Week 1 - Pre-Summer Low Carb Bootcamp - Off we go!

[BIWI]

Evening all!

I'm starting this thread now as I have to leave early for work tomorrow. and I know how keen you'll all be to weigh-in first thing, so won't want to wait until I can get round to getting it up and running

[[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/103TaUddLEq2Pb4ofRgsR2sMLkvgN5qK021keqkhFj8Q/edit#gid=0
Here's the link to the lovely shiny new Spreadsheet of Fabulousness ]] for which many thanks, SayrraT.

Your name should be on it, but if it isn't, just add it at the bottom. Don't try and re-alphabetise the list - Sayrra or Wombattoo will do that later.

And don't touch the blue cells!!!

Joining in too.
I had very good day today. I thing it was because I also decided to start C25K. i still feel adrenaline in my body after my morning run. As a result my apetite is suppressed and I had no cravings today.
B: 3 eggs + few tbsp of butter
L: 150 g of ham + few tbsp's of mayo + 2 handfuls of baby tomatoes
S: A slice of ham
D: Green beans + smoked fish warmed up in double cream (yummmmm)

I also cooked 4 portions of chicken breasts for lunches with herbs and spices to take to work and some beans (from frozen), I am going to steam cauliflower now!

I only managed 4.5K steps through the morning run, I am doing what's called the slow jog - you try to run no faster than your brisk walk. It prevents knee injuries. 16K steps in total anyway due to my commuting

I am pretty sure Idrank over 2 l of water today.

Thank you Jiminy
I spent most of my day in bed today with cold so the soup was my comfort food to spruce me up.

Tomorrow I will add some avocado and haloumy to my dinner and will have pot of Greek yoghurt as a snack

Off to read old BC threads for some foodie inspo

HemanOrSheRa sure the recipe is:

Walk to the fish monger section of Morrisons and locate lemon butter sauce pouch.

Take home, decant into glass jug and microwave for 90 seconds

Serve immediately

4.5g carb for half the pouch

@Mandelinka - but it's not really comfort food is it, if it's going to push you off track?!

One of the biggest problems people often report on Bootcamp is the emotional aspect of eating - if we didn't use food for emotional comfort it would be so much easier to shed the weight, I think.

I'm sorry you're not well though.

no way Jimminy! I've seen those pouches in our local Morrisons! I'm getting some tomorrow then .

Can I have the recipe for your lemon butter sauce Jiminny? It looks great.

Well done everyone on a good first day.

Oops, I just saw your post above! I will look out for it at Morrisons

@BIWI

PREACH 🙌

Just about the hardest and last bit of this WOE to crack for me is what you do when shot hits the fan. My go-to used to be a takeaway, glass of wine and Jeremy Kyle on catch up TV. I'd wake up the next day with a self loathing hang over

Now, I always have very luxurious face masks in the bathroom and lovely expensive moisturisers etc. If I've had a shocker of a day, I have a hot bath with jeremy Kyle on my phone, then put a face mask on and spend half an hour moisturising all my skin, literally being kind to myself. Works a treat because no one wants to eat with a face pack on!

dust I'm such a fraud

But hey, it's quick!

Their 'the best' cheese sauce is also wonderful and I may or may not have been known to buy their 'the best' cauliflower cheese ready meal and eat it in place of dinner when I'm particularly lazy it's made with double cream and proper cheese and I luffs it.

Their gravy in pouches is also really low carb, can't remember exactly but it was under 5g for 100ml and lower than bisto granules, made with proper meat juices as you'd expect really! :)

I'm out of the house 11 hours a day so I don't have time to mess about with fancy food, although i haven't had a meal yet on this WOE that wasn't nice!

I've just enjoyed reading all the posts. I'd love some tips on my food as I keep falling off the wagon (previous boot camps, I haven't kept falling off today!).

B: coffee and cream
L: boiled egg, avocado, ham, olives, cucumber
D: some Brie and tuna mayo with little gem lettuce and some more cucumber

Jiminy I too get the Morrisons cauliflower cheese meal for those emergency moments when you just can't be arsed to cook.

I started a thread a few months back on emotional eating: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/weight_loss_chat/2812244-Emotional-eating-and-self-sabotage There were some interesting resources suggested if anyone wants to have a look. I have found mindful eating concepts to be very useful

Can we have a new thread every day??? Will be easier to read/catch up!

B: black coffee
M: whole camembert w cucumber slices
L: bacon rashers w whole avocado

3 litres liquids

Think I probably had too much dairy .. a little grated cheese on my cauliflower, a babybel, some salami with brie (2 small pieces), cream in my coffee and a cup of tea with a tiny splash of milk.

On the plus side I managed 2.5 litres of water ... that's very good for me!

Well its the middle of the nightshift, I'm not too tired and weirdly not craving caffeine.
Not really hungry either!

I wondered about gravy and just assumed it would be off the menu without checking. I guess I still need to shake off the association with tasty food equals bad.

I'm so looking forward to a creamy coffee this morning. One day without cream was no fun. It's become a habit every morning. I'll buy yoghurt, salad, cheese and avocado on the way to work. I'll also pack my water bottle and those M&S crisps. I've ordered pork crackling too as my calorie intake is potential too low - 1100-1350 - even if not hungry.

Oh and I wondered where people noticed their weightloss first. I'm feeling it off my face which is odd, I didn't realise I'd put weight on my face! I can see it on my tummy but still a lot to lose. I'll have to find an item of clothing to measure against. It's tough as the weather warms up.

Morning all, dreadful night's sleep and been awake since I spotted the news about Manchester on my phone while checking the time. Far too close to home this time!

Today's plan is:
B: scrambled eggs, mushrooms in lots of butter
L: left over pulled pork, salad, HM Mayo, olive oil
D: courgetti with avocado pasta sauce, bacon, mushrooms

Shasta DH said on Saturday he could see I'd lost weight in my face. Not exactly the fattest part of me but I'll take what I can!

Shasta try adding a slice of lemon, lime, cucumber, strawberry or any combination of these to your water. For people that are suffering from carb flu (headaches, fatigue) then those Zero electrolyte tabletss* linked to upthread sound promising.

Don't worry about being in ketosis StyleDilemma, there are different levels of ketosis and you don't need to be in ketosis to lose weight. Just follow the Bootcamp rules. I personally don't like being in deep ketosis, it makes me feel all jittery.

Worship that hot chocolate doesn't sound too carbs, I wouldn't worry about it to be honest.

On the milk front, I have switched to unsweetened almond milk which is very low carb. It's also low calorie so you can still have tea or coffee during fasting if you introduce intermittent fasting at any point. My kids appear to be allergic to sleep so I need a lot of caffeine to get me through some days.

Littlebillie there isn't any way to predict weight loss as it varies so much depending on different factors. I would say that if you follow the Bootcamp rules closely then you could expect to lose between 6lb and 1.5 stone. It can be frustrating when you've only lost half a pound and someone else has lost three pounds in a week. So try not to get caught up in what other people have lost. People that are serial dieters can even gain weight when they go low carb because there's a healing process required to replace muscle mass lost on previous diets.

Sorry for the bolding fails, my phone can't seem to cope with Mumsnet and DS4 had hidden my iPad.

Dustmotes when you're well adapted to low carb then you don't tend to get carb flu again after a short period of eating more carbs. It's due to regaining metabolic flexibility that allows you to switch more easily between carb burning and fat burning. If you're long-term low carb (i.e. over 6 months) then you also don't get that 2-3 lb weight gain after a high carb meal because your glycogen stores partially refill over time.

Ooh CaptainBra I forgot about almond milk chai lattes. I must get some more chai teabags (it's just a chai teabag made with unsweetened almond milk instead of water).

DementedMa there's no need for complicated recipes. A fried pork chop and vegetables with butter is a simple low carb dinner.

Nekobus ask to keep your cast when they take it off then you can weigh it!

@ShastaBeast - it depends what you mean by 'gravy'! If you're making your own, it's absolutely perfect, but just don't add any flour. This will mean that your gravy won't be thickened. So you can just be posh and call it 'jus'!

If you're buying pre-made gravy, or gravy granules, please check the back of pack for the carb count. Some of them are very carby indeed.

I guess I still need to shake off the association with tasty food equals bad

On this WOE (way of eating) you definitely do! No excuse, when low carbing, for your food not being tasty, at all

dementedma. I too stir fry cauliflower rice. It makes a good meal when you add chicken, extra veg and soy sauce. Most of my meals are really simple and quick - meat and veg. I also eat quite a lot of eggs which are cheap and easy.

Here's how last night's dinner was made:

Chicken

One chicken breast per person
Pancetta or smoked streaky bacon (for 2 people, one pack should be enough)
Mature cheddar, grated - about 25g
Mozzarella ball - about half - pulled into small bits
Wholegrain mustard - half a tablespoon

Lay out slices of pancetta (or smoked streaky bacon) flat, slightly overlapping, so that they form a kind of mat, the same length as your chicken breast.

Take the skin off the chicken (sadly! You could save the skin and make crispy chicken skin, which makes a lovely snack), cut a long slit down the side of the breast

Mix grated cheese with mozzarella and mustard, and stuff this into the chicken

Then lay the chicken on to the pancetta/bacon, and wrap the slices around the chicken to enclose it.

Season with black pepper, place them onto a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and then bake for 20-25 minutes, at 200 (fan)/ 180, or Gas Mark 6

Broccoli

One pack of tender stem broccoli
One red chilli

Wash the broccoli and then put on to a baking tray
Slice the chilli finely and scatter over the broccoli
Season with sea salt and black pepper
Drizzle (generously) with olive oil

Bake in the same oven for around 15 minutes (be careful with the timing, as it can go from nicely charred to burnt very quickly!)

Cauliflower

2 large cauliflower florets per person
2 echalion/banana shallots per person
Ground cumin
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Boil the cauliflower in salted water for around 5 minutes (you're not cooking it fully)
Slice the shallots thinly
In a frying pan, sauté the shallots gently so that they go soft, but don't brown
Drain the cauliflower and add to the shallots
Season with sea salt, black pepper and about a teaspoon of ground cumin, then add the lemon juice
Continue to sauté for another 5 minutes or so, until the cauliflower is as soft as you like