Ongoing Low Carb Bootcamp Chat Thread

[BIWI]

Well done everyone who completed the Summer Bootcamp!

here is the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness if you want to continue adding to it

Obviously there are many of us who want to continue, either to lose more weight or just for general support to help with this WOE, so here is a brand new, shiny chat thread.

As for me, having slipped a lot a little when I was away, I'm firmly back on the wagon today.

And can I remind you, that if you haven't completed the survey we would be very grateful for your views/thoughts on how we can improve Bootcamp.

[loopyloou]

Thanks BIWI I'll try and find my recipe for the bacon and egg pie yo cook tomorrow or Thursday - have some chicken drumsticks to roast for tomorrow lunchtime.

Back on track today, had bacon and eggs for breakfast, a drumstick, a hard boiled egg and yoghurt with blueberries for lunch and salmon with salad for dinner with a babybel as a snack.

[BIWI]

You could always try this one, loopy - I've just made this for us this evening!

Bacon, Shallot and Cheese Tart

serves 6

225g ground almonds
55g butter, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt

for the filling:

25g butter and a splash of oil (this stops the butter burning)
100g smoked lardons (or diced smoked streaky bacon)
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (or use a garlic crusher)
150g shallots, thinly sliced (this will be 3-4 echalion shallots)
dried oregano
100g grated mature cheddar
300ml double cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/GM4

To make the pastry, mix the almonds, butter and salt until it forms a dough. This is easiest done in a food processor. Keep processing it until it starts to come together into a ball.

Press the dough with your hand/fingers into a 20cm flan tin or dish. Push the pastry up the sides of the tin as well. There is quite a lot of filling, so it's important to get the pastry as far up the sides as you can.

Prick the base of the flan all over and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until set and golden brown. (It's better if it's cooked longer, as it hardens up a little more - just keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't burn)

While the dough is cooking, saute the shallots,garlic and lardons/bacon in the butter and oil, till soft. Season with salt and pepper and about a teaspoon of dried oregano. Leave to cool.

Next, whisk the eggs and yolks, and then gradually add whisk in the cream. Add black pepper and whisk again.

Tip the shallots and bacon into the flan case and add the cheese, then pour over the egg and cream mixture. (It's a good idea to put the flan tin onto a baking tray, as it is likely to be very full, and this makes it easier to get into the oven without spilling anything)

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and just set. Serve warm or cold.

27.35g carbs for the whole lot. If you serve 6 people, this will be 4.6g per person.

[BIWI]

BTW - it's much better made a day in advance

[loopyloou]

Thanks BIWI have never tried making pastry with ground almonds.

[MustTidyUpMustTidyUp]

Evening all. I'm still in bootcamp and surviving without too much trauma. Great to hear all your successes thanks its spurred me on.
Quick question, can I suck sugar free mints? They say 64% carbs but 0% sugar. I know they are full of crap but is the odd one ok?
Also, I don't seem to have lost any weight in the last 5 days and the scales are fluctuating, started at 9st4 then on thurs was 9st then 9st2 on Sunday, 9 st1 today. Wtf is going on?

[StuntNun]

Help, I've fallen off the wagon! I ordered an all day breakfast for lunch which consisted of one sausage, two hash browns, baked beans, mushrooms and one cherry tomato. I followed this up with a single scoop of ice cream. I thought I had got away with it until after dinner (salmon and courgettes) I was starving and scarfed two packets of salt and vinegar crisps. Now I still feel hungry. What do I do?

[LilyAmaryllis]

Wow prettybird serious congratulations!

Loopyloou your weight and height look like fairly normal BMI to me - I am 5'8'' just one inch taller than you. I'm currently 13 stone something not 10 stone something like you. I think I have to be 11 stone something to be in normal BMI, if I was 10 stone something I'd be seriously super-skinny.

So I wonder if you're not losing much simply because they say weightloss on this WOE slows down when you're close to your normal BMI?

[LilyAmaryllis]

Oh dear Stuntnun damage limitation time! (wasn't there some analogy on an earlier thread, if you think "Oh I've slipped up, might as well snack for Britain" its like dropping your phone by accident and then jumping up and down on it instead of picking it up.

I know the problem is the cravings!

[StuntNun]

It isn't conscious Lily, I haven't had any sugar in three weeks and a small portion of ice cream has sent my hunger haywire. The crisps were a fix for carb cravings. Maybe I just won't be able to have any sweet treats without it all going to pot. The reason I got onto this woe was because of catastrophic hunger and bad temper when hungry, clearly there's an underlying issue here.

[prettybird]

Just to clarify - my weight loss wasn't all on this latest Boot Camp; it's been since the New Year Boot Camp started on 7 January.

Still dead chuffed with myself though!

[loopyloou]

Lily, I know I'm close to my target weight but my waist measurement is too high and I think I need to lose a little more. I have a small frame, I have very thin wrists for example and before having children weighed about 8.5 stone. After my youngest I got down again to 10 stone and that was fine, but at the moment I feel fat and my clothes are tight. I know it might take a while to get there, I just need to stop losing patience with this woe every time I don't lose or even gain despite sticking to it. I also need to stop comfort eating. I keep picking myself up and starting again, which is something I guess. Today I'm in the right frame of mind. The problem is when something goes wrong I reach for sugary foods for comfort At least I've learnt that about myself

[BIWI]

StuntNun - drink lots of water and eat something fatty. Make sure that you have planned your (low carb!) meals for tomorrow and eat well, so that you're not hungry.

[Negroni]

Stuntnun - me too. Having real trouble getting properly back on wagon after eating carbs at the weekend. Eating low carb but then today had berries and too much cream. Then small amount of ice cream, then piece of marzipan, then a glass of lemonade. Now craving toast and biscuits.

I know what I have to do which is to just plan proper food tomorrow and day after and keep sticking strictly to it till I am back in the groove. But for some reason that just seems very difficult right now.

[BIWI]

Do some reading about low carbing and its benefits. If you haven't got any of the books, look at the resources on the spreadsheet. There are some great links to sites/blogs there that will help to convince you!

Musttidyup - you really should be avoiding those mints, as the artificial sweeteners can impede weight loss. That said, the other thing you need to accept is that your weight will fluctuate on a daily basis quite naturally. Also, you don't say how far you are into Bootcamp, but if you're in week 3 it is quite usual for weight loss to slow/stop at this point. Keep on keeping on and you should see things start to move again soon.

[alabama1956]

Hi BIWI
I am 5'4 and am my heaviest 14.5 today. I must say my appetite has def shrunk but I am trying to make sure I eat 3 meals. Today was not so good cause I didnt eat till about 4pm then had some pastrami while I prepared the evening meal which was 2 chicken thighs with coleslaw, salad and mayonnaise. I do take ibruprfen and paracetamol most days for long term chronic back problem and for some reason seem to have fluid retention ie fat feet and fat fingers !!!. not going to give up cause I am actually enjoying what I am eating and not missing carbs too much but cant see why I am not loosing any weight !!!

[BIWI]

Well, not eating enough is one thing to look at! You really need to eat properly to keep your blood sugar levels stable, and waiting until 4pm isn't going to be great.

Ibuprofen is also something that can impede weight loss, but you obviously need to take that!

Fluid retention means you're not drinking enough! Drink more water, and make sure you're keeping your salt levels up. And as per my other post, make sure you're eating plenty of fat.

Glad you're enjoying your food, as this is what will help to keep you going.

[NobodyPutsMyBabyInTheCorner]

Hi everyone,

Just a quick question, how much dairy is too much?
I usually have 3 cups of coffee with cream per day, yogurt for breakfast and them 30-40gs of cheese incorporated into a meal.

What do you all think. My weight loss over the last few weeks has been little and I'd like to speed to it up!

[CrabbyBigBottom]

I have to share with someone that I'm up and about - I'm off for a dawn walk to photograph butterflies and listen for nightjars! [very excited] Might even see some adders if I tread lightly.

The blackbird is singing already.

[BlackAffronted]

Just weighed again and still 7lb up, havent even dropped a lb from drowning myself in water yesterday and being super strict. Also means yesterdays weigh in wasnt a fluke :( utterly pissed off. The only thing I can think of is that I started to add half a teaspoon of coconut oil to my green tea - that must be causing the gain. I drink 3 or more cups a day.

[BlackAffronted]

Nobody, maybe drop the cheese or restrict it a litte? and could you drop the yogurt as well? You might see your weightloss speed up.

[BlackAffronted]

Sounds lovely Crabby :)

[Yama]

Hi everyone, long time no see. I've been in the middle of house move hell. It really does drain you doesn't it?

Anyway, the renovations should be finished by tomorrow (I wouldn't bet the mortgage on it though) and we move in next Tuesday.

Small matter of being away at a wedding this weekend. Oh, and it's too hot to pack.

The good news is that I've managed to maintain 9st9 throughout the stress. I guess, this woe has helped to keep me sane.

[Yama]

NobodyPutsMyBabyInTheCorner - when I want to lose weight I have to cut out the dairy. When I am maintaining I can tolerate quite a bit but I do remember hitting a stumbling block when I inititially started this woe and dairy was the culprit.

[captainmummy]

Black - I have half a teaspoon of coconut oil in black Rooibos tea in the morning in lieu of breakfast, and i haven't gained. In fact i read an article in which it suggested that coconut oil should speed up fat-burning. 7lbs overnight must be water retention, maybe due to the heat? Don't lose faith!

[BIWI]

Nobody - it would definitely be worth cutting out dairy to see if it's making a difference to weight loss.

Black - have a long, hard look at your food over the last few days, to make sure that you're not falling foul of carb creep. Are you really following the rules? It's very unlikely that the coconut oil is the culprit.

Yama - welcome back and well done on weight maintenance.