Week 2 - Leaving Lockdown Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

Sunday night here is games night, so better that I start the thread now, before I forget as I've gone to bed so late!

I truly hope that this link to the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness works!

Apologies if it doesn't, but hopefully someone will come and post a working one if it doesn't!

I love week 2, as for those who haven't low carbed before the results are often spectacularly incredible!

But even for those of us who are more used to low carbing, hopefully this first week has seen you make a good start.

It's looking like some warmer weather is heading our way, which always makes things seem more positive - but also focuses our minds on things like skimpier clothing, so hopefully will help to keep us toeing the line!

I hope the scales have rewarded your hard work, and here's to a good week ahead

Congratulations on the new job, debka and good luck for the meeting today.

Yesterday for lunch I had fried halloumi slices with avocado, and goodness me it was lovely. My son uses a lot of halloumi and I have always judged him harshly for it. I can remember telling him once it was rubberised salt that was unfit for human consumption.

It is rubberised salt, of course, but I can't remember now why I thought that was a bad thing.

So that was my lunch. For dinner I had salmon and some strange fried patties made of grated sweede, mushroom, coriander and egg.

Aw sorry Debka, was joking!

As I have told all my resigners, you aren't obliged to stay in a job! Even if you just fancy a change for changes sake, you don't have to feel bad about it!

Right you lot.

During this Bootcamp, and the last one, I've been quite careful about bringing out The Big Stick, because I've felt that we all have had/are having so much going on in our lives that it would be an unwelcome addition.

However.

There's a lot of cheating going on.

Can I remind you that we are still only in week 2?

Chocolate, wine, potatoes, cake etc are not allowed!

Ultimately it's your choice to consume those things, of course. But remember that a cheat now will only sabotage your best efforts to lose weight.

AND

... the whole point of a strict two weeks is to switch our bodies from burning carbs to burning fat. The more you keep on eating too many carbs, the longer this process will take.

I really want everyone to succeed, and I don't want to have to give people a hard time, but actually when you cheat, it's you who is giving yourself a hard time!

I know we joke about Cathy Twat (myself included), but please think hard about the choices you're making, and remember what we're trying to achieve on Bootcamp.

I saw the tulips at Arundel on the bbc weather too !
Productive day yesterday
Cleaned my car ( and found a Mars bar use by 06/17 under the passenger seat )
Took a load to the tip
Did some gardening

B . Nasty yoghurt ( not Greek , big mistake ) raspberries
L . Bacon and avocado salad
D. Pork shoulder with broccoli , sugar snaps ( only a couple ) and a couple of jersey royals mashed with loads of cream and butter )
@NigellaAwesome my last few years are similar , did a really good Bootcamp ( I think autumn 2019 ) and since then have yoyoed all over the place

@venusandmars I caught sight of my grandma looking back at me one morning in the mirror ( that was a bad shock )

I’ve scrolled back and can’t find whoever recommended a mirena coil , but I had 2 over the years ( am older now and don’t need contraception) which worked like a dream and had I no periods at all

Hope it al goes OK debka Years ago when I told my boss I was pregnant and going on maternity leave he put on a disappointed face and complained that I 'might have given him more notice'. Given that I was only about 8 weeks pregnant and had to say because I was throwing up everywhere, I'm not sure how much earlier I could have warned him unless it was 'oh by the way we had sex last night, better watch this space...'

Meeting up for a lovely walk in the sunshine with my friend today. Haven't seen her for many, many months. And it's perfect picnic weather.

B - boiled egg mashed with butter (I do mine soft boiled for 5 minutes), coffee with cream
L - meat loaf and big salad, mayonnaise
D - smoked cod on a mountain of buttery spinach, topped with the microwave poached eggs.

Yesterday :

B scrambled eggs
L scrambled eggs (inspired!)
D cauli rice, shallots, mushies and teriyaki tofu plus soy sauce (Kikkoman.)

Today so far these vegan chicken tenders the other half bought. They say 4g/100g carbs, I had 2 and 6 is 210g. Does that sound OK? They were rather nice, so I might add to salad sometimes.

@NigellaAwesome Welcome back

Over the years that I've followed MN BootCamp or rather fallen off the wagon, if I ever got on at all I've been there, done that, got the T-shirt .

Fortunately the t-shirt is now far too big

It's stupid because I know it improves my mood and mindset and gets results - but sometimes life gets in the way and once the black dog arrives, it's difficult even to do what you know will help, which creates its own viscous circle of beating oneself up

I need some tips please. My darling AthelcatTheGirl was diagnosed with a brain tumour yesterday - she's pretty elderly so probably can't be treated.

She hasn't been able to eat properly over the last few days; I'm blitzing her food so she can lap at least some (chewing is out).

And now I feel too sick (at heart) to eat as well... What do people eat when they can't eat, iyswim?

But I can't face that for mine.

sorry, can't face blitzing my food, i meant

So sorry to hear that @AthelstaneTheUnready  Poor wee puss  It's always milky drinks for me if I can't eat, but not that BC friendly, I suppose.

@BIWI I'm just reporting in for my gold star as I have stuck religiously to strict boot camp, and lost loads! It works brilliantly!

 to all of you going through tough stuff (there seem to be lots ), & good luck @debka !

Oh Athelstane I'm so sorry. My dearest darling old dog was put to sleep on Teusday. (I posted about it on a different thread because as a newbie to the bootcamp I was unsure about whether I should vent here.)

I can't help wiht any suggestions to encourage her to eat, as I don't really 'know' cats, but I wanted to offer support in relation to this ending time in your cat's life.

It was last Saturday that the vet told me that my old dog needed to be put to sleep because of a neurological disorder. I had a few days with him to say goodbye and feed him multiple steaks, and I agonised endlessly about the decision. I was terrified of remorse - of the feeling that I'd let him go too soon. But in the end, after it happened, I did feel at peace with the decision. I hope you can have some peaceful, happy times with your dear pet before she goes XX

Oh I'm so sorry about your cat.

I have been a very good girl, no cheating at all and another 2lb down this week.

Athelstane I am so sorry about Athelcat My beautiful old lady cat was PTS last March after a very short illness and I was devastated. She was unable to eat really, but still attempted to eat some tuna, especially where I added a little extra water to mix with the juices, so it was thin and well mashed. I cooked whole chickens and bought fish from the chip shop in vain attempts to tempt her, as she loved both usually, but she just had little interest. Like you say, not surprising.

As for you, eat if you can, but do make sure you stay hydrated. Maybe soup? Less effort to consume and can just heat half a mug in the microwave if you feel you could face it.

Thanks, Miles, I do have some ovaltine kicking around actually. Maybe later today.

Thanks, Random. And so sorry to hear about your dog . I am also scared of missing the 'right' moment. Cats hide pain much more than dogs, so I may have to be guided by the vet's opinion.

Thanks, cheese. And well done on the 2lb! It's nice when virtue is actually rewarded.

Hughbert, so sorry for you too - even when they're old, you don't quite expect the time will be now. I'll try minced tuna in water, thank you!

Soup sounds sensible, but I can't face that either. Think I'm going to call it a 48 hour fast and stop pushing it.

I am just posting quickly and will have to read the rest of the thread later on.

I feel like I am very busy and have not slept well for the last two nights because I've been kept awake by other people making a lot of noise.

Yesterday I was so tired that I just had a jacket potato for my dinner and a glass of milk. I had cooked some green beans and put them in vinaigrette too.

Apart from that, I've been OK, and I've really noticed that the more vegetables I have earlier in the day, the better I feel later on.

But I feel like I am suffering badly from my lack of planning. I find organisation and planning of meals and shopping really difficult -- especially when I am busy with other things. I know there are plenty of ideas here fore meals, but what do other people who are bad at planning do?

I'm so sorry Athelstan.

Have they prescribed steroids? My dear old lady had a brain tumour, but had nearly 3 years of pretty good life before her eyesight went completely, and we decided it was time to let her go.

Here she is about 4 months before the end. Dear old girl.

Not yet, MrsBert, they only said this yesterday. Vet's going to send a letter containing options (and prices), but given her age (15) surgery is not going to be on list. Steroids and poss. opiates. SO encouraged to hear you had another 3 years though!

Elastic, I'm not the greatest domestic planner either, so instead of trying to be a better planner every day, and failing, I plan once for the week. Ensure there's enough straight-from-the-fridge food to eat if cooking goes awry, and enough quick meals if I only have 20 mins.

{{{hugs}}}

@AthelstaneTheUnready and @Random789

I’m so sorry about your cat @AthelstaneTheUnready, they really wriggle their way into your heart don’t they. I hope the decision you need to make becomes clearer once you know all the options.

Food today

B. None, wasn’t hungry and I’m used to skipping it
L. Ham mushroom and cheese omelette with salad
D. Takeaway night here but I’ve made butter chicken from the recipe pages while the others have pizza

Thanks, both.

It's weird how different people react to different situations with food. When I become angry, tired, happy, upset, overjoyed, I'm tempted to cram every crisp, profiterole, bottle of wine, I can into my mouth. My learned coping mechanisms + habit I suppose. Like I MUST do something to respond to whatever the emotion just raised is.

When I'm really floored, I can't eat at all. When my husband died my weight dropped by over two stone in about three weeks. Couldn't put anything in my mouth. And yet a friend of mine who lost her dog last year just could not stop eating it away.

Elastic if you're having difficulty planning then I would develop a few quick favourites that take little time to prepare, in particular using frozen vegetables where possible. Also go for foods with a longer shelf life such as sausages so you'll have a longer window to use them in. Another approach would be to make extra so you always have leftovers. I often make a big tray of chicken drumsticks or thighs for a meal and keep the extras in the fridge for snacks or impromptu meals. I also boil extra eggs when I'm making them for breakfast and keep some in the fridge for a quick ham and egg salad or a snack with mayo.

Well done cheese - I dream of the 9s. So motivating to hear you’ve bust through a plateau.

to Athelstane - so sad to hear.

Oh BIWI forgive me for I have sinned. 3times all when eating out. #1 was about 2tbps couscous stuffing in stuffed courgettes. #2 was an almond latte made with sweetened almond milk (didn’t think to ask and couldn’t leave it). #3 was half a slice of sourdough with avo toast.

#1 and #3 were the closest lunch / brunch things I could eat on the menu (I am now dairy and egg free). All 3 very much enjoyed although I am very gassy after the sourdough.

Will be delaying BC lite for another week even though I am struggling without nuts.

First attempt at coconut yoghurt was a disaster - it was sat in the oven on ‘light on’ setting (ie just warm) when along comes DH and turns the temp up to 180 for DS’s dinner . It was in there for 5 hours and is now sat in the fridge to see if it thickens but i am not hopeful....I may get some kind of lassi out of it but more likely it’s going down the bog. Hey ho, live and learn.

Just did big weekly shop I. Asda to prepare for week 3
@Bestbees good your boy didn't need stitches.
@debka hope meeting went well with handing on your notice.
@Doilooklikeatourist it was me mentioned coil really suits me not having periods
@Random789 sorry about your dog and @AthelstaneTheUnready hope your cat ok.

Sorry to hear about AthelCat @AthelstaneTheUnready to you. Even when you know it's time, it doesn't make it any easier.