BIWI's Two Week Low Carb Boot Camp - starts Monday 16 April

[PaquesJeLeVauxBien]

I've been back low carbing seriously since February and have lost a stone (almost). I have another 1.5 stones to lose.

It's been going well for me, but I have slowed down in the last month and I'm keen to get things back on track and up the speed of my weight loss. To that end, I have devised a strict two week bootcamp.

It will start on Monday 16 April to give anyone who wants to join in time to sort themselves out, get planning and generally get themselves ready to join in.

Who's up for it?

Hi. Looking forward to this. Your knowledge on this seems really good and weight loss inspiring.

Ooh er! Not sure about that, caramel! I've been doing it for a long time, on and (very) off - but I know it definitely works. And, more to the point, it works for me better than any other way I know of losing weight - and it's also supported more and more by scientific research.

I will try and pass on everything I have learnt, but I am by no means an expert.

I'm pretty good at Googling though

Well, here's to next week

Twit, I am also BFing a nine month old, I started low carbing when he was 6mos and starting solids. I had plenty of support from local lactation consultants re dcs weight gain etc and so was in constant contact with them til he was 7 1/2 mos old. My diet was often under review but as far as they were concerned as long as I was eating enough low carb veg and not protein only, then it is fine to low carb. In fact I was urged all along to up the amount of protein in my diet to see if that would make him put weight faster.

I wish I was one of the luck ones that BFing seems to make all the weight melt away but alas it ain't so!! I do think for me it has given me a real sweet tooth, something I never had before, I can give up bread etc with ease but when I struggle with my diet, its always the chocolate I reach for :-) In that vein I shall enjoy the rest of today and then plan to be good :o

I was wondering about throwing together a group week menu, one for meat eaters and one for vegetarians...

I am BFing a 20mo, and need to start exercising too. I had a sweet tooth before but since birth of DD I get proper cake cravings!

Good idea, slowburner.

I'm in! Have about 7kg to lose. Have done Dukan before but not this high-fat dairy one sounds more exciting. Worth a shot!

Perhaps we should all put tips, links and meal plans up to help inspire each other. I think I will buy a water bottle and work my 2 ltrs to make sure I drink enough fluid. I'm going to nake extra tea so next day lunch is sorted.

Flipflopflap I would love some inspiration, recipe ideas would be very welcome. The group week menu would be great for me because I am absolutely rubbish at meal planning.

Hello my fellow sugar addicts, I look forward to trying to ditch the dreaded stuff with you! It has been far too easy for me to replace meals with biscuits/cakes/sweets since there's only been me to cater for.

Well, we have the rest of the week before we all start officially, to meal plan and decide on menus/recipes that we could share with each other.

My top tip, although not sticking with the low carb spirit of clean and green - if you must dabble with sugar free sweets, don't overdo it when you are the only person in the office, cos when they have had their effect and someone comes through the door and recoils in horror at the vile smell, they will know it was you [bugrin]

Ah yes. The lovely poloyols! I once overdid it with Thornton's Diabetic Toffee and actually pulled a muscle in my stomach with the diarrhoea.

Not to be recommended!

Group meal plan sounds good, I will also remember to avoid sugar free sweets :)

Is quinoa allowed as it is high in protein? Or would it be the same as nuts?

Question

Is it a case of once a low carber, always a low carber? Can you introduce cereals and potatoes into your diet as part of a maintenance plan, or is it a done deal that they are gone forever? The cereals isn't an issue, but potatoes and rice? I luffs them.

I'm happy to add a few recipes from my meal plan, but tbh I think I'll keep it as simple as possible.

I've just worked out that I need to lose 22 kg to take me to a BMI of 25. That seems like such a daunting task :(

I'll check on the quinoa but I suspect at this stage it will be too carby.

Most/all low carb plans are in stages, the idea being that when you have lost weight you move into 'maintenance'. By this stage you should know how many carbs you can eat per day without gaining weight. Everyone is different, and some can tolerate much higher levels than others. But certainly the idea should be that you can re-introduce some carbs by then.

Re the 22kg. The best advice I can give you is to break it down into smaller chunks and set targets for yourself that are challenging but realistic.

Thanks BIWI :)

Having already lost almost two stone since Jan 2011, I should be thinking I'm over a third of the way there, but the pessimist in me always rears her ugly head :o

Actually, thinking about it, my weight has been pretty stable for the last few months, and my diet is currently heavy on carbs, (and wine, chocolate and haribo ) so once I've lost it, keeping it off should be straightforward.

My biggest struggle will be with lack of Pepsi max; it's a whole addiction on its own.

I have never had a sweet tooth until BF either. I found that when I had to stop wheat I most missed things like toast, pasta with cheese and cold sausages
I will really miss my breakfast of porridge and raisins and a cup of tea.

I can't find an exact count for quinoa on a UK site (American foods calculate carb counts differently - they include the fibre), but it doesn't look as if it's sufficiently low carb, Lackadaisycal. Sorry

I've been doing a bit of experimenting this morning, and have cooked two different versions of the same meal - shepherd's pie - and done the carb counts for the meat part of it, just to demonstrate how you can make something lower in carbs.

My 'normal' version is:

2 medium/large onions, diced
2 large carrots, sliced
450-500g beef mince
1 OXO cube

Fry onions and carrots in butter and olive oil until softened, then add mince and stir till browned.
Season with salt and black pepper
Sprinkle OXO cube, stir, and then add water to cover.
Put a lid on the pan and simmer for 30 minutes
Remove lid and simmer until liquid is reduced to the consistency you like (it needs to be reasonably dry for shepherd's pie.)

Then make your mash and spread it over the top, bake till brown, etc.

The carb count for this, assuming it serves 4 people (which will be quite generous portions) - WITHOUT THE MASH - would be 12 carbs.

I know we're not really counting carbs, but to put this into perspective, if you are doing Atkins, in the induction (the strictest) phase, you are only allowed 20g carbs per day.

So here is my alternative:

5 leeks (about the number you will get in a pack from Sainsbury) sliced
1/2 head of celery, sliced
450-500g beef mince
1 OXO cube

The method has to be slightly different here, as leeks are much more watery than onions, so pan fry your beef first, in olive oil, and season with salt, pepper and when browned, with the OXO cube.

In a large saucepan, fry the leeks and celery in butter with a splash of olive oil

When softened, add the mince and then cover with water and cook as in the first recipe.

The carb count of this version is just 4g carbs per person.

I will top this with a mash made from celeriac - which is 2.3g carbs per 100g compared with potato at 15.7g carbs per 100g.

I will report back later on total carb counts for each version!

I have also created a spreadsheet to make carb counting easier, if anyone is interested in doing this.

It's actually not a bad idea to do this to start with, just to give you an idea of how carby your meals are. I was certainly a bit at how high the carbs were in my mince!

All you need to do is weigh your veg, pre-cooking, and add that figure into the spreadsheet and it will automatically calculate the carbs in your meal.

If you want a copy, PM me with your e-mail address and I'll send it to you.

For those veggies that asked for recipes I'll put together something tonight with a list of recipes as I'll have to type them out, I might put them in a blog or something easily accessible.

Actually looking forward to doing the bootcamp, I was worried about how a weekend away would affect my diet but I feel a bit better knowing that I'll be starting it the day after I get back. I'm not going to go mad on the carbs or anything but I can worry a little less now and just enjoy being away!

Can I join in please? Totally bread- and chocoholic. Also stopping the glass of wine with dinner will be tricky. But I need to lose about 1.5 stones (and, more to the point, stop my weight from continuing to go up) after having 2 children in just over 2 years. Just sorting out my online shop for the weekend now, will take some ideas from here. Looking forward to reporting back. Thanks BIWI especially.