Week Nine. Day One.

Yesterday saw the end of my 8-week Blood Sugar Diet. If I’m honest, I probably only to stuck to 800 calories-a-day limit for maybe half of the eight weeks, which would realistically leave me with another four weeks to complete.

It was hard to stick to the calorie limit every day; I struggled and failed many times, although some days I did very well. These were the days I tended to be busy – usually Mondays and Tuesdays. By the end of each week I was usually diet-fatigued and willing to indulge with my family while we watched films and relaxed together. I admit, I still haven’t gotten over my habit of emotional eating neither have I broken the ‘weekend feast’ habit!

Despite this, I have lost 12lbs overall. I look leaner and I feel so much better. My enthusiasm for running has returned and my mileage over the last four weeks has sky-rocketed! This is an amazing accomplishment considering that before I started this diet, when I really should have been running every day because I was eating so much, I was always reluctant to go and rarely did.

So, I have lost 12lbs. Nearly the stone I set out to lose. Although I’m a bit disappointed I didn’t stick to the diet a little better and lose the whole stone I wanted to, I am still amazed at how much I’ve lost. Over the last four years I have fought to lose about 5lbs and then have put it back on again almost immediately.

This morning though, the diet came to an official end. The eight weeks – which seemed like such a long time at the beginning – have abruptly finished leaving me with a sense of emptiness when I woke up this morning and realised I could legitimately eat whatever I want for breakfast – toast, cereal, crumpets – anything! So what did I do? My willpower kicked in and I reached for a protein shake and decided to keep going! That’s right – you heard me! I am continuing with the Blood Sugar Diet, by my own free will.

Now, in my last blog post I know I said I was carrying this diet on for another week, and I am. But I could have eaten anything I wanted for breakfast this morning, because technically, the diet is over. So I was pleased with myself for not reaching for the toast and Nutella (yay me!).

I mentioned I have lost 12lbs overall, my mum has lost 13lbs overall. We have both done extremely well and I’m proud of us both. Our exercise levels have risen from sedentary to active, and I think we are both feeling the benefits of this.

I, for one, feel excited about continuing this diet for a little longer. I am excited to switch over to the 5:2 diet at some stage. I also think I will give this blood sugar diet a whirl for four weeks following Christmas, after all, I am not a robot and I will not be able to resist all those treats that come hand-in-hand with Christmas…


 

Week Eight

Hello Week Eight. Here we are, face to face.

We are nearly there. At the end.

When this started I never thought Week Eight would come. But here you are...

We’ve had some slips, and a few family dilemmas and stresses – which is why I haven’t been blogging lately – but the wall chart has never been taken down. I have dutifully crossed off every day, even if my calories sky-rocketed for a day (or two). One day I ate so much rubbish that I woke up in the night feeling sick three times!! It was a terrible night and I regretted over-doing it. The next day I had a food hangover – honestly. I was sluggish, my brain wasn’t functioning properly and I had little-to-no tolerance for my family. I spent the whole day on the sofa watching mind-numbing TV with my three-year-old shouting at anyone who came near me – lucky I didn’t have work that day.

I am back on track now and have been for a few days. So is Mum. We are both still losing weight, although it’s much slower and we have both been forgetting about the 800 calorie count on some days (for me it’s usually the weekends).

I have been running more and going out for longer runs, which I am pleased with. My times are getting faster and I feel good while I’m running.

This diet should be over on Sunday (five days’ time) but because I have been going over the 800 calorie a day limit on occasion, I am extending it until next Friday. Mum and I are calling this ‘Two Perfect Weeks’. We are trying really hard. And earlier this evening, when I came so close to eating a spoonful of peanut butter but turned my back on it at the last minute, I was very proud of myself. So here I am again writing my blog and encouraging anyone who is reading this who’s had a slip up to get back on the wagon. It's not too late. A few bad days doesn't ruin everything. Start again. Do Two Perfect Weeks with Mum and me. Turn your back on the biscuit tin and feel great!

(P.S. I still haven't eaten a biscuit)  

Derailment

I haven’t blogged for a few days. There’s a reason for this: I suffered a derailment and I couldn’t muster the enthusiasm or brain power to blog about it. Until now.

There was also an element of shame, I suppose. After feeling big headed for doing so well I suddenly felt ashamed of myself and following a rather large (binge) consumption of refined sugar, I felt a bit depressed and down. I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to get back on track. And I probably wouldn’t have got back on track, if I hadn’t weighed myself yesterday morning.

When you have a few evenings in a row (I was quite good during the days, and I went running) where you break your diet; eat the wrong things and way too much of them, or scoff vast quantities of not-too-bad-for-you snacks which still pushes you over your calorie limit, you will perhaps feel like you’ll never get back on track. But you can.

My willpower, sticking power, whatever you want to call it, has never been steadfast. I change my mind, a lot – I think it’s hereditary. I will do this, I won’t do this, I can’t do this, I want to do this... It sometimes feels like my will and my body (Id, and Super Ego?) are at war with each other; tugging on each end of the rope until I fall one way or another. I have always been a bit prone to binge eating and it doesn’t take a lot for me to fall from the tightrope of a diet. But after I weighed myself yesterday morning and found out that the damage wasn’t that bad after all, I managed to climb back on the tightrope, or get my train back on its rails, and carry on with renewed willpower.

There are eighteen days left of my eight weeks. One of those days is my husband’s birthday so there might be a day where some cake is consumed… But I will do my best to stay on track until the end.

We all encounter set-backs, in everything we do. We have to learn how to pick ourselves up from these set-backs; to get back on track. Doing the 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet is a great teacher of this.

Frazzled Friday

Today has been a little difficult because I have been tired. I should have been on cloud nine because it's Friday, but it doesn't always work like that does it?

I have felt fuzzy and unfocused all day at work and to be honest all I have wanted to do is go to sleep. I had planned to do a little run before dinner but it was the last thing I felt like doing (but probably the thing I needed most).

I couldn't make my mind up if I was going to run or not, but in the end I did. And I'm glad I did. The run worked its magic, as always, and woke me up and gave me a much needed serotonin rush. I'm starting to feel sleepy again now, but that's okay because it's getting late now and after all, it's perfectly acceptable to feel sleepy when it's late.

After dinner (halloumi salad) I have felt the need for something sweet and for the first time in a long time I have scoured the cupboards for something to satisfy me. I am very pleased to report, especially following last night's blog, that I settled on a few almonds and raisins. My calories my be over the 800 limit today, but at least I haven't reached for anything naughty. I can tell you though, it was a hell of a struggle not to stuff one of the boys' doughnuts into my mouth, whole, earlier. Phew!!!

We all have days like this and it's good to acknowledge them. It's incorrect to think that everyday is blast when on a diet like this - it's just not. Sometimes you get hungry, sometimes all you want to do is sleep. Sometimes you will crave sugar, even if you haven't for ages. But I bet that even if you are not restricting your calories you get the same feelings, I know I certainly did. So I could tell myself that I'm not eating enough, or that I need a sugar fix, but I know that both of those things aren't true. The truth is, I'm just not on form today. The difference is that I would usually reach for sugar-filled treats and drinks to perk me up, and today I haven't.





 

Snacking and Me

Today I realised that one of the biggest single changes the 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet has enforced on me is that I no longer snack between meals. This is partly because there aren’t enough calories in my daily allowance to spare on a 100-200 calorie snack. It's also partly due to the Blood Sugar Diet teaching me what I should be eating so I'm not as hungry between meals. I try to eat only breakfast, lunch and dinner, and no puddings! Sob!!

Of course, occasionally I’ll need assistance to get me through to the next meal. I will usually have a hot drink but if that doesn’t work I will have a small handle of almonds and several raisins. And I'm pleased to report I have found eating this small, far more nutritious, snack is far more satisfying than eating half a tin of biscuits.

It was today, while I was adding some chocolate digestives to our biscuit tin (for the boys - not me!), when it suddenly dawned on me, that only a few weeks ago I would have eaten two or three biscuits while adding them to the tin, without even thinking about it. Then I might have made a coffee and sit down with another three…
There are 86 calories in a single chocolate digestive. If I’d have eaten three that’s 258 calories. Six chocolate digestives: 516! That’s more calories in a single snack than I have for most dinners! And that’s not even counting the sugar… (29.4g of sugar for six choccy digestives if you wondered – it’s recommended to have around 5g per day!)

Biscuits were my go-to snack, but they weren’t exclusive. I’d snack on anything but rarely anything healthy. Snacking had literally crept up on me and had become a way of life, a habit, without me even noticing. I would begin my snacking at around 10.30 am – with a coffee. Some mornings it seemed to take forever for the clock hands to tick round to 10.30 am while all I could think of was that tin sitting in the cupboard. And I might snack again after lunch and again after the school run and again after dinner… You get the gist.

Snacking and me go way back.

But things have changed lately, and while I’m on the 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet I won’t eat a biscuit or snack on anything so horrifyingly innutritious (think of all those empty calories I’ve consumed!). I am slowly reprogramming myself not to reach for something to eat the moment I feel hungry and cutting down on sugar has certainly helped me fight those urges to feed my hunger.

I am most certainly not a robot, so I will never say I’m not eating a biscuit ever again as it just simply wouldn't be true. But I certainly hope that they won’t creep up on me to become my go-to snack ever again.