Can you help me with questions about VLCD?

[Wooosh]

I think I need to do a VLCD to get my weight down quickly. My BMI is a tad under 40 and I want to get it down because we are TTC.
I have some questions for people who have done a VLCD:

• Which would you recommend on the basis of cost and taste? Exante looks popular?
• Could you supplement the mean replacements with extra fruit and veg (low cal stuff not root veg or bananas) or does this stop it working?
• What if you are going out for a meal? Can you still lose weight if you eat 'real food' occasionally if you choose well?

-Are you really hungry and how do you deal with it?

• How do you deal with preparing food for DCs or DP?
• Anything I should do to prepare or should I just get on with it?

Thanks in advance for the advice!

I ordered some Exante products ages ago but wasn't in the right frame of mind They are about to go out of date so I have decided to give it another try.

Lighter life is expensive followed by Cambridge but part of the cost is for weekly meetings. The Exante products are ok for me. Not delicious but maybe thats a good thing.

I wouldn't add any fruit as this will take your carb count too high and you will not be in ketosis. Being in ketosis stops you being hungry. Veg is fine to add if you need to.

The strict plan is 3 packs a day with no additions. This gives you approx 600 cals per day. The easier plan is 3 packs a day with some food/veg or 2 packs a day with more food. This gives you 800-1000 cals a day.

If you eat out and pick protein and veg/salad you will be fine. If you go totally off plan with too many calories and carbs it will be hard to get back on track.

I am sometimes hungry. I deal with it by drinking water and having early nights. Preparing food for others can be hard. During the week my husband works away and I feed the children early. I keep myself busy then have a pack later on. I intend to eat real food at the weekends when we are all together. I am using the 800 calorie Blood Sugar Diet as a guide.

I did a few days low carb before starting.

Thanks for the advice. I've just made my first order! Exciting!

Good luck with it.