Low Carb Bootcamp - our final weigh in (but ongoing chat thread)

[BIWI]

Morning all!

Another wet and dreary day. What happened to summer?!

Anyway, for its final outing, here is the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

It's not the end, of course - and I know many of you are keen to keep going until whenever the next Bootcamp starts. So post here for all the usual chat, banter, recipes, etc.

Started the day with a lovely treat- shakshuka and an Americano at Leon. Leon at motorway services is such a treat!

I don’t understand why but I am really hungry today.

I woke in the night feeling hungry so got up and had a cuppa with a square of 90% choc.
I had Greek yog and seeds for breakfast and 3 eggs scrambled plus some cheddar for lunch and a coffee with cream. 1 litre of water down.
For the first time in ages I am craving bread or a bowl of cereal. Or an apple.
Hmm. More coffee. Back to work.

Bestiswest is it TOTM?
Oh i love Leon at services too. So good!

Hope not @cheeseisthebest, I’m 58 and well past that.

So jealous @Rayna37 I haven’t been to a Leon since I had a fancy job in London that required nice shoes (At least 12 years ago I reckon)

Went totally off piste yesterday. The kids had mates round so we got in pizzas and dough balls and those kids do NOT eat like mine! We were left with 2 untouched cooked pizzas and I couldn’t bear the waste so I had a few slices and salad for dinner and H polished off the rest. It wasn’t particularly nice and I’d have much preferred my planned Cullen skink (now rescheduled for Thursday - lamb curry tonight).

Strangely tho I got on the scales trepidatiously this morning and I’m a few pounds down at 11st 7 - just 2lb off my lightest ever adult weight. I wonder if the carbs take a while to show in weight?

You can tell I'm motivated at the moment (helped by a good weigh in this morning) as I just downloaded the pdf of the nutritional info at the not at all fancy chain restaurant to help decide what was "worth" having tonight!

Hi all. Took dd2 out for the day to celebrate the end of school. She loves Wagamama so we went there. I had a beef brisket ramen, ate the beef, egg and bits and pieces, drank the soup but didn't touch the noodles. Wagas is a complete rip off, about 2 mouthfuls of meat, half an egg, a few bits of veg then absolutely a fuck ton of cheap noodles. Also had the bang bang cauliflower which probably had loads of sugar. So definitely not good and off plan but I didn't want to make lunch all about me, so leaving the noodles was my concession!

Didn't buy anything in the garage on the way up and back when normally I'd have had a coffee and pastry and possibly crisps or chocolate on the way back. So that was good. Hardly any water as I wasn't sure how many loos there would be...

@BestIsWest

Hope not *@cheeseisthebest*, I’m 58 and well past that.

not that then!!

MrsKoala a high-carb meal can sometimes trigger a whoosh, as can alcohol consumption. The problem is you never know when it's going to happen and the weight would have come off by itself anyway plus carbs or alcohol are very likely to derail you from eating well. So that's why we don't recommend it as a method of weight loss!

@Bryonyshcmyony I think that's something we have to accept isn't it - that at times our meals will be shit / not at all what we want as this woe can be very limiting if we have to put something else (usually someone else's choice) above our own needs.

I'm feeling very odd at the moment. I managed a whole weekend away with friends staying on plan - but definitely have started to feel very deprived and bored of my food options during / since.

I am responding to this by massively overeating and binging. All LC stuff but I'm not enjoying the binge food (whole pack of Aldi Spanish tapas meat and a large chunk of manchego, Brie and cheddar) and feel emotionally shit after.

Yesterday I had a long fast due to work and managed to fit a run in. Was feeling positive and happy. Spent time preparing a gorgeous salad with salmon, asparagus and avocado and really enjoyed it.

But DH was out (he had tickets for the footie!!!) and I just couldn't settle!! Again a feeling of being deprived I think as I would perhaps have "treated" myself in times gone by - but it feels that there are no 'special' meals on this woe as I'm starting to feel very limited.

Thinking about it, 'treat' foods tend to have a huge convenience element as that's part of the treat that I don't need to cook. So kiddy type beige oven food, pizza, posh ready meals or guilty indulgences like cheese and crisp sandwiches on white bread!!

I guess I could keep takeaway curry or Turkish as a treat option as can vaguely justify getting lots to freeze .

But because I was feeling deprived I just kept casting about for something LC to fill the void which resulted in a zillion unnecessary calories and my usually successful IF has also gone out of the window.

I did also eventually cave and eat the 5/6 Pringles that were leftover just before I came to bed.

I don't know what's wrong with me or what's happened to my motivation!!!

a couple of weeks ago I was flying and loving this but now I am feeling resentful and toyed yesterday with the idea of stopping completely and trying maintenance on a normal diet ie calorie counting instead. As I do so much exercise and long distance running i can actually have quite a high calorie allowance which is tempting that the massive range of food would open back up.

I'm not going to do anything drastic today but anyone else hit the doldrums and got any advice?!

@FusionChefGeoff your worries are my worries. Going forward I'm not going to feel deprived - I didn't feel deprived leaving the noodles as they looked gross tbh. I keep telling myself that my food choices in the past meant that I'm now 2 stone overweight and that's bad for me. I wish it was as easy as cutting out the odd doughnut/croissant/massive bowl of pasta, but at 55 my body just clings onto every single calorie. To lose weight calorie counting I'd have to eat 1000 cals a day.

Finally got the scales out and 12.10 and a half, so a pound and a half away from the 12.12 stick. I could so easily be back at 12.12 next Wednesday though but trying to stay positive!

The thing is, when you reach the weight range that's OK for you, you don't have to deprive yourself!

Of course you can't go straight back to a high carb diet, as that is what led to the weight gain in the first place - but there's nothing to stop you having a high carb meal or treat every now and then.

You have the tools, techniques and knowledge to know how to deal with any weight gain that comes with that.

(And actually, you may find that when you go back to what you previously considered to be delicious, that you don't actually enjoy it that much!)

I made this last night and it was delicious - as well as really low carb.

I've done a carb count based on best estimates, as I didn't think to weigh the ingredients beforehand. The feta and chorizo I know the weight of, but the aubergine I'm less sure, so I've been generous in giving the weight for a large aubergine at 600g per (large) aubergine.

Aubergine, feta and chorizo bake
Serves 4

2 large aubergines (600g each)
1 pack feta cheese (200g)
50g chorizo (1/4 of a chorizo ring)
2 medium cloves of garlic
1 red chilli, deseeded (optional)
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

First you need to make a garlic and chilli-infused olive oil, so you'll need to do this in advance - the longer you leave it, the more the flavours will develop

• pour a generous amount of olive oil into a small saucepan; around 5mm deep in the pan
• finely chop the chilli and garlic and add to the oil
• turn on the heat until the oil starts to sizzle, and then turn the heat off immediately; put a lid on the pan and leave to one side

Next, cook the chorizo

• if you're using chorizo from a ring, first peel the papery skin off, and then cut it into small dice
• if you're using pre-chopped chorizo, it needs to be chopped into smaller dice
• in a dry pan, gently fry until it starts to release its oil, then turn the heat up a little till it starts to crisp
• take it off the heat and transfer it into a bowl, and leave it to cool (the bowl needs to be large enough to add the feta later)

Prepare the aubergine

• top and tail, and then cut each one in half, lengthways, and then cut criss-cross lines into the flesh
• use a roasting tin that will hold the aubergines snugly, and cover the surface of the tin with olive oil, so that the aubergines won't stick
• place the halves into the tin, skin side down/cut side up, and then drizzle the cut sides generously with olive oil
• season with salt and pepper
• bake in a medium hot oven for around 20 minutes

While the aubergine is in the oven, prepare the topping

• pat the feta dry, then whizz it in the food processor (with the metal blade) till it's finely chopped - but not a slurry!
• if you haven't got a processor, chop it by hand as finely as you can
• add to the cooled chorizo and stir together well
• season with black pepper (salt won't be needed as both the cheese and chorizo are pretty salty)

Assemble the dish for the final cooking

• take the aubergine out of the oven - check that it's softened. If it still seems hard, cook for another 5-10 minutes (but don't let it brown)
• spoon over the garlic and chilli oil, making sure that each aubergine gets a generous and even amount
• top with the chorizo/feta mixture and smooth this topping over each aubergine half
• bake for another 10-15 minutes, until the cheese mixture is well browned, and the aubergine nice and soft

Based on these weights, this is a total of just 6.5g carbs per person

Making this tonight for me. Sounds delicious!!

Oh that does sound nice @BIWI. I have just had chorizo, feta and olives for lunch or I would be making it for dinner later as I’m planning to roast an aubergine anyway.

I've inadvertently fasted today due to being unwell with an ear infection! Just waiting on a Mexican takeaway, beef steak fajitas (sans tortilla) and peri peri chicken skewer with salad. Not by far enough water but did resist the roasted peanuts stored in the car for emergencies

Thanks for the recipe @BIWI. I made half (one aubergine). I didn't bother whizzing the feta in the food processor, just smushed it with my fingers and pressed on top. I thought I'd be piggy and eat both halves but in fact one was plenty with a bit of lettuce and avocado on the side. Then I had a handful of berries and a decaff coffee with almond milk and double cream. Feeling very sated and happy with my food today. I do feel a bit ill though and have a banging headache - not helped my dd1 arriving home from uni in a grump.

I'm not quite where I'd like to be yet though - my 'average / normal' weight that I am now is what I'd like to be my top end so I need another 5/6lb leeway really.

Feeling better today - small things but have restarted my vitamins and supplements.

Met a friend at Starbucks (who commented on my weight loss!) and had a chicken protein pot not realising it had quinoa hidden and quite a lot of beetroot but was very nice. Just checked the carb count and it's massive!!!!! I'm really pissed off I got as far as checking the menu in advance but didn't go far enough! Ah well, I know for next time.

DS birthday today yay so family over for pizza (fathead for me) and then up to watch him at cricket so avoided the post dinner snack attacks and have made a cuppa and resisted the dark choc.

Need to do some serious meal planning at the weekend so I know I've got delicious food ahead of me.

Interesting to read of people feeling 'deprived'. Of all the things I might feel on this way of eating, deprived is not one of them. I feel deprived on a low fat diet when I can't add butter to a steak, and when I also have to avoid mayonnaise, olive oil and have a dry salad. And no chips. I feel deprived when I can have only 2 eggs a week (too much cholesterol). I feel deprived when my strawberries are served with low fat yogurt.

Of course I do feel attracted toward some food combinations that are way off plan, but over time I feel more and more confident about making choices. A few fries stolen from my dh, not a whole portion to myself; an absolute 'NO' to macaroni cheese, but a great big yes to cauli cheese (made with BIWI's special cheese sauce). Having cheese and almond muffins in the freezer.. Spread with peanut butter they are the most filling and wonderful things, I defy anyone to prefer toast!

I eat prawn cocktail, corn beef, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs. None of these would be available on a low fat calorie controlled diet.

I also know that I can loose some weight or maintain on a managed calorie diet. But it is harder work and (for me) not so sustainable. On a managed low fat, low calorie diet I do feel deprived. Of butter, cream, confit duck legs, avocado, crispy chicken skin. Plus I am also deprived of the forbidden items for low calorie low fat diets - peanuts, crisps, a chinese takeaway, a big mac. So what's the point?

Food today:
Brunch - coffee with cream; omelette with onion, red pepper, courgette, mushroom, cheese; slice of ham
Snack - corn beef (spread with butter and topped with cucumber)
D - salmon, with roasted summer veg (onion, fennel, red pepper, green beans, courgette tomato, olives)

My attitude to treats is to look at them from a mindful prespective: if it's not something that I can have again/on another occasion, then I'll enjoy it mindfully. If it's something I could eat/come across easily again in the near future, then I'll pass for the moment.

But I'm a moderator rather than an abstainer - as long as the need to moderate lasts no more than a couple of days.

In other news, the bathroom is progressing: frame for the wall hung loo and cistern is now securely bolted to the floor and wall and the studs are going up. One window pane (an old Victorian sheet glass) has been broken and will replaced tomorrow.

I do feel deprived at restaurants when there is nothing I can choose which will fill me up. Wagamama’s is particularly difficult, asking for no noodles or rice leaves you with £14 unsatisfying dinner and everyone else is enjoying their food and you are hangry.

I think im just bored of things which used to feel decadent.

My menus are getting smaller and more limited as I identify triggers for bloating / working out what's easy to cook / what the family will eat as work has gone nuts I don't have the time to dedicate to this as I did when I first started.

As such I'm down to about 5/6 meals regularly so I suppose it's no wonder I'm fed up.

Which is why I'm going for a huge menu planning session at the weekend to try to jolt me out of this.

I agree @FusionChefGeoff. I get to a point where I can’t face any more butter or fat or cream. I just want beetroot or a peach etc. That’s when I change slightly and do Joe Wicks or Dr Rupy or The fast 800 recipes. They are along similar lines but less fat and cream and carbier veg and pulses. However, it does lead to a carb creep for me so I am trying to be more strict this time to find my balance but I’ll probably need to continue doing boot camp every now and then to pull me back. I’m trying to be more mindful of the daily calories overall and activity levels too, so they match realistically.

@MrsKoala

I agree *@FusionChefGeoff*. I get to a point where I can’t face any more butter or fat or cream. I just want beetroot or a peach etc. That’s when I change slightly and do Joe Wicks or Dr Rupy or The fast 800 recipes. They are along similar lines but less fat and cream and carbier veg and pulses. However, it does lead to a carb creep for me so I am trying to be more strict this time to find my balance but I’ll probably need to continue doing boot camp every now and then to pull me back. I’m trying to be more mindful of the daily calories overall and activity levels too, so they match realistically.

I think this is where I'll end up tbh.

I can't say I absolutely love this WOE, but it seems to be (slowly) working. I really like what @BIWI says about having a half stone buffer. I think getting to 11 and a half stone will be my ideal point, although it is going to take forever at this rate. I've said to myself I will stick to it when I can and if I really need to do something different (wagas) then I will. I'd definitely try and choose somewhere other than Wagamama next time though as boy, not eating carbs shows it up for the rip off it is!