Has anyone tried the Freedom diet??

[Howhardcanitbe]

I'm seriously thinking about giving it a go - a couple of people from work have lost loads of weight over 6 weeks and say it wasn't too hard (their lunches looked really good and not too 'diet-ey'). I've tried loads of different things and never manage to stick to them but this sounds quite sensible and doable.

Anyone else tried it..?

OK - I'm back from my holiday and I started my diet plan today! I uhmed and ahhed over whether to just wait until after Christmas, but then thought, it's 6 weeks until Christmas, I could realistically lose a stone in that time, plus if I wait til the new year, I'll basically use the next 6 weeks to stuff myself beforehand.

I'm hoping to lose upto a stone in total, but mainly also overhaul my eating and get to grips with cutting out sugar as I eat far too much of it. Today has been fine (despite the startings of a headache now) but day 1 is always fairly doable I think. The real test will be once the novelty has worn off in a day or 2!

Since reading this thread a few months ago I joined up for the Freedom diet. Over the last 4 years I have tried to lose weight and only gained it. That is partly due to an underactive thyroid and being perimenopausal. So I am delighted that I have lost 10 pounds in 2 months. And that is with eating out a few times whilst on holiday for a week. I'm over the moon! I am a pescetarian and it is lovely not to have to trawl through meat filled recipes for something that suits. There is a LOT of Quorn instead but that is because I said I liked it and I do sometimes swap it out for beans. I'm going to keep going another few weeks as I would like to lose a stone in total. I'm looking forward to more wine and chocolate but I'm happy not to indulge because I can see the results and it honestly feels pretty effortless

I'm confused by this
A diet based around your preferences? How is that different?

Its based around your preferences apart from preferences for sugary or premade items. There is more cooking from scratch but it tends to be quite simple. e.g. I was a big cup a soup fan (lazy!) and now I make mushroom soup which takes 30 minutes and I have enough portions for 4 days (I normally freeze it and warm it up for a few minutes in the microwave). I don't know why this has worked for me when calorie counting didn't, I think I needed someone to tell me exactly what to do so there is less room for cheating!

Thanks for the positive encouragement Fluffy. I've had a good 2 weeks on the plan, amazingly I've gone totally cold turkey on all my sugary snacks, which I'm really chuffed about! I'm really into the swing of organising my food at the weekend, and am liking all the recipes I've tried so far. So far so good...!!

I'm watching this with interest. I'm thoroughly depressed to confess that I've got just under 4 stone to lose, and have got to take serious action. I've got so many social events coming up before Christmas and I need to be in the right frame of mind to get properly started, so I'm pretty sure I'll be back here in January.

Keep up the good work BreakingBod - 2 weeks without sugar sounds amazing. Have you lost any weight yet (if you don't mind me asking?)

Hi Suzy,

I can see why you'd want to wait until after Christmas now, it's only just round the corner! I'll be trying my best to stick with my plan over most of Christmas but will inevitably be having the odd night where I drink, and Christmas Day/Boxing Day will be total free-for-all days .

Yes I've lost 5lbs in the first 2 weeks, not weighing again until Monday but am hoping to have lost at least another 2lbs to bring me to half a stone.

Another 3lbs down this morning - so 8lbs in 3 weeks, very pleased with that! I have, however, got 2 Christmas nights out this week, and a big lunch event next week, so I'm thinking about aiming to maintain now until after Christmas, and then starting with renewed vigour in January. I will still be keeping sugar to the absolute minimum though, and following my diet plan on the days where I haven't got anything special on.

Hi, I've been offered a referral for this from my GP - he's given me a choice of the Freedom Diet Coach plan or Weight Watchers, and I'm not sure which to go for. I've heard a lot more about WW, but on the other hand the online element of the Freedom one appeals, and I'd prefer to email for support rather than actually go to weekly meetings to be honest. Need to decide by Thursday!!

Don't go to Weight Watchers! If you must, Slimming World...

Oh, I wasn't given the option of Slimming World. Why a definite no for WW?

Someone said that they'd eaten all their points allowance by breakfast time 😂😂😂SW lets you eat lots of "free" food all day, i.e. fruit & veg.

I don't think I fancy all the counting of points - I'm going to give the Freedom plan a go instead as by the sounds of it they do all the working out for you, and it's a bit of a different approach for me. Thanks for the warning re WW.

Hi Mandy - did you sign up for the Freedom plan in the end?

I started it this week and am so far really liking it, the food is nice and the recipes are very doable. Would be nice to have some Freedom diet buddies though, as this thread is very slow.

Oh my god, I'm so ashamed!! I was going great guns with this before Christmas, but then it all went horribly wrong and I'm now right back to my old terrible eating habits i.e. mainlining sugar at any given opportunity!! I'm seriously like an addict on a bender!

BUT I got off the sugar by sticking to my diet plan when I started it, so I'm going to give myself the weekend to get organised (and finish my Thornton chocs, natch ) and then I'll restart my diet plan from Monday.

A diet buddy would be amazing SuzySoo!!

Hi Breaking bod - don't feel ashamed, at least you've decided to do something about it, and Christmas is such a hard time to eat healthily. You've done it before, so you can definitely do it again. Like you say, get yourself sorted over the weekend and you can make a fresh start on Monday.

I've got on ok this week - I'm liking the food, and it's been good to have a definite plan to follow, as it's really made me get organised. I also like knowing at the start of the day exactly what I'm going to eat, instead of just making it up as I go along. Feeling like the weekend could be my problem area, as it's usually a time for treats, so I'm going to find other non-food ways to reward myself for surviving the first week back at work

Hi Breaking bod, how's it going?

I had my first weigh in this morning and am very encouraged to have lost 3lbs, so I'm really pleased with that. I'm also getting into the swing of it now, and am barely missing my morning latte now . A lovely bowl of porridge with banana kept me going very nicely until lunchtime this morning.

I really hope you've made a good start today too.

Hi Suzy - well I survived day 1 yesterday, and am actually feeling ok so far today. I've had scrambled eggs on toast this morning, which always keeps me going all morning, so I haven't even thought about snacking. Got a good lunch lined up too (big chicken salad with a boiled egg) - protein definitely helps keep the sugar cravings at bay.

Well done on 3lbs, that's fantastic, and a great motivator.

Oh well done - I'm so glad you've got started. I think often that's the hardest part! I'm surprised at how little I'm missing my usual sweet treats, because I'm full from my meals I'm barely thinking about it . Chicken curry for dinner tonight, which I'm ridiculously excited about!! Hope your evening goes smoothly, I'm quite glad the weather's so dark and miserable at the moment, it's a good excuse for a hot bath and off to bed to read, that way I'm not even tempted to start rummaging around in the kitchen!!

Day 4 and still going strong - sticking to the plan, and reckon I'm over the worst of the sugar withdrawal/cravings. Had a cracking headache yesterday afternoon and evening, but feeling more or less normal today. I'm going to plan some nice meals for over the weekend, and also get some things cooked for next week that I can just keep in the freezer and reheat quickly when needed.

How's your week going?

It's my day off today, but I'm not going to use that as an excuse to eat badly - instead I'm getting really organised for next week, filling in my weekly planner and choosing all my favourites from my plan

That's fab Breakingbod - sounds like you're getting in the zone and being very organised. I'm getting along nicely too. Went to an exercise class this afternoon so I'm feeling particularly virtuous. Planning a lovely roast dinner for tomorrow - I'm really loving the food, and it probably sounds silly, but I feel really reassured that I'm doing things properly as it's been put together for me by a nutritionist. I find there's so much conflicting diet advice around, especially on the internet, but on TV too, so it's really great to hand over the job to a professional and just get on with following the advice.

Have a great weekend - I'll try to remember to check back in early next week x

Hi,

I did this plan a few months ago and lost just over 2 stone with it, but what I've since found to be the best part of it for me, is the maintenance plan and advice I received after reaching my goal weight. I think it's possible to lose weight with just about any diet plan if you're committed to it and find something you can follow, but the difference for me was being able to stay at my new weight without either being 'on' or 'off' any sort of diet.

I still use quite a few of the recipes, but the main advice was more about listening to your body and following your natural appetite - so waiting until you're genuinely hungry before eating etc. I've also found that because I'm not banning myself from eating any specific foods, I've managed to avoid the usual post-diet binge that I've experienced in the past after sticking with a diet for a set period of time. I was encouraged to think of it as a genuine lifestyle change, rather than a 'diet', which has been the reason for my success, and helped me get back to it after any sort of off-plan eating, without just giving up and returning to the old habits I was trying to change.

I hope this is helpful to those just starting out with this way of eating - I've personally changed my whole attitude to food as a result. Stick with it, it becomes more natural as you break old habits.

I think I'm going to sign up to this (after lots of research and umming and ahhing!!). Although realistically I'm not sure I'll be that committed over the summer hols plus we're away for 2 weeks in August...am thinking I might start to make a few healthy changes over summer and start with this in September. Anyone else interested..?

I'm still pondering this - just back from holiday (and amazingly I didn't actually gain any weight but we were out and about walking a lot). I'm definitely ready to make some beneficial changes to my diet and think a fresh start in September would be the way to go...I think I'm going to sign up!!!