Hi Debs14, I had the same problem, lost 4lbs wk1, put on and lost same 2lbs in wk2/3. Then I decided to try doing the book recipes and lost 3lbs in 3 days! I suspect the beans and pulses might have helped and I found I’m not hungry any more too this way. Stick with it, you can’t fail to lose on 800 cals eventually.

Talk about spurious results !
After almost 2 weeks of readings in the normal range I woke up this morning to 8.9 !!!
Food yesterday was 4 Ryvitas with cream cheese and 2 slices roast beef for lunch, a piece of baked haddock with asparagus for dinner and 2 tbsp of Greek youghurt with 4 strawberries for my late snack.
Honestly, the more I learn about this, the less I understand.

Hi debs14,
Sorry you are disappointed with your results. Have you noticed any changes other than weight, like looser clothing or inches lost?
Are you eating enough fat to encourage your body into fat burning?
It sounds from your post that your loss stopped in weeks 2&3, which is very common. I call it the week 2 blues. If you look at some of the other threads you’ll see how many others have had the same problem. Now you’ve started losing again it should continue. Everyone loses at different rates, often depending on how much you have to lose and your activity level.
Hope to hear better news from you soon 🙂

On doing a bit of research it seems that too low carbs can cause dry itchy skin also known as keto rash although I don’t have a rash. I have upped my carbs as I was having 30g max and my skin is feeling better. This diet is a journey of discovery and we do need to figure out what our individual needs are. I will also heed advice given here as it all helps so thanks for your replies.

Carb flu not carbon ☺

Hi April , you’re experiencing what is known as keto flu or carbon flu. Flu like symptoms due to carb reduction. They can vary from person to person but it is proof that things are moving in the right direction. I’m in week 6 and am only now coming out of the symptom phase. So stick with it, fluids are hugely important and take it easy if you can during these first few days. It will be worth it.

Where’s that cake when you need it ?? Lol

Ok I got on the scales and 3/4 of. Pound loss… I guess cake fat likes to stick around!

I think I have no option I have to loose the Pepsi even diluted!!

As since drinking it again no weight loss or nothing to be proud of.

This is going to kill me… Maybe allow myself a glass at a weekend but there is no point in restricting diet if the Pepsi counters it. Yesterday I ended up less than 700 calories!

I had done lots of exercise so I should be loosing weight!! All day soup day today but having yoghurt and flaked almonds for breakfast

Weather is vile and already slipped walking the dogs so cleaning house to do exercise.

I’m still positive just slightly disheartened

Lucia I am just heading 5 minutes down the road to work too. Hang in there girl, one meal at a time. You have been so supportive to all and we are with you every step of the way. Horrible day ahead as I have had a few days off so backlog to catch up with as well as meetings. I have my breakfast and lunch with me and will do my best to avoid that sweet brown Ch… stuff at the shop. Just walk right past now!

Have a good day!

Early morning call for Bill 1954.
You up yet?
I am in work and just checking in.

Thinking I am going to wobble this week, I have cravings for the wrong stuff.

See how we go, one meal at a time though.

Love Lucia
Xxxx

Hello everyone,

I’m in the very early stages of the diet (day 3) but I am finding that I can’t shake the headache that started yesterday, despite plenty of water as recommended. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it a sugar detox perhaps?
The good news is the extreme hunger is gone today, I’m not getting my 4 o’clock slump and I don’t seem to need as many cups of coffee to get me through the day.
I feel quite positive about it all and thought by posting on here it gives me some accountability for my actions.

182 signatures! Can we get it to 200 today? 🙂

Thanks for the tip Lauren- I do like the quorn chicken strips so will be having those in place of the sausages. Caroline, I hope you feel better soon- there is lots of good advice on this forum. When the hunger just gets too much I have a piece of cheese or some nuts. I figure if we end up having 900 calories it won’t hurt (I am breastfeeding so have found I need those extra 100 calories to sleep at night and stop the nausea from hunger). Hang in there!

Hi, I have been very meticulous with keeping to the 800 or less calories and have only just lost almost 3 kg. The first week I lost 2kg and nothing until the last day of week 4. I have only had fish and chicken breasts with mainly greens. No bread, pasta, rice or dairy.
Has anyone else had this issue? I would have thought by now things would be working a bit better. I am also exercising almost every day and am always hungry, but have stuck with it. Feeling frustrated, but determined to continue to get better results!

Had a bad day today. Not really food bad (although I did have 1/2 a white bun with my soup at dinner) but just overall feeling bad. My head feels muddy, my eyes are irritated, the nerve pain in my feet is hovering around a 9…

But you know what? I survived it. It’s just one day. I think I’m going to take Bing Crosby’s advice before I turn in. Go to sleep counting my blessings.

So, good things that happened today:

1. I only ate 1/2 the bun (I threw out the other half before I could eat it)
2. My sweet parking spot wasn’t occupied at the train station this morning
3. My boss trusts me enough to vent to
4. My eyes are not irritated by allergies as there is two feet of snow
5. New shoes I ordered online came in and they are adorable
6. I sat in a coffee/donut shop visiting with friends for two hours and didn’t cave in to the temptation of sugar
7. Said friends asked me to sing at their wedding, even after I told them my track record with wedding singing (5 weddings, 5 divorces) – I said yes
8. I still have my feet
9. Reading this forum today kept me sane, even if I wasn’t up to posting, thanks all

Cheers,

Deb

Glad you all liked the site. We are the ones who have to be happy with our weight aren’t we? As long as we are comfortable and our blood sugars/BP/cholesterol are in the ideal range, that’s a realistic aim. We can succeed at this.
I was looking back through the memory on my monitor. Previous FBS were in the mid to high 6’s usually with the occasional 7+. Post meals around 9 with an occasional 11+ and one 12.4!
No wonder medication was suggested several times, which is what caused the search that resulted in the BSD.
Now FBS consistently under 5 and post meal around 5-6, never higher. So happy with results. Going to wait a few more weeks for HbA1c to make sure I get the full benefit of BSD results, but for the first time I’m looking forward to it 🙂

Hi pmshrink

Thanks Penny. You are going to have to change that name soon to pmshrunk! Slow & steady wins the race

We all seem to be similar height & age. I’m 5′ 3″ & 65 July. I’ve bagged lots of clothes for the charity shops. New life as Bill says
Went to M&S today, grumbled a lot as no 16 short jeans! Grabbed a pair of per una skinnys hoping for a miracle, well he was listening size14. Get in 😄
Got a ways to go yet but at this rate will be in nappies
Eureka

Hi AliceinSwitzerland

Welcome, no barm cakes here though! (Lived in Preston 2yrs a lifetime ago).

So, get Inspiralized! It’s a book & web site by Ali Maffucci Inspiralized.com.

You & the girls can have fun making & quickly cooking vegetable rice & pasta. It says here in my book, you can make; breakfasts, snacks & sides, soups, stews, salads, wraps, bakes,gratins, rice pasta & noodles & desserts!!

You can spiralize carrots, cucumber ,beetroot ,butternut squash,courgette, apples, parsnip, pear , swede the list goes on. These all make pasta or ribbon strands to cook or even eat raw. Low calories & carbs but very healthy

To create rice you need a food processor to pulse the pasta. It’s quick easy & fun. I love carrot & beetroot rice raw or cooked. You can steam , stir for or microwave

I got my spiralizer from Lakeland. You could go local or web for one if you like the idea. I paid about £29. It’s not electric. Your girls would have fun , just watch the blades, you put them in, they turn the handle. I will let my 3 yr old granddaughter help me make pasta. Look at the videos on line & have some fun

And don’t forget to look at cauliflower rice. It’s more like couscous but carries a curry or whatever you want to flavour it with. I much prefere veg pasta & rice now
Bis spoter En Guete (hope that’s right)
Eureka

Hi bill
Life’s a learning curve…😜
Penny

Hi Capt. Lynne
Sounds about right. I’m 5,1″ and my max is 9 st 6 ( one stone to go!)
Penny

Hi wishbone
You ll be fine, it’s not carbs and you can go over or under a bit and it’s fine.
Penny

Hi AliceinSwitzerland,
I am also cooking for family, usually 7 but often 8 when kids friends or my father in law stays over.
Today I have a full house with my lovely, nearly 80 year old F-I-L staying. I’m cooking curry with rice, popadoms and samosas for them. I will have curry, popadom and a samosa. The rest of the day will be low carb to allow for the samosa.
After a few weeks you won’t be tempted by carbs at all and will be able to cook for your family without worrying. You will very quickly be able to adapt your usual meals to your needs. Mums are usually very good at being creative with food 🙂
In the meantime, make sure you always have some low carb meals in your freezer, even if you have to cook extra just to freeze it. This will help you out if you can’t think of a substitute for what you are making for the rest of your family. Wishing you success on the BSD.

I’m now into my 5th week of the BSD 800. So far have lost just under 6 kgs. My wife and I started together and so far she has recorded a similar weight loss. I have been type 2 diabetic for around 18 months and at the time of diagnosis weighed in at 82 kgs with a bmi of 29 then aged 55. I ‘ve been a vegetarian for around 25 years, ate dairy products and fish. One of those people that exercised on and off (a run here, a bike ride there etc) loved all the wrong kind of food… potatoes, bread, cereals. We joined a gym back in November and have been going regularly 5 days a week since then. Do a whole range of stuff in the gym from spinning, yoga, HIIT, weights and aerobics just to keep things varied. The weight is coming down, the paunch is slowly disappearing and I’ve never felt fitter. The diet is going good too. I used MyFitnessPal to record everything and most of the time keep to the 800 calories. Breakfast is full fat yoghurt with 4 strawberries. Lunch can be a salad with either tuna, sardines or mackerel. Not much of a dinner as we do the gym in the evening after work so invariably just a low cal snack. Target weight is 70kgs. At the end of the 8 weeks, we’re going onto the 5:2 Med Diet and the gym membership is there for a year. Wished I had done all this sooner, actually enjoying every minute of it. Going to try out some of these recipes over the coming weeks.

Hi Natalie
Thanks for the info!
Penny

Hi Onelmunn
Soup is definitely encouraged!
One thing I would say tho looking at your menu- are you having enough fat? I could only see fat in the eggs which isn’t enough for a day. Maybe make your own soup with plenty of olive oil? I put in a spoonful of peanut butter!
Best of luck
Penny

Hi jimbob
Glad to hear you’re on the mend. I’m sure that great weight loss must help.
If it happens again I’m going to demand an MRI scan on day one. – suggest you do the same!
I’m a slow loser but gradually the scales are going down. Eventually I’ll get there! Another stone to go!
Keep up the good work
Penny

Hi Eureka
What a great story, well put.
Congrats on joining the veterans!
Penny

Hi SunnyB

First, don’t ignore or delay going to the toilet when you get the signals. That feeling might go away & take a good while to return. Be sure to really drink 2 – 3 litres a day. The longer food waste is in the intestines, the more fluid is reabsorbed & the harder (literally) it is to defecate.

The change of diet prompts a change of habit. Worrying won’t speed things up. A bit more fat in your diet will help
Very often eating prompts the defecating response. Eat breakfast try & go to the loo. All a bit obvious but it gets worrying if you have never had this happen before. Also try hot drinks. I have a fruit tea & glass of water as soon as I rise

Also move. Try running up & down the stairs a few times. Get everything to wake up with you in the morning. We create habits

I eat full fat Greek yoghurt , nuts & a mixture of strawberries , blueberries , raspberries & cherries for breakfast. Also have a full cooked breakfast somethimes or smoked salmon with poached egg, or scrambled eggs & bacon etc. I only eat ONE of these things, but mostly yoghurt etc

I sprinkle one level tablespoon of flaked almond & Goji berries & one level tablespoon of mixed seeds on my yoghurt I get Waitrose love life mixed seeds. They contain sunflower , pumpkin, sesame & linseed. Linseed is most important for my bowel health. I also have 2 walnuts with the yoghurt. I’m sure you can buy or make up the list of nuts & seeds you want as I sometimes do.

I was constipated too at first & did all of the above. I’m fine now. If you are still worried have a word with your pharmacist ( probably quicker than your dr). Give yourself extra time in the morning if that’s the routine time you are going for
Hope this helps
Eureka

Hi Lesley
Good news, well done.
Penny

Hi Switzerland,
If you miss lasagne it’s definitely worth trying zucchini instead. It’s a very similar texture.
Yesterday I found the rice/angel hair/lasagne Slendier noodle replacements in Coles. Forgot to note which section they were in but probably the health foods.
I will check out the mindfulness thread. Thanks, enjoy your Wednesday 🙂

Hi Christine
It’s great isn’t it! I have a waist!! Wow!
And it isn’t even hard to do the diet, that’s the crazy thing.
Penny

Hi Jane
Welcome to the veterans club!
Fantastic results!
Penny

Hi Dearbecks
Welcome!
I’m sure the vanilla essence is ok but it’s really important to eat enough fat, so full fat yogurt (esp Greek yogurt), full fat milk, butter, cream, fat on meat, etc is much better. If you’re cutting carbs you have to have the fat. Then you don’t get hungry.
We ve all had the anti fat propaganda for decades but it hasn’t helped us! We were told it was the fat would make us fat so we didn’t eat it- and we got fat. It’s so hard to let go of but eventually we all do once we realise that Fat is Our Friend!
Best of luck
Penny

Judith, my breakfast would be a bacon sandwich, lunch a sandwich, tea – guess what? Another sandwich. For variety I might put beetroot on my bacon sandwich instead of ketchup! For breakfast, tried Oats so Simple – not a great idea, I was nearly running round the walls as they spiked my blood sugar. I also tried Weetabix but, to put it politely, I needed the toilet nearby😱

Looking back, I did realise some foods were affecting me, but I just didn’t join up all the dots. I made the mistake of looking at each thing in isolation, rather than seeing the whole picture as its unfolding now.

Yes Eureka, it seems like lots of us are realising how we’ve been misled over the years and becoming activists. I wonder if Michael and the Prof realised what they would unleash? As has been said before – Up the revolution!

The USDA database says 31 calories per 100 grams (so 93 grams for your 300 gram bulb, per the USDA database; the last bulb I used must have been a hair above 300 grams). The USDA determines the calories scientifically – eons ago my brother worked in that division. I’ve lost the details of the process, but it pretty reliable. 27 calories is accurate for a cup (per the USDA database), but a cup is only 87 grams. I always put USDA in front of my mfp search term if it is a raw ingredient. Or you can just go here: https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods?qlookup=&new=1

Glad it was delicious! I’m being fastidious about calories as well (which is how I know how many calories fennel has – I’d just used it in the equally yummy spicy chicken with lentils recipe).

Way hey, eureka, I’m all for bigging up the petition! 🙂

Lynne, spooky timing of article considering our very recent discussion re the link between Fibromyalgia and gluten! I printed it off to show my friend – the one I suspect has gluten intolerance and does have Fibromyalgia 🙂

Thanks, Kags, the pics, recipes and reviews on this site are totally beguiling. Can’t wait to try it. What an amazing coincidence, I borrowed a Paleo diet book from the public library just this afternoon. Glad to know I was on the right track.

Hi Cherrianne, Stuffing the zucchini is exactly what I did. Before BSD I always added brown rice when stuffing vegetables, but now it’s lentils/chick peas depending on the size of the vegetable. A lot of the dietary changes are ‘tweaks’ to existing recipes.
I must tell you I spotted your recipe using zucchini strips for lasagne – haven’t had a chance to try it yet – it looks delicious!
I’ve noticed there are never many posts in the Mindfulness section. If you (or any other BSDers) have a chance can you have a look and maybe help get the conversation going?

Hi captainlynne

It’s always only about the money! But they are going to be in big trouble as more of us wake up to the facts. I vote with my purse

Have you noticed that creeping mindfulness is a direct consequence of the 8 week BSD? Shedding scales from our eyes. I’ve never tweeted or Facebooked or forumed before BSD. Think it’s waking up my brain. About time!

Love Churchill. Went to a school called Blenheim.
Re: Diabetes & Low Carbs
Never, in the field of human conflict, will so much be owed by so many to so few.
Big up the petition
Eureka

I read that on line aswell lynne. At last! Some medical person who believes what patients struggling with gluten say. I firmly believe my rather severe diverticulitis was caused by persistent inflammation due to gluten intolerance. I made thatconnection when I wasn’t in severe pain after eating gluten when i was on large doses of oral steroids. What do steroids do? Reduce inflammation!

My packed lunches used to be sandwiches, lynne. My breakfast?weetabix with fruit. So healthy! Not! Despite the sarnies packed with salad and the cereal topped with fruit – it wasn’t just causing severe pain it is wasmaking me ill 🙁

Gruezi AliceinSwitzerland,
Welcome to the BSD way of life.
The sort of lunch meals that came to mind are hearty soups for cooler weather and salads as you head towards summer. The addition of legumes/pulses/meat to mainly vegetable soups/salads give them ‘staying power’ and should be manageable within your 800 calories. Remember small amounts of any of the beautiful Swiss cheeses adds variety.
As Bill1954 wrote about the food processor, if your children don’t like chunky soups, whiz them up – it’s amazing what you can hide in the soup! You should have access to some rye and other dense breads to add to the children’s lunch.
Peruse the recipes on this site, there are some great ideas.

Spiced apple crisps
kcal90 fat0.3g saturates0g carbs22g sugars22g fibre3.3g protein0.8g salt0g

Ingredients:
2 Granny Smith
Cinnamon , for sprinkling

Method:

Heat the oven to 160C/ 140C fan/ gas mark 3. Core the apple and slice through the equator into very thin slices 1 – 2mm thick. Dust with cinnamon and lay flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Cook for 45 mins – 1 hour, turning halfway through and removing any crisps that have turned brown. Continue cooking until the apples have dried out and are light golden. Cool, store in an airtight container and enjoy as a snack.

OMG lucia, that made me laugh, you are unique!!!! 🙂 xxxx

I counted and weighed everything. Even if I’d used all 300g of the fennel bulb it was only 36 cals according to nutracheck app. But I only used a 3rd as I was unsure if I would like the flavour. Even mfp said 1 cup of fennel was 27 cals. I certainly used less than that. I counted the amount of oil rather than drizzle which is extremely open to miscalculation. I was just curious because I am fastidious when it comes to counting the calories on this 8 week plan and I checked this numerous times. It was delicious anyway!

Hi Eureka

I like that one from Spike too 😃. And the one from Churchill😃

Even though I came to realise bread was making me ill, I kept going back to it. Before I started the BSD I think it was sandwiches for nearly every meal. I’d be too tired to cook so had a sandwich, which made me tired so ….. You get the picture!

It’s really only since I started this that I realised just how badly the bread etc was affecting me.

The above article was one of the first things I read this morning, and there seemed so many parallels with what we’re finding. Do these manufacturers not realise what they are doing, or do they have no conscience? I wonder what it will take to make them change their recipes?

thankyou, mainly don’t want to wait to start but too busy to sort (or eat) lunches at work at the mo. will try to go with real food for dinners though:)

The calorie count for any recipe that does not specify quantities should be taken with a grain of salt, especially when the missing quantities are for high calorie items like oil and vermouth! Even the lowly fennel bulb can add up. The last fennel bulb I used was 99 calories (not 12) – so you might want to weigh and check every ingredient – if calories are important to you!

When the quantities are missing (actually even when they’re not – since I’m obsessive ), I play with a recipe in myfitnesspal.com before I make it, in order to reach approximately the number of calories the recipe says. (Or, in some instances, to adjust the carbs downward.)

Day 45 weight 10st 4lbs (12 lbs lost)
Blood sugar 8.4 so still going down 👍😀

B – Yoghurt with 2 pears

L – Warm red pepper salad

D – Chicken chasseur, carrots and purple sprouting broccoli (My husband also had potato wedges and I was very tempted to have a couple but resisted)

Drinks – water, tea with milk. small glass red wine (oops!)

Hi captainlynne

My quote for the day is on Spike Milligan’s tombstone , ” I told you I was ill “.

Just read your post & the article. Several years ago I read Ian Marber’s book, The Food Dr Diet. I realised that bread just made me feel ill & stopped eating so much of it. Pity I didn’t just stop
He said wheat, rye, barley & oats are known as Gluten grains & contain Gliadin. Gliadin can irritate the lining of the intestinal tract. Grains have been cross bred to increase Gluten content. Gluten gives bread it’s airy expanded feel

I just knew bread was no longer my friend. Now I wonder if it helped me to become diabetic. Yet more metabolic / digestive problems created by the men who need Big Bucks!

Good job you brought this article to our attention , thanks

You are roaring ahead with the BSD & it is good to hear from you. Keep on keeping on. Knowledge IS power
Eureka