Blood sugar diet thread 9

[thenewaveragebear1983]

Shiny new thread for the blood sugar dieters!

I have ended up going a bit off piste this afternoon.... nothing too carby, but not counted calories even a tiny bit! I’m a bit concerned now about how the weekend will pan out! I know I said it last week, but I really need a strict week next week; I didn’t manage a single day at 800 calories this week. I’ve just been so hungry! I’ve maintained by sticking to the principles though, which is good. Oddly, this week is the first week I’ve really noticed actual inches lost, my body shape is definitely changing. Perhaps the increased appetite is a response to that, who knows?

I’m just going to write today off i think, allow myself a guilt free splurge (as dinner is already prepped and it is all on plan but mega calories!) and we’ll likely have a glass of wine too I’d imagine. I’m in it for the long haul after all, one day won’t hurt too much!

Oh great ... they're making pies on Masterchef! 🤭🤤😵

According to MFP, I've passed halfway to goal! Under 10.5 stone. I'm 5'3" so under 10 will be not overweight and 9 is my target. I've already taken my size 16 clothes out of the wardrobe. I'm in a sort of time travel experience where I'm now wearing clothes from about 2010 that were in the loft.

I know a lot of people don't keep weight off but this is seriously the first weight I've lost for 10 years. I'm going a bit slowly in Bsd terms, about 0.5 st/month, but I have not been super strict lately.

Honestly thanks for the encouragement on these threads!

That’s great notme, well done. I’m the same with the time travel clothes, I keep bringing down things from the loft! I have some really nice summer things that haven’t fitted me for years so I’m really hoping they will this year!

Anyone doing anything exciting today? It’s another grey and miserable day here, so we’ll probably just be catching up on jobs/chores and that’s it. Boring!

I roughly counted my calories last night, (can’t resist, force of habit) and I guesstimate about 1900, so not horrific but far from ideal. I’d like a low calorie day today to balance it out. Especially as tomorrow won’t be as it’s Mother’s Day so we’re out for a meal. This last week has not been my best!

Haha well my low calorie day yesterday didn’t exactly work out.....!!

Still weighing in at 11.4 though, so it does seem like I’m maintaining at least. I haven’t had anything too terrible, I’m just eating too much! Today was always planned to be a scheduled day off, although now I’ve had pretty much a week off I think I’ll modify that plan to just have a ‘no count’ but ‘on plan’ day, as has been the theme to my week!

I’m struggling to get the balance right between eating/exercising and I think that might be why I’ve been so hungry this week. I’m building muscle which is apparent in my changing shape, but I’m not sure that I’m fuelling that change very effectively. I need to re-read the chapter in exercise in the book, because I’m not doing HIIT workouts, sometimes I’m running for 35 minutes, which according to Fitbit is burning 3-400 cals. So it’s no wonder really that I’m a bit depleted. I think I need to add extra calories in on running days, perhaps a shake? Is there anyone who knows about these kind of things?? Otherwise I shall have to venture over to the boot camp thread and ask!

Rarely, so sorry about the freezer. What a pisser.
London, that article about not gaining weight is depressingly true, isn't it?

Hi, checking in after a while away. Still BSDing but having the occasional cheat - even had a glass of wine this week. But managed to keep under 850 cals every day this week. Still a bit too much snacking but once I've finished the chocolate in the house I won't buy more, and then it'll be a bit easier to resist. Have managed to stabilise and then start losing again after 2 weeks of work travel/stress.

Think I am going to try to boost metabolism by joining the gym this week. Now I'm through the most stressful weeks at work, I have a little more room time-wise to play with. Have new (and smaller! hurrah) leggings ready to go.

Managed to get through a work dinner without touching the bread at table and on just one glass of wine. Did want to whack the annoying colleague seated next to me though. Not sure if more wine would have calmed my anger or given me the resolve to hit her on the head with the bottle though, so probably good I only had one glass. So...BSD saves lives, in unexpected ways.

(Obviously I am a very non-violent person and that was a joke. Mostly.)

Wow, just posted a quick question on the boot camp thread about maybe having a carb snack before running and got swiftly reminded why I don’t do LC boot camp! I know people can get a bit evangelical about their own Way Of Doing Things, but...... I don’t need a lecture about calorie counting and how BSD foods are all high carb and low calorie!!!!????? Am I missing something?! I don’t know about anyone else, but I couldn’t do ‘free eating’ as a permanent weight loss method, I would eat far, far too much.

I shall not be venturing out of the safety of BSD-land again!!

Anyway- how’s everyone’s weekend gone? We went to mum’s for lunch which was nice, and relatively low carb (I didn’t have the potatoes!) and feel ready for my strict week ahead to get back on track as I have eaten a lot this week and maintained as a result. So it will be back to basics for me this week- shopping list consisting of meat and veg and cheese!

Oblomov it is rather a downer, but my mate who's a PT says I need to retrain my metabolism through exercise - cardio with HR 150 bpm or above. I am generally quite sedentary (polite description!), although I walk loads, always in excess of 15k steps a day. I really need to try to keep it off.

So this is the end of my 6th week. I followed the plan Monday to Friday. Yesterday and today I've over eaten, just due to social arrangements. Not massively tho (by my standards) - about 1500 a day.

Weirdly I weighed myself on Sat AM and was disappointed to see I hadn't lost anything this week, so am not expecting any kind of loss tomorrow morning when I do my weekly weight in. Bit annoying since 5 days were on plan, and I'm feeling good/slimmer. I think this is the pay back for no aerobic exercise though - feel like I've slipped into hibernation mode.

2 weeks to go - would very much like to lose 4-5 pounds in that time, so am doubling down on it all, and trying to do some kind of exercise every day.

Very ill join you in the gym challenge...! It's hard when it's dark though isn't it.

londonista agree totally, very hard when dark and cold. But definitely going to try it, or at least try to try it, this week. Maybe I can work out some of that workplace-induced anger on the treadmill.

and bear I see what you mean - yes, BSD land is nicer and safer. I think some of them may have an incorrect sense of what BSDing is about and the variations available.

Maybe someone on the BSD forum on Mosley's site might have some thinking about the running issue? There's a section called 'Fast Exercise', though it doesn't seem to be as active (har har) as other sections of the forum.

Well it’s been deduced by the thread OP that my running issues (which weren’t really issues, per se, but just an enquiry as to whether I should eat something before running?!) are caused by my incredible lack of fitness (!) and the extreme calorie restrictions of the BSD. Lots of criticism of BSD too, but yes, I think there’s a degree of misinformation turns out OP designed the diet they all use on that thread so is likely a little defensive of it? But BSD works for me and I’m sticking with it! I can’t see how the bare bones of each plan could be that much different really, especially as I don’t eat grains, bread, pasta, potato at all even though they’re included in the BSD menus.

One interesting thing that did come out was the use of electrolytes for low carb diets, and I am going to look for some soluble sugar free electrolyte today to try drinking before I run. The article I subsequently read about this does suggest that if you LC and drink lots of water, you can get a bit depleted in electrolytes/salts which can affect performance but I’d imagine can leave us feeling a bit washed out too. I like this plan because I feel like I’m always learning more about how my body works and how to improve it, so that was an interesting development/read.

Hey everyone, just checking back in. I've had parties and lunches plus I forgot to log for a few days (which isn't like me). I need to try to fall back in love with BSD. I'm going to go back and read your updates now.

bear1983, Have you tried the bulletproof coffee before exercise? I read somewhere as it being great to have before a workout/run.

The 5:2 thread has a sub- thread on exercise matters. Have you tried asking there?

Hello I need to shamefacedly rejoin - I am living proof that the article posted before is true as I am now 30 lbs up on lowest BSD weight last year, and hanging on to 10lbs give or take lower than my start weight. One interesting thing is that the article mentioning overeating on something they wouldn't have before and that seems to have happened to me with McCoy crisps worse of all usually in a butty I know this is doing me no good but I couldn't resist and would tell myself 800 cals tomorrow which wouldn't happen.

Anyway my takeaway advice is to stay on this thread for maintenance!

Bear what thread were you on re exercise? I think Bigchocs thread on here for exercising fasters will be the best resource. I think possible strategies are:

1. only HIIT style workouts on your treadmill maybe 3 times a week using HR monitor if you are aimining for an 800 day consitently.
2. Workout fasted before breakfast/brunch - then have a recovery meal
3. Similar to BP coffee suggestion, have coffee before your workout - ideally black espresso x 2 shot (but I have instant with milk !).
4. Now you have lost so much it might be worth trying a concerted 5:2 fasting approach with 2 days at proper 7-800 and 5 days at maybe 1600 or something along those lines, probably using the higher cal days for exercise.
5. Along the lines of electroytes you could also look into BCAA supplements - I haven't used them though

Most of this advice is lifted from BC and I might have some of it wrong so I would ask on her exercise thread. Clearly I am a weight gain guru so maybe not the best person to spout advice

Hi Oblomov and Aplace and to all the BSDers, hope you don't mind me barging back in

Hi yumyum, no shame in a gain here! Nice to see you back!

Thanks for your advice Yumyum- I sort of do 5:2 by accident anyway as I’m so rubbish at actually sticking to 800 but I think you may be right as that I should decide in advance which days are the 5 and which are the 2, not just end up going over. I think when I scan back over the weeks I’m losing quite well and consistently with a 5 days at 8-1000 and 2 as free eating (usually end up on about 1500) but I do still calorie count as if I have myself free rein I would overeat. So yes, it would figure that if I am going to run x 5 days I should do it on higher cal days, and aim to do 800 on the other 2. I think I need a spreadsheet......!! I do work out fasted, and I do drink coffee before hand, so good to see I was already thinking on the right lines.

If I’m brutally honest with myself, it’s simply that when I first started I was slowed by my incredibly poor cardio fitness. Now, 2.5 Months in, I’ve got the bug a bit and my cardio fitness has improved, but I think years of inactivity have left me struggling. The post on the LCBC was simply for their advice on whether to eat something carby (or carbier?) first, but it does seem that no, I shouldn’t. I did buy electrolyte tabs to dissolve in water to make an isotonic drink, which I will try.

I weighed in at 1lb up this morning, 11.5. But I did deserve that after the weekend. Strict week for me this week. I’ve just battled round tesco and bought No BSD friendly ‘extras’ like I usually do, so there’s nothing to overeat!

Well done on disciplined food shop Bear!

It's all quite scientific, and I honestly am confused by all this but unless you know that your body is fuelling itself on fat via ketosis then you prob do need carbs after workout? Apparently it is possible to be really very low carb but fall out of ketosis and this is when low carb becomes a struggle. What might be worth trying is saving your daily 'good' carbs for after exercise, sort of along the lines of Joe Wickes advice?

Yes that’s the problem isn’t it, it’s far too scientific for me to fully understand. I don’t believe I’m ever in ketosis and certainly not intentionally. I did read somewhere that the time to eat carbs guilt free (within reason!) is immediately after exercise as they refill the depleted carb reserves in your muscles? To me that seems backwards though, like driving miles to a petrol station to refill the car, rather than filling up before you leave?! I think I will need to juggle around my food intake and see what works, but again, there’s so many other non food factors (such as mood, how much sleep, even what music I listen to affects how easy my run is!) that it could be a futile experiment. And this is all just the science of the low carb diet- I haven’t even begun to make sense of the running science!! My brain hurts!

Anyway, 4km done. Electrolytes drunk. I have reasoned with myself that even if it’s hard, that could actually be normal. I think back to the days of cross country at school, sneaking fags in our bras to smoke on the way round, so any improvement on that is a bonus!!!

Shy wave

Hello everyone!

Well, I'm back, back on day 1, currently on 650 with supper already added.

I could kick myself for falling so far off the wagon but there you go!

How are you all?

Hi flighty! I did wonder what had happened to you! Remind me...you finished the 8 weeks? Are you back for round 2?

Hi yumyum and flighty!

In a rotten mood. Went to a work lunch, and the only food available was: samosas, sandwiches that were mostly bread/bagels, crisps, pastries, and one sad bowl of fruit - most of it bananas and oranges. The one day I don't pack a lunch, and 90% of what's on offer is BSD unfriendly, to say the least.

Which, ok, no biggie, I ended up having a half bagel (very resentfully, as I really didn't want to use carbs or calories on it) and a sad slice of ham pulled from a white bread sandwich, and then afterwards had scrambled eggs elsewhere.

But wow, I really feel bad now for people with wheat allergies, who can't make do.

And I will never forget my own (delicious, including lots of veg and different vibrant colours) lunch again.

Hello everyone!

I've had about 2/3 days of not eating very well. Being at home at the weekend I find a real struggle. Ate out yesterday for lunch and there were literally no other options than a roast, which mainly consisted of oily roast potatoes, a huge yorkshire pudding and peas. The meat was nice, though. And the children made me breakfast in bed which was toast and cereal, so I couldn't really refuse that. Then come 9pm I just couldn't stop myself eating a packet of crisps from the cupboard. So not great. But on course again today. Lunch was 300cals from Pret and I'll have a 500cal dinner.

So yesterday, I ate a Pizza Express salad nicoise, yes with the bread stick things , and 3 dough balls, and boy oh boy do I feel weird today. Like bunged up or something.

I did do a load of back creaking gardening yesterday (my husband and I built some decking ourselves... a bad idea, almost bloody killed us), so unsure if it was the massive sudden hit of carbs, or the hard work - probably both. I actually feel terrible - I was climbing up the 3 flights to the office today and I actually had to stop and have a rest. I turn 47 years old tomorrow, and for that brief moment on the stairs, I felt about 87!

Had a protein shake, and turkey salad with nuts so far today. Feeling exhausted but I'm going to walk to Waterloo from work tonight (about 45 mins at a brisk pace)

I am forcing myself to get out and start Couch to 5k tomorrow. I don't care if it's raining, I AM GOING. Got to shake things up, metaphorically and physically!

Bear - do you have just coffee before you work out?

I was watching this program: www.channel4.com/programmes/how-to-get-fit-fast/episode-guide/series-2

And they were talking about how much better the fat burn is to exercise on an empty stomach. And if you can hold off eating immediately afterwards, you carry on the fat burning.