Beginning Sole Source the EASIER way
SO, it’s the beginning of your sole source plan for the first time or fiftieth time!
You have tried to get back on track and fallen off the plan over and over again. As an idea try this approach... You don’t want to fall into the SS-Binge cycle this early on in the plan... Or you could be on the road to a bigger problem.
Whether you are new to Cambridge or you took a break whatever the reason...
This is fine, and sensible, you have nothing to feel guilty about... You are a normal human being; don’t feel guilty for eating food!! Well all do it, and we all have certain commitments, family occasions, holidays, bad days etc… the list is endless!
You would and will gain around 5-10lbs in water and glycogen when you leave SS suddenly, so you haven’t actually gained any real 'fat'.
Look at the bigger picture here, this is a step towards a new future, becoming obsessed with restarting and falling off, can be a game you really don’t want to get involved with!
Ok so its time to start or restart, it will be harder every time, each and every time we go back to SS it gets harder, and trust me the nearer you get to goal it can become impossible! My advise for first timers is this, go into Sole Source gradually, ask your CDC for advice, yes I understand we want to lose weight fast, but this is the tried and tested way, gradual step down in calorie intake, carbohydrate intake, can reduce all the painful effects of withdrawal and ensure a good start on the plan of your choice!
I was just posting on another thread that talks about why do we have to have Add A Meal, you might find that interesting, as it applies to what I’m about to say here..
Abstinence is painful to the mind.. It is severe, and we know it causes a strain on our lives, relationships, and 'normal living' due to the restriction of food.
However, the reason you are back here again, or here for the first time is because you need that fast weight loss... If you really are serious about losing the rest of your weight, start or go back into Cambridge on a higher plan to begin with...
DAY ONE.
Allow yourself all the foods on the 1500 plan for one day; add in One Cambridge Diet pack for the day... EAT, GUILT FREE, enjoy it!!
DAY TWO
Move down to 1200Kcals. Slowly we are reducing the carbohydrate intake, and even the carbs we are taking are of a Low to medium Glycemic Index value... So the tired, sluggy feeling that carbs give us are limited.
Also carbohydrates we were eating during our ‘before diet’ that contained refined sugars can alter our sugar levels and create the need for more food; this can be out of your control, the body can crave and demand more, leading to a break in abstinence!!
INFORMATION TAKEN FROM THE HIBERNATION EFFECT THEORY:
Did you know anytime you eat refined carbohydrates (bread, potatoes, chips, pastries, beer, pasta, rice and sweets), it is converted into sugar by your body during digestion. In order to use the sugar, your body then releases insulin required by your cells to convert the sugar into energy.
But since our diet can be so heavily comprised of carbohydrates and sugar, your cells start to be insensitive to your own insulin due to this abundance, over time.
In other words, your cells start to resist your own insulin and therefore, your body has to produce more insulin to get the same job done. Left untreated over time, your over-production of insulin will reach chronic levels.
Now, the big problem is…this excess insulin is very bad for you! Excess insulin signals your body to store sugar as fat, and go into fat saving mode. It is as if your body thinks you're a hungry bear going into hibernation. Like the bear, your metabolism slows down and makes it impossible for you to lose weight no matter how hard you try. You're always tired and always hungry. So what do you do?
You eat even more making you even more insulin resistant. A vicious cycle isn't it?
Working down the Cambridge phases, these factors are now controlled by the GI Diet. Reducing all levels, and preparing your body for Sole Source.
DAY THREE
Another day over and complete... you will have already upped your water to above 2 1/2 litres a day... You will be eating ALL the food allowance in the 1200 plan, enjoying every meal adding your 2 packs of Cambridge diet a day.
DAY FOUR
You can begin to move onto the 1000 plan today. Still only 2 food packs, but the carbohydrate intake just reduced again dramatically... this stage can leave you feeling pretty hungry, but mind over matter, its still easier than trying to go back to SS if you are bingeing and falling off.
DAY FIVE
Sticking with the 1000 plan today, virtually a week has passed; mentally you are not abstaining in a painful way... Your body has reduced carb intake, fat intake, which will help reduce those headache side effects at the beginning of ketosis.
You will feel the difference physically as well as on the scales. You will have a good weight loss so far, but NO PEEKING just yet! You are entering the diet plan with the right attitude... Ideally this should be spread over a couple of weeks (ask your CDC about the preparation stage, there are 4 stages to the Cambridge Health Plan, preparation, Weigh Loss, Stabilisation, And Maintenance. I know dieters minds, I have been there, and anyone that has done this plan before will want to jump straight back in!! we all know they don’t want to do a 'normal' diet for 3 weeks when they begin, they want to eat everything in sight the night before as a disastrous last supper and want to Sole Source immediately as they want to lose weight NOW.. Lol Be patient, this weight didn’t appear overnight, and keeping it off wont be that simple either.
DAY SIX
Drop your diet plan to 790, enjoy your proteins, and carbohydrate allowances, make sure you eat ALL you are allowed to eat, lose any fizzy diet drinks you may or maybe have been allowing yourself on the 1000 plan.. Include an extra pack now so you are consuming 3 packs, your meat, fish or cottage cheese allowance (measurements supplied in your yellow weight care with Cambridge booklet available from your CDC), or a combination of them. 2 1/2 litres of Plain water Minimum or water flavouring supplied by your CDC (personally I recommend upping your water to 3 or 4 litres if you can manage it), black tea, black coffee... and nothing else!!
this next part is where I upset people..
Sorry, but I’m not trying to do that, I’m trying to give you an alternative and effective route back to SS for those that have been unsuccessful in getting back on track..
DON’T add ANYTHING extra to the plan that the book doesn’t recommend! That includes mints, fizzy drinks, marigold, blah blah...
You want an easy route back, not a quick route back to DAY ONE AGAIN..
Make this transaction as smooth as possible... e.g.: drive from Scotland to Birmingham... Don’t let’s drive past Devon on the way!
I lost ten stone last year and for the last 2 stone dragged myself kicking and screaming... believe me when I say, if there was a way to cheat this diet and still get a good result, I looked for it!!
I found out the hard way, there isn’t one!
People, who add bits n bobs into the plan, may not even realise it at the time, but in the long run if you compare it to when you were A1 perfect, it was so much harder once you added things! The diet is tried and tested, and designed by a team of scientists; let’s not assume we know better than they did. If we did, would we be here now?
DAY SEVEN
Add A Meal... You may even be in ketosis... Don't test for it, it doesn’t matter...
If you have done the plan to the T you will either be in, or on your way in the next 24/48 hours.
And low and behold?
DAY ONE OF WEEK TWO!!!! U DID IT!!!
Guess what? You’re sole sourcing, with a lot more ease than you were last week when you tried... (Just don’t forget to add a meal after 4 weeks!)
One last thing... a slow entry, leaves you with the knowledge that, if you need a break you can gently move up onto a plan that suits you for a period of time without any guilt, and consequently end your diet plan, happy, guilt free... And with a healthier perspective of food!
Well folks, there is a different approach to starting or restarting...
I tried all the other things.. Sometimes you can try and try and try and it will not matter you WILL NOT go back fast... However, some do.... and there will always be one that jumps back in feet first and gets it off again.
I have done it 3 times now... gone back onto the plan to Recover from a holiday gain... I have had to recover time off for surgery and giving up smoking and lastly honeymoon over indulgence...
All this was before I did the maintenance phase.. And my gains if I’m honest were due to not having done maintenance prior to these events consequently suffering guilt for eating... Inevitably resulting in eating more than I should have!
I told you earlier, I try everything... Well I always have done... And I always learn the hard way...
Don’t suffer my pain…
Do it the right way to begin with, and leave on a more positive note than some of us who have struggled through our weight loss have done...
For those that are beginning for the first time below see below the official steps to get off to a great start on your first time on Cambridge.
Getting Ready
Use the preparation phase to reduce food intake gradually, especially if you will use ‘Sole Source’ to lose weight. Reduce the levels of carbohydrate, fats and sugar before you start.
Begin 1 or 2 steps above your weight loss programme. For example, if Step 2 (790 kcal) was going to be used for weight loss, start on Step 4 (1200 kcal) for three days, then move down to Step3 (1000 kcal) for four days before starting the weight loss proper. Gradually increase the amount of water you drink - especially important for those who have a history of constipation.
Good Luck...!
