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!

@Suzie11fw Welcome and glad to have you along for the ride!

Re: work - I bet you'll find you're not the only one who's gained. The best thing about these shake diets is that if you stick to it, in 4 weeks you'll notice a big difference. With your target, you could even have a third gone by then! Very motivating.

Plan for today:

2 shakes
Stir fry of some kind to use up leftover veg

Exercise: 30 minutes of walking

Yesterday's wrap pizzas were delicious but I didn't find them very filling. Not sure I'd have them again on this diet.

Well - I have to lose 3 stone too - so do it with me. Am doing Cambridge - but am sure slim fast broadly similar (never done it). The first week has been a bit grim as was a a bit hungry BUT have also weighed myself today and have lost 3 kilos - (squillions to go) but at least there was progress.... So, give it a go - first step the worst ....

Well I combined the 16:8 with slim fast yesterday and found it a bit easier. So will see what the scales say on Friday

I've been a disaster today. Combination of eldest going back to university (sob) middle one stressing about GCSE mocks and little one gutted about actually having to go back to school tomorrow. Plus lots of leftovers, chocolate and cheese around.

Will have to start again tomorrow.

@CJDoxon Congrats on the 3 kilo loss!

@Sideorderofchips Glad to hear it's working better for you.

@Campervan69 Totally understandable! Good luck with the restart. I think a lot of people are starting/restarting today.

I had a look ahead at the calendar and Easter is 3 months away (Good Friday is April 2nd) so that feels like a great, natural target for anyone needing some motivation.

Plan for today:

2 shakes
Jacket potato w/ veg and cottage cheese

Popping in to say hi - I (re) started Slim and Save back in September, which worked out well as youngest DC was off to uni, so I had no need to actually have food in the house . After a little "foot off the pedal" due to my 50th birthday/Christmas, I've eaten all the Christmas chocolates, and DC has promised to not let me order UberEats, so I'm back on track, 4 shakes a day, and no actual food at all.

Am 27 lbs down on my VLCD start, and 43lbs down on October 2019 when I hit a morbidly obese BMI and decided I really had to do something about it.

So, target is another three stone off, giving me a little bounce room for adding food back in; at 3lbs a week off, I can do that by Easter.

Is there a regular weigh in day? I was on another thread running up to Christmas Eve, and the regular Wednesday weigh in focused the mind considerably .

Someone asked about evening snacking - having previously done Cambridge and tried several times with S&S, I find that once I'm a few weeks in, the "need" to snack in the evening just disappears. Getting to that point is tough, but I drink more water, and go to bed early. Reading an actual book (rather than pootling on my phone) helps. I also weigh myself just before I go to bed (as well as every morning), as every so often I can weigh less in the evening than I did that morning, which is very exciting, so I know that evening snacking will mess that up. Obviously lots of weighing isn't necessarily a good thing for everyone, but for me, the discipline helps. Just need to work on why I binge rubbish when I'm eating

Hello
Gosh - well done for losing so much weight - that's amazing and inspiring! I would be happy to do regular weigh ins - and like you would like to lose 3 stone by Easter. Happy to do Wednesdays too. Am on Cambridge and am doing shakes or soups morning and evening, their pasta alternative things at lunchtime (not as bad as I feared) and then a bar about 5 pm as otherwise would snack too much. We are tier 4 and unlikely to see anyone before easter so have little excuse.... Would be great to have some online support :-)

I'm happy to do a Wednesday weigh in too

Can I join? Doing Exante, I have a gazillion sachets of the shakes from the last time I tried this. Haven't been brave enough to weigh in yet.
Starting today (hopefully) ...lets see how the evening goes 1st, that's normally when I crack & defer starting until the next day! Might have a bath tonight as suggested up the thread
Back to work today though which helps me plan better.

Hi I'm doing slim fast for the first time. Just wondered if anyone knew if I was allowed milk in tea/coffee or does that need to come off my 600cal meal? Thanks

Welcome everyone! So glad to have more people to help motivate.

@MyVisionsComeFromScent Congrats on the weight loss to date! So inspiring. Wednesday weigh-ins sound good. I'm Saturdays but I'm happy to do a mid-week, too.

@12548ehe9fnfobms The first three days, I really had to fight the "i'll start tomorrow" excuse. I'm on week two now and SO GLAD I stayed strong. You can do it!

@StagnantRabbit1 The website FAQ it says:

Can I drink tea and coffee on the SlimFast Plan?

Yes, of course you can still drink tea and coffee while you are on the SlimFast Plan, you just need to consider the amount of calories and deduct them from your snacks allowance or main meal. When you make tea or coffee at home, there is usually very little calorie content especially if you only add skimmed milk and have a sweetener instead of sugar. As a guide, a cup of tea or instant coffee with skimmed milk and sweetener is about 25Kcal. Fruit or Green teas are a delicious way to enjoy a hot drink and are only around 5Kcal per cup.

Thank you @YourWurstNightmare very helpful. I will be keeping an eye on this thread as all the support I can get will help.

Hello everyone, I am joining as well, hope it is OK. I am in day 3 of Cambridge, have not done it before. So far so good. Have been drinking a lot of water and tea and I am honestly not hungry. What I struggle with is the taste of the products, most of what I tried so far is really bad (for me). 3st to lose. My weigh-in day is Sat, but I am happy to do Wed as well. Keep on going everyone, we can do this!!!

Welcome @457mm! Is it the shakes or the meals that you're not enjoying? Either way, well done on making it this far.

Felt a bit off today. Couldn't finish my lunch but felt normal again after downing some apple juice. Will pop out tomorrow to get some more fruit for snacks as I haven't really had any the past few days.

Went for a brisk walk this morning to clear my head and picked up some fresh fruit and prepared salads on the way back. M&S's greek side salad is only 200 calories so that will perk up lunch today.

Hope everyone is doing well.

I've been trying my best. Lots of long hot baths here. I'm in the office until 2.30 so try to just have cups of tea until 1pm when I have home made veg soup. Then I have an early tea when I get back of fish and veggies. Then one cambridge shake made into a smoothie with berries. Also have done my body balance class every morning. It's actually easier now the kids are off school as don't have to get up so early to do it.

How is everyone getting on? Are we weighing in tomorrow morning?

DC is a star, pizza ordered for dinner, and I wasn't allowed! Chocolate shake instead which I'll feel better about later when I can't smell the pizza anymore 😂

And throw rowing machine I ordered at the weekend is supposedly arriving on Thursday, so I can up my exercise as well, and do something about the flabby bits.

Bit hungry and headachey atm but I know that's a good sign.....

Rowing machine? Wow. Toned arms for the summer 💪

Hmmm - just been to see my 84-year-old mum - she's from the Highlands and drinks whisky... insisted I have one too. Not strictly sure that goes with my Cambridge diet plan : ) But still, it was my first slip up since Boxing Day. Happy to do weigh in tomorrow .....

I have finished day 4, no cheats. It has been tough this evening as I was cooking pasta and it smelled delicious...I also had pasta (the Cambridge green pesto pasta), but I bet the taste of the one I cooked was far better. Anyway, another day survived. It feels like it has been ages already since I started. Happy to do the weigh in tomorrow. Good luck everyone!

Weighed in : am 3.7 kilos lighter than I was on Boxing Day. Presume weight loss will slow a bit from now on.

Down 1 lb since Saturday, 6 lbs altogether. Hoping to make it half a stone by Saturday.

@CJDoxon That's 8 lbs! That's amazing, congrats.

@MyVisionsComeFromScent I can resist a lot, but I'd struggle with a takeaway pizza in the house! You deserve a just for that.

Hope you're all 'big losers' today!