The FastDay Forum

Hi everyone may I tag along with this challenge?

I started fasting again on 17 October and managed to complete two fasts on Monday and Wednesday. I have tried to be mindful with my eating on the other days and it's been fine so far. I am hoping to lose one pound per week on average which is what I managed in 2013.

I'm keeping busy today as I have lots of chores to do which helps me to avoid weekend snacking. The sun has come out at at last so it's a lovely afternoon here in the Midlands. I hope everyone else is enjoying their weekend.

Oh @Hazelnut20, sending hugs!

Please don't be so hard on yourself. Food and eating is such a complex issue in the lives of many of us. Try not to make it too much of a focus - you seem to be a happy, generous, caring person, and that is so much more important. I can't remember if you have had any one-on-one sessions with a counsellor/ life coach/ whatever. I wonder if that sort of thing may be worthwhile, as it would take into account your personal situation in working out how you best approach aspects of your life, including eating. Hope you don't mind the suggestion...

Don't worry about updating my halos. It doesn't matter how many halos I have on the front page of this thread, it's the journey that has been more important for me.

Very best wishes.

Checking in after 5 weeks... I think another halo please @Hazelnut20 ..............................

It seems a few people are struggling, whereas some others seem to be doing very well. If you are struggling and really having trouble getting motivated to stick with your intended way of eating, perhaps consider having a formal break from trying to do so. If you give yourself permission to take a break, then maybe it won't take as long for motivation to reappear! If you do have a break, that is not an excuse to overindulge, still aim to make good food choices but don't calorie or carb count, and don't ban any foods (unless for medical reasons). Good luck regaining your mojo!

Thanks @Sassy1. You are right on again. Still struggling. Taking a break without overdoing, at least as much as possible. Hope to be back on track soon. Hugs.

evening all

pernelle @hazelnut20 sorry to read that you are still struggling. but like the others are saying, dont beat yourself up. & Im sure you have told me on more than one occasion that "life happens" I too have lost all my halos but you know what I know I can get them back again. yep, I have found my fighting talk hehe lets hope you have time to relax this week & have some well earned me time.

tomorrow is day one again my book has arrived (low-carb for dummies) & I am in the process of reading through it now. I have started my shopping list for tomorrow & after feeling fed up of my belly overhang & lack of enthusiasm/energy for anything I am hoping that my positivity will be present in the morning.

@windsinger123 hello & welcome.

off to read a bit more of my book before bedtime.

night all shelley xx

Hi @windsinger123 lovely to see you again xx
Wise words @grannieannie thank you x
I am doing ok after a few plateau ish weeks..four more pounds down earned with a lot of faith and patience
Will be back again to read more..have had several sleepless nights so can barely keep eyes open x
Hugs all round xx

@hazelnut20 i echo @sassy1s last post xx and please take note of my signature!
You may feel youre flagging but pls remember how far you have come xx
Onwards and downwards folks! X

Hi @CandiceMarie

As one of those who have had great success with BSD and in keeping motivated, I wondered if you have some tips/thoughts/advice re what is helping make this work so well for you, that could be of use to others. No doubt you have mentioned some on the way, but it would be useful to summarise these.

I am very impressed with how you have stuck with BSD and stayed enthusiastic! What are your plans for maintenance?

Cheers!

Well, I weighed in this morning and am up about .7 of a pound. I might see how it looks tomorrow. But, I probably haven't been as strict about things as I need to be. I'm very tired with my jobs and that makes it hard. I also splurged a bit last weekend.
I have a low key weekend coming up, so I should be able to do better and I hope to read more of the Low Carb for Dummies book this weekend, so maybe I'll get some new meal/snack ideas!
I'll check in again tomorrow if the scale is any nicer to me!
Have a great day!!

This is taken from my blog...

I am at the end of my 6 week challenge. Overall, I am happy with what I have achieved in terms of my objectives.

- I have had less mindless eating in the evening than prior to the challenge.

- In terms of gaining insight into my evening eating (in addition to eating out of boredom, for comfort and reward, which I already knew) I think that evening eating, particularly when I am not hungry, has a lot to do with the immediate pleasure of eating. Something that is difficult to get so easily from other sources. Not sure that that helps much tho!

- a glass of warm water with a squirt of lemon juice throughout the day does seem to help reduce the amount I eat each day

- a very filling dinner helps limit evening eating (most of the time)

- I am still able to use fasting as an antidote to overindulging (hopefully not needed too often...), but otherwise don't want to do fast days as a regular thing, though will aim to not eat brekkie until really hungry

- I don't think I have put on weight over the 6 weeks, probably may have lost a little - despite quite a bit of choccie consumed...

So, overall, a success. It is SOOO quiet on the forum, I do wonder how everyone is going... Pernelle @Hazelnut20 especially, how ARE you???

Well done @Sassy1 It's always helpful to hear how others manage their eating.

It is very quiet on the forum so I'm trying to be an active poster now as I have mostly been a reader during my long membership. When I check who is online it is generally only me now which is very different from how it used to be.

I have been doing 5:2 for two weeks now and at my weigh in this morning I have lost a total of 2.5lbs. I am delighted with this as I have been mindful but not restrictive on the 5 days and the 2 fasting days were not too difficult. I am determined to keep going.

Howdy @sassy1 x in answer to yr question above...( sorry it's long!)

While it hasn't been exactly a breeze to do it,i HAVE found BSD 800cals/ 50 grams carb do-able for two main reasons..
FIrst being the dawning realisation that giving up simple carbs like bread,rice,potatoes and pasta means i am much less hungry. Once i sent that Carb Monster packing, i no longer experienced that awful eternal hunger/ four pm miserable dip in mood, that i used to put down to greediness,but in fact was just addiction to simple carbs.
Eating simple carbs just means wanting more simple carbs! I was very lucky that i only experienced withdrawal symptoms on day one,then i was fine...which of course made things easier.
Now the only things i really miss are nibbly things like crackers or biccies to dip in my tea!

The other equally important thing was making sure i ate full fat stuff! Ive known this all along, but never was it proved for me so much as a few days ago. Couldnt find full fat Total greek yogurt in the supermarket,so i thought Just this once, i' ll have the low fat stuff. What a mistake! Went to bed hungry that night and woke next day wanting toast.
So i keep in mind the mantra "Full Fat is Filling!"
Total Greek yog is a lifesaver,it really does keep me on this Way of Eating..its delicious with a few berries and a sprinkle of nuts..as nice as any creamy calorific dessert. And at dinnertime what could be nicer than sidedish of veg such as cabbage with lots black pepper and butter? Or a simple quick din dins like buttery scrambled eggs on a bed of spinach?

I' m just finishing week 15 now and intending to keep going til week 24 which takes me to New Year,when i'll probably do 5:2 again but the BSD version which is 800 cals on fast days rather than 500 ( such luxury! ) I still have plenty of chub to lose!
I will always stay low carb, coz i now prefer having a daily choice of what to wear rather than choosing a cake or a handful of biccies to dunk in my cuppa!
I am not complacent tho,i know how easy it is to fall off the wagon..but its much less likely now i know the two secrets to success i didnt know in the past..one,that chasing the Carb Monster works wonders and two,that fullfat food really does keeps me full. AND in addition,eating full fat means you lose fat,strange but true!

As always i am sooooo grateful to @hazelnut20 for posting about her BSD journey..she gave me the incentive to give it a go,at a time when i was truly getting desperate coz nothing in my wardrobe fitted any more.
Things are so different now ..i have given so much away to the charity shop coz too loose/ baggy etc,and other items that have languished unworn coz too small/ unflattering are now in full swing!

So i can only encourage anyone who feels like i did in July to jump in..you may feel apprehensive ( i was ) but it is a lot easier than it sounds. You will be rewarded with big weekly losses and inevitably an occasional plateau but they will pass. And as we always say on Fast Day forum, take note of the inches as well as the lbs. The weight loss from your middle is particularly impressive coz you lose fat stored in the pancreas, which shows up on yr waistline,and totally changes how your shape looks ! X

Well I peeked at the scale this morning and I'm back down + a little more. But I will wait until Friday to see what my official weight is!

Thats good news@cblasz! And best of luck for friday!
Do you know what date this challenge ends? I think nutty said early nov but i cant find where she said it! Want to join JRS xmas challenge when this finishes xxx

Thanks @CandiceMarie - the challenge was pretty flexible, so it was up to you what you wanted your end date to be. I'm ending mine Nov. 21st right before our Thanksgiving here in the U.S. But you can end it when you want. I plan to double up for a bit, finish of this and start the Christmas challenge!

Well, the scale was not down, in fact it was up .3 lbs. This means, I'm only down 5lbs. now in about 8 weeks. I really don't understand why. I am trying so hard. I eat between 12 and 8, I'm keeping my net carbs under 100 grams, just by doing those 2 things, my calories average about 1000, no more than 1200. I've given up all candy, pastries, etc. I get close to 10,000 steps a day. I do splurge a bit on the weekend, but not too much and still try to watch my carbs and still don't eat sweets.

I do think that I should try to get more exercise and probably need to drink more water. I'm going to work on that. I'm also going to weigh myself again on Monday and if it's back down, then I'm switching my weigh in day back!!

I am really eating very healthy, more fruits and veggies and such. So I'm not going to give up!