Ah Boo, I think they do flounder around not quite understanding, but I have to say, my husband is so good especially re the ever continuing saga of the duvet flapping episodes he puts up with, and the drippy sheets…And the itching – yikes. (Only realised a couple of months ago that Piriton stops the itching and, an awful lot of the flapping like an old duck – helps me sleep too, whcih is a big bonus – yay)

You’ve made me feel sorry for him now! 🙂 He’s doing this diet with me – he’s got very heavy, needs to lose 4 stone, so we’ll be souls in sympathy. Can’t quite make up my mind whether that’s going to be fun or not!

Tiger x x

Femme – thank you. Mums, eh? lol

Your mum sounds very much like mine – it’s lovely that you have special, funny memories of her. My mum is still somewhat outrageous, but funny (mostly) with it, although I am having trouble with something she told ‘my’ decorator yesterday. He’s decorating her little bungalow and has been sorting me out (decorating and odd jobs) for about 4 years. Of course we are friends now, but… She was telling him how close we are and how we’ve always been such good friends. Right – that’s fine. I didn’t mind that, but then, then she told him when I lost my virginity, and how much my confession had made her laugh all those years ago. Now, honestly, I couldn’t believe that! Blimey! that was enough to make me reach for a cream bun…and I don’t like cream buns!

Hey-ho…I hope I don’t get too much like her in my dotage…

Boo

In order to keep this thread ‘clean’ I simply can’t tell you what she said last week at her birthday lunch here with my husband and son. Golly, I am broad minded, I really am, but I somehow thought erm, wrongly perhaps now, that Ann Summers was not really aimed at 80 somethings. Goodness, how wrong was I. And very, very red faced. My 26 year old son almost choked and thought his Nan was a hoot. I had one of the hottest flushes I have EVER had. 🙂 lol oh dear.

Chatting with you has been a great distraction for the rumbling tummy today – so thank you for the very warm welcome and making me feel, already, like I’m part of the gang.

Tiger
x x

Hi Tiger,

You sound like a lot of fun. After about 10 attempts I finally managed to give up the ciggies and I’m now in my 13th fag-free year. The e-cigs hadn’t yet been invented but I got by with nicotine patches (even though they brought me out in bumps and I had to smother myself with calamine lotion) and a little toy ceramic cigarette to wave about.

I’d been a silly smoker, perhaps getting through a pack a day but only taking a few puffs before just waving it about. I think it was the waving about I missed most. As a smoker I never coughed or had breathing difficulties so I sometimes wondered why I was bothering. Plus giving up made it harder to lose weight, although I was very, very careful not to replace cigs with food.

It does get easier, but after all these years there is still the odd moment when I’d kill for one. It’s easier now that smoking has been banned in most restaurants. There were times, when people at the next table lit up I was tempted to ask if they can spare one.

I’ve sworn never to become a health Nazi and if a very rare smoker – the only one I know at is my step-son-in-law – comes to us, I allot a smoking area, somewhere nice and comfortable, light a couple of candles and keep them company while they puff away – at last I’m never tempted to join them.

Finally, I’ve had another scroll through the LOACA recipes and now have 17 pages of them. Thanks to PVE, LUVTCOOK, Ali and others for some great ideas.

Good morning LOACAs everywhere.

Hi Tiger, your story about your mum made me laugh. Mine died when I was in my teens but my aunt lived to 94 and became very forthright from her 80s on – my uncle commented that she ‘swears like a trooper, I didn’t know she knew such words’. Fortunately she didn’t know me well enough to ‘share’ with anyone. 😉

Hi Mirjam, regarding exercise, don’t worry too much if you don’t feel like it. As you lose weight you will probably feel ‘lighter’ mentally (my interpretation) and moving more will become easier. I’m lucky in that I had always been active until osteoarthritis slowed me down. Now I do a weekly Hatha yoga session and weight training with a PT. I also try to fit in 2 HIIT sessions at home but not always in the mood.

Hi hermaj, how’s the arty-farty Brazilian art critic adventure going? Keep nibbling away at him.

Hi Bay, well done on size 12 bathers/swimmers/togs or whatever. Interesting that in Oz we all essentially speak the same language but it’s the names for things that give our origins away. Having lived in 3 states and 1 territory and now back home, I can finally relax about what I call stuff so people will understand.

Fasting today so as always this site is my strength and inspiration. Thanks everyone!

JIP: congratulations on your 3 Year Goal Anniversary. I have always managed to lose weight when I set my mind to it but have been a dismal failure at maintenance. You deserve a round of applause and one of the Mighty BooBoo awards for that one. I think maintenance is even harder than losing…..don’t get the nice instant reward seeing the pounds drop off. I am reaching out across the pond to pat you on the back. Feel that? Good. Job well done.

Welcome Tiger. This group loves a gal with a sense of humor and tells a good story. So glad to have you join us. You have a terrific perspective on life….thanks for sharing. I am ending my day with a good laugh thanks to you.

Thank you again everyone for the warm welcome and I’m chuffed that some of you smiled re my mum’s antics! She is a trooper and says, believe it or not, that she reckons she had an easier menomadness than me because she only had breast cancer to cope with! And cope she did. She had a mastectomy way back in the early mid 80’s and thankfully that was it for her. She has asthma and diabetes type 2 now, but she reckons what keeps her so healthy and ‘up and at it’ is her fags, her whisky and her telly…lol

Oh and btw I had a fab day yesterday on my first fast and this morning feel so energised. Perhaps it’s all in my head, but my 4 mile walk with my ‘Tiger’ seemed a lot easier. Onwards and upwards. YAY!

Cheers everyone 🙂
Tiger. x

Hi Boo

I did have a fairly easy menopause. I gave up all sugar, most alcohol, and all wheat. That seemed to take away most of my symptoms. I stayed very active with lots of cycling and walking.

I didn’t see your posts to me yesterday. I will look for them. B

Hi Boo

When I was beginning FD, I kept a detailed diary of food, water and exercise. Weight and measurements. Months later I filled in the tracker and discovered I had big plateaus. At the time I was too happy rediscovering my shape to worry about how much weight loss was happening.

Because I have never paid for or enrolled in a diet in my life, I treated the 5:2 as an experiment. When I read Michael’s book, I thought that this would suit my personality. All or nothing!

So, to explain that for me to lose a kg a week, I did more than fast 5:2. I reduced my total intake of food very abruptly. To kick start the weight loss, I made some changes.

I had NO sugar, wheat, alcohol, cheese, or starchy foods such as rice, pasta, potatoes for the first four weeks. I ate only home made food. This was mostly fish or chicken with steamed green vegetables with lots of herbs and spices, eggs, salads. I trained myself not to snack or graze on any day of the week. I drank a lot of water and I learnt what proper portion control is. In that first four weeks I lost 7 kg.

Only after shrinking my stomach for those four weeks, did I venture to have a treat. I am appalled at the amount I used to eat. I still only have alcohol four times a week. I don’t eat wheat, and I minimise the amount of sugar. For example, a square of dark chocolate is now a huge treat.

During this whole time I made sure to walk or golf or garden, or clean the house, just to get some form of exercise each day.

I hope this goes some way to explain how I achieved my goal in six months. I realise others will look at such a regime with horror. To me it was a challenge and so rewarding to regain control over my eating. I now regard maintaining as far harder work than losing the weight. 🙂

We are all different. B 🙂

Hi Boo

To answer your question. No, I didn’t have bad PMS after I worked out that sugar, fats and processed food were what was wrong with me. After I eliminated them from my food intake, most of my symptoms went away. Which is why I was ready to test this theory again when I was going through menopause.

I do not have a history of being overweight, but rather gained all my weight after the age of 50 when I continued to eat as if I still had my earlier more active lifestyle. B 🙂

Hi Precious
I completely back up Bayleaf re her regime for starting 5:2. We also lost a kg a week by doing it this way. The rewards were fast and significant and it totally changed our attitudes to what and how much and when we needed to eat. P 🙂

Oh dear, I completely forgot the most important lessons. 🙂

Drink at least 2 litres of water every day. I really have to be mindful of this.
Leave as long a time as possible between eating
Do not nibble or graze on any day.

5:2 is a health program, not a weight loss program. The health benefits come from the fasting and time between eating. If you want weight loss, then you have to add extra to the basic 5:2.

Enjoy ! B 🙂

Bonjour all you lovely LOACA – I missed my fast day yesterday as I was taking friends to see baby Lea and knew that treats would be around, and they were – lovely french chocolates, mmm! So today is a FD and I’ve just come back from a refreshing walk and now a cup of Redbush tea. If you have not tried Redbush (or Rooibos) it is delicious and as the name states it does have a red tint to it. You can drink it without milk and the best thing (apart from the taste) is that it’s decaffienated. I first heard of it when reading Alexander McCall Smith’s books about The No. 1 Lady Detective Agency set in Botswana.

On the subject of what and how much to drink each day I read Michael Mosley’s post:

“Drinking 2 litres of water a day will help you lose weight.
This myth dates back to the 1940s when researchers calculated that 2 litres was how much water someone’s body used in 24 hours. However, the researchers also said (and this gets ignored) that we obtain much of the water we need each day from our food. Drinks such as coffee and tea also count, despite what many people believe”.

I heard him state this in a recent interview and he said there was nothing particularly magical about drinking water – you take it in your teas, coffees and particularly in the form of soup, which is more filling.

I must admit I’ve tried over the years drinking 1.5 to 2 litres of water per day and have always given up after a few days; I’d always thought that surely what I drink throughout the day also counts towards the 2 litres, and am pleased to see that it does!

You may recall I spent last week in Lake Como and when I came back I had put on 4 lbs (which actually wasn’t too bad for me and I had a lovely week enjoying cappuccinos, ice creams and proseccos!); well having done one FD on Monday I weighed myself this morning and am back to having lost 8 lbs – brilliant. So no great setback.

Better put the washing out x

Hi everybody…hope you’re all in great form on this first day of August. I have had 2 fast days , each for 36 hours and just weighed….delighted that I’m now 17st 8 so have lost 4lbs this week. I’ve been very busy with the kids…..we live in the country, not on a bus route so I seem to be chauffeuring them a lot all week. Only 1 month left before I go back to work as a teacher and I hope to be down a stone by then. More importantly, have a lower BMI. I changed from having porridge for breakfast to Greek yoghurt+berries+a few walnuts, drank 2 l sparkling water and increased my fish intake ….all ideas leaned from these posts. From now on, I’m going to abstain from eating grains, dairy, processed food, sugar and salt….basically going back to basics.I have also reduced my calorie intake in my non fast days.

To anyone that has a problem with itching…..Organic extra virgin coconut oil is a natural product and it solves itches in all sorts of places. I don’t take tablets for anything and hope to stay clear of them going forward.

Jenny

Go for it Ariel. Read as much as you can, knowledge is power 🙂 PVE

Hi Newme and welcome!

I joined this week and have been amazed by the camaraderie there is on here and how easily us newbies are accepted into the fold. Everyone on here appears to be a jolly good sort 🙂 I downloaded the myfitnesspal app – I believe was recommended on here by someone and it’s proving to be a great help, esepcially with calorie counting and learning how much energy is spent whilst excercising. It’s also helped with meal planning and has stopped the faffing about with a book (or two) to find out whats what. I’ve got about 20 lb to lose too, but like you am looking forward to the health benefits as well, although getting rid of my little footballers thighs is a huge incentive to lose the weight. Hate chunky thighs! (Oh but having a heaving bosom for the first time in my life is rather spiffing – but I expect that will go first… 🙁 )

Wishing you loads of luck and as they say on here, (I got it wrong the last time 🙂 ) Onwards and downwards!

Tiger
x

Hello Ladies

Back from another trip to Wales, where we now have a lovely comfy bed and a washing machine which has yet to be plumbed in. We haven’t yet got around to organising any internet, and the GPRS signal there is very now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t, and is so slow!

So much to catch up on here. Thanks for the sympathetic comments about my bite – no BooBoo they didn’t seem to know what it was and it is much better now, but whatever it was has Welsh cousins because I now have similar on my arm and leg. Fortunately I am still taking the antibiotics so they haven’t become so infected, just a bit swollen and very itchy. I think the only answer this weather is to wear a burka!

Hello to all our new joiners – hope all is going well, and look forward to hearing about your progress. I missed a fast day this week, and was a bit too lax with the wine, as well as having a lovely steak meal in a local pub complete with onion rings. Gorgeous! I daren’t get on the scales so am doing a back2back fast. Yesterday I just had a boiled egg for breakfast and a prawn stir-fry with Zero Noodles for dinner. Today it was another boiled egg and a tuna salad tonight. Fingers crossed for the weigh-in tomorrow.

By the way BooBoo and anyone else interested, they also sell them in Boots at £1.99 – cheaper than Holland & Barrett.

Tiger – my 88 year old Mum went to the same School Of Crass Tactlessness as your Mum and Nicky F’s aunt! I once mentioned to her that her GP was nice looking and on her next visit told him her daughter thought he was very dishy! As I now often have to go with her to her appointments, I always feel myself blushing horribly.

Hermaj – I do admire your many achievements. When I decided to study for my law exams in my mid-twenties, it was without any support from my then husband. I did part by correspondence and for nearly two years I would come home from work, cook a meal, do two hours’ study, then have the washing up to do. It was part of the reason I eventually divorced him. I’m sure you’re relationship is much more solid at this time of life, but it is so galling when the other half isn’t behind you in striving for personal goals. As you say, he’s more than happy to benefit from the financial rewards. Mine certainly missed out big time!

I’m also with you on attitude and outlook being one of the main issues of ‘staying young’, and yes, we have a lovely circle of friends of all ages.

Femme Anglaise – your week by the lake sounds wonderful. And those admiring glances! What a terrific boost to the ego. I was interested to hear about the Redbush tea. I’ve often wondered what it tastes like. I love the No1 Ladies Detective Agency books. They made a tv series a few years ago but I think there was a political problem which prevented any more being filmed in Botswana. Pity.

Sorry PVE, I won’t be stopping having my hair coloured any time soon – especially if George Clooney is looming on the horizon! Well done though on the loss of all those inches! You must feel great buzzing around in that open top car.

Wilbersnanna – congratulations on having to buy a smaller size! Isn’t it a great feeling when that happens? I’ve just tried on some trousers which I have never worn (forgot I even had them, but I apparently bought them in an M & S sale) and they fit a treat. It spurred me on to try on some other clothes I haven’t been able to wear in so while, and I was very pleasantly surprised! I hope you gave a great anniversary and that your bite has healed.

JIP – 3 years of maintaining! That’s fantastic and something I have never been anywhere near achieving. Have you managed to maintain on any other diets in the past? If not, then it says it all for the 5:2 as being the one to be on. I hope I have the same result – eventually! Long way to go yet though.

Sorry to have prattled on, but there was so much to catch up on. I’ve still only just skimmed through the recent posts, but I shall be in one place for the next week or so, so will be able to log on more often.

Night all and g’day Down Under

Smiffy x

G’day Smiffy
I’m sure you look gorgeous, whatever you do with your hair 😉 P

Femme Anglaise again – just been thinking about we ‘ladies of a certain age’ and how we put many symptoms down to the peri-menopause/menopause. That’s just what I did – at the age of 59 I moved to France and over the next two years put on 2 stones – I put this down to new tempting foods and the menopause.

Then my excellent GP (the french health system is so thorough) did a full blood count and I was found to have a defunct thyroid gland (the gland that regulates our metabolism and many other functions)- Hashimoto’s Disease – and was immediately put on tablets. It took almost a year to get my readings within the normal range, and since starting on the FD the weight is at last coming off – hoorah!!!!!

So if you have any queries about any symptom get it checked – I had probably been without my thyroid functioning for 3 years – I had so many symptoms, but as I say I just assumed it was the menopause; I was so wrong.

Hi Mirjam
There are no rules, but the research appears to show that it is better for your health, if you can train yourself not to snack between meals. B 🙂

On the advice of Precious BooBoo and other LOACA have just bought The Fast Diet from Amazon for 1p – what a bargain – can’t wait for it to arrive
FAx