Week 3 - Low Carb Bootcamp - which way will you go?

[BIWI]

Morning all

Here's the spreadsheet

So a few mixed results so far. Hopefully there will be some more good ones on the spreadsheet!

I suspect that what a lot of you are coming to realise is that this isn't a way of eating that can allow you to cheat or even to take your eye off the ball.

In this initial phase, while we're aiming to become fat-adapted, it's really important that you keep your carbs as low as you can (within sensible limits - this is not a a zero carb diet - you should be eating enough veg and salad to get good nutrition, which will mean you're eating carbs)

I know that sometimes it's impossible. I'm in a situation where tonight I'm being cooked for, by people who have no idea I'm low carbing, and who haven't asked if there's anything I can/can't eat - so I'll just have to accept it. But whilst it's within your control, you really do need to stay strong.

Now.

This is the start of the infamous week 3 (and next week, week 4) - and it's very, very, VERY common for weight loss to stop - or sometimes even for people to gain slightly, even if they're following the rules.

So. You can decide to stay on Bootcamp if you want to, to help deal with this, or you could move onto Bootcamp Light, which means you can start to add some fruit, some nuts and seeds and some alcohol back into your diet.

The operative word is 'some'! All in moderation - and not at every meal, every day - because this will mean that you won't see the weight loss you want to.

There are three options:

• stay on Bootcamp
• move to Bootcamp Light
• choose a hybrid - Bootcamp during the week, Bootcamp Light at the weekend

Whatever you choose, I hope that you have a good, positive and successful week.

Haha @SlinkyDinkyDoo head to www.zozo.com

Missed breakfast as I didn't sleep well last night (various reasons) so Dh insisted I slept in.

Lunch - bacon and egg on spinach
Dark chocolate squares (trying to avoid a bing so decided to allow controlled treat rather than eat all the cake)
Dinner - beef goulash with cream on more spinach

@KiteMarked

Is there a good way to count macros and whatnot without wanting to shoot myself?

Why do you want to? No need, as long as you follow Bootcamp rules

I didn't do Dry January, but I did do 3 dry weeks, followed by a day off, and then another couple of dry days - we're trying to get back into having at least three alcohol-free days a week.

I was very disappointed that I didn't feel any different/better for giving it up. There was the obvious benefit of knowing I wasn't risking a hangover, but apart from that, nothing changed. My sleep patterns weren't any better - in fact, my sleep has been worse - my skin was, if anything, more blotchy. I can't even link it directly to weight loss, seeing as I started low carbing properly again at the same time! (Although I did think I might have lost even more than I did). So not entirely sure that giving up the booze helps me that much

I am wondering if I'm eating too much. I'll wait and see, I don't want to measure anything at all if I'm honest!

Baaaahhhh I just ordered zozo suit, €10 to Ireland.
I'm justifying it because one of my goals is to get to a healthy waist to hip ratio.

Lunch was leftovers of kids 2 Lidl salads, used my own dressing & added extra parm & olives.

All this talk of crispy pork belly made me order a plate of it at a bistro pub with the family today. Not bad but I think I can do better following some of the advice earlier in the thread. I've never poured a kettle of water over it before, is it to render some of the fat? Anyway, I shall report back!

I, too, have ordered a zozosuit.

Oh dear lord I just ate almost two little pots of mayonnaise (not the perinase) at nandos with the chicken thighs and a portion of halloumi cheese and avocado.
Really pleased with myself until I tasted the mayonnaise on its own and noticed it was really sweet.....arggggggggh 🤦🏻‍♀️

Hope that didn't cause too much damage to ketosis!

What's a zozo suit?

I just ordered a ‘nude’ burger in Bills, it comes with salad instead of a bun and chips. But the salad was predressed with something sweet :/ and they forgot the extra avocado I ordered. Generally a disappointing lunch.

Thanks for the zozo suit link cog brilliant idea.

Breakfast was scrambled eggs with so much butter I ate 1/4 of a cucumber after as my mouth felt like the inside of a chip pan.

Lunch was tuna mayo, salad and avocado

Dinner will be Tom Yum soup with prawns.

And I expect a lump of cheese later.

I've also ordered a zozo suit n I cant wait to try it out lol

How does it work? Do you have to pay for an app as well?

The app is free. I actually might order one if the tops, I have problems with sleeves fitting me, ladies who lift problem!!

I'm making pork curry with the leftover meat from roast pork the other night. Whilst making it, I'm snacking on the beautiful crackling that I had!

For me, this is how I cook roast pork, to guarantee lovely crackling:

• uncover the pork joint
• using kitchen paper, blot as much of the moisture from the joint as possible
• leave the pork open to the air for as long as you can
• at least an hour or so before you're going to cook it, cover the skin generously with salt, and leave for at least half an hour; this will draw out a lot more moisture - when it's done that, blot all the salt off, so that you can also keep drying the skin
• roast at the hottest temperature your oven will go to, for about 20 minutes - this will start the fat rendering and the skin bubbling and crisping
• turn the oven right down, and then to the roasting pan, add wine or cider or water (so that there's at least an inch of liquid in the roasting pan), and leave it to cook for about 45-60 minutes (depending on the size of the joint, obviously - we're aiming to cook it long and slow)
• after this time, check it - add more liquid if you need to, and cook for another 45-60 minutes
• when the meat is cooked, check if the skin is hardened; if it isn't, turn the oven right up again and cook for another 15 minutes or so (but be careful not to burn it or overcook the meat)

When you're serving the joint, take the skin off - it may have crackled enough, but if it hasn't, put it back, in the oven while you leave the joint to rest; 15-20 minutes in a hot oven should be enough to make sure it's crackled properly

Saving your crackling tips as I love the stuff BIWI. Bloody DH doesn’t like it😱
De-lurking to say I am really really hungry today and yesterday and wondering if it’s the weather being so cold? Also think I’m due on in under a week. And I did a 24h fast two days ago. Fantasising about fish and chips but obviously I won’t go there. 🐟Fascinated by how all this works and interested in others’ experiences?

In addition to your top tips BIWI, I also pour a kettle of boiling water over the scored skin before airdrying.

Oh and if you are buying pork shoulder for pulled pork get the butcher to remove + score skin for you and just make a big old piece of crackling for chef's treat

Yum, can't wait to try those pork methods. It's delicious just chucked in a very hot oven and should be even more so cooked a la bootcamp. I've got a big joint in the fridge for Sunday lunch.

I did so so at food today. We were guests at a friend's party. Her DP is a chef and pressed lots of food on us. I resisted the cakes but had a lot of fried chicken that I'm almost certain was floured. It's his speciality and I'd made a fuss of it before so he'd made some specially. I find it hard to say out loud "I'm on a diet". It feels like everyone will
Immediately start weighing me up, pun not intended! Very silly really.

It's difficult, isn't it? It seems as if it's so trivial or shallow to say that we're on a diet. Yet actually why should that be?

I think I personally find it's hard to say I'm on a diet because I'm worried about:
Ridicule
Being patronised
Someone saying, "excellent idea, I'm glad you're doing it, you've been quite fat for a while"

And the Biggie:

Sabotage - "you don't need to diet", "one bite won't hurt"
Easier to dodge the subject, but you're right, it's mad. It's probably one of the best things I've been doing for both physical and mental well-being. Why be coy?

I'm having a rather interesting experience with what I can only describe as body recomposition. I don't seem to have lost any further weight this week, but the bra that roughly fitted at the beginning of bootcamp, back a wee bit tight, I'm now fastening it tighter for it to fit, so back size gone down, but, the oddity is, well, my cups doth overfloweth now. It would seem my actual boobs got bigger????? Is that a thing??

Today

B - Chorizo, mushrooms and peppers fried with 2 duck eggs.
L - Tuna nicoise salad at pizza express (thanks for the recommendation MrsF)
D - cottage pie with cauli mash topping

I never tell anyone i'm on a diet, not even DH really. I just start cooking my food and doing my thing. I hate people knowing. People start noticing and I just shrug it off and change the subject. I think people don't really look at you till you draw attention to it then they think 'oh yes you are a bit fat actually' but they say 'ohhhh you don't need to lose weight' while staring at your arse.

It's why I try to never diet in the summer. There's too much on show and its so noticeable. Under padded coats and chunky jumpers no one knows what's going on and you can emerge like a butterfly when the weather gets better.

I also find the food easier in the winter. I only eat summer fruit and live in an area where it grows so in the winter I don't have to miss that. And summer requires pints of lager or pimms and lots of ice cream, whereas winter is all chunky stews which is perfect for this woe. I always put on weight in the summer and lose it in the winter. Which appears to be the opposite of everyone else! (typical me - I always zig when everyone zags!)

I'm ordering a zozo suit as well btw they look amazing! I've never found jeans which fit me properly so this may help.

Siameasy, TOM always follows the same pattern for me, but exacerbated by low carb: ravenous pet-eating hunger for a few days before, disappearance of appetite for first day or so, back to normal after. But really noticeable pattern when you're paying attention to what and how you're eating.

Nonethless, the amount I can eat on those two days before, when I'm low carbing, is astonishing. or fecking out of control greedy, take your pick

Notlost I'm guessing you haven't actually increased boob, it's just because you're pulling the strap further back, you're pulling the cups further back/apart, which means you're more likely to spill.

I feel like I've started a Zozo suit revolution! 😄
Today the scales appear to have shifted a couple of lbs despite my singing yesterday but I'll wait until Monday to weigh officially. I think I'm going to start weighing once a week instead of being governed by what the scales say as it's clearly not a good tactic for me.

Today's menu:

B: Coffee w/cream
L: Coddled eggs with lashings of butter, smoked salmon, avocado
D: Steak Mince burger with truffle cheddar.