I skimmed down from over 15 stone to 7 and a half stone AMA

[Scammell]

This!!

Well done OP, that’s a fantastic achievement and however you’ve done it, you will almost certainly be healthier now than you were at 15 stone. The stress, increased BP and fat around your organs at that weight would have been causing you far more damage than eating a beef sandwich for breakfast ever would. There are people on this thread who are not posting in good faith and are trying to knock you down when you’ve achieved something really great. An 800 calorie diet is fine short term when you have a lot of weight to shift. 1200 calories is also completely fine and for many shorter people this will be somewhere near their recommended daily calorie allowance. Drinking lots of Diet Coke long term is probably not great but I’m sure OP knows that and it was a short term solution to help shift an amount of weight that would have given her a lifetime of health problems had she kept it on.

OP, you’ve done brilliantly. Well done. How many of us on here can honestly say we live on some sort of model diet, eating 7 different fruits and veggies everyday, tons of protein and fibre and only a thimble of sugar? No, thought not. I wouldn’t mind betting that many of those making judgmental comments probably routinely eat too much sugar, or bad fats, or drink one too many glasses of wine. That’s life, we all do it. Oh, and reinventinganna , you sound like a nasty piece of work. Jealously is never a good look.

This thread has chirped me up no end. I’ve been feeling very sorry for myself for having put on 9 lbs for the first time in my adult life. And feeling glum at the thought of having to lose it. But this thread puts it in perspective! And makes it feel doable.

Incidentally, I’m 5’3” I have (had) been around 7 stone 12 all my adult life. 7 stone 7 for 5’1” is fine. I’ve never looked overly skinny in fact now I’m 8 stone 7. I actually look fat.

Anyway congrats on your discipline and perseverance and pregnancy!

I'm about 8lb heavier than at my lowest atm , Christmas and parties! but it's been over 4 years now since I lost the first 4 stone

Well done Op! Another one rooting for you and saying well done 🙌🏻

I'm interested to hear how you changed thinking about your identity when your body changed so much?

@StalkedByASpider haven’t read through whole thread but definitely agree with you. I’ve lost over 70lbs from over 17 stone to 11 stone 3-5lb. I eat 2300 calories a day to keep in a small deficit. (very active 25k+ steps a day) and would never recommend dieting on 1200 calories a day!

I was heavily influenced by a mother with disordered eating. ‘Yuck’

Btw I am fabulous thank you

This thread is really concerning. Proper nutrition really needs to be taught in schools. 800-calorie diets should only be undertaken under medical supervision and for no longer than 2 weeks. It can quite literally kill you.

The last time I needed medical treatment due to restrictions I was eating 600-800 calories a day. I thought what I was eating was okay and it was certainly more nutritionally dense than the diet OP was on. Admittedly it was very "samey". Eating disorders are about control. Like OP could eat her pre-packed foods I could only eat my "safe" foods and had a set of very strict rules I needed to follow, which even at the time I was following them I knew were nonsensical but I needed that control to keep me sane.

For breakfast, I would have 30g of porridge oats (114 cals) with 125 ml skimmed milk (43 cals), half a banana (50 cals), and a teaspoon of peanut butter for protein (40 cals)

Lunch a small bowl of salad made of lettuce, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, a tiny helping of beetroot, onion, 6 ocean sticks and a splash of Hellmann's 3 calorie salad dressing for 170 calories.

Dinner was an omelet made with 2 medium eggs, onions, and mushrooms and served with a handful of fresh spinach for (200 cals)

I rarely deviated from this but did swap out some meals for berries and Skyr, jacket potato with tuna and sweetcorn, and grilled chicken and veg.

After 3 months I suffered abnormal heart rhythm due to critically low potassium levels and was diagnosed with EDNOS and referred to a nutritionist who made it very, very clear that no matter how carefully planned your diet is, your body cannot sustain itself on 800 calories. There simply is not enough volume to get all the micro and macronutrients you need in 800 calories. Your brain alone uses 500 calories a day.

People who follow an 800-calorie diet for medical reasons do so under strict medical supervision and with prescription supplements and only ever for very short periods. 1200 calories a day is the bare minimum and even that is pushing it and should only ever be followed for short periods.

Seriously, some of the "advice" on this thread is dangerous and is definitely encouraging disordered eating. If you need to lose weight and think this is a good way of doing it please see your GP first and tell them what you plan on doing and ask to be referred to a nutritionist.

Not a nutritionist...anyone can call themselves that! If you want advice from an accredited expert you want a dietitian.

What kind of exercise were you doing and how often?

After I got down to the 8 stone mark realistically I was 'conventionally' good looking

Aerobics. Swimming, running (treadmill), step aerobics. In the latter half of the diet I'd do one of things once a day for at least 25 mins

A mahoosive well done! @Scammell I’m starting a serious life change myself

turns out the menopause turns everything you thought you knew on it’s head… plus I’m not sure I knew the right stuff in the first place

18m to make such a drastic difference would be wonderful

Sorry I just need to clarify something. I apologise for this oversight I didn't mean to mislead anyone . Ok this is how I actually organised things :

When I started the diet at 15 stone in the January I actually started on 1800 cals a day - so much more generous. When I got down to around 13 - 14 stone I cut back to 1600 per day. When I got to 13 stone and under it was 1500 a day - then I'm the last leg from 12 stone 3 right down it was 1330 all the way. So the heavier I was the more cals and I started off much more generously. The reason I didn't mention this before is that the 1330 bit was by far the most focused and longest bit of the diet. So I was still at 15 stone loosing weight at 1800 cals/day !

Good luck with everything - you can do it !

Thank you !

Congratulations @Scammell. I’m so inspired that I’ve just put my biscuit back in the cupboard!

Thank you very much !

Ah - result ! 👌

That sounds much healthier, OP. You could probably have eaten more than 1800 cals to start with.

Ah it's definitely doable !

I wish I could say I've been 6stone 12 all my adult life !!

Sorry previous post typo - 7 stone 12 not 6 stone 12 !

Congratulations OP! Fab x

I’m not gonna comment one way or the other on OP’s diet

But if you’re looking to diet, PLEASE research protein intake and make sure you’re getting enough. Especially if you’re looking to build muscle you need to protect that. All these crudités and small bowls of cereal diets will not protect your muscle at all