Week 1 - Autumn Low Carb Bootcamp

[BIWI]

So here we are! Over 160 of us signed up!

Here is the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness for you to enter your first weight

If you aren't on the list for any reason, just go to the bottom of the list and add your name - the lovely Willie will sort out the alphabetisation later.

From experience of previous Bootcamps, the chat thread can move very quickly! So, if you have a specific or particular question, please post it on the questions thread I will do my best to check it as often as I can, as will other seasoned Bootcampers.

If you have a really burning issue, please feel free to PM me and I will do my very best to help you as soon as possible.

And if you're looking for inspiration for things to cook, here's the recipe thread

Here is a brief reminder of the rules:

We do not eat any of the following during Bootcamp:

bread
rice
pasta/noodles
potatoes
flour
pastry
sugar
chocolate/sweets
biscuits/cookies
crisps

And here are the ten rules of Bootcamp:

1. You must eat breakfast.
2. Avoid processed food
3. Eat lots of fat
4. Make sure you are eating vegetables and salads with your food
5. Be careful about dairy (apart from butter, which is unlimited)
6. You must drink a minimum of 2 litres of water per day
7. No alcohol
8. No fruit
9. No nuts/seeds

10. No sugar or artificial sweeteners

More detail/explanation of these rules is on the spreadsheet ? look at the tabs at the bottom.

One final word from me ? the disclaimer! I am not a doctor, a scientist, a dietician nor a nutritionist. The advice that is given here is based on my own experience of low carbing, as well as the reading I have been doing over the last few years.

If you have a medical condition, or you are taking long term medication, please take advice from your GP/consultant before starting to low carb.

Good luck everyone!

Evening all, keep on going folks!

I gave blood last night so have been feeling a bit tired and hungry today. Have had plenty water and added extra salt to my dinner to help.

B 2 hard boiled eggs mashed with mayo.
L was out at cafe, so picked the best options I could which was parsnip, carrot and cumin soup (very yummy and didn't taste too carrotty) followed by a cheese omelette with mixed salad.
S small slice of cheese with lots of cucumber
D big bowl of chilli mince with extra mushrooms instead of kidney beans

AuntieM I'd be bloody furious with him - that's really inconsiderate behaviour. It's always good to have a few store cupboard items in... I buy these prawns because they very often have them on offer at about £3 a bag - I get quite a few bags and they last for ages. Frozen spinach is a new discovery of mine - so much less faff than buying fresh (I forget about it and it goes off) and having to cook and squeeze out all the moisture etc. I just discovered frozen butterflied sardine fillets - only take half an hour to defrost and a couple of minutes to pan fry. Last night had mashed celeriac (leftovers), two sardine fillets and some tomatoes, all fried in a big frying pan. If you keep some stuff in the freezer you'll always have an emergency low carb meal.

Oh crabby - meant to say earlier - I did the sponsored by Flora cholesterol test in Sainsburys ths morning. And guess what? Mine is fine! I was relieved obv but I had wondered if they would give everyone a high ish reading to sell products.

Yay Cider glad yours is ok! For all that I doubt the line we're fed about cholesterol being bad and statins being the answer, it did shake me up a bit and worry me for a couple of days. Silly really when it's always been high.

I guessed it wasn't just a marketing ploy when the assistant who tested me went to get the pharmacist and they both gave me faces like this... at such a high reading.

Purple, well done for keeping off the diet coke.

AuntieM that sounds horrible! I have an omelette if I have run out of things, but if you were expecting gammon its not the same.

Starry, your monthly dinners sound lovely:)

I am excerising everyday now this bootcamp, as the dc are all at school now. I didnt before and still lost lots of weight.

B- omelette
L- homemade bolognaise sauce with grated cheese and some salad. Also a crushed advocate and mozzarella thing dh made.
D- roast chicken, cauliflower, few peas.

2.5 l of water, 3 coffees with creme.

No wine!

Quick peek on the scales. 1.2lb off in last couple of days after 8 days of no loss so I guess not having diet coke is working. Woke up with horrendous headache though. Have got 2 and a half litres of water to take to work so hopefully that will help clear the headache. Only going to take paracetamol if I have to.

Hope everyone has a good low carb weekend.

Are all herbal teas ok to have? My friend bringing me some ginger tea to try.

Morning All

This thread fills up so quickly I can hardly keep up! Good day yesterday food wise and when I got in from work DH was waiting with the wine. I refused and he was completely which made me realise what a habit it had become on Friday nights to dive into the !

Potential problem today as my mum has invited the whole family over for dinner (my lot plus Dsis and her family - 12 of us altogether). There will be carbs and I'm reluctant to explain what I'm doing as whenever I have said in the past I'm trying to lose weight she doesn't get it (life long skinny person my mum) and I know she will think this is faddy and unhealthy. What to do? Any useful tips welcome.

Went out to dinner for dh's birthday last night. Did really well on the food front - mussels to start (no bread), then steak, veg, and substituted salad for the chips. No dessert. But... I succumbed to a small glass of dry white wine. How bad a slip-up is this? Enough to knock me out of ketosis (if I was in it to start with! )?

Oops. Accidentally ate half a mars bar last night. No idea why, I don't even like them usually!! Have correspondly put on 3lb overnight. Is this really the effects of half a mars bar or is an anomaly. I haven't cheated at all apart from that?

Back on it again today. Didn't have any wine yesterday which is the first friday in two years I haven't had any wine

Massively fallen off the wagon. How my willpower is so shit is beyond me. I've given up fags before, surely this shouldn't be as hard!

Awful day Thursday at work, ended up subcumming to Pizza Hut () as OH was getting one. Then because I hadn't pre planned or cooked anything for lunch yesterday, I ended up starving and having a piece of carrot cake when offered at work, then thinking 'f**k it' last night and sharing a big bag of malteasers with OH. It appears he is some kind of enabler....

Not helped by the fact that he's managed to lose 2 stone recently whilst still eating takeaways and literally a bag of sweets or tub of ice cream at night, everynight. I know it's not healthy, but I'm still jealous!

I need an intervention! Think my cholesterol test shook me up for a bit, thinking this WOE isn't for me. But then realised that eating junky carbs is just as bad.

Had bacon and eggs this morning. Need to get my priorities straight and plan plan plan!

Ps - sorry for self-indulgent/self-pitying post!

good morning all.

I had a wine too last night DH is away for four days and I'm alone wit 2.5yo and 2 month old. It was a shitty day with an especially crap bedtime full of screaming. I had a lovely glass of crisp white wine

Oops

Morning all

Just had a lovely big fry up.
With mushrooms fried in butter

What other WOE encourages you to eat like that??

Those who fell off the wagon yesterday jump straight back on. Lots and lots of water today...
Your body will burn the alcohol first so will slow down weight loss.

Cocoa,
Only you can decide for yourself if this WOE is for you but why would you sabotage it. Also you need OH on board so that if he is going to Pizza Hut can he get you a salad instead?
Also plan, plan,plan.
It's easier to succumb if you haven't got anything low carb to eat
Spend time this weekend meal planning and shopping so you don't get caught out.
Have you got a slow cooker? I love mine at this time of year

Its the wine in the evening. I kept it to two glasses but Ds was having a treat movie night and had crisps and chocolate......the rest is history.
I thought if I blew it I was back to square one? Will try really hard this weekend so I have something positive to report on Monday at the weigh in.

Did you eat crisps and chocolate after the wine?
Alcohol lowers your resistance!!

Just be extra good over the weekend and drink water. It's all a learning curve.
Once you get past bootcamp you can drink but just watch your quantities and be aware it will slow down fat loss

Wowcher is doing 7 packs of skinny pasta for £8 today

What brand is that, catinboots? Is it really low carb?

I tried the slim pasta ages ago - it was vile!

Ah, sorry, just Googled

Skinny Pasta is the brand, and they are konjac noodles - zero carbs - also known as shirataki noodles.

here is their website

They are more expensive there, though, than from my local Korean or Asian supermarket, so the wowcher offer is a great one.

Steppingonlego
What sort of food is your mum likely to serve?
Can you just ask for one potato but then leave it for example?
If its a lasagne you are going to struggle.
You have two choices you either eat and enjoy it but then are really strict for a couple of days or you explain to your mum that you are cutting out grains and potatoes for health reasons don't mention weight!

Good luck and let us know how you get on

Purple how's the headache now? Is the water helping? If not I really would take paracetamol if you are feeling rubbish though

Herbal teas are usually low carb you just need to check the packet

Right. I can see I'm going to have to get my big stick out!

Lots of falling off the wagon going on. I know it's the weekend - this is the hardest time for Bootcamp - but it also seems to be about lack of planning.

This WOE is not an easy one if you're not prepared. It's vital to make sure that you have something in the house that you can turn to.

I always make sure that I have a tin of tuna in the cupboard and a bag of frozen whole spinach leaves in the freezer, and I always, always, always have loads of eggs. Tuna mayo or egg mayo makes a satisfying meal that is virtually zero carbs.

I know it's not the same as pizza! But we're not eating pizza, are we?!

For all those of you who fell off the wagon - let me tell you that it won't be the first time. And for those of you who haven't fallen off the wagon and may be rather smug about it, let me tell you that it will happen to you as well. It's called life.

The critical thing is what you do next. You can either think 'oh fuck it' and carry on with the carbs (which by now will already be messing with your mind and luring you back to the dark side), which will mean that any weight you have lost will be regained almost immediately or you can get straight back on the wagon with a couple of extra strict days, and drink lots of water. This way, any weight regain should quickly disappear.

Don't feel bad about it. It happens.

SteppingOnLego when you say there will be carbs, do you know what she is going to cook?

If it's something like a lasagne or a risotto, then there's obviously not much you can do.

If it's something like a roast dinner, you could do as Justa suggests - only take one potato or a smaller spoon of something carby. Will it be plated up or will you serve yourself? If it's being plated, then I'd get into the kitchen to 'help' your mum, and see if you can plate yourself less of the carby stuff.

The other thing you could do is to make sure that you've eaten well during the day, but eaten few/no carbs - e.g. you could have bacon and mushrooms for breakfast and egg mayo for lunch. And before you leave for your mum's, eat a piece of cheese - make sure that you're not ravenously hungry.

It's always hard to negotiate low carbing when other people are cooking, and I think ultimately you just have to go with the flow and accept that you might end up eating more carbs than you would want to - but that someone is cooking for you and you can just sit back and enjoy it!

Be extra strict for a couple of days afterwards, drink lots of water, and it shouldn't make too much of an impact on your weight loss.