The plan with the psyllium husk is a mix of drink and cooking. Apparently it can me good addition to porridge and muesli. I also like the idea of using it as thickner in soups and stews. Hadnt heard of glucomannan until now. The psyllium husk was £10 for a 1 kg bag and its particularly fine ground.

Question for everyone: apart from the obvious things like health benefits and improved self confidence. What are peoples anticipated positive outcomss from weight loss.?

One of mine is being able to bin all the hipster/low rise jeans that I’ve accumulated because I couldnt get anything else and get back to wearing the normal higher waist ones ive got stashed away. I loathe low rise jeans beyond words….they just dont fit !

Hi Celtic

Below are some of the articles I have looked up. I hadn’t heard about it before about a month ago when I saw a programme on it. I found it was so interesting that I had to look it up. I looked at many clinical trials and then realised that I had been having this from time to time in bare naked noodles, also it is in slim noodles, rice, pasta and in Miracle noodles, rice etc. They also make a diet pill with this called skinny fibre but they cost an arm and a leg and I think they suggest taking more than the reccomended amounts that are in the trials.

I don’t want a quick fix, but I would rather not be constipated, retain water and lower cholesterol. If I happen to lose another 1lb a month I won’t be complaining either!!

I can’t work due to my blood pressure, this was triggered by an event about a year ago and it seems that although I don’t feel stressed, both the doctor and consultant thinks I am suffering from underlying stress. This will resolve itself eventually but I have been through a short period of this when losing someone close to me. this is the reason I thought I must lose weight and the consultant said that that is the one thing that will really help. I have to be careful what blood pressure medications I take as they interfere with other medications I am on.

Hi Hemmy

Well you and me both then, I don’t know why or where this came from really but I do get odd days like this, I am getting more recently. This is the reason I am doing 4:3 at the moment. It is to counteract any weight gain. I don’t want to find myself going down the same path as I used to.

So we are both fasting today and in a way it is good that we can’t eat foods we shouldn’t eat.

Here are the articles there are many more to be found.

http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/06/28/the-super-fiber-that-controls-your-appetite-and-blood-sugar-2/

http://www.livestrong.com/article/490435-glucomannan-vs-psyllium/

http://www.dietpillswatchdog.com/glucomannan-for-fat-loss-is-it-any-good/

Ginette

Hi all,

It seems we are all suffering from bowel problems in one way or another.

As I suffer from IBS as well as other problems I have to be careful what I take, the Dr has prescribed me Normacol. It’s granular and I mix it up with a little yogurt and then drink lots! It definitely works for me, may be worth looking at if the husks don’t work.

Milena it’s great to hear from you, hope you are on the mend, sorry I live in Cheshire so nowhere near surrey. It would have been great to meet up…..

Hemmy and ginnette hope you are both on track for a great fast day today, good luck to you both

Keep in touch

Audrey

Welcome nanny j and congratulations on doing your first week.

I do believe it gets easier once you get a few fasts under your belt so to speak.

Let us know how the weigh in goes

Audrey

Hi Hemmy

I hope your fast day went well. I did half a fast day! I got to my stepmothers to find her dishing out a dinner for me so I didn’t have the heart to remind her that I was fasting. So chips, pork chop and Heinz spaghetti it was, a strange dinner at that. How could I be so ungrateful to say I couldn’t eat it. Maybe I need to change the Friday fast to a Thursday, or Saturday fast as this isn’t the first time she has scuppered me.

So fast day tomorrow………..

Hi Nannyj

Your headache I would imagine was nothing to do with no breakfast, if you are a tea or coffee drinker and go without then it would probably be the caffeine withdrawal. I did a detox once and I was so ill after a few hours that I went to lay on settee. I also felt really sick and had a stinking headache. I had changed to de caffeinated tea. Someone made me a cup of tea forgetting that I was not drinking ordinary tea, I drank it anyway and after about 15 mins headache and sickness had all disappeared. It really was a lightbulb moment.

I suggest that if you want to try it again Mage sure you allow yourself some milk to have in your drinks and start the day with whatever you normally drink. Just cut down the amount. I for example normally drink about 8 cups of tea, on fast days I have 5/6 but in a larger cup. I don’t get affected by caffeine withdrawal and it helps to keep me full. I also drink 2/3 pints of water a day as you need to drink more on fast days.

This is a brilliant WOL when you get used to it, I think you may just be having a few teething troubles, it takes a while to settle in to a pattern.

I hope this helps.

Ginette

Hi all

Sorry to hear about your blips..these things do happen. Life just gets in the way sometimes and you just have to go with it then get back on track when you can. Stay positive 🙂

Have had a very good week with a 1.2 kg loss so really pleased with progress 🙂 🙂

This will be my last post for a few days. Off to visit my mum in the UK for the long w/e, so no wifi. She’s 89 and pretty frail so I shall do my best to encourage her to eat calorie dense foods whilst trying to stay mindful and keep on track myself.

Have a lovely weekend all x hope the rain stays away.

Karen
Xx

Hi Karen x Just saw your post. Well done you on a good loss. Glad you never caught that bug. Lol
Have lovely time with your Mum. Mines 88 and I know what you mean about making sure she eats the calorie food. Just love their company though .. such wise heads. Have a lovely time. x

Hi All

I did start writing a post earlier, the phone went, I fed the cats, completely forgot about the post and here I am again!!

Hi Audrey

You too!

Well let’s hope we all pull ourselves together next week. I am fasting today after yesterday’s unplanned meal. Enjoy your Paella.

Hi Karen

Well done on your loss. At least you are on track not like the rest of us. Maybe it is the change in weather, I feel the need to eat more filling foods in the winter. One of the best calorie dense foods there are is the small packets of noodles, I gave them to mu Mum for the same reason. Now I think if she were alive I would do the sane but by adding them to soup and blending them into it. A strange food for older people to eat. My Mum loved pasta so this was similar. They are really high in calories for a little packet.

Also I’m not sure if they still sell them but the rolo pots are tiny and again ridiculously high, these won’t provide nutrients but they will provide calories. Some yoghurts which are easy to eat especially the creamy ones and high in calories.

Enjoy the visit, I’m sure you mum looks forward to seeing you, my my lived with me for 5 years.

Hi Hemmy

Well I hope we both do better next week. Be strong today, or am I too late! 🙂

Hi Celtic

I hope Stu is feeling recovered now. I received my Glucomannan the day after I ordered it, it was through a friend who has Amazon Prime.

I have made a soup today and added three times the liquid in it. I put 4 scoop s of it in there, so only about 3g it certainly thickened. I didn’t want to use too much as it is my first time of trying it. The phone rang again in between me mixing it and putting it in the soup and it was very gloopy, a bit like wallpaper paste, this was ok as I was adding it to the soup. The delay in pouring it is made it thicken too much and it turned lumpy. I soon got my hand bender in and whizzed those lumps out.

The soup wasn’t very tasty as I had watered it down from one pint to three pints. Obviously I should have put a chicken stock cube in there at the very least, when I looked in the cupboard I had lamb, beef and ham but know chicken or vegetable. Ah well a learning process…..

I must say I had about half a pint followed by half a pint of water and it did make me feel full. So I bit of a success of course I have so much soup left now that I shall be eating it for days!! It was quite high calorie so I think that I wanted it to be lower as I prefer a meal later. I know you need to use more of the psyllium to thicken but it should have a similar effect.

I shall go and buy some stock cubes and this will flavour the soup.

I hope you will be in the 13s next week.

While I was thinking of soups I looked up some recipes for low calorie soups. They look interesting especially one of the vegetable ones this will be filling as well. Link below

http://www.fatsecret.com/recipes/collections/nutrition/low-calorie/under-100-calorie/Soups.aspx

Let me know if you make any and I will as well.

I also looked at the glorious range of soups, the sell in all of the supermarkets in the UK. The skinny luscious San Antonio one looks good and only 99calorues for half a tub, 300gms it is also fully of fibre about 5g so it should help us feel full and not get constipated. It is about 1.99 a tub in the fresh section so 99p for a no fuss lunch seems really good.

Ginette

Here are

Hi all,

I have had a couple of really bad days, have eaten lots of rubbish and am now back to where I started at beginning of laSt week!

Ian was back in work last night so it’s a liquid only day for me today to see if I can gain back some control!

Hope you are all doing ok,

Audrey

Good morning friends. Hope all is well with you. x

What an awful rainy start to the day here.

Well, got up later and weighed in at 2 oz short of a lb loss. So going to record a lb for this week as I have been good and over the lb other weeks. lol

Yippeee… 4 bags of sugar unloaded of my body at the start of this week.” after 5 weeks. Yay. No usual Monday FD today … need to mindfully eat up the remains of yesterday.

This week-end has made me realise just how greedy I had become over the last few years. Until I started here I would have eaten crisps and chocs plus loads of wine to accompany the treat meals.

After losing my partner and after initially losing lots of weight quickly I then turned to food and wine for comfort. Those days are well and truly over and I feel so well again and sort of excited.

Sorry for the ramble but its like a bulb has lit up inside me. lol
Big massive thanks to you all for your tips .. and sharing your journeys.

Have a lovely day all whatever you are doing. Xx

Hi All

Hemmy well done for your wine free weekend and your loss.

Audrey, commiserations on your struggle.

I am sorry to say that I have put on 1lb for the first time ever on 5:2. I have changed what I was eating so now I am going back to the basics and back to the food I was eating. I have been eating far less vegetables, Due to it being summer and that I was getting constipated and my health trainer said that I should have drunk far more water as the fibre in vegetables was blocking me up. It seems that there are two types of fibre soluble and insoluble. The soluble is the one that makes your system expel waste as I understand.

Ah well, on to September and I must do better!!

What a wash out bank holiday for people, such a shame.

Ginette

Milena,

I am with you on the challenge I think we are passing the weight between us and now it’s time to kick it out of our lives for good.

Hope all goes well at the hospital, keep in touch when you can and good luck for September I think ginette may like to join us too as I think she has been struggling!

Audrey

Hi Milena,
I’m with you for the challenge as have only managed to maintain for the past 6 weeks while I’ve been on school holiday so need to kick start the weight loss again now, I’m having a FD tomorrow and another on Thursday this week.

I can’t complain too much as I have had a good summer break and over eaten quite a bit so am happy with the maintaining.

Good luck everyone else. Xx

Hi all,

New month for us all, fast day for me too! I have a chilli con carne and bare naked rice ready for my evening meal. Not to keen on the naked rice or noodles but they are filling and almost calorie free.

Good luck to all fast or feast.

Audrey

Hi Audrey

If you don’t like the bare naked rice (don’t know what that is!!) or noodles why not try cauliflower mash. It is really easy and very tasty. You don’t much either as it is very filling 🙂

Good morning Friends.. Hope all is well with you.x

Had a good F day yesterday but need to shake F days up a bit with something different.
I have for the last 5 weeks stuck to eggs toast and cheese but feel bored with it now, although it works. Going to give M&S “Count On Us” a go I think.

JFitzy.. thank you for suggesting the cauliflower mash never thought of that … would be good on cottage pie .. fish pie etc. x

Welcome Priscilla55 good luck with your last half a stone. I am sure there will be lots of suggestions and help for you here. x

Audrey … Hope yesterday went okay for you. I kept thinking about your chilli … could almost taste it. Lol x

Onwards and downwards. Have a good day all whatever you are doing. x

Hi All

Welcome Pricilla

You will probably see recipe ideas pop up. I like something quick and easy on fast days, I sometimes shop at farm foods as they have a delicious spicy chicken and barbecue chicken, I like to have this with about 300 gram of mixed vegetables. I get everything out of the freezer and then the following day cook the veg and pop the chicken in the microwave. All ready in about 10 minutes and not spending too much time in the kitchen near other temptations.

As I have understood those last few pounds are the difficult ones to lose, but stick with it.

Not much nice weather but I can see some sun today and there was some yesterday and I am grateful for that. Even ten miles away there wasn’t much yesterday so I must just have been lucky. I have seen thunder forecast in the midlands not so good!!

Well I started on fibre supplement two days ago, the first day I did half measures, yesterday I did 3/4 measures. As I don’t eat breakfast I will never be doing full measures. Put it this way, I am not constipate for once! I use one that I mix with water and then drink a glass of water afterwards. My weight might be a way of knowing although I am going back to what I used to eat, salads don’t seem to help me.

Audrey, I have never used Turkey mince but will give this a go when I fancy a change, yes I think you are getting your fair share of fibre.

Hemmy

Yes you need to try and include more vegetables. I have heard some good reports on M&S foods. I hope you enjoy the change.

Ginette

Thank you so much Audrey, that recipe sounds very tasty.
Like Ginette I haven’t tried turkey mince will give that a go.

Wow Ginette a nice clean system, bet you are feeling a whole lot better too.
Yes, need more veg on 500 days. Think I just avoided making stuff as I thought I may be too tempted to eat too much. Lol

OMG. Just arrived back with my daughter Kristy from a garden centre lunch.

We haven’t been there for a few weeks and the food is lovely all freshly cooked. Today… after yesterdays fast made the mistake of ordering their 6oz homemade burger in a bun with golden chips and salad. WELL, my stomach has truly shrunk over these weeks. I felt absolutely full to the brim and quite ill for a while after. Will really be careful now in future when eating out… order much smaller portions. Lol

Good news was I wore a pair of white jeans, the first time for a few years and felt really good in them.

Nothing else for me today. Hahaha.

Hope everyone is having a lovely day as the sun is shining at last.

Hi Hemmy

No not tried it before..usually do Mon and Thurs and those days work really well for me but playing catch up this week.

B2B a bit of an unknown scary prospect especially as I have my weekly Nordic group walk tonight..hope there aren’t too many hills tonight!!

Feeling OK at the mo so I’ll let you know how it goes.

Has anyone else done it?

Any experience/tips gratefully received 🙂

Karen
Xx

Hi Karen Hope your walk goes well this evening and your not too tired..
Good luck tomorrow with BtoB cant wait to see how it goes. Sounds like a bit of a tough one x

Hi Audrey after today I think I am with you on burgers .. chips etc. lol At least I redeemed myself hedge cutting early evening. Hope all was well in your caravan garden. x

Good day to all for tomorrow whether fasting or feasting x

Hi Ginette

if too much for you, put beans in – more kidney beans of course if you wish, but I add Heinz beans to my chilli, it works well, and it will tone down the heat. You can put in any beans, and calorie wise, rinse the tomato sauce off. Makes it a little healthier too.

How did the B2B go Karen, been with you, as I restarted Tuesday instead of my usual Monday, its a fast day tomorrow, so will try for a third. I need to as I’m finding even a short walk difficult, just a slow pace around the shopping centre today, didn’t get to 2000 steps, but better than the other day, parked in the car park right next to M&S.

Anyone seen the new seasons clothes there, btw – I’m a jeans and tops person, how is it so difficult to find a tee shirt in M&S, and jumpers, tops and nice cardis – not one! At least I didn’t have to brave the changing room – the daily mail did an article re shop changing rooms, M&S were one of the worst – and most of them were awful, we actually don’t really look as bad as those horrid mirrors suggest. Thank goodness, cos if we dare to smile about our weight loss, as we saunter into those rooms with a top or trousers two or three sizes smaller than the last time – and we just know that smile will be wider that the entrance – 5 minutes in one of those changing rooms will make us throw in the towel, and order the afternoon tea for two with full fat large lattes – and eat it all ourselves!!!

Milena, have you tried Sainsburys for clothes? Last year befor the wediing i got super stressed out with other peoples ideas of what I “should” wear , after a couple of awful sessions of being dragged round shops by mates I went off on my own. I ended up buying trousers and top from Sainsburys. Linen cotton trousers in a milky coffee colour and a white broderie anglaise vest top (and a spare just in case plain white cotton shirt. The whole lot came in under £60. I was determined to have clothes that I’d wear more than once. We have also bought a lot of their clothes for Stu and found them really good. My only grumble is not being able to order online.

Hi Friends hope all is well with you. x

Hi Ginette that chilli sounds very spicy … could make you hot to trot. iykwim Lol
Yes, I too like a nice meaty homemade beef burger. I chose that yesterday because Kristy doesn’t eat red meat …its a nice treat when out. Now and again my body seems to need it. ( well it feels like That.) x

Milena I agree with you, those changing rooms are horrendous I hate them.

Good luck with your walking. Little extra every day and that should really make it more comfortable. You are much to be admired with your determination doing the b2b as well. Good on you, hope you get good results. x

Celtic C You did make me chuckle first thing nearly spat my toast out. I could just imagine your face after that priceless sentence from Stu. Men. Lol

I like Waitrose so will try their meals as well as Sainsbury’s.
I agree on Sainsbury’s clothes. Kristy bought their long shirts with top pockets. Beige and kaki… good fit .. wash excellently. Think they were about £16 each, good mix and match for the wardrobe.
How is it going with the husks.?x

Hope everyone is doing well … have a good day whatever you are doing. x

BTW..agree with comments re M&S changing rooms. Haven’t bought anything from there for years. I buy quite a bit online from Next. Delivery really speedy then can return to local shop if not right. Works for me!

K
Xx

Wow what a busy forum this is…..
Ginette hope the chilli is edible
CelticCrow hope your parcels arrive soon
Karen, good luck for next fast
Milena, baby steps for you but hope you get better soon
Hemmy,thanks for all your support you are like our very own cheerleader lol
If I have missed anyone out apologies

Caravan garden is lovely still full of flowers but does need a good weed so that’s on the itinerary for this afternoon.

Have a lovely day everyone

Audrey