Jan ’26 Low Carb Bootcamp - week 3 - full-on, light or hybrid?

[BIWI]

Morning all!

Spreadsheet as per:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gsWvWpGzTSJld1avBi9-uLJveFZes9Qa2ORKthPMl8E/edit?gid=1415293539#gid=1415293539

So as I posted in the last thread, you now have a choice. You can move on to Bootcamp Light, which means you can add in:

Some nuts and seeds
Some fruit - mainly berries
Some chocolate - 70% cocoa (and higher)
Some alcohol - clear spirits and sugar-free mixers, dry white/red wine.

… all in moderation and not at every meal time! Try to avoid the sugar-free mixers as much as you can, if you’re drinking spirits, given how artificial they are.

You can stay on full-on Bootcamp if you want to, or if you feel you’ve been slipping a bit too much recently - as long as you make sure you’re eating plenty of vegetables and salad, for good nutrition. You may, though, want to consider a hybrid - Bootcamp during the week and Bootcamp Light at the weekend.

It’s up to you.

Just remember though, that weeks 3 & 4 are infamous! It’s not at all unusual to see weight loss slow or stop. If this happens to you, don’t panic but just KOKO.

Good luck to us all

Really enjoyed beef rendang tonight (adapted from a Fast 800 recipe) though I went a bit heavy on the chilli. Served with pak choi.

Are you any "wobblier" @KellyWithABigBelly ? I sometimes think I've stalled but then get a whoosh. Often there's a noticeable wobbly belly just before. Presume the fat gets replaced by water initially but eventually the water goes too.

Not much appetite again here either @Theghostofchristmasarse but I'm not complaining. I did some leftovers for supper and I was genuinely hungry when I started so I really enjoyed a very random concoction of BC friendly fridge leftovers but was full very quickly and nearly couldn't finish it.

Thank you for ratatouille suggestions @SemmaLina and @Rayna37 , I'll need to get myself an aubergine and give it a go.

Thanks @RightTurnClyde - my belly is very wobbly anyway so it’s hard to tell if it’s juggling more than usual. No whoosh this morning. Stubbornly staying on the same number morning after morning. Fingers crossed for an enormous whoosh over the weekend.

Hi all. The past two days have been fine for me. Breakfast has been my green smoothie (spinach, cucumber and avocado) with a boiled egg. For lunch I have eaten broccoli, cougette and leek soup with stilton and a salad with smoked mackerel or salmon. Dinner Wednesday was fried turkey steaks with mozzarella and green beans. For dinner last night I made a shepherds pie but substituted the carrots with mushrooms and the potato with a cauliflower and celeriac mash with sour cream. It was delicious and I have two portions in the freezer for another day.

Breakfast and lunch today will be the usual and for dinner tonight I have some fresh salmon which I will eat with celeriac chips. Have a great day everyone.

The weight is coming off very gradually for me. I went up by a pound on Tuesday, and now I’m back down to Monday’s weight. It is heading in the right direction though, so I’ll take that. Dinner last night was chicken and chorizo - with nachos for the kids, I skipped the nachos. I will have mackerel and rocket for lunch today, and for dinner I fancy trying that keto chicken & pesto recipe linked upthread.

Mine has come off half a pound a day since Monday, I just looked at a pack of butter and thought - that’s one of those a day, quite motivating. I definitely feel less bloaty now and possibly slightly slimmer, tummy feels a bit firmer. However the weekend is always more of a challenge, DH always goes out and buys a baguette on Saturday morning and it sits there on the breadboard tempting me.

I've been quite quiet here, as have cheated a little, partly because it feels a bit hopeless while I have been on these particular meds. However, in spite of that, I feel way more energetic and have lost another pound. So that's five pounds since the start.

I made something very simple and delicious the other day - fried shallots, added mushrooms, wilted some spinach and added cream, lemon and parmesan. SO good

If you’ve read my OP you should understand that this is fairly common in week 3 (and also possibly 4).

And it was only Thursday when you posted this - so 3 days after Monday’s weigh-in.

Also @KellyWithABigBelly - why are you counting calories? That isn’t what we do on Bootcamp! (And it doesn’t look like you’re eating enough fat - that percentage should be closer to 70%)

@Theghostofchristmasarse why not try the soluble electrolyte tabs instead? High5 Zero are good ones.

And congratulation on the 6lbs! But I’m puzzled as you haven’t entered that on the spreadsheet.

@SprinklesofRain don’t give in to the temptation! All you’ll do is sabotage what you’ve achieved so far.

Oh ratatouille is delicious and so convenient to have handy in single portions in the freezer; I make lots of variations on the theme - classic, shortcut, baked, etc. I actually love caponata even more and need to make that soon!

Didn't end up having lunch yesterday as I just didn't fancy it. Couldn't get aubergine in the end so had leftovers - braised brisket in gravy along with carrots, peas and brussels sprouts with plenty of butter and olive oil.

Brunch today was a chia and flaxseed 'porridge' - one tablespoon of each - made with water, double cream, collagen, cocoa, cinnamon, frozen blueberries and a small portion of walnuts (I know it's not strictly BC but I have to keep this in my routine due to medication regime/digestive considerations. I've gone back to it now that I'm not having the usual carbs for breakfast). Followed by scrambled eggs with avocado and cherry tomatoes.

I'm not sure what I'll have for dinner but I may do a stuffed pepper - have a portion of chilli in the freezer that would work nicely as the filling.

If I get hungry mid afternoon I've got some chicken ready in the fridge to make a very simple soup.

Already feeling a bit better and also noticed a slight improvement in my sleep last night, most likely due to lack of glucose spikes.

@BIWI I am going to try, I did slip and have a tiny bit last week, not enough to really do any harm but it’s the psychology of “a little bit won’t hurt” that I don’t want to get into.

I have found the link for my alternative pesto chicken from earlier in the week, it was delicious.

https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/278619/20-minute-chicken-cutlets-with-creamy-pesto-sauce/

While I say I don’t tend to notice any physical changes other than weight loss on this WOE, something someone said on another thread struck a chord with me a few days ago. It was about urinary incontinence, someone said theirs had completely stopped when they gave up sugar. Well, it’s never been a big problem for me, but I do have to be a little careful if I cough while I’ve got a full bladder, struggle with urgency at times but all of a sudden, nothing at the moment. Early days and I don’t want to tempt fate but I have sneezed several times this week including one set of sneezes with a full bladder and all safe and dry! Maybe sugar irritates the bladder, I know alcohol and caffeine do but I rarely drink alcohol anyway and don’t have much caffeine so those haven’t changed, just the carbs.

I’m using MFP because a couple of other people in the household use it, so I need to enter what ingredients I use in evening meals, weekend lunches etc so they can copy the listing to their account. So I’m in the habit of tracking everything on there, and it does make me stop and think about whether I’m eating enough veg or enough fat (aim is 70% most days, and I’m over that today).

I forgot to say @KellyWithABigBelly - I should have congratulated you on your loss so far! Even if you are disappointed today

I get what you mean re MFP, but don’t get hung up about calories.

Yes, I did read that, still feels annoying though. The scales haven’t shifted since last Saturday, so seven days so far. I know I just need to stick with it but I’d like to fast forward to the bit where I’m a healthy weight!

Wouldn’t we all?!

Sometimes there seems to be no logic in weight loss - it’s why we often refer to the ‘whoosh’ - nothing, nothing, nothing, and then suddenly a 3lb drop.

KOKO. It will happen.

Taa daa...my Week 3 NSV is...

An empty spinach packet (barring the ice remnants)!

I'm calling it my NSV as it feels bound to have improved my health and it's a new veg in my repertoire.

@BIWI when I weighed on Monday I was the same as last week...then yesterday I think it was I weighed again, and I had gone down 6lbs in 4 days, however weighed again today and it's gone back up a tiny bit. I think I'll stick to once a week as I'll probably just feel bad if it's gone back up again after I allow myself a little wine this evening!

Very long tiring day here, did 15000 steps on an art trip, with some very soggy teenagers, had a pot of yoghurt, a peperrami and two boiled eggs for breakfast and lunch, then just had spag bol without the spag but courgette and spinach instead.
Another trip up yo London tomorrow to see a show with DD, sadly my DP can't join us as he has a horrible ear infection and is currently deaf..we will eat out for dinner but might try to have lunch at home.

Woke up this morning with horrible restless legs and arms again, will finish the last of my electrolyte tablets I think then try the others you suggested Biwi.

@RightTurnClyde you're right about the 'water wobble'. The way a fat cell loses fat is incremental, gradually swapping fat for water. Then eventually when there is no fat in the cell, only water, it 'collapses' releasing the water (and the weight of the water). Of course with 30 billion fat cells in our bodies they are not all behaving the same at the same time, although weirdly it feels like there is sometimes a synchronicity...

Also, the 'empty' fat cells are never lost. Just dormant. Which is why it is easier to refill empty cells (or put on wieght if you've previously been overweight), than for an 'always thin' person to put on weight, because they have to use some of their energy to create new fat cells.

Oh, and well done on eating all that spinach. One of my favourites is velvet spinach soup. A really good rich homemade chicken stock, cream, things to elevate it like garlic, shallot, lemon zest, seasoning, a little bit of chilli, fresh herbs, then the spinach. All in a blender and blitzed until it is truly creamy and smooth. Like velvet.

@Theghostofchristmasarse gosh! a day in London with all those teenagers - I'd have snifter of gin in my handbag!

Have you tried magnesium for restless limbs? I use this lotion which smells good, and feels nice to rub it into my legs.

@venusandmarsthat is fascinating!

Thankyou @BIWI for doing this bootcamp. I feel this week that I have got back in the groove - it's been missing for a while. Making good shopping and eating decisions, finding my rhythm with intermittent fasting, on top of the water consumption. It's all good.

I've got a meal out tonight and Sunday, but having eaten well and with good nutrition I know I can make good choices.

Thank you for such a great explanation of the "whoosh" @venusandmars!

Thank you for running this bootcamp @biwi I'm certain that I would have wandered away from the wagon by now were it not for the support of the campers.

Inspired by @Almahart I had chicken and spinach in a creamy sauce, and added lemon zest and juice. It was delicious. Again, my eyes were bigger than my belly today so I couldn't finish it but it'll give me something for lunch tomorrow.

The “water wobble” is fascinating, had never heard of that before.
dunner was chicken breast stuffed with Boursin and wrapped in bacon with salad .

nect week I’m planning the stuffed peppers with lamb mince and halloumi and turkey steaks with mozzarella mentioned before. This thread is making me excited again about cooking, have got into a rut recently (after years of cooking constantly for the family)

Good morning all and a happy weekend to you.

I’m feeling very proud of myself for managing to keep on plan all week, even when faced with a posh hotel lunch that included lots of very tasty carbs and beautiful looking desserts. I rewarded myself by stopping to get a bar of 85% chocolate in m&s on the way to the station, and had a creamy americano with a square of that on the train.

i had a go at the roasted feta and veg last night which was pretty good. I’d also had a SRSLY sesame bagel (with cream cheese and cucumber) which was ok.. but I would probably stick with their rolls in future.

I’ll have to thick of something a bit different for tonight. I’ve not done anything with cauliflower rice yet this bootcamp, and I’ve not felt much like “big salad” or omelette. Maybe I need to eat some eggs for protein… in a cauliflower kedgeree perhaps.