The FastDay Forum

Found this website interesting, anyone else?
http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf
Obviously our 5:2 is the key to life, but I have incorporated some of these ideas into my feed days along with a tweaked 16:8 e.g. A late brunch of natural yogurt and then scrambled eggs made with whole milk and butter.
The full feeling from fats lasts, meaning snacking doesn't happen, the body burns the fat when there's no sugars so weight loss is encouraged.
I'm hoping our experts will come and explain if this is a good idea please?

If it works for you, great. I find that I need a balance of carbs - not too much but if I don't have any then I just get really hungry all the time and will feel a bit sick if I just have the fats/veg. For me, the carbs 'anchor' a meal and keep me going longer. Wholemeal carbs wherever possible, although wholemeal pasta is a step too far!

Interestingly, my husband is one of those enviable folks who is naturally very slim and can eat whatever he likes. He naturally gravitates towards a high-carb, low fat diet. He puts the most pathetic of scraping of butter (to my lashings) on his bread and toast, will only put a mere flutter (and only the one) of parmesan on his spag bol (to my repeated avalanches) and doesn't like any visible fat on meat (I will snaffle the uneaten crispy bacon rind off his plate) - no wonder I struggle to keep my weight under control! I don't think he's particularly trying to eat low fat, he just doesn't like it. However, for a quick snack, he will load up a cereal bowl with fruit & fibre and put a banana on top (we get through so much fruit & fibre I am thinking of having it delivered in bulk). I think he would live off that and flapjacks if he could (and since he works away during the week at the moment he may well do).

He is proof that for some, a high carb diet is the best thing, contrary to what the diet fashion trends dictate. I think he has a very high metabolism (he will not be hungry and then suddenly his energy levels will drop off a cliff and he'll need something NOW!) and he doesn't like to sit still so he's probably constantly burning calories (whereas I could happily sit and read for hours on end!)

Maybe it's just the luck of the draw as to how your body burns fuel - or, as I suspect helps, if you have had a very highly active childhood, you will develop a higher metabolism that will stay with you. I wasn't underactive by any means, but my husband was always doing high-octane sport of some kind and now can barely keep the weight on... oh well it's too late for me now, I'll have to stick to fasting to manage my weight - hubby would die within the first day if he tried it I think!!!

I have been following a low carb diet for the past 5 years, on and off. I lost about 3 stones on it, on and off, so I know it works. I have no doubt that the low fat nonsense we have been pedalled all these years is all to do with higher profits for the food industry, and the simplistic notion that cutting dietary fat results in lower body fat. Can't wait to see The Men Who Made Us Thin (no iplayer in Ireland).

It's big disadvantage is that when you go back to "normal" eating your tendency is to just add back the carbs into a your existing high fat diet. Over the years I've discovered an addiction to sugar and that white flour makes me fart, so that should save me from making too much of a dog's breakfast of the maintenance phase, but I'd never want to go back to low fat. You sound just like me Greenmonster.

BTW, had a burger at the post ride barbecue yesterday. Could not believe the amount of sugar I could taste in the bun - I've eaten bread over the last 5 years on occasion, (how I discovered the wind problem!) but not cheap bread. Gobsmacked, no wonder we've got an obesity epidemic. Makes me really angry.

I THINK that incorporating coconut oil,
-not worrying about a bit of butter and usual olive oil use
-being v.careful with carbs especially higher GI,
- and counting the calories,
has started me on a down trend in weight loss after a long plateau. Crossing fingers. However I am aware that with less to lose it will be slow anyhow.

I wonder if the coconut oil has made the change?
I have read the book by the way about the Miracle Oil!

Ideas come thanks to reading this forum. Without this I'd have had NO clue.!

A book about coconut oil?

Just found another interesting site
http://blogg.passagen.se/dahlqvistannik ... rograme_in
Very popular in Sweden apparently.

I identify more with the second link from the Swedish Doctor with my woe. I don't eat breakfast or snack either, I have lunch and dinner and usually I will have a two or three brazil nuts before bed thats for the selenium content, plus they taste nice so I have to limit myself.
Have you noticed how these sites and books on low sugar eating contradict each other about yogurt, some say not to eat it and others say it will help weightloss. I have strawberries, blueberries and full fat sheep yogurt or goat yogurt as my lunch at work on feed days with a tablespoon of best coconut oil blobbed on top, a few flaked almonds and a teaspoon of cinnamon sprinkled all over. I've done it again thinking about yummy food on a fast day.

Chris x

When I was 18-19 years old, there was this Greek dietician who was very popular to the celebrities and she advertised a diet that one can eat as much as they wanted. Burgers, mayo, fried eggs with bacon and other naughty stuff were the stars of this diet.
Our cleaning lady used to clean the house of some quite rich people who spent their summers at the same island that my family did and she told me that their daughter went to this dietician and she followed this diet. Mind you, she wasn't fat, she just had 4-5 kilos to lose.
When I saw her in the summer I was shocked!!! Not only she had gained weight but she was covered in cellulite. Her body was the one of an old woman's and she was the same age with me!!! She had acne!!!

Anyway, although I do enjoy my butter and my olive oil, I don't exceed 2 TS of them daily. My milk and yoghurt are low fat, because I hate the smell of full fat ones and although I enjoy full fat cheese I don't overdo it.
I wouldn't risk high fat, like I wouldn't risk high sugar. All in moderation.

I think it's a great way to lose weight, but I also think its total BS when they say you can eat and eat without counting calories. It might well be true for those with "normal" metabolisms, but even on a lot of the popular LCHF sites, if you look for the info, you'll find that some people do indeed have to be aware of how much they eat Quite often it's too late and you've put the weight back on that you'd lost, before you realise that you aren't one of the lucky eat-as-much-as-you-desire group!

So IMHO, a great, healthy way to eat, but not everyone can just fill their boots and get away with it (That's my non scientific, based on experience opinion)

Fact is that the vast majority of obese people or people with diabetes or borderline diabetes improve their health and lose weight on an LCHF diet. Fact is also that what usually is referred to as metabolic syndrome is usually cured by eating LCHF.

I have spent countless hours on LCHF forums and I would say that it is very rare that someone claims to gain weight while eating LCHF. I am sure there are a few out there, but I do not recall threads where people claim that they gain weight on LCHF. The problems are usually plateaus and not being able to sticking to LCHF.

I claim that just about no one needs to count calories to lose weight on LCHF, with the caveat "just about" referring to people with medical conditions which cause problems. Most problems resulting in obesity are however cured by cutting carbs, especially sugar, out of ones diet.

I respect anyone who does not want to eat LCHF. I stick to low sugar, high fat at the moment. However, the scientific support behind LCHF being effective for weight loss and improving health is very strong and ones wishes to eat differently does not alter that scientific support.

I try to eat low carb, high fat, as I feel really well on it, and I think its helping my weight loss. But mostly because I love meat, cheese, butter etc, and would rather "spend" my calories on them, than on carbs. But I can't stick to it all the time, especially when eating out. I think I get health benefits from avoiding sugar/high carb for most of the week.

Well, its good way to attract the wrath of many on here but at risk of making myself unpopular I will admit that the low carb/high fat has been the only way for me to lose weight and keep my blood glucose down. Straight low carb was OK to start but I found the weight loss slowed. Having read some of the Swedish info I realised I needed to drop my protein down and increase the fat. I'm back on track now. I combine it with 16:8 to get the fasting benefits and feel better than I have in ages.

One important thing to bear in mind - you cannot cheat on low carb. If you try LCHF you must be prepared to cut out almost all carbs. High fat plus carbs will pack weight on!

Well, its good way to attract the wrath of many on here but at risk of making myself unpopular I will admit that the low carb/high fat has been the only way for me to lose weight and keep my blood glucose down. Straight low carb was OK to start but I found the weight loss slowed. Having read some of the Swedish info I realised I needed to drop my protein down and increase the fat. I'm back on track now. I combine it with 16:8 to get the fasting benefits and feel better than I have in ages.

One important thing to bear in mind - you cannot cheat on low carb. If you try LCHF you must be prepared to cut out almost all carbs. High fat plus carbs will pack weight on!

I second these experiences. Cheating on LCHF punishes you quite hard.

Intermittent fasting is becoming very popular on the LCHF scene as well. People try different kinds, but 16:8 seems to be the most popular for LCHFers.

I found that you can't mix it recently, we had a week off work and busy doing jobs at home, red hot weather, and couldn't be bothered or didn't have time to cook. We lived on baggettes, and sandwiches for most of the time. Boy did I get a shock when I weighed myself, never again.

Chris x

[Betsysgr8]

If beer were part of the LCHF WoE, I'd be right on track, lol. All the meals I make at home are low-carb, keeps my BF's BG in check along with the walks he takes after every meal.

BTW Miffy, I think through past experience most people here now respect the different woe we have on the forum, its good to be able to chat about a particular one that interests a few of us. Congrats on getting your Glucose level down. The proof of it working is in our medical stats as I have discovered this past couple of years.

Chris x