Hi fifip
Three of us!
Christine

Hi bill1954
Well done on the weight loss, I too have sectioned my weight loss into increments, so that it’s easier for me to cope with.
I also hate shopping and try and do most of it on line. Will it change as I lose more weight? you never know!
Christine

I’ve avoided them for the same reason as Orchid.

I’m drinking lots of tea (with milk). I just couldn’t drink enough if I stuck to only water and as most other drinks are either high sugar or have sweeteners, tea seems the best alternative to me.

Hi Alan, if your nurse is sending off blood to be tested, it will come back as a %. If this is the one you mean it is called HbA1c and measures your average blood sugar for the past three months. If your meter has a memory it may give you an average reading over the past week and month. This is useful if you are doing a few random tests after meals, before bed etc. because you can keep an eye on whether your average is heading in a good direction. If it shows improvement you know your HbA1c will too.

Hi john,
Thanks will have a look for the recipe.
Christine

Thanks Orchid, it was the bare naked rice I was thinking of. That name should have stuck in my head lol 🙂
It’s sold under a different name here in Aus.
Nella this is a very friendly, supportive forum and you will get great advice and support. So hang out with the BSD crowd, they’re part of the secret to success in this way of life.

Thank you, happy to post on here as this is so important, 20 years of being fat must
end. I want to feel healthy and full of energy

Hi Simon,
The carb cravings pass fairly quickly. If you can stick with the plan and stay away from the starchy, sugary stuff you’ve mentioned, you’ll find you don’t want them after a couple of weeks.
A fatty protein snack will usually deal with the cravings in the meantime, something like a piece of cheese or a small serve of full fat yoghurt.
Eventually you won’t want snacks either.
You should aim to get your carbs from full fat dairy, veg and fruit, beans and legumes. Most people on here aim for around 50g carb per day to achieve better blood sugar control during the 8 weeks. After that it’s trial and error to get to the point where you have good control, but enough carbs to maintain your weight ( once you’ve achieved your goal). That will vary from person to person.
You sound like you are all set for success so will be interesting to follow your progress 🙂

Welcome on board.
I started with Shakes for 10 days. I was not doing it through a doctor and bought the ones I could get in Boots the Chemist in the UK. The first week although I lost weight, but not as much as others were and nothing off of my waist. I used it for 3 meal replacements a day and had a veggie meal (stir-fry or soup) in the evening. It made it easy to adjust to the 800 cals and I was sure I was not eating too much.
What I had not noticed was that the replacement meal shakes were quite high in carbs – which was why the no change in waist measurements. The following week I found one with higher protein content and lower carbs, oat based and carried on for a few days. I then dropped to one replacement meal (breakfast), soup for lunch and a cooked meal in the evening. By the third week I was cooking everything and ditched the replacement meals.
It seemed a good way to start – simple and avoids temptations of adding to the plate, but beware – most shakes are high in carbs – I was getting 90g carbs a day from them and then add on soup or stir-fry as well and I was over 100g carbs. Not surprising the weight loss was slow and most important that nothing was coming off of my waist.
Do have a good look at the nutrition breakdown of the Shakes and ensure they are not high carb as that will not help you adjust.
The 4 weeks menu section at the end is probably the best way to start and be ‘safe’ in what you are eating. If I ever have to start again, I won’t use Shakes. I will take a little more time to plan ahead, look at my normal cooking and plan and adjust that. Get a lot of good soups in the freezer – they are much more filling, and less in carbs than the Shakes.
Good luck getting started!

hi mera123,
there is no reason why you can’t have them now if you can fit them into your daily allowance of carbs and 800 calories. I assume they freeze well, so you can ration them!
I personally haven’t tried them yet, as I have not been craving anything like that. I have also had a bad habit of baking things and then eating one after the other over a day till they are gone, so I decided not to test my willpower in that way!
There are also some baking recipes in the recipe section on the website.
good luck with the baking.

Hi stre bor Dave,

Do you mean you want to give me encouragement,
Or I give you encouragement?

I am in a really good place in my head at the moment.
When I have a problem, I face it in a funny, weird way.
Just look how I dealt with carbs, hence all the conversations about mosquitos.

The only encouragement I can give you is, read my blogs, my ups and my downs.

Just keep in touch, this whole community is ready to help you, to give you their strength.
They are my family.

Love Lucia
Xxxx

Hi Janeycoughdrop – I have continued with tea and coffee. I take coffee black – 3-4 cups a day and the occasional late (full fat milk now). Milky tea or coffee – measure an amount of milk into a milk jug and use that during the day in your tea or coffee – add that milk to your daily counts. I do like herb teas – Rooibos and also ginger and lemon so I have them in the afternoons and evening.
Good luck getting started.

So what’s everyone’s next little goal?

I have done the … Drink more water.
I am on the….. Check those carbs…
I have been doing ….. Yoga
I have increased my steps…

Thinking of a bit of muscle work.
I am going to use a can of baked beans, holding them, I am going to lift my arms, forwards, backwards, sideways.

Now where did I put those beans…..
Love Lucia
Xxxx

Sorry Christine, I love marmite and mozzies see me as their local McDonalds.

Hi all
My daughter in law says it’s the marmite she eats that protects her! I hate the stuff, who knows?
Christine

Hi FifiP
So there’s two of us!
I do it all online. Much calmer.
Penny

Hi Bill
Although female I also hate clothes shopping and do it all online. Saves the stress.
Penny

Did you find yourself craving carbs?. I now view them as the enemy. I know i need to eat some, but how much per day?

Hi all, due to start this W.O.E in earnest on 9th May but am already conscious of my carb intake and trying to reduce it before D day. As a previous 5:2 participant I know the importance of keeping fluid intake up but I need guidance on how much (builder’s) tea I can drink during the day. There are many mentions of ‘fruit’ teas (yuck) or coffee with a splash of milk but nothing on tea at all. Am I ok to drink it (in moderation) as before?

I’m on week 11 and I really can’t see a problem.
After all, the whole start of this diet was because Prof Taylor noticed that post weight loss surgery patients were reversing their diabetes and those folk are living long term on a severely reduced calorie intake.

A slip is a blip is a non event
Look at it like a rainy day on an otherwise sunny holiday – annoying but it isn’t going to spoil the whole experience.
Just dust yourself down and climb back aboard, and next time you feel like you’re heading down the wrong path, just shout out on here and the BSD’ers will be here to drag you back onto the right track.

You got it right more times than you messed up, didn’t you? Oh and hang on a minute … You were 12. 3 and have gone up to 11. 13 1/2 ??? If you look at those figures again, I think you’ll see you’ve actually lost weight overall.

Have another try and if you do slip again, then try to hang onto that wagon and haul yourself back on before too much damage is done.

Hi Janeycoughdrop.
It’s nice to know others are starting anew every day too.
Good luck to you also!
I only tried the 5:2 for a week last year and it made me feel quite ill. That said, it was probably my own fault for not reading up well enough first.
It is difficult isn’t it trying to juggle other family members meals….not so much the actual cooking and serving but the fact that the ingredients are there in the cupboard/shopping trolley making eyes at you lol! I’m hoping my other half may well join in a little as he does like some healthy ingredients but we just eat far too much and at the wrong times too at the moment( and he has said he would like to lose a little too.)
Wow that was a lot of weight loss in the time between starting the diet and the surgery.

Excellent!

Hi Judith,
I am A rh positive, I get bitten all the time and react, once got stung by a wasp, the poison travelled up my arm to the extent I had to get a dr to treat it, ( we were abroad) the same happened the next time I was stung.
I was bitten by a spider when we were in oz, the friends we were with insisted I went to the Drs, I was there six hours waiting to be seen, by the time I was seen not only was my arm twice the size, my leg had also swollen up, I had been bitten twice, I got treated and was given a second lot of stuff, ‘just in case’ needless to,say I’m careful now with everything creepy crawlie!
My daughter got bitten by a mozzie when she was in Malaya and Thailand after uni, for six weeks, she did a lot of travelling, she ended up when she got home being hospitalised for weeks, about six or seven in Leeds, she had Japanese encephalitis! We have been ultra careful about mozzies since!

Hi TeenaB
Just follow the diet as in the book and you will love the results. Check out the recipes section and the “what have you eaten today” thread for some great meal ideas.
Any problems or moments of weakness, just give a shout out on here, any time. We have a global online community and there is always someone around to laugh or cry with you or just give a big virtual hug.

Best of luck on your 8 week journey to a new healthy lifestyle.

Please meet this woman who also doesn’t like shopping……. (I HATE it!!) so I sympathise with your predicament, nice problem to have though Bill!

Me too. it was a real lightbulb moment.
Briefly I was type 2, 11 weeks ago.
Since then I have lost 30 pounds and my sugar readings are now almost normal. I was re assessed as pre diabetic after HbA1c tests taken just 4 weeks into the diet.
Others are having similar and better results, stick with the plan, it really does work.

Hello

I’m on the 8 week BSD and have done 4 weeks now but I’m wondering when can you have something from the guilt free baking section?

TBH it’s a double edged sword for me FiFiP.
I hate shopping at the best of times so a whole new wardrobe is going to have to be planned with military precision.
I need to spend as little time as possible in the city centre (I read somewhere once that men on a shopping trip suffer the same stress levels as soldiers going into battle)
I suppose I can live with it just this once 😀 😀 😀

Hiya, I have been making excuses now for soooo long about my lack of weight loss! I have decided to go for it until I have shifted all this extra weight I have. I have read a few posts on this and find them reassuring and a source of inspiration too.

Hi Plumptious, I’m also a ‘newbie’ with an impending start date! Mine will be Monday 9th May all being well (I need to survive a trip to NYC and a hen weekend before!) and my reasons are similar to yours for wanting to modify my eating behaviour. I also need to get more active as my job is desk based.

I successfully followed the 5:2 diet for nearly 18 months and felt the weight and health benefits, but lifestyle changes (new partner and growing son) mean it’s more difficult to stick to such a rigid regime. So I’ve lapsed into old, sugary/pasta/rice habits with their resulting effects. I’m early 40s and suddenly have a bad knee, possible high blood pressure and generally feel out of sorts.. so it’s time to knuckle down again! I’m already thinking about what carbs I’m consuming on a daily basis and trying to reduce them before ‘D’ day!

Interestingly I had a previous boyfriend who was morbidly obese and scheduled for bariatric surgery, and I put him on a very similar pre-operative diet for 8 weeks under hospital guidance.. and the weight dropped off him! 3+ stone between consultation and op.. so I already know this can work!

Good luck for the 23rd!

Bill, I can feel the glow of the good feeling you must be experiencing, all the way down here in Kent; brilliant progress.

I am in the market for new clothes too, nice feeling isn’t it!

: )

Thank you for that, was worrying a bit. Its such a drastic change for me, but as a newly discovered type 2 diabetic I simply have to make these changes to lower my blood sugar and my weight.

Have been looking at so many foods to see where the carbs are hidden and as I suspected they were all in predictable places so I don’t even have ignorance as an excuse. The weird thing is its made me so more determined than any other type of diet change I’ve ever tried and in conjunction with weightwatchers (great online site which gives the carbs per 100g of any food) I feel like a new door has opened for me. I have my annual Bupa check at the end of May and would hope all my results would be better than last year. Looking at the recipes too and will follow some to spice things up. I must say, the book totally opened my eyes, I found myself nodding in the early chapters saying ‘that’s how I feel’.

B: Flatbread-17gms(7gms of fiber)
3-egg whites
2-tsps Parmasean
1-wedge of Asiago cheese -Cow
-1tbsp Agave w coffee

Well after last weeks blip I lost another 2 pounds this week, that puts me at 14.5 stones, 30 lb weight loss, and 1 stone to go to my first target weight.
Blood sugars are in the 6’s fasting and in normal range the rest of the day.
Oh not to forget, I’ve now lost 6 inches off my waist measurement. (there will have to be a major shopping trip before my holiday in June)
I’m now confident of reaching my eventual target of 12.5 stones or so by September so everything is going swimmingly.
As I’ve said often before, if I can do this, anyone can.
Onwards and upwards!

I found the flatbreads a bit soft though tasty, but now put them into the toaster. Result, a crispy biscuit great with marmite, with curry or topped with fish or meat.

Take the reading before you eat and then again 2 hours later, it gives a good idea of how your body is coping with food while the pre food reading shows how you are doing before eating. The difference between the 2 readings gives an insight into how your diabetes is performing.

Hi Simon
Completely normal, the headaches don’t last long and lot’s of folk have reported having extra energy, so much so that, if they slip up and have carbs one day, they feel awful the next day, it really does affect your body like that.
That weird taste you have may just be a sign of ketosis or fat burning, if that’s the case you can check with Ketostix, about a fiver from the chemist.
Well done on the first week and heres to some amazing results by the end of the 8 weeks.

Hi Lucia, A few words words of encouragement..I was not that heavy – 11 stone (154 pounds) – but I’m only 5’7″.
Being told I needed additional medication made me look again at what I could do myself. I started the BSD 8 weeks ago. My last hba1c reading had been over 9 (62 in medical speak). I felt I could not do as little as 800 calories a day so I did what I felt I could do – i.e. low carbs, more protein, portion control and a bit more exercise. Although I already rode my bike for about 40 minutes 2/3 times a week and played badminton, I have added the “HIT” idea mentioned in the book. I walk more and do 15 sit ups 3 times a week. I also fast at least 12 hours overnight every day, often more like 13 or 14 depending on my will power! I now weigh 10st 1¼ (65kg). I had my first quarterly check up since starting the BSD this morning following my blood tests last week. I knew from my own readings I was doing better but was pleasantly surprised to be told my average for the quarter was 44 – the uppermost point of the non-diabetic scale (26-44). I am going to ask to reduce my medication. So, even if you can’t get as low as 800 calories (and you do feel the hunger pangs less the longer you stick to it). The one time my readings went back up was when I slipped into having a bit of milk in tea and porridge. I read this: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/dairy-insulin/ and it is highly insulinogenic. I dropped it and my readings improved again.
I’m not that strong willed – if I can do it anyone can. Go for it!

After reading with interest lots of your posts and various threads and topics I realise the best way forward for me is to plan, carefully, and set a date to actually commence the 8 week BSD. This is to reduce or get rid of hurdles (aka excuses) and give myself the best start at achieving a decent outcome.
Have read the 8 week BSD book twice through and so far have done my BMI and have purchased a pedometer.
I am not diabetic but looking at my female relatives and family tree they are all built like wardrobes and in later life have an impressive collection of metal ware between them in the form of various joint replacements. Several have had leg ulcers and one has had an amputation above knee.
I have twinges of a hip and back problem and a crunching knee mainly due to having one leg slightly shorter than the other. This is now getting worse due to the fact I am way over heavy.
I took early retirement a couple of years ago after having a busy and active job and seem to have overindulged in recreating “weekend mornings “i.e. getting up later, extra toast and freshly brewed coffee, newspaper and not getting dressed much before lunch time. Marry this with extra outings to lunchtime eateries with friends and more socialising involving cake/coffee mornings etc and it is no surprise to me now that the two dress size increase has occurred ….thank you Dr.Michael for giving me the mental “slap round the chops”. In my head I am young so don’t want to have the restricted mobility of an elderly, unfit person as I want to enjoy my retirement and not have to go to medical appointments etc.
Yesterday my baseline steps measured a shocking 3,750….aaargh!
Today I thought I would go for a proper walk before lunch and have clocked up 4895 already.
I am lucky enough to be able to be going on a short holiday in the next few weeks and will have access to a small swimming pool so will definitely try to take advantage of that.
My first day of 8/800 BSD will be Monday 23rd May.

Hi, read the book, loved it and it proved to me I’m addicted to carbs. So I got on board and started to eat low carb, ditching bread, pasta and cakes instantly. I’m 49 and have been eating the same way for years

Starting weight 18stone

After a couple of days I was really sweaty and my headache was awful, however it lasted about a day
My appetite seems to have slowed a little
Got a weird taste in my mouth
But seem to have lots more energy
Have lost 5lb in a week
Feel mentally stronger than in ages

is this all normal or should I be worried ?

Hi Judith,
I also have acid reflux and diverticulitis, and I swell up at the slightest bite from anything!
I haven’t had a problem with the first two since the diet, not tested the biting bit yet! We will see!
Christine

I was wondering if anyone had started off with shakes, Dr Mosley talks about the study groups using shakes as it’s more controlled and suggests that I could do that, even if it’s only for the first few weeks.

I wondered what brands people had used, which they thought were better and whether they worked for them??

Thanks,

HairyD

btw, Stevia as found in drinks isn’t really very natural. It does come from a plant, but is heavily processed – just like white sugar and flour and we now know these things aren’t very good for us.

Morning, Judith, Lynne, Lucia et al!
It’s a lovely sunny day here today too, Angela is out in the garden, I’ve just had lunch, (that’s why I’m on here and not shopping etc) and alls well with the world, you can tell I’m pleased with myself.
Today I had a couple of cups of tea, (both went cold)!while unpacking! Lunch was a two egg omelette with spring onion and tomatoes with a bit of cheese, that’s all that was left in the fridge!
Christine

Lostgirl, don’t drink something that’s not on the diet plan and which you don’t really like! If you’re going to have something ‘naughty’ it might as well be the kind you do like – but try to cut it down as much as possible. By continuing to have sweetened drinks, you’re making things much harder for yourself in the long run.

Excellent – well done!

Hi julia18togo
Great word though shrinkwards! Let’s hope we all shrinkwards!