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!!!

Excited to start bootcamp. Disappointed that slow recovery of sprained ankle means I can't run, but will do as much walking as possible and keep up exercise classes. Interesting that, after nearly a year of exercising a fair bit, I've lost no weight from it at all - so I must alter my eating habits. Have half-heartedly LCHF (vegetarian)for past three weeks without much loss, so have great hopes of bootcamp. Good luck everyone.

ragz you know me and by creamy coffee breakfasts

I was having creamy coffee in the morning every morning and cheese probably 3-4 times a week so not insane amounts of dairy really. However, my skin was awful. I have adult acne but it went cystic and hurt like hell! It was all on the lower half of my face which suggests hormonal issues, and one of the problems you can get with dairy is it throws your hormones out of whack so I thought I'd give it up and see what happened. I'm a science geek and love a study, so I was careful not to change anything else about my lifestyle.

My skin completely cleared up in the first 4 days and then I weighed today and it looks like I had a whoosh after stalling a bit for 3 weeks ish, so it definitely had an impact.

I'm not going hard core dairy free, I'm giving up cream in coffee and having coconut cream and coconut oil instead, but if I fancy a bit of cheese now and again I'll definately have it!

Thanks BIWI for the new boot camp and to everyone else who makes it run smoothly

I'm a lurker rather than a poster cos I'm shy and introverted but this time I will try to be more chatty! I have been LC since Boxing Day 2015 and in that time have lost about 25kg - I got where I wanted to be nearly a year ago which is why I don't tend to log my weight during boot camp as I'm more about maintenance than losing. Having said that I would love to get rid of my crepey belly apron! I have a suspicion that dairy may be my nemesis...

Jiminy - WOW!! What a fantastic whoosh! Did you give up all dairy, even butter? I have been trying to cut down on the cheese but I just love butter and my creamy coffees (that habit is down to 2x a day now but I can't stop entirely!).

To anyone who is concerned about eating LC out and about, it really is a doddle. I travel a lot with work and M&S service stations are amazing for LC. I have sooooo many sparks points (though not a clue what they actually do?!). Their 3 for £7 deli deals are great (mmmmmm, buttered ham, drool) and I can't wait to try the chorizo crisp things that have been mentioned on the threads over the last few days. As for eating out it is really easy - meat / fish plus salad / green veg plus butter / oil = job done. Restaurants are always happy to swap the carb component to "anything green" in my experience. The only place I have had a real problem is in Kenya as we get fed by the company and the owners are Indian and vegetarian. One memorable lunch was rice with a spicy pasta topping and potato toasties .... I had the shakes all afternoon and felt like I had been on the gin!! I tend to eat as little as I can get away with and write those weeks off....!

Styleddilemma I do lots of exercies as I am training for a charity coast to coast triathlon event - you might feel a bit shabby to start with and your performance will almost certainly suffer initially, but you will soon bounce back. I did a 21 mile walk over the Yorkshire 3 peaks on saturday - the others were all chowing those horrible gels, flapjacks and jelly babies as well as a normal picnic lunch - I did the whole thing with one low carb high protein Lidl roll (fatty ham, chesse, lettuce and mayo) and a couple of teaspoons of peanut butter on dark chocolate squares. I felt no hunger or loss of energy and could quite happily of carried on. One thing I do find good is the High5 Zero electrolyte tablets, and they are on offer on Wiggle at the moment - I've just ordered 3 tubes! You just pop a tablet into a pint of water / drinks bottle after / during exercise.

sheepy nooo I could never give up butter! butter apparently isn't classed as dairy but as an animal fat for some reason so I figured I'd keep that in.

These chorizo crisps sound interesting, do you reckon I could make my own in my dehydrator?

I started on Thursday and have lost just over 2lbs by now, but am using today's weight as my start (153.3). Yesterday wasn't brilliant since DP thought pizza and garlic bread was a good idea for dinner (and by the time her turned up with it I was beyond caring) but I only managed half my normal portion, partly because I was full and partly because the mouth-feel was strange. I did make up the calories with some extra cheese and salami though.

Today I'm having:
B - Total yoghurt, 2 coffees
Snack - some cheese
L - Salad of spinach, cucumber, green pepper, olives and salami, with basil, olive oil and salt
S - more cheese
D - something made of pork mince. Was thinking meatballs or pates, probably with a slice of bacon mixed in, with some broccoli and other veg.

Stunt do you make your own yogurt? I like to make my own - with full fat milk and I strain off the whey. Would this be OK for bootcamp or it is too carby?

First day with no berries in my yoghurt - plain Greek yoghurt is so uninspiring. I can envision adding a bit of cheese or veggies to breakfast (not in the yoghurt). I've ordered flaxseed and vanilla extract but not sure I fancy either, I'm fussy at breakfast as I used to skip it due to nausea. Sadly ran out of cream - creamy coffee is an excellent compensation and can fill me up alone.

Big shop with all low carb high fat goodies is arriving tonight. Avocado and mozzarella/brie with salad are contenders for lunch. I bough chorizo and cracklings crisps in M&S but can take them to work. Plenty of meal options to choose from once food arrives

Pasta free bolognese with cheese and veg
Skin on chicken thighs with salad and yoghurt dip
Stir fry chicken and veggies
Salmon and veggies
Duck breast and Savoy cabbage with bacon
Whole roast chicken and veg.

Salad with cheese and meat/fish with olives and avocado for lunches. Eggs and bacon for the night DH is out.

Argh, I was just writing out a shopping list then realised that we don't have an oven just now. We switched the Rayburn off as it was costing a fortune.

I'll need to think of meals I can make with a George foreman grill, microwave and single ring camping stove!

Morning! May I please join? I need some accountability as I am struggling to stay on plan on my own. I have done LC before with great success but keep falling off the wagon.

I am off to Spain 🇪🇸 in 4 weeks so would love to feel a bit thinner by then.

Looking forward to getting to know you all

My diet is quite high dairy but my skin is pretty good so far and I've come off the pill which is always a risk factor for breakouts.

I started reducing carbs the day after the Easter weekend. Lost about 5lb so far but hoping slow and steady equals more maintainable and less saggy skin! I only have 15-18lb to lose now to get a BMI of 21-22. I'm in the gym twice a week but pain and mobility issues mean I'm less active generally.

So for breakfast I had two eggs and two rashers of bacon fried in oil as DH wanted a bacon buttie for his breakfast.
I have made a load (like, 24) of mini crustless quiches as well as i'm going to be working later so need something quick to take with me. I just chopped courgettes, green peppers, broccoli and shallots and fried them with bacon, then mixed beaten eggs with grated cheddar and baked it all in mini muffin tins for about 15 mins. Yummy.

Morning all

I've added my weight to the spreadsheet. Can't wait to be out of the 'morbidly obese' category, last happened 4 years ago. Since then I've had the menopause and 2 cancer diagnoses. Time to get on and make the best of the new me!

Breakfast - spinach and mushroom omelette and creamy coffee
Lunch - Not sure, usually have just brunch
Dinner - DH is making coconut fish curry with cauliflower rice

Yum.

Thanks for setting this up ladies, it's good to be doing this with others!

bella I distinctly remember posting on the last thread 'IM NO LONGER MORBID!!' When I dropped below the cut off for my height it's an awesome feeling

Thanks Jim, yay for butter!! We have a creamery in our town and I'm sure they must wonder if I am making industrial amounts of shortbread given the amount of butter we get through....!

I reckon dehydrating the chorizo would be easily doable - my plan is to buy some of the M&S ones to see what they are meant to look / taste / feel like then start experimenting! I bought a dehydrator ages ago as my OH likes dried mango (but not the sulphur dioxide or sugary preservtives they put on it). To my shame the bloody thing is still in its box - time to dig it out!

sheepy my dogs are raw fed so I bought mine to make them nasties free dog treats

I buy super duper cheap meat and shove it in for 12 hours, I can get a months worth of treats for about £5 when the raw friendly ones you can buy are extortionate!

Thank you BIWI, wombatoo and SayrraT for all your work and our brand new Bootcamp.
I did the last Bootcamp, lost 1 stone since 30 Jan and kept it off in between, I am now in the 10's and no longer obese, I've got 2 stone to lose to get my BMI in the healthy range.
I am off on holiday for a week next Wed but will stick to this woe as much as I can. I am also training to do the Ride London 100 at the end of July, I have got used to doing training in ketosis, feel quite buzzy sometimes and my body shape has changed, I was obese but in size 12 jeans
Jiminny well done on your whoosh, it was great reading your posts last bc, I've also given up cream in coffee, thought it was stalling me but I was having 4/5 a day!
to everyone who is having a hard time at the mo.

It's the protein in dairy that can be a problem Jiminny, in some people it is hyperinsulinogenic. Since butter is less than 1% protein it's much less of a problem than other dairy foods. If you want to limit your exposure further then ghee is virtually free of protein and it's better for cooking. Try and get a ghee without ethyl butyrate because that gives it a weird flavour.

I have ordered some chorizo to try making my own crisps. I was going to brush them with oil and bake them. I will report back later.

Heman I make my own yogurt and strain it through muslin to make Greek yogurt. The longer you culture it, the lower carb it becomes, which is why it becomes more sour. So I go for 12-14 hours even though 8 hours culturing would work fine.

Sayyra what about pork belly on the George Formby grill? Or thick cut pork loin. 100% beef burgers would work well too, as would high meat content sausages. Most veggies can be microwaved then pour over butter melted in the microwave.

I have raw cocoa nibs in the cupboard Jiminny, left over from my raw chocolate making phase, but they're about 18% carbs so, while lower than chocolate, they're still too carby for Bootcamp.

I bought an aspirational t-shirt to assess my progress. I can just about put it on but it's rather tight.

@runningtogetskinny Where's your breakfast?! Rule number one of Bootcamp!!!

Chesterdrawers, I'm thinking of getting lunch from M & S today as well.
The first few days I need to make things easy, till I get the hang of it.
I had scrambled egss and bacon for breakfast, it was really tasy.

Dinner should be easy, I will have wht the family is having, minus the potatos or pasta (or yorkshire puds).

Lunch is my main problem as in the past it's usually been bread based. I don't have time to 'make' something at lunchtime -
God Bless M & S

BIWI i never eat breakfast once I start eating I just feel more hungry throughout the day! I HATE eggs so feel a bit limited as fruit seems off the agenda? Maybe I could have a full fat yogurt

Can we have cheese, in moderation?

I think a pile of steamed cauliflower and broccoli florets, with some grated cheese and pepper on top would make a tasty meal.

I don't want meat and eggs with everything.

@styledilemma

Of course you can have cheese! Just don't go mad with it.

Also - add cheese to double cream and make a much tastier sauce - which will also give you more fat.

@runningtogetskinny I happen to agree with you - and I've been doing more reading around breakfast - there's a really interesting book called Breakfast is a Dangerous Meal here ; nevertheless, in the first couple of weeks of Bootcamp it's really important that we make sure we're not hungry

Once you get hungry, it's all too easy to fall into the biscuit tin!

However, if you never eat breakfast, and if you promise me that you won't snack on high carb stuff, then I'll grudgingly allow it

styled yep cheese is fine! Mix some butter int hay veg too.