The Low Carb Bootcamp Continues!

[BIWI]

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.

If it helps, Lewis, here is the diary I kept when I first started. This was my first week's food - I lost 3.75lbs in this first week. This was before Bootcamp, so there are things included here which wouldn't be allowed on Bootcamp, like Atkins Daybreak bars and alcohol! Hopefully, though, this will show you just how much food you can eat, and what lovely food you can eat:

Monday
B: 2 boiled eggs
L: 1 x pork steak, fried in olive oil with baby Brussels sprouts in butter
Snack: Full fat natural yoghurt
D: Roast chicken leg with roast cauliflower, dried chilli and onion (roasted in olive oil), swede pureed with butter and cabbage with black pepper and butter
4 x coffee with semi-skimmed milk, 2 litres (min) water (1 x tap/1+ x sparkling)

Tuesday
B: 1 boiled egg
L: Roast chicken leg with leftover cauliflower, cabbage and swede
D: Roast chicken wings with leftover cauliflower, cabbage and swede
4-5 x coffee with ssm, 2 litres water (1 x tap/1 x sparkling)

Wednesday
B: 1 boiled egg
L: 2 x M&S sausages, ½ yellow pepper fried and boiled runner beans
Snack: Small piece Feta
D: Idiot Proof Diet Moussaka, leeks fried with chilli flakes, broccoli
4 x coffee, 2 litres water (3/4 still/1+ sparkling)

Thursday
B: 1 boiled egg
L: 2 x M&S sausages, ½ yellow pepper fried and boiled runner beans
Snack: Small portion leftover moussaka
D: Marinated salmon steak with stir fried veg (onion, baby sweetcorn, red pepper, mangetout, chilli, pak choi)
1 x Berocca, 4 x coffee, 2 litres water (1/2 litre still)

Friday
B: 2 x poached eggs, dab tomato sauce
L: 2 sausages, pan fried with broccoli and leftover stir-fry veg
D: Chicken tikka, spinach bhaji, cauliflower bhaji (take away)
1 x Berocca 3 x coffee, Prosecco/wine, ½ litre water

Saturday
Brunch: 2 x rashers back bacon, 2 x fried eggs
Snack: Atkins Daybreak bar
D: Roast pork,crackling, red cabbage with butter and raspberry vinegar, baby sprouts with butter
1 x Berocca, 3 x coffee, ¾ litres water, wine

Sunday
B: 1 x boiled egg
L: Leftover pork and red cabbage, with crackling (one potato lattice)
Snack: Atkins Daybreak bar, cheese
D: Grilled fillet steak and salad (restaurant)
1 x Berocca, 3 x coffee, wine, ½ litre water

Morning

I made the raspberry cheesecake last night and it was pretty damn good. But the sweetener was just horrible - there was an overpowering chemically taste that would have spoiled it if the luscious raspberries and cream cheese hadn't won me over. I used Stevia - tricky to know how much to use as it weighs practically nothing, but I doubt I'll use it again.

I would love to find a way of making this without the sugar element, somehow. I read somewhere that honey isn't allowed - is there anything else? Desiccated coconut has its own natural sweetness, as does the fruit - I wonder if I could make it without sugar/sweetener at all?

Anyway, my weight is still stalling. Drop a pound, gain a pound, round and round it goes. Yesterday was bad because I left the house early and didn't come back for hours, but I had:

B: Total yoghurt
L: Cheese and olives (on the run - I know this is not good)
D: Chicken and bacon salad, raspberry cheesecake

3 coffees with cream, 2 litres of water.

Oh, and I've just had raspberry cheesecake for breakfast

It was just there, sitting in the fridge, staring at me, Your Honour.

What would it be like without sugar CJ? If we are weaning ourselves off sugar and it has the sweetness of the raspberries..... might it be sweet enough?

Eglute I agree re sweeteners - I can't get my head round using sweeteners at all let alone on this WOL (& thankfully DH & kids agree with me).

SecondSop - we can take comfort in the fact both our mums won't listen!

CJCregg - you're not eating enough, you're not eating enough veg and I think you're probably eating too much dairy.

Take out the artificial sweeteners as well, especially if you're not losing. This is going to be a recipe for disaster on the weight loss front.

Remember, Bootcamp is really about not eating sweet things!

BIWI - I know, I know! The cheesecake was a one-off because I had a friend over for dinner and wanted to make a pudding. I won't do it again, promise . Also, the sweeteners were yuk.

So, should I cut out cheese? Cream? And bump up the vegetables? I get confused about amounts. Really confused. I need to work out what the balance should be. Sorry

If you're losing/gaining/losing/gaining - i.e. you're not seeing sustained losses, then try and cut out cheese, milk and yoghurt altogether for a few days. You can still eat butter.

Make sure that lunch and dinner you have some veg and salad. Butter on the veg and mayo/oily dressing on the salad. Make your protein choices fattier cuts if you can.

Have a look at Ubercamp, on the spreadsheet - there are three days' worth of dairy-free meals on there as a guide/inspiration.

Morning.

made the mistake of dilute squash yesterday. forgotten how addictive it can be. Nice to be off pain killers and actually sleeping. Haven't used a tens machine but ice packs seem to work well (and help with sleeping in this heat) And I get to see a new physio to see if he can reduce the pain. Which will be interesting. Waiting to see what he makes of the situation because it is not as simple as "Oh you have fibro" It is a case of "You have fibro and like to do stupid things? Are you crazy" Fibro is better atm. Managed to get the stress completely reduced which significantly helps everything. And i am pretty sure this woe does help, along with the associated weight loss. Still under the impression that BIWI is a genius.

What i am noticing is that when i do go off track it is no where near as destructive/bad and the past. I mostly try to stick to bootcamp/bootcamp light rules even if i might have fallen into a packet of naughty stuff at 3am one night last week, it was just the one and didn't then involve me making cake/ice cream whatever. I have decided that I want to make a new target for sept and have decided that 10 1/2 stone is the weight i want to reach. Hopefully this will help me maintain focus. It is half a stone in 4 weeks. perhaps a little optimistic but i am pretty certain i have been avoiding ketosis mostly recently and still lost so with proper focus who knows what is possible!

lewisfan, BIWI has explained it all brilliantly but I really recommend doing some further reading if you are still struggling to get round what is probably quite a departure from what you've been led to believe in the past. As well as the john briffa book i also really recommend Gary Taubes' "Why we get fat" which is a slightly simpler version of The Diet Delusion.

I've got a similar amount of weight to lose as you, and have been eating low carb since may and lost 1 stone, which isn't particularly speedy but I honestly don't feel like I've been deprived of food. On any other diets I've tried I've stuck to them about 3 months and then lost the will when I've realised how much more time I'll be on it, but this way of eating is one I feel I can follow forever. It also works WITH your body - rather than feeling youre depriving your body of something and constantly fighting hunger, this w-o-e turns your body into using an additional food source - your own fat. So you genuinely won't feel hungry after a while.

I would say stick with it for 6 weeks at least though, as a lot of people (including me) report no weight loss between around weeks 3-5 although it all catches up in the followkng weeks. so if you stop after 4 weeks you might miss out on the benefits to follow.

Thanks everyone. I'm going to add my shopping list/plan when I surgically remove the laptop from my son!

ok, how's this? (it's expensive, it seems! )

Drink; I'll go cold turkey and switch to water. I don't "do" tea or coffee, but do do a small amount of diet coke.... eek!

Fresh veg will come from the market, to save money

Monday:
b: boiled egg (2 probably)
l: tuna salad? (can I eat white cabbage instead of lettuce?) cucumber, mushrooms, 3 cherry tomatoes, tiny bit spring onion, baby corn (allowed?), runner beans and a little mayo (helmans full fat)
d: roast chicken (skin on... must make it crispy!) and boiled veg (frozen mix; broccoli, peas, cauli, few sliced carrots)

Tuesday:
b: eggs again
l: chicken? salad / omlette
d: pork belly (roasted), crackling (yum!), veg again (see above)

Wednesday:
b: eggs (woo!)
l: omelette (plain or with mushrooms / chicken)
d: pork belly or chicken and veg (see above!)

Thursday:
b: can you guess?
l: omelette or tuna salad
d: gammon with veg

Friday:
b: um, eggs again (yes you'll probably think it's boring, but I don't "do" breakfast so something small will be best)
l: chicken salad
d: gammon and veg

Saturday:
see Monday

Sunday:
b: eggs
l: a fry up, I think as a treat! (eggs, raw mushrooms, bacon, tomatoes... not sure what else)
d: roast chicken and veg

I am a little restricted in my tastes (don't like spicy/chilli things at all or curries) which is why it seems a little bland... not sure how to make it more exciting (on a low-ish budget: £40pw which includes breakfast and lunch stuff for DS!)

... what do you think?

Lewis I use frozen veg to help keep the cost down. Plus it is quick to cook as I can just shove it in the microwave for a few mins.

Back on the topic of sweet stuff (artificial or otherwise), I came across this shop Low Carb Megastore and no carb chocolate. I read the ingredients and I don't understand how these can possibly be no carbs...all that sweetener. I am assuming that, regardless of the artificiality of them, these would be forbidden anyway?

[http://www.lowcarbmegastore.com/zero-carb-foods/miss-meringue-chocolate No carb chocolate]

They have other things like low carb choc marshmallows etc. would love it to be true but is this a gimmick?

Oops, sorry reporting link

Reposting, not reporting.......blooming fat fingers!

Newstart - sorry didn't make myself clear; dinner veg will be frozen (already got a drawer full!) but salad bits will be from the market :)

Lewis:

Monday:
b: boiled egg (2 probably)
l: tuna salad? (can I eat white cabbage instead of lettuce?) cucumber, mushrooms, 3 cherry tomatoes, tiny bit spring onion, baby corn (allowed?), runner beans and a little mayo (helmans full fat)
d: roast chicken (skin on... must make it crispy!) and boiled veg (frozen mix; broccoli, peas, cauli, few sliced carrots)

Yes you can eat cabbage instead of lettuce - although it will be carbier. Baby corn is allowed. Why only a little mayo?! You need the fat so have plenty. You also should be looking at an oily dressing on your salad. Chicken skin is yum, but agree, it has to be crispy! Frozen veg is brilliant, I think, but this mix isn't great - you need one without the peas and carrots

Tuesday:
b: eggs again
l: chicken? salad / omlette
d: pork belly (roasted), crackling (yum!), veg again (see above)

Again, make sure you have fat on your veg/dressing on your salad

Wednesday:
b: eggs (woo!)
l: omelette (plain or with mushrooms / chicken)
d: pork belly or chicken and veg (see above!)

You could always ring the changes and have scrambled eggs, made with butter?! Same comment about fat/dressing on your veg/salad

Thursday:
b: can you guess?
l: omelette or tuna salad
d: gammon with veg

If you think you're going to get bored of eggs, don't plan to eat them every day! This diet isn't about being bored.

Friday:
b: um, eggs again (yes you'll probably think it's boring, but I don't "do" breakfast so something small will be best)
l: chicken salad
d: gammon and veg

Saturday:
see Monday

Sunday:
b: eggs
l: a fry up, I think as a treat! (eggs, raw mushrooms, bacon, tomatoes... not sure what else)
d: roast chicken and veg

Overall, I think this is a pretty good plan - but please, please, please make sure that you are eating plenty of fat. It's really important. And do you know how much water you should be drinking? Clue: loads! Just in case you haven't seen it, this is from Bootcamp rules:

"The more weight you have to lose, the more water you should drink. This is from www.low-carbdiet.co.uk/. Water is essential to weight loss for those who eat low-carb. The minimum consumed in a day should be:
Your Weight----Litres
140lbs-----2.5
160lbs-----3.0
180lbs-----3.0
200lbs-----3.5
220lbs-----3.5
240lbs-----4.0
260lbs-----4.5
280lbs-----4.5
300lbs-----5.0
320lbs-----5.5
340lbs-----5.5
360lbs-----6.0
380lbs-----6.5
400lbs-----6.5
High levels of ketones in the blood stream can lead to a reduction in ketone production, therefore being well hydrated could aid in keeping the levels low and ketone production ongoing. Consuming enough water can have many other positive side effects: aids your kidneys with the processing of protein, reduces the retention of water, helps with preventing constipation, and reduces the levels of ketones released by your breath, which in-turn will reduce breath odour. However, drinking a lot of water can mean that you also need to keep an eye on your electrolyte balance. You need to make sure that you are consuming sufficient sodium and potassium. On a low carb diet we can eat more salt, so make sure that you are cooking with salt and adding salt to food, if you like it. Good, low carb, sources of potassium are spinach (raw), avocado, mushrooms, courgettes and asparagus, as well as salmon and yoghurt."

yeah I've read about the water volume thing - it's scary! I'm getting a water filtration thingymajig jug to take the white bits out of my tap water!

I will add mayo/oil sauce to salad :) - I love mayo. Can I buy a salad dressing? I don't make them right... they always taste weird!

I will use butter in veg; that'll take some getting used to! I've never cooked veg with anything other than water... eek!

and I'll get a different veg; I'll get broccoli, cauli, beans?, ummmmm.... not sure what else (will look at the rules list)

I'm afraid I'll have to use the frozen veg I have atm which does have peas and carrots, but it will only take 2/3 days to get through...

Don't buy salad dressings - they are expensive anyway - as they always seem to have sugar in them!

Easy, hme-made vinaigrette:

5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
salt and black pepper

Mix/shake/stir - that's it! If you prefer a more vinegary taste, reduce the oil:vinegar proportions from 5:1 to 3:1

Vini The reason low-carb sweet things and choc are classed as low carb despite looking high is that the carbs are non-absorbable sugars which pass straight through you.

That is why all sugarfree sweets have a warning about a laxative effect on, they are a solid version of lactulose (GPs prescribe that for constipation)

On the first bootcamp I did I had a spectacular episode of trying to turn myself inside out through my bumhole after a surprisingly small number of sugarfree fruit chews!

By the way I made a pudding last night that was greek yoghurt mixed with double cream, rippled with a raspberry puree (yes it was slightly sweetened but I did that to taste) with berries and toasted flaked almonds. It was a bit Eton Mess-ish and looked lovely in little glass dishes.

Another alternative to boiled eggs Lewis is egg-in-a-cup. Shell one or two boiled eggs, put them in a mug with butter, salt and pepper then mash with a fork.

Ok, I'm going to ask a really stupid question. But it's something I can't get my head round.

I'm supposed to eat fat. But cut out dairy. But why is some dairy ok? Butter, for instance? Is cream better than milk? I don't understaaaaand. Is the idea that if you're going to have some dairy, butter is better than anything else?

I know I shouldn't really be having milk but I have to have coffee and won't drink it black, so I'm only having a teeny bit, or some cream. Which is better?

I really want this to work but I just don't seem to be able to do it right.

Butter is fine because it's at least 80% fat and a very small amount of milk solids read this

If you can't do without coffee (I have never given up drinking coffee!), then cream is better than milk as it is lower in carbs.

Cutting out dairy means cutting out milk, cream, cheese and yoghurt.

Thanks, BIWI

Ok, so I'm going to cut the cheese and yoghurt, and just have a bit of cream in coffee. And have lots of butter and mayo

I am still twitching slightly at having typed that last sentence. Years of low-fat dieting, I tell you, years.