Other diets being 'advertised' on this forum

The NHS diet plan is sensible and I wish I didn't see so many folks pushing the 5:2 diet/ paleo etc. I found that these ways of eating encourage disordered eating.

Just throwing that out there...

[OlsBean]

I've been a member of this community for sometime now (don't remember exactly how long as we've had several updates to the site in that time) but the shortcoming of it is if any (in my opinion) is that you have members with a wide range of issues that can be miles apart from each other.

There are those that need to lose a couple of stone, whether that to be to get into a Wedding Dress or just because they feel they need to and you have those members that are very metabolically sick needing to lose life changing amounts of weight, who are in reality facing a death sentence and I guess there are some that are in between. All are as important as each other, I'm not suggesting for a minute they are not, however the solutions, support and changes needed to be made for each group is worlds apart.

5:2 for example is probably not the best route to recommend for someone who has an underlying eating disorder like Binging and/or massive amounts of weight to lose but for someone else it might work very very well as people within this community have demonstrated. On the other hand the NHS eating plan might work better for the very Obese as it seeks to change long term bad eating habits that were probably at a lot of the root cause of their obesity. I've not personally seen anyone sharing their Paleo experience on here but I don't get to read all the posts. But once again, if it works for someone and they want to share that experience and it goes on to help someone else, where's the harm you might ask.

Obesity is phenomenally complex problem, there is no one size fits all, all we can all do is share our own experiences with each other on the hope that helps one and other.

As far as I know, no one who regularly posts within the community is working within a professional capacity. So it's just peer to peer type support to expect here.

[Lippysue 6lbs in reply to OlsBean]

I am really very confused as I am doing the NHS diet but I keep reading on here that eating carbs is wrong and I should be eating this or that, no I should never eat this etc . My confidence that I am doing the right thing is definitely wavering now.

[OlsBean in reply to Lippysue]

The NHS plan is a great plan, it's 12 Weeks that aims to get you thinking about the types of food you are eating, eating healthier and hopefully losing some weight. I often think of it like a foundation course is to Higher Education, a springboard to a Healthier life.

If it's working for you currently then that should be all the confidence you need, it might be in the future you need to look at tweaking what you are eating or doing something else, only you will know.

There is no single silver bullet sadly and if your Journey is a long one, you may find yourself having to do different things at different stages of that journey in order to complete it. I know personally I had to.

The other thing is that ultimately we are all responsible for our own health, regardless of what information anyone gives you, whether that be your GP, The Media, or a member of an online community like this, it's your decision to follow it or not.

I would offer a more detailed reply but I am in Hospital (bored) waiting to go down for my shoulder Op and I am typing on my phone which I am useless at!

[Biblia in reply to Lippysue]

Yeah, I know how you feel, I'm quite easily swayed myself and it can be worrying. The no carb thing is fashionable but many people just can't tolerate it! The NHS plan is safe, gentle and supported by decades of evidence and research. There's always another diet plan doing the rounds, don't worry, you are on to the right thing. It's not balanced to ban a whole food group, or any one food unless you have a diagnosed allergy or intolerance. If you ban a food it sometimes makes you yearn for it as forbidden fruit! Hunter gatherer is lovely ideal for those who can do it, but we must have ten thousand years of farming ancestors in us too, and we are the descendents of survivors.

Occasionally people suffer from a condition called orthorexia, which is a extreme form of healthy eating that can become a damaging mental pattern. I've almost gone there myself, with disordered eating in my past, so now avoid extremes of diet.

I really hope you are reassured that you are doing just fine the way you are.

[Hidden]

I've often considered whether or not to try other diets that I've seen on here or heard about from other people, but for me the idea of cutting out carbs entirely or limiting myself to just 500 calories seems horrendous. I guess different things work for different people. It's probably partly to do with our psychological make-up as well as our bodies. I can't say I have been using the NHS plan specifically, I've just been eating less, healthier and doing more exercise and it's been working well for me (which I think is what the plan is ultimately trying to tell us to do anyway)

In terms of cutting out carbs in particular, I'm not convinced that eating no carbs ever is a sustainable way to live for most people. I have however been thinking more about how I can cut them down a bit. I used to always have a bread roll or toast with my soup at lunchtime, now I just have a slightly larger portion of soup and it fills me up just as much. I think it also depends what kind of carbs you have. I have generally swapped normal potatoes for sweet potatoes which I believe (please correct me if I'm wrong!) are slightly better for you.

Like I said, we are all different. I'm personally not that convinced that the 5:2 is sustainable for most people. I know that I would probably give up after day 2 and also be unable to control what I ate at all on my "days off". I still find it interesting to hear about what works for other people and if we are all getting good results then that's what counts

[Penel in reply to Hidden]

Cutting out carbs entirely is pretty drastic, and as you say, not easy to do or easily sustainable, although it is described in medical literature as an option for weight reduction in the mobidly obese.

Cutting down, or changing the type of carb, seems to be helpful for many people. I have read a few posts on here from people who have been told to go 'low carb' by their doctor/nurse, but don't seem to have been given advice on how to go about it.

[nhs2015]

I agree. The 5:2 diet with two days of fast would disturb my style. I would not be happy to starve myself for two days. I follow the NHS. To me it is not a diet. It is a program which teaches you good and stable eating habits. I am learning a lot and it is fun to plan your meals in advance. The choice of food is yours. It is not hard therefore I can stick to it. It gives me guidelines, lot of motivation, advices and tips. Every week focuses on something while reitering the previous weeks. I am also enjoying the couch to 5k fitness. I am so proud of myself, it makes me feel really good. I am really happy to have found it.

[175zqu132]

Hi

I agree for me it is better that l count calories and be active and eat healthy

[nhs2015]

Also I have made my own adjustment to the NHS. I eat very little sugar and use Natvia instead. I have cut down my alcohol intake with just the odd glass of wine and have ice cubes in it, and I do not go for diet soft drinks or low fat food as it is generally full of sugar. Having hardly any sugar has taken away most of my joints pains and aches.