Started Fast 800 today

[DareDevil223]

I've got lots to lose, I'm feeling lousy, so heavy, achy and sluggish and I can't bear to see myself in the mirror so I'm making a dramatic change. Losing a pound a week is not going to cut it.

I eat far too many carbs so I think this Mediterranean style of eating and the the drastic cut in calories will do me good. I've read the book, I've stocked up on the right foods and cleared out the crap. I haven't eaten yet but I'll have my first meal soon.

I know that it will be hard going at times but the promise of rapid weight loss is worth a bit of pain.

Wish me luck. I'll update on my progress as I go.

Week 7 weigh in this morning ... OMG's I have done it, I've lost 30lb!

I am so chuffed. Hopefully over the next 5 weeks I am aiming to lose another 20lb which will mean I'll be halfway to my target when I start the next phase ( we've decided on 4 days of Mediterranean about 1500cals, 2 days of MM shakes 500cals [as per the article in you mag] and 1 day of 800)

We've been keeping a 'snacks jar' in the car which DP and I put in whatever cash we would be spending on basically crap throughout the week at café, vending machines, petrol stations etc.

Counted up last night and it has bought DP and I 2 months membership at our local pool and will pay for our PT sessions for the next month shocking!

That's amazing @GhostBustersFavouriteMum! Very inspirational for someone only just into their second week. Can I ask did you stick to the 800 and no/low carbs religiously through the 7 weeks?

I've had a good day today despite the fact I on my third sore throat/cold in three weeks. Feeling grim and so tired but pleased that I've held out and not 'feeding' my cold.

Today's meals were:
2 scrambled eggs, quarter of an avocado and half a tomato for breakfast. 368 cals.
Cauliflower florets in sour vegetable broth for lunch. 45 cals.
Aubergine bake with salad leaves and cucumber. 411 cals.
75g Raspberries. 19 cals.
Total: 843 cals.

Thanks @balloon . I don't calorie count persay but have cut out all refined carbs. I carefully weigh any fats, berries, nuts, beans, legumes, full fat dairy, and meat every meal and eat above ground vegetables to appetite. I have 3 squares of dark chocolate every day after my dinner but before 7pm after which I don't anything until 9am. That's it. I've only started exercising this past two weeks so ... For me this works! 😀

Hi all can I join too. I'm on day two. I have to lose at least a stone that has appeared out of nowhere since I stopped breastfeeding just before Christmas.

@DareDevil223 you've done amazingly well!

Well done all. You're doing brilliantly.

I have stayed within the 800 today but for some reason am craving a bowl of salty new potatoes and gravy. I thought it would be bread that I would miss the most.

Really hope I can hit two stones in 9 weeks.

Right, I need to get back on this. I lost about 7lbs in 2 weeks on it but fell off the wagon when I had a very busy stressy couple of weeks and I just haven’t bern able to get my head in the zone again since. I’m away next weekend and there’s no way I’ll be able to follow it then but there’s no reason not to get a week in beforehand. Planning my meals is my absolute downfall at the moment, I need something that’s ready in about 5 minutes max or I have something off plan. I do like cooking normally but at the moment I’m struggling to have the energy or the headspace. Need to give my head a wobble. Lunch today will be 2 eggs and a variety of veg from the fridge. All your successes are amazing!

@target ohhhh my goodness I know totally what you mean. Obviously I don't know if it would work for you, but I believe I have cracked the problem.
First off, do you have a slow cooker? If so batch cooking some of the recipes in the book is a godsend. I have a dozen or so meals worth of Fast 800 recipes in the freezer and about the same number of cauliflower rice as an easy side.

When it comes to cooking I have found short cuts which really help:
'emergency' Frozen items: chopped red and white onions, chopped garlic, sliced peppers.
A well stocked spice cupboard makes a huge difference.
Ready cooked delicious protein- I now buy a 3kg joint of meat on the bone cook it on a Sunday and then we have it through the week, cutting it as we need it so it doesn't dry out. This week it's lamb shoulder cooked until it's pink (when I have lamb, my butcher removes the surface fat for me and replaces it with caul which keeps it moist but not too fatty)
After a particularly tiresome day DP and I will have a few slices of meat, 4 gherkins, a sliced and salted tomato, and a piece of Cucumber or some celery for dinner which is really satisfying and super quick!

I got in yesterday and needed risotto. I would have mainlined it if I could. I got my trusty cauliflower rice out and made a no-sotto!
Recipe-
I fried a handful of red onion, 2 tspn chopped garlic, 4 quartered portabello mushrooms and 2 bags of cauliflower rice in a tablespoon of olive oil.
I added a quarter teaspoon of sumac and cooked it until the mushrooms were soft and the cauliflower defrosted and softened, about 5 minutes?
I added 10g of parmesan, salt and pepper and topped with 2 generous slices of joint of the week. This served myself and DP.
Tasted amazing and really felt like risotto!

Bit disheartened today as I only lost .5lb yesterday.
I think I may have overdone it with last night's chicken curry. The scales are broken so I wasn't weighing the ingredients.
I must admit it was delicious and filling though.

It's nice to see lots of us starting at the same time! X

That sounds delicious @Ghost!

I've done similar (although lazier!) than Ghost in that I've bought a bunch of individual meals from COOK - they have a range of stuff that's 250-350 calories. Then I just pop one in the microwave for lunch and I know its done & accounted for. I also find I have to enter my meal plans for the week into MFP when I plan them so I never look at a day and just see 800 calories remaining - it's too tempting to fill them up!

Haven't seen movement on the scales today but I'm actually wondering how accurate they are. They are cheapies and I wonder if I should get new ones... Does anyone have any scales they really like?

So I ended up seeing the urgent care GP yesterday because I still feel awful and he thinks I have a chest infection, which would explain why I feel so tired & winded. Antibiotics for a week so hopefully it will be over soon. I'm feeling really run down today so hibernating under a blanket with crap tv.

Welcome to all the newbies!

I hope you start feeling well soon @PhoenixMama
You're hardcore for doing this with a chest infection!

@phoenix ohhh hun! That's a right trial for you. I know I've waggled this particular stick before, but homemade fresh ginger and honey tea is marvelous for all sorts of phlemmy conditions. Sounds like you're in the right place x bought our scales from Tesco they were WW ones - I liked the irony

I've never heard of cook, I'll look into it.

I'd like to add all my congratulations and welcome to newcomers also.

Brilliant advice! Thank you! I had a nice lunch of boiled egg and asparagus, rocket and tomato salad and a portobello mushroom grilled with garlic and herb cheese, all for 192 calories so I’m pleased with that. Working from home today so I’ve acted on the good advice and the slow cooker is bubbling away for this evening.

Down another 1lb today, only 2 this week though which is a bit of a letdown. Really think I need a new scale as today's readings went from 197 to 202 in a matter of minutes. Ugh!

Really worried as to how everything is going to play out over Easter holidays - next week DD's at camp for 4 days but I generally have to stay in town while she's there so will be at the mercy of cafes, etc for lunch. Any advice there? Any 'fast but healthy' suggestions? I used to love Leon but they prop everything up with so many carbs doesn't work for fast800!

Well done Phoenix.
I only lost 1/4 lb today so I'm feeling a bit deflated.
Had a bit of a disastrous morning as I totally forgot I had a meeting first thing and left the house in scruffy clothes and unprepared. Had to rush back home to change and grabbed the first thing I could find to tide me over which was a cereal bar
After eating it realised it was 200 cals which is not how I would have chosen to use those calories if I'd been prepared!
So I'm treating myself to my first flat white of the week and won't eat until tonight now.

I'm not sure if I'm being realistic in expecting greater weight loss. What's everyone else averaging per day?

Frou after those initial few weeks of rapid weight loss it's quite normal for you to slow down. The initial loss is largely visceral fat, and water and once that's gone then you'll go back to a more 'normal' amount of 1-2lbs a week especially if you don't have loads to lose. In my experience though, whereas I might lose 1lb a week doing slimming world, it would feel like a terrible chore and hard work, whereas on this plan it feels so different. It's easier somehow. You're not constantly battling yourself. And bear in mind that a consistent 1lb-2lb a week is 50-100lbs in a year- that's 6/7 stones!

Yeah I reckon after the first 2 weeks I should be happy with 2-3 lbs a week from now on. Which would mean by the end of 8 weeks it should be around a total loss of 27lbs! Then I'd only have 17lbs to go... I might try to do it for 12 weeks and maximise any loss before going 5:2!

Ordered a new scale - praying it doesn't suddenly say I weigh more!

Afternoon all, everyone is doing so well. GhostBusters and Phoenix you are legends! xx

5:2 is going well so far. I can't believe how my tastes have changed and I just can't eat (or don't want to eat) a big amount of food, Also the amount of real, unprocessed food you can eat for a modest amount of calories is amazing. I haven't eaten crisps or pastries since I started this and I was a crisp addict.

We had a celebration at work and I had a bite of a cupcake to be polite. It was so sweet it made me feel really sick and awful and I had to go and throw it away.I don't even recognise myself {grin}

Obviously I have a way to go but I feel so much better, more energetic and confident and I believe that I will get to my goal. I'm so glad I started both this diet and this thread.

@thenewaveragebear1983 I'm in my first week though
I was losing a lb per day for the first two days but it's slowed right down.
I was intending to do 2:5 but might just have a day off tomorrow and back to 800 on Sunday.
I really only wanted to do fast800 for 3 weeks for a quick weight loss hit but I suppose it's not that easy!

Oh frou, ok. I Can see why you feel disheartened. I've been on the other bsd thread for a long time now and every now and then someone does experience what you are. It could simply be that you just don't have the visceral fat to start with (some people don't) and/or weren't holding much water. Otherwise, the usual advice we would give is to drink more water (you need water to flush the fat and complete the metabolic processes involved in fat burning), check your weights of your food using mfp or similar, increase your protein and fat and decrease % carbs.
Also, have you started exercising alongside this? Or is it totm? As these can both cause water retention that skews the scales?

A good week always shows, sometimes not as dramatically as we might hope, but it always will show. You've lost 2.25lbs so far? That's still a good result for a diet. My advice would be to step of the scales, plan your meals for the next few days and weigh yourself in a few days and hopefully any water retention will have balanced out.

@frou This exact thing happened to me and after 3 days of no change, I dropped a couple of pounds. The most important thing is not going off the rails. 3 things that definitely made a difference to me - drinking way more water, upping my salt content, and I got a magnesium oil spray. (I hate taking tablets) and I read elsewhere that magnesium levels help stop your body holding onto stuff. Stay with it and you will see a difference. I have a friend who didn't see the scale move for more than a couple days but was still losing inches so take measurements too!

Thanks @PhoenixMama and @thenewaveragebear1983
Those replies really chime with me.
I don't think I have been drink enough water. - although I've been having a few herbal teas.
And I could increase the protein to carb ratio.
I stupidly didn't measure myself but I do feel less bloated so I'll make sure I do that today.
I've just looked at how much a pound is in grams and it's actually quite a lot so I'll give my head a wobble as they say.
DH has lost 4lbs in so there may be is an element of competitiveness at play

Hi all, lost 3 lbs in 3 days. Have stuck to the principles and eaten none of the obvious carbs but have definitely been well over the 800 kc. Hadn't appreciated lamb was quite a high calorie protein for instance so will stick to chicken and lots of fish and veg from now on. I have my period and I think I usually lose easier this week, whereas the week just before I usually gain. Anyhow I am delighted and feel really encouraged to try hard. Already feel a lot better than I did at the beginning of this week. My appetite has adjusted, not hungry today so just having one meal this evening of 120 gr salmon, 50 gr lentils, onions and mushrooms. The weekends are tough, very easy to get derailed and undo the weeks good work so good luck everyone!

It's more than you think frou.

It's really easy to be skewed by water too, bear in mind a pint of water weighs over a pound- but has zero calories and won't make you gain weight.

Just had to share my delicious pizza dinner, only 350! I use a tortilla, some passata, 1.5 slices of honey ham & 45g of cheese. Delicious & totally fills that 'treat' need. Even DD made one & loved it!