<stands up> I'm WeDONTneedanotherhero and I'm addicted to carbs

[WeDONTneedanotherhero]

I'm 90lb overweight and I am addicted to anything carby. Help!!!

Do I just go cold turkey and sit in the corner crying wishing I could have a bit of toast, a flapjack, pasta? I also feel like crap when I eat carbs (bloated etc)

I need to do something.

Have you done low carb before - if not then def give it a go! I would say you should pos buy a book first such as John Briffa's escape the diet trab www.amazon.co.uk/Escape-Diet-Trap-John-Briffa/dp/0007447760/ref=la_B001HPNVBC_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404324412&sr=1-1 - this is fairly moderate approach and probably a good starting point (think you can still have some fruit nut veg dairy etc).

I used to be totally addicted to carbs - I used to eat raw potatoes like apples! I try to focus on what I can eat rather than what I can't, all that is missing is the stodge, and I don't miss it at all now. Tonight I at down to a sea bass and aubergine curry, swimming in coconut craw am and a big salad. My dh had rice with his. I really enjoyed mine as it was ( though you can make rice from cauliflower). I have been doing this 3-4 months and lost over 2 stone - that's 60 packets of butter. All my meals are delicious. The first few days can be hard, but you can eat as much low carb food as you need at first. Now I'm estBlished I can eat berries, nuts and dark chocolate and at the weekend I usually make a cheesecake with nutty buttery base, cream cheese and clotted cream filling, with berries and melted chocolate - and I still lose weight! What's not to like?

Can I second dr Briffa's book. Makes for great reading, and is fairly easy to follow. I've been low carbing to get the last 7lb off, and it seems to be coming off easy with his plan, as well as giving me enough delicious food to eat that I'm not reaching for the carbs. I'm also addicted to carbs, I would happily live off bread, while I'm not bothered at all about pasta, potatoes or rice. But bread calls my name like you wouldn't believe.

Hey Parsnip, can I have your cheescake recipe?

OP, I've reduced (not cut out) carbs - I still have oats in the morning sometimes, and the odd biscuit to be social. I found that within two weeks I could walk round the Asda bakery section and feel no interest. I would never have believed it, but I think there must be a sort of chemical reaction to carbs - even the sight of the beggars - in the brain that gets weakened if you don't feed it.

Cheesecake - it's very much an adhoc thing, and I tend to make an individual portion so I don't eat too much.

I basically smash a handful of nuts - hazelnuts and almonds, and mix them with a melted mini bar if 85% chocolate and a dessert spoon of butter. I chill it in the freezer and then make a filling of tablespoons of mascarpone, clotted cream and sometimes coconut cream - just taste as you go. You could add sweetener but I don't bother. I then chop up some berries, mix with a teaspoon of grated chocolate. I take the base out the freezer, top with the filling and fruit and eat. A small bowl is really filling and satisfying and around 10 carbs, which I think is great - as it stops me going off piste.

Parsnip your food sounds amazing!!

YY to bread being addictive only when eating it, I am also not really bothered about other carbs like rice etc- well I would always say yes to good mac & cheese. I was also saying on another thread how once I have managed about 4 days without wheat I pretty much lose interest in it, but the problem is then a holiday or birthday/ tummy bug/ being skint frugal will happen and I start munching wheat again. If wheat didn't exist I am fairly sure I would always be slim!

Anyway the main thing to take from that ramble is that it really is only a case of maybe a week of zero wheat days before it will be much easier to say no to toast and pasta!

The only other thing to consider is that if you lose weight on low carb but are not very careful about reintroduction of carbs, in particular things like white toast, the weight will in my experience go on again quickly and an extra 7lbs or so on top. It really only seems to work long term for people who do it as a permanent change of lifestyle rather than a diet.

Just a thought but if you are crazy about carbs how about looking a Zoe Harcombes book. You do 2wks hard core which is a bit like Biwi's BootCamp but then you can add back some carb as long as you eat it on its own or with a neutral food off a list. Theres a thread on here somewhere.

Thanks everyone, I will take a look at the books that have been recommended. Never low carb-ed before so today is day one, so far i've not died and I haven't killed anyone in a lack of carbs induced rage so all is ok.

Have a read of the Bootcamp threads - and in particular look at the spreadsheed (which is always on the OP of any of the Week 1/2/3 etc threads. And you could always join us? We're coming towards the end of this Bootcamp (each one lasts for 10 weeks), but there will be a chat thread that continues once we're finished

Thanks BIWI. I'll have a look