Our last week - Spring Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

So our last week! Here's the Spreadsheet for its penultimate outing

One more week could see another couple of pounds off.

Fingers crossed, and good luck!

bellalurgy - I gave a spiralizer that I used to make courgetti. Will get used more in the summer when I grow my own.

Knotty your menu sounds very similar to mine so will be watching replies with interest.

Swapped eggs for Greek yoghurt and raspberries this morning. Chicken salad for dinner. A concerted effort to drink more water. And not sure on dinner - roasted chicken and asparagus last night and DH ate it 😂

Just thought - maybe halloumi salad for dinner with chorizo!

Can I join in? 11 st 6lb this morning and biggest I have ever been. I'd like to lose 2-3 stone ideally. I'm 5ft 3.

I think I've got the idea- for breakfast I just had an omelette cooked in loads of butter, with a whole avocado and goats cheese. Goats cheese was only 1g carb/100g so is that ok?
I feel totally stuffed now.
I am a coeliac anyway so cook most stuff from scratch, my husband and two of my three dc are allergic to milk and soy so we drink almond milk in tea etc. Is this ok? It's the unsweetened kind and carbs are about 0.2g/100g so hoping so!
Also, if i'm not hungry at lunch, is it ok to skip?

Welcome everyone!

For all those of you who keep asking, rather anxiously, 'is this ok?' can I suggest that you head straight to the spreadsheet (see the link in the OP) and have a look at the tabs at the bottom? There you'll find all you need to know - Bootcamp rules, a list of allowed veg, and lots of great resources about low carbing.

But a couple of things jump out to me immediately:

• you really don't need to worry about counting calories - at least not until you're nearing your target. It's far more important to make sure that you're eating properly, i.e. following Bootcamp rules. As long as you're eating sensible portions (i.e. not trying to reduce the amount of food you're eating such that you're depriving yourself, nor piling your plate high with huge portions), then you'll be fine

• it's really important that you make this a high fat way of eating - it's not high protein. You should be eating mostly fat, a medium amount of protein and low carbohydrate. When choosing your meat or fish, make sure you choose fattier cuts, and this way you'll also reduce the protein content.

• drink your water! Check rule 6 for the table that will show you how much water you should be drinking - the more you weigh, the more you should be drinking each day

• if you're buying pre-prepared foods, check the back of pack labels. Have a look at the grams of carbs per 100g. Anything under 4-5g carbs per 100g is generally fine - but obviously if it's something that you're not using a lot of, you can be a bit more flexible. As an example, Colmans English mustard is 13g carbs per 100g - but I defy anyone to eat 100g English mustard!

And as we head into the weekend, who fancies a low carb treat?

I was invited to dinner at a friend's last night, and she knows I'm a low carber - she served me this salted caramel ice-cream last night and it was absolutely gorgeous. They make 4 flavours - salted caramel, mint chocolate, vanilla and a new one, chocolate hazelnut.

The carb counts do vary, so check those, but based on the one I tried, I'd say these are definitely something you could include as a treat. And certainly no-one you served this to would ever think it was low carb/low calorie!

Thank you! I do try to up the fat (veg cooked in butter etc) and I didn't think I was eating too much protein but I guess I was! I find it easier to track my intake (of everything, not just calories) as it stops me over eating, and I want to lose less than a stone. But this WOE has definitely stopped my picking - I've always been a terrible picker!

BIWI. I have just added the ice cream to my shop. Bought the individual tub as I don't trust myself with a big one!

Knotty I have definitely stopping picking too! And I was also terrible before!

Morning all, just checking in.
Think I've about caught up with the thread.
Flax seed is the best thing ever for constipation . Make sure you drink plenty with it, though.
BIWI that ice cream looks great, unfortunately they don't sell it in Sainsbury's, so I am going to have to venture further afield in search of it.
Welcome Giraffe - you are about the same height/ weight as me- and knotty - you are about where I want to get to!

Had a lovely beef stroganoff and cauli rice last night, butter chicken tonight.
My weight really isn't shifting at the moment, but my clothes are feeling looser. In fact, I've ordered some size 12 trousers which are the same as the ones I normally wear for work (but a size smaller ) as I'm fed up of pulling my trousers up. I don't think they will quite fit yet, but it'll give me something to aim for.

Going for another run tonight as I've not managed for a few days due to work pressures.

Just had late breakfast of scrambled egg with broccoli & cheese. Not sure if I will want lunch but will have avocado & smoked salmon if I do. Out for a meal with friends tonight but going to a Turkish place so I think it should be easy to stick to it. I'm thinking lamb something or other with salad? Not a pudding person so that's not an issue. I am however a gin person and I plan on having a couple of gin & slimlines.

How big are the Lidl 10g of carb rolls and are they round or what shape so I can look for them?

Thanks

Hi everyone.
BIWI, thanks to the link to the spreadsheet- I didn't know it existed so I will spend some time looking through that. I did wonder how everyone knew the rules!
I managed not to snack this morning as I normally would- went for an impromptu picnic with the kids and a friend and temporarily panicked when making sandwiches for the children- I ended up with a tin of tuna, another avocado, a load of spinach leaves and half a cucumber, with a massive dollop of mayonnaise, which was actually really nice! Is it possible to overdose on avocado?

Just popping in to say hello and welcome new people

Giraffeski - while you're getting used to eating this way, you can snack if you're hungry (as long as it's low carb, obviously!). But you should find that once your body is used to eating this way - which should take a couple of weeks - that you simply aren't hungry between meals.

(It was a real revelation to me that this would happen - sometimes I even forgot to eat, which had never happened!)

Your picnic sounded perfect, and lovely too.

One of those bleurgh days today! Didn't get out to do any shopping so had to scrabble something together from what's in the fridge - very uninspiring. Corned beef, salad and coleslaw for breakfast, leftover sausages, veg and philly for dinner. Snacks were 10 almonds, a piece of cheddar and a greek yoghurt with a tsp of cocoa mixed in. Right now I could devour a steak or a lovely juicy piece of pork belly.... yum :)

Farmers market tomorrow so getting my list ready. Got my spiralizer today, haven't opened it but I have had a look at Tom Kerridges Dopamine diet cook book which I ordered at the same time (was cheap). Some lovely recipes I can't wait to try. Day 88/100 done, think I'll have an early night. Pulling up carpets tomorrow which should mean lots of exercise.

Enjoy your spiralizer bella. I have two, which according to a quiz DH did once means I'm vair MC.

Ran again today, so pleased about that, it's definitely getting easier.
Had butter chicken with cauli rice for dinner. If anyone hasn't tried it, I can thoroughly recommend it. It is from the idiot proof cookbook, but is also posted on the BC recipe thread.

I am thinking about stopping weighing as I feel slimmer, clothes are looser but the scales aren't showing it, which depresses me. Which I know is daft as the important thing isn't the number on the scales, but how I feel and look.
Don't think I have the willpower to just not weigh, though. I think I will have to ask DH to hide them. He can put them somewhere high where I can't reach them.

I'M BACK

Did you miss me? Probably not even noticed I've been gone

Anyway, was in Cuba for work and had a few days holiday too. It was very good but I am glad to be back and definitely glad to be back to lc food. It was not possible to stick to lc in Cuba so I was dreading weigh in but it wasn't as bad as I thought. Only 4lbs on so I'm ok with that.

Back on track today with a big cooked breakfast this morning then salmon for dinner.

Ohhh, low carb ice creme [sits on hands]

Maybe for my birthday, its this month.

Welcome back Sayrra, I noticed you'd disappeared but then a few have since the end of the official camp. Cuba? Wow! How did you find it?
4lb is pretty good actually isn't it? I find that quite reassuring. I don't know about others but I'm finding myself quite scared to go off piste at all. I've done the strict camp from the start with two exceptions from time to time, being alcohol and pumpkin seeds on my Total. And even though I'm at my goal now I can't bring myself to reintroduce higher carb veg or fruit or anything else. Which is fine to a point but when eating out out at friends I feel I'm a bit of a pain when I don't actually need to be. And I worry that I'm missing vital vitamins from fruit-i used to practically live on the stuff. 3 months since I had an apple!
I know it's been recommended that once at goal you should start experimenting with different carbs and tolerances, but I feel for me it's all or nothing. But surely strict BC is not sustainable?

Well, complete miracle. I felt lighter/less bloated so weighed again this morning and discovered that I weigh exactly the same as I did when I went away. Whoosh, 4lbs gone despite daily churros

pisspot I think I am quite tolerant of carbs so very lucky. On the first year I did BC I aimed to maintain between BCs and used that time to try out different things to see what I could cope with.

I find that I can eat higher carb fruit/veg quite easily with no issues. Start with an apple if you want and see how it goes. I'd recommend trying one thing at a time and weigh in regularly to check its working.

I like BC eating so generally choose to do that anyway.

What things do you miss most pisspot if it's fruit I think you should be ok to add some in. If it's deep fried pizzas followed by a gigantic cake then I don't think you should try that except v v occasionally. If you allow a carby meal or should be ok if you get straight back on track. You need to make sure you don't have too many cheats or have them every day. I often start the day after a 'cheat' with a mini egg fast (fried eggs for breakfast, omelette for dinner, cheese in between) just to get back on it.

Cuba was very interesting and I enjoyed my trip but I don't think I'd rush back.

Yay for you SayrraT!

I haven't disappeared. I had a week off last week. Put 3lb on. Damn you glycogen/water! Been back on it this week.

My colleague in work, who has tried every diet going for years, has finally started low carbing, albeit a well known national dieting company's version. She's lost 5lb in the first week. I am so happy for her. I could also shake her, I've been gently pointing her this way for ages. Still you can lead a horse to water etc.

It's mostly fruit, really. And a full roast, so joining in with all the different vegetables, the Yorkshires, the gravy. And a roast potato or two. I miss the popadums when I make curry but find substituting the rice fine so I guess I could transition to a take away without too much bother.
I bake a lot with the kids but am not missing the results so much if I'm honest. I'm definitely more of a savoury persuasion.