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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 and Fast800 thread 15

999 replies

thenewaveragebear1983 · 23/05/2019 07:34

Here’s the new thread for the BSD followers, plus those following the Fast800 plan. Everyone is welcome to join us. Here’s a quick recap!

The BSD/fast 800 is a low carb, Mediterranean style way of eating, with the primary aim of stabilising your insulin response when you eat. You achieve this by: eating fewer carbs, cutting out sugar and sweet tasting foods including most fruit, and by following a low calorie plan that reduces your visceral fat meaning that everything functions more effectively. Less insulin means less fat storage (in a nutshell, although more info can be found on this online). The diet was designed to reduce T2 diabetes symptoms (or even reverse it entirely) but can also be used for weightloss.

Eat:
Meats and fish
Oils
Eggs
Full fat dairy products
Nuts, seeds
Pulses/ beans
Veg that grows above ground
Limit fruit: apples, pears, berries- in moderation, with meals, with fats

Occasional alcoholic drinks allowed (spirits, red wine are preferable to beer, lager, etc)
Tea and coffee, herbal tea etc.
And water- drink lots of water!

Avoid
sugar, sweets, and ‘naturally occurring sugars’ such as fructose, maltose, honey, agave, puréed dates etc....

Potatoes of any variety
Pasta
Rice
Breakfast cereals (occasional steel cut oats are ok)
Breads/ flour based products

Exercise:
Michael Moseley recommends HIIT workouts to increase calorie burn and help to tone up, and recommends walking more (increasing your steps weekly until you hit around 10000 a day)

Mindfulness
MM also suggests a programme of mindfulness, meditation, practised for a few minutes each day.

How to follow the plan:
Fast800: follow the plan above, sticking to 800 calories every day for 2 weeks. Ideal to give your weightloss a real kick start, plus improve your insulin function and reduce your sugar cravings.
8 weeks BSD- 8 weeks, follow the guidelines above- 800 calories a day. You don’t need to count carbs grams because the diet is naturally self limiting.
BSD 5:2- for a more leisurely weightloss journey, or as maintenance, or once you’ve done an 8 week stint or 2 weeks of Fast800, you can play around with a combination of increased calorie count, ‘free eating’ and fasting days (800 cals) until you achieve your goals. Many of our long standing members now follow this approach.

You can stop 800 calorie days at any time once you achieve your goal. It’s advised to limit yourself to 12 weeks maximum at 800 calorie days, but you should get excellent results in 8 weeks. Depending on your weightloss goals, you can do further ‘rounds’ of either the 8 week BSD or the Fast800.

Some useful links:

Previous thread

Blood Sugar Diet and Fast800 thread 14 http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/fasting_diet/3532374-blood-sugar-diet-and-fast800-thread-14

Meal planning ideas thread
Blood sugar diet recipe thread and menu planner meal planning thread

<a class="break-all" href="http://go.mumsnet.com/?xs=1&id=470X1554755&url=healthyeater.com/important-tool-weight-loss" target="_blank">TDEE calculator to calculate your daily calorie requirement

information about the ‘whoosh’ phenomenon

OP posts:
Thread gallery
57
BloomedAgain · 14/07/2019 18:48

Was going to say that my current extreme hunger fixes are a tin of tuna steak with lemon juice or a cup of hot chicken stock.

thenewaveragebear1983 · 14/07/2019 19:02

Grey I find it tough doing all the cooking as well, but it does help in the long run, I can plan everything out and it's up to me what we have. I only ever cook one meal though, and the children have either corn on the cob, baked potato, chips etc or garlic bread or rice with theirs as an add-on. They see Uncle Ben far more regularly than they see any of their actual non-rice uncles! Batch cooking is also your friend here if you can be organised eg. Mince/chilli/meatballs, chicken tray bakes, seasoned chicken thighs (save some for lunches), I sometimes do a simple midweek roast too which gives leftover meat for the next day with salad.

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thenewaveragebear1983 · 14/07/2019 21:11

I apologise now for my BSD friendly supper- olives, crab sticks, half a scotch egg and a sugar free vimto ice lolly.

Very sorry not sorry Grin

Blood sugar diet and Fast800 thread 15
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BloomedAgain · 14/07/2019 21:27

Mmm vimto

thenewaveragebear1983 · 14/07/2019 21:31

They are only 4 calories each, I got them in Aldi last week! Now to be truthful, we shouldn't really have artificial sweeteners, but sometimes it is nice to have a sweet treat especially when everyone else is Having something.

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PhoenixMama · 14/07/2019 22:15

I did better today. I'm 9 calories over lol but lacking in protein & over on carbs but it's the first 800(ish) weekend day in a while.

I don't know who suggested the Young's dish portions but we had the lemon pepper basa fillets tonight and even DD who had been complaining about having to have a healthy dinner loved them! Definitely stocking up on more of those! 240cals, 15g carb, 24g protein & 10g fat!

BloomedAgain · 15/07/2019 10:12

They sound delicious. Thank you for the advice to check measurements not just scales. I'm smaller all over but not yet much difference in weight.

onanothertrain · 15/07/2019 11:21

Hi all, I've had a flare of arthritis which has severely limited my ability to exercise over the last few weeks. However I have been eating the same as I was when running half marathons and although I have maintained Shock I am on a very slippery slope!
So back on fast 800 today and hopefully will manage 5k run tonight.

thenewaveragebear1983 · 15/07/2019 20:17

God, today's been an unmitigated disaster. Literally I have not stopped grazing today, I've eaten so much crap- and not even nice stuff, just sugary rubbish bought for the children. Don't even know why, I feel very tired and that's probably it; it certainly wasn't hunger!

Oh well- as always, draw a line, dust myself down, start again tomorrow!

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GreyBasket · 15/07/2019 20:25

@onanothertrain do you feel on the whole that this way of fasting has improved your arthritis at all? I have been reading about it lessening the symptoms and I wondered... and I hope you feel good tomorrow and make it for a run!

@thenewaveragebear1983 shucks. Sounds like my Thursday last week.

I made goats cheese, courgette, pepper and red onion frittata from the 800 recipe book this evening. It had a soggy bottom 🙄 But tasted okay for a frittata. The other three quarters of it I will put in the fridge for lunches.

PhoenixMama · 15/07/2019 22:16

Train Be gentle with yourself, if you interested yourself think about how much further back you'd be.

Bear Huge hugs, days like that suck. But as you always say, it's only one day! You'll get back to it!

So I ran out of some of my meds yesterday and so woke up at 2am and basically haven't been able to go back to sleep. I'm shattered & oh so bloated, but have managed to stay within cals, and recorded everything in MFP. So excited to be going bed!

HadleyM · 15/07/2019 22:44

Hi all,
I've been lurking for a while and before I say anything about me, please know that you are all SUCH an inspiration (even when it's not working for you.)

Your support for one another and general know-how are one layer of things that have inspired me to just bloody get on with it with this WOE.

48yo, 5'9"
SW: 108kg
TW: 69kg

I have just started F800 and have been using MFP to keep my input roughly10:50:40 for carb/fat/protein (vaguely, sometimes, almost kinda Grin but it's good to have a guide)

I have been 16:8 most days (late late brekkie) with 2 x 24hr fasts (diner> dinner)

I have been using ketostix and am in medium keto.

I'm on day 8 and my first weigh in this morning was -3.9kg Smile

I know the first week is the biggest and this is probably mostly water but I am still very pleased. My target is to average 3kg pw but I am realistic in that I know this may not be possible.

( I have to use kg because grew up with stone and the numbers are just too emotional. e.g: I can remember when I hit 12 stone how upsetting it was. And even though my loss may be going well it will be such a high number that I won't feel it - I'll just be thinking 'really? I'm pleased to be at 15stone now?)

All I care about with kg is that they are going down.

It's silly I know but it works for me!

So anyway I just wanted to say hello and thanks for the inspiration everybody! Flowers Flowers Flowers

I am on GMT-7 so my posts may seem all over the place, I'm not an insomniac

thenewaveragebear1983 · 16/07/2019 07:44

Well done Phoenix. Welcome to Hadley.

I haven't weighed myself this morning after yesterday, but I'm just getting straight back in the saddle today. I'm at my sisters for lunch so I will fast until then, and it will probably be a salad or something else quite bsd friendly so that's ok. Tonight's dinner will be a chicken Kiev out of my keto recipe book, although I forgot to get the almond flour to make the breadcrumbs. My biggest challenge it to stay out of kitchen and stop grazing. I have a terrible habit of just having that wild ten minutes and it's amazing (and quite horrifying really) just how much I can eat in those few minutes especially compared with the whole of the rest of the day. After the event I always think I'd have been better to have a full meal eg. Salad and ham, rather than several hundred calories of rubbish and it would at least be nutritious.

I'm off out for a quick run this morning and will do Day 6 of my hiit challenge this afternoon. I've been doing the exercises every day, which may have contributed to my feeling tired yesterday, but I feel like my muscles are benefiting from it (my stomach is actually, dare I say, quite flat this morning)- must ensure I get sufficient protein in today.

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GreyBasket · 16/07/2019 07:48

@thenewaveragebear1983 yes, that sounds a great plan. Don't weigh yourself and just get back to it! And remember that Micheal Moseley chested too! He describes an evening of wine and cheese during the first fortnight.

A quick one, does anyone know the best thing to eat before an intensive bit of exercise? I am struggling with this, having started (beginners!) CrossFit.

Riddleofthesands · 16/07/2019 07:51

Hi, unfortunately I have hurt my back badly, getting dressed is a major operation, looked in the mirror and my middle is all blubber. Can barely walk but have to keep going as stuff to do. Weighed and I have lost 3 lbs in the first week, I haven’t stuck to it properly. Will try and have a strict day. I am sure losing a few lbs would help my back too.

Gemi33 · 16/07/2019 07:55

Hi everyone

I haven't read this whole thread yet but I just wanted to say hi - I feel like I have tried just about every diet going with little success and have pretty much lost any belief that I can do it but I bought the Fast 800 book the other day on a whim and I'm considering giving it a go. I still need to read the book and will obviously read all the stuff on here but I'd be really grateful for any tips on getting started. Also is it worth buying the recipe book? And has anyone signed up for the online programme - is it worth it?

Apologies if these questions have already been answered - I will read through the whole thread!

xx

thenewaveragebear1983 · 16/07/2019 08:09

Grey I always run fasted as I get a terrible stitch but when I did my half marathon I used those isotonic gels which really helped, although they are maltodextrin so pretty much pure sugar! I try not to use them just for training. I use a Science in Sport soluble electrolytes tab which is sugar free which can help ease the really heavy legs feeling.

Riddle that sounds awful, hope you are feeling better soon. 3lbs is great though, and you're right, the weight loss will only be a good thing for your back. Take care Thanks

Gemi yes, join us! If you've done lots of diets before, be prepared for everything you thought you knew to be turned on its head, we are the opposite of slimming world, and it can be a steep learning curve at first- but it really does work if you follow the plan. I don't use the recipes book but I know if others who have used it entirely and had amazing results so it's really up to you. I wouldn't personally pay for the online membership because this group is MUCH better at least at first. You are always welcome on here to ask any questions and share your story.

Re: starting out. Plan your food for at least the first few days, clear out all the junk or put it in a box for the dc, choose a time when you're feeling really motivated and haven't got loads of tempting situations ahead. I find it really helped me to just know in my head why I was doing it- it makes it much easier to say no (and you'll probably say no a lot!). Do your measurements. And good luck!!

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GreyBasket · 16/07/2019 10:21

Welcome @Gemi33 I had the same question about the official group and decided the money would be better saved as I can't imagine the forum to be as good as these threads are! I may pay for an app (just finished a free trial) to help make calorie counting easier but that is a fraction of the cost.

Definitely read the book! I thought I could get away with just the recipe book, as I'd read the original 5:2 book, but I couldn't. I ended up with both on kindle. On balance, I would hold off on the recipe book as there are some recipes in the back of the normal book.

Good luck starting 😊

@thenewaveragebear1983 I had two small fried eggs as they had full English at work. I didn't touch anything else - although the bacon and hash browns looked amazing. I shall check out energy giving gels and water, thank you!

PhoenixMama · 16/07/2019 10:51

Welcome @Gemi33 & @HadleyM!

Gemi I use the cookbooks but I think the BSD one is better than the Fast 800 cookbook (BSD has more recipes under 400 cals) so you definitely don't need both. There are so many good recipes its been a lifesaver!

Hadley I hope you don't mind but I'm going to give you some unsolicited advice - 3kgs a week is a really difficult goal. It might be ok for a week or 2 but for the first 4 months I lost on average 3LBS a week and I did really well (think Macca is very similar on this, she may have lost slightly more). I'd hate for you to set a really high goal and then feel like you've failed when you haven't hit it - we've all had those moments of falling off the wagon when the scale isn't doing what it's supposed to, just be careful setting yourself up to fail from the start.

I'm down 0.4 of a lb today, whereas before that would have felt like a failure given the last couple of weeks I'll take it as a win! That said I'm out for mexican at lunch so god only knows what today's calorie counts are going to be like!

onanothertrain · 16/07/2019 12:06

Grey to be honest I'm not sure. I stared trying to follow a Mediterranean diet about 3 years ago to see if it made a difference and I don't think it did. On my first 9 months of BSD my joints were good however due to an infection i had to stop my treatment and have only just got back on them both.
The short answer is I have no idea!!

BloomedAgain · 16/07/2019 13:58

Does anyone have reliable scales? I have been relying on some basic nondigital scales but realise I can't measure small fluctuations in weight.

thenewaveragebear1983 · 16/07/2019 14:43

I don't have particularly jazzy scales, just a cheap digital supermarket set but I am tempted by some body analysis ones I've seen on amazon as I'd like to track my muscle/fat/water.

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Riddleofthesands · 16/07/2019 15:40

Just read this back and it’s very moany. Sorry. Letting off steam!

Had small bean salad for lunch. Not sure what’s for dinner. I can feed kids from freezer. Back did get a bit better and then I had to drive and back to square one. Bit worried, holiday on Saturday, spray tan booked but I can’t shave my legs. Laundry backing up, got to take boisterous dog to kennels on Friday and pack for holiday. In pain and not able to do anything! Also this is the week I got an expensive skip in to declutter the hideous playroom. It’s been collected on Friday and I haven’t been able to get going. Really need my back to get better. I have been saying I will do Pilates to strengthen my back for about 10 years but it’s always when I’ve lost the weight ...

Thanks for the good wishes Bear.

Bloomed my scales are decent, measure in 1/4 lbs or kg. John Lewis brand.

PhoenixMama · 16/07/2019 16:50

I have great scales & they track your weight with an app on your phone! Totally love them (although nearly died the first time I weighed on them as they were much higher - they dropped down 48 hours later which is apparently common!)

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07GVCJ1C1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?psc=1&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&ie=UTF8

@Riddleofthesands Can you take anything for your back or see an Osteo? That sounds really tough. Eggs are my go-to can't figure out what to eat - 2 egg omelette with garlic or pesto for flavour, a green veg chopped up and 20- 30g of cheese. Filling and super easy!

BloomedAgain · 16/07/2019 17:54

They're snazzy PhoenixMama! Good to know that they'd weigh higher to start with. Would be rather a shock.

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