May '19 Low Carb Bootcamp - week 1

[BIWI]

So here we are!

Lots of us signed up this time, so inevitably the thread will move very quickly. Please, though, take the time to read the whole thread!. Although this is a place where you can post your daily menus, or your thoughts and questions, please don't just do this, but read what other people have posted too.

A bit thank you to the very lovely @AthelstaneTheUnready who has set up the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness.

The Spreadsheet

If your name isn't on there, don't panic! Just add yourself to the bottom of the list. Don't worry about trying to alphabetise it - that will be sorted out for you. (And if you're on the spreadsheet but don't want to be, don't worry - if you don't post on it your name will be taken off)

Here's a brief recap of the rules:

1. Eat three proper meals a day
2. Avoid processed foods
3. Eat plenty of fat
4. Make sure you are eating plenty of vegetables and salad
5. Be careful about dairy (apart from butter which is unlimited)
6. You must drink a minimum of 2 litres of water a day
7. No alcohol
8. No fruit
9. No nuts/seeds

10.No sugar or artificial sweeteners

The full rules are here . They're supposed to be stickied at the top of the Low Carb Bootcamp topic (along with the recipe threads), but for some reason they're stickied at the top of page 2!

Remember that after the first two weeks we can relax some of this, and move on to Bootcamp Light, which means that you can add some fruit (berries mainly), alcohol (in moderation) and nuts and seeds (again, in moderation), but the point of the strict initial phase is to help push your body into burning fat for fuel rather than carbohydrate.

And remember - if you cheat, you will only be delaying this process from happening!

Good luck to everyone. Any questions or problems, just shout!

Honestly my mind boggles at the idea that pork scratching are the preferred option over cashew nuts.

Thanks, @prettybird for the exercise tip!

It’s because in the first two weeks it is vital that you do not derail the process of your body moving over to accessing fat directly for fuel. If you eat high carb foods you will stop that process its tracks and will have to start all over again. You will a) use the easily accessible carbs for fuel, meaning you won’t lose fat, and b) you’re defeating the whole purpose of doing LCHF.

Also once you start eating a bag of nuts it’s very easy to eat way more than you think. Not so easy with pork scratchings, as you will quickly reach satiety.

But also, fats are good for you. They are not the enemy.

Felt good yesterday, first Friday night in years that I’ve been sober.

Feel absolutely hateful today- like the worst pmt but not at the right time in my cycle for that.

I have 2 questions if that’s ok.

1. Sorry for tmi but I haven’t been to the loo (other than weeing) since Tuesday, but I don’t feel constipated or bunged up, I just feel normal- where is all the food going?

1. If you have keto breath do you know about it? Ie. Does your mouth taste horrid so you know it’s a problem? I feel normal in that respect too but I’m super paranoid I’m breathing disgustiness over people.

Back on track had two sausages fried with cherry toms on spinach with a poached egg and dried chilli on top. Lots of extra butter

Your body is absorbing more of it because it’s more useful than a load of empty carbs. Providing you’re drinking plenty and not uncomfortable, don’t worry. It will come Quite normal for me to go only every 2-3 days.

Re Greek yog and sourness - the higher the fat percentage, the creamier it will taste. Because - fat. If you go for the low/0% stuff, not only will it not taste as nice, it also won’t be as satisfying. And potentially higher carb too!

Re nuts (not that we’re eating them yet obvs!) Brazil nuts are very low carb as are pecans.

DrBuckles - the way I like to look at it is that it's like breastfed babies: we're eating food more attuned with our bodies' needs, hence less waste

That's probably not the true science but it works for me

I think if you're having the full amount of water, it helps to ameliorate any bunged-upness. Plus I also like to think of all that extra peeing as "peeing the fat away"

Keto breath - everyone will be unique, but ime, you would smell it a bit on yourself yes. Drink more water or eat something. It should pass. Think of the ketones and enjoy it

You won’t poo as much because your system isn’t bunged up with loads of gungy, carby products like bread, cakes, pasta, cereal etc that are actually quite hard to digest for a lot of people. There’s much more waste product left over with a carb heavy diet. Vegetables have a lot of bulk but a lot of water content, so although you might think you’re eating loads, it’s not that much in terms of actual volume. Your body will be running more efficiently this way.

I have a pretty good idea when I’ve got keto breath. It shouldn’t really be an issue if you’re drinking enough and eating enough veg. Chewing parsley is a great freshener if you’re paranoid about it.

Feeling grim today, like I’ve smoked a thousand fags (non smoker). Bloody cold not shifting like I hoped it would. Up side is I’m so busy feeling sorry for myself that I can’t be bothered to think about food at the mo. Still KOKO though. Looking forward to Monday’s post period weigh in.

Sorry for not name checking my responses in ^ posts. Just sift through and see if any of it’s relevant to whatever you’ve posted

Re the "sourness" of Greek yoghurt: the couple of times I bought the Lidl "Light" Greek yoghurt by accident (before they helpfully re-packaged and made it more obvious ), I ended up having to throw the rest of the big tub out It tasted foul

Even outside of bootcamp I have switched from restaurant puddings to just having a liquor coffee to round off a meal.

You're a bloody genius Nick. It's when I feel most hard done by and complain the most It's not even like I'm a particularly pudding person, we always share one. But it makes me grumpy.

Devon sorry to hear you're having a hard time.

Has anyone managed to find the M&S meatzza? I’ve had a look in two stores, one of which was a pretty big store that I’d expect to have a decent range but it wasn’t stocked in either.

Why thank you MrsT!

Mind you, it’s true, and I know exactly what you mean - it’s made a huge difference to my contentment when eating out because I really dislike deprivation and sitting there virtuously not having a treat really does put me in a bad mood.

I just caved and had an Atkins bar of choc I was on the edge of going to Costa and getting a cake, which it stopped me from doing, but even so

Thanks everybody for your help.

I’ll chat more when I don’t feel like the devil is in me but well done to all those doing well and avoiding cravings and chin up to others who are having a hard time!

Nick I even had a brief pre-bootcamp thought "I suppose I'd have it black" but NO! BC says have it with double cream.

My biggest tip for when you get that agitated must have something right now whee you know you’re going to slip, is to get up, go away and do something completely different. I used to do some sewing or embroidery, something that kept my hands busy. Telly or reading is no good because it’s often tied in with eating or drinking.

At the moment I’m not into crafts so I’m doing any little job or errand in the house that’s lurking at the back of my mind. It’s great - it distracts me, it gets all those little pesky jobs done, and it reduces my stress because I have less clutter in my house and in my mind.

Heh yes embrace the cream! 👍🙂

Mega post coming! Apologies if this repeats advice from others - I have two tabs open and I'm just working my way through the thread:

@m0therofdragons - that's horrible Are you sure you want to be part of that group any more?! Hardly a community, is it? Like @Sittingonthesidelines said, I think they're probably jealous. And don't worry about the pound gain - I'm sure it's just a natural fluctuation.

@MrsBertBibby

@Summery1 - arrabiata sauce won't be carb-free as it's tomato-based, and will probably have onion in as well

@Eatenalltheeastereggs Eagle-eyed I am ...

I know what you mean about modelling a good diet. But it sounds like your approach is a good one. And sounds, too, like your DS is also modelling something healthier too! (Although I get why you might be concerned it's becoming obsessive)

@Almahart - I did warn you about the weekend! What triggered that? Was it simply because it's the weekend?

@Youwanapizzame Sorry to hear that But - don't let it derail you into eating carbs/drinking alcohol for comfort. The only person that will harm is you

@VeryLittleOwl

B - undecided yet, thinking about it over my first pint of the day

Bitter or lager?

@IStillMissBlockbuster

I don't want to get ahead of myself, but all week i've not once calorie counted or really been restrictive with my portions

Good! We don't count calories on Bootcamp, and this isn't a WOE about deprivation. Eat till you're no longer hungry

Re yoghurt, some people like to add cinnamon; I don't because I'm not a great cinnamon fan, but I sometimes add a spoonful of peanut butter (careful which one you choose as the carb counts very hugely) or sometimes a little bit of vanilla bean paste. When we move on to Bootcamp Light you could have some berries or nuts/seeds.

There's a lovely recipe on the vegetarian thread for low carb granola, which you could have when we move on to Bootcamp Light.

But otherwise, why not a fry up? Or a continental breakfast - ham, cheese, smoked salmon. Or just have leftovers from the night before. No need to treat breakfast as a separate meal.

@TheWaiting Hopefully even more by the time we weigh in on Monday!

Horrid (but good at the same time!) news about thrush. Losing that particular condition was a major and unexpected bonus for me when I first started low carbing. And how good that your GP is a supporter! I'd also recommend (if the Canesten doesn't work) a combination of a Diflucan tablet (you can buy the Boots own version which is a lot cheaper) and a Canesten pessary.

For bingo wings, I believe tricep dips are the best

@GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal Well done on resisting! You will get your reward for that, I'm sure. And I don't know about you, but in my world there's no such thing as 'just one'!!!

@RocketPockets yes pork scratchings are, indeed, allowed! ignores mention of holiday alcohol and @IStillMissBlockbuster pork scratchings are better because they're fat rather than carbs. You really do have to get your round the fact that fat is good on this WOE!

@devoncreamtea - what a week of it! Well done for resisting the lure of the wine/gin.

Have a headache today. Felt extra thirsty yesterday although have been drinking enough water, but perhaps all the running about this week has zapped me a bit

All of this is a sign that you need more sodium. Are you using salt in your cooking and on your food? You also need the other electrolytes, magnesium and potassium - I've posted several times already on the thread about these and where you can get them from!

@sayanything Oh no! Why did you do that?! Of all the nuts you could have chosen as well, cashews are probably one of the worst

@DrBuckles It's only really constipation if, when you go you struggle or are in pain. That said, I would have expected 'a result' by now! Make sure you keep your fat levels high and your water intake up. Do some exercise or increase the level of exercise you're doing.

Sorry you're not feeling great, but for being sober last night. I know how hard it is to resist the lure of alcohol, especially at the weekend!

@Rshard I couldn't find it in our M&S either

@Ninkaninus loving your work on the thread today! Thank you

@Jackielaffertyiscold . Why? Why did you do that? I'd already outlined why they're not good for you, after you especially asked. Were you already planning on eating it? And we're still in the first two weeks of Bootcamp when chocolate or sweet stuff isn't allowed. What was the point of sabotaging almost a week's worth of good eating?

Hopefully now, though, as you've eaten it there's no more temptation to hand. Is there?

No I haven't had anything else.

Will I have really ruined all the good work?

Well it's not great. Hopefully if you keep drinking plenty of water and don't eat too many carbs, things will be OK on the scales on Monday. But more importantly is the 'why?' Why triggered the need for it? Emotional eating is really hard to deal with

TheWaiting the 10 minute barre workouts on YouTube are really good and there’s one for arms. I do it with teeny weights, but even without anything it’s still a good workout - you’ll really feel it! I struggle with tricep dips because I’m a) weak and b) heavy!

m.youtube.com/watch?v=zjPKJYnkMsE