Week 1 - New Year 2014 Low Carb Bootcamp - And We're Off!

[BIWI]

Morning all!

I see several of you have already weighed in on the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

As of today, though, we also have our bright, shiny, new Bootcamp section on Mumsnet, including our own Weight Tracker, which will only show your own weight/progress.

You can either use the Spreadsheet as we have done before, which everyone has access to and can see, or you can go here and enter your weight.

Obviously you can do both!

When you're in the new Bootcamp, if you click on the tab that says 'more info' that will take you to a section which has loads of information about low carbing, as well as Bootcamp Rules

Before we get going formally, I have to make an important disclaimer:

I am not a doctor, a medic, a scientist, a nutritionist or a dietician. I have no formal training in food, dieting or low carbing. The information that I provide here is based solely on my reading on the subject, as well as my own experience. If you have any kind of medical condition and/or you are taking any kind of ongoing medication, you should consult your GP before starting a low carb diet

That done, good luck everyone!

I am very sad. As I bought my weekly chipolatas from the butchers, I asked how much rusk was in them. Apparently the recipe is 10kg meat, 1kg rusk, 100g seasoning and 30g sage. Which means they're not low carb, doesn't it. They are such lovely chipolatas - not a bit of gristle or unexpected crunchiness in them. Last Saturday I bought 1.3kg and they'd all gone by Tuesday morning! 17 year old DS has discovered how nice they are....

I've been feeling funny today - v v v thirsty. Have been racing around all day with no time for a lunch break - managed to cram a bit of lettuce, pate and cream cheese in my gob at break but that was it.

Not ideal I know. I need to have some snacks to hand that I can just eat, not haven to prepare iykwim.

Just had three scrambled eggs in butter with cheese as I needed something quick will do better tomorrow. runs away from BIWI

Hope everyone's doing ok, just going to catch up on the thread now.

I've lost 6 pounds since doing this woe - I started on boxing day.

I'm down to 10 stone (I'm only 4 foot 11) so this makes me a good size 14. I'd love to get to a size 12. I've been overweight since I was 25- I'm now 39.

It's amazing losing weight but does any one else feel a bit scared when they do?

I was trying to rationalize it last night and I think what I'm "scared" of is not having the fat to sort of hide behind. If I get thin I sort of think that I will have to appear competent....does anyone know what I'm trying to get at? As if I don't deserve to be thin?

I know I have low self esteem but in RL I'm confident and extrovert, at least outwardly...

I've never managed to lose weight properly before so I'm amazed I'm doing it now...but it's a weird feeling!

PUT THE GIN DOWN AND NO-ONE WILL GET HURT

:) BIWI.

I don't have any alcohol in the house. Tis easier:)

You're right, Lavender!

All this talk of alcohol is not good on a fri evening - although I am dry until 8 February so a bit longer to go

Today :

1. Breakfast on the run - Parma ham and a packet of chicken breast in between school drop off , a blood test and rpm class

1. Lunch lovely - left over chicken casserole and mashed swede from the other day with an avocado, tomato ( 2 small cherry ones) and mozzarella .

1. Snack - cheese and olives

1. Am cooking pork belly slices , mashed celeriac and cabbage fried in butter and cream - looking good !!

I'm seriously close to having a drink.

Fuckety fuck.

I'm not but I will be by the time big brother starts. I have some gin under the sink.

TinTin - if you really don't want to, do that trick of 'playing the tape to the end'. How will you feel afterwards? Is it worth it? Will you regret it?

I've also been tempted tonight. It's a "good" thing I can't trust myself to have wine in the house so can't actually lay my hands on any.

at gin under the sink.

I'm not going to touch the sloe gin. Promise. I'm making chicken skin crisps instead - unbelievably delicious and feel quite wrong, in a good way.

aright - I also totally get what you're saying there. I have it too, and yet am also outwardly confident and extrovert. I think it is something about being invisible, and for me about deflecting potential male attention (over the years). I also think there's a masochism about it because whilst on one level clearly wanting to hide behind the fat, it is also extremely painful to be so invisible. Very complex stuff. I know it is the reason why I struggle a LOT to stay at a healthy weight. This time I am really going to try to start with a good counsellor once I get close, because I think I'm going to need some expert hand-holding. This time I want the weight loss to be permanent.

Trying v v hard. Sparkling water and pork scratchings so far...

steeleye and gogoogle (and LittleMiss)! yes i have really noticed that i'm having at least a couple of hot flushes a day! i was thinking it might have been due to the cold weather/getting drenched/air conditioning in the car etc but more likely menopausal! glad to hear it may just be a side effect of this woe - though i didn't get it before either

have had a hectic day rushing around and am only sitting down to eat now - i too am craving a nice glass of something chilled with which to toast the end of the week - sparkling water it is then...

sorry just posted what i wrote an hour earlier while preparing dinner for the kids and their friends - just caught up with the thread and am so glad to know i'm not alone in this!

Hi everyone is it ok if I join in a few days late? Hoping to start low carbing again from Sunday or Monday

Actually, hot flushes should be minimised when you're low carbing. So I'm guessing it's probably just the process of 'transition' that's responsible for this at the moment.

Certainly mine are considerably diminished when I'm low carbing, cutting down/out alcohol and also caffeine.

Better day today. Hopefully yesterday's slip won't have done much damage.

B: bacon and egg 'mcmuffin'
L: missed lunch but snacked on some olives with feta, total with cream, a few pork scratchings and an oopsie roll with butter, decaf with cream
D: pork schnitzel, swede mash with cream and butter

Hey all. Am being a bit naughty and having beetroot but it was leftover from my organic box before I started. Do I need to be big sticked?

Btw, anyone got any ideas what I can do with lots of large empty Total pots!?

I'm just sort of checking in really, having lurked around the threads this week. I have to admit (sorry Biwi) that in the last couple of weeks (I started on Sunday 5th) I've had some alcohol. I had half a bottle of red last Sat night and a couple of small glasses of red on Tuesday. Both times felt well earned.

Tues night was my book club at which I normally get battered but instead drank water up till about 10.30 then had a bit of wine at the end. Last Sat was my best friend's son's second birthday party - he'd been ill the previous two days and I had been over there baking all the cakes and cookies that my best friend was unable to make due to limpet wailing child - and I didn't even lick my fingers when melting two huge bars of dairy milk, let alone eat any of the final results or any crisps, pizza, beer etc at the party.

So feeling virtuous on both occasions I then said 'yes' to wine and basically for me anyway - if I have a little bit, I want more, and if I have more, I make stupid food choices (half a Christmas chocolate orange on Sat night!). So my moral is, you probably have earned it but if you have some you will probably have more and then decide that crisps/the kids' chocolate/whatever else is actually fine,sod it, who cares... But you will care in the morning and you will kick yourself. So there.

Friday night misery in this house.... I've been going a week now and thrown myself 100% in - stuck to it to the letter. Not let anything cross my lips that's not on the allowed list. Spent ages organising, cooking, making lunches and snacks in advance..... The first three days were hideous, I felt awful but I stuck rigidly to it. So a week in, I thought I would weigh myself (that's not unreasonable is it?!). And do you know what I get for my efforts? Nothing. Not even a half pound difference. Nada. Diddly squat.

I then had a ridiculously busy day at work, came home to wheezy DD and in the depths of my despair, ate a teaspoon of Nutella STRAIGHT FROM THE JAR. Now I've got a headache, feel guilty and a bit useless and am just wondering: how long do I give it? I keep reading about people who are dropping pounds after only a few days and I'm jealous .

THANK YOU Notsoskinny - brilliant! :)