Meant 30 years with digestive problems, not 30 problems!

A mint tea bag in fizzy water with a dash of lime is quite a good ‘mohito’ too!

Hi Lynne
I have just switched my skimmed milk latte to a soya milk latte and found its actually really nice. I don’t even need to have my usual three sweeteners in it as it has a lovely creamy taste which is nicer than before.

The one thing I do miss these days is pepsi max (again, I am trying to cut out the artificial sweeteners rom my life) but I am just about ribbing along on fizzy water with a fruit teabag in it. You have to jiggle it a bit to get the flavour to release and it is very subtle, more of a fragrance than a taste.

The other thing I do is drink straight tap water in a tiny glass (I guess its a breakfast juice size glass). There are only three mouthfuls in each one so it stops me being over-faced by the thought of it. I try to have one every other time I pass through the kitchen. You should find that the more water your body gets, the more it will want to get, so building up in baby steps is easier than tackling a pint at a time.

Have stuck to 800 really easily…no slip ups…not diabetic etc and not even a slight movement of that scale indicator!!!
Fingers crossed…any ideas?? Have been drinking water and fibre foods too…

Hello. I’m not an expert but have lived for 30 problems with a lot of digestive problems, you do in the end just think well this is it and I have to live with it. I was told I had IBS at 20 and they just took out my gall bladder just for the sake of it. I continued with many problems after eating foods from severe pains and upset stomachs. Since finding out yes certain foods are related to IBS, like onions and garlic, major pain. Also saturated fats, at Xmas friends cooked lovely roast but all in duck fat, well we do live in France, they love duck products. Dire problems and very sick. With IBS they say fats cause you major problems, saturated ones that is. Look at Fodmap diet, very restrictive but some things really help if you cut them out. I have a gluten intolerance, again you could look into intolerances too, especially lactose if cream causes you pain, it might not be an allergy but intolerances are different, but are still very painful. I have never got to the exact cause of issues, but also stress and depression cause a lot of these pains too. Anyway I hope you get some answers soon, good luck.

I’m in week 5. So far I’ve lost 23 pounds. Really pleased with the results. My plan is to lose 5 stones. The hardest bit I’ve found is lunchtime as I’m a sales rep and in the car Monday to Friday. I get around that by taking the “ploughmans” lunch option. There have been times when I’ve not stuck exactly to recipes as I don’t have time or maybe don’t have all the ingredients. You get to know what you can and can’t eat. Got another 4 weeks and hopefully lose another stone or so. Then I’ll switch to a Mediterranean style diet and get out on my bike and back to being slim …. can’t wait !

Hi everyone.
It has been invigorating to read all the success stories and truly believe the Mediterranean diet with exercise is the best lifestyle choice. Well done to all who have and continue to see improvements in their weight and health,!!!

I have just started my 5th week (more detail are attached to my profile which you can view by clicking on my user name) but feeling a little low as I have only lost 2 inches around my belly button measurements and 11 lbs in total.

I am trying to adjust my mindset and be positive as this is all a step in the right direction but I can’t seem to be able to shift in to positivity! Having read bsd book, I now realise, I most definitely set my expectations too high and hoped to loose 20-24 lbs in 8 weeks but it is likely I will loose around 16 lbs.

Has anyone else had high expectations and is finding the weight loss slow and if so what changes did you make to help/overcome?
What do you plan to do after eight weeks follow the 800 till you hit your goal weight or something else’s?

I have not been diagnosed with diabetes and embarked on this journey to bring my weight down rapidly and then follow the med diet with a one day a week “carb treat” of bread, pasta or potato ( I miss my jacket potato)! I cannot decide whether I should continue with 800 after 8 weeks. I have enjoyed daily 12 hour fast (16 at weekends), whereby I finish eating at 8pm and then eat again till 8am… I will continue to do this. I have also enjoyed eating more veg (usually with protein) but what I have missed most is fruit, peaches, pineapple, mango, melon, kiwi, grape fruits and pears… All replaced with berries and occasional orange or grapefruit.

Please share your thoughts if you too are slowing down on weight loss and fast approaching the 8 week milestone.
Many thanks
Anita

Hi, unfortunately that’s a big problem for me I really don’t drink nearly enough, I am trying adding fruit to water, I’ve got a soda stream so I’ve fizzy water on tap, but I just don’t like water (previously I’d have orange squash, such a bad habit!!). I limit myself to one cappuccino (made with skimmed milk) a day now and have herbal tea, so any recommendations to “jazz up” water would be appreciated👍
On the milk note, I’m not sure I should be having it although it’s only half a cup?

Sarah you will be amazed but soon you will lose the need for sweeet things – honest
It depends on what facilities you have at work but if you have a microwave or some other way of heating food the possibilities are huge.
I’m just polishing off an omelette that I made this morning and reheated. Over the last few weeks I have used meals that we cooked up, portioned, and froze. Chicken broth, lentil soup, home made curry etc.
I’ve also use cottage cheese or humus with celery and pepper dipping strips, tinned mackeral with salad etc. Your diet is bound only by your imagination
Inka keep on with the discussions, we love it on here.

Hi guys
I’m going to ask you all something but I’m not holding out much hope of a successful resolution as I haven’t managed to achieve that in more than 30 years!

Ever since I was 10, I get terrible stomach pains (and I mean in my stomach, not bowel or kidneys, but right up in my rib cage). They almost always start after eating and go on for hours. Paracetomol and codeine are the only painkillers that have any effect on it. I have had many explorations done, lots of theories from period pains (!) to indigestion. The doctors have been useless (if we have any doctors in the forums I’d love to hear about any other possibilities). The only thing I can get any correlation with is eating fatty food – cream always sets me off the worst. But I have had an ultrasound for gallstones (which I had to beg for) and that came back clear.

I have done ok so far on this programme, perhaps because I have stuck to mainly unsaturated fats. Until yesterday that is, when, in my quest for ketosis, I had scrambled eggs made with butter (even my dog was salivating) and then salmon with veggie mash with butter. Boy, did the pain come back with a vengeance! I eventually fell into a codeine-induced sleep at about 2am.

As this is the biggest and most diverse group of people I have ever had the privilege to communicate with, I thought I’d ask, is it just me? Or do other people have a similar intolerance? I have never met anyone else like me (no surprise there) but 30 years of the same undiagnosed pain is getting a bit boring now. Are there any nutritionists, doctors, healers of any kind or fellow sufferers out there who might be able to shed any light?

I’m thinking I might have to try sticking to unsaturated fats so butter and other dairy fats may still be off the menu for me. Shucks.

Here I am describing all about Mediterranean Diet Plan.

Mediterranean Diet Plan accentuates eating foods like:

>>Fish
>>Vegetables
>>High-fibre Bread
>>Whole Grains
>>Nuts and Olive Oil
>>Cheese
>>Meats and Sweets

These foods are the rich source of monounsaturated fats, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids.

Along with these, all you must follow the below given also.

–Eat Fish like salmon, tuna, lake trouts and herring at least 2 times a week.
–Eat a moderate amount of poultry and eggs weekly.
–Limit the Intake of Red Meat to only a few days in a month
–Limit the sweet dish to only a few times of the week.

>>Mediterranean Diet also includes Red Wine with 1 glass every day for women and 2 glasses for men.

If you need to know more you may visit: http://www.healthenigma.com/mediterranean-diet

Hi Denise47 Jones
I’d be really interested to hear how your shift goes, 12 hours is a long time when you have to try and fit in low calorie meals. If like a lot of us it is easy to ‘grab’ something to eat but often not good and on this diet it is likely to be totally off limits! My habit of a handful of grapes to help when I want sweet things has to go!

Thanks everyone, for your friendly Welcome. Regarding the media campaign you think should start. After reading all about the bad things which could happen if one develops diabetes, and often does not know until one has symptoms which can’t be ignored, I became more interested in what the medical researchers, scientists and scholars have to say about diabetes and how to treat or cure it: It seems that the jury is still out with many advocating for medication and not so many who suggest life style and nutrition changes only. It seems that this diet is viewed as controversial even though research and numerous medical trials indicate that diabetes is reversible with a low carb diet like this one. It does not make sense to me that so many doctors seem to want to prescribe a pill rather than supporting a patient’s life style changes? Michael Mosely states in his book more than once that many GPs are reluctant or sceptical about this diet. If it makes you better and healthier, than why not support it? I am not a medical person by any means, but common sense tells me that any improvement with minimum intervention is good, right? I understand that anyone on medication who goes on this diet should be monitored by a doctor because their insulin levels change which will have an effect on dosage, it would be nice if doctors would be more willing to embrace innovation in medical science as long as it does not harm anyone, of course. There are some who will support it, and I hope more and more will see the benefits especially when they see the results in their patients. Anyway, we all know why we are doing what we are doing and I whole-heartedly wish everyone a safe and successful weightloss journey! We all need this to get healthy,, and I, like all of you have embarked on this challenge, not because I want to join another diet fad, but because I want to be healthy and enjoy life again. I am not that old, but because I am so overweight, I often feel like I am 100, and to some extend disabled, because I cant move the wsy I ought to….. and I am sick of huffing and puffing when I have to change the linen on my bed :-(… Thanks for listening, just tell me to shut up if I get too annoying … I like discussions :-0

Hi fluffyslippers

I was stuck for almost the entire week last week, but right at the end dropped 2lb and an whole inch from my waist. This week, I am not worrying quite so much about not seeing the scales progress downwards every day, as you can’t fail to lose the weight eventually, if you are sticking to the 800 cals. Stay with it, as the collective wisdom is it will happen and plateaus have to be expected and endured – good luck!

Hello Denise47 Jones

Welcome, I have just started today, and sorry to say I don’t have any answers for you but appreciate your difficulty. I have just posted, (First four hours!), and will have a similar problem when I return to work in a few days time. So like you would appreciate any ideas people have.

Good luck!

Hi Larpent,
You’re off to a great start. Welcome to the forum. There’s another member, Aly, who also lives in France. There’s a few gluten intolerant members too.
As most of us are avoiding the easily digestible starches you’ll find lots of recipes using alternate flours, that would be beneficial to you.
There has been much discussion about counting carbs, some people do, others don’t but are still experiencing success following the recipes in the book.
The consensus seems to be around 50g of carbs per day , or under is the way to go.
Your sugar cravings will disappear on this diet. It has surprised many of us that it happens, and usually very quickly.
Keep posting, everyone loves to follow other people’s achievements, it inspires and encourages the next person.

Hi All, I am new to the forum and only started the diet on Monday this week. My starting weight was 🙂 96kg and this morning it was 94.2kg. I am amazed at this result on day 3! Invested in electronic scales which automatically send my weight readings straight to my fitness app. Which is really good, because sometimes my recollection of what I weighted in the morning until I have time later on in the day, to tecord it, gets a bit hazy. … But with my new scales, no room for error any more :-). Wishing everyone the best results ever! I am really glad that I started this and that I ssem to finally have found a diet that works and will make me feel better and healthier… Have not told my family what I am doing…. They want me to loose weight and be healthy, but I had soooooo many new “5starts on Mondays” that they no longer believe me that I will stick to this diet. So I will just show them. 🙂

Anyone else doing this that works shifts? I do 3 x 12 hour day shifts (7.30am – 7.30pm) and a 12 hour night shift (7.30pm – 7.30am), and then have four days off. Today is my first day doing this in work, but my 4th day on the diet so need coping strategies! It doesn’t help that there is a buffet here today for a leaving do – but I will resist!!

Hi Onamission
I started this on Sunday as I too am not diabetic, but have serious issues with Carbs and Sugar too. I already feel better – I suffer with indigestion and hearburn and this has already improved, and my energy levels are better. Today is my first day in work though (12 hour shift) so we’ll see how today goes!
Good luck

Welcome to the forums Inka! I felt the same when I did the diabetes assessment. I know how horrendous diabetes can be as I have a friend with renal problems and the renal ward usually has a lot of diabetics who have lost limbs and are often blind as well. It certainly scared the life out of me – I really don’t want to get it – so I am eating this way for life!!! Bill is right – there really should be a lot more media coverage about this and a massive campaign. I really hope it happens fast.
Good luck on this journey, we’re all in it together! 🙂

Hi GiCo, I’ve had friends round and managed using the diet recipes. One suggestion:

starter: either the grapefruit ,avocado cheese dish or avocado bacon lettuce cups or veggie soup

Main : home made curry with chickpea flour flatbreads or cottage pie with cauli topping

Dessert: yoghurt with berries or coconut flat breads with cream and berries.

I’ve tended to save up my calories and had very small portions OR I skip the starter and use the excuse of frying the flatbreads fresh so they are hot to have with a curry. For dessert I’ll have just a few of the berries.

People have really enjoyed these kind of meals – they don’t even notice the lack of carbs!! If one of your guests is diabetic they will feel a difference!!
Good luck!! 🙂

Hi Inka you bring up a good point
For years the public has had no understanding of the disease. When I was a kid if you knew someone who had it you said “oh he’s got sugar” and that was it.
It wasn’t until a friend of my dad’s who had it died after having various body parts amputated that it hit home just how serious this could be.
Sadly I know only too well how bad retinopathy can be, neuropathy and gangrene are also major risks apart from little personal effects that you don’t mention. The old adage “a diabetic wants to die with both eyes and both feet still intact” rings true
It’s about time that there was a massive media campaign in the same way as they do for cancer to inform people not only about the disease but to suggest ways of putting it right.
After all this is a world wide epidemic now and it needs to be dealt with ASAP
They say the human race is destroying the planet, we’re not doing too shabby a job on destroying our health!

Hi
I thought in the book it said you could store your info on this website, weight, measurements etc. (can’t remember which page). Anyone has any ideas please?

Worst ones will have a clickable link, others just a product name.
You can report if you wish, I did notice the last diet pill quack had their post removed.

Welcome Inka, those are impressive results 🙂 you are certainly taking the right steps to prevent any future issues with diabetes.

Well I’ve been blissfully ignorant about all that, thank you Bill for explaining. Devious means of promoting their own interests. So do we report those posts, ignore them, and how can you tell it’s a backlink? Is it just that they mention a diet or product?
So glad you’re on the ball Bill 🙂

Yes, I have. Started on Monday. Was 96kg and this morning I was 94.2kg. Cant believe this seems to be working. I must have just about tried all the diets under the sun to no avail. Its early early days though, but I am determined to loose. I have not been diagnosed with diabetes, but after reading all the indicators about pre-diabetes in the book, this could be me. My waist circumference and BMI speak volumes. Pretty scary what diabetes can do to you! I am looking forward to sharing my progress with you and hear about yours 🙂

Hello Everyone

I’m a great fan of Michael Mosley and got his book yesterday, haven’t read it all yet, (I will) but I wanted to get started today so the first day or two will probably be a bit of a traction time as I adjust my fridge content!
So far today I’ve not eaten anything yet…. normally by now, (10.30am) I will have had my homemade muesli and possibly be thinking about a snack to keep me going until lunch, I have drunk lots!
I’m at home for a few days so can make some of the recipes which look great so thank you for those and I will aim to freeze things that I can.
I am concerned about when I return to work, I work in a hotel restaurant and we get fed, which is great but…… some of the shifts are long and one or two days a week you may not have access to food for 4 – 5+ hours, (always have drinks available). On those days I fill up on a large breakfast at work, understandably I want to change that but it is a very hot and busy environment and I can’t afford to start feeling lightheaded etc. The other issue is you can’t eat the same time each day because of times you start work. In the past when time is short I have used milkshake replacements, (a very famous slim….t diet company). Will it still be okay to use these sometimes or will it defeat the object of the diet? I love veg, raw and cooked so will still be able to eat those at some point during the day and can get the protein from meat and fish etc… it will however be rather difficult to know how many calories I’m getting, hence the milkshake replacement would help me to count the calories.
Thank you all for being here with your suggestions and great support of others…… I’m off to get breakfast now!

thank-you 🙂 an yes, I was bouncing off of the walls yesterday when I did my weigh in yesterday. I was even more shocked when I went to get changed later in the day for a meeting and found what I had planned to wear was too big – and I got into some ‘motivation buys’ from the sales that were meant for the autumn and are a full dress size smaller! Although not prediabetic, by blood sugar was high and about to get into that range, yesterdays FBS was 5.0 mmol/day. This really does work!

Hi olisue
one of the posters on here , captainlynne contacted the team about this and they said that it’s ok to continue past the 8 weeks if you are feeling ok. I know hashimoto is continuing and so will I when the time comes as I have more weight to lose.

He he
the body does play some strange tricks doesn’t it ?
Your weight can vary by up to 4 lbs either way on any given day due to reasons only known to itself. That’s why I weigh just once a week same day same time. I haven’t quite got to that desperation point where I empty my pockets and virtually srtip off in the chemists before getting weighed 😀

Love getting new ideas from this.
Today’s plan
B blueberry green tea shake
L Cheesy beans
D ginger lime soy salmon with spiral veggies.

So here’s a thing. Lost 10lbs in first two and a half weeks, then nothing, up a pound, down a pound. Fell “off the wagon” at the weekend (week5) and had a couple of glasses of wine and two chocolates (could only manage 2 they tasted so sweet!) weighed myself this morning and I’m down two pounds! I walked more as we had sunny but cold weather. Go figure as they say

Good luck Polly! It’s my first day today too. Really didn’t need my youngest getting up at 4.30am and not going back to sleep! Still, so far so good but it is only 10am!

Hope it goes well. Great that your husband is doing it too.

Hi everyone. I’m 6 weeks into the diet and I’ve lost 22lbs so far. I have to confess that I’m not diabetic or even pre diabetic but since turning Vegan 2 years ago I have relied too heavily on carbs and gained a lot of weight. Anyway i’m made up with my weight loss so far and I’m actually really enjoying this diet.

I want to lose more weight. 4 stone in total would be ideal. I plan to take a couple of days off the diet at the end of the 8 weeks (I won’t go mad, just not count calories for a couple of days) and then start another round of 8 weeks on 800 cals a day. This is not what is recommended in the book so I would love to know what you all think and has anyone else done a lot more than 8 weeks?

Thanks in advance xxx

Hi everyone. I’m 6 weeks into the diet and I’ve lost 22lbs so far. I have to confess that I’m not diabetic or even pre diabetic but since turning Vegan 2 years ago I have relied too heavily on carbs and gained a lot of weight. Anyway i’m made up with my weight loss so far and I’m actually really enjoying this diet.

I want to lose more weight. 4 stone in total would be ideal. I plan to take a couple of days off the diet at the end of the 8 weeks (I won’t go mad, just not count calories for a couple of days) and then start another round of 8 weeks on 800 cals a day. This is not what is recommended in the book so I would love to know what you all think and has anyone else done a lot more than 8 weeks?

Thanks in advance xxx

Best of luck Pollyjones
Don’t be nervous, the diet is a breeze after the first few days when you may experience some mild side effects which are easily combatted.
You have the extra support of having your husband as a diet buddy but if you need any help at all just shout.
The BSD forum is full of willing helpers.
Be sure to keep us informed of your results as you move through this exciting new lifestyle.

I guess not!

I found a website yesterday called Diet Doctor, he’s a Swedish feller. It talks about ketosis and about the low carb high fat diet. He’s from the same school of thought as Saint Dr Mosley and his discussion of exercise made me smile!

Hello, I am starting the diet today, I am lucky that my husband is doing it too. I have type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. I am determined to do something about it. I have all sorts of anxieties about keeping to the plan but the fridge and cupboards are clear.
Please wish luck.

😀
You see my aim wasn’t too bad
Not too shabby for a 62 year old 🙂

Last 3 months reading had gone up from 62 ( last year) to 71. I had put on 3 kilos due to being less careful following a bad ankle injury which limited my mobility for 4 months. Cholesterol is good (3.00) On pills for Blood Pressure after stroke 8 years ago.
I started 2 weeks ago, and have dropped from 77 kilos to 74 kilos Fasting sugar measurement this morning 64.
Am now resting doing a 5:2! Am looking quite thin! (5ft 8ins 11.6 stone in English!)
I have in mind 70 kilos but am not getting encouragement from a family of medics!
I have felt weak and a bit distant especially on my mountain bike adventures…typically 25 kilometres 200 ft of climbing, so usually stick to 10,000 step walks.
Tend to stick to same breakfast Bircher, and Cheesy Beans lunchtime. Mix it up for Dinner!
I think that I will get back on it ‘properly’ when the weather improves.
I am encouraged but need the sun on my back for the next bit! Not felt hungry on this but could do with a Glass of wine!

I’ve been on the BSD for 9 days now and have lost 3 kg. Very pleased by that loss. Enjoying the diet and have had some very tasty meals. Not even missing bread (my greatest weakness). However, we invited friends round for a meal at the weekend and I am struggling with what on earth to cook that will be nice for them and OK for me.

Morning Bill,
Yes, I finally have ketosis! Just0.5 which, according to my chart is a trace so I hope to see that improve with time and some tweaks to my diet. Your reading is medium on my chart which is about right for the number of carbs you are eating. The higher numbers come from a diet of 20grams of carbs or less.

Wow Orchid those are fantastic results for just over 4 weeks. You must be so proud.
There are a few veggies on here who have been posting recipes so maybe a bit more variety for you now.
Really looking forward to seeing your 8 week results Well done you !

Not easy to explain cherrianne but I’ll try
in order to get high rankings on google (page 1) a website has to have good content but it also needs recommendations from other sites. These come in the form of backlinks, either a URL or a product title published on another site will do it.
You now have a situation where thousands of so call SEO people (Search Engin Optimisation) are trawling the net trying to get backlinks for the sites that are paying them (and it is VERY well paid)
The best links come from sites that have the same general interest factor as the site you are getting the links for, hence we get them from the diet pill quacks and now pushers of alternative diets. Unfortunately, forums, especially unmoderated forums are seen as fair game.
that is a very brief nutshell version but you will get the idea

It’s so sad, Bill, that these type of trolls and leeches ( you’re right there. Cherrieanne ) can infiltrate our positive forums. As my mum would have said ‘fore warned is fore armed’ so glad you are knowledgeable about these things Bill

chubbypenguin, this is a fab post you started, but where have you gone since?

Breakfast (today) – small gammon steaklet with grilled tomato and baked beans (reduced sugar and salt)

Lunch – don’t have.

Dinner, smoked haddock with something or other.

Fluffyslippers be VERY careful, especially if you are diabetic. I once followed that diet and it did me no favours, and I put on more weight. If you hanker after bread try the two flat bread recipes in the recipes tab on this forum. This isn’t just an 8 week diet -it needs to be a way of life! 🙂

Cherrieanne until I read your post i assumed back link meant bill was referring to the fact the guy had mentioned his own interest (book). So i googled it too. I’m shocked. I’m obviously too naive. Thank god we have Bill on our side!

Breakfast: coffee with milk
low carb protein powder mixed with water, 1 dried apricot, 1Tbs wholegrain rolled oats (raw), 3 cashews
snacks: latte, 2 fruit teas, 1 black coffee, 1 black decaf, small piece Edam cheese with fresh apricot
Lunch: chicken and feta with green salad, lots of grated carrot, cider vinegar, 10 cashews
Dinner: lentil curry with eggplant, carrots and broccoli, full fat cottage cheese
Night time snack: small glass of milk with 3 cashews

No hunger pangs at all – it feels so weird! I’ve felt hungry all my life, until now. 778 calories.