Can I lose two stones in 12 weeks?

[WishfulThanking]

Obviously it is possible, but how do-able is it? I'd like to hear from anyone who has managed this or similar, or who has a similar goal.

I have started my diet today and plan to do a low-ish fat calorie-controlled diet and some home workout DVDs. I am using MFP to track my calories. I'm planning 1200 calories for the first two weeks then will increase it to 1400 and really ramp up the exercise then too. Does this sound do-able?Or just a pipe dream? All tips will be gratefully received.

Can I just second what Jim is saying. High Fat Low Carb has been incredible for me. I've lost 2st 3lb in 3 months and a day. I've never once felt hungry or deprived. I eat huge portions of food, and don't worry about counting calories. All of the guidance how to do it is on the boot camp threads, and the support of the likes of Jim is worth far more than any WW/SW leader. Give it a go....

Does anybody know what these high fat diets do to your cholesterol/triglycerides etc? I'm interested if anybody has had any before and after bloods done.

Yes I do :) I'm reading a book on that very subject at the moment, it's called the big fat surprise.

When we talk about cholesterol, what we're really talking about is cardiac disease risk factors. That's the only reason cholesterol was ever studied in the first place, because of an apparent epidemic of heart disease in the 1930's-1990's.

First before we go in to the studies, it's important to know where the link between cholesterol and fat came from in the first place. The original link was generated by a set of 3 studies in the 1950's . The Oslo diet study, the Lyon diet heart study and my personal pet hate, the Keys et al epidemiology study on heart disease (mainly his 7 countries study).

All 3 studies were laughable by todays standards and the conclusions they drew were far reaching at best. One thing that is really important to note from them though is that none of them conclusively showed a link between high blood cholesterol and death from heart disease, they never claimed to. They also never identified a difference between large LDL cholesterol particles (safe) and small LDL cholesterol particles (more recent studies have shown these are the buggers which can cause problems). The point here is that large LDL particles are increased very marginally with diet, but small ones are dictated genetically. When studies show an increase in LDL (the big bad scary cholesterol), they usually focus on total LDL and don't measure the difference in particle size. In studies where they have measured the difference, there's no change in small LDL no matter what diet is given.

The only study which ever claims to have clearly linked cholesterol and heart disease was perfomed on rabbits. Herbivores who haven't evolved to digest meat or animal fats.... yeah.

Anyway, here's a link to 5 studies that have catagorically proved no link between saturated fats and heart disease:
authoritynutrition.com/5-studies-on-saturated-fat/

Sorry I realize I made some statements then that I haven't backed up.

Here's a link to the study which fund that despite total LDL increasing with satfat intake, this had no baring on a persons risk of heart disease:

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19852882

Here's an abstract explaining that fat consumption has no impact on CVD risk factors, it draws heavily on Framingham:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9430080

Here's where the bit about small and large LDL comes from. I forgot to mention that higher large LDL particles actually lowers your risk of CVD:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10856769

Cant see anything else I haven't referenced but if you want to query anything let me know and I'll show you where it comes from :)

Also for the other part of this, here's 23 studies that show why low carb, high fat diets are effective for weightloss and health in general:

authoritynutrition.com/23-studies-on-low-carb-and-low-fat-diets/

I'm a science geek so before starting this WOE I researched bloody everything. I looked at the flip side too and the woefully inadequate research promoting low fat diets is terrifying.

Hesdeadjim
The sensation of hunger is our bodies way of telling us our blood sugar levels are dropping, so if you stop that from happening, you're golden

Yes exactly and calories of nutrient dense foods is what stops it from happening.

I would just add that I would have a few more vegetables (Spinach, broccoli, peppers, beans, berries, small apples) and pulses and nuts and seeds and olive oil/hemp oil than HesdeddJim mentioned - incase that inspires you too.

Yes. Last year I was panicking because we were going on our first hot holiday in about 10 years. Joined SW with 9 weeks to go and lost 2 stone 2.5lbs. I really stuck to it though. But definitely possible. And I didn't feel deprived or hungry.

I lost 2 stone on slimming world in 12 weeks! Didn't pay a penny as found all the info online. Didn't even follow it that strictly either it was the best thing I've ever done! Can't recommend it enough. No exercise either! Good luck :)

I did it. I exercised twice a week & started walking more 8000 steps initially & now 15,000-18,000. I started off on 1800 cals but it adjusted as I lost weight down to 1500.

I had no real food plan other than sticking to the calories but I ate all the wrong stuff & I was hungry. I now eat a basic diet of meat & veg or smaller portions of high calorie stuff with salad/veg on side. I usually have a cooked breakfast of chicken sausages, eggs & toast so I'm eating more than I did before but just better choices.

Hello, Completely new here and all that - oops sorry! I'm on a plan that "seems" to be working, (so far so good.. miles to go...) who's following an 'actual' diet. And are you happy with it?

I'm at 4 stone in 24 weeks if doctor's scales are correct but have a lot to lose. I've done mine by calorie counting and using a Fitbit. I aim for 7000 calorie deficit over the week and how much I eat varies day to day depending on how much exercise I've dime. Yesterday was low at 1382 but over Easter I had a couple of days around the 2400 mark.

I have gallstones so anything high fat is out for me but I find keeping good levels of protein helps . My sugar cravings have reduced hugely over the time though I do still have some. If I have anything with sugar in I try usually to have it's S part of a meal to keep blood sugar more stable .

I've always piled weight back on in the past but this time I'm learning how to be flexible, eat out etc and still lose eg I lost 1.5lbs over Christmas week as I went for long walks and kept recording my food.

It's doable! I'm 7 weeks in with 1st 1lb gone, would have been more but I had a stumble, remember 2lb a week if a nice healthy weight loss, loosing lots in a short period makes it more likely to come back x

It's doable, I'm 7 weeks into Slimming World and 24lbs down!

Very inspiring thread, I'm hoping to slim down before school sports day at the end of June, but also considering booking a holiday in October half term as a motivator for a proper weight loss over the summer. Can I ask what replacement shakes people are using for lunch?

I'm experimenting with the high fat low carb diet as a result of this thread. Second day so far. Will report back in a week. Most interesting.

FatGirl - that calculator is really good.

How's everyone doing? I'm sticking to 1200 cals and feel less bloated, holding off weighing myself until Thursday as I got a bit obsessed, hoping to be in the 12's by thurs.
On mfp I'm hitting my protein goal daily but can't go full blown low carb as I would t last more than a day.

wishful how you doing? If I can drop 20lbs by my holiday on 13th July I'll be happy.

can't go full blown low carb as I would t last more than a day
Have you tried having piles of vegetables with a little bit of oil? You might find you can last easily that way.

kind been increasing veg and high protein foods such as turkey, eggs etc, never thought to add oil / butter to veg but could replace potatoes so may give that a try.

I'm not a fruit fan, nor do I eat lots of pasta as not mad about pasta or rice.

I'm fat as I tend to eat too little protein I think, been hitting my daily protein goal using mfp lately, but I'm really bad for snacking and picking, I'd rather snack all day than have 3 meals
Trying to change my eating habits.

What is your typical daily diet consist of? I'm nosey

About to go out, but couldn't leave without saying check of Blood Sugar Diet, rapid weight loss, look at some of the reviews on Amazon.

been increasing veg and high protein foods such as turkey, eggs etc, never thought to add oil / butter to veg but could replace potatoes so may give that a try. Say you have some chicken breast the size of your palm (or vegetarian protein like quorn or tofu) then a whole bowl full of broccoli - a low carbohydrate vegetable - with about a dessertspoonful of hemp oil, or olive oil, what I find is that I truly do not feel hungry at all and I don't get a yen for sugar.

On the Medterranean low blood sugar diet having some healthy fats instead of sugar and starchy carbohydrates is essential.

It takes a bit of concentration to eat enough protein. It is difficult to get exact advice, but having enough really is linked with not feeling hungry. Some would say you need as much as 60 grms a day.

Definitely the 8 week blood sugar diet.... I lost 3 stone in 8 weeks, and whilst I am now much more relaxed about my diet, that weight has stayed off!

Were you asking me my daily diet Ellie, or everyone?

One thing is that I never miss a meal and often have planned snacks. I need that for myself to not get cravings (nicotine/sugar/whatever it's all the same I believe) and to keep a balanced mood. I don't often drink alcohol.

Yes kind your daily diet your philosophy on eating is where I aspire to be! Craving free (for the most part anyway).

I only drink very occasionally, smoke once kids in bed
Just wish I could control my sugar cravings as it doesn't matter if I'm stuffed full, I could still eat chocolate.

I've ordered the blood sugar diet from amazon today as it's had rave reviews, im 40 this year and so fed up with yo yo dieting

Ellie I'll write some tomorrow. There are a lot of ideas for what to eat in the BSB though, especially important are explanations of how blood sugar works, and also stress. You will see when the book comes. Bear in mind it is especially for stopping diabetes too.

If you get used to less sugar, and that becomes more natural when you eat enough nutritious food to stop you feeling hungry all the time, there is no reason not to have some very dark chocolate, which does not have much sugar in it as a treat, say with a hot drink. It is so strong it goes a long way if you have a little after a meal. You may find it is the chocolate that is delicious rather than the sugar.

Also a few nuts and a little bit of fruit as a small snack, say to replace tea, is in effect a very mild shot of sugar and fat (a Mars bar pre-industrial sugar so to speak.) It keeps to a useful guideline to try to have some protein and fibre/something fresh whenever you eat a meal or snack.