Week 9 - Low Carb Bootcamp - Eek! Only two weeks left!

[BIWI]

Morning campers

Here's the spreadsheet

So our last two weeks. This Bootcamp seems to have gone really quickly!

Having been in carby twatland for most of the last two weeks (aka my DB/SIL's fat-free, low cal home) I'm back on track and aiming to make these next two weeks as strict as I can. My personal strategy for this BC has been not to weigh at all - but to go by my clothes. I can tell by how my gym clothes are fitting that this BC has been a good one for me (overall), and I'm not going to let the last fortnight undo all this.

Anyway, I hope those of you weighing have a good result.

[ditavonteesed]

this one

[seaoflove]

I've been following Bootcamp for three weeks and have lost maybe half a pound. Am hacked off

Clearly, I am Doing Something Wrong. I've ditched dairy since Monday in case it's that, but I'm wondering when I can ever move to Bootcamp Lite if I'm seeing such poor results on a dairy-free Bootcamp?

I have a feeling I'm not eating enough fat still. I don't understand enough about low carving to understand how much of a problem this is. Should I not be losing weight eating low carb and high protein?

And as I said on the previous thread, I REALLY don't want to have to log everything on MFP because I find it tedious, but equally I don't think I'll ever get the proportions right if I don't.

Last two days' food:

B - omelette with mushroom and half a shallot, fried in butter
L - bacon, salad leaves, vinaigrette
D - roast chicken, salad leaves, mayo

B - scrambled eggs with extra butter
L - omelette with a little Red Leicester (yeah I cheated on the dairy), cucumber sticks
D - chicken, bacon, salad leaves, cucumber, radish, vinaigrette, mayo

And I'd love a gin and tonic tonight but I daren't in case it buggers things up royally. Grr!

[seaoflove]

I've also found that cutting out dairy has made me hungrier between meals. An Americano with cream could keep me going for hours. I miss them...

Well, I've just "cheated" and had some FF Greek yoghurt. I needed something dessert-like to help with the Friday night booze cravings.

[Patapouf]

sea what's in your vinaigrette?
Are you drinking enough water?

[seaoflove]

I've been drinking around 2l which I know isn't ideal, but with a baby and a preschooler I can easily forget to drink for 2-3 hours. But I've downloaded an app and managed 3l today!

The vinaigrette is just extra virgin olive oil + white wine vinegar.

I'm just really confused with getting the proportions right without weighing and tracking everything. I've been googling (and confusing myself even more) and apparently high protein is a problem? At this rate I won't know what to exclude from my diet next!

It's really disheartening because I want this to work. Calorie counting/5:2 just leave me hungry and miserable, and with two small children I need to not be hungry and miserable

Oh, and ketosis? I've convinced myself I've never gone into ketosis, because I've never felt any different at any point.

[Romeyroo]

seaoflove, sorry I wanted to reply last night, but was too tired - just got as far as pondering if Sea of Love was a film with Al Pacino!

I am not an expert, but I do wonder if you are actually eating enough - looking at that makes me feel hungry - I do think you need more fat in there but maybe also more LC veg. I am a salad person as well, especially in summer, but use spinach and cucumber to bulk it out as well as lettuce; also olives are quite a good addition.

It sounds counter-intuitive but if you don't eat enough fat, your body goes into starvation mode and holds onto the weight - plus, if you are not drinking enough water, then you can't efficiently burn it.

How much do you need/want to lose? I only started to think about portion sizes when I got close to goal as my appetite had changed but my brain/social expectations of what I should be eating hadn't.

I also didn't have scales till I had done about seven weeks, so no idea what I lost at all; I did lose inches so maybe measure yourself as well as weigh? Plus, after I had got rid of the sugar withdrawal symptoms, I felt better in many ways.

I think you are doing well even doing this with a baby and pre-schooler and I think if you keep up the water and add more fat, it will help.

[StuntNun]

Stone look up fat bombs. There are lots of good chocolatey-coconutty ones.

Romey I take Proven Probiotics for gut health.

Seaoflove you may need to tweak things to get weight loss going but you're on the right track so don't get disheartened. A lot of people find it takes a bit longer before they start to see weight loss. I'm wondering if, with having young children, you're somewhat sleep-deprived and stressed, both of which make it harder (but not impossible) to lose weight. Don't worry too much about the protein, you have to be eating quite a lot of protein, probably over 40% of your daily calories, before that becomes an issue.

You may or may not need to cut dairy. Dairy, particularly milk, is insulinogenic which means the amount of insulin released is out of proportion to the amount of carbohydrate in it. It's a 'suck it and see' problem, the only way to find out if dairy stalls you is to cut it out. I actually do worse when I cut dairy for some reason.

To get the best results you need the water and you need the fat. You also need to be eating enough calories. As well as water you can drink herbal or rooibos tea, normal tea and coffee. I use unsweetened almond milk in my tea and coffee as it's very low carb. More butter would be a good way for you to increase your fat intake. Mushrooms, courgettes or leeks fried in butter. Boiled or steamed cabbage, broccoli or cauliflower with melted butter poured over. If there's a puddle of fat on your plate then that's good!

Without knowing quantities it's difficult to judge whether you're eating enough. When I was trying to lose the last few pounds I was still eating a minimum of 1800 calories a day and a lot of people counterintuitively find they need to eat more to lose weight. I find a couple of days of tracking calories and macros in MFP can identify where you are going wrong and might be worthwhile in your case where you can't quite identify the source of the problem. Getting your fat intake above 70% is harder than you might think and can make a huge difference to weight loss.

Generally the Bootcamp rules are the best method for most people. So, for other people on here, unless you are very close to goal or you think there is something going wrong don't worry about any tweaks or logging your food at this stage.

[Romeyroo]

Stunt, thank you, where do you get these?

I just had a BPC - it was lovely, my first proper one!

[seaoflove]

Thanks you two. I have around 20lbs to lose, or a stone to get back into my pre-pregnancy clothes. This is why I'm impatient - I'm the heaviest I've ever been, and because it's baby weight as opposed to any other type of overweight, none of my clothes fit. Not even my knickers! So unless I want to spend the next six months in maternity clothes and post c-section size 16 granny knickers, I really need to start losing the weight soon

I feel like I'm eating enough, but there's also a doubting voice in the back of my head saying I surely must need to watch my portion sizes. It's difficult changing that mindset of large portions + fat is BAD for weight loss, isn't it?

Stuntnun - I really think I might need to start using MFP for a bit, even though it's a PITA. I am mystified how I can increase my fat intake any more than I already am - as it stands I'm merrily blobbing butter on vegetables and eggs and drenching my salads in vinaigrette. I have no idea how people manage 70%, unless they eat slices of butter like they do cheddar?!

And yes, I am sleep deprived and quite stressed (older child is 3 going on 13 ) which I suppose has a part to play.

[StoneFoxMama]

Brilliant, thanks stuntnun. Glad to hear they're a real thing! I'm going to look into making stuff with coco butter too i think as i can buy it locally.

[StuntNun]

Romey I buy the Proven Probiotics at my local chemist but Amazon also sells them.

Seaoflove I'm exactly the same - one stone of pregnancy weight gain to lose. My DS4 is 16 weeks and I'm not losing any weight at the moment but it's down to sleep dep and poor food choices. Two days of MFP would give some clear ideas on how to tweak your diet.

Stone I make low(ish) carb chocolates: 100g 70% chocolate, 100 ml double cream, 15g butter melted gently together then poured into a silicone chocolate mould from Lakeland. They have to be kept in the fridge - preferably at the back in a tightly sealed box so you can't get at them too easily.

[seaoflove]

I'll give MFP a try over the weekend then.

Just tried to get into my size 14 "fat jeans" I bought after having my first child... nope! I'm damned if I'm buying any clothes to fit me right now though, so back into the maternity jeans I go.

[StuntNun]

Seaoflove have you tried bulletproof coffee or pork scratchings? They're both almost pure fat. If you aren't breastfeeding then intermittent fasting is a good way to boost weight loss. Interestingly according to Jason Fung, low carb combined with intermittent fasting is the best diet to treat diabetes.

I tried the halloumi again, this time fried in butter with a little cayenne, paprika and white pepper. I think I didn't cook it for long enough last time as it was much nicer this time round.

[seaoflove]

I did 5:2 for a while two years ago, but really struggled with the hunger in the late afternoons/early evenings. It got yo the point where I really dreaded fast days, so I'm not sure I could go back to it, especially when I struggle enough at that time of day with two children to feed and entertain. I am a very sluggish, slovenly person at heart as it is.

Isn't there another type of IF that involves fasting from the evening until the following lunchtime? I could maybe get on board with that, or is it not as effective?

I'm a bit scared of BPC and recently watched an episode of Hairy Bikers which involved a trip to a pork scratchings factory. Enormous lumps of frozen pig skin as big as a fridge had to be sliced with an industrial saw before going into the fryer. If I didn't already think they were a bit gross, I do now

You definitely need to fry halloumi until it's completely softened. If it's still a bit hard in the middle the texture isn't nice.

[BIWI]

seaoflove

Last two days' food:

B - omelette with mushroom and half a shallot, fried in butter
This looks good, but how much butter did you use?

L - bacon, salad leaves, vinaigrette
What kind of bacon? If back bacon, then it's pretty lean - and it's also processed, which we're trying to avoid. Tuna mayo would have been a better option, as you could have had the mayo for the fat content.

D - roast chicken, salad leaves, mayo
Great - and I hope you roasted the chicken with lots of butter or olive oil, and ate the skin?! But only salad again? You do need a bit more veg than this. How much mayo? If you'd used veg, you would have had an opportunity to use a bit more butter


B - scrambled eggs with extra butter
Lovely!

L - omelette with a little Red Leicester (yeah I cheated on the dairy), cucumber sticks
I see you're worried about the dairy - do you know for certain if this is an issue? It's a good way to get extra fat into your day. Hope you used lots of butter to cook your omelette?

D - chicken, bacon, salad leaves, cucumber, radish, vinaigrette, mayo
What kind of chicken? What kind of bacon? Again, as above, these potentially are all lean protein, so you won't be getting much fat. And again, not much veg going on

I get that you don't want to weigh/count - neither do I, which is how Bootcamp came about! But make sure you've really read the rules - you do need to be eating more veg and salad, and you really need to up your fat.

And the water is pretty important too!

However, StuntNun is right (as always!) when she points out that you're probably a bit stressed out with a young baby/no sleep, etc. Don't add to your stress by worrying unnecessarily about your weight. I know it's only half a pound, but it is a loss - and you haven't put any weight on!!!

Have a good read of the resources that have been posted on the spreadsheet (look at the tabs at the bottom), as this will really help you to understand what we're trying to do - and why fat is a Good Thing

[miffy49]

I thought I would never get my head round LCHF after years of low fat diets that got me nowhere (except onto the verge of Type2!). Now I happily eat 70%+. My family are still staunch LF dieters though so I keep a few fat bombs and some cubes of coconut oil in the fridge for days when I struggle to meet my fat target. I make them in ice cube trays and store them in a jam jar. As Stunt says, the fat bombs are best at the back of the fridge as they are a bit moreish! I use 125g unsalted butter, 125g coconut oil and 100g 70% choc all melted together over hot water. Sometimes I add a good tablespoon of almond butter for extra yumminess.. I tend to make a big batch and stick most of them in the freezer to cut down on mess.

I think Romey has an excellent point about your brain needing to catch up with portion size as you get into it too. I'm honestly not hungry but I can look at my plate and think its not enough. I have tried to get into the habit of having less with the proviso that I will return for more if I still feel hungry. Mostly the spare bit goes into the fridge or freezer for another day.

Don't be too quick to panic and start tweaking. I notice some of the ones worrying are new mothers. You need to give your hormones time to settle out. they are geared to keeping you a bit of weight on for the extra energy you need to look after a little un. Add that to lack of sleep and general stress and you are asking a lot of your body. Just feed it properly and it will pay of if you are patient. The worst thing to do is to start chopping and changing diets. That just makes your body think that if it holds the weight long enough you will give in!

[seaoflove]

Hey BIWI

Take your point about back bacon being lean, and the lean chicken, but I have eaten plenty of tuna mayo over the past couple of weeks (and I added olive oil to the cold chicken breast to stop it being too dry to eat!). The bacon was for variety. I know it's a lot of salad leaves as well, but when you have a salad bag in the fridge that needs to be eaten...

Now the salad's all gone I have a bunch of different veg to eat over the weekend.

Now tell me more about coconut oil. I bought a jar this week and it's been sitting on the counter waiting for me to figure out what I want to do with it. Fat bombs sound interesting and would be a good 4pm pick me up!

[billabye]

I've started frying my cauliflower rice in coconut oil. I use a heaped tsp in 1 serving. I can also manage to eat a small spoonful straight from the jar of its the Lucy Bee brand which sounds gross but it's ok.

[RaisinGirls]

Did a 'big' shop yesterday, so fridge is now full of lots of useful foods to do LCBC.

I have some steak mince in - can I make a chilli with this? Its 500g and I would add 1 onion and 1 tin of tomatoes plus dried chilli and oregano. I'd serve it in a bowl with extra mature cheddar grated on top. Advice on whether this is suitable would be really appreciated, as Im still finding my feet.

I had scrambled eggs and two slices of bacon this morning, and for lunch I had two chicken drumsticks, a chicken thigh (skin on ready cooked from Sainsburys) with lettuce, cucumber and 4 cherry toms -also an extra big dollop of mayo. Sound OK?

[miffy49]

I can't manage coconut oil off a spoon. If its runny and straight from the fridge its a dangerous job to try and chip it out so that's why I put it into an ice cube tray. A solid lump to eat is similar to Bounty but less sweet. I tend not to eat before about 1 or 2pm as once I've eaten I tend to wilt so I have a cube with my morning coffee and it keeps me going nicely.

Coconut oil is lovely with green beans. Just blanche the beans and drain then fry off in some coconut oil. Left overs are even nicer used cold on a salad.

[BIWI]

RaisinGirls - welcome!

I have some steak mince in - can I make a chilli with this? Its 500g and I would add 1 onion and 1 tin of tomatoes plus dried chilli and oregano. I'd serve it in a bowl with extra mature cheddar grated on top. Advice on whether this is suitable would be really appreciated, as Im still finding my feet.

You can absolutely make chilli with this. What fat content is the mince though? Mostly supermarkets sell low fat mince, so make sure you make it with plenty of oil - ideally coconut oil. And use shallots instead of onions - they are only 3.3g carbs per 100g compared with 7.9g for onions. Check the carb content of your tinned tomatoes, as they do vary. Sainsbury's Basics chopped tomatoes in a carton are the lowest I've found. But this sounds lovely, especially with lots of cheese on the top - I also like sour cream or full fat natural yoghurt on top of mine, and I like to add mushrooms in place of the kidney beans.

I had scrambled eggs and two slices of bacon this morning, and for lunch I had two chicken drumsticks, a chicken thigh (skin on ready cooked from Sainsburys) with lettuce, cucumber and 4 cherry toms -also an extra big dollop of mayo. Sound OK?

This sounds fine, as long as you have used plenty of fat - just be careful, though, the ready cooked stuff from the supermarket sometimes has added sugar. Check the back of the packet

[Beccus]

I am struggling too, really feel I don't know what I am doing, especially how much fat to use and portion size. it's really odd adding more fat just for the hell of it after years of low fat dieting. worked up the guts to make bullet proof coffee after also being horrified by it but finding my double cream congealing. Don't think i put enough butter in it though, & i don't have coconut oil. think breakfast went ok as didn't need to snack until lunch time (unheard of) but may not have has enough fat at lunch as got hungry before dinner. feeling a bit like I've eaten too much rich food all the time, but generally really liking this way of eating

[seaoflove]

Tried a bit of coconut oil from a spoon and found it actually quite pleasant!

Also have been logging on MFP. The macros section is really useful isn't it? Damn you, MFP

[Beccus]

I am struggling too, really feel I don't know what I am doing, especially how much fat to use and portion size. it's really odd adding more fat just for the hell of it after years of low fat dieting. worked up the guts to make bullet proof coffee after also being horrified by it but finding my double cream congealing. Don't think i put enough butter in it though, & i don't have coconut oil. think breakfast went ok as didn't need to snack until lunch time (unheard of) but may not have has enough fat at lunch as got hungry before dinner. feeling a bit like I've eaten too much rich food all the time, but generally really liking this way of eating

[10lbsleft]

argh just merrily slathered my salad in full fat heinz mayo. had a mouthful and thought it tasted very sweet. looked the carb count up and it's 3g per 100g rather than the usual 1.4-ish g carbs of most full fat mayos [a