Week 1 - Back-to-school Bootcamp!

[BIWI]

Morning all. I hereby declare this Bootcamp open

Here is the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

... with many thanks to the lovely @FinallyHere for creating (and managing)

I know you're all keen to get going, so will post this now and then come back with some important housekeeping notes

Hi all, I’ve been lurking since the start of the thread (I can’t really join in with the spreadsheet bit because I won’t be weighing myself) but can I ask a question…. Why are people adding cream to FFGY? Surely 10% fat yogurt doesn’t need any more adding!? Or have I missed something?

congratulations to those who have made a difference to their blood pressure or blood sugar levels; that is my motivation!

• *@MonkeyToucher I can't speak for others but I add it because I can and because it's bloody lovely

Had a v stressful start to the day with a big work thing kicking off so just having a little breather with a chamomile tea to try and bring my adrenaline down.

B: Greek yog, cream
L: shakshuka - made the sauce on Sunday ready for a stress day go me
D: unsure as we've got some jobs to do in the garden after work so it might be a late one.

I am really getting inspired by some of the posts and remembering some of the food I loved on Bootcamp, like cauliflower cheese.
I also want to check, I know it’s no sweetener for the first 2 weeks but is Hi5 zero ok? I get terrible keto flu.

Today plan.

B:FFGY and cream
L: veg and cheese omelette maybe Brussels sprout in butter if I am hungry
D: Duck, cabbage, mashed celeriac

@BIWI I know !! No nagging required. I rarely drink these days but went for after work drinks after a meeting and it seemed rude not too 🙈 that's it now though ! At least my hot dogs are chicken Herta ones 😂. I'll get better, I promise. It's early days - and I've lost 1lb already !!! (And yes I know I shouldn't weigh every day !!) (sorry, I'll be your worst nightmare I think lol)

High5 Zero is definitely OK in this early stage @ChimneyPot - the electrolytes are more important than the artificial sweeteners.

There's also a very useful piece on The Diet Doctor website about obtaining electrolytes from food sources.

I think you'll find that I might be your worst nightmare @ginislife !

And apologies for this, but I'm afraid that your Herta chicken frankfurters are no better:

• Mechanically Separated Chicken Meat (91.8%), Water, Chicken Skin, Salt, Pea Protein Concentrate, Lactose (Milk), Dextrose, Flavourings (Wheat), Antioxidant: Sodium Erythorbate, Preservative: Sodium Nitrite, Lactic Acid Culture, Natural Beechwood Smoke

And this is what 'mechanically separated chicken meat' means (from WIKI):

Mechanically separated meat (MSM), mechanically recovered/reclaimed meat (MRM), or mechanically deboned meat (MDM) is a paste-like meat product produced by forcing pureed or ground beef, pork, mutton, turkey or chicken, under high pressure through a sieve or similar device to separate the bone from the edible meat tissue. It is sometimes called white slime as an analog to meat-additive pink slime and to meat extracted by advanced meat recovery systems, both of which are different processes. The process entails pureeing or grinding the carcass left after the manual removal of meat from the bones and then forcing the slurry through a sieve under pressure. This puree includes bone, bone marrow, skin, nerves, blood vessels, and the scraps of meat remaining on the bones.

The resulting product is a blend primarily consisting of tissues not generally considered meat along with a much smaller amount of actual meat (muscle tissue). In some countries such as the United States, these non-meat materials are processed separately for human and non-human uses and consumption.[1] The process is controversial; Forbes, for example, called it a "not-so-appetizing meat production process".[2]

Mechanically separated meat has been used in certain meat and meat products, such as hot dogs and bologna sausage,[2] since the late 1960s. However, not all such meat products are manufactured using an MSM process.

Euughh mechanically separated chicken sounds grim 🤢

Thanks @AllTheBlackCoffee! I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing some secret trick 🤣

I'm learning so much from this thread and those Cauliflower recipes sound lovely, thank you for sharing. Going to add this in to my meal plan for next week and maybe add a nice french stick on the side for my DP and the kids. I'm really struggling trying to plan things that are low carb that the rest of my family will eat without worrying that they'll lose weight or aren't getting enough. My DC are 3 and 6 and DP is a wafer even though he eats like a horse!

Today my plan is:
B: black coffee
L: boiled egg salad with all the veg olives and a home made soup.
D: Tuna mayo lettuce wraps with above soup.

Hoping to fit in a grow with Jo YouTube workout this evening, which I'm loving.

I'm using myfitnesspal to track my food and weight which I'm finding helpful.

I'm ignoring the warnings it keeps giving me about too much fat, but it does make me realise that I'm eating a lot less calories than I expected, even with all the butter.

They've also added the ability to track progress photos, so I've taken a photo of myself in cycling shorts and a tight top (not a pretty sight) so I can compare as I go.

@LadyBird1973 even as a child I 'knew' I had 2 stomachs, I'd be full after 3/4 of my dinner but my pudding tummy still had lots of space!

@fruitstick I wonder if , over a period of time, you can find other foods that feel like they are satiating. Mine would be coffe with cream and butter (frothed up) or cocoa powder with coconut oil and cream (frothed up). But I have learnt to make one big jug and have them in expresso sized cups throughout the week. For me, the one wee mouthful of luxury is as good as a whole giant mug.

And yes @RooRooCooChoo I do think that carb bloating, with everyone slapping their big bellies and saying 'ooh, that was a grand feast' is what we've come to associate with feeling full. For me it was mosty full of wind! That is one of the great benefits of this way of eating - a quiet gut.

@VeryGoodVeryNice yes yes yes to the blood pressure. A few years ago I had catastrophically high blood pressure. I had medication, I lost weight, I did what I could, but it was this way of eating that finally got it lower and stable. That is why, at the start of every bootcamp @BIWI cautions anyone who is taking meds for high blood pressure or diabetes.

@Gnomegnomegnome I can vouch for the gloriousness of the cheese sauce. No more bechamel, whisking flour and hoping you've got it right with no lumps. And the addition of lemon juice is what makes it. I also add some wholegrain mustard,

And finally, my food:
Tuesday: B - spinach, ham, egg
D - Mousakka

Today: L - avocado, cheese, salad
D - chicken liver pilaff - dh on spaghetti, mine on courgetti

@venusandmars that’s really interesting. I read that LC diets help with BP but I’m flabbergasted at how quickly it’s come down. Also when I was getting the crazy high readings I’d just come back from a lovely holiday and was about as relaxed as I could possibly be, and the last week has been endless stress yet my BP has still come right down. Very relieved that I don’t have to take meds for it.

Had to grab breakfast on the go this morning - 2 hard boiled eggs with mustard Mayo from the co-op. My daughter and my mum have been separately tried to convince me to go out for lunch but I’ve said no 😇 (because I know I’d fold 🤣). Having said that I did eat out last week, I had a plant based veggie burger but without the bun, and swapped the chips for salad. Felt very virtuous and it was very nice but still felt a bit cheated at having paid £13 for it 🤣.

Really hoping today is 💩 day. The scales are creeping down, 0.2 of a lb a day seems to be what’s going on but it can’t be helping that I’m lugging the best part of a week’s food around with me.

@fruitstick keep those photos. There were a series of photos on these thread a while ago where someone took pictures of the shorts that would not zip up, and then a whole series of improvements until eventually they fitted. It was trully inspiring.

I’m also taking photos every week for comparison, I can definitely see a difference from the 3 I have so far, although somehow my waist measurement isn’t budging so I don’t get how that works 🤷‍♀️.

Starting yoga tonight as part of my health drive. Last time I did yoga classes was when I was pregnant with dd1 20 years ago, and I just farted a lot and then fell asleep. Hopefully that won’t happen today.

@venusandmars the addition of mustard sounds even more delicious!

I think I’ll do some photos too. My body is already changing slowly from the gym and I wish that I had taken photos!

@VeryGoodVeryNice enjoy yoga! Happy farting!

@VeryGoodVeryNice I know you're a veggie (I reminded myself of that before I was about to tell you that you would have been better off having a meat burger), but you need to be careful with things like plant-based veggie products, as they can be very high in carbs.

@venusandmars I also have a pair of those trousers.

I've also taken a close up photo of my face.

I already feel like my face looks better since I've been drinking so much water. I'm sleeping better and the dark circles under my eyes aren't so prominent. So that's a immediate bonus.

@BIWI thank you, noted! I’m trying not to eat processed stuff at all so it’s not generally an issue when I’m at home.

Re not feeling full after eating, I REALLY struggled with this for the first 10 days or so, I’d eat but in my head felt like I hadn’t eaten at all, or certainly not enough! It’s definitely getting easier now, I don’t feel quite so desperate for carbs. It takes 20 minutes for the brain to get the messages from the digestive system that it’s had food and doesn’t need anymore right now, so if you can ride out the urge to eat more for those 20 minutes those feelings pass.

I'd also say that if you're still getting those urges, then perhaps you're not eating enough fat? Always worth considering.

Very excited to discover that I’m not the only big eater on the thread 😉 Hope the gym class went well.

@Sheraprincessofflower definitely not the only one haha 😂

So far today...

B1 (before drop off): FFGY
B2: (after) whole avocado and cherry tomatoes
Snack: 2x boiled eggs with mayo
L: salad with olive oil dressing and tin of tuna

I'm sure there'll be a lot more! But my calories seem ok so feeling cautiously optimistic about the weight loss 🤞

@nappiesandcontracts please don't obsess about calories! Honestly - it's so much easier just to follow Bootcamp rules. You really don't need to worry about calories at this stage.

B: FFGY
L: salad with feta
D: omelette with red pepper, cheese and spinach
S: carrot sticks

2 black coffees, 4 peppermint teas and 2 litres of water (so far)

I’m enjoying this way of eating although I’m aware it’s only day 3! I may introduce fish (salmon and prawns) again as I worry that I’ll eat too much cheese or get bored.

L: all the low carb M&S lunch bits
S: M&S Serrano ham "crisps"
D: chicken thighs, cauli rice & roasted veg

2 litres of water so far. A banging headache and craving for something salty all afternoon. I've got some electrolytes coming at some point today which will hopefully help.

A bit behind with my posting…

Tuesday
FFGY
Bacon, scrambled eggs, mushrooms and avocado (WFH day)
Feta salad

Tonnes of water and peppermint tea. Pleased at how I resisted the urge to snack while working at home

Wednesday
FFGY with a sprinkle of cinnamon
2x boiled eggs (lunch on the go)
Salmon, roasted veg and green beans

Not enough water…making up for it now