These are not the only forum post that show concerns about the recipe content/information. Most recipes published show a nutritional breakdown and individual calorie content however these do not. The book has left itself open to criticism and I would have been concerned if this subject wasn’t discussed.

I only use the book as a guide and for the foods used. I agree with elgordo, they are misleading and ambiguous.

I have lost 13lb in nearly 4 weeks. If I had stuck to the recipes in the book I wouldn’t have continued. I’m please that it is working for you.

This is not a diet exclusively for those with diabetes. I am not diabetic.

The diet is great and hats off to the team. The criticism is aimed at the misleading, ambiguous and inaccurate information on some of the recipes in the book, which I have read carefully from cover to cover.

Didn’t see it but my partner did and she said that someone was saying that it only works for newly diagnosed sufferes.
To me that’s old data, there have been loads of studies since then using patients of different ages and stages of diabetes.
Won’t be long before the career dieters get hold of it now, you all know the type, size 8 with 2 lbs to lose.

Just for an example, for lunch I’m having red pepper humus with celery and pear dippers.
It’s delicious but I don’t know how many calories are in it, just that it’s good for me.
hashimato, you are disappearing slowly, don’t forget to wave goodbye before you vanish altogether 😉

Hi Loopey21
not exactly like you, I’m 62, starting weight was 16st 9lb but I did set myself an initial target of losing 3 stones.
I’ve lost 15lb in 3 weeks and my blood sugar readings have almost halved.
My advice would be to start the diet, ditch the shakes, and see how you have done after the first week or two.

I’m with Bill on the calorie counting, I have pretty much followed the recipes in the book and have lost 23 lbs in a month which gives me a BMI of 24 so I don’t think it is worth getting concerned about the precise number of calories in a meal. I only count if I am making a recipe not in the book. So just keep on following the plan and see the amazing results you will get and enjoy the ride. All the best

No you became overweight and diabetic by eating too much of the wrong foods.
If counting calories works for you then great.
Please don’t throw criticism at the diet though, it’s working well for hundreds of people just as it is.
How long have you been on it and how much weight have you lost ?

That’s excellent Christopher, keep it up
Personally I haven’t had tinned soup since I started this diet, all home made, delicious, and I know exactly what went into it.

The 800 figure comes from the original Newcastle diet research where the guinea pigs were fed 3 x 200 calories meal replacement shakes a day plus 200 calories worth of green veg.
The idea being to promote the sort of rapid weight loss that those who have had weight loss surgery experience.
If you haven’t read the book it really is a good investment.
I don’t suppose increasing to 1000 calories would do too much harm but there are loads of folk on here sticking to the 800 quite happily, active or not.
As has been mentioned try increasing the amount of fat in your food to give that fuller feeling, the hard to digest carbs should be keeping your digestive system so busy that it doesn’t have time to feel hungry.

Full fat for everything.

He He
peeing like a horse ? Try an elephant 😉
It’s all down to the amount of fluids we drink. I quite like the idea of peeing the weight away.

Cherrianne

I think the idea is to do it for 8 weeks and then just eat sensibly thereafter! I don’t intend to count out calories for the rest of my life. The point is this is sold or promoted as a plan – to have a plan you need to work off accurate information, otherwise the plan tends to fail.

Well done you and I get the spirit of what you’re saying and don’t disagree entirely, however if you read the book, which i’m sure you have, you will note reasons for sticking to 800 calories and that is the figure that is used from start to finish.

We are all doing this for different reasons. I am only marginally overweight (26 BMI) but my waist should be slimmer to be healthy as I get older, so for me it is about shifting that internal fat and not losing weight so much, although that will likely be a bi-product. So for me, keeping the calories to a minimum is important.

Further to the above; call me old fashioned, but I like things to do as they say on the tin!

BTW is everyone peeing like a horse too????

Many of the people are on here due to over consuming the wrong foods. I agree, lots of experimenting in my kitchen because the recipes that are included in the book are mainly dull and take lots time to prepare. I spent most of my time cooking. I often say to myself ‘thank god that I haven’t got children or a full time job’. I couldn’t do the diet if I had.
I have a few meals that I rotate because they are within my time and skill limits

Just looking through the contents of a Skinnylicious soup carton in Waitrose and they’re 113 calories per half carton with the second ingredient SUGAR! By comparison, New Covent Garden wild mushroom includes cream and wine, no sugar, and just 81 kcal per half carton. You have to be on your guard don’t you?
1 week in, 7lbs lost, 3″ off waist, only hungry when I’ve been to my mums, where fattening food is EVERYWHERE. Otherwise all good.

Hi Janey

What I do is to drink LOADS! I am majoring on fruit tea and fizzy water which seems to keep the hunger pangs away mostly. Make sure you’re eating lots of leafy green veg as well and you fat intake is very important, as fat triggers the Leptin response that turns off the “I’m still hungry” false message. Also it does seem to get easier after about day 3, so stick with it!

Good Luck!
TP

Sensible advice from Bill. The BSD is going to become a way of life for you and it isn’t feasible to count calories every meal for the rest of your life.
Often people don’t stick to diets because of the weighing and counting calories involved. I can imagine it would be frustrating if that’s the kind of diet that suits you best, but give it a go because it has made such a radical difference to my blood sugar levels and there are so many others on this forum who report the same changes and weight loss.
Like Bill, I watch my carb intake and stick within a range that I know will suit me.
It is more the principles of the diet we need to learn, and the recipes are a guide and example of the range of foods you can eat. Many people are experimenting with healthy, unprocessed foods for the first time, so it’s good for them to see what can be done.

How do you quantify a ‘handful’ a ‘sprinkle’ or a for a variation in food product size? I gained weight and became diabetic due to my over food portion size. I noticed that gradually I was adding more on this diet and therefore needed to weigh food before adding it to a meal. Everything has a calorific value and for this diet, they should have been calculated before publishing the book… for those that need to stick by rules. I’m sure that most people who are on this diet are taking it very seriously and want to tackle their diabetes.
I wouldn’t say being hung up about calories is a bad thing. Even if it retrains people to be aware of how much they are eating for years to come.

Hi – my blood sugar diet has started today. I am a busy mum of two on a teacher training course – and want to lose weight and sort out my blood sugars prior to my 40th birthday which is a big milestone for me in three months time. I am on day two and to be honest really hungry! I don’t know whether 800 calories is just too low for me or if I have just got into the habit of eating too much nd am used to it hence feling really hungry now! Any advice appreciated!

I hope this isn’t a daft question, but is the 800 calories important for any other reason other than it’s a low amount so will help us lose weight? Would eating slightly more calories but sticking to the principles of the diet have the same beneficial effects, albeit slower, as sticking to the 800?

The reason I ask is I’m on day 6 of the diet and surprisingly I’m not finding it too bad at the moment and am not overly hungry on it, but I’m feeling really knackered for lack of a better word. I have quite an active day including a daily 10 mile round trip walk to work, so I was thinking I might feel less drained if I upped the daily calories a little? I don’t want to do this though if the 800 has other benefits.

Alternatively, any advice on getting more energy would be appreciated.

Thanks

Steph thats a fantastic start, well done you !!!
It is amazing how easy this diet is to adapt to and the fact that you don’t really ever feel hungry.
You do need to have fat in your diet so full milk won’t harm you as long as you count it in your calorie intake.
Personall I stick to semi skimmed.

Hi Aliba,
Thank you so much! Sorry it’s taken me so long to respond.

Your words have been very helpful, I really appreciate the response. I am on day 4, and according to my scales have lost 8lbs already!! and I am finding it so much easier than I thought!! I even had a big steak with rocket and a big mushroom for dinner last night, yummy!

The only thing I’ve found hard is not drinking lots of coffee, I used to drink loads. But I’m trying different herbal teas, in between a couple of coffees. Ooh, I didn’t think about the full fat milk- I’ve been drinking skimmed, do you think I should switch to full fat? Isn’t that loads more calories? I suppose I would use less?

I’m the one rambling on now!! Sorry.
And thanks again!!
Steph

oh dear,
your body is just readjusting to processing the harder to digest carbs and probably extra fibre in your diet.
I had this week 1 but it settled down after that

I think you’ll find that most of the recipes were found elswhere on the web and replicated for the site.
Is it just me or are people getting too hung up on calories ?
The theory is that fast weight loss due to not eating the wrong kind of carbs will lower blood sugar . I don’t count calories but I’m losing weight and getting good sugar readings.
Cut out the bad carbs and see how you do, ifyou don’t get good results, then worry about the calories.

Firstly were you hydrated when you started your session. Some BP medications work by decrease fluid in the body. Also cutting calories and starchy carbs has a dialectic effect. Secondly, warm up for 20mins at a low intensity. Give you body a chance get get the fat metabolism going. The pt session should take in consideration your nutritional plan. If you haven’t all ready I would get clearance from your GP.

Five chips !!!! go and stand in the corner and wear the carbo hat !!
Ok you had a slight fall, today climb back aboard and continue the journey … Simples 😉

Oh no this is not good news.

I’m just past week 2 and losing weight pretty consistently, but I’m repeating the same meals in week one as I like to use up all the ingredients.

Is My Fitness Pal the best place for checking the calorie content of individual ingredients?

I wonder if anyone has contacted Michael Mosley and his team about this?

Do you have confirmation that it was a hypo, ie a blood sugar reading ?
It could be other factors that made yopu feel like this.
On the occasions that I have had a hypo it manifested itself with profuse sweating, a headache and light headed feeling.
I keep a packet of glucose tablets handy for these occasions.

No calorie counting here, just using the right foods mixed with a generous portion of common sense.
15lb loss in 3 weeks and blood sugar reduced from 9.8 to 5.6
Cut our the carbs first and then worry about the calories if you don’t lose weight.

Yesterday I suffered a major hypo – never had one before. I had taken a BP tablet immediately prior to starting my session with PT and not eaten as I read it would be OK. Its definitely not! Had to break the BSD and eat carbs. BP was low and pulse just 45! Nervous now about continuing this diet although I have lost10 over 3 weeks. Do you think it would be better to include a little carb like porridge or is this likely to have been a one off? I am not diabetic nor as far as I know pre diabetic but do have fatty liver, my main reason for this diet.

Adam

Agreed. It comes over as careless and unprofessional.

Onwards and upwards – just have to count it all out individually and treat the recipes with caution.

Maybe the recipe author was tired at the time??

I agree – only on week 1 but last night I found the courgette prawn was grossly inaccurate and ambiguous. Lots of confusion around served 2 but the calories did not nearly add up and I double checked with my wife, who is infinitely better with numbers than me. We also used a few different calory tables as source info.
It’s disappointing as this for me, is the most time consuming and confusing area for the whole diet. I will now count it all myself.
Maybe the recipe writer was suffering from low blood sugar??

This has also been my experience with the recipes and calorie count elgordo. I have counted the calorific value of several of the meals which has left me confused and I am now counting every calorie when making up the recipes. This is very time consuming and frustrating as the book should give exact weights and grams of each ingredient..after all, we are dealing with nutrition and an overall balanced diet for people with a medical condition.

I have lost weight but I found out in week one, that I would use the book as motivational sauce and guide rather than an accurate measurement of my food intake.

I wish you well on your diet. I have lost 13lb in 3.5 weeks, so it can be done. I just wish the recipes were weight and calorie counted for me and not so vague.

I stopped loosing weight in week 3 so I started logging all my food on mfp although still following the recipes in the book. The recipes with nuts are the main culprit – a handful of nuts etc so I have really cut most of the nuts out of them and just snack on a few nuts (weighed and logged) if I feel hungry. The portobello mushrooms with pine nuts did log the same cals on mfp so that one is OK. Now I have put the meals into mfp, it is quick to log the meal again as I eat it and check what adaptations I have made to keep the calories where they should be. I’ve had a couple of tricky weeks with family meals out etc where I have just stayed the same weight wise but happy to report the weight is coming off again.

Thanks for the tip. It is weak, but when it’s the only ‘coffee’ taste you can digest, you settle for it! However I haven’t touched it since starting so I’ll stick to my fruity infusions for now.

Glad to hear that – things are very unpredictable at the moment so I’m looking forward it settling down a bit. I’ve been on the plan for a little over a week and despite eating so much less I feel a bit bloated and peckish at the same time!

Wow Sue 4 and a half tablespoons of coconut flour ???
I followed the recipe exactly using one and a half tablespoons and my mixture was a thick paste rather than a batter.

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

Exactly my point

So, half of 558 = 279. The recipe states that an individual portion is 390 so even with your calculation that makes the recipe more than 100 calories out as they state the recipe serves two.

100+ calorie inaccuracy is not rounding up or down to the nearest 10

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jan/31/12-rules-good-nights-sleep

Link to 12 sleep tips.
The Headspace app is great.

There is an argument that dips in blood sugar levels during the night wakes you up, so eating your evening meal later may help.

Writing down concerns and things to do before you go to bed is a great help. So is keeping a note pad next to your bed so if you wake up with ideas going round and round in your brain you can jot them down.

I’ve adapted to my sleep patterns. I wake up at 4am, so that’s when my day starts. It’s a running joke at work.

Xx

Hi Penelope
Half a cup of oat bran is 23g carb and 167cals. Wheat bran is 6g carb and 84cals. The counts are for unprocessed bran. Even though the oat bran is higher I seem to recall that it has a lower GI than wheat bran. You will have to decide whether to use it or not. If you need it to add fibre to help with digestion then why not try psyllium instead?

Oh dear, what a frustrating start for you elgordo. I checked it out for you on my app and it came to 558 cals but it is quite possibly more depending on what size leek or courgette you use.
The tablespoon of oil is 161cals, the beans are 160 cals and the prawns are 177 cals, that’s without the juice, veg etc.
The only thing I can think of is you may have missed an ingredient or typed in the wrong amount of something when doing your calculations.
The book does say the calories are rounded up or down to the nearest 10, and yes it does say the count is per portion.
You are right, there is so much to learn on this diet and everyone has their ups and downs in the first few weeks. Much of it goes against previous thinking on how to lose weight and manage diabetes but it is backed up by sound research from a variety of sources.
The forum is here to help and you’ll always find someone to give you advice or support. Stick with it, and when you find yourself confused or needing a boost just post on here. Good luck with it all, no doubt we’ll be hearing about your successes soon

Thanks, great idea, I will download it now. Cut the carbs and dropped another 2.5lbs so now lost 1 stone! Just hitting a combo of flax seed, chia seeds and hemp seeds in my morning yogurt so hope that will start sorting out the issue!
I was hitting loads of greens but have not done so for a week or so, best get back on the case.
Appreciate the advice and hope it is going well for you too?

Hi , I wonder if anyone out there can tell me if oat bran and wheat bran are allowable, or whether they’re too high in carbs? I find the website recommended really hard to navigate, and they don’t seem to list raw ingredients. Many thanks!

In the book and also recipes from Fast Beach Diet (Mimi Spencer), favoured cheeses seem to be mozzarella, feta and goats cheese.

Thanks for this – I’ll take a look.

Hello, can anyone tell me what the best cheese to have is? Im so brainwashed by low fat foods i really dont know what to choose. I know full fat is ok but what one……
Thanks!

Shadow – I was diagnosed with diabetes nearly 7 years ago, after checking my blood sugar on a friend’s meter and had reading of between 18 and 20. My symptoms were that I felt like I was slightly drunk and my concentration was terrible and I had no energy. My friend was shocked at the readings and made me phone the doctor’s straight away. I have done a fair amount of research since. The average amount of time someone has diabetes before they are diagnosed is 10 years! The longer you have it untreated the more damage it does to your body. By the time mine was diagnosed 1/3 of my kidney function had been lost. I also found out recently that I have scarring on my liver due to the buildup of stored fat. Eventually you can go into a coma with too much sugar but it is a very very very slow process.

A long time ago (mid 1990’s)I was diagnosed with high cholesterol and went on a low fat (high sugar) diet. With hindsight this is what possibly led to later problems.

On a positive note weight today is 10st 13lbs ( 3 lbs lost)
Possiby because of stress my blood reading is 11.

Made coconut flour flat bread but used 4 1/2 tablespoons of coconut flour because mixture seemed too runny with the 1 1/2 it said in the recipe.

Also made some coconut flour biscuit/cake things with a recipe I made up. Will try one tomorrow and if they seem edible will post the recipe.

I’m finding The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance by S Phinney and J Volek very clear and helpful. It is very much in line with the advice being given from this site but as in book form, it has much further depth and detail. It’s available in hard copy but I’m finding it easy to use in the Kindle format.

Amazing and inspiring bill .I fell off the wagon tonight and had fish without the batter on but then had about five fatty chips! We got our beloved campervan back after a month off the road with a fuel pump gone which had to be sent away so went on family outing to mudeford and had fish and chips! Hope won’t be that bad an effect on my first week weigh in tomorrow morning!
I feel a lot better after the seven days, sleeping better and seem to have more energy which you wouldn’t have thought on 800 calories! I love doing spinach with homemade dressings from the book and salmon, anchovies which I love and sometimes feta cheese! Also managed my 1000 steps easily this week with extra energy for dog walking!
Will post my first weigh in tomorrow!

Having read in the book that tropical fruits are best avoided due to high sugar levels, why are passion fruit, melon orange and mango included in the recipes?
I am now on day 4 , instead of chomping at the bit for lunch at 12.00 today i didn’t eat until 3pm -I was shopping until then but not ravenous. My blood sugars have dropped from 6.4 on sunday to 5.6 today-lowest they have been for ages.
I am enjoying the recipes especially the portobello toast with goats cheese, and the blueberry and green tea shake was nice. If I feel peckish out come the roobush and ginger and lemon teas.