I started a diet a few weeks ago and, in the first 10 days, I managed to lose a stone and a half from my 16st 6lbs body.

My typical diet was this: an apple in the morning, a sandwich at lunch (usually egg and cress on wholemeal) and a square meal for dinner (chicken, jacket potato, cauliflower, carrots, peas, sweetcorn perhaps). I would have two or three office machine coffees and, my only vice, coke (around two pints) but absolutely no snacking.

After the 10 days, I made a few changes. I started to eat a bowl of cereal in the morning with semi-skimmed milk, still the sandwich at lunch and the square meal and the coffees but squeezed orange instead of coke, an apple and banana later in the night plus a yoghurt. My weight won't shift now.

Can anyone advise on the best way forward. The near-starvation plan of the first 10 days was a bit miserable.

Firstly, well done on doing so well. That's really impressive! I've been on a 'diet' (aim: weight loss) since 2008 began and what I've found keeps me going is varying it as much as possible. For breakfast I tend to have muesli and lunch a sandwich a bit like you, but I vary dinner as much as I can, using as many different textures and vegetables otherwise I get bored and hungry. Does your dinner vary much? I try to fill myself up on different salad vegetables, that usually fills a hole without many cals.

It's good that you've got rid of the 2 pints of coke (full fat I presume?). But 2 pints of orange is quite a lot of sugar and cals, so perhaps you could phase that out.

Don't be disheartened and good luck

I cut out the full fat coke and shifted to diet for the cola fix, the orange is down to a small glass each morning with the cereal and United Utilities' finest pours forth from the tap. The weight has begun to shift again and I'm getting towards 14-and-a-half. Plus the sugar lows seems to have stopped too.

David, does this mean you've given up pizza? Well done!

Well done on the progress David!

Are you exercising as well as dieting? Weight will move quicker and you will feel better...

Keep up with the water, flushes all the rubbish out your system....I saw on the Jamie Oliver channel 4 'Fit for Life' (still available on replay channel 4)that 2 litres of coke contains 40 teaspoons of sugar!!! Doesn't that make you feel better.....

Wow - 2 litres of coke a day, doesn't matter if full sugar or low cal apparently there is around 6 spoonfuls of sugar in each glass of whatever coke etc. you have, if you cut this out you would lose some weight quickly.

On Paul McKenna's TV programme there was a girl who drunk 2 litres of coke a day he weaned her off it and she lost weight straight away. Give it a go and let us know how you get on. I am addicted to Pepsi Max so feel a little hypocritical - maybe i have also realised why my weight is not shifting.

LOL! I have taken up diet coke instead of beer, I hope I don't get addicted to it.

Seriously David, you can only do so much with your diet. If you factor in some daily exercise too, the weight will start to shift. Almost everyone has time for a fifteen minute walk somewhere in the day. Good luck

hi everyone

firstly a jacket potato is bad anyway no matter what you have on it. I was told that the starch in the potato turns to sugar and i think if not
burnt off or digested properly adds to the calories? and as for the can of coke don't bother its full of sugar and will leave you wanting more! maybe you can have it as a treat like a beer on a friday night! I hope that coke was diet and caffine free or that will add to the sleepless nights and probably leave you grumpy and irritable in the morning.

I have found that if I have a coke or a sugary drink before bed i don't sleep as well and wake up several times a night or just wake up at "stupid a clock times"
Lisa

David, why don't you try a jacket sweet potato instead? They are delicious and are supposed to be so much better for you than ordinary ones. Secondly, why don't you have porridge in the mornings made with water? Look for the porridge thread and you'll get loads of ideas.

Have you lost any more weight from when you last posted?

Jaki

hi tree hugger, have apint of speckled hen instead of coke, better any day. lots of nasty stuff in most fizzy drinks real ale far safer. my motto , bubbles means troubles

I know this might sound perverse, but are you sure you are actually eating enough? Depending on portion sizes and your activity levels, it doesn't sound an awful lot for a man to eat...

I would keep an accurate food diary, weighing EVERYTHING you eat and drink for a few days, to get an indication of the actual calories you eat, then work out how many you need according to your weight, activity levels etc. You should not drop below 85% of the result, otherwise your body will just go into starvation mode and hang on to everything.

The temptation is when you're not losing is to cut back further, but I know from experience that sometimes actually eating more means the weight starts to drop off.

HTH