Week 2 - Back-to-school Bootcamp - our first weigh-in!

[BIWI]

Morning all

Here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

... for you to confess all. (Although I notice it seems to have gone a bit awry - some of the rows don't line up, so hopefully @FinallyHere will be along soon with her tool kit.

Good to hear from the end of the last thread that there are some good results. But also, there was a fair bit of slippage, even though it was only week 1. You need to keep an eye on that, as it won't be helping you in the long run.

@EquallyDetermined - please don't worry about seeming 'whiny' (which you weren't!). That's exactly what these threads are for. I was a bit puzzled, though, as to why you aren't enjoying the food, given how many lovely things we can eat. What have been typical meals for you? Can we help in any way? (And have you had a look at the recipe threads, for some inspiration?)

@FinallyHere I was trying to add that piece to the resources section on the spreadsheet, but there doesn't appear to be anything there! I keep getting the error message 'trying to connect'. (All the other tabs seem to be there)

I read that book a couple of years ago, it was very interesting.

Anyway, I have poked myself with the pointy stick, done my shopping and have got pork belly and a roast chicken for the weekend, mince to make taco salad with on Monday and lots of veggies, also plenty of UHT milk to make yogurt, we already have lots of eggs.

Sorry 'bout dat @BIWI I'll get the spanners out when I get home this evening

@BIWI I hadn't thought of crisping slow-cooked things.

I'm not very good with the grill (too easily distracted) and tend not to think of it.
After a few dramatic flaming incidents I use it rarely and always with fire blanket on alert.😁

Perhaps slow-cooker chicken might be very good finished on a BBQ. It would probably prevent that horrible bloody discovery inside a promising looking chicken piece!

(Although equally firey, BBQs are outside and usually surrounded by people paying attention!)

Hi all. It’s been lovely hearing everyone’s progress and meal ideas. I hope this comes across right (not trying to be insensitive to anyone) - I am currently at a ‘healthy’ BMI but definitely feel & look better when at the lower end of this. I only have a few pounds to lose and just wondered whether anyone else had found that there are any other tweaks that need to be made to help with weight loss when I only have a few pounds to lose? However, I am aware it’s early days and I’m definitely feeling like this WOE is suiting me. Thank you, all.

@Magnolia82 when you only have a few pounds to lose, progress will inevitably be slower. This is the point at which it can pay to consider your calorie intake. That doesn't mean switching to a low calorie diet (perish the thought!) but having a look at portion sizes and seeing if you can reduce anything.

You might like to have a look at some of the Fast800 recipe books - have a look at the latest one, which is their version of Keto. So although their recipes are calorie counted, they're also about being proportionately low carb.

Intermittent fasting can help too.

@BIWI thank you - that's helpful. I'll have a look at those recipes.

@MonkeyToucher - Swede fries take a bit of getting used to but I really like them now. It's really hard to get them anything like remotely crispy so takes a bit of practice to get them how you like them. Make sure you cut them thin (like French fries) so they have a big surface area which allows more of the moisture to escape. You need to make lots as they also reply shrink during cooking - good luck🍀

Low Carb Lunches

Thought this might be useful - from the Fast800 website

I haven't tried swede fries yet but they look fab, have done celeriac chips a couple of times in the oven but just got an air fryer and it's a game changer! Almost crispy and ready in a fraction of the time, along with cauliflower it took less than 20 minutes 😊

Morning campers - happy Saturday!

I survived our trip to the pizza place last night and enjoyed my chicken, bacon and avocado salad. I picked out the croutons, switched the dressing for olive oil and DH polished off the garlic bread that came with it. I have to say tho I can’t believe how expensive eating out is now. There were only three of us each with a main and one drink and the bill came to over £70. We’re oop north too so no fancy London prices!!

Todays challenge will be to drink enough water - I always struggle at the weekend.

Food plan:
B: Greek yog and the lovely cream of dreams (Longley Farm)
L: something eggy
D: fajita salad with all the fixin’s 😋

Sounds like you're feeling better @AllTheBlackCoffee! Well done for swerving the carbs too

Well done @AllTheBlackCoffee - excellent carb swerving. I completely agree - eating out is extortionate these days. Mind you, everything is extortionate these days. I’m shocked every time I buy food, even just a top up shop.

I’m heading into my nearest city today (not something I can usually be bothered with but I needed to escape my small town and I need some clothes). I’m on my own. What can I grab for lunch that is low carb? If I was with my partner, DS or a friend I’d get tapas but I don’t feel like I can have a sit down meal on my own. I think Pret do a relatively low carb friendly salmon salad bowl but lacking any other inspiration.

What can I grab for lunch that is low carb One of the pleasures of eating low carb for me is absolutely taking myself out to a decent restaurant.

I'd encourage you to consider taking a table for tapas on your own. Always have a book/kindle with me, but honestly enjoy the ambience more when i am by myself and able to take in the beauty of the surroundings and appreciate how everything runs like clockwork.

The plus side is that good food is not carb heavy, lots of places sides are ordered separately anyway. There are bound to be great choices, broccoli and/or buttered greens usually feature.

Just two or three sides or a starter and something from the nibbles section which is plenty for lunch. Once I ordered two items from the 'nibbles' section plus a side of broccoli and heard two ladies at another table burst out laughing saying 'ill have what she is having '. They wanted to order light, wanted the same 'nibbles' plates as I had and were thinking they should have something different which came with vegetable.

I've never had any restaurant be anything over than specially welcoming to me on my own. And having found a great one, i have gone back over the years by myself and in company, so it has been good for them, too.

It won't be cheap but it will be a lovely experience and treat yourself, just because you really are worth it. Enjoy.

Realised today this is the longest I’ve not had an alcohol for since I was last pg, 13 years ago! Wish I could say I felt better for it, but I don’t. I think I changed too many things at once - diet, exercise, new supplements, the B12 tablets…so I don’t know if it’s one of those things making me feel so shit, or whether it’s a fun menopause/CFS mashup with a good dose of stress mixed in.

My periods suddenly just stopped 3 months ago (I’m 42) and the last few days my boobs have been really burny and sensitive. Not pg, done a lot of tests the last 3 months! Argh. Old age doesn’t come alone, as my mum says. It’s just frustrating to be going all out on trying to be healthier and feel better, to actually feeling worse.

Sorry you're not feeling great @VeryGoodVeryNice - but you know that all of those things, even just on their own, are good and positive changes.

That's a lovely description of eating out @FinallyHere

I don't know if I've merited the big stick today 😔
I went out for lunch to a branch of Ask. Not my choice, but hey.
I had burrata capprese salad (sp) and the antipasti sharing platter (to myself) for main. I'd have been furious if I HAD had to share it, because it wasn't generous.
It came with bread, which I didn't touch (warm! 😭😭😭)
And chilli jam, which I LOVE, and I'd scooped some before I thought it probably wasn't low carb. And then I had 2 more tiny bits.

I hope that hasn't scuppered me, as I've been on-programme all week.

My DH is away tomorrow night. A longstanding plan. I had been toying with drinking (alcohol) tomorrow night. Literally, no one would ever know, and I weigh Sunday mornings, so if it does harm, I've got time to recover from it.
BUT, I'm definitely not going to, because apart from the chilli jam debacle, I'm feeling so good on this programme. And I'm v much hoping the scales tomorrow will show I've had a successful week, and I really don't want to jinx it

@FinallyHere I love eating on my own too, have what I want, in plenty of time and watch the world go by without pesky conversation!!!!

@Rogue1001MNer @TheOnlyMrsW

😁

As we head into week 2 ...

Next wee we have a choice. You can, if you wish, move onto Bootcamp Light, which means you can now include some nuts/seeds, some fruit (mainly berries), some chocolate (dark chocolate, which is at least 70% cocoa) and some alcohol (dry wine or spirits with a low calorie mixer).

Not all of the above, at every meal though!

However

Weeks 3 & 4 are notorious. In these weeks it is very, very common to see weight loss slow, stop - or sometimes even reverse. So you need to be careful.

Careful in your food choices, but also careful in how you react, should this happen to you.

Psychologically it can be quite tough to see the scales behaving like this when/if you know you have been following the rules. But if you've been losing happily in the first two weeks, then you know it works for you. So the mantra is KOKO - keep on keeping on.

Bearing this in mind, you may decide that you want to stay on strict Bootcamp - which is fine, as long as you're making sure that you're eating well/properly, and in particular making sure that the majority of your carbs are coming from vegetables and salad.

Alternatively, you can do a hybrid - so strict Bootcamp during the week and Bootcamp Light at the weekend.

Morning!

Some great carb swerving going on!

Another who likes eating out on their own, it feels like a proper indulgence. Always have phone or book with me to minimise chat from well meaning staff/neighbours who worry that I might need entertaining.

I made the pizza casserole on Friday which was delicious and safely kept at bay any urges to snack on non-bootcamp friendly foods. Weight actually went up the next day which I suspect was because I use prepacked grated mozzarella which had 7g carbs (didn't check until the morning because I figured it couldn't be that high). So won't use pre grated stuff next time.

Had some roast pork and coleslaw yesterday for supper. It was a massive joint and I miscalculated cooking times 🙈 so we didn't eat until late. Still full now!

I am going to stick to full bootcamp where I can over the next few weeks as I will be away from Saturday for a week visiting friends. Not going to be that house guest but will stick to the rules where I can.

Feel as though energy is more consistent on this WOE. Still ups and down (thanks Peri) but no sugar really makes a difference.

Off for another glass of water!

I'm deep in the week 3/4 doldrums at the moment so I can confirm that what BIWI says is true. I've been losing and gaining the same 2lbs all week and am just hoping that it's a downward swing for weigh day tomorrow. I've stuck to LC tho so I am just trusting the process and assuming I'm losing fat even tho the scales aren't showing it.

B: Greek yog and cream
L: something eggy AGAIN
D: roast pork, cauli cheese, buttery veg

I'm thinking about giving up for now. I just don't seem to be able to resist temptation at the moment, I
ate some fresh crusty bread that DH bought yesterday and it tasted amazing. And now it is breakfast time and the thought of yet more eggs or yogurt or ham or cheese instead of toast is utterly depressing. I know it works, I know its not always going to be easy but I just don't seem to be capable of sticking to it this time.

Greetings from Greece!

I weighed myself on Friday before I left and I was 4lbs down on the week 😍.

But I doubt that will happen this week so if I stay the same I'll be thrilled.

Yesterday was travel day.

Pret salmon and egg salad at 6am.

L chicken Caesar salad

D fish in cream sauce and veg.

I did have a couple of glasses of wine and something small from the dessert table. I have to say, it tasted overly sweet after 3 weeks of no sugar and I don't feel I've been missing out.

Late breakfast today of FFGY with some almonds, followed by scrambled eggs, mushroom and smoked salmon.

I walked past all the danish pastries, pancakes and waffle stations but don't really feel like I'm missing out.

Is it possible that this WOE can impact periods? Has anyone else previously found their cycle has been impacted? My cycle is usually between 24 and 28 days. I'm now on day 42 with no period. I'm definitely not pregnant. Maybe it's just coincidence and not linked at all, but thought I'd check?