Hi Rob
It’s not just calories in and out – carb calories can spike your blood sugar if there’s too much or the wrong sort ( eg sugar) whereas the same no of calories as fat won’t do that. It’s the blood sugar spiking that puts fat round the organs leading to diabetes.
As for the Egyptians – all such societies rise and fall – the Mesopotamians ( now Iraq/Iran), the Phoenicians, ( Syria), the Greeks, the Romans. No doubt one day the US and Western Europe will be little backwaters!
Penny

Hi Janet

Rule is 50 carbs per day

What’s the count for an apple??

Your very kind for doing this

Hi another learning day,
Just realised if I check my mail box your replies are there, ( I spend ages trawling through the the forums to see if I have had any replies ) so apologies to any one that I have not replied too. Will check mail daily now as I do need the support

Bad day for me today…..one of those days that need comfort eating,,,and I did but it was inform of the fish pie))) didn’t do the topping as I have no idea what that veg is that I was supposed to buy

I like
Carrots, turnips, sprouts, cabbage, jolly green giant peas, leek ( I am Welsh)))) here’s some more useless infor…what do Wales have daffodils and leeks as their emblem ?? Answer….Saint David during a battle with the Anglo Saxons informed the soldiers to wear the leek in their hat to show who is friend or foe!! The Latin word for leek is the same for leek so when the word spread we used both!!! The war was in year 500) like eggs, steak, chicken, porridge ( please tell me I can eat that??? And if so how much ???) aubergine …well so far every thing in the book ( still sticking to it ) except for walnuts/avacardo

Answer to my previous question …what happened to the Egyptians …rem the next biggest structure after the pyramid ( proven night as the fire that burnt down the Lincoln cathedral can not be incl ) Eiffel Tower!!! Any way the answe is someone said it was the work of the devil to do arithmetic/science!!! So they slowly were over taken in the education dept!!

Will be booking dr appointment tomorrow for the next 2 weeks for bloods and cholesterol test…

Bought scales yesterday))) long way to go tho ((( arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Janet just seen your menu….looking at it, made me feel as if I was in macie d’s thank you)))) squeeeeeeeze/hug but porridge with water yuk won’t being eating that.

Is it ok to drink 2 pints of water day

Orchid…have you read up on the four horse men? It highlights exactly what you just said

Is this the best way to reply to all ? Or individual ones better??

TO ALL……one word to describe why your doing the diet..( love, health, image ??? And 1 word to say how you feel right now…( happy, starving, lethargic , lonely …etc

Mine, health and desolate

Keetz- Glad to help! ☺️

Hi Keetz
I think it’s fairly normal to feel thirsty when you first start drinking a lot of water. Possibly our thirst alarm is usually somewhat repressed by never drinking enough. Now it’s going off all the time! But it will calm down.
Penny

Yes, I agree its too easy to micro-manage every tiny gain and loss but its not really a healthy state of mind. I lost a stone in around 9 weeks and have another stone to go. But having got half way, I find my state of mind is much more relaxed and I am not weighing every day now. I don’t even count my carbs that strictly, I know roughly what my regular foods are and I still manage to get a very naughty latte in there for 15g a day. I would probably have lost an extra five pound by now without the lattes but I’m just not ready to let them go!

Hi Sunnyb
Yes I think poor hydration could have done it. And water is heavy, so if you retain it ….
Penny

I was planning on sticking with the 800 calories until I had lost at least another stone. Hoping that is OK as I am sure I read it somewhere in the book!

I am surprised when I have thiings, like a white wine or a gin and tonic at how little I am now enjoying them. Doesn’t mean I don’t keep trying though!!

Thanks for your support, appreciated, I am trying harder now 🙂 x

Hi Inka
I feel for you – sinus infection is nasty.
I don’t see why the antibiotics will be a problem.
Hope you feel better soon.
Penny

So while I am slaving here, chained to my desk for another hour. You are all partying. Got fed up and snuk to the cloakroom and my phone. 😇

Glad the money and the compensation has been received.
Glad you are all losing pounds , stones, etc.

Walked this morning before work and got soaked, I don’t know if it is the walking or I have shrunk in the rain but I am going the right way.

Love the idea Bill wants me to help him lose weight. I am into yoga at the moment, do you fit into your leotard Bill?

Got to go, speak soon. Don’t want to be nabbed in the phone.
Love Lucia
Xxxx

Hi melnz
Well done with the weight loss!
The the afternoons- Michael says have lots of soup, so that would be a good time to do that.
Hope it helps
Penny

Thanks guys 🙂

Treeponey – wow! That weight loss is incredible! Brilliant stuff. Very inspirational.

Sunny B – thanks for the kind advice. Today was a bit messy as i wasnt home for dinner so had to grab something out and eat on the run which made it seem extra fleeting! If i was at home, i would’ve tried to have an omelette or chicken salad or something. Guess its about being more organised. I also had a headache today for the first time (i’ve drank almost 4 litres of water today… to try and get rid of it!) but its still there. A mugginess 🙁

Fantastic Lynne!

Enjoy your dance.

Btw, i did have my raggedy days, my days of plateaus and discouragement. But the blogs really did help with the encouragement. I think that it was soooo important for me to succeed, that every little set back was over emphasized in my mind. Once the diet became second nature around the 5th week or so, it was much smoother going. It was a piece of cake by the end of the 8th week. And now that I’ve figured out the 50 grams of carbs or less a day, I’m peaceful. And yes, I do Love a pat of butter on a small piece of bread, lol. It is quite the treat for me!

Yes, 3 of course, sorry!

I know what you mean about hyperactivity, mind you that’s back down to diet, which brings it back to sugar + refined carbs…..

Anyone seen the 2 Jacques Peretti documentaries on BBC2 last year, The Men who Made us Fat, as well as The Men Who Made us Thin?

Compulsive viewing, both are ‘must-sees’, establishes when the fat-epidemic all started…. with maize, the US Govt subsidised production of this crop immediately post the Great Depression era…..then in the 1970’s the food businesses started introducing the by-product, corn syrup into food to bring costs down……..

I think it’s on You Tube now.

Thanks Janet. It has been a long haul, but the fast weight loss was truly a great motivation.
I would say that if I eat 800 calories, keep the carbs down on day one after indiscretions, ah hem, that it is the middle of the second day of low carb that the hunger stops.
I simply allow myself to be hungry! until i get to the ketosis, which signifies itself with a sweet tasting mouth for me. 🙂

Hi csmcnevin
Well done on getting to day 3 and sticking to the daily 800cals. It sounds like you are being a bit too harsh with yourself though, by not having fat and protein at the beginning of the day. Try having some full fat yogurt with fruit and a few nuts first thing and you will probably find you don’t need all the snacks during the morning. If you manage you calories well, you should be able to have a proper meal in the evenings – something with meat/eggs/fish and salad/veggies. Remember fat is important for getting your body into fat burning mode and it is also important to make sure you are well hydrated, which will also help to keep the pangs at bay.

The BSD is all about retraining our bodies with regard to food and is not just about what we eat, but how and when, so may be consider trying to change you pattern of eating, so you can save some calories from snacks, for a satisfying meal once a day.

The first week is a shock to the body, but it will get easier as your body becomes accustomed to the new regime and the hunger pangs will die down and become more easily manageable.

Best of luck with the rest of the week and we’ll all look forward to reading your results soon.

Another set of tricks that I use.
The first meal is usually eggs per Dr. Mosley with ghee or coconut oil and flax seed meal to um, keep things moving.
The second meal I also keep the carbs down.
The third meal usually has legumes in it to give me sustained energy through the night so that i sleep better. According to my doc this has something to do with epinepheran and low cortisol (i don’t produce hydrocortisone).
If i feel puny, i eat a small mandarin orange, kiwi, or berries. But, at the END of the meal at my doc’s recommendation.
He said that the fat and protein stabilize the blood sugar and it doesn’t go up as high when carbs are then introduced.
Because i am not on medication for diabetes and have more freedom than most, i try to ‘fast’ longer periods between my last meal and breakfast and do not snack. This helps with fat burning per my doc and is quite easy now that i’m in fat burning mode.

Hi Gateofheaven

Thank you for your insights, there is so much in there that I can identify with. I am also only counting 50g carbs a day and losing weight at about your rate. I wonder how long it takes for the ketostix to stop working? I guess they never stop working if I keep falling off the wagon and so out of ketosis? I certainly don’t bounce back into ketosis as quickly as you, I’m averaging 2-3 days to get back there. I will also be interested to see what my next thyroid test shows. Thanks again and best wishes.

Thanks for the suggestions.

There were some things I needed, so they’re on order still some credit left though.

Judith, great idea about Christmas presents. I only see them a few times a year and their tastes change so much, that last Christmas I sent money. Apparently that went down really well. The girls spent it in the sales on what they wanted (rather than what I thought they would like (not necessarily the same thing). I also sent cash to,their parents – money is tight for them so I thought that was better than sending ‘stuff’. Again, it went down well. Don’t normally like sending money, but it works really well.

Bill, I have bought some new clothes, but don’t want to get too many until closer to my holidays in June. Wore a new top today in a size I’ve not been in for years 😃

Wow Lynne. That is fantastic. A huge well done!

Bill: Please don’t ever ‘fade away’. I’m sure I’m not alone in disliking the idea immensely!

Yes, it does get easier!

I am halfway though my “last” week… and have lost 9kgs. Not as much as some, but I’m happy with that and fully intending to keep going. I’ve low carbed more or less since I was diagnosed 4 years ago, so this is really just an extension of that.

Good Luck!

TP

Wasn’t a deerstalker – more Miss Marple LOL. At least we have camera phones now, much more discreet!

There at least 3 epidemics: diabetes, dementia and obesity. And let’s not forget hyperactivity – I’ve seen how my granddaughters act after a Subway kids meal😱 They were nearly running round the walls.!

Excellent article Bill, thank you.
My doc wrote up research discussing why we should be eating high fat and low carb. Basically we want to burn fat, not protein, nor carb. It took me several weeks to be comfortable eating fats after having 65 years of believing fat = fat. When I shifted my calories away from carbs to fat, I started feeling much better, less to no hunger despite being on high doses of prednisone. Think about the way they fatten up cattle. They put them in a feed-grain (high carb, low fat) lot and they gain immense amounts of weight. The doc also said that prime athletes with only 4% fat can go farther and longer if they are burning fat. They run out of carbs and protein quicker.

My doctor said that one receives sustained levels of energy burning fat and that the mind becomes clearer. I have found this to be true.

I experimented and came up with 50 carbs or less a day based upon my own experience.
However, I wish I had known ahead of time about ketostix, so that I could have refined exactly how many carbs i could get away with, lol. But, by the time I did my doctor said it was too late. In the beginning the stix will show ketones being thrown by the body. But at some point, the brain and body, as he said, “WOW, we like that stuff and let’s retain the ketones”. That’s why the ketostix won’t work after a while. You are no longer throwing ketones, your body is retaining them and using them as a preferred fuel. Note symptoms of ketosis like a sweet taste in the mouth, thirst. These and other symptoms can be googled.

I am well beyond the 8 weeks. During the 8 weeks, I followed the diet to a T. Weighed everything, counted every calorie. I lost 30 pounds and 5″ around my waist. Interestingly, I had to take large doses of prednisone through out the diet and in the early stages thought I could gnaw my arm off! The last time that I needed high-dose prednisone i had NO hunger what so ever. Hot diggity dog!

The only mistake I made was when I first came off of the 800/8 week process and I wasn’t quite sure what Dr. Mosley was having us do. I started eating ‘normal’ amounts of carbs and gained weight. Ultimately I found that bottom line, if i wanted to keep the weight loss going, I ONLY needed to keep the carbs under 50 grams and keep the fat up. Also, 50 grams of protein per Dr. Mosley. I could eat normal amounts of food and continue losing weight.

Frankly, I had had enough of counting and weighing etc. I do one day of 800 calories a week and keep up the low carbs, high fat, and 50 grams of protein the rest of the week. That’s all. By now I have a pretty good idea of what 50 grams of protein and carbs look like. Same with how much fat I need to eat. I have a diary of carbs that i eat regularly plus the ones that are treats. I just keep treats et al under 50. I was losing about 3 1/2 pounds a week with the daily 800 calories and now I’m losing about 1 1/2 pounds weekly. And this is with no exercise do to an accident injury. My blood sugars stabilized around 74 from 112 about the 5th week.

I toyed with continuing the 800/day diet, but had to discontinue the rigorous 800 calories because my endocrine system, particularly the thyroid was showing sub-par functioning through regular testing. This was predicted by my doc who said that rigorous dieting could affect the thyroid. He was watching for other signs of low thyroid. By the 7th week, the thyroid functioning had gone from high normal to low normal, so I knew that 8 weeks would be all that would be wise.

I have multiple autoimmune illnesses in addition to pituitary insufficiency. I had to watch blood pressure particularly as it went down way too low. Much salt and extra hydrocortisone later, I no longer faint.

While most would probably say that i should not have done this diet, with very careful and constant monitoring on my part and excellent doctor oversee, it was and is possible. I will say that the first week or two, I didn’t feel so hot. I learned that extra water and salt were very necessary.

I am not hungry. I have had a day here and there of dietary “indiscretion” and yet seem to bounce right back into no hunger and ketosis within a day. Because I must eat to take the medications, it sometimes is a hilarious process. I don’t want to eat, but must and i find that very funny after years of struggling.

Wishing you all the very best!

Hi all,

Just starting this whole thing – i thought i would NEVER be able to do only 800 kcals a day (I eat healthy snacks all through the day, and am renowned for never missing a meal!), but here I am on day three. Found day one and two very manageable…. but day three is haaarrrddd! I think its because I started the day with Zoats (zuchinni oatmeal – very american!) and broccoli soup for lunch so havent eaten enough fat and protein today. I just had a protein bar and some greek yogurt bringing me to 741 calories for the day. But i want to eat a proper meal! Determined to stick it out but in need of some encourgement! It gets easier right??

Thanks!
C

I’ll keep the forum posted about any responses I get, am laughing now as I have visions of us all discretely photographing food labels in our local stores…….. Memo to self, must investigate Sainsbury’s tomorrow, need to get my deerstalker hat out of storage……….

‘Diabetes of the brain’ – scary thought, but something’s going on, 2 epidemics out there……..dementia & diabetes…..

Well after a couple of weeks of messing around I am now firmly back on track. Thanks JPS cloud for sharing about your secret eating – I’ve been known to do that too then usually end up beating myself up then losing the plot completely. However I am determined this time and have promised myself that if I have a blip it will be that – a blip and nothing else. Good luck to everyone. Be kind to yourself x

Hey sianeyb
Welcome to the first day on your BSD journey. Hope you weighed and measured this morning and began the regime today as planned. Hope it hasn’t been too tough, the first few days can be a bit rocky, but if you keep your fluids high and also make sure you eat full fat options, as this helps you to feel full longer.
Will look forward to hearing about your results and I know you will be making good use of the forum, for advise, tips and support when needed.
Best of luck – look forward to reading your results at the end of your first week.

I was reluctant to use OTC laxatives for this problem, and found a probiotic product in our local independent health food shop. I won’t post the brand if the moderators don’t like it, but they are sachets of 5 billion bifidobacterium lactis, with Fructooligosaccharide fibres (FOS).

Hi Rob

I’ve suggested just one day’s eating below to give you some idea of how eating low carb works. I have not counted any calories here as its not strictly necessary in order to lose weight. I find just counting carbs gives me the freedom to eat until I am full (but you have to stop eating at that point, even if you have food left on your plate. Save it for later).

All grams are for carbs

Breakfast:
2 good quality sausages eg. Heck from supermarket. – 5.6g
2 rashers bacon – nil carbs
A handful of mushrooms – 1g
Grilled if you wish or fried in butter – nil carbs

Total carbs = 6.6g

Lunch

2 or 3 egg omellette cooked in butter with 50g cheese – 1g
Mixed leaf salad = 1g

Total carbs = 2g

Dinner

Chicken (however much you think you need) cooked in garlic butter with a little lemon juice, rosemary and basil – 0g
100g carrots – 7g
100g broccoli – 7g
100g cauliflower 7g
Add butter to cauli – 0g

Total carbs = 21g

Snack
100g full fat yoghurt – 5g
100g strawberries – 8g

Total carbs = 13g

Total carbs for day = 43g

2 – 3 litres of water a day
If you have milk in tea and coffee it is 5g carbs per 100ml
If you have a full fat latte (the best kind) that’s 15g carbs

Aim for anything up to 50g of carbs a day to achieve fat burning (ketosis)

You will notice that most of the carbs come from the veg and the diary products (but not butter) so you can really fill your meals out with the non-carb foods, no need to ever feel like you are starving.

Porridge = 22g carbs for 40grams with water – that’s a lot of carbs for a very small bowl of porridge!

Does sound like an amazing breakfast and as Bill1954 says, it’s low carb and that is important on the BSD. Even if you did add up the calories, you’d not be doing too badly – especially if you are able to keep lunch light. Go for it and enjoy!

I love this site too, lots of good, sensible advice, well argued and referenced, and not too American.

If you’ve not seen my other post, earlier today. I read an article this morning blaming sugar as a contributory factor in dementia – also on the increase. It also says that dementia is often referred to as ‘diabetes of the brain’!

I really don’t know anyone who includes sugar in fresh meat/poultry/fish to ‘improve flavour’. I’ll consider my response to the email I received today before sending another email. But I’m fighting a few battles at the minute and just need to read-group!

It was interesting taking the photos – was trying to be inconspicuous while waiting for security to ask what I was doing. My shield of invisibility must have worked 😃

Please keep me posted on your campaign. We’re turning into a group of activists😱😃

I can sympathise Pete – you’re not the only one who has fallen off the BSD wagon. I threw all caution to the winds and ate spectacularly badly over the Easter weekend with so many family get-togethers, chocolate, hot cross buns, and wine with every dinner. However, I noticed yesterday evening that I was quite looking forward to getting back to eating “normally” again as all the buns, chocolate and wine had made me feel quite unsettled. Not exactly ill, but – not quite right. So now I’m back at work sitting here happily with my peppermint tea and handful of almonds for my mid-afternoon snack, and looking forward to some leftover roast lamb with Swiss chard for my tea. Strange how the mind works, isn’t it!

Lynne, if I were you i would be tempted to use some to order coconut oil, coconut flour, almond flour, gram flour, nuts and seeds and any other of the healthy foods on this diet. It will save you from searching all those shops and lugging it home on buses.

Then………I would buy the twins xmas presents and hide them away. There’s nothing worse than ordering clothes on line only to have to send them back cos they don’t fit quite right.

Then you could treat yourself to………

New books? More online food?

Then you can spend some of your own cash on a clothes shop! 🙂

Hey outrunner2K7 – welcome on-board!
Sounds like you have made a great start and are full of positive energy to see you through. You did well on the 5:2 and you have made good progress so far with the BSD – excellent BG by the way. You have already found out that the forum is chock full of advise, tips, support and encouragement, so now that you’re posting, be sure to make the most of it. Remember we all like to hear about the progress being made, so let us know how you get on.
I’m just starting on week 6. Plateaued for most of weeks 2 and 3, but progress has been okay since then. I’m currently 11lb down and chasing the first stone! Hopefully it will happen by 8th April, as I’m off on a road trip to Turkey then.
Look forward to hearing how the next six weeks go for you.

I’m here, Bill- and well done you! Got over the line on Saturday- a bit like a matharon runner, collapsing 100yds away from the line and crawling the last few yards to land in a heap the other side 🙂 Not quite the position I wanted to be in , but nevertheless I have lost 19.5 lbs in the eight weeks, and only put on 1 lb over the Easter weekend which included a family wedding and a great deal of celebrating! The challenge will now be to get back on track, to go for those last 10-14lbs, during a week or so socialising and a week away on holiday where I’m not in charge of the kitchen. The greatest success? Saying no to the bread, pasta, rice…. though I didn’t quite manage to do the same with the chocolate and alcohol. I think the best plan will be to stick with the Mediterranean approach, for the next couple of weeks, and then 5:2, and then may be a few more weeks on BS800 until I get that last stone gone- any other ideas or encouragement most welcome!

Hi Bill and Orchid.

We’re going to need a bigger meeting room soon😃 Great problem to have!

Orchid, I’ve a 4-day residential conference coming up in April. Fortunately breakfast and lunch are both buffets, which helps. The 3-course evening meal has to be ordered earlier that day. From memory the mains are usually fish/chicken/meat. Starters can be pâté, melon or soup. For dessert there’s a cheeseboard option – but that is huge😳
In the evening I’ll definitely be ignoring the desserts, bread and starchy veg. Might have a starter (depending on the choice – I do like pâté!) and make best choice for main. Must remember to watch portion sizes though as won’t be getting much exercise.

Breakfast it’ll be bacon and egg with tomatoes/mushrooms/baked beans – whatever is available. Lunch will be cooked meat and salad. No bread or dessert.

I’ve even got some nice clothes to wear😃 I am wearing a new top today – size 16. Not been in that size for a looooong time! But I’m trying not to buy lots of clothes until nearer my holiday in early June.

Thank you Lynne – I shall compose a suitable email and address any buck-passing tactics, if & when they appear.

I am also going to write a letter to The Times on the subject of ‘hidden sugar’ in light of Govt Guidelines etc, I mean for heaven’s sake, sugar in prawns, in chicken slices…… Are we really expected to become food-sleuths & inspect every minutely written label…… I know there’s sugar in cooked products, in sauces, in cake, in biscuits, but this is TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE…..

Right, get off soapbox & address issue.

; )

Aly so good to see you back on board! You’ll have fun with those flours when they arrive 🙂

Hi FiFiP. Just back and seen your post.

You guessed correctly. I’d picked up a packet of sliced cooked meat that showed zero carbs, but a figure for total sugar. That completely confused me, hence the original email to Steve Rowe. Apparently he started out in the food department and worked his way up.

Of course a reply came from his team! You’ve just got to love their response 😳
Talk about passing the buck! I even sent three photos I took in-store of chicken products cooked in/with sugar completely contradicting her original statement which sh has ignored.

It would be great if you contacted them as well. The more the merrier. We may get them to take action.

I googled Steve Rowe and found his email address. Shout if I can help.

Methinks I need to start checking labels in Asda, Tesco and Aldi. Those are the other supermarkets I use, but have been buying most from M&S.

I sometimes bought ready cooked rotisserie chicken in Asda, but found out that was cooked in sugar marinade so haven’t done that for a few years.

Well, I’ve made it and joined this club now! I have decided to keep on the 800 for a couple of weeks longer as I am going on a course over the weekend 22-24, then on up to family in Scotland until 30th when I join a holiday in Orkney going round the archaeology up there. Back the following weekend.

I will have limited control over what I eat as both the course and holiday are full board with buffet breakfast. I had two weekends on courses over the 8 weeks and just had a protein breakfast eggs, beans, mushrooms and ignored bread, potatoes and puddings for the other meals. I waited 2 days before I weighed when I got home that way I was comparing like for like with the Friday – ie I had lost the gut fill effect 🙂 . The result was I had not put on weight, but was the same as the Friday. Overall, that week’s weight loss was a little lower than the other weeks, but I was fine with that result.

When I get back I expect to have put on a kg or 2, hopefully not more – gut-fill if nothing else. I will decide then if I want to do a couple more weeks on 800 to get back on track or move onto the 5:2.

As I said on the other post – this is fun – I guess success is the best motivator!

Final thought for today, again Mandela. ‘It always seems impossible until it is done’.

Thanks for all the support!

Thanks Molly, we’re all singing from the same hymn sheet because we all see the madness of the old advice 🙂

Hi Everyone

Time to delurk methinks!

Just wanted to share my journey with you lovely people. I started 2 weeks ago (the day after my 45th birthday) as I’d had enough of getting through a bottle of wine a night (at least!) and several fast food meals a week and making my clothes ever tighter, feeling fat and lethargic! Something had to be done. I previously did the 5:2 diet in 2013 to great effect (from 16st 7 to 14st 8 in 6 months) but found it far too easy to gobble up those extra calories in vino and Mc Donald’s on the feast days!

So here I am 2 weeks in and I must say I am blown away by this diet. I’ve gone from 241.2lbs to 229lbs… incredible. I know I should brace myself for either a slow down or plateau but for now I feel very positive plus I’m fitting into my old 36″ jeans that were destined for the charity shop not 4 weeks ago (so glad I was lazy and didn’t get around to dropping all those clothes off!!)

I think having fasted before has really helped me on this as I know now that hunger is nothing to be afraid of, in fact I rarely feel hungry now and often skip breakfast and lunch! Weird but working 🙂 I ensure I have the 3 litres of water a day and can tell if I don’t because the scales don’t move much and walk at least that magic 10k steps (we have labs that don’t mind that at all!) I don’t always hit the 10k but I do make sure that I move around lots.

I’ve got a long way to go (8 week target 212lbs – long term 140lbs (ish!)) but I really feel I can do this.

The tools I use to help motivate me:
Jawbone Up Band and App
Wife with Up Band for healthy competition in steps!
Blood Glucose Tester (Weekly on a Sunday) was 9 now 4.5
Blood Pressure Monitor (Weekly on a Sunday) Didn’t do this for the first week as the cuff was too small (ironically), now have a larger one and need to work on blood pressure to bring it down a bit.
Ketostix (habit forming I’ve found just to check everything is doing what it should be doing !!)

I also wanted to thank everyone on here. Over the last two weeks I’ve often dipped in and read others experiences and it has helped me enormously, especially when the scales didn’t move.

Here’s to the next 6 weeks and a new me (and you)!

*Opens the door slowly and peers about*
Nope, none of the new 8 week brigade have arrived here yet
*Closes door quietly*

Just ordered almond flour and coconut butter from Holland and Barrett. Am becoming a regular customer to their online shop!

That bronco been bucking again Aly ?
Back on board now and show it who’s boss and this time hold tight, it’s going to be a bumpy ride but you already know how to deal with it.
Just comfort yourself now with the thought of all the wonderful new food you’re going to bake from the new book.
A pat on the back tastes better than bar of chocolate anyway.

I added a tiny bit of butter when frying mine and they were really tasty.

thank-you ON PHONE!

thanks Bill – and yes, it is so liberating and not just being able to ignore chocolate, also the crisps! I have had a block of 85% cocoa chocolate sitting on the piano – 4 foot away from my desk for weeks and have not touched it. I also found an unfinished packet of mints from my last long drive to Scotland a couple of days ago, and just ignored it. ‘Normally’ the mint would have gone in one sitting and the dark chocolate over a couple of days – had it been milk chocolate it would have been finished immediately after the mints 🙁 .
See you on over the 8 week line and beyond!