Maybe a warm drink and a warmer duvet could do the trick!

and I was so unawake that I’d addressed you as Hello Yowzer! – and misread that you’d eaten out last night.
I didn’t get to sleep til after 5am. go back to sleep maybe!
second night that’s happened – time to change to a heavier duvet maybe

Oh thanks happy girl I’ll give that a try as yes still nothing! 😳My stomach is starting to look very swollen but I’m always on loo cause of extra water. Including at night. Hubby says if I was a bloke he’d start worrying about my prostate! Lol. I couldn’t get any physillium husks as needed to order on line so hopefully get them today. Epsom salts haven’t worked either! So I’ll stop off for some kiwi on way out today. More the merrier! Lol then hopefully the weight will start falling. Have a great day guys

I knew this was going to be a bad day when my computer shut down just after I had typed my first message this morning!

Hi Frog mistook you for Yowzer! Anyway answer to trout issue above!!!

Think it might be time to get back into bed and out the other side!!!

Hi Yowzer …. no …. had the trout at home!!

Ethiopian recipes they sound interesting. Any you want to share?

Hi Jan glad you found us and are back on track!

Forgot to take my Metformin yesterday and have just done my b/s 7.1 Bit disappointing because I’ve been just above and below 6 the last week or so. I know fasting sugars aren’t the best measure but I was hoping to have a good Hba1c result but maybe I’m expecting too much too quickly!

Hi, requested to join FB group too x

Morning Yowzer
haven’t worked out yesterdays food – I have to log all of the Ethiopian recipes then guesstimate how much I had of each of them. all v healthyish though!

found really nice collection of low carb soup recipes on this site
http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/2013/10/10-best-low-carb-soup-recipes-fall.html

amused by the trout – did you take your scales to the restaurant?

DAY 3 of 7

Yesterday
Calories 650
Carbs 25.8g
Weight loss 0.4lbs
Added a little extra …. exercises with light weights…few aches this morning!!

Well, yesterday I managed to lose 150 of the excess 510 calories I had on Tuesday!! I had a small loss but my target for this week and next is 1kg a week. just 1.8lbs to go this week I’m sure I can manage that if I stick to the plan!

Had two revelations. Although you probably know this one! I put courgetti into chicken broth and it was lovely. Just added 50g of courgetti to the soup and microwaved. It gave the soup substance and for very few calories and carbs it was a substantial lunch.! I’m going to try to make Thai Tom Yum soup this week so will let you know. I think it will be more tasty Pho but we’ll see.

Secondly, I had trout last night. Weighed 320g with head etc, on so I calculated it would be 225g when cooked. I took it off the bone and weighed it and there was only 125g. Shows how important it is to keep weighing our guestimates may not always be up to scratch!!

Hope you all had a good day yesterday. Have a good one today!

Am finding it hard to stay on the straight and narrow. OH has joined me but isn’t being very strict. So I’m lapsing more. He’s doing his best, but I need to do better.

Today’s weight: 83.5
Change: +0.1
Yesterday’s food:
1083 calories
90 net carbs

Thanks Shalimar, Natalie and Fabmand. Nice to see how you are following it,
I am around 800 cals and lo carb, will probably save the 50g rule for if (when) I hit a plateau. I do exercise quite a lot ( who says “healthy” girls can’t be fit?) so those days I wouldn’t go 50g.
Don’t worry Shalimar……today is a brand new day and yesterday is gone. These things happen and I’m sure it’s on the cards for us all at some point.
I don’t think 16g per can of tomatoes is too bad when it’s absorbed into a recipe, and they are so nice.
Have a good day everyone.
X

Good morning all. Your posts continue to inspire me.

My scales tell me that I’m ‘up’ 300g overnight. A bit frustrating seeing as this is the same 300g I keep losing and gaining over the last few days since Springrollgate, but am not demotivated. I did go a tiny bit over the calories and carb count yesterday (800 kcal seemed fine at the beginning and but has gotten harder not easier) so I have today mentally recommitted to three days of super SUPER strict plan adherence in the hope/expectation it will kickstart the downwards trend again. I also know that I have been over my recommended sodium count in the last few days so it’s possible some of this is water retention too. I need to move a lot more too.

The weight was coming off when I stuck firmly to the plan and is now not since I have not been. I can ‘do the math’ 🙂 And I am definitely decreasing around the tummy which is fabulous. For a mostly non-drinking female I had one helluva beer gut!!

Have a good day everyone: I will be on the road in the desert for much of it. (I suppose it will be keep me away from the fridge, lol)

I have 2 cans of tomatoes to use up … but i should write that down for later. THANKS 🙂

Thank you, Keid! Hope you enjoy it there!

Also, tip re using tomatoes for sauces- tinned tomatoes are pretty carby, but bouillon powder, water and tomato purée less so, and makes tasty Ragu or chilli with lots of uses, MKx

Amazing results, this has really motivated me here on day 3, week 1.
By Christmas I could be 29lbs lighter. 29 lbs!!
Powerful, powerful motivation to stay on track.
Thank you.

Hi AstridR,
Some suggestions without knowing your children’s likes/dislikes: Carrot sticks/celery sticks with or without hommus or cream cheese.
Berries when in season.
I know that here most primary schools are nut free due to littlies with allergies, but nuts would be ideal. Seeds? A mixture of pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. ? boiled eggs (perfect the eggshell is their own package).
You may find some ideas on various websites eg ditch the carbs/diet doctor.
Maybe if forum members contribute their suggestions here before you know it you’ll have heaps of ideas.
Good luck.

Maharani kitten 🙂 …. Congratulations. I will help you polish your halo!! I’m so glad you are feeling wonderful and light. HUGS

Hello again!
Big test for me last couple of days as I’ve been away on business, not ideal this early in the plan.
However *polishes halo* I helped myself by choosing a hotel with no restaurant (hence no temptation) and chose breakfast and dinner from a local supermarket instead. Berries and yoghurt, salmon and pre-packed salad.
Lunch was a buffet at host organisation with chicken, cheese, ham salad sandwich options so I ate the fillings only and a few grapes.
I remembered a tip from last time I was on the low carb 8 week induction that I’ll use next time, which is to tell your hosts that you need a gluten free lunch – usually results in a salad while others get bread.
One slight wobble on train home when out of complete habit I asked for a biscuit with my coffee! Put it straight in my bag out of sight and handed over to husband for his coffee time treat tomorrow.
I see people here are struggling a bit with the counter-intuitiveness (is that a word?) of this way of eating, and it is hard to understand sugariness of some veg and most fruit, and things like avoiding milk and embracing cream, avoiding ‘diet’ versions of anything – fat is usually replaced with carbs in such products. Google low carb veg lists and just choose from there, rather than checking out your faves and trying to make them fit, is my advice. Plenty of choice!
Anyway…. Three days in and I just feel …. Lighter . In spirit, and sort of digestively, iykwim. Fasting bloods have been awesome – under 5 every day this week which is fab for me – usually 6.8 to 7 (medicated), and post main meal have been 9 – also good, usually 13.
Plan to weigh tmro morning but won’t be derailed whatever the outcome!
Plan for day 4 is

B 2 slices bacon, half a tomato
L Feta and cucumber salad
S. Celery sticks and home made mackerel pate (lots of celery, 1tbsp pate)
D small piece of lean chicken, cauliflower roasted with cumin,and tiny bit of olive oil

Exercise will be a 20 minute brisk walk and if I get time, a swim or if busy, my ‘lean in 15’ quick workout .

Happy Thursday everyone – halfway through the first week of the rest of our lives!

I just want to wish you good luck. Perhaps someone here is in a similar situation health-wise that might have some tips. The first week can be rough … people generally advise drinking lots of water to ward off hunger pangs and constipation.

Ooops …. i fell over the cliff!! I finished the other half of my Boston Pizza salad … and then i couldn’t resist trying a new brand of yogurt!! And i was going to go for my tests tomorrow. I may wait until Friday!!
Didn’t exercise either. I’m pissed off with myself!! Will try and do better tomorrow!!

Trelawny fingers crossed for your Friday weigh-in! Tattiescone interesting way to reset, but whatever works I guess! Do you think your tummy objected to you going off-plan?

Yay!

Welcome FabMand! The more the merrier.

I popped into the supermarket on my walk to buy more vegetables, I bought an enormous amount on Monday but apparently it wasn’t enough to last a whole week! The person in front of me at the checkout had a jawdroppingly “perfect” collection of food. Brown rice (instant), gluten-free pizza bases, coconut flakes, kale, low-fat yogurt, protein bars, low-fat cream… (yes I stared a bit). All that stuff we are told to eat. And nearly everything processed. I was smugly looking at my collection of fresh vegetables and wishing I could tell her she’s got it all wrong, but then I looked at her. Thin and fit! Could wear yoga pants in public and look good! Can you imagine a fat lady telling her she’s the one making bad food choices? Lol. She was young though, I hope for her sake (and everyone else’s) they change the official rules soon on what we should eat.

End of week 1 weigh in….. drumroll please…….
***2.8kg/6lbs***!!!! 😮🙃😝😄

Just ecstatic!!! Been dancing around the room. And how am I going to celebrate?!! I don’t know, but it’s gotta be good. Be back later, too delirious to make coherent sentences!!! Can’t believe the scale is actually going DOWN!!!!

Finally had my week 1 weigh in and was nervous. Had a few days when I dawdled over my limit with little extras and there was that one night (that I will refer to as wine-gate#1, There’s gonna be more…) But despite my slip-ups I was happy to see I had lost 2.8kg (6lbs in the old money) and my body fat percentage was down by almost 2% since earlier this month!
Deliriously Happy!! Congrats too, to @happygirl for your awesome day 12 loss. I bet that made up for all the earlier frustrations. I get the whole being discreet about doing BSD. Science has shown that telling too many people about a goal makes it less likely that it will be achieved because talking about it stimulates satisfied chemicals that interrupt your motivation for action. I’m glad I have this forum, though so I can celebrate ups and seek support for downs with someone.
So @Miranda- don’t worry about your wine incident, just make a u-turn straight away and you’ll still be fine. I’m living proof.
@wendy1947 – that zucchini carbonara with yoghurt instead of cream sounds awesome, I’m making a note of that!
@carb_addict – New business, big move, brave love life decisions, THAT’S A LOT OF CHANGE! I’m amazed you even remember your own name, much less have the energy and resolve for BSD. I’m so impressed and inspired.
@healthyh – hope you feel happier soon, tired and grumpy isn’t fun. My cure for that is to listen to good New Orleans funk, or if the sun is shining I pull weeds out of my garden. I bet if you think about it you’ll know your own fix.
@fairyface – I’m impressed with your forethought and careful planning. I’m going away for a big work road trip at the beginning of week 3. I’m going to eagerly follow your progress. Any tips will be helpful. I will have some access to cooking facilities but not always. But I have an awesome car powered fridge that I intend to take advantage of.
@missziggy – Yay for more energy and enthusiasm for other areas of life! Enjoy that glass of wine on fri night, but get someone to hide the bottle when you are done 😉 I might have one too!