January 2019 Low Carb Bootcamp - Week 1

[BIWI]

Well happy new year!

Here's a sparkling, brand new, Spreadsheet of Fabulousness for us all to get this new Bootcamp off to a good start.

Remember, you don't have to be on the spreadsheet if you don't want to - and if you don't want to declare your actual weight, you can index it - which means that your starting 'weight' is 100. Then for every pound you lose, you take off one. So if you lose 4lbs in week 1, then your 'weight' starting for week 2 will be 96.

There are over 170 people signed up, so the thread will move very quickly - but please, please, please read all the posts. Don't just jump on and post your own stuff without reading what other people have posted. That's especially the case if you're posting with a question - read the thread to make sure it hasn't already been asked.

Have a good look at the spreadsheet and all the tabs at the bottom, as there's a huge amount of information there - not just the rules, but also the list of vegetable carb counts, and some really interesting reading/videos too.

I hope everything there is clear, but if not - just shout.

Looking forward to getting going!

@Mimosa1 - yes, you do need more veg but you really, really don't need the peas! They are very carby.

@BalloonSlayer it's so, so easy to make cauliflower rice you really don't need to buy it ready made. (This assumes you have a food processor, of course)

Cut the cauliflower into florets, chuck in the processor, and blitz for a few seconds till it's like grains of couscous. Job done!

I’ve done boot camp before, very successfully but I’m struggling this time as I’m currently fostering newborn twins and am so tired. When I get up, I feel sick and can’t manage my usual buttery eggs, I am craving something breadlike, which is very unusual for me. I’m also really struggling about 3-4pm, when I feel quite shaky, again I think it’s the tiredness making me want a quick sugar fix.

Would it be reasonable to do boot camp light under the circumstances? A handful of nuts might work at breakfast and in the afternoon for example. Or does it not work properly if I don’t start hardcore?

@Mandelinka that's great that your DH is getting on board!

But looking at your meals, it looks like you're really not eating very much. I know you're past the first two weeks, so you don't have to have breakfast, but why only soup for dinner? And where's the protein? With a focus on veg as you have, you're risking your proportions being too far towards carbs. Remember, we're aiming for high fat:medium protein:low carb

OMG @QueenOnAPlate yes absolutely you should go on to Bootcamp Light - do whatever you can in these early days.

How lovely - but how bloody difficult - to have two newborns!

For those that haven't tried celeriac, give it a go

It is surprisingly versatile: can be made into Dauphinoise (yummy ), mash, chips, fondant (large pieces poached in fat and then fried), grated into salad/mixed with mayonnaise.

I don't like celery but I love celeriac

Morning all

So much positivity on the thread, it helps us all I think.

Was planning on making the curried cauliflower soup that someone mentioned earlier, the one off the recipe thread but I don’t have a leek so would a couple of shallots suffice?

Also this would require me using a blender for the first time since I badly cut/broke my finger last January making cauliflower rice with a blender!

Fostering newborn twins is pretty heroic, Queen - I'm in awe!

I'm going to try liver this evening, panfried in butter with shallots. When I was reading up about paleo, it said organ meat is great, plus it was cheap. And Nigel Slater said he loves it. We'll see.

B - Scrambled egg with creamy spinach
L - remainder of egg, cheese and bacon muffins with salad and avocado
D - ?? who knows

Going out tonight for dd's birthday, it's a small restaurant and doesn't have the menu online so I can't plan ahead. I've volunteered to drive so there won't be any alcohol for me. I was thinking of eating a small bowl of veg and mayo before I go so that I won't be tempted by the bread, or maybe I'll save my lunchtime avocado to eat before I leave. I'm pretty sure it's the kind of place that will have salad with goats cheese kind of starters, and hopefully fish and veg for main. It never feels like a difficulty to leave the potatoes on the plate, and I'd choose cheese over pudding any day. So hopefully it will all go OK.

Last time I was low-carbing we went out for a family lunch. Everyone was tucking into bread and butter before we ordered and I had some kind of eating envy. I speared a knob of butter and stirred it into my black coffee. My dc were but it tasted surprisingly good, a little bit salty and creamy, and I didn't feel deprived of the pre-food ritual

Morning every one. I woke up feeling FABULOUS. Honestly I haven't felt this good in 3 years. It's a combination of things: DD is now sleeping thru and i'm not feeding every 2 hours thru the night (and it down to only 2 feeds in the day yesterday wooo), so i'm getting a solid block of 5-7 hours every night for the last week. Im not drinking. AND of course this diet, which has given me loads of energy.

When I woke this morning my skin looked amazing. Totally clear and peachy and unblotchy and I look about 10 years younger than I did this time last month! (not hard I looked fucking awful - In fact I've looked like knackered shit for 2 years!)

3 weeks today i'm going to be 42 and I am going to treat myself to a makeover to go with the weight loss. I'm determined that this is the year I get myself back. Starting with dropping this last stone I need to feel like me again.

Have a great day everyone. :)

How fab @MrsKoala - love the idea of a makeover and understand the excitement of a baby suddenly sleeping!!!

That’s a fabulous idea mrskoala

Thanks @Mimosa1 I should clarify she is not a baby she is 2.2 years old. I have been trying to wean her off the boob for over a year but she wont agree. We are in a situation strangely echoing Brexit. Half of us have voted to leave, half of us have voted to remain. We've spent 18 months negotiating a deal which has been rejected and at this rate she'll be exiting with no deal at all!!

@venusandmars don't be afraid to ask for substitutions - or even just to ask for 'no potatoes'/'no chips'. I've never been refused when I've asked.

And if the plate doesn't come with the carbs, you won't be tempted to eat them. I know very well the inner demon that says 'go on, just one potato won't hurt ...'

Love the comparison, MrsKoala!

@Rshard I made the curry cauliflower soup. I think the shallot substitution would work fine.

I accidentally posted this on the wrong thread, copying it here, sorry for duplication.

I'm just checking in to say that I think what I thought was carb flu, was probably something else. I was in bed all day yesterday, and still feeling quite feeble, but will be back on it again. Trouble is that I just cannot face most food. I think I might just have miso soup, but am craving oranges, or something refreshing. I feel like I don't want anything fatty. I haven't been sick, just feel incredibly nauseous.

Any suggestions? I really don't think I can eat enough of what I'm supposed to eat today, and certainly didn't yesterday.

LOL at Brexit/BF analogy @MrsKoala!

@QueenonaPlate that is an awesome undertaking (in all senses of the words). My DTDs are now 9 and the newborn days are something of a blur yet indelibly etched on my soul. I was a very happy weight when they were born, but my 'baby weight' came later as sleep deprivation causes blood sugar to rise and you to feel hungry/crave carbs - so what you are feeling is very real! Good luck and hope we can all provide some support to help you.

After yesterdays discussion about scales, I didn't accept the first reading this morning, and tried again. This time (and the next 3) the number was 1.5lbs lighter!

Elastic - can't think of anything, but would just cold/cool water be sufficiently refreshing until you can face HFLC food? Or some bland chicken? I quite like spoonfuls of clotted cream when I am craving something sweet

😀😀😀 at *MrsKoalas' Brexit parallel

@ElasticFirecracker - sorry you're feeling poorly

To be honest, if you're craving an orange it wouldn't be the end of the world to give in, if that's all you can face.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

@QueenOnAPlate how lovely/exhausting having newborn twins in the house. My twins are now 7 but I used to have slices boiled egg in the fridge to pick at in the morning to get me through the bread craving. Nuts sounds like a good option too.

I'm a daily weigher so feeling positive. I'm eating out tonight - tapas - so plan to go for meat and maybe cheese. Will avoid sweet potato chips. It's a set menu so also need to control picking constantly at the dishes.

Lol @MrsKoala brexit/bf comparison.

@bibliomania I love liver but stopped eating it since I started low carbing as I normally would have it with a slice of bread and butter...What are you gonna have yours with?

Morning all! It really helps reading others' menus...keeps me on track. Also puts my work-trip angst into perspective when I read about @QueenOnAPlate doing this at the same time as fostering newborn twins.

Great start to the day for me. FF Greek yoghurt and a cup of tea with unsweetened almond milk; seven mile walk with the dog (mostly uphill; will definitely feel it tomorrow); early lunch of leftover chicken and veg soup with parmesan. Only had 1ltr of water so far as trying to space it out properly like a grown up.

Scales say I'm five pounds down, but some of that will be due to coming to the end of AF.

Feeling much more positive than yesterday...no chopped tomatoes for me today!