For Australian users with an apple or android device, the “EasyDietDiary” app is pretty good with Australian products ( especially Coles and Woolworths home brands). It’s free, has a bar code scanner, multiple ways of doing serving sizes and the ability to save your own recipes and choose from previous meals etc. also integrates with the Health app. It’s from the makers of the Foodworks nutritional information system which a majority of dietitians use here.
My opinion, (and only my opinion 🙂 ), is that if you are eating the same meals over and over, you probably want to make sure that the calorie information is reasonably accurate. If you are trying different meals every week, then a couple of hundred excess calories on one day per week is not going to be catastrophic. 200 calories can be burnt during 25 minutes of moderate walking if you weigh 200 lbs ( see https://transportation.stanford.edu/pdf/caloriecalc_walk.pdf. ) but it is virtually impossible to burn 1700 cals per day in a normal life with exercise – that’s why the calorie restriction is so important for the 8 weeks. My wife and I have been dipping in and out of the recipes, but really have just been sensible with what we eat at the three meals. We’ve both experienced significant weight loss and more importantly my blood sugar response is now normal after many years of hovering around the 7 mmol level and my blood pressure is normal without the need to go on medication. However, that said, we are going to continue on the diet until I am back to my normal healthy weight. My BMI is still over 30.
How have we implemented the BSD? So we identified a couple of simple breakfasts and lunches that we both liked and have just eaten them each day ( we are in week 8), and dinner is BBQ salmon/chicken/tuna 6 nights/week and steak 1 night per week with a super tasty garden salad with one or two of roasted eggplant/ capsicum/ mushrooms/ steamed pumpkin for some variety through week plus some fat (feta or dry roasted seeds or avocado) and steamed veg twice or three times a week. We’ve made up higher carbohydrate meals for our two adult/teenage kids on weekends and frozen them (although cooking their and my fav risotto for them is a special kind of hell) or we just give them extra starchy carbs with what we are eating – I.e add some tortellini or pasta or baked potatoes with butter or garlic bread. If you can’t barbecue every night, you can do the same thing under a griller or pan fry.
I’m guessing that I have been getting more than 800 calories per day as I’m on target to lose 12 kg’s over the eight weeks. But it’s the metabolic changes that I’m super excited about, not the weight, and I will keep going because it’s relatively easy ( and much cheaper than the eventual medical bills that I was facing).
I guess what I’m trying to say is that possible publishing errors in a couple of recipes shouldn’t make you anxious or give up. Your weight will plateau at times for many days through the eight weeks. It will go up some days, but this is perfectly normal as , it will fall again. Just keep going. The science is compelling and clear.
The sheer number of participants in these forums showing significant weight and metabolic changes in good directions means that the recipes and advice is having the desired effect. Hats off to you Dr Mosley et al!
