2nd week of Lockdown Low Carb Bootcamp! But our third thread!

[BIWI]

This Bootcamp has gone crazy! I'm very hopeful that means that the results on the scales/with the tape measure etc will have been positive.

Here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

I love this week. For so many, it's a total vindication as well as complete reassurance that this WOE really works!

I hope, very much, that the scales are kind to you and look forward to hearing everyone's progress.

Oops pressed post too soon!

I ended up hungry at 10pm so ate a bit of a cheese board, which was delicious. St's weight wise and think I will this week too. However this is week 3ish for me so koko.

Plan for today
No breakfast but maybe a coffee with 1tsp cream
L fried courgette and halumi salad
D pork belly probably Chinese style and green veg. Greek yog after (trying that so I don't snack later!)

Hello all, I think I’ve caught up on the whole thread!

@venusandmars I loose weight like that too - my face, neck and shoulders all look so much thinner but my middle is hanging on to the that fat for dear life! I’ll need to leave at least another half a stone before it starts to shrink. It’s definitely my problem area!

Yesterday was a good day - I watched the family all tuck into takeaway pizza (with lovely thin crusts and nice toppings) and wasn’t even tempted. Had a huge salad with some halloumi and abs avocado plus loads of olive oil and I was stuffed.

Like others have said, I now don’t crave chocolate or bread/carbs. The idea of it (especially the chocolate) actually makes me feel a bit ill. It’s amazing how this WOE reconditions your tastebuds and body.

Today I tried low carb pancakes (two eggs and 2oz of cream cheese). They were more like a think cheesy pancake so nice enough but not anything like a pancake! Still it was good to have a change.

L - chicken salad with avocado
D - lamb mince kebab (trying a new recipe where you cook it all in one dish and scoop out bits rather than on skewers), buttered green veg. DH and the kids will have it with wraps, salad and other bits.

Interesting chat about periods. MilesJuppIsMyBitch that is so bizarre, I'd be devastated! After a blissful 3 months pre-Christmas when I didn't have a single period (and managed to lose a stone) I've gone back to a 2 week cycle. When I'm due on I typically gain 4lb (even on this WOE) and then the following week it'll come off plus maybe 0.5-1lb, this wouldn't be too bad if I had a 'normal' cycle but every 2 weeks means weightloss is frustratingly slow. Bloody hormones, I'm sure it wouldn't be like this if men had periods!

Apologies for the moan, I'm just in a grump. I'm going to follow @venusandmars idea and go for a walk later to look for signs of Spring which should cheer me up. Have a lovely weekend everyone.

So after weight gain yesterday I was super conscious of everything yesterday. I had coffee and cream with cheese omelette and 2 slices of streaky bacon. Lunch was salad and chicken with loads of olive oil dressing and full fat mayo, tea was cheesy kale with salad. I limited coffee and had tons of water.

Woke up this morning and have put on another 2lbs. It means I lost 6 lbs in week one and have now put 4lbs back on!

I did eat later both evenings so will try to eat earlier for the rest of the week. I'm just going to koko. My problem is I'm quite fussy about meat; I tried fattier cuts this week so bought chicken thighs and some mackerel but I didn't like them! I had lamb kebabs which were great and salmon and tuna with oil with full fat Maya but I can't eat things like pork (other than bacon).

Going to trust the system and keep going. It was so much easier psychologically when the numbers were going down.

Just remembered I had salami and smoked cheese one the salad.

Regardless of weight loss I am really enjoying this WOE. I'm not really feeling any cravings for snacks or anything and the thought of eating rice or pasta or chocolate doesn't feel nice. I've also noticed I have been waking up really fresh and well rested.

I'm going the supermarket today so will stock up on good food .

@Bestbees he's nearly 5 months old, I need to lose about 2 or 3 stone. As you say I was back to pre baby weight 3 weeks after having him it's just I was fat before!
He's actually on anti-reflux formula at the min but I keep pumping as I'm hoping when he grows out of it I can put him back on my milk. We have bought an additional freezer which is now packed with frozen milk and extra gets donated to the milk bank. Odd I know but I just really wanted to breastfeed my second as it didn't work with my first, DH thinks I'm a bit mental!

@flossiegrippiter my body hung on to every single pound while breastfeeding, and I know others who had the same experience. I used to laugh hollowly at all the talk of the weight dropping off.

@flossiegrippiter you can safely do Bootcamp lite (which we are all starting next week) and lose weight just as easily as the rest of us - breastfeeding shouldn’t impede loss in any way, in fact it should help your body to burn more resources.

Just make sure you are eating lots of good proteins and FLGV (A fuckload of green veg) and plenty of healthy fats - just like the rest of us. Plus you need to drink lots of water. I think @StuntNun has breastfed two babies whilst on bootcamp iirc, and she knows lots about how to do it right.

@venusandmars I love that image, thank you. It made me a touch misty (and less grumpy).

@MarmaladeTeepee it is bizarre isn't it! I think perhaps the fact that my menopause was brought on early by chemo may have something to do with it. I'll try to see it as my body being optimistic, & celebrating my daughter's next stage

Remember that low carb is not like other ‘diets’ - this woe is very rich in nutrients because it’s based on natural, unprocessed foods, you don’t eat any carbs for quick release energy which mess your body up with gunky stuff that stays in your system for days, and your body naturally burns fat as its first fuel source. So once you get in the zone the fat really does melt away.

I can imagine there might be water retention issues as the body will naturally want to hold on to water in order to have what it needs to produce plenty of milk, but you can combat that by drinking extra water. It sounds counterintuitive but if you’re retaining water you need to drink lots more!

Anyway @StuntNun will be along soon enough to advise, I’m sure.

Great thanks everyone

Asda have changed their lovely full fat Greek yogurt! I eat lots of it :-(

It is now Greek 'inspired' and made in the uk, which is fine but it is now much lower in fat and not as thick or delicious.

Do you have any recommendations for other lovely Greek yogurts?

@wanderlove

Just remembered I had salami and smoked cheese one the salad.

Regardless of weight loss I am really enjoying this WOE. I'm not really feeling any cravings for snacks or anything and the thought of eating rice or pasta or chocolate doesn't feel nice. I've also noticed I have been waking up really fresh and well rested.

I'm going the supermarket today so will stock up on good food .

It's tough, isn't it, when the scales don't behave?!

So I'll reiterate the instruction to take your measurements as well as just using the scales. It's absolutely true that you can still be losing without the scales showing you that.

But I'd also knock the cheese on the head for a day or two, just to see what happens. (Sorry!)

Lostara round lettuce leaves make great wraps for crispy duck. They work better than iceberg lettuce leaves which tend to break when you wrap them.

Flossiegrippiter in my experience (four DCs) your body hangs on to a few extra pounds while breastfeeding but it is still possible to lose weight. Good memory Ninkanink I started Bootcamp while breastfeeding a seven-month-old and continued through another pregnancy and breastfeeding. My DS4 has multiple food allergies which made combining low carb and breastfeeding an interesting experience. I managed to get scurvy at one point!

Onelittlepiglet the cream cheese pancakes are nicer with a little melted butter on each one. If anyone else tries making them then note you don't need the artificial sweetener at all.

Wanderlove definitely KOKO. This way of eating does work and will work for you but nobody gets consistent weight loss over time, it's always up and down. So long as the overall trend is downwards try not to get worried about temporary gains. It's almost always water retention so making sure you're getting plenty of water can help.

I didn't get time to post my food yesterday.
L: two quarter pounder burgers with three eggs scrambled in lots of butter, kimchi, kefir, and the last of the Camembert.
D: haddock baked in butter and cream sauce with celeriac and leek mash, courgettes fried in butter, and green beans. There was a nice little puddle of buttery cream on the plate!
One decaf coffee, one decaf tea, one herbal tea, two pints of water with electrolytes in, plus a lovely big glass of soda water with lots of ice and water in for my Friday night treat.

I'm going to try making these bacon and gruyere egg bites today but I haven't got any Gruyere so Emmental will have to do instead.

My phone screen is looking worrying so apologies if all the bolding and links have gone awry. I can't be bothered to type it all again!

@Superspecs

Asda have changed their lovely full fat Greek yogurt! I eat lots of it :-(

It is now Greek 'inspired' and made in the uk, which is fine but it is now much lower in fat and not as thick or delicious.

Do you have any recommendations for other lovely Greek yogurts?

M&S, Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury's all do their own brand which is around 10g fat per 100g - proper Greek yoghurt, not Greek-style. In the case of Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury's it's under their premium brand (No 1, Finest, Taste the Difference)

Fage, or Total, stopped doing their 10% fat one some time ago, which is a shame.

If you can't get a higher fat one, top tip is to add double or even clotted cream to the yogurt.

Cream cheese pancakes recipe: https://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/cream-cheese-pancakes/

Egg bites recipe: https://lowcarbdelish.com/bacon-gruyere-egg-bites/

Nice bright day here so planning a breezy afternoon walk by the sea.

Brunch - creamy coffee, scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, mushrooms
D - confit duck legs, buttered leeks, oven roast cabbage, cavolo nero, and a sauce made from the confit duck poaching liquor, blended with fried shallot and cream...

The duck was amazing - thank you! I cooked it following the instructions and deglazed the pan with a tiny splash of red wine, served with creamy leeks and steamed Brussel sprouts.

Delicious though it was, I was back and forth to the toilet all night. Maybe the sprouts had a laxative effect

Celeriac chips? Tell me more!

My lunch yesterday was a super quick don’t-have-to-think-about it lunch: fried up some bacon and an egg, and had it with avocado and a couple of cherry tomatoes.

Dinner was a small serving of tomato, chorizo and spinach stew.

@CisMyArse

Celeriac chips are lovely and easy! Peel your celeriac (or rather, hack the skin off as best you can), cut into chip shapes and spread them out on an oven tray. Drizzle well with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Sometimes I shake a few chilli flakes over them as well.

Roast in a hot oven for about 40 minutes, (it may take a bit longer), shaking them/turning them over at least once during cooking. They won't go as crisp as potato chips, but they will go crispy and nicely browned at the edges.

My scales are still wonky - despite me treating them well all week, and giving them new batteries - however they're sort of consistently wonky. It looks like I've lost a couple of pounds this week. That would mean that since my heaviest weigh in of the last 2 years, on Christmas Eve, I'm down half a stone

After a year of pandemic stress, inactivity, and eating from dh's 'snack' cupboard bloody wfh husband I've ended the cycle of lose a pound, gain two; lose 2 pounds, gain 3. I'm feeling determined and strong, and my body has agreed that it's OK not to hold onto the extra fat in case of emergency, and has started following a much more usual trajectory of slow and steady loss.

So inspired by the food and meals on here, and will try the egg muffins tomorrow.

Wow! Thank you BIWI!

Making a curry tonight so may have these instead of a 'bread' - was looking for a decent recipe to use the almond and coconut flour that I have in the house.

@venusandmars well done you! Interested to hear how the muffins go!

@CisMyArse celeriac chips are actually really lovely with a sprinkle of curry powder so I bet they go fantastically with what you’re making.

I did that annoying this this morning of having weighed yesterday and seeing a lovely dip popped back on today and saw a rebound of 3lbs. I know it’s physically impossible to have had that many calories or whatever and I’ll address the usual culprits today. But bugger it is disheartening!

So today:
Breakfast coffee and cream with a couple of boiled eggs and salt
Lunch: halloumi and bacon salad
Dinner: pork souvlaki with Greek salad
Shit tonnes of water!

Having repeat blood tests today, it will be interesting to see how my levels have changed with this woe!!