Some great tips for the newbies.
Mine are (similar to many already posted !)
1. Plan, plan, plan. Don't go anywhere there will be food/at mealtimes without having thought about how you're going to manage the situation/what you will eat (as far as possible but don't be paranoid !)
2. Drink plenty
3. Keeping a food diary is really helpful. I often don't (one of those 'do as I say, not as I do' pieces of advice !!!) and generally think I'm keeping to the lower end of the syns range, but when I keep a diary it often shows that I'm on the upper end of that range.
4. When you are beginning of this, eat what you want to eat rather than what you think you should be eating. When I started, I didn't want to eat salad I wanted to eat rice, sauces etc so I did. Now I don't mind eating salad but if I had done that to start with, I think I would have fallen off track
5. Use your syns. They are there to make life more 'normal', varied and interesting. They allow me to think of this less as a 'diet' and more of a plan. People ask me 'are you allowed this ?' and the answer is always 'yes' ! I can have anything that I want as long as it is counted and within my syns allowance.
6. Don't think of this as a diet, this is a way of life. For me I feel that coming off the plan is not an option. If I stop, I will regain, so the only way to either stay where I am now or continue losing towards my eventual target is to stay on plan.
Good thread though. Good luck everyone.
Gail x