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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
AccioNameChange · 01/02/2017 17:58

APlace let us know if any are good - they both sound nice! I thought the same about dahl, it was 13g carbs for the portion.

APlaceOnTheCouch · 01/02/2017 19:09

5 spices chicken was a resounding success. DS gave it 10/10. 298 cals and 12.5g carbs.
Enough cals left over to have a cocktail later Wink

dogdaydisaster · 02/02/2017 08:42

Week 2 day 3 and I've lost a stone!!! Can't believe it.

Setting the next target - to lose another 7lbs, as that brings me under 16 stone, which I haven't been in over ten years.

Thanks for this thread and all the support.

APlaceOnTheCouch · 02/02/2017 09:09

Fabulous dogday ! Are you going to do anything to mark the milestone? It's a great achievement Star

dogdaydisaster · 02/02/2017 09:33

I'm getting my hair cut and coloured tomorrow in South Kensington (my hairdresser has moved salons from my local suburban one) so that will cost enough. Might pop into Harris's and splash out on some fancy chorizo or almonds Grin as I'm not into a new clothes size yet.

dogdaydisaster · 02/02/2017 09:34

Harrods!!

APlaceOnTheCouch · 02/02/2017 09:38

That sounds great. I had amazing smoked almonds last weekend (we were at a children's party and the cafe was full of high carbs items so the almonds seemed the safest option). They were delicious.
You should take some photographs of yourself too. I really wish I had taken more so I could see the changes in my shape as I lost weight.

AccioNameChange · 02/02/2017 09:57

Well done dog!

Weigh in day - scales said 13st 11 first off and I was disappointed. But then I tried again and the next three times it said 13st 8 so I'm taking that. So started at 14st 10, end of week 4 13st 8.

Bad week last week with willpower, need to make sure it's better this week or I risk slipping. If I could get to 13st by the end of the 8 weeks would be very happy.

yumyumpoppycat · 02/02/2017 15:03

Dog'sday that is fantastic well done! Flowers can't wait to hear that you have made the next milestone.

Sounds like 12 stone something isn't too far for you Accio, Grin. Your first weigh in was probably to quick on the scale apparently they need time to calibrate.

A place I have some 5 spice which recipe did you use please?

I am more on it today, period finally arrived and giant zit on my forehead is going down so I look less like a unicorn. That is another reason to avoid chocolate!! Tried the starbucks thing someone mentioned earlier in the thread was about 312 cals, wee bit of potato, chorizo, tomato and a poached egg.

OP posts:
APlaceOnTheCouch · 02/02/2017 16:20

yumyum five spice recipe
I missed out the mushrooms and the seasoned flour because DS doesn't like the former and I didn't want to push the carbs up with the latter.

yumyumpoppycat · 02/02/2017 18:06

Thank you I will try that Aplace. My day has gone slightly off now because dropped my phone in a mug of tea and the.n panic ate after eights

OP posts:
Scandicat · 02/02/2017 18:53

Dog - brilliant, well done. Enjoy your haircut, it will make you feel even better about yourself.

Accio -which week are you on? Sounds like 13 stone is really achievable.

Poppycat - oops, that really made me laugh. I love after eights.

I've had a really good day today, lots of NSVs. Cooking for me and DD at the moment but will write another post later.

AccioNameChange · 02/02/2017 19:15

Started week 4 today. So eight pounds to go in the last four weeks to make that target.

APlaceOnTheCouch · 02/02/2017 19:37

I really want After Eights now Envy yumyum I hope your phone is ok.

I've had quite a good day so far. I've rediscovered pate on cucumber as a light lunch. Then, I made low carb meatballs for dinner tonight. I've tried a few different recipes - this one included red pepper and was probably the best yet.

I ended the day with a NSV - my jeans keep falling down so I finally popped into the retail park to get some new pairs and I can fit a size 10 - hurrah!When I started BSD, I was wearing size 16 jeans.

AccioNameChange · 02/02/2017 20:42

APlace that's amazing! 16 to a 10, well done! Like the sound of the meatballs, post a link if you have one handy?

yumyumpoppycat · 02/02/2017 22:54

Well done on Jeans victory aplace Star

my phone is hopefully recovering in a bag of rice, part of the reason for my panic was I couldnt get the back off to dry the battery....why do they make it so you cant take the back off???!!! I then googled and realised I had done all the things in the 'what not to do when your phone gets dropped in tea list' gah ....better eat another after 8.

Looking forward to hearing your NSVs Scandi {intrigued}

OP posts:
APlaceOnTheCouch · 03/02/2017 07:53

Accio meatballs recipe I used low-fat beef mince (not a mix of beef and pork).

dogdaydisaster · 03/02/2017 07:54

Ouch, yumyum- I once saw an iPhone go straight into a swimming pool when my friends kids were fighting over it while we waited for classes.

A place that's amazing!

Another 2 off today. Was v happy as had a little slip last night and fell into about 8 crackers with cream cheese! Skipped dinner and drank 3 pints of water to try to compensate!

Was talking with DH last night. He's made me doubt the scales as he moved them and he shot up 5lbs. But I figure that my weight is taken at the same time every day and in the same place and (until yesterday) the scales hadn't ever moved. So regardless of the number, the gain/loss should be close enough?

APlaceOnTheCouch · 03/02/2017 07:58

dogday I think all scales recalibrate if you move them. As long as you're weighing at roughly the same time and keeping the scales in the same place then your losses/gains should be accurate iyswim. I line my scales up with the tiles on the floor but I know if I move them a tile to the right, they jump up!
(Thanks for all the nice messages about my NSV everyone Flowers )

yumyumpoppycat · 03/02/2017 08:15

Don't worry our scale does the same thing up to 4lbs - regardless you have had a big loss. Its a bit annoying as dp is VI and our bathroom is small so we have to lean the scale against the wall between use so he doesnt trip over it. It adds an element of surprise at least - plus you can always think 'oh its just a bad scale day' if weigh in is up ;) DP is a daily weigher so whenever I hear the talking scale give him an unexpected loss it means he has found a good spot, so I leap out of bed and have a weigh in. Not that I am obsessed or anything ;)

OP posts:
Scandicat · 03/02/2017 11:00

Aplace - brilliant NSV.

I'm obsessed with moving my scales around. But they stubbornly say the same thing every time, pretty much.

So, my good day. I'm actually not sure if this is a good thing or not, but am going to post it anyway.

I went shopping yesterday to a big shopping centre. I was picking up a new iPhone from Apple and I also had to go into another tech related shop. In both, I was served by men. And it was really obvious that the way they reacted to me was different to how it had been. Particularly in the phone shop, there were two guys and they were both super helpful and friendly and kind of a bit flirty. And I was wondering, is it because I've lost weight, because I'm over 40 and in the last couple of years I'd started to feel invisible, kind of everywhere recently, like no one ever paid any attention to a short, fat, 40 something woman.

So I felt happy to be noticed and great not to feel invisible, but also annoyed that that kind of external validation mattered. But then I thought, actually, it might be more to do with how I actually feel and the impression I'm giving. I feel so much better about myself, and I've bought clothes that have some colour and shape, not just black/grey I've been hiding under since the autumn. And actually, it wasn't only the male salespeople, it was everyone. I just felt happy, in myself, and I think people responded to it.

So that's kind of long winded, and I do still wonder if people treat thinner people better (not that I'm thin yet) but the real NSV was realising I don't feel invisible anymore. I may not be 20 and I may still have weight to lose, but I felt good about myself. That is a really good feeling.

And then, I ran outside for the first time in months. And that felt good too. I guess its easier going up hills when you are carrying 18 pounds less!

Not much going on weight loss this week, period still hasn't shown up though, so I'm not surprised. Still feeling motivated though.

Hope everyone has a good Friday.

whowantsadog · 03/02/2017 12:50

Hi all - dogday that's an amazing loss!

Right, tomorrow is three weeks to the day that I started doing this diet. I'm not diabetic, I was recently tested and my blood sugar is fine, so I'm purely doing this for the weight loss. I've been weighing nearly every day which I think might be a mistake, so I'll just post my 3 weekly weights:

Starting weight : 14st 7
wk 1: 14st 2
wk 2: 14 st 1

Yesterday I dropped to 13st 13 which made me feel loads better but today am back up to 14st 0. I just don't get it, I've really pulled it back in the last few days and am definitely under 800 cals per day. I can't really eat any less. I'm not rigidly carb counting as am vegan and need to eat beans, pulses etc, but surely, even if I ate nothing but chips under 800 calories I would still lose weight?

Perhaps I'm looking at it the wrong way. I suppose I have lost 7lbs in 3 weeks which ordinarily I'd be pleased with, it's just a bit demoralising that most of that was 2 weeks ago! On the upside, I have managed to get back into a pair of jeans I've not been able to wear for the last 6 months, so I suppose I have to believe that fat is going, even if it's not showing on the scales?

Sorry, bit of a whinge, wasn't it? I'm still sticking with it, as I'm eating really well (olives, avocados, houmous, yay!) and I'm not hungry which is incredible for me really.

ragz134 · 03/02/2017 13:15

Weight is still not moving, beyond going up and down the same lb for nearly a week! I'd been getting slack on the water, so am trying extra hard today (1 litre down already). I think I had been suffering from 'carb creep' so I am back to tracking more on MFP, I need to cut down on the root veg a bit. I haven't been doing 800 cals most days but definitely still low calorie.
Been very PMT then last few days and succumbed to snacking though, the peanut butter jar is significantly emptier. No more of that nonsense! Also going to cut out the milk in tea...
Still happy with my 14lb loss as over 4 weeks it is still a lot, even if I haven't lost this week. No alcohol in over a month! No binging on junk or slipping off the wagon, so I an confident the weight loss will resume.
Breakfast was 3 scrambled eggs with spinach - I am not keen on spinach as it makes my teeth feel funny...
Lunch was a fee pistachios as I wasn't hungry.
Dinner will be pork loin chops, Kale and some other veg.
Hope everyone else is having a good day.

yumyumpoppycat · 03/02/2017 15:29

Scandi well done on running and NSVs it is amazing when you feel the benefits of being lighter. I agree a lot of it is feeling more confident, rediscovering clothes in the wardrobe, feeling of accomplishment etc making you more attractive. some bigger women look fantastic and prob dont get any less positive attention. I have actually wondered if I deliberately put on weight after children precisely to be invisible after having children. I just don't suit extra weight. ...I had a NSV recently when I ran for the bus and wasnt out of breath in any way shape or form.

Accio and whowants week 3 is fairly notorious in the dieting world for low losses, just look at lighter life, low carb boot camp etc threads. Actually even week 2 on biggest loser tv show where they have a lot to lose and PTs, dieticians etc is notorious for people having low losses or even staying the same. I read a theory that the emptier fat cells temporarily fill up with water before shrinking down at this point. Fingers crossed you will have a whoosh or find clothes are looser v soon.

OP posts:
APlaceOnTheCouch · 03/02/2017 15:54

whowants I found the carb count really made a difference to whether I lost or not. If I eat around 800 cals but don't watch my carbs, I maintain but don't lose.
scandi I know what you mean about it having a positive impact on your confidence. I feel much more comfortable in myself and am determined not to put so much weight on ever again because it makes me feel sluggish and heavy in every way.

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