I know how you feel Judith. Amazing to think we used to consider such things as rewards! Hope you got your cozzie sorted too, that’s the real reward!

Hi janet, gluten free flour is largely rice flour and small amounts of other carby flours.
It was the flours and sugar that did for me.

I know for sure now that starchy sugary foods do not suit me at all. I am bloated enough not to want to eat it again 🙁

That’s crazy about gluten free stuff, you’d expect it to be low carb but they aren’t! Every time I stand at the costa counter I check the back of the packs. There is literally NOTHING we can eat there! Ah well, hope you feel better soon Judith, I’m off to get some berries and your fave yoghurt!

Hi Peggy the team told Lynne it would be ok to stay on a bit longer. I think you will be fine for a few weeks longer than 8 weeks, you could always ask your GP after,say, 12 weeks 🙂

Tiptoes! Well done to you on weight loss and great advice 🙂

My dad was always keen on shanks’ pony – as long as it was us not him lol

Well, how many millions of steps to Iceland, bit extreme for the veg shop, it could be dead by the time you get back (joke)
Xxxx

So glad you are enjoying it Plumptious 🙂

Oh boy, fatblaster, do I agree with Janet re carbs! I spent literally hours searching for a swmming cozzie today. Got hungry, fell into costa and had a gluten free brownie. My stomach is so bloated and uncomfortable and I had a blood sugar crash 3 hours later.

Never again!!!

Hello Rise, thank you for your words of encouragement, Its so good to know we are not alone on this journey, especially as it can get tough at times.

Hi Izzypeach, we are here to welcome you when you are ready 🙂

Hi Fatblaster 11 pounds in a week and a half is amazing – I’d be very happy with that.

I too had my first piece of cake at weekend when visiting – it tasted too sweet and I left the icing. I truly didn’t really enjoy it, and it didn’t make me want more. I won’t bother next time.

Keep going because your tastes do change and it IS easier. I have changed so much in my eating and it’s not an effort now – apart from when out with others. I normally have no discipline/will power, so the fact I’m still here after 3.5 weeks is surprising to me.

Maybe you have got bored of the food you are eating on this regime. Have you tried new things lately? I just had some grated ginger and garlic fried, added shredded veg, topped with quorn mince already done, it was so tasty and quick. I don’t like cooking so just do simple things, and freeze extra if I can. Good luck!

Hi eureka,
Thank you , I have just subscribed, I didn’t know ther was a newsletter, will I find it interesting and inspiring? That is the question!
How are you doing, still losing weight, how much and how much to go yet?
Christine

This diary is inspiring, thank you for posting. I haven’t started the diet yet. I’m still in the planning stages but I’m hoping to start soon. Seeing Dr this week. This courgette sounds like something I need to seriously look into 😀

Hi bill 1954,
Way hay, way to go bill! I look forward to having pants that fall off because I have lost so much weight!
I have been on a plateau again, but now losing slowly again, so hopefully it won’t be long!
Christine

Hi Judith,
I’m terrible when I get anything new, I have to open it there and then, I’m so much worse than the kids at Christmas! I’m just a big kid really!
Christine

Well, I’ve tried a few things since starting the BSD. I never thought I’d be making my own hummus!
Never been one for plain yogurt but I am enjoying Tesco Finest Greek Yogurt.
I think chickpea/gram flour has been a good addition to my kitchen cupboard (I like the chickpea crackers – look under the Recipes section).

The jury is still out re coconut flour – I like the coconut flavour but it requires serious adjustment to recipes (extra liquid/eggs) to get a decent result. And I didn’t really like the whiff of coconut oil/milk when I tried making a Thai-style curry. Basically, I still think the Bounty Bar is the best thing you can make with coconut!! (Heresy on this website, I know.)

Hi fatblaster
In my humble opinion you are both right and wrong. Yes, staying away from sugar is very important for this diet but as Cherrianne says that is because sugar is very addictive. But if you can survive the first couple of weeks you should find that you no longer desire sugar in the same way and that means that no discipline is required at all, you simply won’t feel the same way about it. And if you do succumb, many people report, including myself, how ill they feel after eating carbs again.

So get that wheel back on your wagon, do your best to stay on track and you will find it gets easier very soon. All the best.

Hashimoto,
I just did my first meal using the Cuisique spiralizer. (which arrived yesterday late afternoon) I did courgetti, and stir fried it in a tiny bit of basil oil, a clove of garlic , a handful of spinach leaves, a few frozen basil leaves crumbled in and a good grind of black pepper….all cooked in less than four minutes….it was really yummy!
Can’t wait to try lots of other combinations of things.
I am really impressed with the machine, thanks for taking the trouble to recommend it on the threads.

Hello Forever the Optimist,
Sounds like you have hit the plateau that a LOT of people hit a few weeks in, in other words everything sounds normal. Just tough it out & carry on. Weight loss on some weeks will be slower than on others – guess it’s just the body readjusting. Don’t worry about it.
Best wishes, Rose

Hi Bill,
Your ears will be burning lol 🙂
We are going to have lots of fun next month. Dolphin cruise, long walks
(might be a bit puffed to do much talking there), visit to a nice curry place and some beach walks. I think Judith has a bike ride planned, and maybe some winery visits. One things for sure, she won’t be getting me in the ocean for a swim at this time of year! Bit too cold for me. 🙂
If you and your OH could brave the long trip over (stopover somewhere for retail therapy?), I’d be happy to show you around too.

Hi AmandaJ,
If you are still on insulin as well as metformin you should see your GP or diabetes nurse about a regime to reduce insulin as your blood sugars come down. You are wise to seek advice before starting as there seems to be some uncertainty about which type of diabetes you have.
In the book there is a link to info for health professionals. It might be an idea to print this off and take it with you to your appointment.
There are many instances on here of type 2 diabetics being able to come off insulin after a few weeks on the BSD. I only recall one type 1 diabetic considering doing the BSD but I don’t remember them posting anything further.
Good luck with this, keep in touch as your experience may help someone else facing a similar dilemma. 🙂

Thank you for your reply, I did lose weight for the first 3 weeks but have now stopped. I have pretty much eliminated carbs( I think) so I don’t think that’s the issue, I guess I just have to dig deep and carry on.

Hi Fatblaster,
Those weight loss results are very good, and a bonus improvement in your eczema! 🙂
There have been a few surprises for people having improvements in other medical conditions that you wouldn’t think had anything to do with weight loss.
The second week can be a bit tricky with weight loss stalling, and the carb cravings having a final fling. Week three will be better.
The problem with sugar is it leaves you wanting more. It is very addictive, but we are human and a slice of birthday cake isn’t the end of the world. Just hop back onto the wagon and start again. We’ve all fallen off once or twice and lived to tell the tale. 🙂

Anybody doing anything unusual this weekend with the bank holiday and all?
I am aiming for 20,000 X three days😳😳😳😳😳

Going to have a mooch in Iceland.
My new veg shop is 4 miles each way. So bike or shanks’ pony. (Walking)

Love Lucia
Xxxx

Do you know, even with a cold coming on, I am in a good mood.
The sun is shining here.
And someone has bought chips.
I can smell them. Ooohhhhhh they are yummy.
BUT
I don’t want to eat them

I feel the same way when I smell vinegar, my mouth goes moist, my pulse quickens, I enjoy the aroma, BUT I won’t want to eat them.

Love Lucia
Xxxx

Hi jillyb,
Please don’t be sad about your weight loss.
If you went to ww or sw you would only be expected to lose one pound a week. So that’s 4 pound and you have thrashed that with your 10.5 pounds.
You have got nearly all your health issues under control, so now you can focus on the weight.
Have you been walking, jumping into puddles, chasing after rainbows, that you may never find again,
🎶🎶🎶🎶life is much to beautiful 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶 to live it all alone, 🎶🎶🎶🎶and oh I wish I had someone 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶 to call my very own, I’m just a day dreamer 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶
Sorry, I just morphed into David Cassidy 😀

So where were we, oh yes, strut your stuff , shake your booty. Enjoy your weight loss.
Love Lucia xxxx

Hi forever the optimist,
Are you noticing any other changes, such as looser clothing or more energy/ sleeping better etc?
It is a bit unusual not to have lost any weight at all in four weeks, but there are at least two people I can recall who have had a similar experience. It’s very disappointing for you, but don’t despair. On 800 calories a day you will lose weight.
Make sure you are drinking plenty of fluid, 2-3 l per day and eating a decent amount of healthy fats. These really help with weight loss. Also make sure your foods are low carb, not just low calorie.
Stay in touch, and let us know how you get on.

take heart, I have been a binge eater all my life and had several diets. I,m on my 7th week and have lost 22lbs. 4stone left to go. Take each day as a fresh start and don,t get discouraged- you can do it

Hi! I am finding this second week difficult to stick too. I had a wobble today, as it is my partner’s birthday, and had a piece of cake, full of sugar 356 calories, and it’s taken me to 1000. Also, had a really grim day at work yesterday and that’s definitely made it harder.

Am I right that eating sugar is as bad as the calories in terms of weight loss?

This whole diet is about discipline, and I can be flaky. Down from 13.12 to 13.1 in 1.5 weeks, but desparate to get down to a healthy BMI. Also, my eczema is so much better.

Hi Tofa,
I had to google pre cooked wheat berries but came up with one brand that showed 62g total carb per serve, less the fibre (20g), so 42g carb for 1/2 cup, and that one didn’t have glucose and sugars added.
That is quite a few carbs, even if you ate 1/2 that, then you need to add in your 1/2 an apple and seeds.
You appear to have unknowingly eaten a fairly high carb meal.
This is where you need to be very careful with pre- prepared foods and make sure you read the nutritional info panel ( does help if you have your glasses lol!). Captain Lynne and others have found meat with a sugar glaze, and fish with added sugar. Those food manufacturers have a lot to answer for. It really is a minefield for diabetics.
It does seem as though you are quite sensitive to carbs given your high reading after lunch. Even with a low calorie count, some things are just to high in carbs to safely eat. You may need to keep an eye on that as well as calories.
The key thing for me getting my blood sugars down was to keep my carbs to around 50g per day. This worked really well and I got them into the non diabetic range. I used an app and entered all my food into it to help me keep track. More than three months after starting the BSD I’m still doing that but have increased my carbs with no increase in my blood sugars. It definitely helps to teach you which foods are ok to eat regularly, and which foods to have occasionally with low carb meals for the rest of the day.
As far as when to test, like you I had my snack around 10 pm and tested before it. You only need around 20g cheese/150ml milk or couple of tablespoons of plain yoghurt.
Then I would take my morning fasting blood sugar around 7-7.30am.
Like Bill, I found my pre and post meal readings settled into the normal range before my fasting ones did. Once the fasting readings stayed down I was able to drop the night time snack without affecting them.
Good luck with this, keep posting because many of us have been where you are now and can help. 🙂

Thank you all for being so lovely!

Day 1 was surprisingly ok, although I don’t think I’ve ever drunk 4 litres of water in a single day before! Today has been a little harder but that’s because the children still have Easter eggs lying about and I’ve been tempted (I did actually unwrap one and sniff it at one point, but I haven’t eaten anything I shouldn’t have). I think one day at a time is probably the key for me – once I start seeing weight loss that will help too.

Lucyjane – I’ve actually done something similar but I made a pan of tomato, lentil and bacon soup.

Hawks – you sound exactly like me! The way you describe your eating (comfort, habit, texture, taste, wanting not needing etc) is just how I would describe mine and your post is very encouraging, thank you. I’ve also noticed just *how* often I think about food and it’s really shocked me. 24.5kg is amazing, well done!

hashimoto – I’ll have a look, thanks. Is it safe to restrict yourself to 800 calories for so long?

Hi, looked at the packet of pre-prepared barley most closely, this time with my glasses on ….they were wheat berries with glucose syrup and sugar amongst the herbs and spices, but presumably in tiny quantities as did not taste sweet? Sorry I must appear so dense, but it still seems a remarkably high reading? Tofa

Hi all, after my 12 hour fasting glucose of 8.3 and all your helpful responses, I have now done a glucose test two hours after lunch of fried egg, mushroom and cooked tablespoon ish of barley (heaped), half an apple and bit of red pepper nuts and seeds. Reading at 4 oclock is 11.8. !! I understand from reading threads that normal is under 8.5 for type 2 and under 7.8 for non-diabetics. Is this still aberration? I am hungry and waited 2 hours without having a snack to get a clear reading….what is going on? If tomorrow’s readings are high after nightime snack (please advise if I have supper by 7 and snack at 10. what time should I test in the morning?) what should I do….???? Rather freaked out!! Tofa (PS If I test before bedtime, should that be before or after snack of yogurt/cheese?)

Hello everyone.
I don’t actually qualify in the true sense as having been on the 800 calories a day for 8 weeks, but I feel that this is probably where I belong. I started very low eating carb about 13 years ago with the original ‘Caveman Diet’. It was very successful and very easy. This was followed by ‘Lighter Life’ (3 stones lost in 11 weeks) and then good success with 5:2.

Each time I have lost quite a lot of weight and then regained it when life took over (although I have kept some off from the 5:2 regime).

Fortunately although quite overweight, I do not yet have a problem with my blood sugars but I am a Coeliac, have low thyroid and no longer have a gall bladder and as such, I suspect I may have some autoimmune problems

The positive aspect of my previous dieting in this way is that as soon as I cut back dramatically on calories, I no longer get the carb withdrawals that seem to appear at the beginning of this type of diet. My body seems to recognise the regime immediately and I am able to fast without any hunger pangs for more than 16 hours at a time. This I hope will be good news for those of you who are worried about going off on summer holidays and taking a break from the strict rules.

I believe that carb restriction will have to be for the long haul for me and perhaps many of you.

Use CAUTION doing a low calorie / fasting diet & DISCUSS WITH DOCTOR if any of the following apply:
◦On insulin – detailed assessment & education by health professional to plan a suitable reduction in medication/insulin to avoid a drop in blood sugar.
◦Type 1 diabetics

Thanks for your reply – it actually says use caution.

I was hoping for advice from anyone who may be in the same situation? Possibly unlikely but you never know!

AmandaJ

Wow you have done so well! Hope all goes smoothly on change to 5:2.
I tried that first, but carb cravings got in the way. Interestingly not a problem on the BSD – go figure. I still have a way to go before I get down to my desired weight, though am happy to see improvements in my health – and can’t wait to get those pesky blood sugar levels under control. Am not weighing myself regularly at present but definitely feeling the changes. Good luck. Imogen

Oh dear
my teachers at school could as well 🙁
I can just imagine the conversation between you and Cheryl next month 😮

Hi Imogen, after the last few weeks, and now low BMI of 21-22 , I am thinking of moving over to 5:2 as the weight has just fallen off and people remarking on how “slim” I look, code for haggard in my case! I haven’t been absolutely religous about the calorie count but have been about the food types and just small amounts of low GI carbs. I am suprised at how much fruit is permissable but that has been great. So I will continue with recommended ingredients but try to remember to eat larger amounts 5xpw!! I suspect will continue to fall off! At present hanging onto porridge (as have high cholesterol) but if no improvement in blood sugars will have just milled seeds, yogurt and fruit! CheersTofa

Oh but I can Bill 😉

Hi syb, if you have a pan which can go on the hob and under the grill/in the oven a fritatta is perfect:

Fry some onion, pepper, garlic (veg of your own choice ).
When it is soft stir in a goid handful of rocket
Then add beaten eggs, quick stir
When half cooked place under grill to cook the top

Simples! And fast! 🙂

Has anyone else found they are not shifting weight after a good initial couple of weeks? I am in week 4 but nothing is now coming off, I am sticking to the 800 calories or less, I know it’s better than gaining but if I have to stay at 800 or fewer calories to stay the same I am worried about how I will manage long term.

Thanks for the suggestion Nathalie, just saw it was your idea!

Hi Jussi55, there certainly are a few of us and I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more who just don’t post as they feel, as I occasionally did, like they’ve failed in some way. I just read a post by someone, sorry can’t check the name, who suggested looking up what a pound of fat looks like. So, I googled it and just watched a YouTube video of 1lb and 5lb, wow it’s a huge amount of blubber! Makes me feel like I haven’t only lost 8lbs, I’ve actually lost eight whole pounds – fabulous! Jx

I have the Potters Cleansing Herb Tablets. On the side it says not suitable for diabetics (and many other conditions). I don’t know about the tea.

The advice on the website is very clear that this diet is NOT suitable for Type 1 diabetics. See the FAQ above. Until this is resolved it would not seem sensible.

I can relate to the clothes not fitting posts.
That’s me 3 stones down. I currently wear a jacket to work that now looks like my big brothers 😀, two months ago I couldn’t fasten it with no chance of zipping it up.
I was 18lb down before my clothes began to feel loose, but that was because I used to fasten my clothes using a rachet strap (just kidding).

Silver I was talked into trying something sweet at Easter and although I could taste a flavour, I couldn’t identify it as being sugary or even sweet, it was just, well, a taste.

Brilliant and encouraging replies!
I wonder have any of you eaten sugar – like a piece of chocolate post the 8 week?
How did it taste – did you enjoy it?

I love your musings chongolo. I am reading as many posts as I can in order to distract myself…gave up on the ironing! Like you I am determined, not sure how many kilos I need to lose to move into overweight bit I suspect it would be twent five + kilos. I should check it out. At the moment I am planning to get through this eating approach day by day. Day three and I miss my carbs…interestingly not my wine so that is a good thing! One habit at least being changed.

Hi All
I have just joined the BSD site and need some advice! I was ‘diagnosed’ with Type 1 diabetes back in December 2014 and whacked on Insulin before I could say ‘blood sugar’! I have now just been to see the consultant this week to be told he is not sure if I am Type 1 or Type 2 and has stuck me on Metformin (one tablet a day). I had a really rough time medically in 2014, and huge amounts of stress and trauma. My doctor has put my diabetes diagnosis down to everything I was going through at the time.
So my question is do I start the 800 calorie diet for 8 weeks or not?
I am 5′ 7″, 79kgs with a BMI of 27 – so not obese by any stretch….. but confused about whether I should think about the 800?
Would love to hear any views/advice on this!

Many thanks