Is it even possible?

[DietHelp]

I’m fat. I was ok with that and accepting of my body after having a history of disordered eating and eventually getting over that. I also genuinely believe that my fatness is caused by the yoyo dieting I have done over the years. Since recovering from the eating issues, my weight has stabilised long term. Until recently. I’m currently going through peri and have gained a bit. The combination of that and peri has made me feel so down about my body and like I want to make it smaller again. It’s not helped by the fact my husband has lost weight recently due to a diabetes diagnosis and medication and diet shift (not dieting as such, just cutting out sweets, desserts etc).

The issues:

I have IBS - I love fruit and veg and pulses but they cripple me.

I need to eat relatively regularly as I have conditions that make me headachey and nauseous if I go too long.

My conditions mean I CANNOT exercise. At all.

What the flip can I do?!!

Can you eat any fruit and veg?

Could be barking up the wrong tree but have you looked into the Low Carb Bootcamp threads? Lots of carby pulses, fruits and veg is off limits there so it might work with your goals.

I can eat peas, potatoes, mushrooms, onions, leeks (which I know are often iffy for some people), swede, carrots and tomatoes. So not none but not as much as I would like. Broccoli/cauliflower/cabbage all make me have painful wind.

Bananas are ok but I’m not massively keen. Berries are good too but they tend to be expensive. Apples, pears and oranges all seem to give me some kind of fermentation effect where you can hear my stomach from across the room!😂

Thank you. I will check that out. That might work out well.

I was like this. I tried and tried and like u would struggle to exercise. Then I got a bad gallbladder. Becuase of that I had to go on the 3% diet. The weight has been falling off me. It has to be less than 3% fat per 100g and there is no real junk food that covers that hence why I have been loosing weight.

Like u I have ibs but the doctor gave me some pills to take before eating and some laxatives and they have been working. I also try and stick to the fruit and veg that I know I can have. I don’t get sugar rushes anymore either. And I no longer spend all day feeling hungry.

I cannot tell u how much better I feel. I had a blood test for chronic tiredness about three months ago. Since I stopped eating all the sugar in the junk food that has gone completely I feel like a new women. Even if I have to have the gallbladder out not a chance in hell would I go back to eating processed foods again.

Try Zoe and get an actual report on what you should eat. After a lifetime of eating inappropriate foods it's never going to be a quick shift. Maybe you need a staged approach. So get you gut biome working properly then introduce other vegetables gradually.

Another vote for the low carb Bootcamp here on Mumsnet. I started it in 2011 and my IBS cleared up right away. It was wheat that was causing most of my symptoms. Since I cut that out, I've been able to eat the more fibrous vegetables again so long as it isn't in large quantities. It's also a great way to lose weight since it specifically says to eat when you're hungry and doesn't need any calorie counting.

Have a look into the human being diet. I have me/CFS so can't exercise and spend a lot of time in bed. Peri menopausal weight gain over the last 6 months was getting uncomfortable. I've lost 12lbs in the last 5 weeks and feel like I'm getting some energy back and I'm in less pain

You do need to go 5 hours between meals though. Lots of people have found it's been life changing for IBS. Edited to add - you don't feel hungry in between meals though.

There's a really good support community on Instagram so search #hbdgang or #humanbeingdiet

Low carb. Or if it's too much hassle to do the reading, just change what's on your plate so that you have more of the protein and less of the beige.

What do you usually eat? Also, what are the conditions that make you unwell if you fast? (if you're comfortable to tell us)

Also, what do you drink?

Wow, thanks for all the replies.

It’s ME/CFS and Fibro that I have too so also sofa bound a lot.

@pompomdaisy I’ve looked at Zoe but don’t really understand it so I’ll try that more.

I’ve low carbed before but ended up bingeing. I’ll look into that as well though.

@Watchkeys I have ME/CFS and Fibro but I find if I don’t eat every say 4 hours tops I get migraines and nausea, as well as the shakes (which I think could be blood sugar related but I’m not diabetic). Currently I eat a bowl of either Fruit and Fibre or no added sugar muesli for breakfast. Size of portion depends on how hungry I am. Mid morning I have an activia with about 10 nuts. Lunch time is usually a sandwich..often cheese, lettuce, tomato. Sometimes I’ll have a frozen biryani or a packet of micro rice with mackerel. This all depends on how much energy I have. Evening meals tend to be just everyday ones. Spag bol, risotto (with veg in), sausage tray bake (with veg), salmon and new potatoes with peas or tenderstem broccoli (it oddly isn’t as bad as normal broccoli for wind), pasta and pesto.

Drinks wise I have 2/3 decaf coffees a day (made with my bean to cup machine so is just 200ml of milk ish for all three). No sugar. We also have a cold water filter dispenser so I have that on tap but being honest, I go through phases. Sometimes I drink loads of water and sometimes I drink more in squash. And sometimes it’s a caffeine free pepsi max! I don’t really snack apart from the odd biscuit but around my period I will probably have chocolate. My portions are often quite big though. Especially on evening meals.

Also, I don’t drink any alcohol.

@MissisBoote thanks for your suggestion too. It sucks being stuck with this illness doesn’t it? And it seems the peri symptoms are just adding to the usual ones! Glad you’ve found something that worked for you re the diet though. I’ll look into that too.

My conditions mean I CANNOT exercise. At all.

Neither could I ( I have ME, fibromyalgia and arthritis) but I lost over 3 stone by logging calories on My Fitness Pal after working out my TDEE then reducing the calories by 20% to find my calorie target for weight loss.
https://tdeecalculator.net/

I stick to portion sizes regardless of how hungry I am because once you have eaten your portion you are no longer hungry. It really is all about portion sizes so if you reduce them It really is possible. Good luck!

I don't excercise either but over 50lbs down now, it's more about what you eat.

Things like cereal ,Activia, nuts, cheese and sausages really ramp up the calories without you realising it.

Change your breakfast to something protein based. A couple of eggs plus some mushrooms. Or berries and seeds. This will stabilise your blood sugar and you may then not need to snack. Cereal is a nutritional waste.

What nuts are you snacking on? Walnuts are the most beneficial.

I agree about portion size. You have to weigh portions on the hbd diet and it's mostly equal portions of veg and protein (depending on the meal and which protein you're eating). It's portion sizes are generous though and I don't feel hungry in between meals.

Definitely look into it as I've got reduced PEM and the hit by a bus feeling is much reduced.