The Pretty Extraordinary Low Carb Diet Thread

[QueenStromba]

A continuation of The Rather Amazing Low Carb Diet Thread.

Hello all, been thinking over my menu choices for my dinner party tomorrow night.

I'm thinking olives/meats/sun-dried tomatoes to start

then
chicken with garlic soft cheese wrapped in parma ham

or

salmon with a chilli dressing

served with asparagus and a mozzarella salad.

I don't normally eat pudding so will just buy something I dont like and serve it.

I am worried that it is too summery, too obviously carb-free and that I have missed something that will trip me up. Any thoughts or other ideas would be welcome?

I assume you don't do it standing up, GOML.

I'm lucky I've never had a fizzy drink habit (unless it's champers, dahling).

Kandinsky - sounds lush, can I come?

Just put a couple of jacket spuds in the oven for your guests - easy.

I have been drinking a ton of diet Coke as well, to keep me from chocolate. I've been eating turkey slices with sprouts and mayo wrapped up in lettuce leaves. It is divine. :)

This is the first time I've been happy to have coeliac disease...it's hard enough being sad I can't have rice and popcorn, I can't imagine if I had to go cold turkey on bread and donuts, etc. I did that already, when I was diagnosed a decade ago.

Really need to drink more water...I have some lovely vanilla tea that feels like a treat when I add some splenda, but I need to just drink a lot of water.

reporting back Queenstromba ... very good!

I did leave it in the oven a little too long (50 mins) and so I think if I'd have got it out at 35/40 mins it would have been super juicy.

Lovely "broth" too but oh my what a shock I got when I opened the foil parcel ... I won't even begin to tell you what it looked like something weird had happened to the yoghurt but hey who cares what it looks like!

I'm going out tomorrow night so having a PP day up til booze o'clock and then giving myself saturday off to er recover

I need more ideas for dinners. I end up cooking different things for the children and adults.

I have a lovely stew in the slow cooker, will cook and add carrot and swede for DC when serving tomorrow and do some celeriac dauphinoise for DH and I.

Actually, DD has a friend over for sleepover tomorrow and they have requested fajitas, oh well, kids can have that and DH and I will have stew.

Fajitas are fine if you wrap yours in lettuce leaves or have the filling on a bed of lettuce/sour cream/guacamole. I don't miss the wrap part.

I have baked a low carb cake - for a first attempt it's not bad but needs tweaking. It was basically ground almonds, eggs (separated with the whites whisked up and folded in), full fat yogurt and splenda. I used too much splenda and it was a bit too eggy. I think it needs some more substance - will experiment with some ground flaxseed if I can find some, or maybe some desiccated coconut to give it a bit more substance.

It was nice to have something slightly 'bready' though.

10 9.75 this morning - that's about 3lb down overnight. My body is weird weird weird. Won't be surprised if I bounce up a bit over the weekend but at least I'm starting to see some lower numbers which is good.

I am finding that almonds are a work drawer life saver. 6-8 seem to take away bad food cravings. I don't like them enough to gorge on them but they are nice enough to fill a hole at 4.30 pm or if I've forgotten breakfast and need something to keep me going until lunch. 1 250g bag has lasted 2 weeks and it's only just 1/2 empty. Luckily I am not a big snacker in general.

Hello -

Can I come and join you? I just started low-carbing yesterday (following the India and Neris plan as a friend recommended it and has done really well on it). The revelation yesterday was that I wasn't hungry at all - never had that feeling on a diet before! - but that I clearly have serious carb withdrawals about to happen as I started with a fuzzy head at lunchtime and can't shift it.

Do I need to spill the gory details? :o I'm 13st exactly, 5ft6, teetering on the edge of size 14/16. I lost 10kg (so about 1 1/2 st) very sensibly between Nov 2010 and Sept 2011 following the birth of DC2. This was mainly through exercise and watching my food rather than dieting. I am v proud of myself as I am so much fitter and my body has changed shape hugely, but now I need to kickstart that weight loss as exercising 4 times a week is not doing it for me any more (have been 13st for 6 months now) I reach for toast, cake, biscuits, as my default snack, all made worse by the fact I am home all the time really - either looking after my DCs or working so have access to this sort of stuff all day. Plus I'm currently doing a cake decorating course (like that's a sensible idea for a carbaholic!) Anyway, I need to break this carbs obsession once and for all.

11st is a much more sensible weight for my height so I need to lose 2st. No timescale for losing it, as this is about my long term health, rather than a particular deadline.

A question for everyone: I think the headache is partly because I've gone decaf as well for the first 2 weeks as per the plan. I normally drink 4 cups of tea a day, no coffee. How bad would it be to have one caffeinated cuppa per day, and then decaf or herbal the rest? Also, what's the deal with milk? The India an Neris book seems to ban it, I guess because it is sugary, but don't seem to mention when I can reintroduce it. How bad is a splash in one cuppa? I would happily trade 3 of my cuppas for 3 herbals if I could have just one normal cuppa with breakfast - is that a sign that I do actually need to detox?! :o

kandinskysgirl - a good pud is Eton Mess. V simple - double cream, berries and broken meringue all mixed together. You could just make yourself a version without the meringue and nobody need ever know. It would make your meal even more summery :) Also I might get a ciabatta for people to have with the starter if they want.

An idea for milk substitute i got from the atkins site forum was to dilute double cream at 10:1 and that gives you milk substitute for brews but with the carbs of double cream.

I had some sad news yesterday but although i felt like seeling comfort in carbs i managed to refrain myself so feel that is a step in the right direction

Good almost no carb pudding is rhubarb fool, sweetened with Splenda or Stevia, rather than sugar. Looks very pretty too in a big glass bowl, as the stewed rhubarb is such a lovely colour, so you get lovely pink swirls in the cream.

Good starters: grilled haloumi with chilli oil drizzle & asparagus with parmesan wrapped in proscuito.

Lemniscate, I have never been able to completely cut the tea out. When not low carbing, I virtually have it intravenously all day long. Low carbing, I allow myself two mugs a day. I have a huge mug & I put one 30ml measure of lactose free milk in each mug. I estimate that there is about 1 carb in 30ml of lactose free milk, which means I can keep well within my limit & still get a tea fix. You can get lactose free milk in most supermarkets - it is in both the long life section, or you can get if fresh too.

vnmum, sorry to hear you had some sad news but really well done for not trying to eat your way through it. It is a hard habit to break.

Well I am on day two, I had a mushroom omelette and some salad for dinner last night (Just cos lettuce drizzled with olive oil and a little salt really!).

Grabbed a couple of slices of ham and a bit of cheese for breakfast this morning as I was in a rush.

I went shopping last night so have meal planned for the rest of the week and stocked up on baby corn, asparagus, brocolli and cauliflower, courgettes, mushrooms and salad stuff (steered clear of peppers and onions as advised ).

I have pork steaks with cauli mash and grilled courgettes planned for dinner tonight and I must say I am really looking forward to it, i feel motivated to stick to this diet, which is a revelation in itself!

I did have one question though, I have checked the lunch menu for work today, and the main meal is fish pie (topped with mashed potato) so thats a no for me, but the veg option is leek, spinach and mushroom souffle, is that ok for me to have?

Oh and welcome Lemniscate, I started yesterday too

Morning all, thanks for the menu thoughts.

The scales are showing a 4lb loss since Wednesday. I know the majority is water and whatnot but it makes me feel motivated for this way of eating. Just need to keep at it.

mrshannigan I think the veg option would be fine for lunch.

I am so hungry this morning and need to get some shopping in.

Never thought of wraps using lettuce leaves, will get some later today.

thanks. Off for some eggs.

Kandinksy that's great! It's a major morale boost when the scales go down a bit isn't it? I am going to hold off weighing myself until next week on Thurs morning and will report in here.

Jax thats a relief, it sounds really nice so I was hoping I could try it, the chef at work shares his recipes if you compliment him enough so I may nab it if it tastes good :)

Welcome Lemniscate. I sometimes have a cup of coffee in the morning. It's better to detox but I was getting headaches so I have a small cup, it hasn't affected my weight loss. I also use Lacto-Free milk which is lower in carbs. Soya milk always seem to curdle in coffee.

I found this blog when looking for handmade protein bars, sorry if it's been shared before but thought it may be useful for those with a sweet tooth.

www.ticklemysweettooth.com/blog/

jax Just be aware that the packet fajita spice mixes are quite high in carb. We use the lettuce wraps alot and even the kids like them too. We are going to try using Taco seasoned mince in a lettuce wrap instead of a taco shell next time. Another nice one is chopped or minced chicken in a soy or other chinesey sauce with some chopped cashews in lettuce wraps. That is our take on chinese restaurant food.

Lemniscate- I started P2T last Thursday, I felt terrible for the first week- its carb flu! But that passed on day 7 & I feel great today- and when I weighed after 5 days I had lost 6.5lbs. Going to weigh again soon as I feel like more has come off. So persevere!

I didnt give up caffeine, still have 2-3 black coffees per day. Dont drink milk so cant help with that. I also had a small diet coke most evenings. Apart from that I have stuck completely to it.

Whats great is I honestly am not craving carbs now- I feel like I am in control of my appetite finally, and am just eating nice things when actually hungry, not scarfing 5 pieces of toast for no reason.

Think I could carry on with this for quite a while- which I'll have to as I have another 3.5stone to lose (ugh) started at 13 stone, want to get down to 9 as I'm only 5ft- hoping I can get it done by September, or June would be even better!

Today I am going to hang up some old lovely clothes I have, Seven Jeans etc, In a section of my wardrobe so I can go and look at them for a motivation burst.

Lactose-free? Who knew? :o I tried cream with decaf tea yesterday but it was horrid so I just drank camomile the rest of the day, which is fine but it's not a proper cuppa, is it? I think I will try one proper cuppa with the lactose free milk at breakfast and then stick to herbal the rest of the time. It is probably good for me to drink only herbal rarther than decaf milky tea during the day anyway - I have such a strong association in my head with milky tea and sweet snacks that I can't do things like eat nuts with a cuppa, or just have a cuppa without a little (sweet) snack - it just feels wrong. But camomile or green tea don't have the same association with me and I can drink them alone or with nuts, cheese, whatever. I'm fortunate in that I don't ever really drink anything other than water and tea so I don't have to give up sweet drinks as well. I cut back on alcohol when I was breastfeeding and trying to lose my baby weight so was only having one or two glasses a week anyway so I don't even feel too bad about stopping that. But tea is hard (dare I say it, harder than giving up cake)!

lemniscate It's this stuff. It's around half the carbs of regular milk and doesn't taste any different.

I will try my own spice mix this evening, thanks vn

And lactose free milk for DH tea/coffee, Im happy to drink black coffee, but I like my tea strong so might add a splash in a cuppa.

Any more hints and tips greatly appreciated.

I'm afraid I didn't change my tea and coffee habits at all, but I don't drink a vast number of cups.

Jax - lettuce is indeed a fantastic wrap substitute. One of my fave office lunches is a pot of tuna mayo or egg mayo and half an iceberg lettuce - the leaves are just the right cup shape for a dollop of filling. Also very handy for eating with chilli or whatever the rest of the family are having in sandwiches.

Glitterkitty - it's true about clothes being a motivation. I lost about 1 1/2 stone during 2010, went down a size, and bought loads of new clothes. When the weight started to creep back on at the end of last year, my main concern was not being able to wear my lovely new stuff any more!

Custy - target weight 9:3, current weight 9:7.2
RatherBeOnThePiste - target weight 9:13, current weight 10:4
BIWI - target weight 9.00, current weight 10.11
kotinka - Start 266lbs, Target 154lbs, Current 229lbs (37lbs loss)
Cardoon?
goingmadinthecountry?
Febes - weight lost so far 5 st 9lbs 13st 9lbs this week
countessbabycham - weight lost so far 3 lbs
QueenStromba - weight lost so far 47.5 lbs
fluffy123 - weight lost so far 56 lbs GOAL
mejon - weight loss so far - 31 lbs - goal weight = no idea!
smokinaces - weight loss so far 27.5 lbs
Rillyrillygoodlooking - weight loss so far 2kg
wantanewname - weight loss so far 9.5lbs
WentworthMillerMad - weight loss so far 21lbs
FreeButtonBee - target weight 9:10, weight loss so far 3.5lbs
supersalstrawberry - weight loss so far 2lb, goal 17lb
Spamspamspam ?
OneLieIn - weight loss so far 4lbs
openyerlugholes - target 9.6, current 10.8
Getorfmoiland - starting weight 12.3, target weight 9.13, current weight 10.12
CointreauVersial - starting weight 9.9, target 9.0 (-ish), currently 9.5
DizzyDancing - weight to lose, 6 st
BornToShopForcedToWork - TW 9st, CW 13.2st - 6lbs lost so far
AngryFeet - Starting weight 13st 11.75, Current weight 13st 4.75lb, goal weight 9st
PostBellumBugsy - lost 1 stone 2lbs since Christmas. 12lbs to go.
Flipflopflap- Weight loss so far 6lb, goal 1st in total.
debs39 TW 8st10 CW 9stand 3/4!!!!oz
PrincessTamTam - start -12.58, target - 10 (ish), current -11.87

Woohoo - I can finally update the weight in 1 pound off :)