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!

Sorry, Zombie Brain

Back from the christening, I was right about food choices, so I had lots of cheese and sausages on sticks!

Also had a teensy bit, honestly, a sliver - of cake. It was enough.

I have no more weight to lose, so I'm happy to allow myself things like that if I can avoid all the sandwiches, samosas and sausage rolls etc.

DP ordered a pizza when we got in. Didn't want any, even though it smelt amazing. Instead, whilst cooking up my lunches (frittata and chicken kebabs) I slow ish cooked a rack of ribs I picked up at the market yesterday. Eating them now, yummy!

So, all in all, not as worrying a day as I thought it might be.

AuntieMaggie what is it that's making you feel like you're struggling?

This is my week's meal sort-of-plan, if it helps..

Prawn curry - I bunged in some spinach too. Ate with cauli rice.

crustless greek spinach pie - kind of like a filo-less spanakopita. YUMMERS.

Chicken thighs with piri piri spices, served with BIWI's coleslaw

pork chops and braised cabbage

chicken liver salad

corned beef hash (made with swede) and a fried egg on top

Ooh, ooh - my frittata came out of the oven looking and tasting amazing!!

I layered mandolin slices of courgette on the bottom of the dish, topped with thinly sliced meats, them cooked mushrooms. Then I poured over the beaten egg and topped with grated cheese.

The layers look fantastic - I even took a picture.....

Had a sneak peek on the scales and am gutted. Not a pound lost and I have tried really hard.I could burst into tears, really I could.

Ewan, thanks for posting your meal plan, with links. That's very helpful. If anyone else fancies doing that ... I must start writing these recipes down!

B: egg mayo with sausage and fried mushrooms
L: cold chicken, a cold sausage left over, some cold crispy grilled bacon and some natural yoghurt with double cream
D: Jamie's Mothership roast pork with leeks, cauliflower, courgettes.
3 decaff black coffees and lots of water

I've had bolognese with grated cheese for breakfast and then pork chops with creamy sauce and green veg. Really wasn't hungry in between even though I went to the gym.

Have had 4 litres of water, 1 coffee with cream and cinnamon and my first ever bulletproof coffee which was surprisingly lovely. I thought it was going to be horrid but it wasn't.

dementedma don't lose hope. Are you being strict? I went 8 days without a loss. Gave up diet coke and lost over a lb in one day.

Im thinking of having corgettes lightly fried in butter with hallumi and salad for tea tomorrow. Does that sound ok?

Also, a question on behalf of a friend. She is impressed with my weight loss and shape change over the last couple of weeks. So, she has started having full fat stuff instead of low fat. The only thing is she won't give up carbs, fruit, chocolate etc. She is willing to reduce carbs but will still have potatoes and things like bulgar wheat. Is she likely to see a loss?

Purple, I'm afraid your friend is going to be very disappointed. If you do high fat, you must low carb or you will put on weight. I can't remember the science, but if you eat carbs, you crave carbs and you eat more. I know from the summer where I ate LC but had the odd carb (in the form of carb creep - bite of toast here, sandwich there, few chips, a bit of pasta etc) that you gain BIG time.

She isnt giving anything up, of course she wont see a loss - shes upped her intake.

Thanks sybil thats what I thought. The trouble is, as much as I love her, I get frustrated as she tends to pick certain bits from certain diets and wont put in effort. Ive tried so hard to help but I just don't know what I can do now. She thinks it's easy for me and not fair. Its not easy. When I was calorie counting and exercising every day I was getting up at 6 to fit an exercise session in. All she can see though is the weight coming off. The good thing about low carb is I don't have to exercise quite as much as calorie counting had me determined to burn a certain amount of calories.

I shall let my friend know and just hope at some point it will click for her. I hate seeing her miserable.

Purple I've got a friend like that too. They can be frustrating, especially when you soooo want it to work for them like it worked for you, if only they would do it properly. My friend played at low carbing for 4 days before giving up as she didn't see more than 2lbs loss.

loopy, I posted mine a page back.

I dont know if it has been mentioned, but Morrisons has started selling crustless quiche.

thenightsky if you find the magic words that help let me know. She did a protein diet a while ago. Lost 6lbs then went straight back to normal and put it all and more back on. She is the same with exercise. She will do something once or twice then give up as its hard.

Hopefully as I lose more weight she will see how much it works.

Aunt Maggie for lunch egg mayo salad; cheese salad; broccoli and stilton soup; cream of vegetable soup; poached/fried or scrambled eggs (with smoked salmon?) with green salad...

dinner: lots of roast vegetables! with any protein-y bit you fancy - roast chicken, fried chicken, sausages, baked/fried salmon, etc etc. (or Curry!)

Do give it a go - when you feel your waist-band loosening you will be so motivated to carry on.

Everyone I've spoken to about low carbing reacts the same: "oh I'll cut down how much bread and potatoes I eat, but I can't give up tea with milk and sugar" or porridge for breakfast etc, but they'll have butter and full fat yogs and stuff and seem to think they will lose weight. Then they say I'm going too far, cutting out all carbs!

Thank you ladies. Its not motivation I'm just really struggling to think of what to eat - I'm too tired to think at the moment. Its not even that I fancy junk food really just something bland and easy to eat. We have nothing in the cupboard cos DP didn't do the shopping while I was away this week and I only got back late yesterday and he's been out all day with the car and now said he's getting pizza for dinner on the way home (I don't want fecking pizza!).

Sorry Black, I must have missed it - this thread moves so fast! Will look.

Must get to Morrisons and find the crust less quiche.

dementedma did you weigh yourself in the evening? I seem to weigh less first thing in the morning... maybe try again tomorrow morning?

Would you say your waistband feels looser... or your cravings and appetite more under control?

I did the first 4 months of this without owning scales so its hard for me to comment on whether a pound would come off in the first week or not. But I would so encourage you to carry on. A week is so short - but slowly and surely I have completely shed loads of fat. (since May).

There is that thing where fat lost can first be replaced by water in the cells for a few days? So you've lost actual fat, but you still weigh the same until the body gives up the water? I would give it time.

Thanks to lots of you for the congratulations on being... ahem... SIZE 14!! (top half still larger, but reducing...)

Yy - you will often weigh more in the evening.
Try in the morning

AuntMaggie, have you got eggs in? You could have a lovely omelette with any left over veg or cold meat from the fridge. Or bacon and eggs?

OOOOOOOOWWWWWWWTTTTTTTCCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHH

That was me falling off the LC wagon in spectacular fashion! This weekend, (this is going to sound awful) but I absolutely did not care, however, I do now.

Bloody buggery, I bought chocolate - Lindt 80% and ate the lot over two nights. DD is due her period and is so up and down I don't know whether I'm coming or going or what! I get her PMT but no periods.

And I made a mini Eton Mess last night, shared champers, and steak with peppercorn sauce last night with DH, a glass of red too!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR. No starch, potatoes or rice etc, I had grated cheese with the steak and sauce.

I take a heck of alot of morphine which stops my bowel from working properly (I can not go to the loo for up to 12 days!) and after 3 years of being on it, it's getting to me. Sorry to let you all down after doing so well. I'm dreading weigh in tomorrow but will do it.

I'm also not going to the loo because of my meds being increased and another opiate added, so I need to factor that in. I've been to see a Herbalist who was very understanding and she's given me something with linseed and licorice in, that a few other people I've talked to about my, ahem, 'issues' had mentioned too.... it's all natural stuff and has so far been okay, I've kept to my 2.5 ltr of water a day but I have had a hell of a few days and felt like I was drowning with so much going on so gave in.

ARGH!!!!

Tomorrow is a whole new day, and I shall be back to kicking the shit of this Bootcamp!

Anyway - I will get through tonight! I will not eat any more sugar and I will weigh in tomorrow and get back on track!! :)

Hope you are all okay, sorry not to read back but this is a fast moving thread xxx

I make a frittata at night and take that chopped up with a load of salad and mayo to have for lunch at work. I start early on a day shift so I take ff yoghurt with cinnamon to have for breakfast. So far I haven't been hungry. Normally when I get home from work I am really hungry but on this WOE I am never in a rush to have tea.

Mouseface, do you take a magnesium suppliment? I find that helps with my toilet habits.