Week 3 - Jan '21 Low Carb Bootcamp - time for Light?

[BIWI]

Well thanks to all the chat, I've had to start this week's thread earlier than usual

Here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness for you to declare all

You now have a choice: you can move on to Bootcamp Light, which means you can re-introduce nuts and seeds, some fruit and alcohol - all in moderation.

However, also bear in mind that weeks 3 & 4 are notorious for little or not weight loss and this is nothing to do with moving on to Bootcamp Light. It's just something that seems to happen.

So it's up to you. You can stay on Bootcamp if you wish, or move on to Bootcamp Light, or a hybrid - so you do Bootcamp during the week but relax into Bootcamp Light at the weekend.

Whatever you decide - good luck! Here's to a good week ahead.

I can't get to the shops till later, so am winging it a bit and I know this is more processed meat than I should be having, but here goes:

B: 3 x boiled eggs, mashed with butter and 1 x whole avocado (too much avocado)?
L: steamed broccoli, large piece of cheese and half a small pack of salami Milan (fatty)
D: low carb (I checked) sausages and cauliflower mash (I have some in the freezer)
Snack: full fat fage greek yoghurt
Drinks: tea and coffee with cream or black plus much water

We’re really lucky in that we live near a farm that produces the posh eggs for Waitrose , we get them from an honesty box £5 for 30
You. Any tell very well from the photo , but they have green shells !

Should be
You can’t tell

That sucks Dailyhandtowelwash it must be very frustrating. It doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong though, weight loss is a deeply frustrating experience. At the end of the day it takes much longer than we think it's going to. Realistically we should only weigh once a month to be able to see good progress.

Oh nice @Doilooklikeatourist! I think I have some of those in my fridge!

We have the same thing nearby (not those ones though), with eggs and an honest box. Haven't been for ages, but the shops are actually closer and stock them! So end up buying there. Would be fresher from the farm I imagine, though, so should go really

@StuntNun your ears! Yes!

Mine do this too at some point in the bootcamp - I have to start wearing earrings every day, as if I leave it a few days they've started healing over.

Does make you wonder what low-grade not-healing trouble the body usually has on a high-carb/sugary diet.

Hi all, I’m not feeling terribly well at the moment. I’m wondering if I’m either not eating enough or drinking too much water or have thrown my electrolytes out of balance. Really tired, light headed and weak. When I stand up I get dizzy. I feel like I’m eating plenty (I’m not feeling hungry between meals) and had water with lemon and salt today in case, but still feel ropey. I am also not sleeping - after sleeping really well all month because I’m not drinking, I’m now waking at 2 or 3am and not going back to sleep. I’ve stopped drinking water in evenings (apart from a few sips) in case I’m waking to go to the toilet, but it isn’t helping.

Yesterday I ate:
B - Greek yoghurt and spoonful of double cream
L - big bowl of thick green veg soup with some cream and cheese added
D - lettuce cups with egg mayonnaise, lots of other salad leaves in olive oil, one avocado, some asparagus in butter and a small piece of cheese.

Today I have had
B - Greek yoghurt and cream
L - scrambled eggs, avocado and smoked salmon with spinach and butter
D (not had yet - slow cooked Bolognese with buttered courgetti and broccoli.

I am drinking lots of water and have slowed that down today and aiming for 3.5 litres rather than 4.5-5 which is what I have been drinking.

Could it be anything else?

It could be delayed carb flu. Withdrawals, basically. Some people do find they’re sleep is disrupted for a little while but it should get better soon. If your eating had been particularly carb heavy it can also take some time for your body to settle into this way of eating. I’m sorry, I don’t remember whether or not you’re new to this and only just starting your 3rd week.

@BIWI or @StuntNun will have more advice I’m sure, but for now have some extra fats and a hot cup of bovril or stock. Hope you feel better soon!

Cripes Stunt, glad you told us about the earrings! I only have one pair, but they are my most treasured material possession by a country mile. If I couldn't wear them, I would be immeasurably sad. Off to pop them in now!

I'd say you're winging it well Wellity given you can't get to the shops

Sounds like carb-flu piglet, but one of the experts will be along shortly!

*their. Stop changing my words, you blasted autoINCORRECT!!

Ha, cross-post with Nink.

Thanks both - I’m now into week 5 so it feels strange to be carb flu, but I’ll just KOKO and try not to do anything too strenuous - That’s not too hard beings stuck in most of the time!

I’m going to try and not look at screens before bed and maybe have a bath and try and relax. The sleep could be down to the underlying stress and anxiety at the moment - being overseas is quite hard currently. Just feel very far away from loved ones and worried about when we might get back and see anyone again (it’s been 18 months so far...). Although in the plus side we don’t have any green veg shortages so there’s that...!

It’s such a challenging time isn’t it.

Some self care and relaxation sounds like the perfect tonic for your soul today.

@BIWI

I've harvested my posts from the last few days. Mostly OK but a couple of days when I haven't eaten much. I'm totally on top of the water:

Lunch: scrambled eggs with a giant Portobello mushroom cooked in a shedload of butter with wilted spinach and two rashers of bacon

Dinner: pork, taleggio and broccoli lasagne made with leeks, green salad with avocado

One creamy coffee

Lunch: broccoli, courgette, stilton, garlic and cream soup, with chopped mushrooms fried in butter, and bits of fried bacon

Dinner tonight is the oriental pork cabbage parcels from the recipe thread, with pak choi

Lunch, was out, so an M&S random collection of rollitos, salad with a creamy chive dressing, spicy prawns, and olives and feta.

Dinner: cheeseburger pie, roast cauliflower, and fried greens.

Snack: creamy coffee

I’ve managed no food at all yet today owing to busyness and lack of appetite to remind me. I’ve been drinking the water, and had a coffee this morning (small amount of full fat milk as out of cream). Dinner tonight is veg soup with cheese and ham plate.

Coffee with coconut milk (sweetened) – an accident
Dinner – seafood cooked in butter, celeriac chips

Lunch today: wood-fired rotisserie pork from the farm, cauliflower cheese, creamed leeks, roast celeriac

I’ve also had a creamy coffee

Veg box arrived today :

Eggs, leeks, purple curly kale, red peppers, mushrooms, tomato, pak choi, nice dirty carrots, onions, plus butternut squash and a sweet potato for dh

@Onelittlepiglet

Hi all, I’m not feeling terribly well at the moment. I’m wondering if I’m either not eating enough or drinking too much water or have thrown my electrolytes out of balance. Really tired, light headed and weak. When I stand up I get dizzy. I feel like I’m eating plenty (I’m not feeling hungry between meals) and had water with lemon and salt today in case, but still feel ropey. I am also not sleeping - after sleeping really well all month because I’m not drinking, I’m now waking at 2 or 3am and not going back to sleep. I’ve stopped drinking water in evenings (apart from a few sips) in case I’m waking to go to the toilet, but it isn’t helping.

Yesterday I ate:
B - Greek yoghurt and spoonful of double cream
L - big bowl of thick green veg soup with some cream and cheese added
D - lettuce cups with egg mayonnaise, lots of other salad leaves in olive oil, one avocado, some asparagus in butter and a small piece of cheese.

Today I have had
B - Greek yoghurt and cream
L - scrambled eggs, avocado and smoked salmon with spinach and butter
D (not had yet - slow cooked Bolognese with buttered courgetti and broccoli.

I am drinking lots of water and have slowed that down today and aiming for 3.5 litres rather than 4.5-5 which is what I have been drinking.

Could it be anything else?

It could be carb flu - especially if you've been drinking so much water. And you could be going too low on your carbs, looking at the veg that you have been eating.

Try eating a slice of wholemeal toast. If that makes you feel better, then you know that you need to up your carbs a little until you get through it.

Definitely make sure you're getting your electrolyte balance sorted though. Here's a piece about why they're important, as well as a recipe for making your own . (Don't add the sweetener though)

[quote Dailyhandtowelwash]@BIWI

I've harvested my posts from the last few days. Mostly OK but a couple of days when I haven't eaten much. I'm totally on top of the water:

Lunch: scrambled eggs with a giant Portobello mushroom cooked in a shedload of butter with wilted spinach and two rashers of bacon

Dinner: pork, taleggio and broccoli lasagne made with leeks, green salad with avocado

One creamy coffee

Lunch: broccoli, courgette, stilton, garlic and cream soup, with chopped mushrooms fried in butter, and bits of fried bacon

Dinner tonight is the oriental pork cabbage parcels from the recipe thread, with pak choi

Lunch, was out, so an M&S random collection of rollitos, salad with a creamy chive dressing, spicy prawns, and olives and feta.

Dinner: cheeseburger pie, roast cauliflower, and fried greens.

Snack: creamy coffee

I’ve managed no food at all yet today owing to busyness and lack of appetite to remind me. I’ve been drinking the water, and had a coffee this morning (small amount of full fat milk as out of cream). Dinner tonight is veg soup with cheese and ham plate.

Coffee with coconut milk (sweetened) – an accident
Dinner – seafood cooked in butter, celeriac chips

Lunch today: wood-fired rotisserie pork from the farm, cauliflower cheese, creamed leeks, roast celeriac

I’ve also had a creamy coffee[/quote]
All your food sounds delicious!

However, I do see that you're eating/drinking a lot of dairy, and this could be your problem. Cut out the cheese and cream and see what happens.

@Onelittlepiglet if you're in week 5 you should really be past carb flu by now, but it does suggest to me that you're keeping your carbs a bit too low for you. Why not try adding some fruit and nuts/seeds to your yoghurt?

@BIWI OK, will give it a go. It's a drizzle of cream in coffee rather than a mix, as I've been careful about that.

If I don't eat cheese by itself but carry on with some cheese sauce in cooking, is that worth trying as a first step? Or go cold turkey and see what happens?

Go cold turkey. Just cut it out and see if there's an immediate impact on your weight.

@BIWI

Go cold turkey. Just cut it out and see if there's an immediate impact on your weight.

Wilko, boss.

Today's Guardian had a really interesting piece about an addiction to Diet Coke

A lot of stuff in this confirming that fizzy drinks, even if they're Diet, aren't good for us.

Oh no @BIWI - fizzy is my absolute downfall. Always has been. I used to have full sugar coke every day. I haven't since the GD but have moved onto some zero version which is obviously not good.

@venusandmars great looking veg box! Any plans for the butternut squash? I have had one in the drawer for ages!

Interesting article. The thing I’ve been most surprised at is not missing Diet Coke. I’d normally get through 24 cans in a week at minimum, at the worst DH and I were having a 2L bottle each most days. I’ve tried to give it up before and failed. I think it’s cutting out sugar and sweeteners wholesale that’s making it possible - normally one leads to the other.

Also interesting that when she succeeded in dropping it from her diet, that she dropped 2kg.