Week 3 - July 22 Low Carb Bootcamp - full-on or Light?

[BIWI]

Morning all!

Some good results already I see - which is great.

Here's the spreadsheet

A warning about week 3

We now have the choice. You can either stay on Bootcamp, or move to Bootcamp Light, which allows some fruit (mainly berries), some nuts/seeds (although check the carb counts, as they vary hugely) and alcohol in moderation.

However. Week 3 (and 4, and sometimes even 5) is notorious for seeing a change in the rate of loss. You may not see any loss, and you may even see a slight gain. If this happens to you, DON'T PANIC! It's totally, totally normal. As long as you're following the rules, and KOKO, things will resume. It's all about your body adjusting to this new regime.

So bearing this in mind, you may decide to stay on 'full-on' Bootcamp. Or, as some do, a hybrid, so Bootcamp during the week and then Bootcamp Light at the weekend.

Whatever your decision, I hope you have a good week.

@Lougle I spent all yesterday running to the loo and not really eating so I feel your pain.
DS had wanted to try a buffet restaurant so I took him and my nephew and eldest DD.
I tried to go with low carb options but felt terrible afterwards and my bowels still haven’t recovered.
I only managed some yoghurt later that evening.

Today
B yoghurt sprinkled with keto granola
L chicken Caesar
D Chicken tikka masala with spinach and cauliflower rice

I used some pataks paste for the tikka masala so it was carby then I would like. I think about 50g of paste per portion which would be 4g of carbs!

I forgot to add when I was feeling bad yesterday I had a diet 7up. I am really hoping it doesn’t start be craving sweet things.

@ChimneyPot sorry you had a bad tummy too. The pain was unreal this morning. I don't think one diet drink will be a problem. It's more about breaking the habits of sugar cravings. As an example, my DD was making smores with her friends tonight. I don't even really like marshmallows, but I still felt a pang of jealousy because the smell was quite nice!

Ds' girlfriend has come down to stay for a couple of nights. She's veggie which I find challenging when I'm not eating pasta or rice or potatoes.

I'd made her my avocado, cheese, tomato and cucumber salad last time (recipe on the veggie recipe thread) and courgette & feta fritters (recipe i found on the veggie thread) last time she visited and dh said I couldn't repeat them

I was inspired by someone (can't remember who) who'd had shakshuka, so I made that minus the peppers after I'd picked her up from the train station, along with some (home made) tzatziki and a simple green salad. ''Twas lovely

https://downshiftology.com/recipes/shakshuka/

The only comment I'd add to the recipe apart from omitting the bell pepper is to add some time to allow the tomato mixture to reduce down before dropping in the eggs. and remember the feta I'll try added feta next time

That all sounds lovely @prettybird! I need to get some variation going.

Well, my tummy seems to have calmed. Perhaps it was something I ate, although I can't think what. I'm 1½lbs down, but I can't recommend the method. The pain was pretty intense yesterday. Hopefully a better day today!

@BIWI Thanks. I've read the rules, cleared the fridge and been shopping😊
I went through the food diaries and decided on FF Greek yogurt and clotted cream. It feels so wrong!

... and yet so right!

This WOE (way of eating) does feel very counter-intuitive - we've been programmed over the last 40 years or so to believe that fat is bad/carbs are good, that to eat the other way does feel all kinds of wrong.

Make sure you have a read of some of the resources on the spreadsheet, which will also explain the science behind low carb/high fat eating.

And good luck!

Glad to hear you're feeling better @Lougle. Very very occasionally these days - usually when I've been allowing too many carbs into my diet - I have a bout of IBS, and it's horrible, so I have a little insight into how you must have been feeling.

Hopefully you're very on the mend now.

Caught up at last. Sounds like people are fitting in LCHF as best you can. I've been more maintenance than BC but the thread is inspiring me.
@catwithflowers I don't suffer with OA but my abdomen is much smaller and my skin less red on this WoE - my body feels less inflamed if that makes sense.

Inputted earlier but it didn't post, anyway was just saying hope your feeling better @lougle

Was just making my coffee this morning, having a lazy time chatting with the kids, when my delivery arrived from a keto baker that I discovered online.
He includes nutritional information for all his food do for breakfast with my coffee I had a bagel with 3.4g of carbs, 20g of fat and 16g of fibre.
It was unusual but nice toasted one half with butter, the other with pate. I will have to buy some full fat cream cheese.
I am going to put 2/3 the delivery in the freezer because I don’t want to end up overeating.

Added you to the spreadsheet @PennyPinkPineapple

No pressure, entirely voluntary, it's available as a resource for logging changes to your weight should you wish to keep track.

Thanks @FinallyHere

Thank you for your kindness. I've worked out what it was, I think. I bought tinned tomatoes from Lidl a few weeks ago and they have different varieties side by side. I accidentally picked up the chopped tomatoes with chili. On Monday, I was in a hurry to get meatballs on because DD3 had a hair cut at 5.30pm, so I grabbed a couple of tins of tomatoes and whacked them in. Everyone commented on how spicy the dinner was, which was a bit confusing. Today, I realised it was that - my bowels obviously objected!

Tonight I cooked shakshuka for the first time. I used spring greens, leeks and broccoli. Nice.

B - mushroom and cheese omelette
L - goats cheese salad
D - shakshuka (2 eggs).

Fluids: 4 litres

We had a lovely (if I say so myself) dinner this evening - aubergines baked with feta, shallots, chorizo, garlic and chilli.

200g pack of feta
1 large echallion shallot
1 green chilli
2 garlic cloves
1/2 pack (of 2) diced chorizo
2 aubergines
plenty of olive oil

Cut the aubergines in half lengthways, and then cut the flesh diagonally from left to right, and then right to left; drizzle generously with olive oil and then season. Put them on a shallow oven tin and bake in the oven on 160 fan for around 20 minutes till starting to brown

Meanwhile, slice or chop the shallot, and in a small frying pan add it with the chorizo, chopped chilli and finely chopped garlic and sauté till soft, and then let it cool

In a small processor, blitz the feta and then add the cooled feta mixture.

Take the aubergines out of the oven and divide the feta mixture over the top of each one, spreading it out so that it covers the surface of the aubergine. Turn the oven up to 200 fan and bake for another 10 minutes or so, till it's starting to brown.

I served this with new potatoes (for DH) and large vine tomatoes, which I'd drizzled with olive oil and then sprinkled chopped garlic on the top, seasoned, and added sprigs of fresh oregano from the garden.

That sounds gorgeous BIWI. I was late home from work and its still hot. I tipped a tin of sardines over iceberg lettuce and added a few olives. Surprisingly good

Day 1 and I'm worried I've done it wrong...

B - FF greek yogurt and clotted cream

L - avocado, mozzarella and tomato on a load of salad leaves dressed in olive oil

Snack - I felt really hungry at 4pm so had a babybel and some more yogurt & CC (this is where I started to think I've eaten too much)

D - roasted courgette, peppers and red onion in loads of olive oil then added a tin of tomatoes and crushed garlic. Sausages on top and roasted. Then I realised I can't eat onion 😭 so I picked it out my portion

Water...almost at 3L

Have I eaten too much? Do we have to weigh vegetables as they have some carbs in?

Sorry to hear of everyone's tummy troubles, I'm struggling with the complete opposite at the moment 😐any tips to get things moving naturally?

Been a bit snacky today, I've not been hungry but a bit of emotional eating going on I think which I need to be more aware of and stop doing.
B - scrambled egg with butter
L - salad of spinach, tomato, avocado, ham and cheddar, dressed with mayo
D - mince and veg stuffed peppers with spinach, drizzled in sesame oil.
S - greek yoghurt, and a spoonful of mince mixture
W - 3.5l

Very rare day off whilst DC is in nursery tomorrow and DH is at work, so looking forward to some 'me' time. Have planned a brunch of halloumi, avocado and poached egg on a bed of spinach. Looking forward to it already!

to get things moving naturally

@Chocasaurus

Spinach, raw cabbage, celeriac followed by an espresso work for me. Meal planning for me tends to start from which of these 'greens' will be involved and then add anything else on top to add fat and taste.

I used to think that these impacts were universal but have learned from DH that it is very much not the case, more about know what works for each of us.

The time I rather overdosed on meat with not enough veg and got myself into a bit of a state remains as an awful warning. It took almost a whole packet of sugar free sweets to sort out and was really not comfortable. The great lesson was to make sure I included the right kind of roughage ever after.

I weighed myself today for the first time as a starting weight for my 're-start' - 12 st 5. Will be thrilled with 11'8 by the end, my weight loss is always really slow!

Lunch - feta and tuna Mayo salad
Dinner - smoked mackerel and feta salad

Felt nice and full but not stuffed - I hate the bloated stomach ache I have whenever I switch off this WOE.

@FinallyHere thanks for the tips, but you're right about it being so individual, cabbage sets my IBS off sadly. I do eat a lot of spinach so will keep on with that and perhaps need to start regular movicol up again for the time being....

@PennyPinkPineapple you're doing fine! Over time, as you get the reassurance that you're not hungry, you'll start to naturally reduce what you're eating anyway. So, for example, you might think 'I don't want to get hungry later, so I'll have 3 eggs and 3 rashers of bacon, and mushrooms and tomatoes, etc.' You might find, actually, that it really filled you up and you didn't want lunch until 3pm. Next time, you might think 'oh I'll try 2 eggs and 2 slices of bacon.'

I couldn't believe that a bit of Greek yoghurt and a teaspoon of clotted cream could fill me up, but it does.

No need to weigh veg - just try to make sure that all your veg is in the green zone in the spreadsheet.

@Chocasaurus it is a combination of making sure you have enough green veg, and making sure you're drinking enough. The other thing is to try to drink throughout the day rather than necking a litre every 5 hours.

Of course plenty of veg, but to get things 'moving' I find the classic (but not recommended here) bullet proof coffee often does the trick and stimulates the gastro colic reflex (increased motility in the colon following ingestion of food). It's the same relex that sometimes causes IBS.

Bullet proof coffee is a strong coffee, with butter and double cream, blitzed to make it emulsify. Variations include coconut oil instead of butter, and MCT.

I find it helps for the slight bunged up sitution (which can then be managed and resolved with lots of veg), but WARNING it is not for every day. Bullet proof coffee is very high fat, highly calorific, and very low on any other nutrients. It is the antithesis of the FLGV (with butter) approach.

Food today:
B - coffee with cream (and no butter!)
L - boiled eggs
D - lamb and mint meatballs with tomato/veg sugo, chard leaves in butter, cabbage and green beans, served on courgetti. Topped with bail oil and parmesan. Delicious!

Tomorrow we're out all day at the Edinburgh Festival, lunch booked in one of my favourite restaurants. 3 options each for starter, main and 'pud' cheese and I know I'll find something suitable. 'dinner' will be grabbed from somewhere on the hoof (but I know there's a van selling lobster salad)...

@venusandmars enjoy the festival, I am very jealous.

After my keto bagel this morning I wasn’t hungry all day.
For dinner had spicy pork belly with mashed cheesey celeriac and butter cabbage.