If your clothes are looser but the scales are the same, read on

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Iona72

10:43 pm
23 Oct 16
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Well done Merry great job! Glad you have seen results. I’m feeling motivated by the recent posts on this thread and certainly agree that eating less certainly makes you feel better. Like you Annette, I too am a sugar addict and also a work in progress. It is easier to avoid it whenever possible as a little leads to a craving for a lot, which I find hard to cope with. I have a quite a few inches to loses around the belly button waist measurement to get to the recommended 34 inches. If only it was the natural waist under the ribs that counted (as I believed for quite a while)!!! Have a go at making soup, I started by following a recipe to the letter but now I just chuck in whatever needs using up and if its a bit bland a slug of hot pepper sauce livens it up. It’s a great time saver to have frozen portions in the freezer to take to work. I have even got used to soup without bread and follow it with a piece of fruit instead.
Good luck with the week ahead fellow fasters, onwards and downwards!

annette52

8:36 am
24 Oct 16
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Hi Iona,
When I started the 5:2 it was chilly and so I used to have a tin of Leek and Potato soup every day on a fast day, it was easy and just 200 calories. I found it so hard just to eat the soup without 2 slices of toast, even though I was full. What was a habit? What did I enjoy? What did I need? I also got very very sick of soup!

I have made a stash of vegetable soup which is in the freezer, with varying success. It is either rather ‘thin’ or just doesn’t taste as lovely as I had hoped. My plan is to cook some lentils and chuck that in.I might try the pepper sauce. I do love mushroom soup, so will have a go at that from a recipe.

My waist(around the belly button) is 36 inches but my natural waist is 34 inches, either way I still have a pot belly that Buddha would be proud of! Today is the start of my little experiment to see if consuming potatoes/rice/pasta/bread makes any difference to either my weight or inches.Breakfast was seed/nut mix, lunch will be a mushroom omelette and then dinner will be fish and vegetables. I will let you know what the results are at the weekend. Anyone want to join me?

Kathieannie

11:56 am
24 Oct 16
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Thanks Annette for the information about Dr Aseem Malhotra. Its a real insight into what is really at the bottom of the current obesity epidemic and how we have all been mislead by the so called experts. It would appear that sugar and carbs are the problem and not fats afterall. You have done well to reduce your sugar intake by so much. I’m sure a healthy mix of whole grain carbs is ok on non fast days. Its finding what suits you I should think. Good luck with the experiment. I already have some carbs on NFDs but am thinking of reducing them a bit and having a bit more healthy fat as I feel better on fewer carbs.
Its always a bit of a challenge changing your diet even slightly and it requires thought and energy!

annette52

12:35 pm
24 Oct 16
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Have a look at Robert Lustig-a personal favourite of mine along with Jason Fung.

I have reduced the amount of visible and hidden sugar considerably but we also now have butter, full fat milk, wholemeal pasta and brown rice. I am reducing the 100g/portion to 75g for the pasta and finding that 70g of brown rice per portion is too much. BUT, these are the guidelines on the back of the packets(in whose interest it that we eat more? The supermarkets for one).

I have a son who has Aspergers(on the autistic spectrum)who is 22 and lives at home. He is not good with change and quite rigid about food but he has lost a considerable amount of weight by having less rice/bread/pasta/potatoes less often despite working in a restaurant. I explained to him about eating less sugar…and then about eating less of these foods, less often and it certainly is working for him.

My friend(always very overweight, numerous diets over the years) who has just been on a weeks cruise(put on 2lb as she had some pudding and alcohol every day) has lost 3.5 stone by cutting out these carbs since Feb and started fasting twice a week since the summer. She eats out several times a week and is still shrinking. She is delighted that nothing is banned, there is no special food, no counting of anything and she is getting smaller. Her goal was to lose 2 stone but found that much slower than any diet she has done and nearly lost heart.But she kept going and now has very little in her wardrobe that actually fits her anymore! She is so happy, walks much better now and is able to walk faster now.I will keep you posted with her success.

I am making the boys Hairy Bikers Bolognaise then freezing the left overs for another day. I am looking forward to eating Lemon Sole and peas for my tea. It does require planning certainly, but nothing is impossible.

Kathieannie

2:33 pm
24 Oct 16
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Thanks for those tips Annette. I will do some more research.

You have done so well to turn around you sons eating like that! I used to work with children with Asperger and know just how they struggle with changes to routine.

Iona72

4:19 pm
24 Oct 16
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I have looked up Aseem Malhotra and like what he has to say. I can’t say I’m cutting all carbs Annette but I will give a go to a substantial reduction this week. Unfortunately I can’t imagine my family following suit so will have to do some pre-planning like you.

annette52

5:40 pm
24 Oct 16
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Hello,
It is all really interesting isn’t it?

Thanks Kathieannie. He was diagnosed with dyslexia and dyspraxia as a boy but wasn’t diagnosed with Aspergers until he started university. The diagnosis was a positive experience for him and I did think that working in a restaurant was going to be an unmitigated disaster, BUT he has thrived and is chatty, humorous and much more confident now. He refuses to stand on the scales, but I would guess at another couple of stone to loose would bring him into the right weight for his height bracket. He had an interview this week and was delighted that he had to buy a new suit as his old one ‘fell off him’ when he tried it on.

Iona, I am still having plenty of carbs in the form of fruit, vegetables and salad. I am just curious to see if it has any impact on my Buddha belly. The boys haven’t noticed that there is less pasta. HB Bolognaise simmering as we speak, just 1 tsp/4g of sugar added to the vegetables and mince and tin of chopped tomatoes as opposed to the approx 36g in a jar.

It is a bit weird initially to think about meals differently. Put the focus on the meat/fish and then think about filling the plate with vegetables or salad. Try beer braised casserole-Nigella, which is delicious and which we will have with green beans broccoli and carrots…rather than rice or potatoes.

Now that it is cooler, I am going to be doing some research to find an array of recipes that can be enjoyed by all. I shall simply serve them with vegetables. I’ll let you know what I find.

There was a week of moaning when I stopped buying chocolate mousse or fruit yoghurt or jar tomato sauce…and then they got used to it when I explained why and then stuck to my guns. My youngest son was the most vocal about his negative feelings but surprised me a few weeks later when he told me that he was thirsty when he was out with his friends and went to buy a drink. Did I have any idea how much sugar was in these drinks?? Did I know how much sugar was in flavoured water??? He bought plain water and was outraged at the sugar content of the drinks available.

Kathieannie

9:37 am
25 Oct 16
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Educating your children is one of the most valuable things you can do to ensure they have a healthy life and it sounds like you are doing just that Annette, but its never too late to start Iona and they are really influenced by what you eat too even if they don’t try it at the moment. In fact not pushing it at all can make them want to try it sometimes.

I tried some cauliflower rice the other day, it was pretty disgusting, I think I would rather just have the cauliflower as it is instead or find out how to make my own.

I’m sure carbs in vegetable are fine aren’t they? Apart from starchy potatoes possibly, which I have cut substantially and tend to have mixed with other root veg instead of on their own as a serving.

annette52

10:32 am
25 Oct 16
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I hate most vegetables and hell will freeze over before I ever eat cauliflower but I gather that adding butter makes the cauliflower rice delicious. Have you tried that?

From what I read it is the processed foods like the rice and pasta which are best reduced and use the carbs in veggies instead. I am just trying to limit the pasta/rice/bread/potatoes and can see the improvements here. I love roast potatoes but there are less of them and we have them less often now.

cinderella

8:21 am
29 Oct 16
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I made cauliflower rice, it was a faff as it kept sticking in the food processor. It was okay but I won’t bother again. My sister roasts cauliflower, with Indian spices which she says is lovely.

I use spirals of courgette with the hairy bikers Bolognese instead of spaghetti, love it. I have a simple tool which looks like a giant pencil sharpener. Great with salad too. I’m shocked you’re not fond of veg Annette, tricky!

I’ve managed to maintain this week with vague calorie counting. Half term so we’ve been out and had two pub visits. The pub we usually visit just didn’t have anything I really wanted to eat, no salads at all. Ended up with a fish finger sandwich with sweet potatoe fries. Couldn’t enjoy it as kept thinking about the carbs. I don’t like that about the UK, how everything is served with chips, and salads are often poor. Anyway, will seek a new restaurant next time.

I haven’t done 5 2 for a few weeks. Now I’m aware of my TDEE I might be able to lose again. Recording the cals was easier than expected as I tend to eat the same few things more or less. I think next I should record sugar and see what that tally is.

annette52

9:14 am
29 Oct 16
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I spent many hours as a child sitting at the dining room table refusing to eat vegetables. I didn’t like the taste, the texture or the smell. My siblings don’t like them either and I gather that there may be a genetic link to what we enjoy eating. I always said that when I had children that I would ever try and force them to eat anything…and I never have. I learned how to cook vegetables and my boys like a wide range of them…and I just stick to peas and carrots. BUT I really love raw carrots, and raw peas when they are in season and can easily eat a bag a day.

My experiment of not eating rice/potatoes/pasta/bread as been mixed. No bread or rice, but I have had a smaller portion of wholemeal pasta and made some homemade potato wedges for a meal too. On the plus side, I have had days where the only carbs have been in fruit and vegetables and I have produced a couple of meals for my 2 young men that have been meat and 2 vegetables.

My goal is to try to have more days without those 4 foods at all. The real challenge is trying to make those choices when I am back at work, with what is available.

My dear friend who has gone without those 4 foods and has done several bonkers diets over the years has lost over 3.5 stone by giving up these foods since February and started FD since the summer. She probably has the same again to lose to be in a healthy weight for height bracket but is delighted with the changes in her weight/size so far even though it has been far slower than any diet she has tried over the years. This time she is losing weight from different places, like me she has shrunk from the top half of her torso, her bottom and thighs.

Recording daily sugar intake is certainly enlightening when you consider that WHO Guidelines are 24g/day, just bear in mind the hidden sugar in lots of food stuffs. You are going to have to read labels on everything to get an idea on those foods that are high. I was most shocked by the amounts in frozen yoghurt-don’t eat it but always assumed that it would be healthy…not so.

annette52

8:44 am
30 Oct 16
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According to the scales there is less of me, but I am not sure that I can see any difference with my clothes. My plan is to try and eat less of these foods next week and perhaps I will be able to see a difference. Today there will be a roast dinner which will mean roast potatoes. These days we have less potatoes which are cut in half.

cinderella

8:59 am
30 Oct 16
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Just wanted to share that my first day of approx sugar counting was a complete disaster. Went to a well know coffee shop with my sister. Instead of cake I thought I’d go for a big yoghurt with a bit of fruit in the bottom. After I’d peeled the lid off, looked at sugars, 28g!! So more than my daily allowance in one product, crazy. Food for thought!

Iona72

10:37 am
30 Oct 16
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It’s scary isn’t it Cinderella, sugar everywhere. You are right about eating out too, our local pub has the calories on the menu, everything is so high I struggle to pick something. I’m not a vegetarian but like meat free meals and the choice there is virtually nil.
I have felt happy this last week just generally eating less, sometimes only two meals a day, sometimes even porridge for lunch, a couple of people have mentioned that I look slimmer but as we have all discovered – the tummy doesn’t seem to change much……yet!!
Looking forward to a good week before my trip to NYC next Saturday.

annette52

11:37 am
30 Oct 16
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It is really shocking isn’t it cinderella? But the day wasn’t a disaster, you have learned to avoid fruit yoghurts. You could either have the cake, enjoy it and start again tomorrow or just have the coffee. We rarely have cake out now but don’t feel guilty if we do either.

Last year, I spent the weeks before the festive season perusing all of those yuletide foods and left most of them on the shelves when I looked at the sugar alone. Rather explains why I put on 5lb last year and 10lb each the previous 2 years!

I would choose fish and chips at a pub and probably not eat much more for the rest of the day. Sometimes you just have to work around it and make the best of a tricky situation.

Kathieannie

10:49 am
1 Nov 16
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Its good that some places do put calorie content on the menu, a lot of places dont and you have to try and guess what they contain. Usually things which are high in fat fill me up and they are self limiting in a way. Its those things which are high in sugar and fat which are evil. But having said that I have had about three or four ices creams this summer which is something I don’t normally eat. But it is nice to be able to have them knowing that I can now control how much weight I pile on a better than I used to be able to.
I think Dr Moseley talks about having a coffee and cake and eating it mindfully somewhere in the book. Its a good experiment and a meal replacement treat!

sallllllllly

11:14 am
4 Nov 16
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Hello,

I have been reading the entire thread and found it quite motivating. I love the way you guys encourage each other and how honest you discuss.

Since August I am on 5:2 (with one week break for holidays) and I still like this WOE. I can see myself doing it a lot longer (my short term plan is till summer 2017…lol). I have only lost a few kg, but my clothes are a lot looser and it is clearly visible to me and others that I lost sth. (I can even wear a smaller size in some clothes.) Thus I am happy with the results, although I hope they will show on the scales soon. (If I believed in BMI, I needed to loose 1 kg to be just in the healthy range).

Inspired by you, Annette, I banished normal pasta and only allow wholegrain pasta in my home. My family and me, we love it and realised we need less of it.

Magistra

1:52 pm
4 Nov 16
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Just checking in. I haven’t been online for a bit. Sal….ly, I’m with you in that I’ve been on 5:2 since August. I imagine I’m in it for the long run as it’s just become habit now. I even fasted on Halloween (and went to a party). I am still ON the pasta bandwagon…I am scared to try the wholegrain type because I love pasta and what if I don’t like it? Ha ha ha.. Such a wimp! I should just give it a go. You’ve all inspired me!

annette52

5:56 pm
4 Nov 16
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Hello Eveyone,
I have been to stay with my sister for a few days and it has been a complete disaster on the food front. She doesn’t cook at all, her husband and her have completely different tastes, so it has been ready meals. It is extraordinary how quickly those meals add up to in calories but rather more terrifying was the sugar content. There was no choice and it did make me feel rubbish and very grateful to be home. Dinner tonight is a stew that I made(and froze) with some vegetables.

Magistra, I challenge you to buy some wholemeal pasta, cook it and serve it to your family and see if anyone notices any difference. They won’t because it looks the same when cooked. It is a way of life and not a diet, so make small changes and they all add up, so look at the portion sizes and consider this, 1 person portion for a main meal is 75-100g.If you normally weigh out 100g/person, then try reducing it and then reducing how often you serve pasta per week.

Salllly, the wholegrain pasta/bread/rice is from Robert Lustig. Now I am trying to reduce the amounts of those that we have and how often, as that seems to be key. Glad you enjoyed the thread so far, I always learn something new from someone else.

Back to cooking from scratch, such a relief after food from a box and white toast for breakfast. I think that bread makes me hungry and best avoided.

sallllllllly

11:32 am
5 Nov 16
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Hey Magistra,

Wholegrain pasta can taste really poor. We settled for Barilla pasta, you can’t taste a difference, but we feel less bloated and we eat less of it. Unfortunately they cost 3 times more. However for us its worth it.

Hey Annette,
hope the stay with your sister was pleasent apart from the food. This week was the first time i really considered buying ready meals for my lunch break. When checking the labels i was surprised how much calories they have and how expensive they are. Had a soup from one of the little restaurants, which have a very fair lunch menue. In the end I paid the same…for “home made” lentil soup.

When I started reading this thread in September , I measured my waist and my hips. Today I measured again, since pants that I bought in August are really loose( wondering if they already look inapropriate). Since September I lost 3cm on my belly and 4 cm on my hips, although I only lost 3 kg. Incredible!!! (Very funny: my two year old watched me measuring and insists that I measure my head and eyes as well)

A good weekend to everyone, hope you got better weather than here.

K- Lo

12:01 pm
5 Nov 16
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Our family made the switch from white flour to whole wheat pasta years . My boys actually preferred the texture. The boys are out of the house now and hubby and I switched again to bean pasta. Edamame fettucini; black bean spaghetti. Very high in fiber and protein. Regular pasta is now a once in a while restaurant thing.

sallllllllly

12:51 pm
5 Nov 16
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Hey K-Lo

hoping that my son will grow up with better eating habits than me. He doesn’t seem to notice yet the difference between wholegrain and white flour pasta, but for sure likes pasta at all. So pasta is a regular on our menu ( although on my fast days it consists of zucchini and my OH and the little one really like it). I might try the black bean pasta- haven’t seen it in the shops though. Thank you for that recommendation.

K- Lo

12:57 pm
5 Nov 16
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Sallllly, where are you? The bean pastas I buy are made by Explore Cuisine, formerly Explore Asia.

Explorecuisine.com

I try to go for the most nutrient dense foods

annette52

4:23 pm
6 Nov 16
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Hello Everyone,
As my life is so very rock and roll I have sorted out the kitchen cupboards so that I know exactly what food there is and then made a list of the food in the freezer. I often cook for 4 or more and then freeze the leftover food for another day. I have a drawer that just has fish in it for me as my boys don’t like it. I need to find more exciting things to do with the salmon, so if anyone has any ideas…

I am back to being surrounded by biscuits at work and taking pot luck on what is available for lunch, so I am going to do the best I can at avoiding the biscuits and making the best decisions on the food available.

I think that if I lived alone, I probably wouldn’t bother with pasta. But interesting to hear about bean pasta, so thanks for that. I have never found any difference in quality between white or wholemeal pasta either.

My friend who has ditched pasta/rice/bread and potatoes has now lost between 3.5 and 4 stone. She has had to chop 4 inches off her shirts as they were down to her ankles, but is going to need to chop off another couple of inches very soon. She doesn’t have many clothes left now apart from a diminishing pile that she is yet to be able to do up and wear. It is brilliant to see how happy she is although she recognizes that it is likely to be another year for her to reach a healthy weight for her height.

Brilliant sallly, it doesn’t matter what the scales say, look to the waist measurement for success. You must be thrilled with the shrinking you! I buy most of my clothes in charity shops now, and then have no feelings of remorse when they become too big and are re-donated, to say nothing of how much money it saves me.. My scales are hardly moving but my jeans are all getting looser which is brilliant, but the Buddha belly doesn’t look any smaller to me so far.

Have a great week!

cinderella

10:37 pm
6 Nov 16
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Hi to K-Lo and Sally. Glad the 5:2 is working for you Sally. With you on the pasta as I have an 8 year old. Luckily it’s not my favourite thing to eat. Lovely to hear about your friend’s success Annette, I remember when you were despairing over her. I’ve not done so well calorie counting this week. It’s fine at home, but as soon as I eat out the cals are just too much. At least I can use 5:2 as a tool. Husband is maintaining his loss. We’re just trying to up the veg or salad, reduce the carb and be sensible with sugar. I’m even starting to enjoy my tea again without sugar, it’s taken a couple of months. I found a film called ‘That Sugar Film’. I paid for it via Amazon. A man who didn’t eat sugar decided to eat the Aussie average of 40 teaspoons a day to see what would happen, eating only sugar in so called healthy products. His waistline expands rapidly! His cals stay about the same. It’s very entertaining.

annette52

7:30 am
7 Nov 16
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Damon Gameau? I have ‘that sugar book’…as his health deteriorates, waist line increases and his mood lowers…scared me into giving up sugar in my tea.

Thrilled about my friend. She has done all manner of bonkers diets over the years, been miserable eating food that she didn’t enjoy and then ended the diet to put it all back on again..and some more too. She has lost this amount of weight before, the difference is this time is that she is eating food that she enjoys, is tasty, nothing is banned, no calories to count and she is really happy.

Rather than buy any jar tomato sauce(very high in sugar) for pasta, make your own. Very easy, I use Mary Berry recipe for meatballs in tomato sauce(onion, garlic, passata, tomato puree-simmer and serve). I made the amount for 4 and then froze it in 2 portions. When I had a houseful, I would make double-eat 1, freeze 1.

cinderella-see how much sugar you can cut out. Since I ditched the individual choc mousse/fruit yoghurts and jar tomato sauce, taste buds change. My son found that baked beans were too sweet, so he tried the reduced salt/sugar ones and he much prefers them(Heinz were lower than supermarket own brand I found). My son, overweight and has Aspergers(specific about what food he will eat and doesn’t do change easily) and works in a restaurant, has lost around 2 stone, by having less sugar and some meals without rice/pasta/bread/potatoes. We meal plan on a Sunday evening for the week depending on who is in and who is out, which works well and saves money.

Back to work today. Planning to dodge all biscuits until the end of term-just 1 day at a time.

bigbooty

8:10 am
7 Nov 16
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Here is a low quality version of the film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQbHPcLeTI4

sallllllllly

9:13 am
7 Nov 16
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Good morning everyone,

this weekend I experimented a bit with cauliflower, but couldn’t convince myself to create a pizza dough out of cauliflower and cheese. The amount of calories in that dough was just to high to compete with the usual dough. My alternative: eat the cauliflower as mash…the result wasn’t that convincing. I was hoping to use cauliflower as a low carb version to substitute the usual sides.

@k-lo: I live in the North of Germany. Haven’t checked the shops for the pasta yet. Might have to try a health food store.

@annette: Your friend is quite a success story. I do remember reading how you worried about her in the past. So great that she is changing her life to the better. And it sounds as it wasn’t that hard for her.
I always wonder how you manage your fast, while not knowing what is for lunch at work. For me the fasts only work with good planning. I reject all lunch appointments for my fast days, since I know myself. I can’t eat a light lunch, while somebody sits opposite me and enjoys a burger…

@cinderella: my 2 year old can go without food for days, he just drinks milk then. Even though I am worried on these days, I sometimes think that his little body automatically tells him when to take a break. He is a master in fasting (lollies don’t even tempt him on these days–I offered him everything, since I was so worried–children’s practioner says: “He is a healthy boy. Healthy children don’t starve voluntarily.” And he seems to be right. My son is growing and developing well…) I really hope that the next generation of children will have a better relation to food than mine. However the German Association for Nutrition (giving the official recommendation on how to eat healthy) still proclaims carbohydrates and low fat aswell as not to skip breakfast…

annette52

4:39 pm
7 Nov 16
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Thanks bigbooty, I will look at that later.

Salllly-have you tried cauliflower rice? Apparently you grate it and it is lovely with a bit of butter added to it. I loathe the stuff so can’t comment.

Lunch option-hot meal is on a 2 week rota(I got the weeks muddled), which means that you never know what the salad option/sandwich/roll might be and there have been some weird combinations in half a baguette!

It has not been a good day. Managed to walk past the biscuits all morning and felt very pleased with myself, but lunch was disappointing and I was hungry…So I managed to eat 6 biscuits was still hungry and had a leftover roll(soft cheese and cucumber) late afternoon. I am off to Krav Maga later and cannot have a meal before I go, so stocked up on nuts, banana, satsuma and apple…and feel much better. The plan is to do a FD tomorrow and take my own food in.

As a mum of 4 boys I can only agree that healthy children do not starve and as he is drinking milk, that will be filling his little tummy. The UK is no better, and still advocates low fat/high carbs. I now find myself questioning who funded what studies, it seems that the sugar industry has a vested interest in making sure that they are not to blame. Am I cynical? I hope so!

sallllllllly

10:36 am
8 Nov 16
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Haven’t tried cauliflower rice, but it is on my agenda for the next weekend. Did some mashed carrots as alternative to mashed potatoes and enjoyed it. I seasoned it with italian herbs and it became a totally new experience.

I manage best to not eat biscuits when they are not in the same room. LOL For me it would already be a success to stop eating after 6 biscuits… Realised I struggle to stop eating, when lots of sugar is involved (applies also to fruits). Thus I try to not buy these things at all. Grew up mainly without convenience food, luckily, since this helps me in supermarkets. I tend to ignore the aisles with convenience food. I do like to bake and for some reason I am still hesitant to substitute sugar with other products. What do you use for baking, Annette?

When you mentioned the funding of studies, it came to me that the sugar industry is a strongly subsidized industry in EU. Of course only, because otherwise the market would be flooded with low quality products…

sallllllllly

10:39 am
8 Nov 16
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Sorry for putting down my thoughts so unorganised and with spelling/grammar mistakes. Unfortunately this forum does not have automatic correction 😉

annette52

4:46 pm
8 Nov 16
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Hi sallly,
Much better day for me. No breakfast and then a very boring long morning with little to do but survived until lunchtime(Leftover cooked chicken in wholemeal bread topped off with some homemade chutney) not a FD but much much better than the day before. I am very hungry now and will have a 3 egg omelette with mushrooms a bit later. I may well have another bash at a FD tomorrow, but this time without the bread!

Robert Lustig suggests cutting the amount of sugar in any baking by 1/3. I have tried it and cakes have turned out OK, but I also don’t bake very much now. We used to always have cakes in the house, but now I might bake just once a month at the most. I have no desire to use any sugar substitutes, we know very little about sweeteners as a whole and I have always avoided them.

Lany36

3:00 am
9 Nov 16
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Hi everyone
I’ve been following this thread for a while without posting.
I started 5:2 in September and had a good loss on the scales, then all of October I either stayed the same or gained a few hundred grams.
By the end of October I was getting seriously disheartened and dreaded the weekly weigh in…as we all know Cortisol is another huge hormonal enemy of weight loss and I’ve been all about minimising stress…no obsessive calorie counting on NFDs just careful tracking of FD intake, and regular exercise which is a big stress reliever for me…so I decided that the scale was a huge source of stress for me and I put my faith in the science behind this wol.
I haven’t weighed in two weeks, but as of yesterday I’ve worn my favourite jeans (that I have not been able to wear comfortably since the start of the year) all day and again today😊
I don’t believe the scale will have changed much but my clothes are definitely looser and that’s actually the thing I care about.
So I thought I would post that here and celebrate my success with you, I’m continuing 5:2, today is actually a FD, and I’m hoping by the title of this thread that you all know how great this feels

As an aside I regularly eat cauliflower rice, I let it steam in a lidded pan then dry fry it with some tofu and a sprinkle of cashew nuts. Once it’s done I often put a dash of soysauce in and it is really delicious. Other times a grate some cheese into it with or without the nuts and tofu and it’s a bit like macaroni cheese.
As a helpful hint I make my ‘rice’ in the food processor rather than grate it, the grating sends little specks of cauli all over the bench, wall, floor etc etc and I don’t like the mess!

sallllllllly

11:00 am
9 Nov 16
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Annette, fasting is so much easier, when the day is busy. I really feel that on dull days I can’t get my mind off from food. Had a really busy day at work yesterday and managed to eat nothing until 4:40 pm. For me a mile stone…I had enough calories left in the evening to have a hot chocolate…so much about reducing sugar intake…

With regard to the baking: I might try reducing the sugar in my cakes. Just wondering if this will influence the texture, but anyhow worth a try. Since Christmas is coming up I will bake for sure, not a lot, but cookies are a must. Not yet sure how I will deal with all that nice Christmas food. The plan is to stick to fasting, just need to move my days around Christmas parties. Should work. Have read your reports on Christmas, Annette, and I am trying to see them as a warning. I love Christmas and all the traditions coming with it, but I guess it is time to create some new traditions. The previous years I always told myself, if I start buying Christmas sweets in September, I can spread them over months and eat less. HAHA. This year is the first year, that I did not buy anything until this week. And I decided to not buy more until December. I think that is a progress.

@Lany: the scales did not move here either, but I am shrinking: new bras, old “new” pants, new belts were needed. By the way: I first lost on my back, the flabs there shrinked visibly (although not totally…) Good on you that your clothes are more loose. Isn’t it a great feeling? I am somehow convinced that the scales will follow at some point.

Thank you for telling how you prepare the cauliflower rice. It sounds actually delicious.

annette52

5:20 pm
9 Nov 16
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Lany36-Well done! Thank you for posting your success. I care about looser clothes too. I have been wearing thick woolly tights for the past few days and they are too big, they are falling down and miserable to wear. So they are going to be washed and given to charity, no place in my wardrobe for them anymore.

salllly- do see my Christmas experience as a warning, I was so upset. I have bought the frozen turkey and that is in the freezer, there will be sausages wrapped in bacon which I buy from the butcher and wrap with bacon myself and then pop them in the freezer too.I love Christmas cake and mince pies and thought that I loved Christmas Pudding( I found it over sweet and didn’t enjoy it). This year there are just 3 of us, so there will be a some mince pies, no pudding or cake. I will be given chocolate from work and we will share that on the day. My biggest failure was to abandon 5:2 for the month of December and to eat the cake and all of the pies! But in January this year I have cut down on the amount of sugar that I now eat, so I hope that I will find it easier this year to keep a grip.

The cakes that I made seemed to be the same, but I wonder if cookies would be the same. Have you tried making them less often? I walked past all of the Christmas rubbish in the supermarket last week and will keep doing so. After all, it is just a large roast…

Enjoy the cauliflower rice.

sallllllllly

11:37 am
10 Nov 16
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Fasting today! I haven’t eaten anything so far. For lunch a tinned thai soup with 144 kcal (2.8g sugar) for 400ml and for dinner a home made tomato soup. The raw veggies are having winter break in my diet. It is snowing outside, so clearly time for sth warm.

Annette, that is great that these tights are falling down. I am sure this year you will be more successful over Christmas. I/we will be over at my family for Christmas. We will be 10 grownups plus 6 children. There will be lots of food, sweets, drinks. But all only on the 24/25th. After that I can fast again, so I am confident that I will not gain. However I am not sure how to deal with alcohol, since it seems to really stop my weight loss/shrinkage. During the year I do only drink once a month or even every two months a small glass of wine, so it might be that my body is not used to it. Or do you think it is just water retaining? In December I usually go to the Christmas markets and drink Glühwein (warm spiced wine)…I will try and find out.

I reduced baking last month. Now I am only baking once a month. I want to observe, if this is resulting in more bakery shopping. If that happens I will bake more again, since I prefer home made.

Magistra

11:49 am
10 Nov 16
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Good luck with your fasting day, Sallly. I just got up here (New England). I fasted on Monday and Wednesday, with success. You already have snow? That sounds so wonderfully winterish! We have unseasonably warm weather here right now. My husband who is traveling in southern California just sent me photos of his slice of paradise. Oy, lovely and balmy and warm. 🙂

We’re a vegetarian family (5 of us) and eat vegetables regularly. I admit to not having had cauliflower rice. I usually just bake my cauliflower with other vegetables. I’m lucky that my three kids all only know a vegetarian diet and love veggies. With that said, I still haven’t tried the whole wheat pasta! ha. I need to get on that. I cook pasta meals about twice a week, once usually a basic pasta with red sauce and the other something different (baked or with pesto or…).

Alcohol is where I have a weakness. I drink only 3 evenings a week, but I know I should cut that back too. Also, I see the clear affect of how my body functions and looks better with less alcohol, so I know at some level that it’s 100% better for me to cut back more. Must put down my prosecco glass!

sallllllllly

8:15 am
11 Nov 16
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Thank you Magistra, my fast was very good. Only 366 calories and almost no hunger. I usually fast on Tuesday and Thursday, so that’s it for this week.

We already got snow, it came for me a bit surprising, so I don’t have my winter tyres yet on the car. This morning I brought it to the workshop for tyre change and I had to scrape off ice for 15 minutes. Everything is frozen, even though most of the snow is gone now.

How interesting! Your children also chose to be vegetarian? You must be a good cook. All the children of vegetarians I know always go for meat when outside of home. Do you use meat substitutes like Tofu or Saitan…? We try to eat meat free on three days a week, but my son loves sausages and salami.

Prosecco, mhm, nice drink. I am lucky to have a husband who does not drink and I don’t like drinking alone. Thus I don’t drink a lot. There is great alcohol free sparkling wine (I used to drink it when pregnant). It tastes just like the normal one. (It is Rotkäppchen Sekt, a German brand, don’t know, if it is available anywhere outside of Germany)

Magistra

10:53 am
14 Nov 16
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That fast was great, Salllly. That’s a really low calorie count. I don’t think I’m ever coming in under 500 anymore. I probably do a 500-700 fasting day, which is fine with me. After three months of this way of eating, I have re results I like and feel much better.

My children didn’t choose to be vegetarians. They are being raised that way. Both my husband and I are vegetarians so it’s just the diet of our household. I don’t know how to prepare meat. Perhaps one day our kids might choose to eat meat, but so far they seem to not want to (and they’re all teens). So…time will tell.

Kathieannie

12:21 pm
14 Nov 16
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Hi, Everyone,

Great news, I managed to get into my lovely silk sundress I haven’t worn for 4 or 5 years! The trouble is I will need to keep the weight off so I can wear it next summer! But hopefully I will be able to achieve it on this diet.

sallllllllly

8:25 am
15 Nov 16
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Good morning!

Fasting today. Have a plan: soup for lunch, soup for dinner, will be around 400 kcal, so I could probably even drink a hot chocolate in the evening. Magistra, I believe it is not about the exact calorie amount on fast days, since 500 is anyway an estimate for a quarter of the daily intake. In the end it is about calorie reduction and some food free time. And, if you see positive results, I am sure the way you are doing it is right.

Kathieannie, that is awesome! Hope it will still fit you in summer, because you might shrink more and it could be to big by then…

On my side no further weight loss. Clothes seem to be the same…well I will continue and see. I am hoping to wear a beautiful dress for Christmas again and for next summer to wear a black dress for my brother’s wedding. The “Christmas” dress is bigger than the black dress. If I can wear the black dress I know I have reached my final target weight/shape. I got my goals, now the kg/cm need to move.

sallllllllly

8:27 am
15 Nov 16
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Should actually try that “Christmas” dress (it doesn’t look like Christmas at all, it is just the occasion I would like to wear it) on to see where I am.

Kathieannie

11:12 am
15 Nov 16
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Yes try the dress on Sally and let us know how you are doing. It was such a surprise for me as I’m not down to my target yet.

sallllllllly

11:35 am
16 Nov 16
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Kathieannie, I will try it on, but I will not find time for a few days. (Next Thursday is already the first Christmas party I am invited for. Might even try it for this occasion, but with no expectations)

My parents are over for a visit and somehow my daily routine is already stuffed at the moment (baking cookies in kindergarten, paper stuff, heaps of appointments…). To add to that: My husband wants to go for a run with me tonight. Right now it feels like extra-struggle, but I know it is good for me. We used to run regularly together…I actually ran every second day minimum 4 km (in very active times up to 30 km per week). I stopped during pregnancy (ran less and less until 6/7th month) and never started again. Time seems to be too precious to put in the extra effort in order to torture myself through the first 5 runs…and from experience I know that in the beginning it is hard.

My fast yesterday was really good, something below 400 kcal. Today I skipped breakfast, just had two coffees with milk, but will have lunch soon. Tomorrow is a fast again.

Haven’t seen any results on the scale for weeks now (Wednesday is my weighing day). Today my pants feel a bit looser (I am not sure, if it is just an illusion to motivate myself.) Will keep fasting, since atm it really is not hard at all and I believe in it.

sallllllllly

9:18 am
18 Nov 16
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Did my run. Yes, it was horrible, but on the agenda now twice a week – feels good to write that.

The fast yesterday was easy. The only temptation was the turkish bread my husband bought.

Now the weekend ahead, need to focus on eating and drinking healthy/reasonable.

How are you guys? Annette, how is it going?

Lany36

9:51 am
18 Nov 16
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Salllly
I’m with you, I need to focus on making good/better choices on my NFDs, especially the weekends!
I find the FD really quite easy, I haven’t had a missed or failed FD since I started on this new pathway to a healthier me 2 1/2 months ago but I still haven’t mastered continuous healthy eating on the other days.
I know it’s working slowly to make me smaller and healthier, but I also can admit it would be far more successful if I was a little more consistent with continued good choices when I’m not fasting.
Maybe together we can stick to healthy options one day at a time this weekend.

Magistra

10:55 am
18 Nov 16
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Lany36, I could have written that post! I started fasting about the same time too. And yup, it’s those NFD which get me!

I think I may be at my desired weight though now. I don’t own a scale but with my clothes fitting how I want them too, I tell myself that maybe I can go to the maintenance phase of this (so 6:1) but it’s such a habit to do 5:2 that I keep on keep oning! 🙂

annette52

5:17 pm
18 Nov 16
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Hello Everyone,
I hope that you will forgive my blanket response to the different points that are raised.This is a way of life and not a diet, so there is no reason why you will not be able to maintain any weight loss/body shrinkage and not be able to get into those clothes next year that you can now…unless you eat more of the rubbish. You can run as much as you like(insert any exercise) but you cannot outrun your fork, so eat better quality food(less sugar/processed food) and feel how much better you feel.

I used to celebrate every FD with an Almond Croissant(500 cals) the very next day which is completely mad but it worked for me until I realized that I could speed up the shrinkage if I had 1 a week like the French. Every small change that you make to what/how much you eat all adds up to a big change.

I have had a rough couple of weeks, a combination of an injured shoulder and tinnitus has made me miserable. I have eaten the sugary stuff every day and it makes me so tired when the sugar crash hits. I know that my response to sadness etc is the c**p and now I am working to have a different response-very much a work in progress!

In a weak moment I have signed up for the local half marathon. I am not sporty, do not find it easy and have started running at 52..and will be 56 after Christmas. My goal is to get round the 13.1 miles walk/run uninjured and not be last. I can’t do any running until my shoulder is strong enough to do up a sports bra!

I think that all change is difficult. It took me ages to realize that I felt much better with the food that I ate on a FD, and then I tried to make changes on my NFD to improve them too. Don’t beat yourself up about NFD but if there are positive changes that you can make then do so.

I like baking but have done very little in months and I do miss it. I made 36 Fairy cakes and a chocolate chip tray bake for my friend who is a teacher for a charity cake sale. I really enjoyed making them and found it quite easy not to sample any. I never thought that I would be able to say that!

My plan is to get back to 2 FD a week for the next 4 weeks and then see how my clothes are fitting-they are tight at the moment after the rubbish. Onwards and downwards fast friends.

Iona72

9:08 pm
18 Nov 16
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Thanks for that post Annette, you always make good sense to me. Having just returned from a trip to New York I’m struggling to get back to normal. I did fine whilst away, and walked for miles each day, only had dessert once (because I can’t leave without a piece of NY cheesecake) but now I’m back I just want to eat all the time. I am back to work tomorrow so I’m hoping that will help with my routine. My daughter has just started calorie counting and it is so laborious but I can’t convince her to try fasting. I’m interested to see how long she can keep it up and how successful it will be.

annette52

10:16 pm
18 Nov 16
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Thanks Iona. We humans are such complex creatures. It was counting points with WW that made me lose the will to go on, that made me try the 5:2.

My friend who has given up rice/pasta/potatoes/bread is almost at 4 stone loss since the new year. She probably has a similar amount to lose to be a healthy weight for her height but the biggest change to her is that she doesn’t miss any of the above, she eats food that she enjoys, has decided that she doesn’t actually need/want breakfast on any day. All this for a woman that eats out 2/3 times a week with wine and holidays 3/4 times a year.