Summer Low Carb Bootcamp - The Questions Thread

[BIWI]

If you have any questions, just ask them here. From experience, the chat thread moves so quickly, posters' questions often get missed.

Picking up on some that have already been asked today:

Can we eat dairy in Bootcamp?

Yes you can, but be aware that for some people dairy can impede weight loss. Butter is fine - you don't have to worry about that, and yoghurt is apparently better tolerated than milk, cream or cheese.

Cheese is a great low carb food and it's lovely to not have to worry about being able to eat it on the basis of it being a fat.

Milk can become quite carby quite quickly, so if you're having several cups of tea/coffee a day, you need to keep an eye on this. If you can, it's best to have your tea/coffee black - or to substitute cream (double) for the milk.

Cream can be used in cooking (always double, as it has a higher fat content), but again be aware that it might be an issue for you.

The best way to find out if it's a problem for you is to keep a food diary, and then you will be able to see the impact of dairy on your weight loss.

[Ruprekt]

Deep fried!! Bliss!, what the heck can I eat that is deep fried?

[WillieWaggledagger]

carol - have a look at the spreadsheet under the tab for 'bootcamp light rules', which some people like to move on to. as you suggest you can start to introduce some of the lower carb fruits and nuts/seeds. some people prefer to stick with bootcamp, however, so it's up to you in terms of what you want to do after the first two weeks.

personally, i try (!) to bootcamp during the week and then bootcamp light at weekends if i want to. it does depend on your aims for low carbing, though, and how much weight you want to lose, and how you want to do it. as you get used to low carbing, you will start to learn what your body will tolerate, what causes you to retain weight/water, etc

[CarolBornAMan]

ah right got it - thanks - like your idea as I want to keep this quite strict as it is quite easy to take a snow white approach here and drift .. got a lot to lose so need to keep this tight.. might think up lush weekend treat meals with the extras to keep me motivated on a Tuesday when urge to eat crap will probably hit me! Thanks again

[twinklestar2]

Are we allowed tinned tomatoes?

[BIWI]

Yes, twinkle - but bear in mind that they are quite carby. Sainsbury's Basics tetrapak cartons seem to be the lowest.

[Ruprekt]

What can I eat that is deep fried?

[Chipsbigbowl]

Is it norm to feel super thirsty? I've drank 3/4 l of water today but just feel tired and headachy

[WestleyAndButtockUp]

Why does it say avoid Atkins DayBreak bars? They've been an integral part of my success on low carb before!

Thank you BTW.

[WillieWaggledagger]

chips you probably feel a bit rotten due to carb withdrawal, which should improve over the next few days. the thirst isn't unusual, but just make sure you're getting enough salts (sodium, potassium) - avocados and salmon are good sources i believe

[WillieWaggledagger]

westley atkins bars are full of artificial nasties and we're trying to get away from processed foods and the cravings for sweet tastes. unfortunately atkins bars won't help with either of those things.

[Chipsbigbowl]

Thanks! I've had a bit of smoked salmon this am so hopefully that will help.

Woke up feelig like there is a fury gerbil in my mouth. Surely that's a good sign. And scales show a 2 lb loss!!!!!

[BIWI]

Yes, the reason for avoiding the Atkins bars is two-fold:

• we are aiming to break the stranglehold that sugar and sweet things have over us

• they are highly processed, and use artificial sweeteners

There is some suggestion that for some people artificial sweeteners can also provoke an insulin response

So best avoid them - especially during these initial strict two weeks

[toomuchtoask]

Are fruit flavoured yoghurts ok as long as they are full fat?

[Chipsbigbowl]

BIWI, getting on a plane in 2 weeks. Was thinking of taking a few atkins bars as that will be better than the plane food. Maybe I'll try and sneak
Some boiled eggs on board. The other passengers are going to love me!!!

[EwanHoozami]

toomuch fruit flavour almost certainly = sugar. What does the carb and sugar count on the label say?

[EwanHoozami]

You can get a no added sugar vanilla extract that is quite nice in plain yog, btw. I think Waitrose have it?

[rubybricks]

i have so many questions that keep occurring to me during the day, really must write them down!

1. is quorn ok? we use it all the time as a meat substitute in this house
   

1. is there some magical combining that should be happening? eg i just had scrambled eggs made with 2 eggs and then some smoked salmon slices from the fridge (am a terrible cook, it wasn't as nice as yesterday's breakfast) - but was wondering if i should have had a vegetable alongside? (slimming world hangover)
   

1. what about portion sizes? i'm really noticing that i don't feel hungry between meals if i have breakfast, but wondered is that because i'm too heavy handed with the serving spoon?
   

1. i simply cannot bring myself to eat the skin of chicken. there are some things that are just too ingrained! on the one hand, i am delighted to be able to eat cheese, cream, parmesan etc but when it comes to meat/chicken i would remove all visible fat before cooking - HOW do we break free of this mindset??!
   

1. do you recommend daily weighing?
   

sorry if all this is covered elsewhere, i just feel strangely optimistic that this might actually work where nothing else has... thank you again for making this possible

[toomuchtoask]

Boo hiss. I want a strawberry yoghurt! I haven't bought them yet but I want a yoghurt and hate natural yog unless it has banana mushed up in it!

[WillieWaggledagger]

ruby i'll answer your questions from my POV, but i know others will have some good answers:

1. check the packet with respect to carb content, as it varies in terms of what product you buy. quorn is quite processed so definitely not for every day (and I think it contains wheat??). it's also low fat so would need plenty of fat added.
   

1. you don't have to have veg at breakfast if you don't want to and as long as you are eating plenty at other meals, but i quite often add a handful of wilted spinach in butter as it's tasty!
   

1. don't worry about portion sizes too much, but obviously don't eat the full plate if you're stuffed just because it's there. you shouldn't be hungry between meals - that's a good thing! this WOE is great for regulating your appetite and helping you distinguish between real hunger and boredom/stress hunger. if you were very close to goal weight or were struggling to lose then portion size might be something to consider, but certainly during the first two weeks of bootcamp just serve yourself the amount you want to eat and enjoy! it might be worth initially just weighing your regular portions of veg and check the carb count of that just to check you're not going overboard, but if you are losing weight and not hungry then don't worry about it.
   

1. i found this REALLY hard at first, but weirdly my tastes have changed and i now enjoy the fat on meat (as long as it's not chewy gristle). honestly, the fat adds to the flavour so much, and you will find that your dishes taste almost restaurant quality (because they use lots of fat!). things that help are:
   

• use the slow cooker, so fatty cuts of meat become meltingly tender and the fat adds to the flavour so much
  
• fry and roast in butter so the fat caramelises beautifully
  
• if you're rendering the fat down while frying, add something like mushrooms or courgettes to the pan, which will soak up a lot of the rendered fat
  

1. daily weighing is up to you. i weigh daily, because i need to hold myself accountable if i've gone off-piste. you have to be able to handle the fluctuations, though, as your weight can change by at least 2-3 lb up or down for no apparent reason over the course of a week (could be caused by hormones, anything really, long car journeys make me put on weight as i think i retain water). if you think the fluctuations will upset you, then stick to weekly weighing

[BobblyGussets]

What is this Lidl yogurt people keep mentioning? It sounds like it might be low carb? I knew the fruit ones would be too carb-y, so I would like something like yogurt that is a little less savoury tasting.

I am on day two now (will add myself to the spreadsheet in a bit) and feeling a little tired. When I feel better, I intend to do some quite hard excersize; is that ok on just low carbs?

Thank you BIWI and Willy for all this effort. It's my last chance saloon before my holiday is August and I want a bikini.

[teaandthorazine]

Ruby - just popping in to say, forget all that you learned on SW - this WOE is completely different. You don't need to do any combining or weighing or healthy extras or syns or any of that stuff. Those weightloss programmes over-complicate things to make you feel as if there's some magic formula to losing weight and only they have the answer.

Eat what you want, when you want, in whatever combination you want, as long as it's low-carb. Easy. Drink plenty of water, eat plenty of veg (but not at breakfast unless you actually want to!)

This WOE works best when you learn to love the fat. May I suggest chicken drumsticks, skin rubbed with ghee, roasted with garlic and plenty of salt and pepper? Unbelievably delicious, crispy, golden and sublime - honestly, you've not lived until you've tried 'em!

[teaandthorazine]

Bobbly - the Lidl yoghurt comes in a big blue and white litre tub. It's called Eridanous (I think). It's yummy and very low carb (however I prefer Total as it's even creamier, but more expensive). Enjoy!

[justpoppy]

ooh I just came on to ask the Lidl yogurt question - was really hoping it was going to be the one in the big blue bucket as that is so nice! Will be popping to Lidl tonight definitely. Thanks tea

[BIWI]

bobbly - I train at least once a week with a personal trainer and am also doing the C25K programme. I'm now running for 30 minutes at a time.

I often do all of this in a fasted state, and it's never a problem. You may find it harder at first, when you're in the process of switching from carb burning to fat burning, but after two weeks of Bootcamp you should be fine.

[rubybricks]

thanks willie for answering all my questions so comprehensively, so quorn isn't great then . that's a good tip about using the slow cooker for fattier cuts of meat, i must look mine out.

for lunch today i had salad leaves, mayo, cream cheese filled celery sticks the way my mum did it in the 70s (delicious!) and two chicken drumsticks cooked with the skin on (eaten with it largely off, i really tried though), hope this was ok.

and thanks teaandthorazine - will try your drumstick recipe this week!
hope day 2 is going well for everyone