Week 7 - Leaving Lockdown Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

Evening all. Starting next week's thread early as I still have family here and it's difficult to get away to the laptop. The only reason I can do it now is that I'm in bed, really not feeling too well

Anyway here's the spreadsheet

I hope everyone sees a good result.

Really interesting and insightful posts about cravings and comfort eating. I actually think this is what makes low carbing (or any diet, frankly) so hard. The relationship we have with food is such a complex one.

Lovely day here - working in the garden, a short but fast run, lots of time with DC making pizzas (fathead for me!) and actually ate outside too!

L: green soup & sour cream, 2 almond muffins with cream cheese and cucumber
D: fathead tuna, peppers, olives and artichoke pizza absolutely gorgeous and a large salad all leaves and radish from the garden!
Small bar dark choc

Also went to my local specialist shop and got coconut flour and psyllium husks so planning on trying some low carb buns at some point.

They didn't have the funny sweetener beginning with E though - just bags of Xylitol. Can I bake with that??

They also had vanilla bean paste but it was still first ingredient sugar?!

The alternative was actual vanilla pods which at £57.00 for 12 I left on the shelf!!

You sound a lot more positive @FusionChefGeoff

Good to read!

@nowlook thank you I am . My brain is a scary place sometimes and now I've unlocked the final Fort Knox (!) area I feel really different.

Excuse the following self indulgent stream of couscous ness... but I know that a lot of us have the same emotional struggles to a lesser or greater degree!

If only we as a society could press a button to remove all the unhealthy messaging around food. I do remember my mum, when I first very falteringly tried to come clean about my severely restricting food for 6-8 months and she said "food is fuel". If only it were that simple!!!

There are people out there aren't there - who genuinely see food as fuel. There are also people who are overweight but genuinely don't care. They don't experience the daily internal narrative that I do that's a constant background hum about food and eating or not eating. I bet they don't know how lucky they are!

Emotionally, I will know I am well when I would happily accept fat as a consequence of being carefree. But for me, my emotional state is too linked to my size / perceived control over food. "Good" days and "bad" days - did I stick to plan? Did I snack? Did I overeat?? All about control.

I am trying (and the app is helping) to pivot that into 'did I enjoy my food?' 'Did I eat mindfully' 'was my food healthy and nutritious'??

You write so well @FusionChefGeoff I don't (think) I have a history of disordered eating but so much of what you write resonates with me.
But for me, my emotional state is too linked to my size / perceived control over food. "Good" days and "bad" days - did I stick to plan? Did I snack? Did I overeat?? All about control especially this. I really thought I had control of my eating but maintenance has proven that I don't. I haven't said fuck it yet but I am stealing 1/4 SL toast from my toddler and mindlessly eating dark chocolate stood at the fridge. Every day is a bad day to mentally berate myself over.
I've downloaded the Simple app, thank you for the recommendation

Glad you had a good holiday@ouchmyfeet I'm definitely up for a couple of strict weeks, starting tomorrow

My period started this morning which explains why I've felt more hungry the past couple of days

@ouchmyfeet lol at the ‘fuckit button’ - it’s been well and truly pressed here this weekend as it feels like the first holiday in a year or more. The sun is shining, the world looks beautiful, and if I want wine I will have wine.

Food is no problem when I’m abstaining, I don’t want anything inappropriate other than maybe a few too many strawberries, but once the cork is pulled the genie is released and the crisp and chocolate monster is unleashed

I’m going to go with the flow, literally and metaphorically, until Tuesday when I’ll draw that line and start again, but I’ll be looking at around a 6lb gain I think. Ah well, such is life.

Happy bank holiday to you all.

@Ifeelmuchlessfat what a great way to deal with it!! You've consciously released yourself from the negativity how inspiring

@FusionChefGeoff thanks, I suppose I just think that I’d advise a friend to give herself a break every now and then, so I should listen to myself more 🤔

I’ve done really well in the last year following three boot camps and lost just over four stone, I’m not going to put it all back on in a long weekend. As long as I accept that the first few days back on the wagon next week will be a bit tougher, it should be fine. Planning a strict june though

[quote Ifeelmuchlessfat]@FusionChefGeoff thanks, I suppose I just think that I’d advise a friend to give herself a break every now and then, so I should listen to myself more 🤔

I’ve done really well in the last year following three boot camps and lost just over four stone, I’m not going to put it all back on in a long weekend. As long as I accept that the first few days back on the wagon next week will be a bit tougher, it should be fine. Planning a strict june though [/quote]
I've said it before, I think, but that's such an incredible achievement. You take your weekend!

I nearly had garlic bread yesterday. DM and DF are mooting changes to their wills to help DSis's children because DSis is (and will probably continue to be) a bit selfish. She has four children; I have two. Am normally so utterly in the camp of "it's their money; you have no entitlement", but truthfully (and I feel bad for saying it), DSis has been preferred in so many practical and financial ways over the years already that it was a bit of a kicker. Fortunately saw BIWI's post just in time about only hurting yourself by eating emotionally.

Sorry @nowlook.

You can try and be as selfless as you like, but that still hurts

Thanks for understanding BIWI It really does hurt. There's a big falling out between DM and DF about it. He wants to keep it as 50/50, but DM is worried that her DGC on my sister's side won't see the benefit.

I blocked them all last night on the phone, messenger and whatsapp. Unblocked them at 2am this morning, so they never knew of my pathetic protest

I'll rally.

That sucks @nowlook I'm always amazed when reading aibu at the way in which some parents show favouritism.

I'm sorry to hear that, nowlook. It sounds very distressing and infuriating for you. I hope it pans out eventually in a way that is more respectful to you and your children.

I bit the bullet and weighed myself at the gym today, after around ten days of scale-phobia. I was pathetically pleased to see that my weight was lower (just) than it has been at any point in this bootcamp. So my bad days have not been destructve enough to undermine a positive weight trend.

I'm so used to crash dieting and then undoing everything with just a day or two of backsliding that I hadn't realised that proper weight loss is actually quite resilient. Of course you can undo it if you work hard enough at self-sabotage, but, equally, you can have the odd feast day (ideally in a planned way, rather than through demoralised impulsive scoffing ) without automatically going back to square one.

In retail therapy news, I have bought myself an absolutely fuck-off enormous water bottle so that I can put my entire day's quota in it at once, instead of constantly forgetting how much water I#ve managed to drink. And I've bought some cold-pressed ginger to flavour my water with.
(I've also ordered a posh kitchen knife that is making me more excited than is reasonable, but I've already rabitted for ages so I will quell my urge to natter about it.)

I think the stuff in my third para actually repeats something I said on here a couple of weeks ago. I learnt it then, and forgot it and had to relearn it again today. I will probably have to relearn it dozens more times, too, because we are so reluctant to give up the garbagy errors that we torment ourselves with.

@nowlook I would really struggle with that too. To be fair, I got annoyed that people who were a bit crap with money suddenly got thousands of PIP payouts back in the day and I had zero emotional involvement there. If my parents were penalising me / my kids because of bad choices made by a sibling I'd find that very hard to get past.

@Random789 lovely introspective, balanced post. Glad to hear youre seeing long term benefits and that helps to move this to a sustainable woe rather than a 12 week diet.

Parents came over very last minute today so expanded a basic BBQ into a wonderful family afternoon of food and fun. Overate slightly but I throughly enjoyed every nutritious and home cooked mouthful.

Massive run this morning (fasted) so definitely fat adapted and feeling great - was actually faster for the last couple of miles!!

I'm resisting the temptation to 'beat' my allocated fasting time on the app. I know that this could be a real trigger for me but I'm doing well so far eating when I'm hungry / when it suits the day rather than sticking rigidly to a time. I'm not snacking after dinner and that was my main aim

L: leftover fathead pizza, and Turkish takeaway with salad, buttery egg
D: naked cheese and bacon burger, salad, coleslaw, 2 Aldi sausages (v low carb - the Lincolnshire ones), strawbs whipped cream, dark choc and 2 squares of normal choc

Oh I forgot to ask - I'm interested in trying to use raw courgette in a salad but like a grain (have a craving for tabbouleh).

Grating will be too small I think?
Peeling ribbons too large

Do I need a spiraliser? Or just try a very fine dice do you think??

week 8 chat thread here.

Can't get that link to work. I can't do a pretty one but this works for me:

Week 8 - Leaving Lockdown Low Carb Bootcamp http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/lowcarbb_bootcamp/4258474-Week-8-Leaving-Lockdown-Low-Carb-Bootcamp

FusionChefGeoff cauliflower rice works well in tabbouleh, I don't think courgette would be the same.

Can I join you? Tips for getting started?
Easy menu ideas? Does low carb cereal exist? I have a craving for granola style

@sandwiches77 you're very welcome to join us - but you're on the wrong thread!

here's the latest thread

There's a recipe for low carb granola on one of the recipe threads - I think it's the vegetarian one (stickied at the top of the Low Carb Bootcamp topic)

Here it is, @sandwiches77

Rose Elliott's Low Carb Granola

Makes 8 servings at 4.4g net carbs per serving

55g unsweetened desiccated coconut
85g chopped brazil nuts
85g chopped walnuts
85g chopped almonds
85g sunflower seeds
115g melted butter*
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
Some stevia to sweeten
(I used vanilla bean paste instead of vanilla extra and stevia - it contains sugar, so stevia isn't necessary, as well as being artificial. I used probably a tablespoon of this)
85g flax seeds

• vegans can use coconut oil instead of butter

To make it:

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Put the coconut, brazil nuts, walnuts, almonds and sunflower seeds into a large bowl. Add the melted butter, cinnamon and vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract & stevia if you're using this) and mix together.
3. Transfer to a baking sheet/tray and bake in the oven for approx. 10-12 mins, stirring a few times, until golden brown . Keep an eye on it though as it'll burn easily.
4. Remove from the oven and immediately tip into a bowl, to prevent the mixture continuing to cook on the hot baking sheet, and stir in the flax seeds.
5. Once it's completely cold transfer the mixture to a storage container.