I’ve just been googling both Romertopf and Schlemmertopf and it seems that the only real difference is that the base of the Schlemmertopf is glazed on the inside. Both have some interesting recipes available online, so I think I’ll go back to checking them out. Might find something to cook beyond roast chook. 🙂
HB

Greetings one and all.
Tim, great to see you back with us again, like the others I too have missed you. Just finished the great read of the activity that has been on here for the past few days.

I have really got my head back in the right space and stopped yoyoing up and down. Since New Year’s Day I have sent packing just over 3.8kg and hope Fridays weigh in will show even better. For the first time since the end of July 2014 I am lighter than I can ever remember.

Hope everyone survives the heat over the next few days.

Charlie.

Hello everyone again – there are a few of you who seem to have been forum buddies for a long time! It’s inspiring to read of your achievements.

Second fast day for me today and it’s been better than my first, as you’d expect. Still hungry (and got v tired again in the middle of the day) but I haven’t been as CONSUMED with the fact that I’m not eating.

BUT I read somewhere that herbal tea is a good distraction, so I thought I’d go and see what looked interesting. Check this out – “Rose with French Vanilla” (scented black tea), “Green Tea Chai” (orange, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves) and “Camomile & Spiced Apple”. Mmmm – what an exotic desk drawer! Smells amazing.

🙂 Ali

Crikey Charlie, that’s fabulous! Good job.

I’ve stayed the same weight for the last 2-3 weeks. Despite taking in closer to 400 cals on fast days at PVE’s suggestion, it seems my fast days are only serving to balance out some restaurant-consumed breakfasts and dinners on the other days. I’m sure I’ll settle down soon and start losing again. Restaurant portions are nuts aren’t they? I went for a three hour paddle with the family and thought I’d earned a ‘big’ breakfast so shared one with my daughter – it was still a massive plateful.

There’s something about me and bread – I can’t ever seem to lose weight while consuming bread in any form. What’s that about?

Hi aitchbee – how are you getting on? We started the same week. No idea what you’re talking about so will have to do some googling of my own now… 😆

AussieAli, the teas sound tasty. I pick one per fast day and re-use the bag all day. I also get quite tired on the fast days – but it makes for a great night’s sleep. I find I am less tired as the months have passed though.

Stay cool everyone.

Thanks! 🙂

Thanks Thin and Purple.
Thin bread is also my enemy, so I have taken note of Purple and I have now removed processed carbs for six days a week, I still allow one day a week as a treat. OH already is complaining that my mood has changed, he thinks at times I am more grumpy, but he is very pleased with the progress.

On the new clothes front, yesterday I had some retail therapy, but not new clothes, I have enough fabric to start a shop, so instead I bought six new patterns that are my upcoming size, and from there down, looking forward to some cooler weather to get into my sewing room (it faces west).

Had another really good fast today, somewhat under 450 cals, but I have also reduced most other days to between 1250 and1350, so that I know what to eat when I get to my target.

Purple, some advice please on how to start sourdough. OH likes bread now and again, so I thought I might start a starter, so I can then make it for him once a week, and can I use spelt flour to make it?

Looking forward to tomorrow’s weigh in,

Cheers everyone. 🙂

Charlie

Thanks Purple,
Enjoy your weekend away.
Charlie

Firstly many thanks for the warm welcome back and so many new handles to digest (Pun)
A big HI from one of the few males on our list to the many new Fems and I should say I use the term Fems with affection.

I notice lots of talk about drinking water and herbal Teas, don’t forget Miso which is only 22 Cal.

Weight wise I yo-yoed between 86 and 99 Ks which was due to infection and lack of excerise
At one stage lost 6Ks in a week. The food was soundly nutritionally based and the daily tick box menu produced an occasional masterpiece and you could hear cheers down the corridors!
I hate to say it but the food at the Base was nearly as good as the Private, where on Xmas day chef threw the book out the window.
Xants of a very good quality were to be had on the breakfast menu, downed a few of those!
Whilst I wasn’t up to it one could have wine or beer with dinner.

See the second edition has been published of Michaels book in the UK, lots of updates.

Cheers,
Tim.

Hi Thin

All bread and pasta products seem to halt weight loss in many of us. Watching Woodies in a fun match at Oz Open in Melbourne. 😉

Enjoy the Woodies Bay!

Hi Thin,
The carb thing seems to be general. I cannot eat any high carb foods and loose weight, never have, and last year when I plateaued for months it was because I let a few carbs back into my diet. Now I am mostly carb free except for what you get from nuts, fruit and veg. My one day over allows for the occasional milkshake, (with skinny milk and low fat ice cream) and allows me to consume a few nuts.

Pasta, bread, cakes and biscuits are banned and cheese has to be restricted as well, I know this sounds like it is a diet, but I have come too far to give in just yet, I now have less than 40 kg to go to reach my target.

Last night OH decided that he would have some dip with dry biscuits. I cut a carrot into ovals and had some with that, but it was a cashew and rocket, no cream cheese.

Thunderstorms are around again this afternoon after yesterday some in this area getting hit with tornado like winds that ripped lots of trees out of the ground.

Enjoy the long weekend all. 🙂

Cheers, Charlie.

Great to get some background on the ‘veterans’ .. And hellos… Not sure how long I’ve been in here.. Probably only 4 months or so… Managed to crack past the 77kgs this morning….been stuck there for 4 f-ing weeks ! Daughter’s birthday so have had lots of processed carbs., some white rice, passionfruit sponge, baked potato (is that classed as a processed carb?) etc .. Oh well, back in tomorrow .. Generally i don’t eat these either .. Ever.. Occasional brown rice, once a week toast, no pasta.. Anyway, I decided this losing weight is over rated as the spider veins and wrinkles seem to show more lol . .. Maybe I will be a Botox candidate after all .. Anyway I’m just glad I moved off the 77 finally .. Onwards and upwards … Have a great Straya Day everyone !

Hi there

I don’t want to depress you with the comments about processed carbs and weight loss. 😉

Once you get to goal weight, you can eat some processed carbs now and then without too much effect. I just experiment. My portions of processed carbs are minute compared with what they used to be.

I have learnt that after a small indulgence, It is best for me to fast. To break the habit before it takes hold.

By choice I now breakfast on eggs, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes etc. not on carbs. 😆

Cheers, Bay 🙂

Hi gang…stuffed my foot again at the beach, so resting and reading the forum 😉
I totally agree re starchy complex carbs. It is really hard to lose weight if they are included in your diet (and that includes gluten free flours).
Once maintaining, you can reintroduce a few, but very cautiously and suspect them first if you are bloated or gain weight. Somehow seafood seems to be the magic weightloss food. Fill up with seafood and salads (no rice or spuds). You’ll feel sustained and won’t gain weight.
Sleepy holiday afternoon sleep due…zzzzz Purple 😉

Darn it. Forgot about that. Could have done a fast day today no worries. Don’t want to do 4 days without a fast day, and as I’ve looked up lamingtons, which is the 1 thing that sort of means Straya Day to me, then I guess I’ll be doing a fast day tomorrow and have a small lamo on Tuesday. No BBQ this year so can do it. Oh, and pavlova, cream and fruit is pretty atrocious too. Think OH and I will be doing our bit for the health of the Nation tomorrow as our contribution 🙂

Lamingtons –
small 50gms is 165 cals
medium 80gms is 260 cals
large 120gms is 390 cals

Hi Guys, Happy Australia Day for tomorrow. Agree PVE cannot fast tomorrow, would love to say it is because it is unpatriotic however selfishly I find fasting so much easier when I am at work. If I organise my day and only take my required provisions with me I am not open to temptation. I find at home I eat, not because I am hungry but because it is there. Willpower is still under construction.

Take care everyone and whether you are fasting or indulging have a good one.

Hi other Southern Hemispherites. I’m new. I’m from Canberra and I lack food discipline. I started the 5:2 WOE (that looks bad – it’s not WOEful!) on 20th December 2014, after reading an article in the newspaper by a columnist who was steadily dropping weight and feeling great. I’m finding the fast days pretty good, but I still can’t help myself and seem to go a bit stupid on the other days. I am one of those people who over-estimates the amount of calories burned at the gym and under-estimates the number of calories in food and drink consumed. Have read most of several of the forum entries. So many knowledgeable, supportive people! I am looking forward to learning more about the process, losing a bit of girth, and having more energy as I get better at being sensible. It’s a work in progress. Or perhaps I should say I’m a work in progress… Nice to be on board. Cheers, and happy Straya Day tomorrow, lamingtons or not. G.

Welcome Geewhiz. We’re all learning. Well done for making the decision especially just before Christmas.

Here, here Ihaw!
Let’s all appreciate this wonderful country we share. It is for all of us and must be nurtured. Just as we 5:2ers have learnt how to put effort into caring for our bodies, we need to apply the same care for our fragile, beautiful land. PVE

What a wonderful privilege we have to live in this beautiful, bountiful country! Saying hello also to anyone from Africa, South America, New Zealand and any of the other island homes, here below the lapband, as the original post put it.

Woke up to hear a sulpher crested cockatoo, and later a kookaburra, so feeling very Ozzie this morning. Also woke up to a new weight loss. I weigh myself Monday morning, doing it the hard way also, by weighing before my 1st fast day of the week.

As 2/3 of Oz are overweight, how great is it that some of us feel we’ve found a solution. Wouldn’t it be great if we reached a point where our personal food choices affected what’s sold out there, and we were able to pull in the nation’s collective belt.

Let’s look after this beautiful, amazing land, and let’s look after our people who’ve come from (officially) over 200 countries bringing all their different foodstyles with them. With that amazing range out there, let’s all learn to listen to our bodies as we retrain them to choose healthily. We truly do come from all the lands of the earth, and we are so privileged to be here.

Ozzie, Ozzie, Ozzie!

Hi again everyone, my hubby and I have been off the 5:2 for several months now, and BOY have we noticed. We have both regained what we lost… but we did have an amazing xmas and then a 3 week holiday – where we indulged to our hearts content. It was a long hard year and I think we both deserved it.

We are now back into it, and we have almost completed back to back fast days. I am looking forward to our dinner tonight – Zucchini and Bacon soup – comes in at a peep under 200 calories per serve so that’s great! Allows a nice berry & yoghurt mix up afterwards.

I think part of the key to success for this WOE is ‘preparation’. Plan what you want to eat, buy accordingly – set your fast days in advance if you can – then you will be prepared mentally. That seems to work for us anyway – but perhaps not for everyone.

I hope everyone had a great long weekend! We went for a nice bike ride (not the MAMIL kind either 🙂 – love it)!

Hi Aussies
Am from Adelaide and have ‘done’ this 5:2 about a year ago when I was in the UK. Bought the book and copied the calorie counter from the back which I find a very useful reference when I’m on the go ie visiting friends/travelling.

Have gone from 69kgs to 67.5 in 3 weeks, mainly fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. Have tried fasting from after lunch to the next day but don’t find this so effective. When I get hungry I have a non sweet polo mint (3 cals?) and try to keep up the water intake. Cooked the tomato, zuccini, eggplant, capsicum roast veggies the other day (all from my garden). What a winner. Best wishes to all.

PS Am doing this on my own and also trying for 10,000 steps a day with my fitbit flex tracker.

Hi everyone

Just happy to share I’ve lost another 1 kg this week and so has hubby. That’s 5kg for him and 4 kg for me in just 3 weeks of starting this wonderful WOE. I am expecting to plateau soon as this is what I hear from everyone else but it’s a great start!!

My skin is much better and my PMT has been non-existent this month!! We both have so much energy which makes it easier to exercise – this WOE has totally transformed our lives

🙂

Hi Aussiechick and Fastina. Great that you both have lost weight also your better half.
If you haven’t already done so check out the Fast Diet Tracker here , https://thefastdiet.co.uk/fast-diet-tracker/ Its a good yard stick and keeps you honest!.

Having lost 23 Kgs to get to my target weight, some on another diet, I spent a lot of time and energy chasing my weight as I only weighed once a week , after the second fast day.
Don’t be too hard on your selves i.e. say 150 gms is nothing. Save yourself lots of nashing of teeth and beating of chest and count only in whole kilos.

There has been a lot of discussion on weighing but sorry can’t find it.

Cheers,
Tim.

Well done Aussiechick, Fastina, msxjsds, Possumgirl, thanks for sharing your great success especially the extra health benefits you’ve noticed. Some of you have said you had a break from this WOE and are now returning. Would you be willing to give some insight as to what caused you to stop? I plan to do this long-term but I’m curious what possible factors might prevent me from doing so.