Brand new shiny VLCD thread...LighterLife, Cambridge etc

[Cheesyslice]

New thread as the old one is now bursting at the seams.

Hello everyone!

I've done a VLCD twice before (Slim and Save - marked SnS on my graph) and I am now seriously considering doing one again.
I have yo-yo dieted all my adult life - 4.5 years ago I reached yet another 'highest ever' weight and vowed that I would monitor my weight and never go that high ever again. I have managed that but clearly haven't stopped the awful yo-yo dieting.

I'm now pretty desperate to get my weight down again, particularly as I have developed a back (problem sitting, especially in the morning) and foot (plantar fasciitis) issue and the extra weight really cannot be helping. I am also pretty limited with what exercise I can do at the moment!

Would you give a VLCD another go? I would do SnS again. After the initial big loss the first time round I lost an average of 3.5 lbs/wk but on the second attempt I only lost 2 lb/wk average.

As with every diet - I hope this will be the last 'big' one! I really do get that I simply cannot drink wine like I do when I'm not on a diet. I need to stop drinking alcohol apart from special occasions really...

Well - I'm in! Just made a 14 day order with Slim and Save and I plan to start of Saturday (works night out on Friday - a meal) but cut down a lot before that.
Hoping that this will be 'the one' where I finally say goodbye for good to being obese and then overweight.
Looking forward to getting to know you all a bit over the next few weeks/months!

Hi Gabor, I'm also a yo-yo dieter, and also on my third go round of a VLCD too. I did lighter life 9yrs ago and lost 4st in about 3.5 months. Then I did Cambridge about 3 yrs ago and lost the 2st I'd put back on. And now I'm back needing to lose 4st again.

I'm also using Slim and Save. My second weigh in is tomorrow, I'm not sure what to expect, I lost 10.4lbs in my first week, it's difficult though, I'm really hoping for at least 3lbs but I don't want to set myself up to be disappointed.

Talc
1st go (late 2012): 11 weeks and lost 2 st 9 lbs (BMI 33 to 27)
2nd go (early 2013): 5 weeks and lost 1 st 5 lbs (it was slower this time, after initial loss) (BMI 30.5 to 27.5)
3rd go (packs arrive on Tuesday): I only have hopes!

Hi allleypalley - what an amazing first weeks loss! Good luck for tomorrow. I know what you mean about not setting yourself up for a disappointment. I found first time round I would have a 'good' week followed by a slower week and because of that I actually find weighing in daily better for me (I know that doesn't suit most people though!).

2nd weigh in this morning. 4.2lbs lost. 14.8lbs in total. So happy.

Another great result alleypalley! Over a stone gone in two weeks - wow!

Thanks Gabor. It's given me a boost of motivation for this week.

You've got me all motivated to start too!
Packs arrive tomorrow - I plan to start with the very next meal and then wean myself on by having as many as 1 every 2 hrs to start with. Plan to be 100% on by Saturday. First time I did it took me 2 days to get on and last time I was on it straight away. We'll see!
Not quite sure how I am going to manage this works meal out on Friday...

Great stuff, Alley. You must be feeling very pleased. Thanks, Gabor - most impressed with your stats on your various losses. Good luck.

Gabor, you bring up a point I would love to hear other people's thoughts on. I've found my second week of Cambridge harder than my first because it has involved more socialising. I'm not comfortable with telling people I'm on a VLCD (I come across as confident and centred, and I think that even quite close friends would be shocked to know how much my weight has bothered me), so I've ended up lying about being ill, and tying myself into knots. We have dear friends staying with us from abroad, and it's been very difficult to get out of eating when they're there in the kitchen or in the restaurant three meals a day. I also skipped an occasion I would like to have attended, because it would have been too difficult not to have wine and food.

What do the rest of you do about social life? Are you open about being on a VLCD?

I agree it's definitely difficult trying to balance a vlcd with a social life. There are times when you can get away with a small low carb meal, or ordering your own drinks so a sparkling water can look like a g&t, but there will be times where you have to explain what you're doing, or just basically make a choice whether to go or not. What's more important right now. Luckily I don't have any big events coming up like a wedding or birthday party or anything like that.

Obviously my dh knows, and I've also told my best friend, but that's it. I'm happy to miss out on a couple of casual nights out. I have an area meeting tomorrow, where there would usually be quite a few drinks afterwards. My dd has her gymnastics display in the evening though, so at least I have an excuse not to stay drinking and to leave early. But for next month's one I'll have to think up another excuse.

People will notice soon enough though that you are losing weight, so if you don't want to say you are doing a vlcd (some people can be funny about it), maybe say you are doing the 5:2 diet and are on a fast day.

But at the end of the day it's your life and you don't have to tell anyone anything you don't want to. I'm doing this for me, to be healthier and feel better, and yes to look better so I'm not going to be pressured into having a drink, or just one biscuit, or whatever because other people are uncomfortable with my choices.

I've lost 2.5lbs in my third week - not spectacular but it's 1% of my weight gone in a week which is much better than nothing and it's a stone gone in 3 weeks and I'm happy with that especially as I've done it without being obsessing about dieting and while having to cook for the rest of the family and go on a group picnic.

Dh is annoying me as he's overly interested in it. I'm probably being ungrateful but I just wish he'd leave me to it, I don't want to talk about it or make a big fuss, I just want to do it. Particularly as I have young children and I don't want to have them thinking about dieting at all.

Well done bookcave, 2.5lbs is great. I know what you mean about not wanting to talk about. It's easier to just get on with it.

I'm such an idiot today. For all my planning I corgot to have my shake before I left home and I forgot to bring a bar with me. There's a buffet lunch at this meeting too so I think I'm going to just pick at some salad and dh will bring me a bar when I meet him later. I should be fine. Don't feel hungry at all.

Thanks Alley. DH is often prone to over-analyse things and I just want to be left to get on with it.

The not feeling hungry is great, isn't it. For me that's the big difference between ketogenic diets and normal ones.. If I calorie count, then I'm starving all the time, food-obsessed and get dizzy a lot, even though the diet is not particularly low. But on this I don't get any dizzy moments. I keep a bar buried at the bottom of my bag all the time so I've got it if I decide to stay out longer than I'd anticipated. Might be worth you doing that?

I avoid telling people but I am going to be slightly more open about it this time. I don't like talking about diets outside forums in general now, with the exception of people I know are doing exactly the same diet as me and/or struggle with yo-yo dieting as I do.

I know from experience not to tell my ILs about it or any diet. They think they are being supportive asking about it but I find it intrusive when they ask & comment too much, especially as MIL has been a consistent sz 10-12 her entire adult life! No way I would tell them I am on a VLCD.

As for socialising, I find that difficult on any diet really. I thought I had hit on a solution when I did weight watchers pro points a couple of months ago by sticking to daily points and then using my weekly allowance to mop up any social activities (I didn't count but I knew I was having less than weeklies) - that was all find until I hit a period of too many social things including a meal at someone's house...completely re-railed me.

This time round I'm just going to avoid social things if it will cause too much of a problem. I must get my back and foot better and I won't let a meal out de-rail me! I'm quite happy to lie to cover my tracks! I will only be on the VLCD for a max of 12 weeks - it will pass quickly.

My packs have just arrived, and as I've already decided - the weaning starts now! By weaning, I mean I give myself a couple of days to swap on to packs but don't limit myself to 4 a day (I won't have more than 1 every 2 hrs though) - found this a really easy way to 'get on' in the past.

I paid for my meal on Friday at work today (that was optional - we have pre-ordered) saying that I may have a babysitting issue (which is true) so if I'm not there in time feel free to eat my food! I really should go though (leaving do for three people). Not sure what to do - I will probably be down to 4 packs a day by Friday and won't want to ruin that. Damn it!

That sounds like a good plan alleypalley

Sounds like you are going to have to have a gentle conversation with your DH bookcave. It is lovely that he is so interested and supportive though.

It is incredible how it is actually easier to do this diet than a regular one in many ways! I think I cheated slightly on my second attempt, thinking back. I hope so as I losing an average of 3.5 lbs/wk was certainly better than the 2 lbs/wk I was pulling on the second attempt. Pretty sure I was having too much veg (discovered pickled gherkins) and milk and not really caring. Super strict this time!

Thanks, everyone. It's very helpful to hear other people's experiences of trying to surreptitiously be on a VLCD and socialise. And yes, absolutely, my own desire to make this work is more important than making someone else feel better by eating a doughnut. I ended up having to pick at some salad at a pub meal with the friends who are staying with us, because they were genuinely getting concerned that they hadn't seen me eat anything outside of breakfast porridge since they arrived. I realised how weird it felt to have something other than powdered soup or porridge in my mouth, and then got irrationally scared it would make me hungry, after so long not feeling any pangs.

What would it take to get you out of ketosis? Does it come down to an amount of food, or specific types of food?

Yes, I'm liking the lack of hunger. It's also curiously soothing to not to think to think and plan meals, amounts etc.

Good going, Bookcave.

I'm not sure exactly what it takes to kick you out of ketosis - to a certain extent I think it depends upon the individual.

On SnS website it recommends you stay below 70g carbs, 70-80g may kick some people out of ketosis and above 80g most people will come out of ketosis.

I've put when I used to have into the meal planner (porridge pack, shake pack, meal pack, bar + optional 150 ml skim milk + 200g veg) and I was above 70g. There were also the odd day when I had an extra pack (shake only) as I seemed to be fine with that.

I was fine with that first time round (average loss 3.5 lbs wk), second time round I am pretty sure I was having more veg than allowed and also more coke zero - I wasn't that hungry but I also wasn't losing as well (2lbs/wk average). Sloppy really - need to learn from that!

I wish I could fast forward past these next few days and actually be in ketosis...although it makes a lot of sense to leave it to the weekend. We'll see!

Yeah, it's mainly carbs that will kick you out of ketosis, but some other things affect some people, citric acid is one so you shouldn't have lemon in water for example or fruit teas.

So I had a little bit of salad and a bite of grilled chicken at buffet lunch. It didn't trigger hunger as such, but I did have the urge to eat more and had to use willpower to resist it. I got home about 7pm and did have 3 packs quite close together though. Feel normal again now.

Gabor do you have any of the meal packs on SnS? I quite like the chilli one with roast cauliflower, not too keen on the cheesy pasta though, although I think I could use less water as it was a bit sloppy.

That's the kind of thing I'm afraid of, alley - two mouthfuls of actual food following by a desperate craving for more! (On the positive side, my three or four mouthfuls of salad involved the most intensely flavoured tomatoes I've ever tasted - not sure whether that was a VLCD-crazed me, or the tomatoes...)

Am dreading a disappointing loss at my second week's weigh in tomorrow as I've found this week tougher - can anyone give me any idea of what to expect? Does it tend to be a big drop off from week one?

I've ordered no porridge this week, and bars in all flavours, to see what they're like. Even if some or all are revolting the portability seems a good plan.

Talc - the bars are definitely worth it for portability alone. One left in the bottom of your bag can save you from falling off the wagon if you're out a lot longer than you'd planned. I've just tried the SnS choc orange bar and thought it was delicious. I'm now pondering whether in future I'm best off buying the bars I really like or buying mainly the ones that I just think are ok. I'm not sure that having a stash of really tempting bars is a good plan for me right now. The coconut bar I find bland but perfectly tolerable - it just represents fuel for me which might be a good thing.

I've bought a few of the meals but haven't tried them yet. Any tips on cooking them? I think I have chilli, curry, spag bol and mushroom or cheese pasta. I'm expecting not to like them but I thought they were worth a try. Shakes - I'm mainly doing chocolate and caffe latte. Can't stand the soups at all.

I think if you have a poor loss week, you'll normally get a very good one the next week. Drinking plenty of water does increase the rate at which you lose. For me, I know that even a poor week will be significantly better than a week on a normal cc diet and that's the fact I need to hold on to.

I've attached my graphs from my two attempts at SnS - first attempt lasting longer and being more successful (which I now think was due to sloppiness about the rules with second attempt).
I weigh in daily and found that I lost pretty much every day, unlike with LCD, past the initial two week period up until the 10 week mark. It is pretty standard for me to stall at the 10 week mark with any diet but a 1 lb loss on a VLCD had me off it then I'm afraid!

Yes, I use the meal packs alleypally - I like all of them but favourites are probably spicy spaghetti and chilli con carne. I do order all the meal packs though for variety. The only shake pack I order now is chocolate and with bars I pretty much stick to the maple nut fruit variety and the dark truffa. I always have a porridge pack for breakfast.

So far today I am sticking to the regular routine that I had on my other attempts:

7.45 am - porridge pack
1.30 pm - shake pack
6.30 pm - meal pack + veg
9 pm - bar

But it's only 1.55 pm! I don't really expect to get straight on today but if it happens - I'll take it!

I hear you about the bar dilemma Talc!
I've gone for having the ones I really like so I can look forward to one as my last meal of the day. I make it a rule I cannot have one at any other meal as I know they can be a trigger.
I have a stash of shake packs in my drawer at work and also 1 or two in my handbag rather than bars - have been know to make them up in a plastic water bottle.

Hope everyone is doing well?
I've decided not to start until Sat now but continue to seriously cut back, as they suggested. So, I shall be going out with my colleagues (meal only - no drinking) on Friday night and being sociable.
I am a teacher (part-time - so you may see a post during the day - I am not at work then!) so I won't see most of them again, after next week, until September (when I will be a lot slimmer!).

Sounds like a good decision, Gabor. Plus the idea of dazzling your colleagues in autumn with a slimmer self is undeniably appealing. (Call me superficial...)

Only a five pound loss in week two of Cambridge, which (though I know in my head is perfectly fine, and was expecting a smaller loss than the first week AND it makes 17 pounds in total), has disappointed me. I think it's the knowledge that I need to go making the same effort for smaller and smaller returns, even though I'm inching closer to my (distant) goal.

Plus week two felt really difficult because of more eating out and with other people, and various excuses, equivocations, lies about not eating. Grr.

Oh well, I got my one stone star fridge magnet!