What ever happened to the F Plan Diet?

[RedDoughnut]

I remember it was massive in the 1980s.

No one seems to talk much about fibre now. I wonder if that's because of the carbs?

I've just found myself looking up high fibre vegetables. I used to eat wholemeal pasta and brown rice but DH turns his nose up ( he will eat wholemeal bread ) so I have drifted into white pasta etc.

Maybe fibre is the answer and will make a return to diet fashion?

Fibre just isn't sexy. Probably because it's related to bowel health and talking about shit. But we do not eat enough fibre in this country, which means those who don't eat enough fibre also don't consume enough fruits and vegetables, so they are in double trouble. Plus, eating enough fibre isn't any kind of quick fix weight loss solution, which is what many people are interested in when it comes to food.

Most people would lose weight on the F Plan Diet since as well as stirring raw wheat bran into all your meals it advocated 1000 calories a day for women, 1250 calories a day for men, and 850 calories a day if you didn't have a lot of weight to lose and took a daily vitamin pill "to keep your mum happy". Other authors jumped on the bandwagon and some highly exaggerated claims were made for the benefits of fibre. Then the slimming diet world moved on to the next get-slim-quick gimmick.

My mum was a fan of this. I remember her eating the same dinner as us, but with a bowl of homemade coleslaw and some walnuts to the side. And eating dried apricots.

I remember my mum eating natural yogurt mixed with wheat bran, stewed rhubarb, and a saccharin tablet dissolved in a tiny bit of water. Oh, the faces she pulled as she declared how much she was enjoying it😂She has outlived Audrey Eyton.

I bought the F Plan diet at a jumble sale in the eighties and I've basically been on it ever since!

I never managed the titchy calorie count but I eat a very high fibre diet and I'm convinced it helps me get away with murder, treat wise.

Don't read the next bit if you don't like bowel movement chat...

I don't have solid, separate bm's. It comes out as liquid.

I take my all-bran on every trip and holiday, I'm miserable without it.

And who doesn't love baked potatoes?

Liquid? Is there any exaggeration there? If not, why is that happening?

Woah

Liquid poo does not sound healthy!

My mum was into this too.

I've recently read Ultra Processed People and am looking at increasing my fibre to improve my gut health and have better poos.

Meh! Better than being bloated sluggish and constipated on atkins. F plan sounds grand

Most diets are ‘trendy’ fads imo. They all have their time in the spotlight and then disappear as majority of the time they’re very restrictive and not suitable for long term happiness!

It worked but in a very farty way. 💨

The F Plan diet is fantastic. I bought both F and F2 plan cookbooks and have used their recipes for years for me and my kids.

It’s all good stuff and people categorically do not get enough fibre unless they pay attention to it. People obsess about protein which is BS much of the time.
It makes a real difference to your health.

I remember the book!

Interesting article about her here, although very sad to read about the loss of both her sons.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jul/16/audrey-eyton-obituary

I think F-plan was hugely successful and never really did go away. The idea that beans and pulses are healthy is certainly a recognised idea, whereas prior to F-plan they would have been dismissed as ‘starch’.

My mother lost over a stone on it (with aerobics) quite quickly in the 1980s and kept it off.

F plan Diet + aerobics …. such an Eighties combination !

Perhaps some ladies may prefer the diet outlined in Shirley Valentine:

Sex for breakfast!
Sex for dinner!
Sex for tea!

IT'S CALLED THE F PLAN!

I remember aerobics, I used to go to classes twice a week, mainly because they had a crèche and I could be child free for an hour. What’s replaced aerobics?

I remember buying a magazine called Slimming (not Slimming World) and they were promoting the baguette diet. You buy a fresh baguette daily, chop it into 3, and fill it will salad and ham or chicken. I bloody loved that diet. The reason it worked wasn’t magic, it was the low calorie aspect.

I could definitely go for the baguette diet! I wonder if it works with a side of crisps or chips 🤣

I remember a Dept of Health sign in my school gym in the late 1980s that said, “Overweight? Eat more bread and potatoes!”

Loads of households switched to brown bread, ours included. I don’t remember brown pasta but we only had pasta a couple of times per month anyway.

Fibre is back in a big way with all the interest in gut health and the microbiome.

You could only have the baguette, chicken, ham (small amounts) and salad. Nothing else. No drinks apart from black coffee, tea or water. I worked out I was eating less than 1100 calories a day. It worked though, I lost 2 stone in 2 months. As soon as I added back chips, crisps and alcohol, I gained it all back

Aerobics is undergoing a resurgence. Mr Motivator is back. My gym is now running a step class, and LBT which has been our of favour for a while.

Baguette Diet, I’m dying!

I remember the F Plan Diet book being in my mother’s bedside locker. It was my first concept of dieting.

There was a guy in the States though, who only ate Subway & lost loads of weight (no mayonnaise etc…)

I think it was big because eating brown bread/ rice/ lentils wasn't really a thing before that. It was mostly white bread, mashed potatoes, a few overcooked veg so this was quite a change.

I think the part of fibre is underrated in nutrition/weight loss is underrated whereas the effect of protein and carbs is overrated. And people get a bit obsessed with fat, it was all low fat this and that in the 80s and 90s and now it's all fat doesn't make you fat.

I've managed to lose some weight and it definitely involves lowering fat intake - not eating lots of low fat products, but the balance of things I have for my 1700 calories or whatever means I have about 50-80g of fat a day which is "a low fat diet" by most measures. That doesn't mean I don't eat things like mackerel, cheese, chips, butter, oil, avocado and bacon but in moderation. Hardly any is saturated or animal fat and my cholesterol level is really good - I want to keep it that way!

Fibre wise the recommended amount is 30g a day. I struggle with it a bit but have 22-30g and have no issue with BMs.

Lentils and beans are definitely my friend for life with weight loss and maintenance and I always have whole versions of starchy carbs- apart from potatoes perhaps but I love the skin and try and have them skin on apart from mash.