Low Carb Bootcamp challenge - lose half a stone before Christmas

[BIWI]

If we start next Monday, there are 6 weeks leading up to Christmas.

Hopefully that means that we can drop 7lbs in those weeks - but only if we're properly strict.

It's entirely up to you if you want to do strict Bootcamp, or Bootcamp Light across those 6 weeks, although I'd suggest that if you haven't got too much to lose, you veer towards a stricter approach.

It's also, we need to bear in mind, a more difficult time of the year to think about losing weight as there are likely to be more social occasions, so a stricter approach around all of those events is probably a good one!

Who's in?!

Sorry you're having a difficult time @Lovecat

Look after yourself . And don't let her PA manipulation define you. You are better than that.

Thinking of you @Lovecat - that sounds really tough.

How are we all doing with navigating the season? What are everyone’s endpoints? I finish work in a week’s time and am wondering if that’s the point that I let myself go into the carbs, or whether to hang on till Christmas Eve, or whether to try to minimise all the way through.

I've been thinking about this. I haven't really lost any weight since week one and realised that I am now in week three or four (have lost track) so would hope to see real losses in the few weeks ahead. So I am going to keep going until Christmas eve, with the exception for one Christmas meal with friends, and try to minimise the damage over the few days of Christmas itself. Otherwise all my BC work will be for nothing.

Have you been super strict, @Almahart ? Or is it actually a big success to have stayed the same at a time of year when you’d usually have gained?

I've been about as strict as I usually am on bootcamp and I would usually have lost more, but I haven't done it since being perimenopausal and my guess is that it might have made it harder for me to lose weight.

I don't eat anything that isn't bootcamp approved, but I will eat too many nuts or dark choc, that sort of thing.

I hear you :)

@Whicker I stay on Bootcamp Light all the time apart from Christmas Day when I have some mindful exceptions. These are: half a grapefruit for breakfast, a roast potato and stuffing with dinner, Christmas pudding, and rather more booze than would be sensible. Every other day over Christmas I eat normally, i.e. low carb.

To be totally honest @Whicker first, only you can make that decision but, second, you need to understand what might happen it you let yourself go into the carbs.

It's a hard time of the year to low carb, as so many of the Christmas treats are definitely not low carb!

If you just 'let go' then the risk is that you'll gain weight - you'll start craving carbs and you'll end up eating a lot of carbs several days in a row. With the concomitant weight gain.

It's also dependent on what period of time you're planning on 'letting go' - if it's just a couple or a few days, you might get away with it - but if it's the full two weeks before Christmas, followed by the week after, then you risk significant weight gain.

All of this depends on how likely weight gain is going to affect you psychologically. If you can cope with a gain - probably around 7lbs - and you're prepared to deal with that afterwards, then it's a change you might be happy to make.

So just put yourself in your bathroom, on January 2, looking at what the scales are telling you, and think how you're going to feel if they tell you that you've gained half a stone (possibly more). If you think you can cope with it - then crack on!

Personally, I'm not as disciplined as @StuntNun, but I do try and keep it to a minimum. Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day I'll eat pretty much what I want. But I try - as much as I can - to keep the carbs 'under control' for the rest of the time. Recognising, however, that I'll be consuming more carbs than I would usually.

I must admit I'm struggling now.
I just want to fall into the Christmas food!
Today's food was a ham salad sandwich on low carb bread. Beef casserole for dinner (with celeriac instead of potato, carrots, leeks, tomato and stock), a protein/collagen shake (from willpowders, so decent quality and keto friendly) and 4 squares of dark chocolate,

Gone to bed to stop myself raiding the cupboards!

I'm struggling a bit this week after letting myself go back onto carbs for a couple of events at the weekend. I am keeping note of what i can get away with (psychologically). I am still feeling very positive about the WOE which hasn't always been the case in the past. What is definitely helping this time is having no breakfast just herbal tea and no snacks during the day, just a healthy lunch and dinner with maybe a snack after work. This means that I am getting accustomed to feeling hungry but not feeling troubled by it, which is new for me. I am also making a green smoothy (veg only, typically pak choi, spinach, cucumber, courgette, celery and avocado) in the evening as it makes me feel as though I've ended the day on a healthy note.

As for Christmas itself, I'm going to allow small quantities of carby food. So one roast potato, one spoonful of pudding etc. We are hosting so that is fairly easy. But we will be going away for a few days after Christmas which
might be harder.

I have really struggled this week, I've been fine until the evenings and then fallen into chocolate. It's very unlike me though, and started after a few good, easy, strict weeks. I'm blaming hormones as I'm perimenopausal. It didn't help that I really struggled to lose weight this time, and I was weighing only for them to be the same (or more!) in spite of good choices.

However, I do weigh less than I have at this time in any other year (possibly except for last year but I'm now too scared to weigh again) and I'm eating better than I would otherwise - so bootcamp is definitely helping me (thanks everyone). It's also quite good milk choc I'm eating - I'm managing to stay off the real ultra processed cheap junk (not one quality street has passed my lips!). Furthermore drinking very little/infrequently which is probably good for me too.

Today I plan to have zero chocolate and stock up the freezer with soup. Hoping @biwi will thwack chocs out of my hands if necessary

Can you switch to dark chocolate instead? Much better for you - all those antioxidants - but also far fewer carbs, especially if you can go really high cocoa percentage.

I like the Lindt 90% chocolate: it's got a good mouth feel and you can't eat too much.

If I've not been to Sainsbury's, I'll get the Lidl G D Gross chocolate which I don't like nearly as much and can't each more than a square. BTW: don't buy their 90% (or is it 95%?) version - it really is gross

I "normally" eat 90% or 95% dark chocolate @BIWI (and quite sparingly) but alas it seems that this week only milk chocolate will do.

It's funny @prettybird I find lindt 85% is horrible but the 90% is very nice - they're very different tasting aren't they.

I've never tried the Lindt 85% chocolate, but I won't bother then from your comments

It's the Lidl brand that is Gross by name and gross by taste I ended up finishing the bar slowly with squares going into chili

I've been dabbling with Montezuma 100% this week. I have a square melted with a bit of cream, like a warm truffle that you can drink. Bit like an oyster!

Morning all. It's really helpful to hear everyone's plans for what you are going to 'allow' over Christmas and for how long. I'm not actually too fussed about potatoes, bread, etc but I do like traditional Christmas sweet things such as mince pies, Christmas pudding & Christmas cake. I'm wondering whether to choose to have maybe one of these on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day & Boxing Day?

I'm currently having a couple of days of feeling really hungry. Not sure why!

I normally don't have breakfast but currently feeling so hungry. Wondering whether I should just listen to my body.

I find that as long as I tell myself that I'm going to enjoy one homegrown roast potato which I often don't finish and one maybe two of my homemade mince pies, that helps.

Best bit of advice I learnt on last year's Pre-Christmas Boot Camp was "I am not a human trash can" That really helped me to stop "finishing off" portions and to not take it upon myself to finish off the tin of Quality Street just because it was there and the selection left was of the less popular things

I have to repeat it to myself often

I quite like the Boots no added sugar milk chocolate. It's about the same carbs as 70% dark chocolate iirc, but when you want milk chocolate it does the job.
I'm finding it really hard to not have any chocolate at all and o would really like to be one of those people who can take it or leave it. Got my period now, which might explain to some extent, last week's difficulty. Plus the whole self sabotage thing, which I tend to do.

Food yesterday was okay though - scrambled eggs on low carb toast for breakfast and a salad for dinner (with ham, avocado, goats cheese and oil dressing with mayo, so definitely lchf ) and half a bar of the Boots chocolate.
Not drinking any alcohol until Christmas, since I'm better having none than trying to keep to a single glass mug of mulled wine.

The other thing I notice that makes a big difference is drinking aaaaaall the water (or herb tea). It's very easy in all the carousel and carousing of Christmas to overlook your fluid intake or to have too much wine

It makes all the difference during Boot Camp and it still makes all the difference when you're trying to maintain and/or not put on toooo much

Yesterday was the social event that prompted my question in the first place. I’d sort of wondered about letting that be the start of generalised Christmas feasting for me, and to let myself join in with the office treats and so on after that. But I felt so uncomfortable last night after a day of carbs that I might change my plan on that, and now go back to proper strictness.

Even though I feel motivated, a couple of planned detours onto carbs have derailed me a bit, unfortunately I don’t get any immediate ill effects to act as a deterrent. Back to it properly today, no more meals out till next Sat.

Just weighed a day early early as I may not have access to scales tomorrow. So far it has been up and down progress, but I've now lost 5.5lbs which I'm very happy about. Still hoping to reach the 7lb mark before Christmas and then aiming for another 20lbs or so next year! This thread and the accountability is wonderfully helpful - when I went up one week, I would usually have given in, but the though of the spreadsheet kept me going.

Have a good week everyone.

Onwards and downwards :)😀