Cambridge/Exante/Slimfast 2021

[YourWurstNightmare]

New thread combining all the VLC shake diets: Cambridge, Exante, Lighterlife, Slimfast, etc. Everyone is welcome.

If you have any underlying health conditions, please check with your GP first (as I did).

I'm doing Slimfast (two shakes and one healthy meal a day). I use the premade shakes, because I actually like them! They are currently on sale here: www.amazon.co.uk/SlimFast-Replacement-Shake-Chunky-Chocolate/dp/B010PM6XO4/?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

I noticed Amazon is selling Lighterlife products now, too, if that helps anyone: www.amazon.co.uk/stores/page/DCB0D716-63B4-4265-8862-CF4AEEE9FEF9?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

My goals:

• Get two stone off quickly, then swap to less restrictive healthy/calorie controlled eating.
• Do 30 minutes of exercise (walking, jogging, lifting weights, whatever) a day.

Would love to share tips and motivate each other as we go!

Week 2 was tough going.
Long days working, very high activity levels.
Completely on plan and didn't lose any weight.

Feeling demoralised I had "24 hours of fuck-it" and ate ALL the things before starting back on plan today. Consultant agrees that activity levels way too high so am adding in a small protein and veg meal.

Have never had this problem before on Cambridge as did it during quiet periods when i was on breaks from work.

Wish me luck this week. It seems odd to increase calorie intake and hope for more weight loss but I will report back on progress.

@GranolaHolmes that does feel odd but give it a go if the consultant thinks it’s a good idea. Presumably she/he has had training so is offering professional advice. Good luck - hope it works well for you. Have plateaued a bit myself this week which a pain as have a stone to go - am hoping it won’t last.....perhaps I should say good luck to us all!

I'm also just replacing one meal and having two other meals. Found two shakes a day too hard going generally and on the digestive system. I'm using this as a guide. Thinking of it as more of a long term thing rather than a quick fix.

www.purition.co.uk/blog/how-to-use-purition-for-weight-loss/

Not sure if anyone else is doing a weigh-in today but just to say have lost 2 lbs this week (in the early days it used to be more like 4 lbs) I presume it just means my body has become a bit more used to the whole diet thing and isnt as keen to lose weight as my brain is. Have been exercising just the same etc. On a positive people have started to notice and I can now do up the zip on an elderly pair of jeans which in the begining was a distant dream. How is everyone else doing?

@GranolaHolmes They don't advertise it, but it's not uncommon to have a stall the 2nd or 3rd week. Glad to hear you're back on it and fingers crossed for a loss!

@Orangeblossom1975 Agree, that sounds very sustainable. Thanks for the link.

@CJDoxon Congrats! You're in the home stretch now!

Very frazzled morning, slept in, then had to get something done urgently for work. Anyway, I've weighed in and I've lost 2lbs, so 28 lbs down, 2 stone target met! As I've said, I have more to lose so am officially swapping over to calorie-controlled eating on Saturday. I will keep a few shakes on hand as I don't mind them, but I REALLY want to train myself to eat properly again. We'll see how that goes, I might be back.

Well done @YourWurstNightmare !

I am finding it easier as my ketosis started but am unable to really do the same length energetic walks as Idid 3-4 weeks ago. I walked fast10 km on Monday, got home and had another 200 cal meal replacement because I felt unwell (I think depletion of something happened v.quickly). I am then switching to 5-7 km walks as those are very manageable.
I am losing 0.1-0.3 kg per day on an average which is amazing considering how hard an painful weight loss was for me in January and other times before.

I am hoping to carry on until I get to either 63 kg or another 10 weeks whichever happens first. I have 11 kg to drop to be that weight and unless something dramatic happens I am sure I will be able to achieve in the next 2 months or so.

My way of "eating" Exante shakes is to use much less water (I make sure is not cold but tepid/warm), such meal fills me up and also in this cold weather feels quite satisfying and comforting. They become more like puddings than shakes.

@YourWurstNightmare - bad luck on late wake up - hope it hasnt put you out of kilter all day. More importantly well done - so glad you have managed to hit your target - that's what is all about - this phase of the journey anyway - good luck too on eating proper food properly - am sure you are now in control and so will do brilliantly...

@Fere - I have 10 kilos to go - am hoping that I will manage it by the end of lockdown (which in my head is April 12 ). I have booked a haircut on 13th to celebrate my multiple releases!! Oh and to get rid of about 4 inches of dry frizz

Let's support each other @CJDoxon 💜

@Fere - would love to

I will come and share my woes daily @CJDoxon.
With this diet I am bringing my diabetes T2 under control and felt I needed to make my diet as strict as possible and take advantage of dropping pounds and fat to lower my glucose. It is working so far.
I've lost 4 kg (8.8lb) in the last 3 weeks. I am testing my sugar levels with prick test and can see that it's also coming down.
I am hoping that in the next 2 months I can reverse my diabetes. Morning reading came down from 10.2 to just under 8. It needs to be under 5.5 and I am hopeful.
My sleep is getting much better too. Sugar fluctuation was keeping me awake some nights and also made my hot flushes unbereable.
Hot flushes are getting shorter and even though I am waking up at night I can go back to sleep much quicker.

@fere ... oh do share your woes. Am definitely up for a listen. Afraid I don’t know much about diabetes apart from it’s best avoided if you can but would be happy to learn more - truly. I know all about hot flushes tho. And poor sleep as a result. Definitely find that mine are much more manageable now I have lost some weight. So delighted to be on a similar journey. And at the risk of sounding like an alcoholic (which honestly I’m not) knowing that you are interested in how I am getting along will stop me reaching for the whisky bottle after a long day thumping at my computer. My other temptation is “tasting” other peoples food... both bad habits I have been on the verge of getting into! So thank you - and let’s give it a go! Will aim to do a weigh in on Wednesday but feel free to post any time

jumping back on to say I'm still here, grinding out the loss 1lb at a time (which is understandable now I'm at a smaller amount to lose), but yesterday's weigh in was 4st 3lbs down in total (3st 1lb on shakes), but MUCH more excitingly, I can take off my Sainsbo's size 14 jeans without undoing the button or zip . I bought a pair of size 12 two weeks ago, which did up, but I couldn't sit down, or even breath much tbh, so I'm sticking with the 14s for the time being.

Am meeting up with DD2 over the Easter weekend (if we're not allowed to actually meet up, we might just "happen" to be in the same place at the same time ifswim), and I really really want to be in the 12s by then - she hasn't seen me in person since I was in a size 18 I don't think.

Body shape changing is due more to the rowing than the weight loss I reckon, I have the first sproutings of the start of a six pack, and my bingo wings are less, I need some more targeted exercise for those though, as rowing doesn't do triceps very much. But, am very pleased with how it's all going, my weight loss to date is half of DD3, I've ditched the blood pressure tablets, and I can walk into town and back without needing a lie down afterwards .

Off to read back on how everyone else is doing, and hi to all the newbies - if I can do it, so can you!

HI @MyVisionsComeFromSoup you are an inspiration! Well done for sticking to your plan. This thread isn't as lively as others but I guess the reality of VLCD is that we just eat the same thing all the time :D

I decided to adventurously have scrambled eggs (no fat) as my first meal today. Excitement still buzzing through my veins!

@MyVisionsComeFromSoup - I agree - you ARE an inspiration :-) Well done... and completely understand the jean thing - am in a similar position with a pair of size 14s (am a bit behind you). Am hoping @Fere is going to keep me to the straight and narrow so can follow in your trail - am not rowing but I am doing about 7 - 10 k walking per day which I suppose is something. Am a swimmer by nature so looking forward to the pools opening up again (there's an outdoor one near here) where hopefully I can do the toning thing then. Thank you so much for posting! Well done to you.

and @Fere - hope the scrambled eggs were delicious!

Scrambled eggs were delicious! I am missing food being warm, is this time of the year when cold food doesn't appeal to me at all.

How are you doing today @CJDoxon ?

I realised that when I give in to my hunger and have my first meal replacement before midday then the hunger grows and grows. If I can have it after 1 PM (more like 1:30 or 2 then I am not as hungry).
I also yesterday decided from now on to have lowest carb shake I have at home as my last meal. That made me full and not peckish in the evening. I usually have it around 7-8 PM. And it has to be warm!

My observation of the last 2 weeks on shakes:
1/ Poor sleep makes me hungrier and that has been, I believe, proven by research).
2/ Higher blood glucose makes me hungrier - again proven with research
3/ Coffee doesn't mess up my sleep, it fills me up when both sugar level is high and my sleep is poor
4/ I have been following IF ( on and off for over 3 years )and it works for me - I should just do it regardless of glucose level and quality of my sleep because it helps me to control my hunger in long term
5/ Warm meals or shakes fill me up for longer.

@fere Hello Hello
Half way through the day and am fine really - am doing my best to drink water (which i really dont like) so have a glass with a little squeezed orange juice in it by my side. Am on Cambridge so do the meal replacements at lunchtime (stuff that ALMOST looks like food) which keeps me going through the day. But I have to say I have to have the meal bar at about 5 pm otherwise I would melt (or something). I agree nice to have something warm in the evening - so I do the soups then - they are generally pretty grim so I stuff them full of chillies/parsley or whatever else I can find. On a positive note I notice my rings are getting looser on my finger - one was stuck and I can finally get it off AND lost half a kilo since yesterday .... might well put it on tomorrow but its a mini celebration today.
Hope that's not too much information....

Btw IF = intermittant fasting? I havent tried that but have every intention of doing so once I finish this month - I know others who swear by it.

Its Friday night - hope you dont get tempted to fall off the wagon... Good luck!

IF is really to:
1/ learn to understand that you don't need to eat as a response to stress
2/ learn that is OK to wait for mealtime and hunger is an OK sensation

What people think at first as most important being to shorten the window of time when you are eating is just a tool and an important one but because you don't need to have the same length of that window as anyone you talk to it really depends on your lifestyle and your preferences. You can decide when you aren't eating. As we know mealtimes are habits mostly they can be changed and adjusted.

The science behind our hormonal system which is driving our behaviour is fascinating and changes all the time so most likely book we own are slightly out of date we are buying it. New research happens all the time.

You are quite likely doing IF in some form anyway @CJDoxon - it is just a time you don't eat between your last meal of the day and the first one.
For me it is easy as I've done it for sometime and know what to expect. My next job is to be content with food eaten when I eat during the day. Luckily I am not doing shift work any more and am in charge of my sleep time!

@fere - seems to me it's a lot about being conscious about when and what you eat. It's amazing to think that there is so much information out there about food and exercise and yet so many of us are fat (at a time when 3/4 of the world is starving...). At the moment its easy for me as everything comes out of little sachets and i just add water - both directly to me and also into my little sachets. Will be interesting to see how I manage in a months time when I have to make my own mind up about things..... Anyway today is today and I have had the delights of a vanilla shake for breakfast - looking forward to my "cottage pie" for lunch. Hope all well in your corner !

Just to mention I noticed there was a diabetic version of Slimfast for sale for anyone with that. Not sure if it is needed to get that one specifically though.

Am back on 2 shakes a day one for breakfast and one for lunch
Am on my period too
I have been at a plateau for 4 weeks
Now i am finally losing lbs again 😉
I was stuck on 10st 6 lbs weighed this morning 10st 5 lbs 😃😃😃

@lockdownrainbow way hey!!

Thank cjdoxon 😃
Weighed this morning 10st7lbs 🙃
I do have my period

@CJDoxon how is your day?

I am still plodding on despite Saturday "day off" which I needed psychologically and am not afraid of any more.
Back on my shakes but thinking also what it is going to be like in 10 weeks time when I need to up my calories and have "normal" food. I can say that I understand my appetite better and my sleep is still better than it was 3-4 weeks ago.

@fere - hello - am doing OK - i dont have official "days off" but did notice that I managed to sneak a bit of the family Saturday curry into my 'regime' - on the basis of if it is eaten out of a teaspoon it cant be very much - just didnt count HOW many teaspoons were involved...oh and i did have a whisky.... my low cal alternative to wine!

Am not so worried about the future at the moment - am just keen to get rid of another 10 kilos (hopefully 9 or even 8 by the time I weigh myself again) and then Im pretty sure the incentive to keep them off will keep me on track for a while. Am keen to up the exercise too - at the moment my tummy may be reducing but dont notice even a hint of muscle tone. I walk bet 5 - 10 km per day but proper muscles might have to be project no 2...

Glad to hear you a sleeping better - that will make a huge difference. Hows the hot flushes etc? And more importantly hows the sugar management going?