Hi Sue, 5 bags of sugar is a very sizeable chunk to lose – and you have done it with so much going on in your life.:)

Hi Nikkioaks, if you have lost all those centimetres off your waist something is definitely happening. Perhaps it’s your visceral fat disappearing! Listen to Cherrianne those kgs will follow soon 🙂

I definitely lost my Carb craving a few days in, haven’t eaten bread, pasta, potatoes or rice for 20 days now. The sugar craving is harder to beat. Lentils, eggs, avocado, beans etc are all good to have with meals, it just takes time to ‘see’ meals looking different – we’ve become so accustomed to ‘something’ with pasta or rice etc but with this diet you have much more variety on your plate I think. And fresher foods. Last night my family had jacket potatoes with various fillings. With them, I had shredded pork, homemade coleslaw, green salad leaves, peppers, avocado and some halloumi cheese. No potato. Was very full, didn’t eat between 6pm and 8am this morning.
I do buy ready made courgetti now and again, no flavour but quick and easy if you don’t have time for an alternative. Also good if you don’t fancy a cold salad as a side and need something warm.

Hi Lucia I suffer from night cramps as well, you would not believe the contorted shapes my feet and toes make. It used to be all over my body, to the extent that I had to roll myself off the bed and onto the floor. Nothing worked for it until the doctor prescribed quinine sulphate – they can have some bad side effects so I was told to just use them for 4 or 5 nights and then drink tonic water with quinine in. It’s the only thing which works for me. Every now and again I have to take them for 4 or 5 nights. If night cramps are a regular feature I would speak to your doctor. BTW salt and all the other remedies for cramp had no effect on me, I was told to try lots of remedies since I was a kid. I got to 60 before I was given the quinine!!

Like Bill said, take care of that blister. Australian blister socks (you can send away for them) are the best protection for feet which blister – mind you they might not look too fetching with normal shoes!!

Sounds like you have a busy weekend ahead! The push bike might save your blister from more damage while you still get exercise.

Hope you get that ‘early’ finish at 7pm x

Hi nikkioaks, 5cm off your waist is pretty impressive. 🙂 and the kilos are bound to drop off soon. Obviously things are heading in the right direction. Hopefully the coming week will bring better results.

Spirit,
-20lbs is a great result (and there’s time to go)
But the great thing is that the weight will keep coming off even if you up the kCals a bit.
John

Thanks Cherrianne. I didn’t know about those apps. I’ll get my daughter to help me get and learn to use it. I don’t use apps much with the i-phone. But this is worth it. Thanks for advice regarding the full fat yoghurt as I was confused if that was after the 800 diet. I love my skim milk’s taste and really don’t like the full cream version. But I can switch cheeses etc. I’ve watched Dr Mosely’s TV programmes, read articles and this website. I need to get the book. My head’s still fighting with the contradictory ideas of my old (unsuccessful) dieting lessons and this one.
I’m happy I’ve started this because I’ve paired it with finally going back to the gym. Together, they’re making me feel better.

Hi Annie
I’ve had mature cheddar, goats cheese, and feta on the diet, all ok as long as you count them in your calories, remember fat is good.
My top tip with cheese is to grat it as fine as you can, a little goes a long way then and it seems to be more than it is.
18lbs gone in just 19 days, almost a pound a day, well done you, picture that as 36 packs of lard, that’s what has gone from your body.

James you definitely have it all worked out, and are on the right track. Look forward to following your progress.

Hi Lucia,
Night cramps are nasty things! I take a magnesium tablet at night. A couple of glasses of sparkling mineral water also help when the cramp strikes.
Buy the Ali Baba pants: set your inner hippy free 😉 they are such comfy things and very versatile. I wear them, and the fishermans wrap pants all the time. I don’t have an inner hippy lol, it’s on show for all to see.

Hi thank you for the messages(apart from the spam!).
Well i’m on day 19 and I’m down to 19-11 so that’s 18lbs, so far, which I’m so pleased about……….but I have a lot to shift so it’s only a small dent but I’m feeling really good. Still get lightheaded every now and then but not too bad.
I have a question. I love cheese……a lot. I had a bit of feta over the last few days and it was lovely. Is there any cheese anyone can recommend that I can have in moderation because it’s the only thing I’m missing. I have no cravings for anything sweet at all which is so good!
The weight loss has really slowed but I’m looking at the bigger picture and I really think I can do this.
Thank you to everyone who has replied…….as time goes on I will get more involved with other peoples posts etc, this is the first time I’ve joined a forum so it’ll take a while to get into the swing of things.
My children are going away today and I have a whole week to myself and I must admit I can’t wait……I love them dearly but I’m looking forward to the quiet!
Fridge is full of healthy stuff and I’m going to up the exercise.
Thanks for reading xx

What an inspiration you are Peteinthebayou. You are living proof that you learn from the BSD800 (you picked yourself up and got back on track after your relapse). Congratulations on your weight loss.

Hi Ros,
If you have any Apple devices you can download an app to your phone/ iPad whatever. The app is the Australian easy diet diary. It will help you with calorie and carb counts. You can pick foods from the list on there or scan barcodes and it will save that info for you. You can monitor your daily intake in carbs or calories. Whichever is easier for you.
Have you read the book or the Daily Mail articles? They will explain the principles of the diet.
The advice usually given to newbies is to drink plenty of non sugary fluids, 2-3 litres a day. Make sure you get full fat milk, yoghurt etc. as it will help your body convert from carb burning to fat burning and will also help to curb hunger. Most people aim for 50g carbs per day for weight loss and blood sugar control.
Keep reading the posts for inspiration, and ask for help if you need it. There are lots of people ready to support you or celebrate your successes.

Thank you Cherrianne. Getting towards the end of day 1 and doing O.K.

Hi Fch53,
Great to see another newby! I’m inspired to get the book and study MM’s ideas properly now. Thanks. Have you tried sprinkling over the oats a generous amount of ground cinnamon (great for diabetics) ? Have it with either yoghurt, milk or pureed apple… Yum. Especially with toppings. I make my own with packets of chopped almonds, pumpkin & sunflower seeds and sultanas (are these allowed?). Mixed and then just store in a handy container to dip into all through the day as either nibbles or toppings.
Good luck.

You have to be happy with those weight and sugar results Pete, that’s an excellent set of 4 week results.
Sensible of you to realise that the weight loss will slow a little but that 7kgs looks very achievable
Well done and keep us posted.

Hi Pete, that four weeks went fast. Well done on the great results so far. Bet you can do better in the next four weeks now you know your triggers 🙂

Hi Sue,
I think you are doing amazingly well given the events of the past few weeks. Hopefully life will be smoother sailing now so you get a chance to breathe and recover. 🙂

Been on BSD for 1 full month and I’m calling this my 4 weeks – had a relapse last week which we a scrubbing from the records (but not the memory as it was a valuable learning experience about how and why I eat).
How am I doing – 9.5kgs lost since 1st March. Feeling much healthier and I’m not finding it hard to stick to v. low cals and no carbs. I avoid eating out or any high risk locations – bars, pantry at work, looking in the fridge.

Had my regular check-ups today. Bit disappointed that my blood pressure is back up in the 140/90 range and that my Uric acid levels are still high but docs were impressed by my weight loss which has to be a good thing. Cholesterol is very low, good cholesterol in the right range, BS low, heart pumping nice and slow. Just that pesky BP and the uric acid (which can lead to gout).

I go back in 3 months – 1st July. My plan is to finish this first BSD at the end of April with a loss of a further 6kgs. I will then do 5:2 fasting for May (2kg target) and then back on BSD at the beginning of June. That’ll give me 4 more weeks of BSD and a target of a further 7kgs. 15kg total in the next 3 months. I started at 145kg, am 135.5kg today and by 1st July I will be 120kg for a total 4 month weight loss of give or take 25kg. I still need to lose another 20kg after that…

Hi out there,

I’ve only just joined and really have little idea of what I’m doing :-/
But I’m trying to take on board the key ideas though I haven’t the patience at this stage to count kj – or calories, as you say here. I’m Australian and all info on packets is in kj so it’s a bit frustrating cause 800 cal is so much easier to remember than 3347kj… I’ve rounded it to 3500 kj. My confusion means I still have to work out if I’m doing low-carb or the low cal diet… I’ve cut out virtually all carbs and just upped the protein and iron-rich foods (I’m iron-deficient), nuts, vegies and low sugar fruits. I’ve started reading some forum posts and it’s great to see so much support on here.

I got so excited about the prospect of doing something good for myself I’ve just jumped in. So much so, that I even posted a strawberry shortcake recipe on day 1 which I think is ok… But I’m not sure if it really IS either low-cal or low-carb. What made it hard to calculate is that I didn’t have all the packaging with the nutritional info. I researched similar products but the values vary a lot depending on brands. At least it tasted nice. I’m kind of horrified though because it’s already showing on the public side and I’m sure it needs checking by someone who understands this diet! What are the threshold values per serve to qualify for this?

Maybe I’m just vague today cause it’s Day 3 and I can’t stop thinking about carbs and the Easter eggs that were scattered around the house! I think I’ve lost 2kg already so I’ll just stick a “2kg” sign on the chocolate pile I made to help me focus and remember that I’m consciously making these off-the-cuff decisions to get me healthier NOW! 🙂
Oh yay. I feel better already 🙂

Cheers, Ros

I have been concentrating on reducing my carbs and the amount I eat, but today I used my fit it to start to record the calories and I have definitely been going over budget. Only by 200 calls which isn’t bad considering both what I used to eat and how much I have to lose.

As I have been starting to feel better -headaches gone etc- time to really concentrate on tracking my calories and carbs. What app is best? The book suggests my fitness app, does that have carbs as well as calories. My fit bit app has just calories but I should probably track both rather than just cutting out certain foods completely and assuming that will work.

On another note I have ordered some yoghurt on my groceries shop due today. Don’t know what I will think of the full fat stuff as previously and very rarely I would get the total 0fat and have with honey. Obviously no honey this time, just some berries. As I have said before following my going off chocolate I have found I don’t like sweet creamy foods, but if I keep the sweeteners down it would be good to have an alternative breakfast and to eat some dairy as I don’t want my calcium to be too low.

Hey JoD
Drink lots of water and take painkillers to deal with the headaches.
Make sure you get enough fat into your food to stave off what you feel as hunger but are in reality carbohydrate cravings.
By the end of the week you will be feeling much better. Best of luck.

Morning all,

I shall be joining you all properly on Sunday as that will be the end of my 8 weeks. I too will be continuing the diet until the plane takes off. Lost 20lb to date. Slightly disappointing, I’d hoped for 2stone. ah well, onwards and upwards – or downwards!

Morning lucia
I don’t think you’ll ever get straight, just deliciously curvy 😀
I can’t remember if you’re diabetic, but if you are, make absolutely sure you take care of that blister.
Have a great day.

Morning Lucia,

Re your cramps, you may need to up your salt intake a bit. If and when you already have cramps or to stave them off, get a bar of soap, any soap will do and put in in your bed, under the sheet so it doesn’t move about so much. Obviously down in the leg area!

I’m envious that you manage to get so many steps in each day, I don’t know how you do it? Even when I do ‘the walk’ by the river, up n down stairs at home and a walk round the shopping Mall, I’ve never really got abovr 7000 steps!

Hi Meredex
although the book doesn’t actually say much about ketosis, the generally accepted opinion is that 50 grams of carbohydrate or less per day will put you into that condition.
You’ll probably find this is easier than you previous diet with less side effects.
Good luck and keep us posted onn your progress.

Hi Hashimoto,
Thanks , glad you like my sense of humour.
Yesterday at lunch went for my long quick walk.
At my furthest distance from work, my heel came off, and as I changed my gait to accommodate the broken heel, I unbeknownst to me, rubbed a blister on the sole of my foot the size of London.
Flat brown shoes today, with brown skirt and cream blouse , limping a bit. But will still go for a walk.
I may get the foot bath sorry, the foot spa out and have a soak tonight.
Will I ever get straight?
Love Lucia
Xxxxx

Penny, the email didnt arrive, try again ?
strange one this morning, I did a pre bedtime blood test last night for no real reason. I was a little upset to see it was 6.6 as yesterday was really an ultra low carb day, but hey ho I’ve been here before.
Woke this morning and did my FBS expecting it to be up in the high 7’s to low 8’s.
6.6, absolutely no movement overnight. I happy danced all the way to the shower, a total distance of about 10 feet but it’s all exercise, right ?
To say I’m over the moon with that is an understatement, no late night fatty snack and just 1 metformin twice a day.
It just keeps getting better. 😀

Friday thank goodness.
Hoping for an early finish around 7pm.
I wanted to go shopping tonight at Iceland but beloved doesn’t and he has the car so I have to spend some of my precious weekend shopping.
Meeting up with a girlfriend on Saturday lunchtime for just a chat and a tea. We usually laugh and cry together, she is great.
Would like a lie in but also get up early and enjoy the early morning light. It’s usually sunny then when I get up it clouds over. Not fair.
Want to get on my pushbike and go around a few blocks, get the blubber going.
Lovevlucia xxx

Hi jpscloud
not quite the unsure person we met a short while ago eh ?
Your results for week 2 are excellent, I think you’re going to do very well on this eating plan and your story adds to all the other inspirational posts on the forums.
Well done and heres to the next 6 weeks.

Hi, day 1 on 800. I don’t have diabetes but want to lose 20kg. Sick of food ruling my life. I’m very motivated but have to say I’m soo hungry. Can’t stop thinking about food even tho I’m at work & busy. Also getting a headache. I know it’ll get easier but gee today is hard.

Hi Natalie,
your body is having to readjust, it’s been burning carbs for so long, it will scream out for them at first when they are restricted.
Good that you identified the feelings as cravings rather than hunger though.
Make sure you get plenty of fat into your daily food and drink lots of water, the cravings soon vanish.

Hi James
with your background you should breeze through this.
As Cherrianne says keep an eye on the fats as well as the carbs. It seems strange to most people but the fats are key to losing weight as you retrain your body to burning them instead of carbs.
Best of luck.

Thanks so much for the support and encouragement everyone, its much appreciated, good to know I can put it down to week 2/3 blues and not something I’m doing wrong. I will certainly get some ketosticks, to be sure though. Sorry to hear you’ve stalled too nikkioaks, hopefully we’ll both be reporting good losses soon. I agree shopping is so much easier -and cheaper – now. And I can hardly close my fridge door as it’s bursting at the seams with veg!

I have a question, again :-)…. Continuing to loose weight, but I wonder about what my skin around my tummy, waist etc will look like when I have reached my goal! Will I have ugly flabby skin hanging around to remind me of my old big me? Until now, have never lost anything significantly to speak of, so I have no idea what will happen to my skin. Will it shrink too? I recently turned 57, so my skin is not thaaaat elastic anymore… I imagine my tummy, when shrunk, will be like a deflated balloon? : When new, its nice and taught, when older and deflated will never return to its original new size again…. They are always bigger once you let the air out again ……… Any of you big loosers, sorry no offence intended :-)), have some advice on this? What is your experience?

Great decision Switzerland. Welcome to the BSD way of life. You’ve made a great start by planning well and having some trial runs. You are set for success, so keep posting and let us know your progress. Pretty soon you’ll be inspiring others. 🙂

I have just been to the shops and have bought some plain yoghurt for snacking, as well as some more milk. The protein powder I use is MusclePharm Combat Powder, Cookies and Cream flavour, which has 5g carbs per serving, and 25g protein. Thank you for your post 🙂

Hi James,
There are lots of people succeeding on here where other diets have failed them.
You should have more fat in your diet than you have planned, otherwise you will get hungry and be tempted to stray. Maybe add some plain yoghurt and full fat milk to your shake in the morning. Make sure your protein shake is low carb too, some of the whey based ones are quite high.
All the best, keep reading the posts for inspiration 🙂

my week 2 struggles are continuing into week 3. I’m just coming to the end of week 3 and have only lost 1.5 kg. have lost 5cms at the waist, and am definitely fitter, so that’s ok progress, but going to do a bit of tweaking.
Following the recipe sheets, I’ve been eating about 1000 calories a day, carbs around 20 – 30g. ( except for the days I know weren’t on plan). I’ll drop the calories to the 800, and continue to avoid sugar and simple carbs.
The day after gym days have not been good – so will experiment a bit with what and when I eat on gym days. ( not diabetic, so don’t test for blood sugar)
I’ve started, and I’m going to finish. It will be imperfect along the way, but that’s because it’s real. not quite as positive as many of the other posts, but hoping to encourage others who are not finding it easy. Having said that it is much easier to get through a shop without buying junk, and it definitely gets easier to just not eat the junk.
and thanks to the people who do post, especially the regulars – it is encouraging. for me it would have been very easy to just stop doing it, but reading the forums reminds me there are others out there in this as well.

Hi guys,
My name is James. This thread is going to be where I document what I am eating/how I am feeling for the next 8 weeks. My mum bought me the book and I read it in two sittings. About me – I am no stranger to diet and exercise, having completed multiple gym programs off Bodybuilding.com and yet, I always seem to put the weight back on. For example, 2 years ago I weighed 88.8 kg and did a 12 week gym program, and got back down to 70kg, obviously with eating the right things, and when reading the book I saw a correlation with the diets there, the only thing that was different was that there were more carbs in the gym diet, meaning I would only lose 1kg/week if I was lucky. Problem is, I have put the weight back on and I am now 99.7kg and have a lot of fat around my midsection, which I would like to get rid of. Today is Day 1, and I have had a protein shake for breakfast (with skim milk) which came to around 255 calories, so 545 to go. I’m planning on going to the shops and getting some chicken breast and broccoli for lunch and dinner, which should hopefully take me close to the 800cal limit. I am not very fussy with food, and can usually eat the same foods day in day out. I love how varied the recipes are in the book, but I like to keep it simple so I will probably be sticking to my protein shake for breakfast/oats and then for lunch and dinner have chicken breast/thighs and broccoli/green veggies as my carb (they are fibrous carbs). I should mention that my father had prediabetes (he has since reversed it), so I was at risk of inheriting that, as I am about to turn 30 I feel that there’s no time like the present to not only get this part of my life in check, but to improve my mood.

Hi Judith, no you’re definitely not a freak. Apparently women have a keener sense of smell than men, so I often detect things my husband can’t. Like Inka I can smell a bushfire from miles away, and even detect ash on the wind if it’s been extinguished. Your sense of smell isn’t supposed to function while you’re asleep but I’ve woken to the smell of smoke and got up to check the CFS website to see if we are in danger.
I make the liquorice tea in a pot so it’s not too strong and drink it hot or cold. Some brands are very sweet. Twinings do a mint and liquorice which is nice but there’s a brand here called Madame Flavour that’s very sweet.

I did the BSD in a half-assed way earlier in the year and I can say that the weight I lost then DIDN’T just find me again straight away! I did slowly regain some while eating really badly for weeks, but it generally felt like that weight was properly gone and my set-point reset. Of course if you stop BSD and then eat unhealthily it will come back eventually, just as you would keep gaining weight if you never went on the BSD in the first place.

Yesterday was my day three as well and seemed much harder than the first two. I was hungrier and more tired. Unfortunately I gave in in the evening and had some leftover Easter chocolate, which means I have to go through all the cravings again in a few days.

BSD 800 log: Day 1. I’ve been exploring this new way of life for several weeks now. Read Dr Mosley’s book several times (so that the concepts sink in) and have even done a ‘preliminary run’ of BSD 800 for 2 days to prove to myself that I can do it (and I did). Having sailed through ‘choc fest’ last week-end with minimal damage, (remember Dr Mosley says in the book to have at least 6 weeks clear to undertake this) today is my day to commence the BSD 800 and indeed the BSD way of life.

Thank you to all forum members – your contributions to this space are valuable. I’ve been reading the forums for 2 weeks and all of the topics are helpful and motivating.

Congrats on the great news jpscloud, that’s really fabulous and I can only imagine how great you must feel after seeing those results. Really hoping this diet works for me and gets my results down too. I see it working for so many on here. Definite motivation there….again WELL DONE!

That’s great news too Cherrianne, I bet your mum was so pleased to see how well she’s done…….goes to prove no matter what age…this diet can work for everyone.

Congratulations on becoming a veteran cherrieanne – though it has felt as if you already had passed that line weeks ago 🙂

Lucia I’m in bed thinking I’ll just check my mail box before switching the light off but now I’m rolling around laughing out loud at that description. It’s exactly what would happen to me – I’m thinking of my younger days when a rather serious kind of guy was displaying his punting skills on the river in oxford trying to impress me and fell in, came back up with something in his hair still trying to look cool. I tried not to laugh, lucia, honestly i did. But the more I tried the more I laughed
Sleep tight and sweet dreams x

Well done on those great results and your big walk.
My mum had her results yesterday, taken a couple of weeks ago when she was about 5 weeks into the BSD. Her A1c was 5.9, so in the pre diabetic range and LDL cholesterol was down to 3.7. She doesn’t need statins any more. Blood pressure was great. Weight down 8 kg. She wears a fitness tracker and aims for 12,000 steps per day and usually exceeds it. Her GP and DN were really impressed with her results and the BSD. I’m so proud of her 🙂 She’s 75 and reversing type 2 diabetes!

Oh, and I found a pod cast with free casts for the 5:2 diet by a lady who has written several books.
Listening to that on the bus each day.
Also in my spare time, researching edward vi. Or Henry the eighths little boy, who became King and died at 15.
Love Lucia
Xxxx

Hi cat girl , are you sure you would turn jack away if he turned up for a cup of……. Strawberries?

Did you see the pride and prejudice with Keira knightly in, I liked her mr d’arcy.
Yup, I swooned several times especially at the end as he walked across the fields at dawn to propose to her.

Knowing my look he would stand in a cow pat and twist his leg down a rabbit hole. Get mud splashed all over his white shirt, then catch a cold with his shirt so open.
Oh well, now you see why I day dream.
Love Lucia
Xxx