Week 5 - Back-to-school Low Carb Bootcamp - our second half!

[BIWI]

Morning all

Here's the spreadsheet once more

Hopefully by now we should all be well on our way to (or already have reached) the stage where our bodies are burning fat for fuel, rather than carbs. From now on, you can expect to see a loss of around 1-3lbs a week - the rate/amount of loss will depend on how much you have to lose.

That said, what we regularly see on Bootcamp is a pattern of some time without any loss, (at least as far as the scales are concerned), and then a sudden whoosh of 3lbs. So if you're a daily weigher, please don't worry if nothing seems to be shifting for a while!

And don't forget - the scales are probably the least accurate way of measuring your progress. Keep measuring yourself, or trying on those clothes that are just a bit tight, and you'll get a much better (and more tangible) feel for how it's all going.

Creeping up a bit more than a pound - had a rotten cold and then a lot of travel with carbs at every turn. Am back to being able to set a proper routine so will get strict again.

Well I’m very sad today 😞.

Weighed in a day late as I was still away yesterday. I did the best I could with LC while away, there were 3 occasions that I couldn’t LC when out and about - on the way to the airport, during a day of sightseeing on Sunday, and yesterday on the way back from the airport. This amounted to a small jacket potato, a cheese toastie and veggie burger and fries. Not great I know, but I spent far longer on my holiday than I’d have liked cooking LC meals from scratch, so I did try. Also stuck to drinking vodka, lime and soda, and drank loads of water. Anyway, I’ve put 5lbs on 😭so I’m exactly where I was at the start of BC. The punishment really seems excessive for the crime here and I’m feeling pretty despondent about it.

Don't despair @VeryGoodVeryNice, I had a similar experience over the summer (and I was loads worse than you!!!! - quite a bit of fresh bread, chips and cocktails) lo and behold I'd put 7lb on which was most of what I'd lost over the entire 8 weeks of BC. A couple of days with plenty of water and I was mostly back down again, I assumed that a lot was bloating from travel. By the end of a week of BC-lite the whole lot had gone again and I've been relatively stable since.

I'm another who slipped up with carbs at the weekend and paying the price. Managed evens but cross with myself because I'd been down 1lb by Friday. Still this is much less dreadful than some weekend self-sabotaging I've done before.

Slightly worried because I am taking my DD17 away to Lanzarote for a long weekend on Saturday so likely to do it again on a larger scale 😳 but we are going half board so planning lovely low carb brekkers and salady dinners, thus avoiding all the chips etc... might have to try a cocktail or two though 😁

Thanks for the reassurance @TheOnlyMrsW, hopefully it will be the same story for me. I’m back on the wagon today, despite my inner stroppy teenager telling me to give up as it’s all pointless 🤣

@VeryGoodVeryNice it won't be fat though! As I've explained to other posters, what you've done is to re-fill your glycogen stores.

Be super strict, drink all the water and increase the amount of exercise you're doing (or start doing some if you're not doing any!), to use up that extra glucose.

I couldn't find the old post with the cauliflower soup recipe, @LadyBird1973 but I tend to make it up as I go along anyway! In a soup maker, smooth setting, slug of oil, chopped leeks, cauliflower, root ginger, cumin, coriander powder, chilli flakes, sachet of Pataks coconut cream - coconut milk would be fine also, the sachets are handy though. Chicken or veg stock upto the line (700 mls in mine). Aiming for a thai curry flavour. Add a swirl of cream for extra richness or even flakes of cheese.

@BIWI ok you sound like you know what you’re talking about. Will resume exercise asap, I’m having a major CFS crash right now from going away but just managed a very gentle stroll.

So my day wasn't entirely low carb, as I managed to accidentally add cream of tomato soup to my bolognaise sauce instead of chopped tomatoes, I managed to rescue it with more tomatoes and herbs but it wasn't the best! I have definitely been better snacking wise this week though. I had it with butted courgettes, Greek yogurt for breakfast and a plate with tomato and mozzarella salad, olives, cucumber and a bit of chorizo for lunch.

@agnesmartin your treat is sticky cheese and A glass of red (me too). There's no problem with that assuming that you have it e.g. once a week, while everyone else is eating sticky toffee pudding. It won't work out so OK if you're having it every day, or with every meal, or if you are eating a whole round of cheese with several glasses of wine.

@BIWI always interesting about setpoint. I'm also hovering at the same weight now - not much change when I'm strict and not much change when I'm on holiday. That feels kind of OK while my body gets used to it, but then I'd really like to drop 10lbs, and hover there for a bit.

@VeryGoodVeryNice as BIWI has said, most of that will be the impact of Sunday and Monday and your glycogen stores (did you know that each gram of glycogen stored is associated with 3g of water - it's a molecular structure thing). So as you get back on this woe expect to pee a lot. Drink loads of water, and expect to pee even more. It's all good and you'll know it's working. I think @prettybird visualises that she's peeing out fat. Which is actually almost true when it is broken down biochemically. You know this way of eating can work for you, you already lost 5 pounds. Just imagine if you'd not joined bootcamp, and if you'd had free rein on holiday... You might be at your starting weight PLUS another 5lbs.

@MotherBuckets I wonder whether you will even enjoy regular cocktails. I find them so incredibly full of syrup and sickly sweet - as in they make my face screw up and I feel a bit horrid. I can manage a White Lady, or a Whisky Sour or a Mojito, but that's about it. tbh I prefer a non-sugar mojito: rum, puddled mint, fresh lime, ice, soda. All the things with syrupy spirits like cointreau, plus grenadine and pineapple juice and a marschino cherry... Toxic sugar!

@OldandTired66 thanks for posting that recipe - just what I needed. On Friday I'm catering for one non-meat eater and someone with a dairy allergy. Plus there was a cauliflower in this weeks veg box. Perfect!

I had a lovely day out today with a very blowy walk followed by lunch out - chicken and ham terrine with salad and pickled onions, then fish with hollandaise sauce and veg (did eat a few peas). Dinner was a small amount of fish (bad planning really) with buttered cabbage and ratatouille.

Thank you @OldandTired66
That sounds fab - might make that tomorrow

I honestly don't know where my appetite has gone. Not that I'm keen to have it back, it's liberating not always being hungry! Yesterday I had:
B: some nuts
L: prawn cocktail (I couldn't be bothered to sort veg, which was bad)
D: chicken thighs with broccoli and cheese

Today
L: leftovers from dinner with a red pepper
D: pork chops with roasted cauliflower and cabbage

Must make an effort to eat more vegetables as, without the feeling of hunger I just go for the most convenient option and don't worry about bulking the meal out.

Appetite suppression is one of the best features of low carbing! Being able to control food, rather than it controlling you is a huge benefit.

@venusandmars Once a week, 1, maybe 2 glasses of wine, while I'm preparing burgers on a Friday. It's my treat. I'm happy with that. And stinky rather than sticky obvs. Still covid brain.

TMI I had to take something my constipation last night.

I'm 3lbs down this morning .

Have made sure I'm being consistent with my water and upped my veg.

Argh accidental carb fail - went to Wagamama's for lunch and ordered the hot pot after the waitress told me that one of the ingredients - tteokbokki - was a kind of vegetable. They definitely didn't taste particularly veg-like and I've just checked and they're a sort of rice cake! 88g of carbs in that one meal. So annoyed with myself but didn't want to get my phone out at lunch and assumed the waitress would know 😫

@nappiesandcontracts how frustrating! I find Wagamamas very difficult to navigate. But did you enjoy the food? Also, in comparison with normal western diets anything less than 100g carb per day is considered low carb by some. Just make sure you have lower carbs for the rest of your food today - and drink plenty of water.

I've had a lovely afternoon in the kitchen. Made the cauliflower and coconut cream soup (with an added courgette) ready for Friday, and made beef strogonoff for tonight, and some fennel and cabbage slaw to serve alongside. Others will have it served in a Yorkshire Pudding, I'm having mine on keto naan - which froze and defrosted beautifully. I've also made some bramble and cooking apple compote - I'll have a little with cream and yogurt mix, the others are having theirs on buttermilk pancakes with caramel sauce. I have no envy. Maybe I'll have a chunck of blue cheese and a glass of red wine instead. @agnesmartin it will be both stinky and sticky!

Sounds delish - stinky AND sticky is the best!

Hello lovely bootcmpers.

I've "finally" made it to the fancy scales in the gym at work, which registered 2 kgs (4.4lbs) down over the last nine weeks, slow but steady is my watchword, my BMII now 24.

My body fat percentage is still a tad high and muscle mass low so the time has probably come when I need to prioritise building a bit of muscle

I'm trusting the process and sticking with bootcamp weekdays and something extra from the bootcamp lite menu at some point over the weekend.

On holiday in Lanzarote I drank loads of water, ate all the grilled octopus plus whatever salad-y stuff I could find. I was not the only person to find myself buying fresh cabbage for the roughage and turning it into cabbage slaw eaten gratefully.

And drinking all.the.water

An OK day for me, rollitos and m and s Greek salad for lunch, and bacon, egg, tomato and avocado for dinner. Feeling peckish now so might have something small as I didn't have breakfast.

I was looking through a Christmas mag earlier and saw a nice recipe for celeriac soup with toasted hazelnuts I might try. I know it's early, but I have been thinking about how I can do some damage limitation over Christmas. I am obviously going to have roast potatoes on Christmas day, but often end up completely writing off all of December. I want to try and think of nice low carb ideas so I don't feel like I am missing out. @venusandmars I like the sound of the slaw

@fruitstick I’m glad that your clear out helped.

I’m unwell again at the moment and have no appetite. I’m managing water, peppermint tea and paracetamol. I’m not sure if I’m missing food but I’m not hungry. My throat hurts and I don’t fancy swallowing anything other than liquids.

@Frumpyunicorn the slaw was made of what was in the veg box, what was in the kitchen and what was in the fridge. So it was finely sliced fennel, finely sliced sweetheart cabbage, some capers, chopped corriander. Bound together with mayonnaise and creme fraiche. And ground pepper.

Christmas: a few of the things at Christmas are wonderful - a couple of amazing roast potatoes, a tiny spoon of Chritmas pudding. But (imo) so much of the rest of the 'festive treats' are pretty crap. Cheap chocolate, sugared nuts, so much pastry with very little (and low quality) filling. Think of all the lovely things you could have...

Actually, I think I'm going to start a low carb Christmas thread...

That's a really good idea @venusandmars!

I would love that @venusandmars I am a really keen cook and love my food, so happy to contribute ideas too. We are entertaining a lot this year so I want to plan ahead.

Did anyone read this?

It certainly makes a lot of sense and made me feel better about a lot of things.

It also explains why this WOE works for me in an 'all or nothing' kind of way.

www.theguardian.com/food/2023/oct/12/its-like-trying-to-quit-smoking-why-are-1-in-7-of-us-addicted-to-ultra-processed-foods