I'm thinking about doing the Cambridge diet

[melonandpapayaandmango]

At 5'4, nearly 19 stone things are getting desperate.

I'll listen to all views but I DESPERATELY want to lose this weight!

Have some sweet potato as opposed to a jacket. Don't have the pasta - have a feta cheese salad instead. Or a stir fry minus the noodles - add plenty of chicken to it, or quorn pieces. Have some field mushrooms stuffed with low fat cheese.

Ah.
A, allergic to cheese and shellfish.
Hate mushrooms too.
(sorry)
Have decided to do low carb rather than cc so it's not as bad as it seems!!

I am doing Lighterlife and have lost 4 stone with another to go. It is very niave of people to say 'just stop eating so much' 'cut the carbs' 'exercise more, it's not rocket science' but this is NOT where the problem lies for people who over-eat. It's more to do with messages that have been drilled into you since childhood about not wasting food or being comforted with food when anything bad has happened, or it's to do with low self esteem and not wanting to be conspicuous etc etc etc. We all know HOW to lose weight but we might not know why we always sabotage our efforts. It's similar to telling an alcoholic just to stop drinking.... it isn't that easy.

I have done CD and loved it! The diet works great, i wish i could take a pill to stop my chocolate craving when i'm not on it though.

There can be a problem with constipation, even when you are drinking loads. It all varies from person to person. I had a friend who talked longingly about enemas!

I lost weight on it, but since my thyroid has packed up tried it again and, despite sticking to it 100% didn't lose an ounce.

The thing to give yourself the best chance is reduce carbs a little before starting and try to as balanced a diet as poss the week before. Carb and caffeine withdrawal can cause headaches, despite the gallons of water.

I have done LL and CD in the last 7 years and both times I achieved great results. The first time i did it for 3 months and lost 5 stone, the second time i did it for 6 weeks and lost a stone and a half. I have been eating normal food now for over a year, However now I suffer terribly with trapped wind/stomach cramps which I never experienced iin my life before I did LL/CD. Even when I eat something small (carbs are particularly bad) I get terrible pains in my stomach. I am convinced that I have screwed up my digestive system by starving myself on these diets and my body has changed somehow and now finds it hard to digest food. Personally I wish I'd never done it as the quick fix results are definitely not worth the pains I now have to live with.

hotcrossbun99 - great post.

It's really irritating and hugely patronising when people, talking about how to lose weight, start any sentence with 'just ...'

If it was that easy, there wouldn't be any fat people. Because I'm sure none of us want to be fat!

One of the best books I've read about dieting (it happens to be about low carbing, but that's not really key) is India Knight/Neris Thomas's book The Idiot Proof Diet, because they know what it's like to be overweight, and the diet is based on their own experiences. They deal with the emotional/psychological aspects of food/eating/dieting really well as a consequence.

For me, someone who has tried every diet and failed, and struggled with food issues for 30+ years, and weight issues for 20 years, this is an interesting discussion.
I'm in the process of going lower carb, easing myself into it rather than going hardcore from the start.
I've read IPD (and got the brilliant cook book) and enjoyed the book for the reasons mentioned by BIWI. But haven't both India and Neris regained a lot of the weight? I have very low frustration tolerance and right now, if you gave me a choice between staying this fat forever or working hard to lose it,, getting to goal but then regaining I'd rather stay fat. I'm a sad bastard I know but I have this fear of putting in all that effort, then enjoying a few months of goal weight, just to gain it all back. Maybe I need a psychiatrist rather than a diet?!
I know that maintaining weight loss is all about changing habits and keeping the new habits but I wonder which methods of weight loss are the most successful after the diet is over?

Sorry had to go offline for a few minutes.
I've never tried any of the VLCD's. I don't think I'd have the willpower. It's tempting though, I know people lose about 3st in 3 months doing LL. I really admire those of you who have the determination to stick to it (and CD).
But again what are the rates of regain like? I don't know anyone who's done a VLCD and kept off the weight for more than a year.

Thats what worries me pompano.
Its an awful lot of money.
John Briffas book is worth a read...makes a lot of sense

Pompano - fear of re-gaining weight is something that becomes a huge issue for many. But it's also something that's used as a 'delaying' tactic - and becomes self-sabotage, if you're not careful. "There's no point in doing this because I'm only going to put it all back on again". (One of my friends is a classic case of this - and it's a difficult mindset to get out of).

I'm not sure about IK/NT and whether or not they've re-gained their weight - but if they have, it's because they did something that most of us do, i.e. get to your target weight and then revert to your eating habits pre-diet. And, of course, it was those eating habits that led to weight gain in the first place.

With any diet, part of it has to be re-training yourself to eat 'better'. I think any slimming club/programme talks about this, be it Weight Watchers or Slimming World or any of the others. For me, that's about low carbing on a more or less permanent basis. Hopefully I will be able to eat carby stuff every now and then, once I've reached my target - but actually I don't miss much of it, and I'm happy to continue to enjoy my food the way I do at the moment. (That's also a critical factor for me - low carbing means I can et food that is enjoyable and doesn't feel like I'm being deprived!)

BIWI
I am also low carbing but due to some allergies am allowing myself a jacket potato and GF pasta 1 x per week as well as lacto free milk x2 per day in my decaf coffee.
I am drinking lots of water which can only be a good thing I think.
I am also cutting down on fruit and choosing lower carb ones when I do.
I havent eaten wheat (big thing for me as wheat was a basis for every meal pre diet) since saturday :) Am rather proud of that :)

Well done! It's amazing how much wheat finds its way into our diets. How are you feeling since you started?

hmmmm....thats a good question! :)

On day 2 I felt dreadful...headachy/fluey...ugh. Thats the day I reintroduced lacto free milk (lightweight) Also been feeling a bit tired/weak but that may be the heat?

I feel ok today, but hungry! Just about to have ham salad for lunch. Had on omlette for breakfast and an apple.

Possibly fish and veg for dinner.

Might treat myself to some very dark choc too!

The headachey/fluey thing is carb withdrawal. It's not nice - but you will get through it soon!

If you continue to feel weak, eat/drink something salty. You also need to keep an eye on your potassium levels, as drinking lots of water can also deplete this - salmon and avocado are very good sources of this.

Once you're through the withdrawal you should feel much more energised.

Sorry, OP, for hijacking your thread

salted peanuts?
yes, sorry OP

The only person I know who did the Cambridge Diet lost 10 stone in 10 months. She had been very big all her life and was now really lim. But I do think that losing 10 stone in 10 monts seems like way too much too fast. Her hair started to fall out so that says a lot I think about loss of nutrients.

And yes she put it all back on again, in a very short space of time, this caused her huge emotional distress.

I agree with Erik who says that there's no point losing weight without addressing why you overeat in the first place and what your emotional triggers are.

sqoosh - I agree with Erik who says that there's no point losing weight without addressing why you overeat in the first place and what your emotional triggers are.

that's what I need to hear and what I need to focus on. Thanks.

That's very true.

You absolutely MUST consider why you allowed yourself to put the weight on in the first place - and I absolutely believe that it is a choice, something you allowed to happen. I'm still pondering this to myself at the moment.

I am going to wind down on the CD in a few weeks time as I am close ish to my goal weight and then see what happens.