Hi Type 2
You have been very unfortunate indeed. Sorry to hear that & hope you are much improved now?

It does say in the BSD book, page 116, to read the book all the way through to the end, before you start.
TALK TO YOUR DR. “If you are on medication it is particularly important to have their buy-in as they should be involved in monitoring & tapering off your medicines”. Page 117

Caution – discuss with your doctor if any of the following apply:
You are on insulin or a diabetic medication other than metformin – you may need to plan how you reduce your medication to avoid too fast a drop in blood sugar. Page 117

All of the cautions should be read & understood before embarking on this diet.

If you observed all that was advised, you are indeed unlucky to have suffered in this way. Your posting will act as a suitable caution to everyone, so thanks for that

I have some mild retinopathy & read the caution re that. My then GP did not want to know at all about my starting this diet, 12 weeks ago. ” Eat potatoes & DON’T test” was my GP’s advice on diagnosing me 3 years ago!

I am Type 2 Diabetic on Metformin. I decided, taking full responsibility for myself, that I would try this diet to see if I could reverse my Diabetes. The prospect of that outweighed any reservations I had. Also I trained as a nurse ( 47 years ago) so knew I had to be vigilant whilst on this diet.

I do hope you are well. I also hope your GP & nurse can & will learn from your unfortunate experience re the 8-week blood sugar diet.
We need all medics to be fully informed & on board with our efforts & this ground breaking diabetic diet. We need to change the treatment of Type 2 Diabetics & give everyone hope & a chance to reverse this deadly disease
My best wishes to you
Eureka

The squash soup could be ok but it depends what else you add. I like to add onions and either lentils or beans and that soon adds up to a moderate amount of carbs.

There is a nice soup here on the recipe thread I made yesterday which was nice cauliflower and canelini beans, it was lovely. I’m on the look out for other low carb recipes too as I like soup 🙂 so I’ll be watching your thread to see what ideas others have.

I also made this once http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/14460/just-lentil-soup.aspx?o_is=SR and it was reasonably low in carbs and tasty.

The secret seems to be if you are using something higher carb like the squash, is to not add lots of other higher carb ingredients. Different squashes have different carb properties as well so it could be worth looking for a different squash to try as well. I’m also going to play with adding meat to my soup, like chunks of chicken, cooked mince, ham, making for a chunkier soup without adding extra veg.

I hope you feel better, and as an aside, if you are often lower in vitamin D it could be worth considering a lightbox. My husband uses one for SAD (seasonal affective disorder)

Adding things like cauliflower, broccoli, kale, courgette, mushrooms (I hate them though) are all generally lower, smaller amounts of onion, peppers are also ok. I use my fitbit app to try out combinations and look at the carb content before I commit to cooking. You can probably do the same with other online apps.

Thanks for all the replies. I will definitely update the post and let everyone know how the next two days go for me. Since I’ve been on this weight loss journey for over a year now I know that if I cheat I do have the discipline to pick up the diet again the next day. I’ll judge it by how I feel in the moment, and what my weight is tomorrow morning. 🙂 I generally tend to feel super guilty after a cheat day but I have to remind myself not to dwell on the past and that you can’t beat yourself up over decisions you made yesterday.
Natalie- i credit my previous successes to that exact theory, and I sincerely believe that too much of anything is a bad thing, including diet
Eureka- That’s my ultimate nightmare.
Evil weevil- Congrats on your upcoming wedding. High protein and fat is great advice!

I know many people are able to manage a cheat day and go straight back to their diet. But unfortunately I’m not one of them. It can take a few days for me to get back on track, so I never deliberately set out to have them. I know there’s no logical reason why eating unwisely for one day should extend to two or three, but I know myself, and what works for me and what doesn’t.

Sometimes it’s unavoidable though, birthdays, weddings, you don’t want to make everyone else feel uncomfortable by making a fuss. I just do the best I can, and when I slip up, pick myself up as soon as possible and start all over again.

A big thank you to all who have replied and who have shown me support and reassurance. I now definitely know I’m part of the BSD FAMILY. I truely appreciate everyone’s input. This afternoon I managed to find a couple of smaller sized clothing items of which I haven’t been able to wear. My husband asked “where are you off to?” “Are you going out?” This is a good sign! Bring on week 4, wow I’m nearly half way through the 8 wks. I have found the program extremely manageable.

Good morning everybody – I have completed my 8 weeks and can now be an official member of the 800 veteran’s club. Woo! hoo!

History – non diabetic but with everybody in my family being diabetic, I am a sitting duck. 57 years old, 5 feet tall, born fat, spent most of my life at double the size I should be, it’s a miracle I have no medical history. Lost around 7 stones July2011- Sept 2012 with Atkins but piled it all back on as i couldn’t sustain in the longterm. Tried to repeat at least 3 times but my couldn’t lose no matter how well I stuck to 20g carbs. Thought I would try BSD – nothing to lose (well , everything to lose , actually – lol). I think this has worked for me because of the extreme calorie restriction. My overall diet before BSD is actually very health with occasional cake binges, so my main aim was no cake for 8 weeks. Lordy, I do love Greggs French Fancies – they’ll be going into liquidation now!

Started 12 March – weight 16stones 0pounds – bust 54.5inches -waist 53.0 inches -hips 54 inches
After 4 weeks – weight 15stones 0pounds – bust 52.5 – waist 49.5inches – hips 52 inches
After8 weeks – weight 14 stones 6 pounds – bust 50 inches – waist 48 inches – hips 51 inches

I did not use any recipes from the book. I made up simple 200 calorie meals, quick and easy to prepare using food from my nomal diet, making sure each meal had protein/low carbs in it. The less faffing about the better- (plus I didn’t have to fork out a fortune on foods that were going to be only partially used- so green tea with slice of lemon and fresh ginger for breakfast, 200 cals at about 1pm, 200 cals about 4pm and 400 calorie at 7sh having what the rest of the family was having

I am deliriously happy with these results as nothing else was working. Believe me when I say I can stick to a diet!

I have done no strength training (bad) and done about 12×10, 000steps throughtpout the 8 weeks (bad) Mainly because I did feel lethargic and couldn’t summon up the energy to do so.

My future plan? I have given this long hard thoughts. I am tempted to continue with 800 calories because I find this really easy to do. However, my lack of energy discourages me from doing this. So, I am going to be sensible and go to BSD 5:2 for 4 weeks and see how the weight loss pans out and also to give my body a bit of a rest. Also , I will have energy to exercise and be more active.

I am very aware of cortisol and thyroid issues if I continue this longterm. I contacted BSD team on two occasions to confirm if I should be concerned about these issues. I have received no contact from them after 2 weeks , so I have given up.
I am sure my weight loss will slow and may even grind to a halt. If this happens, after 4 weeks I will go back onto BSD800 for second round. Hopefully, the second round continue to work (unlike the Atkins).

When I lost all that weight on Atkins, I really thought I had it cracked, was evangelical about , nothing was going to stop me, everybody said how fab I looked after seeing me fat for 55 years, but pile it back on I did, much to my own shock and disbelief. I am better prepared this time and know the pitfalls to watch out for.

My name is ‘dumptynomore.’ Definitely jumping the gun as I am still a very round butterball but I wanted to be positive and look to the future.

I hope readers have found this useful and apologies for banging on – I do go on a bit.

Wow Anthony! That’s some weight loss! You should find the diet gets easier for you from week to week and I’m sure those kind of results will keep you motivated. Well done!

Hi, for those of us in Australia, tomorrow night the Sunday Night show on channel 7 has a segment on treating diabetes with diet, and in the promo Dr. Mosley was mentioned.

I know these shows are usually pretty superficial, but it might be interesting.

I just finished 2 weeks and am beginning Week 3. Pleased with my loss so far. I lost 13 pounds in the first week, another 7 pounds in the second week. I’ve been super busy with work and so haven’t added the exercise in, but will be doing that this week. This diet is hard work, but it is getting easier as I go on and the hunger pangs are lessened with each day. Good luck to all!

I think you can lose muscle mass unless you do some strength exercises besides the stamina exercises
Push ups are difficult
Simple easy one I bought those cheap exercise wheels five quid or less
I’m naturally pretty strong and am losing shoulder size after three weeks and stone and half but feeling great
I do eat lot English breakfasts tho !!!!
Alan

so it’s day 19 in the Izzy BSD house. almost 3 weeks in and can’t believe it has passed so quickly!

mostly chilling just now but it looks a nice day again so we’ll probably head off to the park again soon and get my steps up. Aside from that it will be a dull day… catching up on Laundry. Although I do have a couple of flat pack cabinets to assemble so I may get that done later, as well as making more salt and vinegar chickpeas.

Tomorrow I am going to make a batch of scotch eggs and attempt to make crackers with coconut flour 🙂

Todays foooooood.

Breakfast was going to be pancakes but my decent frying pan was in the dishwasher and I tried to use my other (not non-stick) one and lets just say it ended badly. Yoghurt and raspberries saved the day. Pancakes tomorrow because the kids want them too!

Lunch (I posted the recipe) was an experiment, that my husband enjoyed too. Halved peppers filled with bacon, spring onion, egg and cheese, baked in the oven. they were nice, bit pricey in the calories at 390 per portion but it will be ok. Would be good for those who eat twice a day.

Dinner, needing a lowish calorie choice I’m going to do pork stir fry.

Hi Actionmum
Like Eureka said, you are doing this for yourself, not anyone else.
Give yourself a huge pat on the back for making the decision to start this new lifestyle, you’re starting to see the results now and, although your family may not be saying much, they’ll be noticing the changes in you.
You have a global BSD virtual family now and we are all happy to offer you all the support you need.
No one will castigate you when you have a slip up, the BSDers will take you by the hand and gently lead you back to the path.
Congratulations on a great start and best of luck on your journey. 🙂

I aim for a “normal” relationship with food which includes treats, and Mothers’ Day tomorrow will no doubt include some of those. I am prediabetic and my blood sugar never spikes into the diabetic zone.

But, major disclaimer, I have not yet been successful in limiting treats. Too many things count as special occasions! And once I have a treat, it is very hard to get back onto the healthy wagon. It takes days. This is my second round of the BSD and my weight loss is slow because I don’t stick to it. (But I am still losing.) I would probably be better off not indulging at all, but I find the very thought of that sends me into a panic deprivation binge. So for the moment I don’t tell myself “never again”.

You have to learn what works for your personality type. Some people do better promising to stick to the diet 100% for the 8 weeks or forever. Maybe this weekend will be your trial run!

I wouldn’t – the first fortnight for me is the danger period where if I’m bad at all I just give up, it would send me in to a cake fuelled landslide binge; whereas maintaining control would give me a satisfied buzz and strengthen my resolve. It would also bloat me up horrifically and give me a carb hangover which would wreck any good intentions for a further few days. I’d probably gain half a stone minimum. But that’s my issues – be honest with yourself about your behaviour around sugar and you may come to a different conclusion.

If I really wanted to do it (and I’m getting married in 6 weeks with a lovely afternoon tea and wedding guest ‘bake off’ that we’re judging, so I will have to – although we will arrange for our afternoon tea platter to have alternative bread and more veg sticks, and I’m mulling over nominating someone else to judge the bake off instead, but probably won’t) I would have plenty of coconut oil and protein first, only a small sliver of cake and then take probiotics & more coconut oil to keep the fat burning pathways open.

Hi Willf
That’s excellent news especially for us T 2’s. I’m not there yet, more weight to go before I reach my tipping point ( I hope)? Came off x 2 daily metformin 3 weeks ago off my own bat before I changed GP. Found the new GP supportive ( YES!) & ok with him. Check with yours first, it’s more reassuring if you have at least told them even if they don’t agree!
My FBS been too high ( went right up to 10 at one point )!! but getting better now, 6.6 today. I’ll give it a bit longer before I decide to go back on maybe 1 metformin a day at my main meal. I only eat breakfast & dinner.
Your readings, BMI & inch loss perfect. Hope to join in soon 👍

Thank you

Yesterday Day 76 weight 10st
Blood sugar 10.9
Waist: 35″. 3 1/2 inches lost – reached my initial target. 😀

Today Day 77 weight 10st (end of Week 11)
Blood sugar 11.3

Bought a pair of size 12 jeans – they fit 😀. So two Jean sizes smaller than at the start. Still in shock. I can walk and sit down in them and still breathe normally. 😂

Hi Eureka
Ha Ha. Think Tequila, Mezcal and Mariachi bands …..on second thoughts forget the Mariachi bands.:-0

Hello – I’ve had a disastrous week this week with the vitamin d tabs the dr has prescribed giving me constipation. Anyway it has led me to eat less through being poorly. Anyway as I posted earlier in the week how difficult I found the menu week three – I received good advice on the forum to work out menus of what I like. I have decided to make some batches of soup up for lunches a couple of times next week and wondered if I make butternut squash soup up would this fit it with the low carbohydrate regime. I would also like to make a chicken soup but not sure what veg to put in – any ideas?

Hi Athorn223
Strange things make you gain weight! Sometimes it’s just one glass of wine! We are only human & keep on trying. If you are Type 2 Diabetic, I am, this way of eating is for the rest of my life & every sugar spike counts & is paid for!

Well done with your weight loss. Birthdays are once a year & if you have no diabetes then I would eat the cake & enjoy it. Get back on the wagon after. 🙂🎂

I started the BSD after reading Dr Moseley’s book and asked my diabetic nurse for support who suggested I still take my lantus but don’t take any novorapid with food. I am a type 2 diabetic on insulin and thought this diet would help me get off medication. After 3.5 weeks I felt so weak and wobbly that I went to my GP who sent me straight to A&E with Ketoacidosis and stayed in for 3 days on 3 drips, insulin, glucose and potassium. I lost 1 stone in week one which was stored fat and muscle and fluid. I have not found any warning in the book or on this website of this potential life threatening condition I found myself in after following this diet so wanted to warn anyone who tries it to check ketones and insist on regular health advice throughout.

Hi Actionmum
First rule of BSD, LOVE YOURSELF. You have come to this diet/ new way of life for YOU. Approbation from others is good but not necessary for you to succeed. You & your determination are all that is required for you to succeed.

You are flying Solo & wow how confidant are you at the throttle. Go loop the loop, all eyes on you! 🛩
Ground control is here to support you if you stall

Thank you everyone for your comments. I am a perfectionist by nature, and when I ‘stuff up’ it leads to constant bingeing until I get the courage to start again… then I expect perfectionism.. the cycle continues. I like the idea of just being better than before… I really appreciate your comments and wish you all the very best too! Thanks

Ciao general lynne
Congratulazioni. Stupendo! 👌 🇮🇹

Rachel & Christine – yes have not been motivated for a few months. I need to get myself together. I am pleased that my weight was not increasing although I put a pound on last week. Off on holiday soon and will be doing our own cooking most of the time so should be able to be good. Exercise will increase and I’m pretty sure that will get me started again. Won’t have my scales with me but I’ll find a way to weigh 😊

Keeping in touch via this forum definitely helps. Lots of people doing fantastically well and drastically improving their health which is the main thing.

Keep up the great work x

Well done, you will definitely reach that target Bill. Really pleased for you! Keep up the good work – you’re an inspiration x

Hi GEORGIANNA
Congratulations on your fab weight loss.
It’s concerning you have had the chest pains. Do hope all tests clear you of major problems. Please keep a paper daily diary of all you eat & how you are feeling. This is good health evidence for you & more importantly your GP.
It would be a good idea to monitor your own BP for a while. Talk to your pharmacist re best machine etc.
Keep those fluids up & if you feel really tired, rest & maybe up the calories a little for a while too. Your overall health is of prime importance always.
Enjoy the diet but keep a very good eye on yourself.

Oh Kerri I also meant to say I also don’t have a gallbladder. Much to my relief I had it removed last year… I’m mid way through week 3 of following this and I haven’t suffered any ill effects.

after 20 months of trying to get pregnant with my son (pcos sufferer) I eventually conceived when I was on the cambridge diet (a very low calorie low carb diet) it was costing me lots of cash and ultimately in retrospect… I think the BSD would have done just as well. Excess insulin can cause the ovaries not to function as well, so personally in my (very un-medical) opinion, anyone trying to conceive might benefit from going lower carb. I definitely think the BSD way of life could help your friend.

I didn’t know about Hashimoto’s I just thought it was a funky name. It was interesting to read that, and impressive results you have had Hashimoto!

Today I’m feeling super positive. I’m going to be a BSD success story too 🙂

Hi Zeus

I tried the 5:2 diet before BSD but had to quit for awhile because of chronic constipation. I tried every remedy everyone suggested, but ultimately the only thing that worked was psyllium. You can either get it at the health food store and mix in water and drink or buy it under the brand name metamucil. I now use metamucil in capsule form daily, which a bit pricey but more convenient (and the texture is way less gross!). I have checked with my doctor and she says it is fine to use daily, it is not a chemical laxative, it just absorbs a lot of water.

I’ve said from day 1 that I wanted to get to 13.5 stones by my holiday on June 9th.
Todays weigh in shows another 2 pounds lost so I’m 14 stone 2.
That’s a total loss of 2.5 stones and 9 pounds to lose in 5 weeks 😮
Just need to push a wee bit harder, wish it would warm up, I lose weight faster and eat less when it’s warm.
Had the odd erratic sugar reading this week, not too bad but thinking back, I think I let the fluid intake slip during a very stressful work week so that’s something to watch this week.
Good luck to everyone for this weeks weigh in and, as always,
Onwards and upwards 😀

Hi Hashimoto thanks very much for replying. Unfortunately I have a long history of stones and have lost one kidney so am very conscious of my water intake. I have in the last couple of months had surgery to remove one in my remaining kidney and am a little cautious about eating more meat but am really enjoying the results of the diet. Hope your journey goes well.

I’ll echo Patsy’s post as that’s exactly how I did it from day one.
Just hit the 2.5 stone lost mark so yes, it does work.

You know I can’t remember if I’m on week 13 or 14, getting old 😉
Anyhow another 2 pounds gone to put me on 14 stones 2 pounds, just over 2 pounds to go until my weight starts with 13, and another milestone reached, 2 and a half stone gone 😀
I may not reach my 13 and a half stone target by my holiday in June, but I’m going to get close to it 😀

Hi ay caramba
Love that name 😃 ( visuals of Sombreros Mexicanos 🏜 & el Dia de Muertos 🌼 Wrote a story about that!)
Excellent stuff you are doing ( & with knee too. Well done). Move over Eddy! Love bluebell woods ( ours, not so much aggressive Spanish invaders).
Today I be mostly ironing! Then a bbq 🍗 🌽 🍆 🍤 Yum yum! Going to my baby granddaughter’s christening mid week so got to get packed – it’s Way down south ( East Grinstead) for a few days with her & her 3 yr old sister, lovely. I’m cooking so diet all good.

Any bbq ‘ers out there try this:

Spiralize then rice ( by pulsing veg in food processor ) 1 raw beetroot, carrot, courgette. Add tinned sweet corn ( or cook it on bbq & cut it off husk & add to veg) & halved cherry tomatoes. Season with fresh ground black pepper & salt. You could add some fresh chilli if you want. For a dressing/ dip : I mashed ripe avocado with lemon juice, ground salt & black pepper & two dessert spoons of sour cream stirred in. You could sprinkle pumpkin seeds on top for added crunch. You will have to calorie count etc. Serves four as a side dish. Enjoy
Eureka

Have hit my first plateau at week 9….bloody hormones have a lot to answer for!!

Wouldn’t mind if I hadn’t been active all week rather than the usual sitting on my butt all day at work

S – cleaned the kitchen within an inch of its life
M – walked round shopping centre for 5 hours
T – did 10,000 steps, all the ironing, then painted the hallway
W – gardening for 4 hours then 1 hour walk
T – heavy gardening for 6 hours
F – 2 hour walk

Well I completed the course. While I feel like it may have been a success the blood sugar readings are not convincing.
I will persist with lower calories but I am now so thin I need to eat. The energy levels are slowly returning but not the strength yet.
So the blood ranges from 7 ish to 9 ish and back to 5 ish. Inconsistent is the best description. But I believe more regular meals is better. Missing lunch is just as liable to produce a spike as a drop. Exercise produces variable results, if I have not eaten it may go up or down. Have been walking 5km a day and now switching to the standing bike to try to get some leg muscles back. Pull ups, dont even mention that I can manage almost 4…..that has to improve.
The problem is that I have no reference base. Dont know what the blood did pre diabetes so no benchmarking. Anyway it is lower than it was and the war is not won……yet.

Hi Bre123 welcome to the 800 club 🙂

Lucia, welcome to the veteran’s club and the over the 8 week line and after! 🙂

Hi Kath, I’ve googled this and from what I can find is that if you don’t go lower than 20g carbs a day and keep WELL hydrated you should be ok. The carb number most people aim for on this diet is about 50g a day. There don’t seem to have been any clinical trials on this subject – just opinions.

The hydration level is very important in this regard so please make sure you drink your 2 to 3 litres of water a day.

I don’t know whether you have a history of kidney stones but if you do just keep yourself well hydrated.

Wishing you the best 🙂

Oh captainlynne I so wish I was in Switzerland (because it’s beautiful and if I’m there I’m on holidays!) Born, bred and living in Australia.
That’s why I was 38 minutes out when sending your SURPRISE 20 week good wishes (I really thought I’d done the maths properly, oh well). Looking forward to reading about your progress for the next 5 lbs. Have a great day.

Wow, Willf, that is fantastic news. I have still lost a bit of weight and improved my health doing what you are about to do Willf.

BTW welcome to the veterans club now that you are over the 8 week line : )

Hi Kerri, I started in Mid January and lost 2 and a half stones by week 8. Since then I have increased my calories and still lost another half stone!!! I can actually eat more calories now than I could prior to the diet without putting weight on. I think your friend would benefit from just a few weeks of the BSD if she didn’t want to go on for longer. Cutting out all starchy carbs would also help her even if she did nothing else. But I think overall, a few weeks of 800 would do her the world of good 🙂
Perhaps she could be your diet buddy???? 🙂

The fast 800 is easier to do than the 5:2 and carries the health benefits that didn’t occur for me on 5:2 🙂

Well done DemiMondaine.

My ‘today’ is over here in Australia 💤🌙 And tomorrow is Mother’s Day here- so Monday it will have to be for d- day

And I’ve lost 5kg. In the previous three months, I’d lost 5kg too. So 10kg lost altogether this year.

I’m so pleased.

Wow Hashimoto that is a big loss and such a remarkable improvement in your health. How long have you being doing it?
My friend did the 5:2 and lost quite a lot but I will pass on the information you have mentioned as she is also trying for a pregnancy.

Hello all! LAST DAY TODAY! Has been very successful apart from the glitch with the rising bs levels! I have lost a stone (I’m a fat insider!) so this was great for me but more importantly I’ve lost 4″ around my middle and my BMi is down to 22.1 – in 8 weeks fantastic!! Morning bs is still a little higher than I’d like 6.4 this morning but testing 2hrs after eating my reading was 5.4 – can’t ask better than that! I feel great, mentally and physically. I’m going to stick with it but not count cals so rigidly and allow myself a few carbs. Can’t wait to go back to the doctor and poke him in the eye for scoffing! My goal is being achieved – I’m down to 2 metformin instead of 4 and next week I’m going to cut it down to 1 a day. Not sure whether I should take it in the morning or at night though. Anyone know which would be better?
My advice to anyone starting or losing heart – STICK WITH IT WE CAN RID OURSELVES OF DIABETES!
I’ll keep you all posted, meantime good luck to all of you and thanks for all your support and advice!

Calling all British Citizens wherever you are! Please sign our petition! Thanks : )

Kerri, like Izzy, I say just start it! Today is as good as any other 🙂

JSR How did your party go? I have shopping and lunch out with friends tomorrow and they like a bit of wine. I’m a bit worried!