Good morning, all! Great to hear all the news from everyone yesterday, though I’ll admit to feeling a bit like I’ve barged in on a conversation . . . appreciate the warm welcome from what appears to be a strong community here. I look forward to getting to know your stories.

Off to my aqua aerobics class in just a bit, but I wanted to check in with greetings–and to let you know that thinking about this forum was truly helpful during my FD yesterday. Thanks so much!

It looks to be a gorgeous Friday in Melbourne. Hope it’s beautiful where you are, too!

Cheers!

Perth, drizzle, 21C

Working backwards in my responses today because revisiting a previous page is always dodgy when you’re mid-post.

Cinque, I’m so pleased that your morning posts have returned. No pressure. Friday was your original lull day. No pressure there either but there’s something comforting and stable about your FDs still being the same as mine when everything else on this forum is dynamic. What happens on a lull day?

Suz, it’s good that your FDs are going swimmingly with the help of our thread. Ask us anything! We know everything. Not really, but we do have a strong 5:2 corporate knowledge base here.

CalifD, love your Halloween decs. Is that column on a front veranda or in an internal room in the house? I meant to say the other day that I finally got back to below 60kg again. Let’s see how long it takes me to sabotage that result. We are in a routine of eating less meat now and I think that helps. Last night OH had a pork chop (sounds horrible to me now) and DD and I had grilled haloumi. The latter is high in cals but we don’t eat much.

So, the rest is from memory:

Lindsay, thanks for checking in with a Mr L. update. What a nerve-racking wait for you both. Since he has such a great sense of humour, I think you and the ophthalmologist should both be standing there naked when the bandages are removed.

Cate, Greece, well there’s a great incentive to get the kilos off.

Quacka, looking forward to hearing how you’re feeling this morning (wrt your fast yesterday) and what plans you have for the weekend’s consumption.

Minka, always good to see your posts. Good that Mr M. is taking such an active interest. Dr M. changed my life. I’m grateful to him for providing this website. I seem to be reporting spammers on a weekly basis now and wish they’d leave us alone but JJ is diligent in removing them.

LJ, I like your blinds. Friends of ours did a similar thing to enclose their patio some years ago. They’ve always called it the bird cage since then. It’s essentially given them an extra room and they usually entertain guests out there where we can enjoy fly and mossie-free dining. Thanks for the congrats on coming first at bridge – just in time to coincide with our results of coming last yesterday!

Well, the OFMs are rising and I have spent far too long here. I hope I didn’t miss anyone.

Okay–gotta tell someone, and I’m not ready to confess this to my OH . . . he’ll see it soon enough when he comes home from work.

Just had a crazy accident while doing housework. OH has some shave gear up on a shelf in the bathroom, and as I was wiping down the shelf a fairly substantial jar of shave cream flew off, bounced against the wall (leaving a big ding), then ricocheted to hit the toilet bowl and take a BIG chunk out of the porcelain. Not the rim, mind you, but sort of in the middle area of the bowl. There’s now a big, gaping hole.

Honestly, I couldn’t have done that if I’d been trying. I’m still a bit stunned. Glad it hit the toilet and not me, though; I think it would have knocked me out.

Adventures in Domestic Life!! Time to head to the Bunnings website and price toilets. sigh.

3:05pm Fri, from a mild but cloudy Adelaide

I’ve had a slow start to the day. The lung infection now also includes a sore throat, head cold, headache and hacking cough. I’ve been feeling a bit worse for wear today.

Quacka, glad to hear you had a better FD. I hope this is a sign of things to come.
I remembered some advice Thin had when I started that I also found useful.
When planning your FD, don’t allocate 500cal – keep some in reserve just in case. I think Thin had a boiled stashed away just in case. I kept enough calories for a hot milk drink, in case I had trouble sleeping. I often didn’t need it, but felt less stressed knowing I could. Having those calories in reserve can help you deal with an unusually hungry time without having to abandon a FD.

Suz, you know they say the truth is stranger than fiction! There is a solution to knocking things off shelves – ban dusting!
If you can’t find what you need at Bunnings I’d suggest Reece (not sure if they have stores in your state). After a bathroom, kitchen & laundry reno in the last house I tried all suppliers and they seemed to have the best range with better customer support.

Cali, as usual you have outdone yourself with holiday decorations. I am grateful that my house has no internal steps, but your light wrapped staircase had me wistfully wishing for an upper floor.
I hope you get your BP stabilised soon. It seems that you’ve been battling this for quite a while now, along wit the BP medication issues. I’m sure a period of calm and a nice stable BP is about due.
Cali, I’m hoping that’s all the blinds I need for the house – this summer will be the true test of whether I have enough as I’ve chosen not to put them on windows where I don’t think they are essential. Although I did contact the blind installers this morning and order a flashing for the outdoor blinds. This is a metal pelmet that goes behind the roller. I had hoped not to need these but there’s a tiny gap between the top of the roller and the timber support for the verandah that lets an annoying shaft of afternoon sun into the kitchen.

Anzac, I hope your NFD tracking helps. I found I needed to make some adjustments to my NFDs to keep losing weight as I was eating more than my TDEE. I had to change some foods and my serving sizes.

Thin, The thing I hate about eating outdoors is the bugs. I’ve always loved that American idea of a screened porch. When my new blinds are down they do have a tiny gap at floor level, but hopefully they will keep most bugs out.
Sorry about the Bridge loss – I suspect it’s a reminder that any card game is as much about the cards that chance deals you, as it is about skill and determination. (Actually I think that’s also a life lesson.)

Cinque, glad you are still enjoying making your beetroot kvass. I haven’t been tempted to make it as I don’t like beetroot and I don’t even think cloves would change my mind. I’m sure it would make a very pretty drink though.

Minka, I got a bit confused between MrM and DrM in your post. I had to read your post twice before I realised you didn’t have DrMM sitting on your sofa! I think this respiratory infection is messing with my brain cells!

Rainbow and Lindsay, wishing you both well.
Hello to anyone else who’s reading and not posting.
Have a nice afternoon, hope you all have some interesting weekend plans. Mine will be quiet as none of my family and friend want my germs!

PS I just had a peek at that ‘younger sibling’ The Blood Sugar Diet website and happened across pages of products for sale which surprised me since the last time I visited I saw less than one page of products and at that time I saw mostly nuts and low carb flours of various types for baking. When I just looked now I was reminded that Dr. M has since written his ‘gut’ book, and the extra products reflect this! I saw a wide range of offerings of inulin, fermenting equipment including that to make sauerkraut, kombucha, kefir. Seeing these for sale on the sibling website helps support me in continuing to take inulin and to keep with fermenting!

Speaking of which, I’m ready to post another update about my 1 year inulin adventure experiment about the latest body scan that I underwent in August of this year. Too late to write all about that here and now, since I’m tuckered out, though will do so in near future!

Greetings, all . . . another lovely day in Melbs. So glad I got all the housework done yesterday (bathroom catastrophe notwithstanding!) so that hopefully I can get out today and take advantage of this gorgeous weather.

GDay, I don’t think we’ve yet met. Hello–and congratulations on your engagement! Would you mind to post a link for the recipe you used for the cauliflower rice? I’ve never tried it.

Minka, your post has me thinking I need to get educated about the science of IF. I haven’t read the book by Dr. M; I’ve been basing my WOL on a book by Dr. Jason Fung, “The Obesity Code.” Think I’ll order Dr. M’s book today and see how the two differ. Anyway, your mention of “inulin adventure” has me intrigued.

Thanks, LJoyce, for the Reece recommendation. I’ll check into that today.

Everyone, best wishes for a lovely weekend, wherever you are! Cheers!

LJoyce, just checked: there’s a Reece Plumbing Centre in the next suburb! Thanks again for the tip!

Good morning all,

Cinque, gosh, I’m worn out just reading about your lull day explanation! You poor thing. No wonder so many of us stick to the same food routines each week. See you tomorrow. I’m planning Spanish Fideos, 142 cals, for me and I’m not sure about the OFMs yet.

CalifD, thanks for the house layout explanation. Enjoy those decorations and festivities.

Suz, what a crazy accident. And an expensive one too. I highly recommend reading Dr M.’s book for the reasons outlined in my post on the previous page.

Anzac, do you want some help? Is it the weekends that are wrecking your weight loss? Happy to thrash it out with you but only if you want to, of course! How is Maxx?

Minka, thanks for your long, thoughtful posts over the past couple of days. Get well soon LJ. Well done Mr GDSA.

I’m in a rush this morning to get out walking before the heavy rain sets in. To be honest I really just checked in here quickly to see if Lindsay had updated. I have been thinking of you for two days Lindsay and anxiously await the outcome of Mr L.’s surgery. So hoping it was successful.

Some light relief is needed here I feel. This is from my friend who still lives in California. We were at uni together in England. She was always the skinny, flat chested one of the two of us. Now she has stacked on the kilos, is often asking me about 5:2 (but not practicing it) and her boobs are twice the size of mine. It was within that context that it made me smile this morning and hope it does you too:

“My goal for 2018 was to lose 15 pounds. Only 20 to go.

Ate salad for dinner. Mostly croutons & tomatoes. Really just one big round crouton covered with tomato sauce. And cheese. FINE, it was a pizza.. I ate a pizza.

How to prepare Tofu:
a. Throw it in the trash
b. Grill some meat, chicken or fish

I just did a week’s worth of cardio after walking into a spider web.

I don’t mean to brag, but I finished my 14-day diet food in 3 hours and 20 minutes.

A recent study has found women who carry a little extra weight live longer than men who mention it.”

Thin, thanks for the laugh of the day!
Cinque, I think we’d all love to see a photo of your garden and its upturned chairs! 🙂
LJoyce, great advice; thanks. I’m kinda thinking that a call to the plumber or handyman is in order, rather than my OH (or me!) mucking around with it.

3:39pm Adelaide

Anzac, enjoy the company, and the hummus.

Suz, I think calling a plumber is a good idea. The reason I suggested measuring etc was that when I renovated the wet areas in the previous house I bought a very elegant, but modestly priced loo from Reece. When my plumber removed the old one and went to install the new, it didn’t fit. The plumbing wasn’t in the right spot for the loo I’d bought. Reece were happy to exchange, despite the fact that it had been unwrapped. My plumber actually took it back to the local Reece and swapped it for something that he knew would fit and they had in stock. Unfortunately it was nowhere near as elegant as my original choice and it cost more! When there is no functioning toilet in the house is not the time to go shopping for a better option! I won’t forget that lesson.

I’m doing better food wise today. Yesterday, despite subdued tastebuds at the moment, I couldn’t stop snacking. Today I promised myself that between meal snacks would be limited to a piece of fruit. I had 1/2 punnet raspberries this morning and just ate a banana as a mid-afternoon snack. So I’m feeling better about my moderation today. I think I was using ill health to justify eating whatever I felt like. (Basically I was behaving like spoiled child!)

Those three NFDs whizzed by but I managed to stay under 60kgs (just) and am greeting my FD with 59.8kg.

Anzac, it sounds like you’ve worked it out. I didn’t tackle the issue of NFD eating for a long time after starting 5:2. The whole appeal of this WOE was not having to count calories on NFDs and not feeling deprived. I’d never been an unhealthy eater but was definitely an over-eater. FDs changed my habits in that I learned to prepare food without ‘sampling’ everything (i.e. mindlessly stuffing my face); I learned to eat slowly and savour every bite instead inhaling food; that I didn’t need a second helping and what a portion should look like. The biggest revelation was rice. I used to fill my plate with it before adding the other food. Now I don’t eat it at all.

I think it’s especially daunting to count calories on a NFD as there are too many odds and ends being consumed. Yet this may be the very reason for giving it a go because being writing it all down (or photographing it) makes you think about whether you really need it. When LJ kindly did a sample of my NFD intake calorie count, it wasn’t totally horrible but definitely more than I thought. And that was after a couple of years of 5:2 ‘shaping’.

Perth Girl, who used to post here, told me when we met for coffee that she never snacks. If she wants something like nuts, say, she incorporates that into her lunch. She is very lean! Did you know that several of us have met for coffee? I think I’ve met seven Perth losers and, on the east coast, Merry has done a good job connecting with Intesha, Cinque, Penguin, maybe others.

Anyway, it sounds as if you are already making the necessary changes so well done. And hello Maxx.

Good morning, eep no, took so long to write it is 12:04pm.

Another warm sunny day. It is just glorious (apart from the sense of impending el nino).

Suz, how sensible to ask for a photo of my chair garden, instead of an explanation of lull days! Live and learn Thin 😉 !
So far the chairs have done a great job protecting the seedlings from sun and blackbirds: https://imgur.com/a/k0QNy1y

Thin, very funny. I especially loved the first one.

Good wishes LJoyce, I hope you are less chilly this morning. I bet you were snacky because your core temperature was down.

I had lunch with my daughter and granddaughters and then kept Miss 4 as she doesn’t like dogs and there was a young bouncy one at the party. Even suggestions of locking it inside didn’t help. She is also scared of insects (her dad has lots of anxieties, and she got this one from him I think) so that made for an interesting day in my garden and open home. We made it fun though with lots of flapping scarves to chase them out.

I thought I would share this pic from the party. Miss 2 with a tulip made from carrot and a snow pea. (The theme was a garden party). So clever and elegant. https://imgur.com/a/muueAaE

Anzac, it is such a relief to be able to work out so easily what we are doing wrong, when things aren’t working. We have all those advertising images and messages messing up our heads, so it is no wonder portion sizes swell up and snacks sneak in, and little tastes, and low nutrient foods that take up too much of our intake. I do rather resent that I have to RE-learn things so often, but eventually it sinks in. Surely….

And hooray for the sun.

Well, it is Fast Day for me. I finished my yuba, so I have a chicken tenderloin for my miso soup this evening, and fresh mushrooms. I will blend some silver beet with the stock so that I don’t have long bits wrapped around my spoon, but use the centre stems as a vegetable (I used to be amazed anyone would bother eating chard stems, but now I like them).

Lindsay, I worry that we haven’t heard from you, and send good wishes to you and Mr Lindsay.

Rainbow, it would be a relief to hear from you too.

Cheers to Thin and LJoyce and all the other happy Sunday Fasters.

2pm Sunday, south coast NSW

Well my Thursday FD was going great until I got home, and then I abandoned it. At least I made a conscious decision to do this. I didn’t binge eat, just ate more than I should have for a FD. Friday and Saturday were proper eat days. I didn’t even eat mindfully unfortunately. Weight this morning is 69kg on the dot. I have been down to 68.2 and up to 69.8 all within the last two weeks.

Tomorrow I am looking forward to a FD. Then NFD then FD again. Monday and Wednesday used to be my FDs and I’m going back to that. Feeling really positive

Really love your funny post thin. I’m sitting in the sun and I was smiling (I’m sure OH thought I was a little strange lol)

Hope your feeling better LJ. Hope everyone is well 🙂

I don’t think I mentioned about my extremely rude doctor and the debacle I have had to deal with from her. I have been going to this practice since I was 10 yrs old, I’m now 40. I was seeing other doctors in this time but she then became my main doctor. She is a very busy doctor and also trains new graduates and other doctors in certain procedures. She is the one that put me straight onto the blood pressure medication. I made a one month follow up appt which she kept and the she asked for a six monthly check up appt. That appt was cancelled and rescheduled for 3 months later. On the morning of that appt I got a call from her office saying they would have to cancel it again. They then told me they couldn’t reschedule it until March next year and when I questioned them about this, they said they probably can’t rebook me at all. They said it was because of how busy she is, the fact she has other patients that are regular patients and also that I have only seen her a few times. How rude. I haven’t been sick!! Also when I have made appointments they have been cancelled before and so I just end up seeing another doctor at another practice.

The whole reason I am telling you this is because I have decided to wean myself off the blood pressure medication. Don’t worry!! The medication I am taking is an ace inhibitor and it is not dangerous if you suddenly stop taking it or forget to take it. I have been taking a tablet every second day and have been monitoring my BP. I have a machine at home and my BP has been fine. I will keep monitoring it and recording it and then go see my other doctor and see if she will take me off them for good. Will let you all know 🙂

I will be checking in tomorrow as it is my FD, although I am expecting it to be nice and fasty! It will be so much easier knowing whatever I want tomorrow I can always have on Tuesday if I still want it. I think I will find it good for me just like it was at the start 🙂 🙂

Anzac, and anyone else not seeing the results they want – please don’t give up. Just keep at it. You will get what you want 🙂

Take care xx

Suz, here’s the link to Slendier:
https://slendier.com/shop-online/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIl6C32peF3gIVEnZgCh0x-wwOEAAYASAAEgLZS_D_BwE

The noodles are available at major supermarkets, usually in the health food section. From the website photos, you will know what you’re looking for.

…and here’s a link to our recipe page where you find some recipes that use Slendier including my Spanish Fideos:
https://thefastdiet.co.uk/forums/topic/southern-hemispherites-fd-recipes/

Along the way, JustJulie explained to us that Slendier was made from konjac which she used to eat in Japan. We discovered that most Asian grocers stock blocks or ribbons of konjac (konnyaku) for a fraction of the price of Slendier. I still use the Slendier Angel Hair noodles because it’s hard to slice the blocks thinly enough to make Angel Hair. You’ll find a white version (not to be confused with tofu but sold in the same section of the fridge) and a brown, speckled version which CharliesMum named pond scum. You’ll see why.

Konjac is basically free food. Almost no calories and very filling. You must rinse it very well though as it does have a pungent smell and some people (Minka) find it too rubbery.

That’s the lowdown on Slendier, and I think LJ might appear any minute to answer your other question. She is the weight loss queen. I thought I’d lost a lost, 25kgs, but LJ lost more than double that and has kept it all off! I’ll leave it to her to tell her amazing story of all she has overcome along the way.

Quacka, all the best for tomorrow’s successful fast and many more to follow. That is rude of that doctor – sounds like she operates some kind of frequent flyer programme rewarding ill health. Had you already joined us when I related the story of what happened to me when my BP medication wasn’t properly monitored by my then GP? I woke up in the back of an ambulance having experienced a witnessed grand mal seizure in the park. Damned inconvenient as I was prohibited from driving for 6 months and had to have a 24hr ‘minder’ for several weeks – my OH was working o/seas at the time. After that, I found a new GP and he determined that I didn’t require BP meds in the first place. Good to shop around for a doc you trust.

3:30pm Sun, Adelaide, thunder and rain here now.
Good afternoon all.

Cinque, I can see why you are picking silverbeet at present – those plants are at the point of keeping you supplied almost daily I imagine. Very inventive use of plastic garden chairs!

Quacka, it sounds like you have decided how to approach fasting this week with set days. I hope returning to your original 5:2 system goes really well for you.
It does sound like you might need to choose a different doctor in that practice to be your regular doctor – is that an option? As you’ve had BP issues it’s not good that the monitoring appointments keep getting cancelled – the GP doesn’t know you are monitoring it yourself, they should be doing that. (I haven’t had high blood pressure for 3 years now, but because of my history of it my GP still checks it every 6-8 weeks.) I also think the reception staff need to be reminded that this is no way to treat someone who’s been a patient at that practice for 30 years.

Suz, sounds like the morning journey to church was a bit of an adventure, glad you made it in time.
Slendier is a brand of “konjac” noodles. They are made from a fibrous corm that has very calories. Most supermarkets sell them, but you’ll mostly find them shelved with the gluten-free products in the health food isle rather than with the other noodles. Most are 8-10 calories a serve. They are not a particularly good substitute for pasta, but they work well as a rice noodle substitute in Asian soups and stir fry. Because of their high fibre content they are also quite filling.

Suz, I’m currently 53kg (117lb) lighter than I was 6 years ago. I didn’t lose it on 5:2 though as I hadn’t heard of it when I needed to lose weight quickly for surgery. I came to 5:2 early last year when I had regained over 10kg of my lost weight. I was desperate to stop the gain, to lose that weight and to also find a way of maintaining my weight long term. (If you click on the LJoyce next to my post it will take you to my profile which gives some more detail.) On 5:2 I got the gained weight off, and another kilo besides and it has been enormously helpful in helping me maintain a relatively steady weight. There are others on this forum who lost considerable weight with 5:2.

I’ve just had the delight of picking some leafy veg and herbs from my garden to use in tonight’s omelette. https://imgur.com/rbJeFfd I have english spinach, sorrel, continental parsley and dill. I will add some (shop bought) halved cherry tomatoes to this as my filling and perhaps a small spoonful of grated parmesan.

Melbourne very warm afternoon but enough cloud to be kind to my garden. 5pm

I’ve tried to have a gentle day (babysitting and gardening recovery) but I have henna’d my hair, cooked bread, made ‘red lentils and lime dal’, shopped. Not in that order. I look very fetching with a spotty shower cap over my henna hair, but decided against shopping with it on.

Now I am starving, but not long til miso soup time so a good time to post.
Btw, I bought broccoli so I get a meal without silver beet for greens!

Thin, I hope you have had a happy declutter. Goodness me your house sounds beautiful. I do hope DD gets a good break after this rotation.
The Pernod chicken sounds wonderful too. I’d ask for the recipe but I have no pernod. (Unless Chinese cooking wine would suffice? 😉 )

Quacka, so glad you are set for a good simple 5:2 this week. Hope it works beautifully.
What a rotten doctor story. I hope you find a new good one. A good doctor is a precious thing.
I got a fright when you said you were stopping your BP meds as my dear friend stopped hers and then had what was probably a small stroke or a couple of them. (Her PB was still a bit high but she did it with her doctor’s approval).
I can see that your case is different and especially that you are monitoring it well. Fingers crossed you can stay off it.

Suz, I’m glad you got to church on time!
I’ll leave someone else to tell you about Slendier noodles. I looked at them and decided they are not for me.

Others also have had more weight to lose than me. I lost 30kg, but I lost the first 20 by cutting out sugar. However I then plateaued and started putting kilos back on again, even with no added sugar (or even fruit). I was so distressed. 5:2 was my saviour and I lost 15kg and now I am nicely at the lower end of my healthy weight range and still doing 5:2 for maintenance.

The flappy bits that are a result of my being old and fat are very gradually disappearing (two years on maintenance and it is only in the last couple of weeks I can be confident to say that).

Ooh well, only an hour to go before I make my soup. Cheers everyone, see you on the lovely ‘morning after Fast Day’.

Cinque, I keep forgetting that you lost 30kgs. I see your photo occasionally and think of you as only ever having been a slim person. Very encouraged to learn that there could still be hope for my flappy bits. Just completed my first feeding.

I got no de-cluttering done at all. My neighbour came round for a cup of tea because her teens were irritating her and stayed 2.5 hours. Just as she left, my OH arrived back.

LJ, those greens look fabulous. I wasn’t able to name the sorrel but got the others right.

We are so lucky to have discovered this sustainable means of keeping our weight off.

Hi everyone, just checking in.

Just home after spending 4 days with 12 family members visiting my younger Brother on the east coast of Australia.

No time yet to catch up with all your posts as it’s been too many days!

Hope all is going the best it can be. Enjoy whatever you are getting up to and bye for now xx

Good morning, all!

Hmm, pond scum slendier; significant, long-term weight loss (way to go, LJoyce, Cinque, and thin–remarkable!!); and yes, a doctor who appears to operate with frequent flyer points!

Just caught up on a bunch of posts from yesterday and am feeling motivated for the week. Hope you all are as well.

Good morning, Monday 8:47am

They should have come to Melbourne first!
(Talking Harry and Meghan and the weather)

Anzac, good idea to post weight once a week (or whatever suits you) here. We have had several people who used this thread for accountability: mightn’t chat, but pop up their Fast Day calories and weight and gain or loss.
Infact Merry might pop back in a minute with hers.

The photo I posted of Miss 2 was at the party, and her mum is holding her. I am 35 years older than my (one and only) daughter (and have probably felt old from the day she was born 😉 😉 😉 )
I was back here dealing with the scary tiny fly in the living room with Miss 4. And feeling very ‘experienced’ 🙂 Thankyou.

I SO need to cook up a few big batches of things so I have meals at the ready. Your spiced beef and veggies sound wonderful.

Beetroot season seems to be over so I am going to try carrot kanji, a similar fermented drink to beet kvass, but from Northern India and traditionally made from purple carrots, but I will use orange ones. It has mustard and ginger and chili powder added so it will be sparky!

Thin, allowing a neighbour a break from her teenagers is high priority, Decluttering can wait.

LJoyce I had never seen the red veined sorrel before, but next minute it popped up on Gardening Australia.
Thanks for the note about Insight. I am looking forward to it. It should put together the latest research, which is always interesting (it tends to go in several different directions).

Arelkade, what a wonderful family gathering. It must have been very busy, and full of pleasure, I hope. I hope it is also nice to be home and settling into your good routines.

Suz, I do hope this will be an especially good week for you. I remember how it feels to be carrying all that extra weight and it is hard work. Even though it is not immediate rewards, every week on 5:2 is a step toward lightness, better health, and getting food habits organised for the future.

All power to everyone today!

8:50am Mon, in a very windy and slightly damp Adelaide
Good morning all

Anzac and Suz, The initial smell from opening a bag of konjac noodles is a bit fishy and off-putting, but I find they improve with the right preparation. I put them in a colander and wash them really well under the tap, then shake off excess water. Then I put them into a non stick frying pan and move them around over a moderate heat for a few minutes until they feel dry and “squeaky” (you’ll understand what I mean if you do it) – it takes about 10 minutes as they also release water. Then I remove them and use with my meal. I find this process removes the fishy smell and improves the texture. If I’m adding them to a soup they don’t need to be dried, but for other dishes they tend to release to much water and can make a stir fry or a pasta sauce too runny.
My main use of them is in a FD stir fry – it makes it into a substantial and filling meal.

Cinque, I have never been able to find sorrel anywhere, either fresh or as a plant. I was very excited to see it in the Bunnings nursery and very quickly snatched a pot off the shelf and put it in my trolley – I didn’t see any variety other than purple veined. I have a French cookbook which uses sorrel in a number of recipes. I’ve never been able to make them with sorrel. I’ve always had to use baby spinach and a squeeze of lime or lemon to get that sorrel flavour. I’m going to have to go back to my European cookery books and see what other sorrel recipes I can find.

Quacka, I hope you have an east FD and great week with your new Mon-Wen FD routine.

I am currently trying to plan my meals for the next couple of weeks from the freezer. Before I moved house I did this to ensure I wouldn’t need to move a pile of frozen food and also wouldn’t be wasting food. I now need to do this again. No I’m not moving again – just replacing the fridge.
I can’t find a place in it where lettuce doesn’t freeze and it’s so loud some nights it keeps me awake. The fact that it backs onto the wall of my bedroom where the headboard is doesn’t help. I have had to resort to getting up and giving it a shove – that seems to quiet it down for a while. A bit like the 1960s when a blurry tv reception was fixed by thumping the top of the cabinet – at least my grandfather certainly believed that.

On Saturday I halved lengthways some kiffler potatoes and small sweet potatoes and roasted them in the airfryer – I have plenty of those left so I’ve pulled out a bag of kale-sprouts that I had cooked and frozen a few weeks ago and a serve of Nigerian bean stew. I think I can get two generous dinners from all of that. That should be my Mon-Tues NFDs taken care of. My next FD will be either Wens or Thurs.
I love the feeling on a Monday of knowing I fasted on day one of my week (Sunday) and looking at the next 6 days as options to do just just one more FD. It always feels so easy when I fast on a Sunday. When I have a rare week where my first FD is a Tuesday or Wednesday I always feel a sense of panic that I won’t squeeze that second FD in. I guess for those of you who always stick to the same weekdays as your FDs, this is not an issue.

Have a good day and good week everyone.

That’s a great idea. My goal is to be 83 by Christmas which is just over 10 weeks away. That’s about 700g per week between now and then. That would be a total loss of 8.8 on 5:2 and hopefully a whole dress size 🙂

Good luck with your meal planning LJoyce. I find is absolutely essential else I will just eat something ‘handy’. I am so full of admiration for your 50kg+ loss and take a lot of encouragement from that, and everyone else’s too. Thinatlast, I can’t see myself getting anywhere near 60g, but I will be happy if I can be a size 14 in the ‘normal’ clothing stores (as opposed to ‘big is beautiful’ type stores)…but then again it happened for you so you never never know 🙂

Poor Miss 4 Cinque and her fear of insects. I hope she grows out of it but meanwhile your ‘experience’ certainly helps I’m sure 🙂 I have a phobia about cockroaches but let’s not go there! Give me a snake or a spider any day over those disgusting creatures.

It is 10.15 and have had some hunger pangs but they were fleeting and I resisted those dratted crackers in the kitchen here at work. Had two black coffees and lots of water and feeling very good. Yay!

Nice to meet you Suz. I cant post a link to the cauliflower rice recipe for 2 reasons. 1) I have no idea how to post a link or photo to this page (technically challenged) and 2) as I do with most recipes I make it up as I go along.

Ljoyce Do we still have the recipe thread for our page? If so can you (or someone) post the link (again I’m technically challenged so don’t know how to find it). I will try to remember what I put in the rice and post the recipe there. Note to self- write down my ‘fly by the seat of my pants recipes’ for future reference

Quacka, your weight is 67.5kg! If you don’t like what you see on the scales, move them to another part of the house and try again. Jump up and down on them and give it another go. Go for a brisk walk, have a hot shower, say a few bad words and get back on. And always record the lowest weight you see that day! 🙂

GDSA, the link to our recipe page is in my earlier post on this page.

Suz, there’s no need to share the ‘numbers’ if you’re not comfortable doing so. But if you do, no-one here will be judging. Whatever led you to that weight gain, you’re here now. Many of us had food ‘issues’ dating back decades. Some are shared here, others privately via email, others not at all. We love weight loss success.

Cinque, good advice but also wanted to add that it might be sensible to factor in that The Silly Season doesn’t start on Christmas Day. There are often many festivities and temptations in the lead up. Therefore, I’d recommend setting a goal to reach by the start of those – say, the first week in December. For the month of December, you’ll be doing well if you simply maintain on a plateau. Just something to think about so you don’t set yourselves up for failure. Of course, you can lose weight if you’re completely determined but it may seem like you’re dieting when others are indulging.