Maintaining weight & cheaters confessional

[EvaTheOptimist]

Thanks to BIWI's bootcamp I've lost loads of weight. I'm determined not to put it all back on. So I am now consciously trying to maintain my new weight.

I finished the last bootcamp on 150.8lb. My aim is to stay below 11 stone (154lb). Since bootcamp I have weighed between 149lb and 151.6lb. I think this roughly counts as maintaining!

My plan or experiment is to see whether basically eating bootcamp style, but with 3-4 off-piste moments per week (eg chocolate, toast, special treat meal etc) will do the trick of maintaining.

Post here to share your experience of maintaining the low carb way.

Also feel free to confess any cheating here, offload and wail in a safe space!!

[StuntNun]

Thanks for setting up the thread Eva. I lost just over two stone last year thanks to BIWI's Bootcamp and have been maintaining since November with a minor derailment at Christmas. I would like to lose a little bit more weight to try and get my tum into better shape but I'm focussing on exercise rather than diet at the moment. I will be joining the current Bootcamp but I don't expect to lose much, if any, weight.

[PeonyStick]

Marking my place ..... Still need to lose a bit but feel perhaps the 'off piste' thread is my natural home ! and would follow wise eva anywhere

[EvaTheOptimist]

Stunt maintaining since November - that is an achievement, sounds like you have this state of mind sorted. Any tips?!

Yes Peony this is the home of off-piste!

Thank you for joining me here, both!

To start things in style I have just been out with DH for a birthday meal. Warm ciabatta starter, a happened-to-be-low-carb main (fish & ratatouille), followed by a chocolate brownie. The ciabatta was much appreciated as something I never eat these days. The chocolate brownie... well maybe I should have stopped short of that. These things are treats but these days I can really feel their effects on me (gut rot, bloating, sickly sugar high etc etc).

Anyway, a bit of straight-and-narrow-ing for me now for a few days.

[StuntNun]

Eva my maintenance weight is 132 lb. I see quite a lot of fluctuation (between 131 and 134 lb) in my daily weigh-ins, especially around my TOTM, so I regard anything up to 134 lb as okay. If my weight is above 134 lb for two consecutive days then I do at least two stricter Bootcamp-style days. In theory this should prevent that insidious weight gain that got me overweight to start with. Otherwise I pretty much follow Bootcamp Light but with a more relaxed attitude, e.g. an extra large bit of chocolate, or an apple, or a roast potato with my Sunday lunch. And then I have the odd excursion such as a baked potato for lunch, sharing a pizza with DH at Pizza Express, spaghetti carbonara (my fave food) once in a while. I find that now I have lost the excess weight I seem to be more insulin-sensitive and more responsive to my body's needs. So the occasional carby-twat meal or an ice cream for dessert etc. doesn't result in a weight gain or cause carb cravings afterwards as it would have done during weight loss.

In my opinion the biggest barriers to maintaining the weight loss are those extended periods where you can't follow the low carb diet easily: holidays, visiting family and Christmas. When I went on holiday last year I tried to stay as low carb as possible but probably went off-piste once a day. I just accepted the weight gain as inevitable and went back to Bootcamp Light when I got home. Christmas was much worse though as I gained 5 lb which was quite difficult to shift again because I was so close to my maintenance weight. I was really careful in the run up to Christmas and didn't buy in biscuits, chocolates, mince pies etc. but then I think I relaxed too much after Christmas and that's when the weight went on. Lesson learned, next Christmas I'll be more careful so I can enjoy the carby indulgences I want to have and not get sidetracked by other things.

You can see from my weight loss graph just how the summer holiday and Christmas caused a spike in my weight.

[EvaTheOptimist]

Stunt that is an AMAZING graph.

Its great you've got to a point where you can keep it occasional and beat the carb cravings. I also feel my body is more responsive to what I eat. For example this morning I am completely not hungry - still full after last night (so have skipped breakfast). This is unheard of behaviour for me, I was always hungry for breakfast and having a big carby meal would have been no barrier to (in fact would have triggered) further snacking.

I hear the warning about any weight gains being more difficult to shift!... 5lbs doesn't sound so much does it - but in fact is more than a month of proper bootcamping at my previous rate of loss. Definitely a few days of bootcamp ahead for me. I also don't dare weight daily any more - I'm going to next weigh on Friday or Saturday morning - good news only wanted here!

[Notsoskinnyminny]

Stunt well done on maintaining, which app do you use to record your weight?

Eva fingers crossed we'll soon be joining you but we'll be popping in for sanctuary when our efalumps chuck us off

[StuntNun]

NotSo the app is called True Weight and it's brilliant as it uses a weighted running average to smooth out day-to-day variation caused by water fluctuation. It makes it much easier to see the trend. For example over the last month the dotted line shows my weigh-ins but the solid line shows the moving average and you can clearly see the overall trend is level.

[EvaTheOptimist]

Hello Notso Yes this is a safe place for confessions. But I feel sure there will be nothing you need to confess, especially as you are being swept along in the excitable tide of a new bootcamp.

I was super good yesterday, all food passing the bootcamp standard.

[PeonyStick]

Loving that graph stunt ! Having used the scales avoidance trick - it came back to haunt me. 4lb up since end of last BC - so deffo time to hit the water and avoid those dairy snacks. or any snacks

I tried a tip from you eva some while ago - I painted my nails last night - thereby no snacking or kitchen wandering was possible ! worked.

Stuck at home all day today waiting for a car to be delivered. Gping to ruin my nails and attack the garden, so that the snack monsters voice doesn't whisper to me !

[EvaTheOptimist]

I think that's someone else's tip Peony but good thing that it worked. Hope you're happily busy in the garden. I've been properly focused on work since 9.30 (a state of mind I often struggle to attain!) so have not thought about snacking once. And now I declare it lunch-time!

[EvaTheOptimist]

Definitely struggling to get that work state of mind this morning! I've been staying low-carb, but having low-carb snack binges in that dangerous "in the kitchen cooking tea, after school" time of day.

I'm low-carb but I still have Food Issues!

[StuntNun]

I can't admit this on t'other thread but I have the teeniest sweet potato to put into tomorrow's Thai green curry.

As you were.

[CrabbyBlossomBottom]

Hello my lovelies!

I'm joining you here because I haven't got time to keep up and do super replies on the main thread - it's so busy there the first few weeks and by the time I finish reading I've lost the will to reply!

Sorry have been largely incommunicado lately. Am not feeling great and tend to retreat into myself a bit at those times. Have still been reading the chat thread and cheering you all on, I just don't have much to say (unusually for me! ).

Also, I'm still not 100% committed to doing bootcamp proper yet - just can't seem to muster the willpower/energy/enthusiasm for much at the moment. I've accepted that me feeling so shit lately is probably caused or certainly exacerbated by my carb and wine heavy diet. I just can't seem to do things in moderation, so the 'occasional good carbs' quickly spiral from having butter beans in hunters' chicken one week, to having beans and suet dumplings in hunters' chicken the next week, followed by fruit scones slathered in butter and washed down with a tsunami of wine.

In an attempt to coax my elephant near enough to get back in its saddle, I have held out the promise of as much almond fruit crumble as I like whilst I readjust to low(er) carbing, and not being too strict - so half a slice of breadcrumbs on last night's cauli cheese, for example. So I shall join you here, even though I've still got weight to lose. When I finally summoned the strength to step on the scales I found I've put on 6lbs over the last couple of months. Not as bad as I expected tbh, and I'm not too worried. I'm more concerned with feeling better - in body and mind - and being healthier.

Anyway, moanymoanymoany over. I was going to do a fishy update later but don't see Sayra on this thread? Can't we tempt our chat thread regulars over here for more personal chat, whilst the main thread is so busy? I don't want it to look quichey if I just reply to certain people there and ignore the newbies, but just haven't got the energy for full engagement over there yet.

Oh, and I've posted my Orgasmic Duck idea over there;


I have been applying my mind to the Orgasmic Duck question:
You'll need a sharp knife, couple of duck breasts (though you could use legs, too), plenty of garlic and some sprigs of thyme or rosemary. To get it really garlickly I would do the following...

Get your duck breasts and slip the knife under the skin, slitting along one side and feeling the skin back, leaving it attached on the other side - so you've exposed the top of the breasts but can pull the skin back over afterwards.

Slice a clove of garlic very very thinly. Make numerous deep slits in the surface of the duck with the knife - just cut down with the very tip of the knife , so you end up with small slits around 1cm deep. You can do this on the bottom of the breast too.

Cut your garlic slices to size and then insert them into the slits, sticking the odd bit of herb in there too. Push them down so that the garlic is right in the hole. It should end up studded with garlic/herbs.

Crush a couple of cloves of garlic to make a paste, preferably in a pestle and mortar. Add plenty of crushed black peppercorns and finely chopped herbs. If it isn't pastey enough you could mash in a bit of butter, but there'll be enough fat from the duck skin really.

Spread the paste on the top of the breasts then pull the skin back over the top, securing into place with a couple of cocktail sticks. The fat rendering from the skin should trickle that garlic flavour right down through the meat during cooking, and the slices of garlic inside will infuse through the meat.

Cook as you would normally do. Enjoy Orgasmic Duck. Avoid breathing on others for a couple of days after.

[EvaTheOptimist]

Stunt I've been eating butternut squash and not even considering it as cheating! Sweet potato, very nutritious. in denial and haven't stepped on scales yet this week

Crabby I've also been dropping in to read bits of the main bootcamp thread as it whizzes by at superspeed... haven't felt the urge to post yet. I nearly posted about carb flu but thought perhaps it wouldn't have been a helpful post (as I would have suggested maybe having a "soft start" week to ease past the carb flu, and that is probably exactly the sort of thing BIWI would find unhelpful). In fact I am no expert on carb flu as I never suffered it - perhaps as I did initially have a soft start as I gradually worked out that things like baked beans were not allowed!

I'm so sorry you are feeling a bit low Crabby. All us low carb old-timers love to see you post and hear news from you. It would be a wonderful world if we all had this mental wellbeing thing licked and the workings of one's moods and emotions were less of a mystery. I suspect yesterday I was trying to "feed myself better" - I was feeling tired and less than 100%, and subconsciously I think "eating this piece of cheese will bring back my lost energy"... no it won't, I'm feeling tired because of a different (unknown) reason and food can't cure it.

Unlimited fruit crumble sounds like a wonderful idea (I remember a "piteous wail" from you last time as you tried to restrict your crumble consumption!). Re the scones scoffing etc - I've found its really hard to have rules about what you eat, when the rules are very very flexible. If they're very flexible then everything becomes an allowable exception. I put my metaphorical foot down, for a few days, after Sunday night's chocolate brownie... which meant I turned down freshly-baked cup cakes that DD had made on bank holiday Monday. That was really hard. But if I'd been still in "exceptions are OK at any time" mode then I would have eaten them as something lovely and special... and really started to look like my "maintaining" plan was a myth.

And on the other hand, rules that are too strict and specific can work against you too, because its too easy to fail and fall off the wagon, or you get too obsessed.

Remembering that, for you, this is about feeling better in body and mind, should help. With a quick finger in the air, I'd say that the butter beans ought to be helpful to body and mind - the scones likely not! and the dumplings in moderation somewhere in the middle... breadcrumbs on cauli cheese - sounds helpful to body and mind. Huge wedge of crusty bread with your cauli cheese - not so helpful!!

Re tempting people to this thread... I definitely don't want to distract people who have thrown themselves back into strict bootcamping - I suspect Sayra is one. You will have to wade in there and de-rail the main bootcamp thread with fishy news!!

[PeonyStick]

I'm on here..... crabby I too feel a little overwhelmed with all the many many new names and feel like I am replying to the people I 'know' or the last few questions. Hopefully it will settle down - but yes would be great to lure a few over here sayra, trashy notso etc. Just for the moral support and the chatty bits rather than the 'post all todays meals'

The duck sounds magnificent and I am trying it tomorrow night - did think tonight, but perhaps I might not be welcome on the ward round on Friday am !

My new distraction from the snack monster is '24' on TV. I have never been much of a TV watcher but did watch the return of it last night - and now am hooked and want to watch the original 8 series !! DH despairs !

I think I am an 'all or nothing ' girls as well - I quite disgraced myself at Easter and then just couldn't get a hold of myself despite how it was making me feel. I am really really trying now - but still finding I have cheese almost everyday. Its that last thing at night comfort mouth feel type thing....... Its all lowcarb, but I think it stalls me, as does all dairy I think.

Sorry you are feeling a bit shit crabby

eva I am completely and utterly guilty of thinking food will solve my emotions whether up or down.

[EvaTheOptimist]

me too Peony but I used to think a slice of toast would solve my emotions. Now at least I'm only relying on cheese!!

[StuntNun]

Eva butternut squash is about 20g carbs!

Peony watch it watch it watch it. Season 1 of 24 is amazing. Season 2 is pretty good 2. Then I think it went downhill a bit but was still enjoyable.

[PeonyStick]

Just a quickie - a colleague of mine has just been telling me about a 'stress tracker ' app on her phone - about stress level , stress source , emotion log etc . She says it totally helped her emotional eating ...
No time to look -but thought I would 'share'
Xx

[Notsoskinnyminny]

Hello my lovelies, just a quicky had a look at the other thread and lost the will to live and popped over to the naughty girl thread as I need to feed DD and run her back to uni now that she's sorted out bastard megabus who've cancelled their service from Liverpool to London after she'd booked to go to Paris for a convention and concert - she gave the poor megaman a roasting I've trained her well and they've switched her booking to Manchester so not too bad - she did demand they paid for her to fly plus an extra 2 nights hotel accommodation as she'd miss the first day of her convention or they could pay silly money for her to fly from Manchester.

I never got into 24 but might give it a go as I'm getting bored with the following and still can't understand whats going on in Mamon so apart from GOT there's sod all to watch soapfree household much to DHs delight

Laters

[EvaTheOptimist]

Wow 20g is a lot... it really is the naughty girls thread. oops

[EvaTheOptimist]

I love the idea of the stress tracker, but I don't have a smart phone.

Interestingly, after talking on here about snacking while cooking tea - tonight, no snacking! This confessional works. and no butternut squash today either

[BIWI]

I thought you wanted to start a maintainers thread, not a naughty girls' thread?!

[Fourarmsv2]

PeonyStick - don't do it! I'd be scared to add up how much of my life I wasted on back to back episodes of 24! It's all on Netflix though :)

[EvaTheOptimist]

BIWI! ahem...

I stepped on the scales this morning and I am 150.2lb, so same weight as the end of the last bootcamp. Despite butternut squash and chocolate brownie and Easter . There is no justice, but I'm not going to worry about it. Cinders, you shall go to the ball eat chocolate tonight

(Trying to look like a good girl didn't last very long)

Crabby, would a week/weekend split work for you - Monday to Friday evening low-carb; Friday night to Sunday anything on the menu? Then you can eat treats guilt-free at the weekend and Monday to Friday (knowing you can relax on Friday evening) doesn't seem that long?

[PeonyStick]

thats quite a good idea eva. I think when I get there ( as not a maintainer yet), that might work quite well for my all or nothing personality type.
I just popped on the scales this am and I seem to have lost Easters gain already - which is quite something when I remember the utter , utter ( face down in choccy shit) piggy moments..... followede by just eating carbs almost for the sake of it shudders when remembers white bread crips sandwhiches!.