Thirty Days Down - One year later

A year ago, I completed an extreme diet and blogged about it on this site. Well, it's a year later to the day, so it's a good time for a quick review. How much weight have I put on since? A big fat zero kg. I'm as surprised as anyone.

The diet was extremely simple: ignore all the psuedo-science and mumbo jumbo and commit to eating a lot less (by dint of doing what works best and experimenting with different foods, you should gravitate to healthy eating).

Here are some general comments I made a while back about my experience:

- I found that after a few days of self-torment, skipping breakfast and lunch paid dividends. For sustenance and brain function I had more sugar of all things. Sugar in some dried fruit, sugar in tea, etc. I found a little sugar goes a long way to correcting the energy deficit. However, if I ate anything substantial in the day I desired more food a few hours later. By going without something happened to my body (still not sure what) that simply stopped wanting breakfast or lunch. I guess you can train your body and mind to new habits in this way. Also, to get my nutrients I had no room for any empty calories. I had zero chocolates, crisps etc over the period and piled in the vegetables. Also had cod liver oil tablets.

- Exercise proved largely counter effective as it simply increased appetite, making abstinence more difficult.

- I normally like to take a moderate approach but by going extreme I put my body and appetite on a new pattern and when I had my first chocolate biscuit after the project ended it was like an explosion of sugar in my mouth - not nice, although I adapted back to normal after a few days.

- The only side-effect is that my taste buds were heightened over the period and everything tasted amazing, and I am now obsessed with food!

- I don't necessarily recommend this approach and it requires almost military discipline in the first few days, but after that, it's all too easy (perhaps dangerously so).

- Admittedly with a sample size is 1, it is arguably a bit low, but I was still surprised at my results and my prescription for losing weight which is no or little fresh fruit, no exercise during the weight loss period, more sugar, loads of veg but less carby, starchy stuff, and no breakfast or lunch.

People say crash dieting doesn't work, but for me it has given me a much deeper self-knowledge and appreciation of the food and the body.

I tested my cholesterol at the end of the 30 days and for the first time in my life and to my knowledge, my good cholesterol was nicely above the recommended level, and total cholesterol about 20% lower than earlier in the year. Body fat also fell from 16% to around 11%.

Day 32

Final readings:






- Dulcolax proves effective and my system feels a lot better, even if it is not 100% flushed. 55.6 kg likely reflects my true weight at this point.
- Full review of experiment to follow.

Day 31

- Blood lipid tests booked for tomorrow - project extended by a day to ensure clean results.
- Still no bowel movement (but no discomfort either). Tried Dulcolax tablets. No response beyond a few stomach grumbles through the day.

Day 30

notes

- I thought I'd pile in a lot of food in a single sitting today to see if it might help shift the internal blockages. Prunes, Senna tablets and Dulcoease have all failed rather miserably. I'll try the more powerful Dulcolax tablets tomorrow if there is still no movement.

Day 29

Day 28

Day 27

Day 26

notes

- System remains clogged clogged but I am feeling fine because food intake is not high. This is a typical symptom of a low calorie diet so I am not concerned. Also, only four days to go.

Day 25

Day 24

notes

- Played a round of golf today. Also enjoyed a pizza from the new 'light' range at Pizza Express - it's pretty much a regular pizza with a bit less cheese and about a third of the pastry taken out by cutting a large hole cut out of the center and replacing it with a light salad. It isn't anywhere near as filling as 500 calories of home cooked food, but it's a decent option for calorie counting out of doors.

Day 23

notes

- Felt a slight cold coming on - decided to stop going to the gym for a few days.
- Irregular bowel movements have made precise daily tracking of calorie intake and weightloss less meaningful.

Day 22

notes

- second day of bathroom 'fail' - true weight is probably a touch lower than current reading.

Day 21

notes

- Weight increase may be due to bathroom 'fail' in the morning.

Day 20

notes

- Added a high protein meal to the regime. Over the past two days, I have made a simple tuna, cottage cheese omelette which has proven satisfyingly filling as the last meal for the night. Whether this would suppress hunger for a longer time than say, a bowl of calorie-equivalent porridge is unknown because I am asleep a few hours after eating (something to test at a later date).

Day 19

notes

- Still nothing much of note to report on. All is stable and hunger is not an issue, but I am eager to move my legs and do a spot of exercise.
- Measuring and weighing food is a bit of a pain but overall I am saving much time preparing meals (no breakfast or lunch), eating food, and getting rid of food, so to speak. Of course, much less food is also being bought, so there are time and money savings there also.

Day 18

notes

- I have reverted to a pre-dinner diet of tea, coffee and a handful of dried apricots, as eating even small meals before dinner seems to trigger hunger (albeit at moderate levels). Hunger pangs back to being completely eliminated. The approach gives plenty of room for a very large, nutritionally rich meal in the evenings, although I could do with ramping up my protein levels to around 50g a day to prevent wastage of lean tissue.

Day 17

notes

- Cold porridge made with ready oats and tropicana ... sounds awful, tastes rather wonderful, almost like a desert. Needs to be left in the fridge for half a day to let the juice soak in.

Day 16

notes

Day 15

- To make up for yesterdays moderate excesses - evidenced in the slight increase in weight - I left the evening portion of my dinner in the fridge. I went to bed only marginally hungry, although this was not enough to affect the quality of my sleep.
- Also, because I do not feel hungry in the run-up to dinner, I have pushed my main meal time to around 7pm. This means there is less time to get hungry later in the evening.

Day 14

notes

- Today is the first day that I definitely ate to the point of feeling over full. The courgette frittata that I had for dinner was very dense but because it was relatively low in calories I indulged and ate the entire portion in one sitting, instead of stopping when I felt three-quarters full and splitting the portion over two meals. Making matters worse, I also helped myself to another portion later in the evening when a half portion would have sufficed.

Day 13

Day 12

notes

Day 11

notes

- Quesadillas were extremely filling with a side order of salad. I was worried that I missed something in the calorie count but I weight myself the following day and was very surprised to see that I had lost over half a kg in weight. Perhaps fried quesadillas with cheese are the way forward?

Day 10

notes

- Very little to report on. I am now in established routine of having around 100 calories leading up to dinner, and splitting dinner over two meals.
- Thinking a great deal about food (different recipes and food ideas, and what I'll eat when the experiment is over) but not feeling hungry at any point through the day.

Day 9

notes

- Ate a portion of baked, stuffed mushrooms at 5:00pm as a light snack; proved very filling and I had no appetite for dinner. At 7pm, I managed to eat half a pitta bread with half of my aubergine quorn dinner before I could eat no more. It feels as if my stomach has shrunk and I feel full up much earlier on (this happens during fasting, so no surprise). Also, I wonder if adding the cheese stuffing to the mushrooms played a role in keeping me well satiated, even though it was relatively light cottage and ricotta cheese.

Day 8

notes

Day 7

notes

- Spent about 9 hours painting the house - must be good for a few hundred calories expenditure.
- No hunger, and light headedness kept at bay with dried apricots and tea with little milk and a half teaspoon measure of sugar.
- Used the CalorieKing web-site to check through my calorie spreadsheet. It was broadly correct, although I was moderately overestimating the amount of calories in tea and coffee, and underestimating the calorie content of some vegetables.
- Also found a set of measuring spoons to accurately measure half a teaspoon sugar, oil, etc.

Day 6

notes

- No sensation of hunger through the day. Dried apricots and lightly sugared tea keep the blood sugar happy until evening dinner.
- Splitting dinner over two meals (2/3 first time, 1/3 at later at around 9pm) continues to work a treat, and a late night porridge means I go to bed on a full stomach. I am now making porridge with water instead of milk, but adding half a spoon of sugar for flavour.

Day 5

notes

- No change in weight from yesterday despite low calorie intake. Perhaps I am miscounting calories, or has my body started adapting already?
- Today's calorie intake is the lowest so far. Total intake of 487, with approx just 50 calories consumed until evening dinner.
- It is also the first day that I have not gone to bed even slightly hungry - the solution? Keep splitting dinner over two meals so the second plate replaces the late evening snack. Also, eat a bowl of porridge made with water (no milk) a couple of hours before sleeping.
- Realise my main problem is not with hunger but with its related symptoms such as light-headedness and general weakness. Eating two dried apricots provides a welcome sugar boost, as does sprinkling a little sugar in my tea and on my porridge. A small quantity of sugar has a very low calorie price (level teaspoon: 15 calories, heaped: 25 calories).
- Still sleeping fine, although waking up slightly earlier than usual, always pre-alarm.

Day 4

notes

- Divide the chickpea curry over two sittings (6:30pm and again around 9:30pm). Feels more balanced than having all these calories in a single sitting.
- Notice I have a much stronger sense and appreciation of flavours - reminds me of the adage 'hunger is the best sauce'.

Day 3

notes

- Coffee and date for breakfast, and light stir-fry for lunch. Much less hunger than yesterday when I also had an egg by lunchtime (sense of adapting, as when I fast during Ramdaan).
- 5 g of nut mix at 1:00, 25 calories and again at 2:30. At 3:30 only slightly hungry.
- I am still eating preemptively versus when I am hungry. Perhaps it is better to wait until I am hungry before eating.
- Light-headedness returns from 4:30 onward, cut short by small bowl of beans and slice of Ryvita.
- Dinner is extremely large and filling for the calorie price. Would have been better to split it over two sittings - better for long-term satiety?
- Despite hunger late in the evening, I had no craving for junk food. Has the old habit of late night snacking been broken already?

Day 2

notes

- Felt no hunger in the morning (had coffee for breakfast), nor at lunch.
- Started feeling a little hungry from 3:30 onward, but remained clear-headed.
- Stopped eating dinner when I was 3/4 full - left half of the fish curry to eat later in the evening. Far more satisfied than the same time yesterday, when I had eaten a few more calories - yesterday's courgette fritters didn't seem to have as much substance as a fish curry with a roti, despite similar calorie contents.
- Hunger struck later in the evening, from around 9pm onward, but not badly. Half a bowl of porridge, made thinner with water and very lightly sprinkled with sugar, made for the perfect way to end the day.
- Felt sleepy at11:30 and was unable to stay up to watch The Wire. Could reduced energy from lower calorie intake be playing a role in early onset of sleepiness / tiredness?

Day 1

notes

- Breakfast: Half a bowl of porridge felt very filling for a mere 85 calories. It kept me well satiated until lunch-time, although this could be due gorging on food the night before.
- Felt a little bit light-headed just before lunch at 1:00.
- Hunger pangs strike at 3-4. Body feels slightly weak and fragile, a similar feeling as when I am fasting. Eating grapes, a banana and an apple may be healthy but it does little to stop the hunger. General weakness returns until dinner.
- 5 courgette burgers / fritters feel like eating a starter. I am only half-filled and want more. Would be happy to stop at feeling three-quarters full.
- Late night cravings return, likely partly due to conditioned habit of eating around this time. Resist strong desire for a small piece of junk food, and satisfy myself with porridge, Ryvita and a slice of grilled aubergine.
- Zero trouble sleeping.