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Diet Doctor Low Carb Challenge

Chook said:
...reduced the number of different veg from 3 or 4 different sorts down to just one. The problem with this is I'm finding the food oddly unappealing with just one veg.

Is every one else having this horrible weather - sideways driving rain. So much for our usual Sunday family stroll.
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Yes, it is this single thing that would make DD unsustainable for me. only one veg? Unthinkable!!!
So I have started back with the multiple veg, in multiple colours, and instantly felt better about everything. My tummy likes it too. Both coming and going.

The dogs went past stir crazy yesterday (after 2 days of driving rain and sleet) and have now entered certified insane.
This is the first time we have gone quite so far into the realms of hysteria, tail pulling, depressed sleeping and the play fighting is threatening to get serious.

Trouble is, even with raincoats, they are too low to the ground, and too small in body mass. They can cope with the cold. And they can cope with the wet. But both at once would be risking hypothermia.
 
Yes, I think I'm going to have to go back to having a mixture of different colour veggies. I'm having three veg with dinner today (cauliflower, broccoli and asparagus) but I think I'll keep the portions to a reasonable size because I do tend to fill up on veg.

Awww I never thought about how difficult it must be with small dogs. Mine don't care - when I was fit and able I'd walk them for 6-10 miles a day around and across the moors come hail, thick snow or driving rain. Nowadays it's Mr C's chore to walk them and I really miss it.

Many many years ago I had two Yorkies that refused to go out if it was anything less than a mild sunny summer's day. Unless we said 'pub' in which case they'd drag us out the front door.
 
Err *ducks head* I don't like veggies except in a casserole or sauce or smoothie or to flatter the plate. And I positively hate fruit, always makes me starving hungry.

I know I'm supposed to like both, but I don't, never have and never will after 60 decades. I tolerate and nibble veg as a side.

I guess I should be constipated with a very low fibre diet, but nope. :D
 
Evening ladies - I've been unable to get the forum to power up today. It was just 'hanging' regardless of which device I used. Must be the horrible weather. I'm a bit better today. Was higher going to bed at 7.4 - no idea why as the carb count for the day was a mere 11g. Got up to 8.6 which is not too drastic a rise overall and I hit low sixes a lot earlier in the day. Today I've had 24g of carbs but it's Sunday and I have a drink. I've said it before , it gives my liver something to do overnight. Hubby has recovered and I haven't been laid low yet. Apart from the fact I am just really tired I am hoping it is just my body saying 'slow down'. @Chook - hopefully the major disinfecting exterminated everything.
@Brunneria @Chook - I have 2 or 3 veggies with the DD meals. I asked them about this at the start , also about salad and they said just to watch the carb levels I. E. The above ground veg and remember to stop eating when you are full. I had 4 veggies tonight. Made a starter of DD pizza. Best compliment from hubby who said it actually looked like a real pizza! Had a 1/4 as a starter (rest is away for tomorrow). Main was a veal sirloin with chestnut mushroom, steamed mixed greens, roasted spiced cauliflower and shallots and aubergine chips (@Brunneria- took a hint from you and used ground flaxseed to coat the aubergine chips. It worked but I still like some parmesan mixed through. The flaxseed isn't salty like the scratchings. With my glass of prosecco and campari and soda that was 24g carbs all in the evening which probably wasn't a good thing.
Weight didn't budge this week - not even 1 oz but I'm fine with that. Going to read up on intermittent fasting if my figures don't improve soon. Brother is a bit brighter and hubby just pleased to escape the loo ! Ah well can't see tonight's figure being that low but I enjoyed it.
 
Oh no, I forgot to weigh myself! I don't feel like I have lost anything but I'll try to remember tomorrow. This week I'm adding in a couple of fasting days (from just after dinner one day until just before dinner the next) - probably on Tuesday and Friday.

After Mr C asking for 'normal' food and saying he hasn't been enjoying most of the DD dishes, especially the creamy ones, I have put together (as best I can) a week's menu of what looks like normal food but is still very low carb. I hope he enjoys it because he's never said that before about the things I cook.

Saturday was https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/garlic-chicken
with a very yummy aubergine dip, salad and https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/keto-garlic-bread

Yesterday was roast duck with a bitter cherry sauce, asparagus, cauliflower, broccoli and a little bit of roast parsnip

Today: https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/mummy-dogs

Tomorrow: Steak with Stilton and salad

Wednesday: https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/low-carb-sloppy-joes and salad

Thursday: https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/low-carb-salmon-pie putting some asparagus in the pie and serving with broccoli and some yellow french beans (from our garden last summer)

Friday: https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/tex-mex-ground-beef with https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/low-carb-tortillas
Guacamole and salad
 
We had a conversation about the long termness of this eating yesterday, too.

Mr B seems happy to continue indefinitely, but doesn't always want keto breakfasts, and will sort himself out with packed meals for work. These will include bought sarnies, and assorted carby and fruity snacks for the cupboard.

I do wonder if he might not have been so enthusiastic about the keto food if I hadn't spent the last 2 weeks thrusting my awesome blood glucose readings under his nose and saying 'isn't this the best!!!'

Mind you, I think one of the things he likes is the different food every day. And the never being hungry. He commented yesterday that he forgot to eat lunch. At all. Went from 10am breakfast to 7.30pm dinner with just teas and coffees. Thought that was great.

@Chook have you seen the Dairy Free meal options on the DD site?

(oh, and I have lost the 2.9 pounds I gained. so back to where I was at the beginning of DD. am very happy with that. weight loss is very much secondary to bg control - for me. Fasting blood glucose is 5.2, every morning. like clockwork)
 
kittypoker said:
Err *ducks head* I don't like veggies except in a casserole or sauce or smoothie or to flatter the plate. And I positively hate fruit, always makes me starving hungry.

I know I'm supposed to like both, but I don't, never have and never will after 60 decades. I tolerate and nibble veg as a side.

I guess I should be constipated with a very low fibre diet, but nope. :D
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You seem to have done exceptionally well without:hilarious::hilarious::hilarious::hilarious::hilarious::hilarious:
 
OK I was wrong. Was actually 6.6 before I went to bed. Trouble was I hit 10. 3 earlier before it tumbled back down. Note to self - 24g carbs in one go is not a good idea. Unfortunately a high percentage of the carbs is my 2 drinks. So bed on 6.6 up to 8.2 and I don't feel that good. I think another cold is on the way as I had an awful night with my legs - sure fire warning system of an incoming bug.
Tell me @Chook when you fast is it just food you forego? I. E can you still drink water, black tea , black coffee? BG is dropping but that's usual.
 
@maglil55 When I'm fasting I have black coffee, herb/fruit teas, occasional cup of red label Bovril (great for stopping a grumbling tum) and I drink a lot of tap water. I know some people recommend fizzy water but the bubbles have to go somewhere. :confused::wacky: I'd say it takes two days of fasting to get to feel comfortable with it. The downsides are sometimes feeling a bit shakey (which is when you need the Bovril) and occasionally feeling very cold - but again, the Bovril helps. I try to keep it down to 1-2 mug of Bovril on a fasting day. Then I will have a nice but lowish calorie / low carb dinner on a fast day - about 600 calories - something simple like steak or salmon and salad or plain veg.

There is a VERY nasty cold going round at the moment. Mr C is texting me complaining about being full of cold - deep joy! (Oh - and to make sure we aren't having either cabbage or anything creamy for dinner)
 
maglil55 said:
Trouble was I hit 10. 3 earlier before
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There must be something wrong - that cold or something - 10.3 is very high considering your normal numbers. Alcohol shouldn't have that effect unless its beer - I can drink loads of red wine or Prosecco and all it does is lower my BG a bit. I do get a bit of liver revenge the following morning though as it seems to be a bit higher on the mornings after I've had a glass or three.
 
Brunneria said:
We had a conversation about the long termness of this eating yesterday, too.

Mr B seems happy to continue indefinitely, but doesn't always want keto breakfasts, and will sort himself out with packed meals for work. These will include bought sarnies, and assorted carby and fruity snacks for the cupboard.

I do wonder if he might not have been so enthusiastic about the keto food if I hadn't spent the last 2 weeks thrusting my awesome blood glucose readings under his nose and saying 'isn't this the best!!!'

Mind you, I think one of the things he likes is the different food every day. And the never being hungry. He commented yesterday that he forgot to eat lunch. At all. Went from 10am breakfast to 7.30pm dinner with just teas and coffees. Thought that was great.

@Chook have you seen the Dairy Free meal options on the DD site?

(oh, and I have lost the 2.9 pounds I gained. so back to where I was at the beginning of DD. am very happy with that. weight loss is very much secondary to bg control - for me. Fasting blood glucose is 5.2, every morning. like clockwork)
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Brunneria said:
We had a conversation about the long termness of this eating yesterday, too.

Mr B seems happy to continue indefinitely, but doesn't always want keto breakfasts, and will sort himself out with packed meals for work. These will include bought sarnies, and assorted carby and fruity snacks for the cupboard.

I do wonder if he might not have been so enthusiastic about the keto food if I hadn't spent the last 2 weeks thrusting my awesome blood glucose readings under his nose and saying 'isn't this the best!!!'

Mind you, I think one of the things he likes is the different food every day. And the never being hungry. He commented yesterday that he forgot to eat lunch. At all. Went from 10am breakfast to 7.30pm dinner with just teas and coffees. Thought that was great.

@Chook have you seen the Dairy Free meal options on the DD site?

(oh, and I have lost the 2.9 pounds I gained. so back to where I was at the beginning of DD. am very happy with that. weight loss is very much secondary to bg control - for me. Fasting blood glucose is 5.2, every morning. like clockwork)
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@Brunneria

No, after reading your post I've been looking for the Dairy Free meals but can only find some articles about it. Could you give me a link when you get a moment.

A learning curve about DD cheese dough:

I'm making the mummy dogs today - if anyone wants to make them you need to use LONG sausages or hot dogs (normal sized chipolatas are basically completely encased instead of looking as they should AND shape and use the pastry as hot as you can handle it otherwise it falls apart.
 
Chook said:
There must be something wrong - that cold or something - 10.3 is very high considering your normal numbers. Alcohol shouldn't have that effect unless its beer - I can drink loads of red wine or Prosecco and all it does is lower my BG a bit. I do get a bit of liver revenge the following morning though as it seems to be a bit higher on the mornings after I've had a glass or three.
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I've got a niggling sore throat now and earache coming on as well. BG is all over the place - dropping 0.6 then up 0.4, another fall then a small rise. Going to try to ignore it and dose up with 1st defence and paracetamol. I can't drink too much alcohol and it makes me ill for days although I have occasionally tried just to make sure it still makes me ill
I was surprised at the carb content that comes up for prosecco on MFP although I try to always get the drier versions. I'm with you on water. My last 2 fridges have has the water and ice dispenser and I drink pints of the stuff - never fizzy. Probably comes from the job I did - loads of presentations and training courses and the last thing you want is fizzy water making you burp when you have to speak all day long . I drunk loads of water when I was working and just never stopped as I was used to it.
Amazingly hubby ate the remains of the DD pizza and discovered it isn't going to poison him. I'm going to have an early dinner , hot shower and an early night I think.
 
@Brunneria - thank you for the link but it doesn't work because I'm not a member.

Are there any more DD recipes other than the ones on the main website?
 
@Chook No idea, i'm afraid.

Why not sign up for the free month, rummage around, print off any recipes, then decide after the month is up, whether you want to pay?
 
I remembered to get on the scales this morning and it was bad news. I am back up to what I was at the beginning of the Challenge - PLUS ANOTHER TWO POUNDS. :( :( Hopefully a fasting day or two will sort that out.

So I'm now thinking about what to do next. I don't think I'm one of those lucky people you read about in the DD testimonials that lose loads of weight just by VLC - so I need to make some changes.

On the plus side, looking at my BG notebook I can see that during this Challenge my FBG has gone down from being in the low 7s to being in the low 6s which I am happy about (but I'd prefer it in the low to mid 5s ;) )

I do enjoy the freedom from hunger that VLC gives and I think it has to be good for helping reduce the fatty liver problem - so I will carry on with VLC (and occasionally use some of the DD keto recipes because I like them) but I think I will cut back the very high levels of fats, cheese and nuts and increase the amount of above ground veg. I also think I need to be aware of the amount of calories that I eat and fast twice a week which will give my liver the opportunity to get rid of the excess fat it's storing.

I know it's not generally thought to be a good idea to combine VLC and reducing calories but I don't really think I've got much option.

Sorry to ramble, I just needed to think it through and I will really welcome any ideas or comments you have.
 
Chook said:
I remembered to get on the scales this morning and it was bad news. I am back up to what I was at the beginning of the Challenge - PLUS ANOTHER TWO POUNDS. :( :( Hopefully a fasting day or two will sort that out.

So I'm now thinking about what to do next. I don't think I'm one of those lucky people you read about in the DD testimonials that lose loads of weight just by VLC - so I need to make some changes.

On the plus side, looking at my BG notebook I can see that during this Challenge my FBG has gone down from being in the low 7s to being in the low 6s which I am happy about (but I'd prefer it in the low to mid 5s ;) )

I do enjoy the freedom from hunger that VLC gives and I think it has to be good for helping reduce the fatty liver problem - so I will carry on with VLC (and occasionally use some of the DD keto recipes because I like them) but I think I will cut back the very high levels of fats, cheese and nuts and increase the amount of above ground veg. I also think I need to be aware of the amount of calories that I eat and fast twice a week which will give my liver the opportunity to get rid of the excess fat it's storing.

I know it's not generally thought to be a good idea to combine VLC and reducing calories but I don't really think I've got much option.

Sorry to ramble, I just needed to think it through and I will really welcome any ideas or comments you have.
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Sorry to hear that @Chook. If I gained weight as well as struggling with my readings I think I would get really discouraged. I stayed exactly the same this week as you know but I am hoping that cutting lunch will make the difference as it was just too much food for me. I prefer something to nibble on such as M&S cracked black pepper calimari or one of these cheese minis.
I'm feeling a bit better today but still not 100%. Yesterday I had 8g of carbs and yet went to bed on 7.2. This morning I woke up to 6.7 , which I was delighted with, until it made it to 8.2 before breakfast so obviously I still am not right.
On the DIET Doctor website, membership gives you access to loads of presentations and articles on the various topics. There are 20+ meal plans on the planner which was only launched 1 January but I think this will get a lot more useful when they increase the functionality to allow you to build your own weekly meal plans and transfer the shopping list to your online shop.
Like you I still think it is too much food and I know from MFP how many calories I am consuming. Over the past week my carb % was 4%, protein 23% , fats 73%. Most days now my carbs are in single figures which is why I find my BG figures so difficult to take.
I intend to bring the fat down a bit and hope my BG sorts itself out when I am bug free again.
 
I'm so sorry @Chook it is very demoralising, isn't it?
Although switching from several weeks of 800 cals a day, to DD calorie levels is going to be a huge change of gear for your body.
Hug

I gained in Week1 and lost it again in W2. Will be very interested to see what happens in W3.

If I tweak with anything else, it will be to drop the protein a bit more. Have already dropped the breakfasts, and increased the low carb veg, so will/may end up avoiding the protein at lunch too. Although with my Decadent Cake Lifestyle, I have already partially done this.

Am v wary of dropping the fat, because I did that by accident yesterday evening, and ended up standing eating cheese at 11pm, by the light of the open fridge door. Not ideal, before bed!

At the moment, I am prioritising blood glucose over weight loss (bg is FAB!)
And am thinking that the root of the problem may just be overall portion sizes. I mean, they don't differentiate between me (5'7" sedentary female) and Mr B (6'1" more active), so that is going to affect things hugely, isn't it?
 
Yes, I agree. Now I'm not working i really do not need a lot of food to keep me going and I'd definitely class myself as sedentary.This is a fasting day for me - the first in ages - and its really interesting to compare my BG today compared with how it has been on the challenge.

Today: no breakfast or lunch and I've had
FBG: 6.3 9am 7.7 11am 7.8 1pm 7.3

Last Monday: Breakfast and lunch eaten
FBG: 6.4 9am 7.8 11am 5.8 1pm 6.5 3pm 5.9

So, if I have breakfast, my BG goes up and comes back down faster but there is quite a big difference at lunch time. Hmmm not sure what to make of that. I wonder if it's worth having my daily avocado at breakfast (if I can face it) then skip lunch.... decisions, decisions. :)
 
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