Cambridge diet - Please join and support me! Or anyone with lots to loose!

[caykon]

After years of yo yo dieting I am totally fed up. I am approaching 30 next year and finally want to sort my weight issues out.

I need to loose at least 7 1/2 stone. My health is starting to be affected now as well and I want to be around to see my children grow up and hopefully my grandchildren.

I have many issues with food and have chosen to start on the cambridge diet and hopefully by eliminating all food, I can try and sort these issues, and reintroduce food that is sensible and healthy and break the unhealthy habits i have got into.

Anybody out there looking for a long term support group, doesnt really matter what diet your following and maybe a weekly weigh in.

Seeing as no one wants to join me, I will start my own little log.

Did my weigh in this morning and was a whopping 17st 9lb
so my ultimate aim is to get down to 10st
but would be happy with my wedding weight of 12 stone (2 years ago)

Had a chocolate orange shake this morning and it was drinkable and about 1 pint of water so far.

Put a jug on the side that holds 2 1/2 litres so am aiming to get through that today.

I am also trying to keep busy so that ~I don't sit and graze.

You say you're a yoyo dieter so I presume by that you've tried every diet going so you've probably been to Weight Watchers at some point?

Why do you feel the Cambridge Diet will be the one that works? Do you really think the Cambridge Diet is the best one around or could it be that you've finally decided that this time is the right time for you to lose the weight?

I lost five and half stone in 2002 (Like you I was approaching 30 and felt if I didn't do it then I never would!) by eating one meal a day and exercising like a Trojan. I lost the weight too quickly and was left with loose skin and thinning hair. Not healthy. No quick weight loss plan is when there's more than a few lbs to lose.

I had another baby in 2006 and joined Weight Watchers to help me lose a stone as I just couldn't face the one meal a day plan again. I wish I'd joined in 2002! I was never hungry, had lots of support and the weekly weigh in was a good incentive to stick to my points allowance.

I don't know much about the Cambridge Diet other than it's a meal replacement plan and that a lot of followers complain of constant hunger. But the weight loss is quick so that keeps them going.

You can't eat liquids forever though so what's to stop you overeating when you start to re-introduce solid foods?

Having lost a lot of weight myself I really believe you have to find a weight loss plan that you can stick to fovever! I couldn't eat one meal a day forever because I was hungry and the hair loss proved it was making me ill. The human body needs more than one meal a day and it needs more than liquid.

You sound determined this time so why not choose an eating plan where you can eat real food in the right amounts for your weight to allow your body to stay healthy but to also lose the excess weight. Weight Watchers will help you with this.

Also, think about other changes you could make. I know it's hard on these wet cold days to get up the energy to go outside but when you feel a snack attack coming on pull on your shoes and take a 20 minute walk. You'll feel so much better for it and when you get back you won't want the biscuits/crisps because you won't want to undo the good that walk just did you.

I know I've gone on a bit but I feel so passionately that you don't need a faddy diet to shift a large amount of weight. I wish you the best of luck with this diet and am very interested in how much lose but please think about Weight Watchers.

thankyou for replying.

I believe in everything you say and I don't intend to follow the cambridge diet till I get to my goal. I actually chose this diet under recommendation by my GP. As i said my weight is now starting to affect my health and the sooner I get some off the better. He actually suggested i start with cambridge ss for about 2 months then over the next month or so work up their stages so I begin eating solids again in a controlled way. During this time he has refered me to a dietician to help me with my overating. He then suggested Slimming world as a long term way to manage my weight.

I know Cambridge diet is going to be tough, thats why I was looking for some support.

hi caykon

i lost about 3 stone on cambridge a couple of summers ago. I am now about 7-10lbs heavier than i was when i came off the diet but I am a size 14 and happy with that.

It is a fantastic diet if you can stick to it.

It is not a faddy diet! Its been around years and was designed by doctors. It provides 100% of your nutritional requirements and will enable you to lose a lot of wieght quickly. This diet will enable you to stay healthy, even without eating real food.

Like you said, what you need is support, not people telling you its a stupid diet and the wrong one to follow.
I had all that from my best friend and my mother. They soon realised i was in it for the right reasons and that the diet was actually making me a much healthier and happier person.

Good luck with it. How are you getting on today?

oh i see you started today, day 4 is the hardest for me, but honestly once you get to that first wiegh in any worries you did have will dissapear very very quickly and you will spurred on for another week.

Think of it all as a temporary inconvenience with very very worthwhile outcomes.

Caykon ~ If I came across as unsurportive then I apologise as that was most definitely not my intent. The complete opposite infact.

As your GP has suggested this diet so that you can initially lose some weight fast then it's obviously the right way to go. It's great that he's also suggested you see a dietician.

My DP needs to lose about the same amount of weight as you. He regularly starts a diet and loses a stone or so then goes back to "normal" eating and regains it again. He tried one of the liquid diets and lost over two stone but again, once the diet was over back up went the weight. It's frustrating to watch him. I wish his GP would refer him to a dietician. Sadly he just sent him home with a list of healthy foods. Not terribly helpful. I'm just telling you this so that you know I've seen the effects of yoyo dieting up close.

When I replied earlier I honestly thought I was being helpful or was at least trying to be. I hated being so heavy and losing the weight was one of the best things I've ever done. It was life changing. I just thought I'd pass on some advice that I wish, with hindsight, someone had given me before I lost all that weight so quickly. I didn't know then that you were using the Cambridge Diet as a short term plan before joining Slimming World. I've not been a member of Slimming World but I know like WW they meet up weekly so I'm sure the support will be brilliant and I hope it goes well for you.

~ ~ ~ ~

I'd also like to add that I don't think the diet is "stupid" but, in my humble opinion, I do think it's unsustainable as you can't live on liquids forever. And even if a nutritional expert pops up and says "Oh yes you can!" who would want to?

*Unsupportive.

I'm sure there are other errors that I haven't spotted but at the stroke of midnight my ability to spell turns into a pumpkin.

Amandoh, i know you didnt call the diet "stupid" sorry that was what some other people said to me.

Did your husnabd follow the maintenance program offered by the liquid diet he did? Sorry to hear he is finding it hard to lose wieght too. Has he tried hypnosis at all?

Hope you are doing okay today caykon

I am currently trying to get rid of those extra 10 lbs, although like i said i am happy in a 14 so i dont mind how long it takes, but I am scared of drifting towards a 16 so dont want to take my eye off the ball LOL.

Amandoh - I know what you were saying was with the best of intentions. To be honest they were very similar things to what I said to my GP.
I am very lucky to have a gp who is understanding about weight issues, and also who wont push the diet pills. if I succesfully loose some weight over the next 3 months then he will give me a prescription for slimming world, so that will be useful.

ginger - thanks for the advice. Yesterday went well had a shake for lunch and breakfast. I was very hungry in the evening so had a small portion of homemade shepherds pie. I had it on one of the kids plates.
I know this is cheating but that was still a significan decrease in calories for me so still must help. I also had 3 litres of water.

Today I will aim for the 3 shakes but am not going to give up if I don't it is still a step in the right direction.

Hi Caykon, I am on cambridge and into week 6, I have lost 1 stone 6 lb so far and feel sooo much better, people who haven't researched it do think it is a fad but it's just a quicker way to lose weight and not about living off liquids for the rest of your life, you gradually reintroduce the right foods so if you go through the transitions properly then you will eat a healthy balanced diet once at target. I have done WW and SW many times before and always lose weight but very very slowly even sticking to them 100% I only lose a 1 or 1.5 per week, so 4 or 5 lbs per month. When you have 5 stone to lose it is very difficult to keep motivated for that length of time without seeing great results.

My GP is happy with me doing it as my 'old' lifestyle was not healthy. Research also shows that just because you lose if faster it doesn't mean you gain faster, you will gain the same as any other diet if you go back to old habits which I definiately don't intend to so.

Good luck with it, Amandoh, please don't think this is a dig at you, a few months ago I would have been in total agreement with you but having researched it I can see what benefits it has to offer.

Alpech

my second day has gone well and I can honestly say I am not feeling hungry today.
I find myself wanting to eat out of habit.
I am making sure I stay busy though.

Hi caykon. I too have just started a VLCD in order to get rid of 2-3 stones as quickly as possible. I also have about 7 stone to lose though would settle for 5.

I have done Cambridge in the past but didn't really stick with. Lost 2 stone in 6 weeks but then started to muck about and ended up regaining the weight. This was my fault and nothing to do with the plan.

This time I am using Avidlite products along with lowcarb food. Similar to the 810 plan on CD.

I started on 1st October at 17stone 11. I went a bit off plan during half term and then last week I had flu and just couldn't stomach the packs but I am determined to be at least 2 stone down by Christmas.

I will weigh in again on 1st of November . I haven't lost loads of weightbut my clothes feel better already.

Good luck.

Hi Caykon, I think I may have spotted you on one of the other weight loss threads a while ago! It is a constant battle isn't it? I was Ag before.

I lost quite a lot of weight on WW about a year ago and then went back to my old ways and put a lot back on.

I started lighter life at the beginning of June and have lost almost seven stone. I am now only about half a stone from goal and begin to reintroduce food in 2 weeks. Lighterlife have a very good return to food program which lasts 12 weeks and gradually reintroduces foods including your trigger foods over that time. This aims to re-educate people to eat sensibly and know how much their bodies require in order to maintain their weight.

The most important message that we can learn is this :- Every diet works if you stick to it. We can lose weight fast or slow depending on how many calories we choose to eat. BUT all the weight and perhaps more will be gained if we don't change our eating habits forever. It is complete idiocy to lose loads of weight and then think we can go back to eating the way we did before without piling it all back on. Believe me, I know. I have done it countless times. That is why I have chosen this extreme method of weight loss. I needed to be away from food because I acknowledge I have a problem with it. By reintroducing it slowly and sticking to the management program I hope I can maintain the weight loss.

No-one would say that a liquid diet was sustainable forever. CD and Lighterlife don't peddle that idea. The idea is to lose weight on their programmes and then learn to eat sensibly.

I wish you well and hope that I can pop back often to hear of your progress. I have found the program of total abstinence (3 soups or shakes and 1 bar per day) quite easy but I really would advise not cheating in any way as it will increase your hunger which is so counter productive. Best of luck to you.

thanks for all your support I am now nearing the end of day 5, and am still on plan

I am drinking loads of water and havent had any little extras now for a couple of days.

Hi caykon
I have done the cambridge diet twice now and lost about 4st each time and both times put on all the weight and more.But all said and done that was my own failer and if you have the right mind set then i am sure it will work.My top weight was 23st i have now lost about 6st around 17st now which i have done with weight watchers and walking .But now my weight loss as slowed done would go back on the cambridge but i am TTC at the moment so not a very good idea.just one more thing try not to give in to any extras as it can mess up the ketosis what stops the hunger and you may feel back to square one
Good Luck

I am on the Cambridge diet. Lost nearly two stones but then had a blip for the last four weeks and have put on about 6 pounds. Am now back on it again as of today and am going to stay on until at least Christmas.

I want to lose about three stones.

Glad to see this thread as hopefully it will keep me on the straght and narrow!

I may be joining you on your CD journey. I need to lose 4 stones and I'm impatient. I am aware of the pitfalls of this diet but hoping to crack it this time with counselling etc.

I've just e-mailed a couple of counsellors & hopefully they will get back to me soon.

Good luck¬

Hi

I am on Day 1 of the CD doing SS I just had a banana shake and so farhave drunk almost 1.5l of water. I am expecting this first week to be tough and may come on and ramble.

I must succeed I feel fat and ugly I hate going out in the evenings as I can't wear anything without feeling like a lumpy marshmallow. I need to lose 3.5 stones

Good luck to all

Speak Soon

Morning of Day 2, I am ok but hungry guzzling water in order to save my shakes until later

Hi guys, I just wanted to post and say good luck to everyone. I did CD recently and lost nearly 2 stone in 6 weeks. I have kept it off though only because of changing what and how much I eat since coming off the plan. Anyway - good luck! It has changed my life. x

Day 4 and no cheating although there have been lots of temptations drinking 3l of water at least per day still tired and no energy

Hi all x

I started week 3 yesterday and have lost 13lbs so far.

I did cambridge last year and lost 7 1/2 stone in 6 months but then fell pregnant with twins and by the time I had them I had gained 4 stone back (didnt get to do maintenance as pregnant)

The twins are now 13 weeks old and I am determined to get back to goal!

I am getting married in 5 weeks and am aiming to have lost 2 stone by the big day.

The diet is hard but is definately worth it in the end

Hi

Well done for your 13lb loss. I have my weigh in tomorrow eek I just hope I have lost something I will be happy with 4lb

Woohoo I lost 8lb :D

That's a fab weight loss. Well done!