January 2024 Low Carb Bootcamp - this one's a dry one!

[BIWIshYouAMerryChristmas]

For one month only - 4 weeks of strict Bootcamp, which means no booze.

If you want to, you can do Bootcamp Light, but with the exception of no alcohol.

All welcome! But please, only sign up if you are prepared to do the whole thing without alcohol.

Hello 👋

Can I join?

I only have a drink occasionally (once a month or less) so no alcohol should be easy.

Reducing sugar is super hard for me but I’ve cut back drastically and now have 1 date and 1 square of dark chocolate a day.

I’m having small amounts of carbs - eg. 2 tablespoons of brown rice or a couple of buckwheat crepes.

Anyone else in their 40s? My current diet in my 30s meant I went from a size 12 / 14 to a size 8 within a year. Piled weight on in pandemic with huge amount of stress and loss of a parent. This time it has taken just over 2 years to go from size 14 to size 10 / 12. Very sloooow but steady I guess. The one thing I do less of this time around is meditating - I know stress is a big factor in weight gain / loss.

Long post but looking for low carb tips to reduce weight while trying to keep cholesterol down as my last blood test was slightly above normal levels.

Todays food plan is;

B; buckwheat crepes (extra eggy) + blueberries + cream + linseeds

L; Roast sweet potato + tuna, sweetcorn & chard

D; salmon + quinoa + avocado

Snacks; date + greek yoghurt + pecans

Morning all. The snack cravings were so strong last night. Does anyone have any suggestions for salty crisps alternatives please? Last night I went to bed early to beat the cravings but it would be very antisocial to do that regularly.

@blackteaplease kale chips - chop up kale, drizzle with olive oil and sea salt then high heat (200C) in oven for 10 mins. Spread them out so they crisp up. Sometimes I add paprika too. They taste even better than crisps!

Not really! When popped, pre-packed and just salted it's still pretty high, although it does depend on which brand you're buying - assuming you're buying it pre-packed and not making your own?

If you're making your own it's pretty difficult to make in small quantities.

If buying pre-packed, some brands are relatively low in carbs by virtue of the fact that you're only getting a small amount, like this brand

@Eatbetter welcome!! But your meal plan isn’t low carb boot camp - there’s rules at the beginning of the thread. Or click onto ‘sheets’ and the rules are there too.

@Thesoundofmusic23

Struggled a bit today - day three here, but tired after a busy morning and walk. Hungry late arvo - is this normal - but energy flat on day 3?

Yes, all normal for this stage. Your body is still transitioning from burning carbs to burning fat for fuel. In a few days' time you'll feel completely different. Your energy will be coming from fat - the fat your body has stored - and there's plenty of it! (Not being rude - even endurance athletes have plenty of body fat to fuel their exercise)

The hunger, too, will dissipate as your blood sugar levels will be remaining much more even between meals. If you're hungry in these early days, then please have something to eat (low carb, obviously!). This WOE isn't about deprivation. But you will find once transitioned into fat-burning that you aren't hungry between meals.

@Eatbetter you're very welcome to join us - and it sounds like you've already made some positive changes. But as @NotDonna has pointed out, the foods you're eating are definitely not Bootcamp-compliant!

These foods are not allowed on Bootcamp:

• dates
• brown rice
• buckwheat
• blueberries (for the first couple of weeks)
• linseeds (for the first couple of weeks)
• sweet potato
• quinoa
• pecans (for the first couple of weeks)

Have a read of the whole thread, as well as Bootcamp rules (which are in the spreadsheet). If they don't work for you, that's fine.

If you do decide to join us, there are plenty of us here the same age - and many older! - than you. So we all understand how you feel and what you're going through.

Bootcamp is basically protein, veg and fats. Eggs are great as is any protein. But zero crepes. Blueberries & linseeds not allowed for now. No fruit, no sugar, No pasta, potatoes, rice, quinoa, etc. Sweet potatoes are actually higher carb than regular potatoes so also banned. Most veg is fine especially green leafy. Cream is great as is yoghurt & nothing ‘low fat’ is allowed. It’s not difficult and is incredibly effective.

Hah! x-post with @NotDonna!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MgQyl3RkGeDygLf3MsXiPo7-Ei_ISUlJObPELZ44-Vg/edit

Im hoping I’ve attached the spreadsheet correctly @Eatbetter At the bottom there’s tabs to click which provide info. It’s now a long thread so totally understand any reluctance to read it all but it’d definitely help. Hope you decide to join us!

Thanks everyone!

It’s already been useful joining.

The spreadsheet is incredibly handy - I will read and adjust.

Good morning lovely bootcampers

Last nights dinner was a particular favourite: duck breast, roast celeriac, buttered spinach and rhubarb.

Spinach microwaved in butter, rest air fried.

My father used to eat unsweetened rhubarb, to me it's the epitome of mature sophistication (giggles). Enjoying it myself is testament to how much my taste buds have changed by eating LCHF bootcamps low carb high fat.

Had planned it for Thursday evening but..... the air fryer packed up. Disaster. I know I could cook it in the grill/oven but especially for one person the air fryer is just so convenient and DH is not a big fan of well any of this meal so it's all, all mine.

Amazon prime to the rescue in time for Fridays meal. This time I went for the extended guarantee as the last air fryer lasted just three months over its one year guarantee.

Morning all and welcome to new joiners. Still a bit sluggish, and probably having too much milk in coffee so going to cut that right down.

Breakfast- cold meats ( mortadella and Parma ham left from Xmas)
Lunch- made some cauliflower soup
( just a whole cauliflower inc leaves, shallots and stock cooked, blended and served with a squirt of cream)
Supper- ham and leek crustless quiche.

Morning all.
Sunshine here is very welcome. Will get some decent dog walks in this weekend.
Hopped on the scales this morning just to see and I'm very happy.
About to have poached eggs. Let's hope I get some consistency in the buggers this morning 🙄

Morning all, not breakfast for me today as feeling very full, probably a tuna patty (recipe on the spreadsheet) for lunch with salad and then leftover ham and cheesy leeks for dinner. Amazingly I have already dropped to my pre christmas weight, however I definitely put on inches too and my jeans are still feeling snug so I reckon it will be a few weeks before I reach where I was in December. My aim is then to lost another 1.5 stones by the summer (I have even more to lose but would rather it was slow and steady and I keep it off by maintaining this woe longer term)

@blackteaplease m & s do 'crisps' made from Parma ham, they are expensive so I don't buy often but useful to beat an occasional craving

Agree with these or the chorizo version. Pork scratching puffs and the Serious Pig Snacking Cheese crisps are also keto friendly and delicious - but addictive!

I’ve bought these ‘crisps’ not tried them as of yet though, they’re for further down the line with the other keto treats I got from
holland and Barrett’s.

Thanks for all the snack suggestions, you've saved my Saturday night. I'm off to buy kale and see if my local village co-op does any of the suggestions. I can't eat pork scratchings though, ate far too many of them when I first did bootcamp a few years ago and now I can't stomach them.

Those are exactly the ones I was talking about! They are delicious IMO, unfortunately I could eat 4 bags in one go -preferably with a glass of cold white wine-

Strike through fail!

@blackteaplease these seaweed thins are crispy. I like them, especially the wasabi falour, but others hate them. I can get them in our local Tesco. I also used to enjoy these but eventually found them too cheesy. Or you could make your own parmesan crisps. very easy

Yesterday we had the Jamie's Mediterannean lamb meatballs with red peppers and tsatziki. Very nice - and simple enough for dh to make. But like many of the 5 ingredient recipes it needs another 3: broccoli and green beans for me, and flat bread for dh. Today we're making another of his recipes - pork fillet with mustard, mushroom and creme fraiche sauce. Again with loads of green veg for me, and also rice for dh. That will be lunch then dh is away so I'll have ham, cheese and veg omelette later. Plus all the water.

Baked chorizo is nice as a crunchy thing @blackteaplease, the thin presliced one baked in a hot oven until crispy. If i dont already have the oven on I sometimes do a trick, I think originally from @stuntnun I think, of microwaving it spread put on a plate with a piece of kitchen roll underneath. Would be nice with @Metabolicallycomplicated whipped feta!

Presliced edam or similar roasted is also nice and crunchy, though I haven't tried that in microwave.

I'm resisting an air frier as I struggle with clutter but with the cost of energy I'm ending up avoiding using the oven too so possibly I'm missing a trick.

I was still hungry at suppertime yesterday so had a couple of leftover boiled eggs chopped up on very thickly buttered LC toast. It was delicious and being entirely virtuous (as well as soooo tasty and filling) it really made my heart sing, the joy of small pleasures

Have given up YT and FB and Insta for January and honestly haven't missed them. Read a good book recently about how to feel more in control of time and the author explained the value of having 'a breather' in between tasks when the mind can relax (you take 5 mins to do something that doesn't require mental focus like go for a brisk walk or fill washing machine etc), as this gives it processing time. If we fill these gaps with scrolling on social media instead, which does attract our focus, then we never get that processing time.

Welcome @Alohapotato

It weren’t me @Baystard although maybe I popularised it. I like it with Brie melted on but the whipped feta idea sounds awesome.

Morning all

enjoying this woe so much. Prefer buttered cabbage rather than rice with low carb chilli or curries and creamed swede made with butter, cream and coarse pepper is just divine.

Today:

Br: blk coffee
Lu: LC leek and pork sausage with scrambled eggs
Dinner: HM butter ckn curry with buttered cabbage.
coffee, water and herbal tea.

10,000 steps completed. I am going t try and introduce Lucy Wyndhams 7 minute workout into my days from next week.

Just wondered if anyone had tried the licorice t-pigs? Could do with a change of herbal teas. Also wd love to hear if anyone has come across a cherry one?

have a great weekend everyone.