Feb '24 Low Carb Bootcamp - Here we Go!

[BIWI]

So our first official weigh-in won't be until Monday, but I thought it would be a good idea to get this thread up, so that we can all start thinking and prepping for it. This is especially important for those of you who are new to low carbing/Bootcamp.

Here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness (although it's possible that @FinallyHere might be posting an updated one later)

You'll see that it's divided into three sections, which reflects the fact that for some of us, this Bootcamp is a continuation of the Dry January challenge.

From Monday, the next Bootcamp will last for 8 weeks.

If you're just joining us anew, then it's important that you follow Bootcamp properly, i.e. the first two weeks will be strict, before you relax into Bootcamp Light in Week 3 (if you want to.). For anyone who has been with us for the January challenge, it's entirely up to you how you take part. You can, if you wish, do the next two weeks as strict Bootcamp, or you can continue with Bootcamp Light.

@BIWI thank you. I will be number 71 but my phone won't let me copy & paste the list (on way out I think) so if @FinallyHere could do it that would be very kind x

Thank you for the new BC @BIWI and @FinallyHere . My first goal for this boot camp is to get into my original ski pants by 2nd March. I have tried them on this morning and by lying down could do them up. Could certainly not wear them in public. Will try weekly and see what progress I get. I have a bigger size pair but they are quite loose now. Don’t want to have to buy an in between pair!
Looking forward to week 1 excitement from tomorrow.

Sorry I haven't been around much @BIWI work has been absolutely hectic lately!

@Magnolia82 if you're doing 16:8 then there's little benefit from mixing things up with your fasting. That really comes into play when people are doing OMAD (one meal a day) or a regular long fast once per week. If you're doing 16:8 every day eating lunch and dinner then it would be worth considering adding breakfast in one day a week. If you're doing 16:8 but not every day then you don't need any tweaks at all. If you feel that you would like to get more benefit from fasting, especially if you would like to experiment with apoptosis, then I recommend trying a 24-hour fast once a week, e.g. from dinner one day to dinner the next day. You don't have to do it all at once, you could pick a day each week and eat your first meal later and later until you make it to 24 hours. If that works for you, you might decide to do a 24-hour fast once a week or once a fortnight, or once a month, or even aim for a longer 36- or 48-hour fast.

Welcome @medianewbie added you

@WitchWand sorry 'bout not recognising your user name, you are back where you belong in the started in January section.

@medianewbie I saw that you posted your starting weight in stones. Please confirm if you would like me to log your starting weight etc. I'm always happy to do that for anyone, if so please let me know what number to use.

We tend to log in lbs but there is no need to do that. You are welcome to log in whatever units you want. Some people prefer to use an index rather than an absolute weight, so tracking the number of lbs lost without setting a start weight. It's all good.

I've started today, had a big cheese omelette for brunch. I have realised though I have been sort of bc-ing since December now I just haven't been strict enough, I keep losing the same few pounds and putting them back on. So am in and committed for the whole of this bc now - looking forward to it

With all the focus on logging weight on the spreadsheet, for full disclosure I'll like to be clear that I am/was one of the people who find measuring, monitoring and logging complicated. When I started bootcamping prop'ly in Jan 22, I didn't even weight myself.

Only started weighing about about three months into bootcamping and then just once a month, in the gym at work where I get reading of weight broken down by fat, water and muscle mass and into trunk, left and right arm and leg. And other stats too. Phew.

Monthly weighing is my back stop, it went down for a good many months and has been stable for a good few months now, at the mid/upper section of the healthy BMI (I'm not the tallest person you ever saw)

I also tracked my measurements esp waist & hip (plus the ratio) and have a pair of itsy bitsy white Levi shorts (old kind with no stretch) which I use to track my progress. The initial pictures showed them reaching mid calf, now they do up.

Absolutely understand the challenges around monitoring weight and that it is good to have some kind of objective measure to keep track. Day to day, I trusted the process, that if I followed bootcamp rules, the weight would come off and yes it did. As well as following bootcamp I considered how I would feel after I'd eat, to stop myself from 'gaming' the rules.

Such a relief after the initial set up, to find that what I had thought was hunger was in fact just my blood sugar reacting to my eating lots refined carbs and sugar.

Hunger is now something I listen out for, it arrives quite quietly and goes away again if I don't pay any attention unlike the post refined carb blood sugar drop which like Violet Elizabeth Bott screams and screams.

All the best lovely people. This really works. My life is do.much.better for bootcamping.

Thank you @BIWI for setting things up and @FinallyHere for the beautiful spreadsheet. I am so grateful to have found this lovely group of people, and this way of eating, my life has changed as a result in so many ways. 🎉🎉

I'm really pleased to be able to join you all again and can't wait to weigh-in tomorrow.

@StuntNun Thank you so much for this information about fasting. That's really helpful.

Thank you @StuntNun - sorry to send out the bat signal for you, but very grateful for your expertise, as always

Understanding that hunger is driven by hormones was a major, major 'wow' for me. Like most people (everyone?!) I thought being hungry meant that my stomach was empty.

In the Western/developed world, empty-stomach-hunger between meals is pretty rare - it's the combination/interrelation between insulin/grehlin/leptin that means we feel the need to eat. Once these are in balance - and this is what a low carb diet helps us to achieve - you really won't be hungry between meals; you may even find that you're not hungry at mealtimes. A real revelation for me.

And this, of course, is what helps us to avoid snacking and also, if you wish, to fast.

Our mantra on Bootcamp has always been/always will be to 'eat if you're hungry' - as long as it's low carb, obviously! - but if you aren't hungry, then there's no need to eat. This is why many people cut out breakfast, or eat very little at other mealtimes.

Hope it’s okay but just logged in my weight a day early. Slightly up from the end of Jan but I lapsed a little this week.

My goal is to keep going with this WOE and be patient. Slow and steady loss is okay.
I’m also committed to more exercise. Have done over my 10,000 steps this weekend and found some new exercise classes which I’ve booked for tomorrow after work.

thanks again @BIWI to the new thread

Thanks for the new thread, I’m not going on the spreadsheet because I record my weight on an app most days but am too lazy to work out what it is in lbs and record it on the spreadsheet as well. I have slacked off a bit this last few days but back on it properly from tomorrow. I would like to shift 5lb by the end of Feb. Then I will be half way to my long term target from when I started 18 months ago.

I had a most lovely brunch today. I had some nitrate-free bacon, buttered mushrooms, a fried egg and some fried 'bubble and squeak' made with left-over celeriac and leek mash. All served with a slice of low carb bread made using THIS recipe - thanks @goodiewhemper for posting it on the previous thread.

Tonight is slow cooked lamb with buttered cabbage and crispy kale. Just what's needed for a grey February evening.

Just added myself to the spreadsheet, thank you @BIWI. Will add weights back in later, need to look them up! Have been OK since Christmas but need to focus to start losing again.

No problem @FinallyHere . And thanks for changing that.

Ok. Think I am prepped. Really interesting about the alcohol in your earlier post @BIWI Shall try and stay off that for a while.

Thanks to you and @FinallyHere for running this again. Really appreciate the company and motivation.

I'm back up to where I was in October 🤦🏻‍♀️ but if I hadn't done that bootcamp things would've been a lot worse!

Really interesting reflections on the difference between real hunger and the hormonal response to dips in blood sugar.
And the thoughts of managing our minds whilst we're managing our body image during boot camp are great to think about too.

Thanks again FinallyHere and BIWI.

I was on bootcamp about 3 years ago and got rid of 4 stone. But, then I gradually shut my eyes to monitoring what I ate and did and how my habits, sleep or stress might be affecting my weight.
This time round, I want to learn as much as I can about it all. I think it's fascinating.

Placemarking for tomorrow and looking forward to it! Thanks as ever @BIWI , @prettybird and @FinallyHere

Hi all just checking in. After a terrible week I managed to get back to bootcamp from Friday so starting to feel slightly better. My aim this month is just to get back into the swing of it really, and aim for a modest weight loss. I have a tough month ahead work wise so need to focus on not comfort eating and upping my water intake and taking vitamins regularly.

@FinallyHere could you move me into the February section. I started in January but have slipped into bad habits the last couple of weeks (chocolate and emotional eating). Thank you to BIWI and you for this thread. It really helps. Really interesting talk about hunger and hormones.

@Nevertoomanyfluffies Hello and welcome back. I've moved you back to the 'started in January, continuing in February section.

Please just let me know if you wanted to be in the starting over in February section.

Reporting for duty, and dreading the weigh-in tomorrow. Skiing was wonderful, but ridiculously carby. Damage has been done...

I have 2 goals this BC. The first is to get to 160lbs (6lbs lower than my current lowest weight). It's fairly arbitrary, but need something to aim at.

Second goal is to stay focused and really work on how LC fits into my life long term. This BC I don't have an indulgent cliff edge to fall off, like Xmas or skiing, so should have less of an excuse to dive off the wagon at the end.

Argh the sugar cravings are so so real today, it's been such a struggle. The only thing keeping me going is acknowledging that I am in no way hungry, there is food in the house but none of it appeals. I'm purely after that instant gratification after eating something sweet or stodgy.

So I've kept strong but I really hope those cravings fade soon, I only have so much willpower. It'll be interesting to monitor this to see if it's a monthly pattern.

Thank you so much @BIWI and @FinallyHere

I'm mortified to confess that I was so happy to get to the end of January, I wavered in a really big way.... drank ton of booze over 3 nights and also dived into an unopened box of chocolates we had before Christmas.
Amazingly, I've only put on 1lb. I know I deserve a big-stick pasting.
And I can't seem to add onto the spreadsheet.
Would someone mind doing for me? I'm 211 today.

@StuntNun I have 2 idiotic IF questions if you don't mind.

1. Is it ok to only do IF-ing (16:8) 3 or 4 days a week?
2. This is probably a REALLY dumb question 😳 on days I IF, I don't eat till 10ish, but then have breakfast. Lunch at lunchtime and an early dinner, so I'm still eating 3 meals a day.

Is that wrong? Should I be aiming for 2? Or even just 1? Many thanks for the benefit of your knowledge 🙏

Good luck to everyone