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Low-carb diets

Share advice and experiences of following a low-carb diet.Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

Original poster

The Low Carb Bootcamp Continues!

996 replies

BIWI · 02/08/2013 14:33

The other thread was almost full, so here's a bright, shiny new one.

And here's the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

And just in case you haven't discovered it yet, here is the recipe thread. Some truly lovely recipes on here that are worth a try.

OP posts:
Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 12:46

hello, PMMummy!

OP posts:
NigellasGuest · 10/08/2013 12:49

oops I stand corrected over celeriac, need to check my vegetable credentials!

so far today : brunch, half a tin of salmon with mayo and a few leaves of homegrown lettuce.
3 coffees, one of which was decaff, with double cream.
Water.

Secondsop · 10/08/2013 12:50

Re water, does anyone know why IPD says no more than a couple of glasses of sparkling water a day?

biwi I've got some shirataki noodles in the fridge that I've been nervous to try. What's the texture like? Is it anything like Amoy straight-to-wok (which I like, and miss)?

StuntNun · 10/08/2013 13:31

Does anyone else have trouble interpreting their hunger signals? As a child I always had to clean my plate so I'm accustomed to eating whatever is put in front of me. I was just eating lunch, having cooked five pork belly slices that DH got cheaply and had to be eaten yesterday today. I put one on my plate with some microwaved courgettes (with butter) and my first thought was that was enough food. I ate a second one anyway because I was worried that I wouldn't make it until dinner time but that seems stupid. Before this woe I would have gone from not hungry to 'absolutely starving can't think about anything else but food' in about ten minutes so I think I might be afraid of getting hungry iykwim.

My other question is how important is it to eat lots of veg? I had five strawberries with my breakfast and a courgette for lunch so under the five-a-day con rule I should have three vegetables with dinner? But I have an enormous steak marinating for dinner, there's no way I could eat three servings of veg as well, in fact I was thinking of just having a few mushrooms with it and maybe adding a shallot to the steak pan and deglazing it with red wine to make a sauce. I don't think I'm eating more than four fruits and vegetables a day at the moment but I am eating a bigger variety of vegetables and bigger portion sizes as well so maybe it's okay.

Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 13:47

Secondsop - I've never tried those noodles, so I can't make a comparison.

In terms of texture, they are quite tough - a bit more like rice noodles that you might get in a Vietnamese/Thai restaurant. They certainly work well in a stir-fry.

I have no idea why the IPD say only 2 glasses of sparkling water - but there is a lot of nonsense (IMVHO!) spouted about sparkling water. My view is that if we're giving up drinking everything else, it's more important to get the water down you - if that means drinking it with bubbles, then so be it! I've always drunk sparkling water and it doesn't appear to have been an issue for me.

Stunt - no need to worry about five-a-day - it is, as you rightly say, a marketing con. You need some veg mainly for fibre, as well as the vits/mins that they have. Although if you read Gary Taubes, he argues in The Diet Delusion that you don't actually need veg at all!

OP posts:
daisychicken · 10/08/2013 14:35

I can't tell you BIWI cause my tired Fibro addled brain can't remember..(!)

urm.. mains I think were stirfry, cauli cheese and sauasage, fajitas (meat and veg bit with salad - I add loads of veg to my meat mix), courgette "pasta" with vegetable pasta sauce. I've had mostly salad for lunches this week with chicken or egg and mayo. Breakfasts were boiled eggs mashed with butter or yog and piece cheese or ham, chicken, hardboiled cold egg and small piece cheese. I've had a small handful of peanuts for the occasional snack but we've been out & about so not been hungry...

I did have a bad day on tues and had a piece of cake but that's the first time in ages....

Today I've had:
Ham, cold boiled egg, chicken and small pce cheese
Chicken and mayo salad plus 3 macadamia nuts
Tea I think will be bacon and egg with maybe asparagus in butter but that might change (DH and dc having baked pots so I need an easy quick tea for me)

Tomorrow we are invited out to lunch - it's a carvery so I think I'll be able to choose meat and lc veg. We've been invited out for cake and a drink in the aft but I'll avoid the cake and have a cuppa instead.

Secondsop · 10/08/2013 15:22

Thanks BIWI - I like rice noodles. I'll give the shirataki noodles a go. Thanks also re the sparkling water. I much prefer it and really couldn't see why it could be an issue.

NewStartNewStory · 10/08/2013 15:43

BIWI could the problem with sparkling water be with the additives that are added to ensure the bubbles remain and it has a shelf life without contamination?

captainmummy · 10/08/2013 15:47

Today - 2bacon, 2 eggs, 1 courgette (small) fried in bacon fat.
Lunch 3 slices ham with mayo, 1 small tomato, too many nuts

Dinner - going out to friends who don't know we are low-carbing. SHe asked if there was anything wee don't eat and i just said 'not keen on pasta' so hopefully there will be a carb element that i can just not put on my plate, or push around if plated.

I found shiritaki noodles a bit hard, like elastic bands. Work well in stir-fry tho.

Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 16:04

As far as I'm aware, NewStart, there aren't any additives in sparkling water! Apart from CO2, obviously. But it's the pressure that it's packaged under that keeps the bubbles in it, surely?

OP posts:
daisychicken · 10/08/2013 16:06

NewStart I've heard that sparkling water has something in it that leaches calcium from your bones... could that be the reasoning why they limit the amount?

solveproblem · 10/08/2013 16:09

Can I ask a question here please? I've been low carbing since march, I haven't lost that much weight to e honest but my energy levels increased and I felt much better overall.
This last week I've been in holiday mode and eaten a lot more carbs than usual.
The last few days I've been feeling slightly sick all day and can't shake it.

Is this a normal thing when you come off a low carb diet or is it just a coincidence?

I'm planning to go back to low carb after my holiday but should I do it ASAP instead?

Ruprekt · 10/08/2013 16:19

SmileSmile When is the next bootcamp BIWI?

Have kept my weight off so far, started January. 26lbs off. Smile

Am away in Cornwall for 2 weeks next week so just planning for the next bootcamp. Smile

Secondsop · 10/08/2013 16:24

daisy I thought the calcium thing was from phosphoric acid from coke, and nothing to do with the carbonation itself.

daisychicken · 10/08/2013 16:27

I don't know Secondsop - just have heard it mentioned.. must be a definitive answer out there somewhere!

Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 16:41

Ruprekt - I was thinking from beginning of October. A 10 week run up to mid-December.

OP posts:
Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 16:47

Nothing wrong with sparkling water!

OP posts:
StuntNun · 10/08/2013 16:49

When you update the spreadsheet of fabulousness for the next Bootcamp BIWI please could you include some suggested snacks and some info on minimising the effect of carb flu for the newbies?

B: 5 strawberries, double cream and Greek yoghurt
L: two pork belly strips and courgette fried in butter
D: will be sirloin steak in red wine and shallot sauce with mushrooms fried in butter

Vinividivino · 10/08/2013 17:23

Thanks BIWI and others re the fizzy water question. I am mightily relieved! (skips off to pour some in a bucket flute and pretend it's champers!)

Secondsop · 10/08/2013 19:32

Yes thanks biwi! I shall continue to enjoy sparkling water with impunity.

BlackAffronted · 10/08/2013 19:35

Whoa, lost the whole 10lbs I put on in the last week! I am back at my previous bootcamp loss of 2 stone.

LilyAmaryllis · 10/08/2013 19:43

Ah I had a satisfying moment today. As a wuss I wear a wetsuit to swim in the sea... I used to wear a mans XL size. Today I went to buy a new one and I now have a women's Medium size. Outstanding news for my self-esteem! Shows how much I've lost from my back and waist really, as that's where the can-you-zip-a-wetsuit-up-or-not makes a difference I think.

Thanks BIWI ! I nominate you for an OBE!

BlackAffronted · 10/08/2013 19:46

Stuntnun, I have food issues very similar to yours - I eat more than I need so that I dont get hungry later, and I go from not hungry to absolute starving in just a few minutes :(

Original poster
BIWI · 10/08/2013 20:20

BlackAffronted, now you've got the hang of low carbing, how are you planning on dealing with that? Because you know that you're not going to get hungry.

If you're doing low carbing properly you shouldn't be getting hungry, so what's going wrong?

OP posts:
StuntNun · 10/08/2013 21:23

I used to be like that BlackAffronted but it's nowhere near as severe now. I think the answer for me is to eat slowly so that I can pay attention to the hunger/satiation signals that I was ignoring before, and to make sure I have snacks available in case I do get hungry. If I feel hungry I'll have ten almonds or olives, if I'm still hungry after that then either I'll have another ten or I'll know I need to get something more substantial. I find having cooked chicken legs in the fridge is helpful as they're quite nice cold if you're unexpectedly hungry.