Feb '24 Low Carb Bootcamp - week 4. Back on track?

[BIWI]

So it looked like many of us had slipped off the wagon in week 2. Hopefully last week saw people getting back on again?!

Here's the spreadsheet to record what happened!

Well done everybody! I’ve had an okay week but haven’t been anywhere near strict enough as craving chocolate which I’ve given into several times. I really struggle with sweet stuff. Not remotely missing bread, potatoes, pasta, rice etc etc but chocolate (sigh)!! For this woe to work long term for me I think I’m going to have to have some sweet LC recipes up my sleeve - but only as occasional treats. What do you think @biwi?

I’m still catching up on the last page of last weeks thread! @Magnolia82 what strength exercises are you doing at home please? I also need to do something. Do you have a link to a workout please?

I am glad to report a loss of 2lbs and being back on track after two previous, not so successful,weeks!
Thank you everyone for being here
I don't have time to post more regularly but wanted you all to know that I appreciate the company and enjoy being part of BC community.

Just over 2lb down and another new low, I sometimes feel a little disappointed on weigh-in day but looking at where I was this time last year to now gives my head a wobble!!!!! 6lb to go to the next stone and then I'll only have a few pounds 😁. Marry me chicken was quite disappointing, very dry even though the recipe said chicken breast. Have lots left so think I'll make a sauce with mushrooms and spinach then grill with cheese.
Office day today which I'm half-prepared for, have breakfast which is mushroom, spinach, tomato and chorizo and I've got an egg to crack into it in the microwave. Busy day so lunch might be herbal tea!!!! Work event on Thursday which already know will be carby - buffet will certainly include sandwiches, sausage rolls, Indian bites etc and then there's a sit down meal in the evening 🤦. Luckily it's still baltic so at least can have cold cuts in the car to snack on!! Have a good day all, hope @BIWI you're feeling better and @LilianaVikavanovich DD can get through a horrible time too 💐

Pleased to report that yesterday's increase of 3lb has miraculously dropped off again today after diligent water-glugging yesterday.

That means an overall loss of 4.6lb so far this BC.

@NotDonna wading in to give my opinion 😁I think that if a particular foodstuff is putting you at risk then you have to find a way to include it in a sustainable way, to avoid the inevitable fuckits that having a total ban on something does. So perhaps finding something chocolatey but not wholly off the rails that you can say, I got to Friday and I've been good, this is going to keep me going. But then review review review. Ask yourself - did it throw your eating off afterwards, did it impact the scales, was it worth it. If it worked then great. If it didn't, then you learned something and it might be that you do need to avoid it.

I haven't tried these but something here might help? https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/recipes/desserts/keto-chocolate

My vice that I struggle with is Pepsi max. Not the worst of the worst but I'm sure the sweeteners aren't doing wonders for me. Last year I could easily neck six cans a day! So it's not allowed in the house during the week, I may have one when I'm out on the weekend and I've put more rules around it. It seems to work ok - if I hadn't dropped the weight this week after an awkward month it would have been the next thing to go.

But bread. My god I love bread and I miss it. But I 100% know that there is no way I can add a small bit in to this WOE and get away with it because there is no stopping. I'm not even giving any LC bread a chance because it's just a gateway drug!

And now I have this song stuck in my head

I do similar with Diet Coke - we used to have cans of it at home but now I just allow myself one when we go to the pub or eat out (usually once or twice a week). Otherwise I drink soda water. For sweet things generally I find a square of 70% chocolate is enough (I have the Lindt one with dried raspberry pieces which adds sweetness). Bread though, that is also my gateway drug. I allow myself the occasional slice of wholemeal and can stop at that, but DH tends to buy baguettes at the weekend and if I even succumb to having one small piece that is it, I can't stop.

Oh I really shouldn’t have pressed play @AIBConsiderate
Im loving diet doctor for ideas. But haven’t tried any LC sweet stuff as the ingredients are a bit 🤯
I’ve just prepped their pesto chicken with olives & feta for tonight. DH and DD can have with either mash or pasta and I think I’ll have with green beans and peppers.
I need to go through the last weeks thread and write down all those ideas for side veg ideas.
The issue with sweet stuff is actually after I’ve eaten. I can totally swerve a cake at a cafe etc but just after I’ve finished lunch or dinner I seriously crave sweetness! It’s bizarre as I very very rarely do puddings - when the kids were younger I’d do a crumble on a Sunday maybe but other than that no ‘afters’. So I’ve no clue where this has come from!

I'm the same as you @NotDonna, I can resist the bread, spuds, pasta etc but it's the chocolate that calls my name 😕

And also the same in that it's something sweet after a meal that I crave. Which feel worse as when you give in you ruin the good work that you've literally just done by not having a sandwich or a bowl of pasta!

I virtually never have cakes in cafes etc even when I'm not on BC, but for reasons unknown I have done a couple of times this year and haven't enjoyed them at all, I need to remember that because they always look so nice but unless you find one of those very rare places that bake their own they are invariably a disappointment and a total carb overload.

I did have and enjoy a cake when dd had an audition a few weeks ago but it was the flourless dark choc thing at Gail’s - and it was very expensive and very delicious and not too sweet although very rich so struggled to finish. I think dark dark choc is going to be my bad thing - finding 70% too sweet now so eating 80-90% which is very satisfying.

No! The whole idea of Bootcamp is to break the hold that sweet stuff has over us. I know that may sound harsh, but if you're craving chocolate and still struggling, I think you need to try even harder not to give in.

It doesn't sound like you're in the right place yet for these to be 'occasional treats' - I'd be worried that one treat would lead to a craving for more carbs.

What kind of chocolate are you eating? How high in cocoa content is it?

@TheOnlyMrsW I think that's the problem with using chicken breasts though - they do go dry. Chicken thighs would have better (as well as more Bootcamp-friendly!)

Really good news on the weight though

@EndlesslyDistracted

I find a square of 70% chocolate is enough (I have the Lindt one with dried raspberry pieces which adds sweetness)

Just be careful here - the raspberry pieces also add a huge amount of carbs!

Lindt 70% is 34g per 100g; their chocolate with raspberry pieces is 51g carbs per 100g!!!

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/lindt-excellence-dark-raspberry-intense-chocolate-bar-100g
vs
https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/lindt-excellence-dark-70-cocoa-chocolate-bar-100g

Good old m&s I've just had bacon strips and guacamole for lunch en route home from the funeral. The food at the wake was as expected and I did have a small cake but no booze and then I had steak salad for dinner in the hotel. I also managed my water so all things considered I think I did as well as I could

Yes, but it is so rich I really only ever eat one square and not every day so I think its reasonable.

For those struggling with sweet cravings, would herbal teas help? I've seen buttermint herbal tea recommended on past bootcamps and a friend of mine swears by liquorice and peppermint herbal tea for the after lunch sweet cravings. I keep meaning to try them out but haven't yet got round to it!

One square, and not every day, is very restrained @EndlesslyDistracted!

I haven't got a particularly sweet tooth @BIWI, the reason I need to be on BC is bread and crisps rather than sweet things. But sometimes after dinner I do just feel like something small and sweet and it draws a line under the eating for the day and makes me less incline to start fridge-raiding later on.

I have managed to wean myself onto Montezuma 100% dark chocolate. It's not that sweet but it is chocolatey and it has that mouth feel that nothing else has. It definitely hits the spot, might be worth a go?

It's especially good with a walnut alongside

I love the one with orange, @Almahart - it's still 100%, but the orange just offsets that enough. The plain 100% one was a step too far!

Where are you buying the one with orange @biwi - only ever seen the plain one.

Lunch today was particularly good - tomato, fennel, and chicory salad with tiny black olives and soft goats cheese, yum!

@NotDonna I'm not sure if I'm the best person to be recommending anything, as I've just been stumbling around trying to find something. If anyone else on here is more experienced in this/found any effective at home strength workouts, I'd be keen to hear what you've found helpful.

@NotDonna - people on Mumsnet often recommend Caroline Girvan but I looked at this and it was too advanced for me!

Some things I've found (I've only been attempting this for 2 weeks) are:

• Team Body Project (you can become a free member and that gives quite a lot of cardio & strength workouts)
• The Girl with the Pilates mat (also includes some workouts with light weights and resistance bands)
• Heather Robertson (I have just started this but using much lighter weights than she uses!) m.youtube.com/@Heatherrobertsoncom/featured

Let me know if you try any of these or find anything else. I really am a complete beginner but been reading a lot that this is good for bone health and also could help me with some fat loss as I am so short!