Week 8 - Low Carb Bootcamp - lucky number for some!

[BIWI]

Xin nian kuai le!

Happy Chinese New Year. We're in week 8, and 8 is considered a lucky number in Chinese, so hopefully this week will be a good one for us all

Here's the spreadsheet

A very cold week is ahead of us, so hope you all stay warm and safe

ilove somuch blackmozart Yes it's absolutely a new lease of life for me after 30 years of being fat and not being able to regulate my eating. And it is exactly what I needed to find myself again after escaping an abusive relationship. I have said this many times before and I won't tire of saying it, but Bootcamp (since 2017) and BIWI and all the supportive posters have totally changed my life.

I think the posters on the thread who talked about "usually thin" and "usually fat" people having different perspectives was quite insightful. Whoever says anyone can lose weight by willpower and just eat less/move more, hasn't spent a lifetime with disordered eating and obesity. Its just not that easy.

Unlike this WOE. Which is very easy!!!

lizard I don't remember which thread. Just think up a new target now! If you don't remember then chances are you haven't reached it, so don't give yourself a chance to be demotivated.

prettybird I think you may need to see someone about your sprout addiction.

Thanks yolo I knew that 11st was my next (and original target weight), but due to the success of this woe I have looked again at what is possible. Just made up some new mini targets so 4lb to the next one.

One if the things I love most about these threads is how supportive everyone is and that has helped spur me on so thank you all ❤️

Hi everyone, I'm determined not to let my slip up become the beginning of a slippery slope unlike last time over "Xmas" which became "the whole month of December and half of Jan" so I'm back to posting my daily food for a few days.

B - poached eggs, lots of goats cheese, stewed aubergine
L - avocado, cheese and strawberries
D - 3 sausages and celeriac mash
W - never enough! But quite a few cups of black coffee and tea as we ran out of milk and I don't find them too bad, so will try to keep it up and at least I can count them towards my liquid intake.

To echo Yolo, you really are such a lovely bunch on this thread. Definitely could not have lost 15 - 15!! Kilos without you all.

@lizard202 taking of mini goals, my next one is to get to under 70kg, it written more excitingly, into the 60s. I shall be treating myself to a new pair of trousers when I hit that target.

@AveAtqueVale agree with others that roast cauliflower is lovely - lots of olive oil, sea salt, black pepper and - if you like - some ground cumin.

Yolo and all the others - I love this WOE...it's so easy to navigate, I love how it makes me feel, and I love that at last I actually feel in control of what I'm eating. I'd lost that, and with it my self-confidence and self-esteem. I'm starting to feel my old self coming back again, the me I thought was gone. And though I've still got a way to go before I reach my size 12 target, it does feel properly achievable. This time last year I couldn't have imagined that. I love the camaraderie of everyone on Boot Camp too - it helps enormously.

Food the last couple of days (and probably the next couple too, as I've no intention of venturing out to the shops anytime soon):

B - mushroom omelette
L - too busy
D - stir-fry green veg (leeks, chopped sprouts, shredded little gem lettuce), braised in a bit of chicken stock & and a spoonful of creme fraiche. Bloody lovely.

chilli flakes. don't forget the chilli flakes!

My goals work in dress sizes rather than scale numbers. I want to be comfortably in a 16 next rather than just about getting away with a 16 now.

Then it's 14. I'd like to spend the summer of 2018 in size 14 clothes without them being strained.

My ultimate ideal size is 10-12. Don't know when I will get there. But I will. And I want a sexy arse. The one which looks pretty hot in tight jeans. Comparatively so for an old bit of mutton like me.
And I want confidence in my body. So I am not obsessing about which bit looks the fattest, is that tummy bulge sticking out when I sit down, is my double chin obvious at this angle, how flappy are my bingo wings, can I eat in public without people thinking that fat greedy woman eats too much look at her stuffing her face, can I shop in normal shops for normal sized people, can I be brave enough to appear in photos, can I be judged for my abilities rather than my physical appearance, can I wear tailored clothes that hang nicely and fit properly, can I wear heels without destroying my feet, can I wear a swimsuit and go on holiday, can I just be "a person" to other people rather than "a fat person"?

I have other much more meaningful goals relating to my health, life and DC but I'll save those for another day.

x posted. i guess the chilli flakes work just as well with the stir fried green veg as with the roasted cauliflower!

Lots of good vibes on the thread last night, I agree the support on here is immense. I’m so glad I found it. I know without the thread I would have put in weight while at home sick with my hand for three weeks but I didn’t.

Yesterday’s food
B - bacon scrambled eggs mushrooms
L - leftover paella
D - sausage swede cauliflower sprouts

Love your goals yolo

I was out and about yesterday and ended up snacking on Quorn cocktail sausges 10.8g carbs they aren't good are they?

So here's my 12 month graph. It's smoothed by using monthly average rather than daily records but shows the pregnancy and stagnation afterwards! Slight loss in Nov, put it back on in Dec, loss in Jan from LCHF on my own then steeper loss in Feb after finding boot camp!

Morning!

I can't tell you what a relief it is to be back on the meat and veg - last night's huge fatty steak and (whole head of ) broccoli - all covered in butter - was just SO much more enjoyable than my distressed 'comfort' eating junk. Which actually felt more like self harm (yes, yes, technically it probably was), in that the feelings were similar to OCD repetitive behaviours, rather than soothing behaviours. Probably blindingly obvious, but my brain has never seen the truth in that before, so new to my understanding!

Mini-goals: well... that frame thing was interesting. I have tiny hands, but even so my fingers generously overlap on my wrists, so I guess my target may be lower than I was thinking. First mini-goal is to get to 9 stone, 2nd mini-goal is to get under 9 stone, 3rd mini-goal is not to feel ashamed and unhappy in a swimming costume, and after that, we'll just have to see...

Lots more lovely snow expected here this morning

Nice graph! strokes Rayna's slopes

I've just realised that I'm going to weigh the same on 1st March as on 1st Feb which is disappointing given that I haven't had anything to drink other than water, a tea or coffee a few times a week and one Diet Coke all month, eaten a FLGV, a lot of meat, no biscuits, cakes etc etc other than an emergency PMT slice all month. Yes, there was a week when I was guilty of carb creep and I had a bad PMT blow out on Monday but my eating habits have been radicalised.
Like Athel, the PMT blow out did show me that I get more satisfaction from this WOE than I do eating crap. Other posters who are a healthy BMI are obviously losing weight. Therefore, I need to (re-) reconsider how I eat on this WOE. And I think it might be cutting out dairy. My main issue with this will be my 3.30 chunk of cheese which I have really come to rely on. Any suggestions for substitutions for this? And can I start skipping breakfast? I hadn't eaten breakfast for years until starting boot camp.
Any other tips?
Sorry for making this another self-indulgent whinge. So many of my clothes continue to be uncomfortable.

Athelstane stroke away. A lot of people counselled against weighing while pregnant but I found it reassuring that all was well. However I ate more carbs and went off salad and salad dressing, only wanted hot food. Fair enough but wish I'd "fought the fuck its" towards the end as I was quite shocked to end up with over a stone more than I started with lingering consistently for 3 months; the gain wasn't (mainly) from eating so hadn't anticipated having to diet it off!

However, motivated now to get back to my thinnest (and fastest, which corresponds though cannot assume correlation is causation, I was also training more) and get rid of the half a stone that had crept on even before the baby!

It is a pretty graph rayna! I’ve gone back and added lchf weigh ins into my garmin

head definitely skip breakfast if you don't want it, should be easier than ever on LCHF, as long as you don't replace with a snack later. Try it, monitor it and see.
A 3.30 chunk of cheese sounds habit rather than need, can you replace with a nice tea or even a non-food treat? I'm lucky not to be at work at the moment on every level and I snack much less as not so bored or in need of a reward, maybe look at what the cheese is doing; is it keeping you going physically or just mentally?

Head, I think you're allowed to start skipping b'fast whenever you're ready in the BC lite phase. You must be at the point now where your appetite (on good food) can start to guide you, so can wave goodbye to breakfast? And if you need something at 3.30, perhaps have more/more fat for lunch. I'm beginning to believe that if I don't leave long enough gaps between eating, my body never gets round to needing to use its own stores, so a mid-afternoon snack doesn't give your body time to use lunch, and then start on itself?

Cutting the dairy made all the difference for me. Seems irrational maybe, but there's good science behind it.

Rshard enjoy your Garmin!

Some mini goals:
-Get under 130 and therefore into the 120's
-Get under 126 and into 8 stone somethings
-get to 120 then evaluate if that is my final maintenance weight. May go for 115, I have a very small frame!

Thanks rayna, i used to have a Fitbit but upgraded to the garmin. Dh uses garmin for cycling and always rated it. I do like it a lot already.

Adding to the theme of mini goals:
3 lbs to 140 which will be 2 stone lost on this woe
4lbs to 139 so into the 9’s
10lbs to 133 which is my goal.

That will take me just into a healthy BMI and I’ll see how I feel and look when I get there, as I said the other days I’d rather carry a couple of pounds than have a think and wrinkly face!

Interesting hearing everyone's goals, mine is to lose my tum! I hate it and that's where I tend to put on my weight. I want to be 10 stone, so 11lbs to go. I want to fit into my clothes and feel good about myself. I don't want to be thin as I don't think it will suit my face. I also want to exercise more and it's easier to do that when you're not carrying so much weight. I definitely think I'm addicted to carbs and on a 'normal' WOE, I get that horrid shaky feeling if I haven't eaten for a while which I never feel doing low carb. This has also helped me cut back massively with my drinking which was too much and at times a coping mechanism...

Delurking (again). You all continue to inspire and entertain and inform. Thank you.

Am now firmly into the 16 (or sometimes 17 or 18):8 (7/6) and it is transformative! Still stalled. But zero ravenous hunger. Someone mentioned an app for tracking fasting so I downloaded Zero. Beyond ridiculous really, its just a timer (!) but it sends a notification when your fast is done. A tiny moment of winning!

Also tried stir fried Brussels. Amaze.

Also managed two long haul flights without eating! Thought it would be easier to just say no at the outset rather than negotiate shite carbage.

These threads are fundamental to my continuing - and succeeding. Thank you all and well done everyone.

I like all this talk of goals. I’m at 147 which was always my goal weight when I started BC originally at 168, but I actually still have 7 pounds or so to go. I would really love to see 139 just once. I suspect that will be to low for me and my weight should really be around 142

Am going to claim some NSVs, my back hamsters are much reduced abs I generally feel a bit slimmer all over. Am hoping for a whoosh at re end of this week.

Have been going to yoga regularly and really enjoy the feeling of my body getting stronger

Had two creamy coffees and two slices of Gouda this morning. Might have a second breakfast later if I’m hungry

The key benefit for me in this woe is my lack of appetite. I think it's the fact I've no more insulin spikes so am able to control what I eat more and do so mindfully.

God what I think what I was putting away before. I was shoving those tubs of millionaires shortbread from Waitrose on the shopping order and eating one a day whilst sitting with my leg in plaster, boredom eating big breakfasts, lunch and dinners, then I'm all surprised I put on weight. I couldn't even see I had as I was living in stretchy clothes. I think I knew deep down, but just ignored it. In my head I was still a size ten.

Right now I look better, much slimmer and I feel better. So much energy and I'm in the gym daily.

I'm not even sure what size I hit but I was at least a large fourteen maybe even a sixteen. Right now I'd say I'm a small twelve. And that's after just two months of this. So still a bit to go, but it's getting there.

The thought of trying to do this whilst calorie counting would be just so hard.

@headoutofthesand

Have you read Bootcamp rules? And haven't I asked you that before?!

Two key things stand out for me:

• if you're still hungry and need to rely on a snack, then you're either not eating enough or you're not eating enough fat. This is really important

• you don't need to eat breakfast. This is the first thing that I say in rule one of Bootcamp, that after the first two weeks you can drop this (or another meal) if you're not hungry.

And also - if you're not losing, you can't just dismiss the odd cheat as unimportant - this will also be contributing. Bootcamp is a strict WOE and you can't use 'good' behaviour at some times to compensate for falling off the wagon on other times.

@abbey44 - whilst your meals sound lovely, they also sound low in fat - keep an eye on this