Week 4 - Pre-summer Low Carb Bootcamp: are you KOKO?!

[BIWI]

Morning all!

Here's the Spreadsheet of Doom Fabulousness

Week 3 might not have been kind to you - and here's the warning that week 4 might be the same

But hopefully by now you're starting to adjust to low carbing, and should be feeling some of the other benefits, even if the scales are resolutely ignoring you!

If you're struggling, come here and tell us about it. Don't self-sabotage by thinking 'oh fuck it' and diving into the carbs!

Looking at the menu for dinner tomorrow. Would "Asian slaw" have lots of sugar in it? Comes with a crispy duck salad and coriander dressing. Otherwise it will be steak sans chips, which I'll also be having on Saturday.

OMG. Think I have a new addiction. How is it I've gone years on LCHF and never discovered fried halloumi before??

reggae potentially - Asian slaw could encompass so many different recipes that it's hard to tell but most Asian style slaw recipes I've seen will have rock/Palm sugar. Can you tell them you have special dietary requirements (not a lie) and ask what it has in it?

Fliss Thanks for the tip.
Bursars You did well to control your purging. Don't let the slip up throw you off track

Saffy - yes yes yes to fried halloumi. Absolutely amazing, isn't it?

My new plan is bresaola on a bed of rocket with parmesan shavings and lashings of olive oil. SUPERB.

I love fried haloumi too! It's so hot and humid here today - don't feel like eating much at all!

saffynool fried halloumi is amazing. Nigella Lawson has this great simple recipe, which I often makes which is:
--fried halloumi
--green salad
--soft boiled oozing egg
--fresh mint leaves

It's really good!

Just jumping on quickly to say... [whispers] the whoosh fairy has been! I'm 173.4 pounds this evening (had to see what was happening as my trousers were falling down at work)

That's the lowest I've been since DD was born just over 3 years ago but it feels good and I'm under a half stone marker which helps with the motivation.

Now I know it might be a blip but I'm taking this one as a result!!

Off to catch up with the thread to those having a tough time of it and much respect for getting back on the wagon when needed

Ooo - please send the whoosh fairy to me!!! She certainly hasn't paid me a visit recently. No weight loss over last week - and it was only my second week so not 'due' a stall.

BUT - the good news is I am starting to feel LOADS better on it. Really enjoying the food now I've rediscovered mayonnaise - and genuinely am less hungry. Weird!

So am hopeful weight will melt away in its own good time as my eating habits and blood sugar levels stabilise.

Hope everyone is having a good evening. Sunshine helps!

nekobus hurray, that's great news!!
I also have days where the scales are really down but then the next day usually they go up again! But also my scales are not reliable at all from what I've discovered so....
Anyway, great news again!

btw reporting to everyone that I was daring & had some konjac noodles yesterday, along with LOADS of water and it was fine! Had not stomach issues / wind issues / nausea or anything else.
But if anyone is about to try konjac noodles for the first time, beware!!! have loads and loads of water before having them & after, plus eat only a tiny quantity to start with, as they're all fibre & too much fibre all in one go can cause quite awful digestive issues.

notdeadyet the lack of hunger & overall good feeling (eg less sleepiness / more energy) are for me the biggest by far pluses of LC eating, which is why I hope to continue this woe beyond Bootcamp, with just few exceptions from time to time.
Don't be disheartened about the slow weight loss. The weight will come off in its own good time as long as you keep at it.

Can someone post the butter chicken curry recipe or the link, that was posted on one of the previous threads. I was meant to save it and I haven't

notdead, I love bresaola too - am off to Italy in July and can't wait to have some proper Italian stuff! stillloving, thanks for the recipe idea, nigella is quite good for low-carb stuff (as long as you ignore the cakes etc!)

Actually on that subject I was reading an old Elizabeth David book today 'An Omelette and a Glass of Wine', which is a collection of her food writing. I was really struck by how so much of the food she promotes (in the 50s and 60s mainly) would work for us - a focus on meat, fish, eggs, cheese, cream, good oils, fruit and green veg etc...very little in the way of sweet stuff and obviously almost no 'junk' or processed food at all. Just made me realise how normal and sensible this WOE really is and how twisted our ideas about 'healthy' food have become over the last 30-40 years.

In other news - I voluntarily ate Brussels sprouts this evening. They were delicious cooked in lots of butter and garlic. Unbelievable; I always thought they were evil little balls of sulphur before...

Sorry, overuse of the word 'stuff' there

saffy I think with enough butter and garlic I could eat an old shoe

Brussels roasted in goose fat are awesome or roasted then topped with Brie and crispy bacon. OMG

Love having this thread and reading all your updates.

B: creamy decaff
L: smoked mackerel, celeriac remoulade, leftover steamed courgettes fried in olive oil
D: 2 small lamb chops grilled till crispy, one portobello mushroom with a slice of Stilton, wrapped in Parma ham and baked, broccoli, buttered cabbage.
H20: 4 litres. But cooking then ironing in the heat and reckon I've lost 2 litres. Currently having a coke zero. Coldest thing in the house apart from ice cream.

I'm feeling really stressed and sad about this WOE today. I'm looking at my diary and I have a straight week of social things that are probably going to involve carbs next week. I have four things for my birthday, followed by four days in Portugul.

I don't know what to do. I want to have fun, but I'm feeling so motivated and happy with my diet and body at the moment, and I'm enjoying that more than I would enjoy any carby food.

Any tips? I'm planning to weigh myself right before it starts (for the first time) so I can at least monitor how badly it all affects me. And maybe use MFP to try and work out how many carbs I'm eating and moderate it as best I can.

Brussels in goose fat, with bacon. Mmm, you are making me think of Christmas.
Well done on the whoosh fairy visit nekobus.
I'm feeling great at the moment, really happy with this woe.
I've not eaten much today as I've just not felt hungry, I think it was a combination of the warm weather and being busy at work.
So, I've had:
B - 2 creamy coffees
L - halloumi, olives and prosciutto
D - one sixth of a humongous and absolutely yummy frittata, it had various veg in, lardons and chorizo and topped with a bit of good old cheddar. Had it with a green salad, hm vinaigrette and hm mayo. Shall be having left overs for lunch tomorrow.
S - spicy chai latte

I'm working this weekend, so no alcohol temptations, but if I get too tired it can be a stress point, although I've done fairly well when I've been doing this woe before and it's not been that that has derailed me. I've ordered a food delivery for Saturday morning, so will at least have lots of lchf food in stock.

Playnice sorry to hear you're stressing about these social events. However, they are nice, good things to be doingyour birthday! Portugal!so try to avoid stressing too much & really enjoy these moments.

In terms of eating. What I would do if I were you is plan some exceptions rather than just falling into them. So for example say 'on this particular meal (or 2 meals) I might have some carbs' if there's something I really fancy etc. Don't just go on a carb fest generally though & don't lose heart. One or 2 meals won't be the end of the world. But a whole week of carby eating will really discourage you.

Playnice - Portugal should be better for this woe than you think. Lots of meat and fish and cheese and eggs and nuts and fried stuff. Really really easy to stick to it. As still loving says - make a conscious decision about the times you want to break out for drinks/carbs but try and go with clear spirits rather than sticky cocktails and you will minimise the damage.

Thank you guys! I'm worried about pressure to eat ice-cream and Portuguese custard tarts in Portugal, because would usually be right up our street! But you're right. I think I will decide to have one ice cream and one pastry and hopefully won't disappoint anyone by not having more.

As for my birthday days, yeah, hopefully if I stay super LC the rest of the days, just eating eggs and meat and the like, I'll be able to get away with having 'normal' meals in the evening and just going as light as I can on the carbs that'll doubtless crop up.

Good to hear about low carb potential of Portuguese food as i am off there in 2 weeks. I will try and do the same and pick my carby meals rather than just saying fuck it and totally falling off of the wagon. We are self catering so i have a bit more control over the food.

I have been really strict as said holiday is fast approaching but still need to lose a little off of my tummy as dresses cling rather than skim -uurrgghh.

B-2x bpc
L - out with kids so corned beef cubes, cheese cubes, smoked almonds and coffee with cream
D - Garlic chicken and broccoli with butter

Lots and lots of water.

Playnice, when I was on holiday last week I went for quite a few meals out.
--at a cafe where I went for breakfast with a friend I had some nice coffee plus an cheese omelette with smoked salmon / mushrooms / veg etc. Didn't seem like deprivation at all!
--then at a meal out with family in the evening, I had a variety of different fish dishes (it was a fish restaurant) plus different salads, including yoghurt based and cheese based 'tapas' like salads, plus olives.
then as I mentioned above there was 1 meal with a friend where I did have some carbs & tried the dessert as well. I had planned I would do this so was prepared. But I noticed I didn't have an intense craving for loads of carbs (in the past this would have been different), plus only tried the dessertwhich admittedly wasn't a favourite for me--and it seemed far too sweet. Depending on how long you've been on BC, you may find that it's not such a problem in reality. But if you're really early days, then I suggest you should be more cautious.

Breakfast scrambled egg and left over lamb
Lunch. Hm asparagus soup and another bit of lamb.
Dinner. Fried prawns, fried halloumi avocado, dressed green salad and mayo. Yes yes to the halloumi. I also have discovered it since doing bc, it's wonderful.

I have the bedroom curtains open and bats are flying around outside. Just thought you might like to know.