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Fasting / 5:2 diet

Talk about intermittent fasting and 5:2, including what’s worked for others. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

blood sugar diet thread 5

999 replies

yumyumpoppycat · 15/10/2016 17:12

Continuing thread for Blood Sugar Dieters:
Phase 1 lasts 2 - 8 weeks and involves restricting calories to 800 a day. Eating healthy fats is encouraged as is limiting carby foods (no specific guideline on this but some people aim for under 50g), small amounts of complex carbs are allowed but should be balanced ideally with green veg, protein and fat to lower the glycemic load and reduce the effect on blood sugar.

Tips
You may get headaches at first so drink lots of water, possibly try mixing a teaspoon of marmite into boiled water and having that to replenish salts etc
Exercise: aim for 10,000 steps a day and ideally consider adding in resistance training and some HIIT workouts.
Fasting some people find it helpful to have an eating window e.g 14:10 – 14 hours fasting and 10 hours to fit in the 800 cals. Avoid snacking and grazing - split your calories into 2 or 3 meals for potentially better weightloss.
Use the menu plans in the book or plan ahead on My fitness pal app

Foods to avoid
Sugar, sweets, milk chocolate, biscuits, cake
White bread, pasta, rice, chips etc
Processed Junky food with added sugar
Alcohol, fizzy drinks, juice etc
Diet foods, artificially low fat foods
High sugar fruit

Foods to eat
Full fat Natural/ Greek yoghurt
Fish in particular oily fish, Meat, eggs, nuts seeds
Non starchy veg, cauliflower, leafy greens, avocados, peppers, tomatoes, broccoli etc
Olive oil, coconut oil, rapseed oil

Berries and low sugar fruit (2 portions or less)
Lentils, beans etc

Foods to include in small amounts and be careful of
Full fat dairy is fine but some people do better with less of this
Starch veg such as sweet potatoes and squash
Wholegrains (quinoa, buckwheat etc) limit to 2 tablespoons
Low carb crackers and breads made with coconut flour, almond flour etc

Phase 2/ 3
for more sustainable continued weight loss and then maintenance add in some days with higher calories but still lower carbs, and have 2 – 5 days at 800 calories. Continue to avoid processed simple carbs like white bread, chocolate etc but possibly add in small amounts of dark chocolate and red wine or less sugary alcohol if you wish to.

Useful links:
My fitness pal
[[https://www.amazon.co.uk/8-Week-Blood-Sugar-Diet-Recipe/dp/1780722931/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1476547726&sr=1-1&keywords=blood+sugar+diet Bloodsugar diet recipe book
BigChocs Fasting exercise thread]]

For full recommendations and lists of those who should avoid this diet please see the BSD forum

OP posts:
Thread gallery
40
APlaceOnTheCouch · 23/01/2017 08:35

Well done Jax - that's a great start!

I've lost 4 inches from my chest since I started BSD so I need to buy some new bras. I've tried two different websites and they've come back with wildly different results! Does anyone have any recommendations or tips on how they worked out their new sizes? TIA

thenewaveragebear1983 · 23/01/2017 10:06

I asked on style and beauty for a bra intervention! I have virtually no chest but am amazingly using their method I was a 32dd instead of a 36b I had always worn- I can never believe it but if I try any other size I am spilling out everywhere so it must be true. Start a thread on there and give your measurements and they'll help you I'm sure

AccioNameChange · 23/01/2017 14:33

Hello all a quick question while I'm at lunch - what do you do to get your fibre intake up - anyone know which foods are particularly good? Would like to get some more in now I brown rice etc.

Have had some lentils, but other ideas? Also got those linseeds from Holland & Barrett, the ones that it says take one teaspoon a day with water I think.

APlaceOnTheCouch · 23/01/2017 15:48

bear that's such a difference! I have a funny feeling I may have been wearing the wrong size for years. I'll check out S&B. Thanks Flowers

ragz134 · 23/01/2017 17:25

Well I was a pound and a half back on this morning! Not amused, but I had eaten too much over the weekend and barely drank any water. Today I hit the gym, then a chicken salad for lunch and will have bolognese on greens for dinner with cheese. Having cream in coffee now to keep me going. Tomorrow is official weigh in for week 3 as it will be the first day of week 4! Hoping to have my stone off officially then. Three weeks, no alcohol, no sugar (apart from 81% dark chocolate this week) and no bread/pasta/potatoes/rice. Haven't cheated once, which is a big deal. Even better, the (I believe it was) ovary pain I had been getting on an increasingly frequent basis has gone. So I'm definitely happy with that NSV. Long may it stay away.

yumyumpoppycat · 23/01/2017 18:30

I have not had a good day today - trying to do some kind of fatlosing muscle gaining strategy and ended up all blood sugary feeling from too many carbs. Eating has gone down hill since then. Oh well cardio and lower cal tomorrow.

I really struggle with fiber too, I think chia seeds are supposed to be good too, nuts and berries have fiber, a cheat option is to take psylium husks.

OP posts:
yumyumpoppycat · 23/01/2017 18:31

PS well done on no sugar and no alcohol Ragz.

OP posts:
APlaceOnTheCouch · 23/01/2017 18:35

I'm having a hungry day so I'm going to have one final snack and get an early night.

Oblomov17 · 23/01/2017 18:57

Need to weigh in. Might pluck up the courage tomorrow.

yumyumpoppycat · 23/01/2017 19:19

Get it over with tomorrow first thing Oblomov or do what I do and sneak in a couple of 800 days first

Aplace I wonder if the cold is making us hungry?

OP posts:
thenewaveragebear1983 · 23/01/2017 19:48

Rags do you have pcos? I have, and I get 'ovary pain' at certain times in the month, like a sharp crampy pain or a dull ache depending on where in my cycle I am. Really odd pain. I know that's what it is because when I've been early pregnancy with my last two babies (i didn't develop pcos until after the first) the doctor told me it was common with pcos and the hormonal changes. I found it actually got worse doing this plan temporarily before it improved --slightly.

An ok day for me- busy and productive. Putting the final touches to my case for Wednesday. Need to get some fight in me, as right now I feel like a popped balloon!
I've planned my food for tomorrow- made my overnight oats with some bran, raspberries and yoghurt and it's in the fridge. I bought a soup veg mix, lazy I know, from asda today (all the veg all cut up and seasoned ready for the soup maker!) which I'll whizz up with a frozen fish portion for a liquid lunch, then for dinner I 've planned a steak and the trusty stuffed peppers! I'm really determined this week. I'm also dangerously close to being back where I started, so I need to be good! Planning is the key.
I wish the weather would perk up a bit though, it's bloody miserable here. The clouds touch the ground most of the day and it's just gloomy and cold. Fingers crossed for some brighter days even if not warmer yet!

dogdaydisaster · 23/01/2017 20:10

Hello there. Can I join you? I bought the books last week and know this is the way I need to go, as I'm losing heart with the slow and steady approach. Been on and off various diets for years and feel that enough is enough. Whenever I've done low carb I've lost interest after a few weeks so am hoping that quicker losses will keep me motivated. Here's hoping. The older members of our family are all diabetic or prediabetic, and I know from low carbing that I feel so much better on this WOE.

Starting weight of 242 with a bmi of 37.9 which is shocking! Apparently 160lbs is the top of my healthy range, which seems a huge amount to lose. I'm aiming for 200 lbs as my first goal.

Today was day one:
Breakfast- scrambled eggs
Lunch- red pepper and squash soup from BSD cookbook
Dinner- leftover roast pork cooked in a tomato ragu, with cauli rice, as can't find courgettes anywhere.

8 almonds
That came in at 790 cals. 2 litres of water.

Looking forward to this at the moment, let's hope I can keep it going.

yumyumpoppycat · 23/01/2017 23:55

Well done on a fantastic first day dogday and welcome to the thread. You could even break your first goal down more if you wanted - apparently the first 5% lost has 'major' health benefits and that would be 12lbs.

OP posts:
Oblomov17 · 24/01/2017 07:15

Thanks Yummy for encouraging me to weigh. I really didn't want to.

And as expected: I've put on 4lbs. 😢

Am really cross. With myself.

Even many of my low carb meals in the last 3 weeks, and my 'dry'ish' January, just isn't cutting it, at all.

Right. I'm going to have to give this done serious thought. I might have to do the whole 8 weeks again, completely rigidly?

dogdaydisaster · 24/01/2017 07:44

Well a good result after day 1 - 239.5 so a 2.5lb loss. And 0.3 off my bmi Grin.

Yumyumpoppycat- thanks for the advice. I think a 12lb target is a good first one.

I have made yoghurt with nuts and berries for breakfast- it looks so small!! About a third of what I'd normally make. So I'm taking it to work today to have later on. It's book group tonight which is cheese and buiscuts, but as it's my turn to host I'll make sure there loads of celery and pepper and try to have just a tiny bit of cheese. If I stick to the days plan I'll have about 150-200 to spare so I may get away with it.

Scandicat · 24/01/2017 10:13

Hi all, hope everyone's having a good day. Well done dogday - the first couple of days were the hardest, although the quick early loss helps I think. Oblomov, just pick yourself up and keep going. Those 4 pounds will disappear really fast.

Anyone else here unbearably cold? Is it diet related? I know its cold outside but I'm so cold at home too. I'm working at home today and I'm working in bed with thermals and a jumper and the electric blanket on!

APlaceOnTheCouch · 24/01/2017 10:21

yum and scandi yy I am so cold lately. I did wonder if it was diet related. So much for my early night last night to avoid snacking. I ate half a giant bag of crisps Blush Must do better today.

Scandicat · 24/01/2017 10:35

Oops Couch! At least it was only half!

dogdaydisaster · 24/01/2017 11:23

I had to go to the supermarket yesterday, in search of courgettes. The bakery aisle was a killer. And my house is full of crisps.

Another cold one here as well.

The lesson for today- bring yoghurt to work in a separate tub to the fruit. Big watery pink slop with seeds in!

ragz134 · 24/01/2017 17:34

W4D1 have lost the little gain and achieved 14.4lbs for my official weight loss for 3 weeks. Rewarded myself with a new top and purse!
Re the cold - I was very cold for the first few weeks but gone now and back to normal.

Scandicat · 24/01/2017 18:58

Well done Ragz.

Had a hard day today. I am starting to massively miss sweet things. The worst time is just after I've eaten though, so just need to tough it through the next hour. But the scary thing is that I don't see how I can give up carbs / sugar forever.

AccioNameChange · 24/01/2017 20:36

Week 3 Day 6. Not great on Friday - friends birthday dinner. Have chosen to take it as a learning point that I'm not there with willpower transformation yet.

Have stuck at about 900 - 1000 for the rest of the week, again not perfect but largely under 50g carbs. Think I've been trying to make up dinner recipes myself too much and they end up too high compared to what I've eaten earlier.

Still on 16:8, two meals a day. Will see what the weigh in says on Thursday morning!

Hope everyone else is having a good day - great stuff ragz, scandi I wonder the same about a life without sugar, but I'm hoping this initial 8 weeks will break my emotional eating habits and enable me to have a little of the bad stuff. I don't really get cravings anymore so I'm hoping it's working.

dogdaydisaster · 25/01/2017 07:42

Morning all, and thanks for the welcome.

Week 1 day 2 weigh in. 237lbs which is a 5lb loss in 2 days. Amazing. I was nervous today and I wasn't perfect at all at book group. But I managed to eat loads of celery and drink gallons of water so maybe that counteracted the 3 crackers and lots of cheese.
I'm off into London today and will hopefully try the Starbucks new hot box scrambled eggs and spinach breakfast- 221 cals. If there are any to be found that is.

APlaceOnTheCouch · 25/01/2017 08:10

Well done on all the losses everyone!
DS got sent home from school with d&v. He has never had it before and has been very good but we have been awake every hour on the hour. I never lose weight if I haven't slept properly...Although otoh spending a night clearing up d&v disasters does dent your appetite Envy

Scandicat · 25/01/2017 11:57

Well done Dogday. That starbucks thing sounds interesting, although I've basically given up breakfast.

Couch, that sounds horrible. Hope your DS feels better soon.

Made it through the tough day, hoping today will be a bit better. Really wish the weather would improve.

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