Is there a blood sugar diet guru out there who might answer these questions?

[thenewaveragebear1983]

Hi, I just have a few questions about the BSD and was hoping someone who's done or is doing it might be able to help. I'm on day 11, I lost 7lb in the first seven days so I'm thrilled. I've had zero sugar in that time, and very very limits carbs (eg. I've had porridge and bran one morning, and quinoa with a meal one evening for example) and I haven't been cravings sugar as such, more just the habit of eating sugar. Last night I made 100g of sweet potato fries to go with my steak and about an hour afterwards I was shaking and woozy like when I went hypo with gestational diabetes. I still didn't have sugar but had nuts and eventually it stopped. Has anyone else experienced that? It wasn't a nice feeling, and obviously linked in some way to insulin removing the sugar from the potatoes too quickly, but it worried me a bit.
My second question is about the 800 cals - i am really struggling to keep down to 800, most days I'm hitting about 900-1000. On some days, such as if we've been out, I've not counted but have remained sugar free (eg family party, I didn't count cals but I avoided the buffet food and had only chicken and salad etc). My problem is I'm at home all day with two kids and I'm a bit of a grazer so while its sugar free I'm eating, its still exceeding the calorie limit. Has anyone done the plan with a higher limit and how successfully? Or should I really be pushing for 800 most days? At the moment 900 feels do-able but I think to shave off another 100 I'll be struggling. Is my next strategy to cut portion size across the day, or to cut out a certain meal do you think? For background info: I'm traditionally a slimming world member so I'm used to massive portions, I'm 'overweight' in terms of bmi (and in terms of clothes!), and I started at 13.2 and I'm now 12.8. I'd like to get to 11.8 in the next 7 weeks (ie averaging 2lb a week). I don't have T2 but have had gd 3 times and the last time was on a lot of insulin for several months so my midwife said there's a high chance of developing insulin resistance and t2 in the future.

[RunnerOnTheRun]

Hello!

To be honest you could do the exact same thing eating 1600 cal and still see a huge weight reduction it is not the calories that completely matter in this instance it is the quality of the calories and you are doing all the right things! if you up the portion sizes to make your sizes bigger to bring up the clean calories then you will still lose weight and bring your sugar levels in to balance.

[Not2bObvious]

There's a bsd thread active on the 5:2 board - which might get you more answers. I'm doing it 6 weeks with a break of a week after week 4 (had hols) I count anything between 800-1100 as a good day & I relax the numbers a couple of times a week. I regained 3 lb on my week off but even taking that into account I've lost 14.6 pound (which would have been 17.6 possibly) I started a stone lighter at 12.2.6 - I haven't had the reaction you mentioned but I haven't had starchy carbs except once in weeks. Might see you on the thread, it's called bsd part 2

[Not2bObvious]

Link:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/fasting_diet/2598681-Michael-Mosley-Blood-sugar-diet-Part2

[yumyumpoppycat]

You also try posting the question on the blood sugar diet forum thebloodsugardiet.com/latest-forum-posts/

[yumyumpoppycat]

Were the sweet potato fries home made or frozen packaged ones? Could have been stuff added?

One other thing you can try is not grazing, aim for at least 2 hours with zero cals between meals and have water, herbal teas or black coffee in between. I am also a grazer and have been terrible today but what was working for me before was finishing all my meals as early on in the day as pos and then just having teas for the evening. I have done the diet for over 8 weeks and think I was averaging at 900 too - very rarely under 800, funnily when I look back at MFP entries the actual meals for the day were usually 800 it was milk in tea and nibbles like nuts that would take me over on cals.

[thenewaveragebear1983]

Hi yumyumpoppycat the sweet potato fries were homemade, literally sweet potato cut into thin chips and sprayed with oil and baked. They did taste Incredibly sweet though, so maybe it wasn't the best choice after so many days without carbs! (They were lovely!)
I definitely think its the grazing that's adding on those extra 100 cals each day, I have planned my meals to the letter and calorie counted /weighed everything and allowed a 100 cal snack each day such as carrot sticks and hummus or natural yoghurt, but then if I've been really hungry I've had something else later, such as homemade soup or so e nuts, which I've then added to my totals and has taken me over. I still think its better than the alternative though, which up until a few weeks ago involved family packs of hob nobs...
I'm wondering if perhaps I should, rather than have 3 small meals a day, have 2 meals and 2-3 snacks to keep me going. I might plan a few days like this next week and see how I get on. I'm still only half way through my 2nd week, so I guess part of the process is finding what works And what doesn't.

[BIWI]

In sweet potato, there are 20g carbs per 100g. That's just for the raw product - I don't know if the ones you used had any kind of batter on them (which would be flour-based, so adding more carbs)

It sounds to me like you had so many carbs that your body released a huge amount of insulin to deal with them - leading to the crash in your blood sugar.

[RunnerOnTheRun]

I reckon eating 800 cals caused the sugar crash. Too much too soon! Only a bikini model at 18% body fat would do that! No need otherwise.

[yumyumpoppycat]

runner that's not the case, I am not v sciency so can't explain but very low cal diets are appearing to be a solution for type 2 diabetes and pre diabetes, on the blood suagr diet forum people who have been trying low carb already have seen improvedblood sugar by also adding in low cal thebloodsugardiet.com/how-it-works/ . Apparently the best results are in a low carb mediterranean version where beans and pulses are included as well as healthy fats olive oil etc. I think the diet clears fat from the liver improving insulin regulation.

[RunnerOnTheRun]

I AM very sciency and you're wrong. LC Diets are not the solution to

[RunnerOnTheRun]

I AM very sciency and you're wrong. LC Diets are not the solution to

[RunnerOnTheRun]

.....cont

LC diets are not bringing down the risk of T2 Diabetes. Low SUGAR diets are bringing down the risk. Very different things.

Low carb is not NO carb. No refined carbs, yes, but not no carb. Our brains don't work without carbohydrates.

[thenewaveragebear1983]

Perhaps I should be more clear, I've been zero sugar but have had some small amounts of carbs evey day, such as porridge or quinoa, some days I've had root veg such as parsnip in soup etc. So no refined carbs but I haven't been counting carbs, and still having veg/tomatoes etc although no fruit. I agree that the crash was prob due to suddenly having high amounts to process and producing too much insulin because it was very similar to the insulin hypos I had when I had gd, where the blood just falls from your head and its a whole body experience, a very unpleasant panicky feeling. I can understand the conflict over very low calorie diets because it goes against what we've always been told, but I feel I can justify this because I'm not hungry (its one thing eating 800 cals and being starving, very different comfortably eating 800 cals, 3 meals a day etc) and on the days when I've been extra hungry I have eaten more calories (as it says in the op).

[RunnerOnTheRun]

Porridge is highly refined "carbs".

[thenewaveragebear1983]

Well it's one of the things MM says you can have in the BSD book, so I've had it on one morning out of 11.....jumbo oats not oatmeal/fine oats. I'm totally new to this kind of eating as I've done slimming world for 6+ years which is essentially low fat, high carb so this is all new to me (and my poor pancreas)

[RunnerOnTheRun]

That's not so bad then don't worry you're doing fab.

[yumyumpoppycat]

Runner, I said low cal not low carb, and also that beans and lentils were encouraged which are carby.

[yumyumpoppycat]

A little more info here for example diabetes.co.uk/diet/newcastle-study-600-calorie-diet.html

[yumyumpoppycat]

Here is further description of the low carb mediterranean element of the blood sugar diet which is not atkins style low carb in any way. thebloodsugardiet.com/the-low-carb-plan/