Hi Lucia, I’m pleased to report that the sun is shining through my windows too. So far the third lot of washing has gone into the machine, the rest is happily, slowly flapping on the line.
Re miso, you can buy a box of little sachets in supermarkets, possibly cheaper then good old H and B!! It also has the advantage of knowing exactly how many calories you are having! All you do is tip the sachet in a mug and pour on boiling water. Simples! I can’t stand oxo cubes so all I can say is to me it tastes a million times better!!! I really don’t like salty food so I think you will be fine with the miso. The ones in sachets have tiny bits of Japanese style veg in it. The brand I get is called Clear Spring if that helps. I sometimes add bean sprouts to mine or little cubes of soya. Lucia, the dust!! How does it happen? I’m off to clean windows in a minute.

Oh and waking up at work times during holiday? I’ve been retired for over a year and I still do it!!! But I love not missing mornings like this – or as John Wayne once said ‘you’re burning daylight’ _ I wouldn’t want to do that lol

So Lucia, have a lovely weekend x

Hi, Mishmonkey,

I still use MFP even though it gives me a telling off for not consuming enough calories. I find it useful for tracking the carbs, fat and protein – and also for looking back on previous days to see what days menu works best for me.

Hi spirit,
Hey, did you have to tell me rain tomorrow?
Yes I will be out there soon.
Will have a wander in the fresh air. I have been doing it a lot recently.

Yes, I do feel different. I am trying not to weigh every day and live by my weight number, I am trying to enjoy the right foods, enjoy moving about and enjoy just ‘being’.

Okay, sod the dusting, I am just getting my shoes on, speak later.
Love Lucia
Xxxxx

Hi Inka, as the others have said, stick with it you WILL see the changes, you have to on this diet. Have a lovely weekend 🙂

Oh as well….

I was fascinated going into Holland and Barrett.
I nipped in when no one was on the door, keeping me out. The shop assistant yelled from the till, right across the empty shop to me, “are you all right there?” Now this expression confuses me every time I hear it.
I don’t like someone yelling at me, and yes do I look ‘not okay’? I would prefer, “may I help you?”
Now you have all started me off….
I hate going into restaurants or cafes with my hubby. “can I help you guys?”
I always say ” no, I am a girl, I am wearing a skirt”.

Anyway, getting back to hand b…..
The different types of vitamins and other tablets
The different types of nuts and seeds
The cereals, oats etc
Fruits like prunes etc
The huge tubs of diet whey ( you will have to explain that one to me)
Crackers oat biscuits.
Then there was bread without gluton, without flour, without yeast, without salt, without water, so surely it’s not bread then? This was far to technical for me yet.

It’s a great shop, but I will have to read up and ask you all for explanations before I buy from there.

So my first one is miso soup … See previous blog.

Love Lucia
Xxx

Newlife and Sharon, please don’t get stressed about the chocolatey weekend. If you do stumble and eat some then you will pick yourselves up, dust yourselves down and start all over again!

Newlife, whatever happens don’t stop posting!!! We are all here to support you. This is so much easier for those of us who have been on this diet for several weeks because you genuinely lose the desire to eat any of the brown crap!!! And I used to love the stuff!!

Can you both ask people to support you by not offering you any? If they do could you just sniff the chocolate and then ignore it? I know that sounds strange but smell and taste are strongly linked.

Hoping you both have a lovely weekend 🙂

Morning Lucia and happy Easter!

Never made miso soup so can’t help with that. Well done though on this ‘diet’ you are doing really well.

And sod the dust/housework, today it’s sunny and made to enjoy the good outdoors. Tomorrow it will rain!

Hi everyone,
As it is a bank holiday, I am off work. Instead of waking up at 5:30am I woke up at…. 5:30am. So I read the blogs on the website.
The sun is streaming through the windows, it truly is a spring Easter morning…… Boy can I see the dust on the telly , hang on…….. That’s better…… Oh the mirror over the fire…… Oh, the clock,,…….. Oh the coffee table………
Sorry, got carried away by the dust.
Yes, this diet, Ha!! That’s no diet, it’s great. It is wonderful. I am now addicted to Fage yoghurt, full fat. It’s so thick you could grout the bathroom tiles with it 😄😄😄😄😄
I bought it in morrisons.

I have a question for you all.
I went into Holland and Barrett and saw miso soup paste in a glass jar.
Do I use it like an oxo cube?
Eg a teaspoon full in boiling water, with say a little ham And pak choi? (hark me, I sound so with it, don’t I?)
I want something simple for clear, tasty soup.
Is it really salty like oxo cubes?
I used to enjoy an oxo in a mug of hot water a long time ago, but it’s lost it’s beefiness and is very salty now.

See, I need you all to help me.
Love Lucia
Xxxxx

Really well done Reideen, like you feeling great this morning, the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and feeling wide awake which is a new feeling, happy Easter to all as well🐣

Thanks for your responses, Monkeyescapade and Julie18togo!
I use FitnessPal too and yes, I like it too. I will wait with rhe meaurements and will soldier on. Everyone’s success is sooo encouraging and it is good to know that others also encounter the same issue, worries and disappointments… But the main thing seems to be to keep going which has always been a problem in the past for me. I am beginning to get used to not eating the yummy crispy role or sourdough slice with butter on it :-0… I dont really have a sweet tooth, its the carbs, especially pasta and any shape and form of potato… I just love the starchy stuff….but I am learning to live withour it…. Keep your fingers crossed for me for Monday’ s weigh-in. Hope you all are doing well. Happy Easter everyone … Wishing you all the strengths to resist the easter eggs!!!! Will let you know how I went on Monday!

Happy Easter to all!!

Thank you for your lovely support messages on other parts of the forum.

Well Easter and family time. We are due to out for breakfast out then a meal out tonight at an Indian!!! Then Sunday it’s a roast day with one of my favourite puddings !!

Working out do I give myself a pass for these too days and not feel guilty as I know I will slip

I weigh myself every day and 2 pounds on overnight!! I’m gutted!! Really wanted the stone before Easter but now it seems impossible

Least no chocolate eggs this year!

Anyone got any recommendations for Indian food ??

Can’t take spice very well

As for breakfast I know my weakness is toast. I don’t have a lot but I know if it’s on the plate I can’t say nooooo

Any advice anyone??

BSD going fine so far a bit of a headache yesterday but drank loads of water and had a walk so it went. Feelling great this morning so looking forward to the day ahead. Hope you all have a wonderful Easter👒👒👗👗

I think that most preserves use either sugar or vinegar as the preserving agent. You can ferment some veg but I think cucumbers will be too watery for fermentation. Can you add them to a smoothie? Just sowed some seeds this week – lots of greens and my asparagus under cover is showing it’s head.

Hi there Inka and other friends – I can totally relate to your frustrations, felt a little down in the dumps myself this week as my waist inch loss got off to a flying start in the first week, 2 inches lost, the following week fluctuated down to 34 inches and now in my third week is back to 35 inches. I also came across scales at the gym in the hotel I am staying at earlier this week so took the plunge and weighed myself – first time since I set off travelling in January – I was so shocked and upset to see I weighed in at 66kg, the heaviest I have ever been – what was even more worrying was the fact that I have already been on the low carb diet for 3 weeks so goodness knows what I weighed three weeks ago. Anyway, thankfully am reigning it in now so it is hopefully, onwards and downwards! I am using myfitnesspal to record everything I eat/drink, am finding it a useful tool. I have also taken advise of many forum members in measuring/recording other body parts too like hips, chest, neck, arms. In various research I have done I’ve picked up is that one shouldnt measure waist (or other body parts) daily – advice is every few weeks or once a month – so I am going to leave it 3 weeks before I get my tape measure out as I find it too soul destroying to see my waist at a static 35″. I’ve pasted below the advice on measuring from myfitnesspal.
Onwards and downwards my friends.

To help track your progress, you should record your weight periodically. We suggest once a week because your weight fluctuates daily due to uncontrollable factors like water. Try to always weigh yourself at the same time of day – we suggest early in the morning before breakfast.

Taking your measurements can be an even better gauge of your progress because when you burn fat and build heavier muscle, your weight may not change or even increase even though your body is tighter and smaller. We suggest taking your measurements every 2-4 weeks.

Hi Newlife
I am worried about the weekend too, I don’t know how strong I am yet. Chocolate was my downfall I used to eat so much of the stuff. We are doing an Easter egg hunt with our 5 grandchildren and have lots of family over, it is going to be so hard for me to resist. If I do have any(I am hoping I don’t) it will be one day that I have a blib I will get right back on track,

Awake since 4am – worrying about the choc-fest. I’ve made such a good start and I really don’t want to spoil it. Danger time starts tomorrow so if you guys don’t hear from me you can assume I’ve fallen head-first into a vat of chocolate.

Inka- well done for what you have achieved so far. I would certainly stick with it as I didn’t see the results in my waistline initially. I certainly do now (11kg lost) but the extra fat first disappeared from my upper back, arms and thighs as well. It’s only 8 weeks (depending on your starting weight it might not even need this long?) and I feel and look so much better than before. I am one of those who has tried so many times to lose weight and this is without doubt the easiest way and safe too.

Hi Libby,
No need to do without bread, we live in the Lucky Country lol!! Google Herman Brot bread and find a supplier near you. It’s a bit pricy at around $6.50 a loaf, but at 111cals & 2.3g carbs you can indulge. It’s delicious and freezes well. Dark, moist, seeded real bread. Enjoy.

Thanks, Hashimoto.
Good advice. I’ll keep it in mind as things progress.
I hope your asthma stays controlled. Strangely, mine calmed down when I moved to a rural area surrounded by pollens and dust from trees and grasses. I wonder if the constant exposure helps. Fresh air can’t hurt.

Don’t worry if your ketostix aren’t showing the colour you would like. It can be for various reasons such as the time of day that you take the test (later in the day supposedly has better results). The important thing to remember about them, and why so many ketogenic diets tell you that their usefulness is very limited (but encouraging in the early stages) is that ketostix measure EXCESS ketones- if your body has used up all the ketones that it makes then there will be nothing to show up. Good luck and don’t worry- I know I’m one of those that only ever shows up very mild pink if at all 🙂

Hi All, this coming Monday, will be the end of week 3. So far I lost 4.8kg. Had a few social things going on this week, but tried to stick to the plan. When I weight in last week, i kind of felt lighter, and the scales confirmed this. I also measured my waist again, but there was no change…. How can that be? Am I loosing from elsewhere? I thought the waist would shrink first?… I am a bit worried sbout my weigh-in this Monday, because I dont have that skinner feeling this time… If a couple of glasses of red wine a one meal out, Chinese … and no, I didnt eat the rice and only picked out steamed vegies and the meat with my chopsticks, will make such a difference resulting in no weight-loss for my week 3, then I dont know if this will work for me…. I am at a stage where I have been so many times before: I go well for a couple of weeks, then the doubting Thomas syndrome gets me, I fall of the wagon, and start saying to myself: Why are you putting so much effort in when it does not work anymore… and then I get all frustrated and angry with myself and, yes you guessed right, go for the chocolate or anything I can find, all the bad stuff of course… Any idea how to overcome this if Monday’s weigh-in is no good? I know I should not be doubtfull before I stepped on the scales, but I am usually pretty right and understand what my body is telling me…. Could you hit a plateau in only eeek 3? Otherwise, I am fine… No headaches or cravings or hunger etc…. I want that skinnier feeling back …:-(

I am looking at my vegie garden, planted well before I started this diet, (corn on the cob is calling me -dunno what to do with all those on a low carb diet?) and wondering whether anyone can recommend recipes for a lower carb preserve for all my cucumbers that are ready at once. The stream of cucumber has been a go-to vegetable all summer, fantastic for quick, easy salads, but what to do with the last batch all ready at once? Most chutneys are high in sugar, and I don’t eat a lot of the purely vinegarish-pickle type of preserve. Are there pickles I can make with cucumbers that are more chutney-ish?
I also have a huge number of chilli I need to use, and last years sweet chilli sauce, while very tasty, is probably not the right thing to stock the cupboard with! I have made some green chilli paste, but that isn’t a longer term keeper, so recommendations welcome please.

Hi Leeanne,
Try reducing your morning dose first because you may find that your liver pumps out extra sugar during your overnight fast and your metformin should control that. If you can get your two hour post meal blood sugars under 7.8 consistently, then have a go at reducing the night dose.
Reduce the morning dose again and see
what happens.
Once your fasting level is stable under 7 you should be ok to drop the night time dose. Don’t worry if your levels rise again, see the thread on ‘rising fasting blood sugar levels’. It’s happened to many of us but it does pass.

Thanks, Nic, you really seem to have made the diet work for you and planned it with military precision!
It does show that there can be flexibility in this diet and it still works.

I’ve fallen off the wagon these last few days and I’m feeling really yukky. Eating for the sake of eating.
You’ve inspired me to get back on track! Thank you.

Cherrianne I think I shouldn’t have read this late at night, salivating! After Easter I’m heading off to buy kit and create a soup kitchen 😀

Cherrieanne it is so easy to get side tracked onto this subject. I was stuck in a traffic jam this afternoon and watched in horror as an obese mother with half a dozen obese children walked past each with a family sized bag of junk – and that included the toddler in a pushchair. I wanted to jump out of the car and preach, well grab the junk and bin it if I’m honest.

Well done bill, you’re really spreading the word. I love that your wife can show off your fridge of healthy food – perhaps we should all follow her lead!

I confess to being a supermarket trolly peeker too

It’s happened to me too – I’m guessing it’s the higher fat doses, something my body is not used to.

Hi Nic,
Soups are a great idea, so filling and nutritious for very few carbs and calories. You can make soup out of just about anything. A stick blender or processor will make it thick and creamy in no time. Add some sour cream or yoghurt to boost the fat/ protein content and the satiety factor.
You can have a really nice soup in less than 30 minutes if you chop the vegetables finely enough. If you want to add dried legumes it takes a bit longer of course, but I keep a few cans of lentils and beans just in case I’m in a hurry. 🙂

Lol, no problem Cherrianne! Wow, you still have Woolies…

Hey Bill, good work spreading the word. You are living proof of the fact this diet works. All your contacts would see you shrinking before their eyes, they would see for themselves your extra energy too.
I always look in other people’s trolleys too. Can’t help myself, it’s way more fun looking and speculating than flicking through the trashy mags on display.
One thing makes me sad though is seeing the number of OAPs with loads of pot noodles instead of real food. That used to be the age group you could guarantee would have fresh fruit and veg and unprocessed meat and fish. The other ones are the obese Mums, with overweight kids who are each tucking into family sized packs of cheesy, salty twirly things before they’ve even gone through the checkout.
Our Woolies over here in Aus has a stand near the entrance with free fruit for kids. It usually has a great selection of three or four kinds of fruit and helps keep them quiet while you shop. Great idea.
Our nearest large shopping centre has a pop up Jamie’s Ministry of Food and it was great to look in there yesterday and see a group of young girls learning to cook omelettes cooked with fresh ingredients! Also great to see in an area that is quite welfare dependent with a growing obesity problem.
Oops, seem to have climbed back up on my soapbox and derailed the thread! Sorry folks, just that having 5 kids and a lifetime of working in health care does make me really conscious that a lot of chronic diseases can be prevented with good nutrition. Ok better quit while I’m ahead 🙂

Well I tried them on early but they went on a lot better than they did before the diet!!!!
Incentive to keep it up 😀 still need more room in them for comfort but can’t believe the zip goes up after this short time. Headaches gone sticking mostly to white meat and fish with salads or stir fry. Berries and plain yoghurt for treat and omelette for breakie. Good luck everyone 😉

Hi susieb

Thank you, so far so good. In answer to your question I have had a bad and limited diet for a long time. I had to eliminate that first and it took time to think about it, what I wanted to achieve and most importantly why. I have followed the principle of the diet while not embracing all the recipes! Too many years of plain eating make some unpalatable. I eradicated bread, rice (almost completely), potatoes and pasta. I retained the good vegetables and salads. I don’t eat any processed meat. I need to limit cholesterol so I have one or two eggs a week only. I eradicated the bad fruit but enjoy healthy doses of strawberries, blueberries and clementines/mandarins – the perfect breakfast for me. And it works for me.

What I need to do is start making my own soups to avoid salt spikes and reduce further processed food intake.

Cheers
Nic

Judith

Me too

Judith
I have reported it.

Good news re the scales Denise! 🙂

Thanks julia, the plateaus then drops seem to be a feature for a lot of us and well done on ignoring the choccy eggs 🙂

Denise i reported his post as soon as it popped up. The more of us that report the better. Sounds like he/she is getting pretty scared about something

Well said Denise47

Denise of course we will. As soon as it goes ‘live’ everyone will be able to sign it. We are just waiting for it to be checked. The site shuts the petition temporarily once there are 5 supporters. Can’t wait, denise!. It sounds like you could be a one woman mission! You are really going to get the ball rolling with your contacts!

I think it will take a lot to change minds , we have all been brainwashed for so many years 🙂

Hashimoto I stood on the scales and have stayed the same…phew. Glad I got on there now.

Back to work tomorrow so back to reality!

PS Happyslappy – please stop posting negative messages on here. Your spelling and grammar alone make me cringe, let alone what you are saying. I am certainly not looking at this as a quick 8 week fix and then go back to my old ways, and I don’t believe anyone else posting here is that naive either. Your opinion is noted now please respect ours and politely do one 👉

Yes Judith, and all others here, let’s continue with our POSITIVE messages and continue to make progress. I was out tonight and resisted the chocolate eggs which passed under my nose several times – and have had a good few days on stricter track so hoping my plateau might become a downward line again.
Thanks for your work on the petition.

We will, and as so many people are saying on the forum, this is a lifestyle change that is sustainable.

Can I come and sign the petition too! You are all so wonderful and supportive! Inspirational! I’ll get friends and family to sign too, and I run a lung cancer charity so will get a couple of the doctors who are trustees to sign it too!

Things have to change and we can help that happen.

My Sister-in-law is a dietician….if she tells me once more to eat low fat yogurt I swear I’ll be serving a 25 year stretch inside!

Leeanne, my OH’s fbs was 26 and they tried to control that with a low fat diet.
She now controls it with metformin, gliclazide, exanatide injections, and insulin.
The tragedy is, she honestly believes she has it under control.

Julia nothing to be sorry about, I was out a lot myself and the rejection was sat in my inbox for a while. We have to have our normal lives lol.

Folks the petition is currently been checked again. Hopefully it will pass this time and we can get down to business. 🙂

Surprisingly enough they are, and that gives yours truly the opening to preach the BSD bible.
Lots of folk showing interest too.
I also have plumbers at work asking about it and 2 of the sales girls at a supplier and one of their mums are actually doing it

Isn’t it lovely to be able to go out and stay with the principles of the diet? The more we all post events like that the more reassurance it gives to others. Hope you all had a lovely evening 🙂

Sorry have been out all day just got in and signed now!

Signed Judith
Been out with the family for dinner and I was very good 🙂