Jan '23 Low Carb Bootcamp - welcome to week 5

[BIWI]

Evening/morning (depending on when you read this!)

Here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

So now we're in the second half of Bootcamp. Hopefully we've successfully navigated the doldrums of weeks 3 & 4, and the scales should be a bit kinder to us all. But bear in mind that weekly losses are now going to be smaller than in the first couple of weeks. This is entirely normal.

By now everyone should be feeling more confident about low carbing/Bootcamp, and how this can become a longer term WOE. Of all the diets I have ever done (and I'm guessing that like many of you, there have been plenty along the way), this is the only one that has ever felt like it can become a genuine WOL - way of life - as well as WOE.

The thing that always marks these threads out to me, compared with any of the threads about weight loss that you might read on Mumsnet, is just how much they're about good, tasty food. Not deprivation or compromise. And I think that's why it's easier to stick to.

So in the spirit of foodiness, it seems appropriate to issue a Bootcamp food challenge! Like many, I'm very much aware of the cost of food right now - try as I might, the cost of my weekly shop seems to go up and up. I wish I could say it was because of all the fillet steak and lobster I'm buying, but that couldn't be further from the truth.

One of the things I've been trying to do, to keep the weekly bills down, is to add in at least one more vegetarian meal per week. So my challenge to you all is to post a recipe for a killer vegetarian meal - obviously one that also fits with Bootcamp - that is perfectly suited to weekday, family eating.

Look forward to reading all the suggestions

[SpottyBumPony]

Thanks Biwi 😊

[Mercedesbenz2022]

Morning all
placemarking as still in bed 😴

[AllTheBlackCoffee]

Morning all, STS for me this week but I’ll take that as my period has just arrived and I can’t even get my rings off so hoping for a woods in time for next week.

Out at an all day work thing today so have packed a chicken and feta salad and some macadamia bits to keep me away from the inevitable buffet of beige. Not that I’m even tempted TBH. I’ll have some Greek yogurt before I head out in a bit and sausages, seeds mash and veggies in butter for tea later.

Good luck to everyone facing the scales this morning!

[AllTheBlackCoffee]

Sorry for the multiple autocorrect fails - hopefully it makes sense!!

[Baystard]

Thanks @BIWI

Great idea for this week's challenge, will get my thinking hat on.

I slid a little last week and over the weekend (e.g a bit more fruit than normal, a small Yorkshire pudding, half a slice of home made bread). Whilst I'm not worried about it (I'm not trying to lose loads) I do recognise the risk of steadily slipping back to old bad habits so I'm going to do strict BC again just for this week.

Good luck on the scales/NSVs this morning everyone!

[DryWhiteagainW]

Thank you BIWI. Love the veggie challenge although think I might be hungry with no meat to fill me up. My fav veggie recipes have a lot of lentils and squash which I think aren’t allowed on BC so I’ll have a think. Lots of feta in the fridge. Stupid question but when you say veggie I assume fish is not included (several confusing veggie friends eat fish ).

Weight stays the same but I’m happy with that as clothes feel better.

[Jenasaurus]

Thank you for the new thread @BIWI , good morning everyone, just weighed in a 2 pound loss this week making it a total of half a stone since the start of the January bootcamp. Have a good day all x

[Jenasaurus]

Vegie recipe for your @BIWI - its a simple one but my favourite and low carb too.

Low carb Broccoli and Cauliflower cheese bake


Ingredients
1 lb (5 cups) frozen or fresh broccoli, cut into florets
7 oz. (4⁄5 cup) cream cheese
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 oz. butter, more for greasing the pan
salt and pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
1¾ lbs cauliflower, cut into small florets
2 cups (8 oz.) cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
Place broccoli florets in a pot. Add water until covered and bring to a boil. Cook until the broccoli is fork-tender.
When done, strain broccoli and discard the water. Add the cream cheese, heavy whipping cream, butter, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to the pot, and puree with an immersion blender. Once combined, add the broccoli and puree until smooth.
Grease a 9 x 12” baking dish with some butter. Add cauliflower florets to the baking dish.
Pour the broccoli cream sauce over the florets and top with shredded cheese. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until the cauliflower is fork-tender and the top is golden brown.

[AlhambraQueen]

Lost two pounds this week bringing my total to 8lbs. Very pleased with this. I've been decorating my room which has taken 6 months to complete as hubby insisted on doing it all in his days off. So have been keeping busy. Hubby already lost his stomach after two weeks of cutting out sugar due to diabetes!

[BrendaLee]

I've lost another 3 lbs which takes me to 11lbs since 9th Jan!
Starting to feel clothes getting looser and I can see it on my face if nowhere else.
I'm finding that I have to be really strict so sticking to the first week rules for now.

Today's menu:
B - FFGY
Lunch - omelette with cheese, mushrooms and bacon with salad
D - Courgetti bolognaise

[Skiphopbump]

3.6lbs off this week. My body looks like it’s deflating like a saggy balloon- looks much better in clothing!

[Rayna37]

Minimal loss for me today after an imperfect weekend but I'd seen consistently less during the week so know I can do better as the week goes on.

I had an NSV last week in that I tried on the summer trousers I've never managed to fit for more than the first couple of days of a holiday- they're fine now.

I'm ALL OVER your vegetarian challenge @BIWI because DH is away for 3 days this week and I was planning to take the opportunity to eat less meat already!

[LadyBiker]

Hi all, well done, we are still here so that's all good.

@BIWI I have an error on my sheets progress, tech is my enemy, not sure what I have done.

Have a couple of salad recipes which work on their own and as an accompaniment.

1 - Mix up watermelon chunks, cucumber, red onion, feta cheese and chopped up mint leaves if liked. Mix it all together with a dash of olive oil.

2 - A can of chick peas, cucumber chunks, finely chopped tomato, finely chopped shallot, chopped red chilli pepper, salt & pepper and a handful of finely chopped mint and coriander. Mix it all up with a dash of white wine vinegar and olive oil.

[Stokey]

Thanks for the new thread @BIWI. I am very much in the doldrums of a slight gain this week but basically back to the start of week 3 weight. In reality I haven't really lost anything since the end of week 2. I'm KOKO and hoping this is just the week 3 & 4 plateau.

I was pescatarian for a good 20 years so love a veggie recipe - in fact am planning halloumi with roast veg for supper tonight (can add mackerel if you want a bit of fish). During bootcamp I've been having the cauliflower cheese on the veg thread and the one I'll list here - aubergine parmigiana, my LC version - each once a week.

Aubergine Parmigiana
2 aubergines - you can also add courgette and/or spinach if you fancy
Tin of tomatoes
Onion
Garlic
Mozzarella - 1-2 balls
Mature cheddar/parmesan

Slice the aubergines width ways, drizzle with oil & roast for about 10 mins.
Make a tomato sauce, I just do a simple onion, garlic, tin of toms and mixed herbs which I simmer for about 10 mins too, can add Tom puree

Then layer in an oven proof dish - tomato sauce, aubergine (with courgette & spinach if using), mozzarella, a couple of times. Grate cheese over the top - I use a mix of cheddar & parmesan as we're not using breadcrumbs - and cook in oven for 20 mins.
Serve with FLGV

[littleegghead]

Morning all. I've had a good loss this week on paper but really just lost the gains I had from being off plan/away for work etc. Feeling good though and hopefully onwards and downwards from here on! I'm finally below 11st which is a huge motivator for me, and also had my first period in 6 months (pcos) so really feel like this woe is working for me.

Good challenge @BIWI. My go-to is a big frittata, I make it with 6 eggs, cottage cheese and whatever veggies are hanging around in the fridge and topped with cheese. Lovely warm and really good lunchbox option too.

Food today is egg and cheese salad for lunch, then sausages (from farm shop so no idea of nutritionals but they are delicious and meaty) with carrot and cabbage for tea.

[OldandTired66]

Very happy with 1.5lb loss taking me over half a stone. Looking forward to the veggie recipes, we're such carnivores in this house. I like the sound of the broccoli cream sauce PP posted - could be used for all sorts of bakes. I could make it for this evenings pasta bake for the carb eaters and cauli for me. Also planning a couple of days logging on myfitnesspal just to check what % carb I am eating to set a baseline of what works for the future.

[Lucienandjean]

Another small gain for me this week. I weigh daily and all week I'd STS, and then ugh this morning a 0.6lb gain. 🙁

But I'm in this for the long term and I know there will always be periods in the doldrums. I can't think of any time last week where I've eaten something high carb. Maybe I haven't managed all the water every day, and I haven't been particularly active as I've had a cold / felt achy.

Oh well, I'll KOKO. I've still had an overall loss this Bootcamp so it's not a disaster. 😕

[FairlyOddmother]

Gained back all of last week's loss :(
Food has been all strictly on plan BUT succumbed to (too much) wine over the weekend, and if I'm honest not been managing anywhere near enough water.
So back to strict BC for me and KOKO...

[katesbushh]

1lb off for me which I'll take as my period is looming. I feel hungrier too.

Love the veggie idea.

What I like to do
Fry halloumi cut into small cubes
Remove
Cube 2 courgettes and fry in a tablespoon of rose harissa (15g for the whole jar)
Add halloumi back in
I usually serve this with a salad.

[TangledWebOfDeception]

Hey all! Happy Monday!🌸🌼🏵

Starting weight: 165.3

Last week's weight: 161.3

This week's weight: 160


@BIWI Sadly my favourite veggie recipe isn't at all BC friendly 😞- it's a beautiful dal tadka. We make big vats of it and freeze in 2-person portions.

I'll have to try something new out of one of my veg-centric books! I'm also considering buying another recipe book (usually treat myself to a new one for each season, outside of charity shop buys) which handily happens to be vegetarian.

Yesterday's food: Ended up only having one meal as a very late lunch - roast chicken with a salad (lettuce, grated carrot, red pepper, olive oil, lemon and grana padano), plus some pork scratchings.

Still drinking all the water. Don't know what I'll have for lunch today...probably an omelette or similar. Dinner will be roast pork belly with whatever veg I can round up (veg delivery coming tomorrow so I'll have a bit more to play with then).

Hope you all have a happy and healthy week!

[BIWI]

@LadyBiker

Hi all, well done, we are still here so that's all good.

@BIWI I have an error on my sheets progress, tech is my enemy, not sure what I have done.

Have a couple of salad recipes which work on their own and as an accompaniment.

1 - Mix up watermelon chunks, cucumber, red onion, feta cheese and chopped up mint leaves if liked. Mix it all together with a dash of olive oil.

2 - A can of chick peas, cucumber chunks, finely chopped tomato, finely chopped shallot, chopped red chilli pepper, salt & pepper and a handful of finely chopped mint and coriander. Mix it all up with a dash of white wine vinegar and olive oil.

Both of those recipes sound lovely - however, beware that chickpeas aren't allowed on Bootcamp. (Along with any other pulse/legume). They're also pretty low fat - no 'dash' of olive oil on Bootcamp, but a great big slug!

This is important, as without the fat you're likely to end up feeling hungry.

Which brings me to @DryWhiteagainW - a veggie recipe for Bootcamp should be high fat. It's the fat that stops you feeling hungry, as well as the protein.

But definitely not including fish! Someone who eats fish but not meat is a pescatarian, not a vegetarian.

[Greatly]

Halloumi shakshuka tonight

Fry sliced red peppers and garlic until soft. Add a blob of tomato puree then two cans tinned toms (I blend mine first). Season with chili salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 mins until thickened. Take off heat and make four gaps and crack eggs in. Put lid on and cook very gently for a few minutes until eggs are cooked. Add chopped parsley. Serve on slices of fried halloumi or with sausages when eating meat.

[BIWI]

That sounds tasty @Greatly. You could lower the carbs in it slightly by using half green peppers, which would also add a nice colour contrast.

And fry the peppers in plenty of olive oil!

I have some halloumi so might try that this evening.

[Greatly]

Oh yes I use lots of oo to fry them in!

Originally I fried the halloumi with the peppers and garlic but found the texture went a bit soggy if you cook it in the tomato for too long. It becomes quite versatile if you make the pepper tomatoes and eggs separately from the halloumi or sausages. Sometimes I cook garlic and broccoli with the halloumi before topping it with the eggs and pepper mixture

[Passtheturkey]

Another gain for me this week, feeling deflated but onwards and downwards.

I don’t think I can call it a recipe but my go to quick vegetarian meals at the moment is broccoli and cauliflower roasted with Harissa and the server mayo.

Enjoying the inspiration!