side effects & general hints from those that know!

[Huseyin]

Dry Skin when you are well into it about 14 weeks, some report not getting it but a few found it is a side effect.

[Blonde Logic]

One tip is... don't over do this. I was on LL for 9 months and developed severe lethargy and found myself slightly aenimic, as did my boyfriend after doing LL for a long time.
No matter what they tell you - these foodpacks *aren't* completely nutritionally sound, you do miss on a few vitamins and such.

If you have a long way to go, I suggest taking a break after about 5-6 months, do RTM properly, try to work on your relationship with food (most importantly work on self-perception and image issues too! Being curvy really is not the end of the world - it's actually healthier!) for a couple of months after RTM. Then depending on how well you've done, and how much you still want to lose you can do a Refreshers.



Other things I've noticed while being on LL long-term is ... you feel the cold ALOT more. And your stomach never stops rumbling! ... Not out of hunger, but it just gurgles all the time.

Everyone is different - I abstqained for nearly 10 months and had more energy in the 10th month then I did in the 5th for example. Never felt better!

folk just nbeed to guage their own body and health I think - there is no set number as we will all react so differently.

personally, I woulod never reccomend doing it so far, and then finishing off on my own. BUt thats me.

[Minerva]

I guess everyone has their own experiences. Well done for sticking to it for 10 months! That's amazing!

I would have kept going as well, but my boyfriend started RTM about a month before I decided to come off and I just couldn't cope anymore either.. too much temptation and good smells from his dinners... So .. restarting now is exceedingly difficult. .. maybe I shouldn't have ever stopped eh.

[slendablenda]

I started LL exactly this week a year ago. I reached my goal in December. I have just felt better and better all the way through. I could have started RTM about 10 days before Christmas but decided to wait until New Year because I didn't want to start introdcing food with all that temptation around. I am human after all.
I felt I had sufficient nutrition the whole time on LL. i haven't felt this good since I was in my late 20s. Feel as though my (lighter) life has started all over again.
I am taking a multi-vitamin now though.
Different for everyone I suppose.

[Blonde Logic]

I guess everyone has their own experiences. Well done for sticking to it for 10 months! That's amazing!

I would have kept going as well, but my boyfriend started RTM about a month before I decided to come off and I just couldn't cope anymore either.. too much temptation and good smells from his dinners... So .. restarting now is exceedingly difficult. .. maybe I shouldn't have ever stopped eh.

Thats just it Min - it is so diferent for everyone. You do have to listen to your body.

Good luck with your restart - just realise it won;t take long for you to get those pounds off, and then you are done!

Good luck - you can do this!!

xx

[rachee29]

i have lost over nine st now and the side effects i have are being bloody cold, thin hair and yes i have loose skin but i had 2 c sections 11lb 2 baby and then a 12lb 8 and a half oz baby so i did expect to have some but its no as bad as i had thought it would be docs referred me to get a tt but up here you have to see a clinical pyshc first which i understand has a very long waiting list

[Foxtrot]

Wow Rachee, they were WHOPPERS!! Get on that list, the sooner you start the sooner it's done!

[Foxtrot]

Had to go to bed early last night with wind cramps but trusty HWB soon helped there. Mind you, it wasn't safe to go upstairs for a couple of hours!

And spots. Not lots of little ones but a few biggies, thankfully in not too obvious places. I think it's down to all the water flushing the system.

[bigboy77]

ive had 2 headaches but apart from that no serious side effects.

[rammylou]

Hi everyone-My first post! I love the forum, it's been a real help & inspiration ! Iam coming to the end of wk 5 & have had a few minor side effects, a more major one seems to be that my TOTM has disappeared! Has anyone else experienced this ?

[Foxtrot]

Have a bt of a look here rammylou, may help a little.

http://www.minimins.com/lighter-life...-poss-tmi.html (Question for the ladies (poss TMI!))

Oh, and welcome to the forum!!

[rammylou]

Thanks for that! It's great to come on here & know you are not alone!

[marley]

I have felt really ill all week. Very tired and dizzy alot of the time. Literally couldn't keep up with the kids yesterday - just wanted to sit down. Does this get better? Maybe did too much exercise this past week (my first on LL - but did a bit less exercise than I normally do so did try to cut back a bit!) any suggestions?

[Blonde Logic]

Hi Marley

Too much exercise, so earlyin the diet can certainly make one feel wobbly. Probably best to keep it to a minimum, some gentle walking, stretching, swimming, etc., without over-exertion until you get settled into the diet. Even then, be careful, as you are on so few caolories you don;t want to use them all up - then your body will really go into starvation mode and hold onto everything to ride out the perceived "drought", slowing down your weight loss.

Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.

[Beeswax]

Here are a few from me, an LL veteran of exactly two weeks!

1. Your first week - clear your diary, take a duvet day or two if you can and load up on magazines, DVDs, smelly candles and whatnot. Your body will be changing fuel supply and while some people feel fine, I had headaches, nausea, wooziness and was incredibly tired. Drink the water and hang in there. Do not meet friends in restaurants or cafes! Until you get into ketosis (after which you will probably feel loads better - I did) you may be physically hungry. Being around lots of food may make you feel miserable, so be kind to yourself and meet friends at their homes or yours. That's not to say become a hermit for all of Foundation! Just in the first week.

2. If you have IBS or a sensitive stomach:
- Stick to the Fruits of the Forest water flavour. All the rest contain Inulin which is harmless but can irritate your stomach and cause, um, painful and embarrassing problems that can *really* mess with your day!

- However, if you suffer with constipation, the inulin, to all accounts, helps things along if you get me.

- The bars can also give you a windy belly the next day. I found the first bar I had caused the worst problems; after that they weren't so bad. But I only have a bar if I know I'm not going anywhere or doing anything important the next day

- Examine all the tablet medication you normally take before starting the diet. Some tablets contain sucrose, which can knock you out of ketosis. There should be sucrose-free alternatives available if you ask your chemist.

3. If you don't want your entire office to know you're dieting, just take your porridge, soups and bars to work. You can make the soup in a mug and just tell people it's (drumroll) a Cup-A-Soup.

4. Once you're in ketosis for a while, don't stay away from food completely. Go grocery shopping, prepare food in your household. I haven't found it too hard, it makes me feel less of a freakazoid whose only contact with food is opening a sachet(!) and it helps me think about the food choices I've made. If you see something particularly yummy, and all you can do is think about eating it, consider how you used to eat it (in my case: as quickly as possible) and imagine how you might eat it now (slowly, savouring every bite). I don't know if this is LL-allowed and it might be "dangerous food talk" so do take this with a pinch of salt (pun unintended!). I find it helps me look at my attitude to food though.