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Weight loss chat

A space to talk openly about weight loss journeys and challenges. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

At last - here it is! BIWI's 2 week Low Carb Bootcamp - starts tomorrow - sign in here

999 replies

BIWI · 15/04/2012 22:36

Lots of you have said you want to do this - now it's time to put your money where your mouth is, so to speak.

Oh, alright, it's free. Grin

The plan is that we have two very strict weeks of low carbing. Which is why, doh, it's called a bootcamp.

There are 'rules of engagement' for the fortnight - but they're different if you're carnivore or a vegetarian. I shall post the rules for us carnivores, and flipflopflap will post the rules for those of you that are vegetarians.

Sign in with your starting weight - in pounds, stones and pounds, kilos or - if you don't want to reveal your weight, with 100 as an index - and what you're wanting to achieve in the two weeks. I know that not everyone is doing this for the purpose of weight loss, so you don't have to do this if you don't want to - but tell us what you want this fortnight to help you achieve.

The Carnivore Rules

1.Eat three, proper meals a day.
You must eat breakfast. It doesn?t have to be a lot, but you must have something. For the rest of the day, if you?re eating enough food and you are in ketosis then you shouldn?t be hungry. But if you are hungry, eat something. (Hard boiled eggs make a great snack)

2.Avoid processed food
Focus on pure, natural protein as the basis for your meals ? meat/fish/eggs. Things like sausages, ham, bacon, pre-prepared burgers etc should be avoided as much as possible. You can have them, but just not every day. Avoid foods marketed as low carb, e.g. Atkins Daybreak bars.

3.Eat lots of fat.

Eating fat helps you to burn fat. Honestly! Fry in butter, add butter to vegetables, eat salad with a home-made vinaigrette dressing (not made with balsamic vinegar though, as this is too sweet), add mayonnaise where you can (just check the carb count on your mayo first). Eat fattier cuts of meat ? e.g. pork belly, roast chicken with the skin on and/or eat the fat off your lamb chops. Absolutely no low fat/light foods of any kind!

4.Make sure you are eating vegetables and salads with your food ?
This is where your carbs should come from, and this is non-negotiable. But choose only those vegetables that are on the allowed list. You don?t have to weigh/count carbs ? this is one of the great joys of this WOE (way of eating), but if you?re new to low carbing it can be helpful to weigh your portions of veg in the early days, just so that you know how many carbs are in the sort of portions that you like to eat

*5.Be careful about dairy (apart from butter, which is unlimited). It can impede weight loss for some people. If you are still drinking tea/coffee with milk or cream, try to restrict yourself to max 2 cups per day. You may eat cheese, but don't overdo it. Full fat yoghurt is the best way to include dairy in your diet - but beware, it does contain carbs. Total Full Fat is the best.

6.You must drink a minimum of 2 litres of water per day.
The more weight you have to lose, the more water you should drink

7.No alcohol
If you really can't do this - at least try and restrict it to the weekend. Vodka with soda is the best thing to drink. Or Champagne, red wine or dry white wine.

8.No fruit
Really. Seriously. Honestly. None at all. Zilch. Nada.

9.No nuts/seeds
Whilst these are really good to snack on later - it can be too easy to start snacking on these - and before you know it, all your carbs have gone on nuts. Seriously - in bootcamp - don't do it to yourself.

10.No sugar or artificial sweeteners

OP posts:
TheGoddessBlossom · 18/04/2012 11:43

I had last night's broccolli and cauliflower cheese for breakfast! Was surprisingly ok!

Usually have eggs, but needed the carbs from veg as have just done an hour's coached swimming session, brilliant, really enjoyed it, must have swum 100 lengths! Ok maybe 80...Grin

Smoked mackerel for lunch and making celeriac cottage pie for tea with green beans. Am down on the water today so trying to catch up.

Am sleeping like the dead at the moment!

Re exercise - I have heard that if you intend to exercise for more than an hour, have a banana beforehand...

TheShapeJaper · 18/04/2012 11:44

For fitness fans with money to burn Grin

slowlyburningcalories · 18/04/2012 11:44

Right - I got on the scales this morning - 4 pounds off in 2 days.

first day back at work, have so far been offered cake, chocolate and biscuits - Just say NO! has worked. So far.

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 11:45

And, more seriously, How to improve your brain power

noddyholder · 18/04/2012 11:56

BIWI sadly those are my idea of exercise

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 11:58
Grin

Now. I know you all think the amount of water you're drinking is a bit sloshy. But look at this - again, taken from the Carblife website:

Water.
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.

MNP · 18/04/2012 12:09

Brave Shorty, kippers for brekkie.

Might take babies out later if the rain lets up, big double buggy, muddy uphead track = lots of energy used.

Am only weighing on Sunday mornings.

On litre número due

Livelongandprosper · 18/04/2012 12:13

Urgh...feeling sick and slightly yukky generally. The thought of eating lunch makes me feel like I might throw up. Is it best to eat something regardless, or is it ok to wait until I feel more like eating?

Will this feeling go away if I stick at it?

FauxFox · 18/04/2012 12:18

I could not would not eat kippers for breakfast Envy I normally just have coffee but can cope with a slice or two of cheese or salami when i'm making the packed lunches.

Just had lunch - two eggs whisked and fried into a flat disc in chilli oil, 100g ready prepared mixed stirfry stuff fried and mixed with the shedded egg slosh of soy sauce - YUM and all made in about 5 mins, practically quicker than toast! The veg came to 4.8g carbs so that's not too bad right?

Been out all morn and had to buy water as I was so thirsty and I would never normally do that! I also bought a little chunk of cheddar (40p m&s) but didn't eat it so will keep for emergencies!

ilovemyteddy · 18/04/2012 12:19

Afternoon everyone, and well done on the various weight-losses.

Arf at the new name, BIWI Grin

I haven't lost any weight this week, having lost 4lb due to my stomach bug at the weekend, but I am cheating a bit as I don't want to be sick again. So had berries and soya yoghurt for brekkie, am having left-over moussaka for lunch and chicken salad for dinner.

And I'm sitting here smugly wearing my two-sizes-smaller-than-the-last-pair-of-jeans-I-bought jeans Grin

slowlyburningcalories · 18/04/2012 12:24

two pieces of mackerel and large salad have done nothing to stem the hunger. Two litres of water haven't either. Off to the shop to find some salami or something carb friendly.

NotMostPeople · 18/04/2012 12:33

Bugger had forgotten the water, just measured how much water my glass holds and according to that list I need to drink ten glasses. Would have been easier if I'd started this morning.

PostBellumBugsy · 18/04/2012 12:45

sympathy tea - don't weaken though. Cake won't make anything better & then you'll just be disappointed you fell off the wagon.

Tucking into roast beef (& horseradish), lettuce & coleslaw with extra mayo - all of which were reduced in my local M&S - yes, love a bargain.

Have realised I needed to increase my water intake, so am now also sloshing. Tried jumping up & down & could actually feel it washing around in my stomach!

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:01

livelong - sorry you're not feeling great. I would try and eat something, if I were you - could you manage some scrambled egg? Or a piece of cheese?

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:04

Tips for dealing with carb withdrawal on some sites - here's an interesting one:

"Days 3 to 5 -- Watch out for 'Carb Crash?'

There is a phenomenon that happens to some people after a few days on a very low-carb diet. I call it carb crash. The theory is that it happens when your body?s glucose reserves (stored in the liver as glycogen) are used up, but your body is not yet used to running on fat and protein. People tend to have symptoms such as feeling shaky or jittery, feeling irritable, feeling fatigued, or just not feeling ?right." Although it would go away in a few days, Dr. Atkins didn?t feel people should just put up with this, and neither do I, especially when the cure is so easy -- simply add some high-quality carbs to your diet.

So if you feel shaky, fatigued, or otherwise unusually bad, try eating a serving of low-carb fruit. If this makes the feeling go away, you know you are in carb crash. I suggest you modify your plan for the next few days to include a bit more carbohydrate, and monitor your reactions closely. (Don?t start to ?carbo-load," which will be self-defeating in the long run.)"

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:05

whole article here

WillieWaggledagger · 18/04/2012 13:08

between us we are going to totally counteract the effect of the hosepipe ban

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:08

And a bit more from another site:

"Carb Withdrawal - The 4 Golden Rules To Coping With Carb Withdrawal

Carb withdrawal can cause many problems if not done correctly. Here is your guide to coping with carb withdrawal so that you can easily lose weight and stay healthy, both physically and mentally.

During the first three to four days you'll go through strong carb withdrawal which consists of weariness, headaches, petulance, acute cravings for sugarinesses or starches, a few intestinal disruptions, mild sickness and a gain in overall hungriness.

Sounds frightening doesn't it?

Well, let me assure you, these will pass. And before I explain the ways to cope with these very temporary side effects of carb withdrawal, you should know that if you follow my advice, you will see amazing benefits over a short period of time. The reason I have stated these side effects is so that you know what to expect, at worst.

I think this is important for you to know and it helps you prepare using the following techiniques. Ultimately, I didn't mention these things to scare you, but to make you realize the reality of what to expect temporarily. Of course, these side effects are not set in stone, and you may have a plain-sailing transition to your new low carb diet. Either way, it's important for you to know how to cope effectively.

How to cope with carb withdrawal

  1. Drink lots of H2O,
  1. Consume for the most part, meat, cheeses and eggs if you're peckish and try to relax often.
  1. Get some good 8 hours sleep a night. You can take 1000 mg of L-Glutamine (an amino acid most good health food stores) to assist with the cravings for high carb foods. By the fourth or fifth day the toughest part will be past (just as smokers find cigarrettes less appealing after each day that passes after they quit) and as you commence the second week, you'll experience a step-up in energy, mood and your appetite will be quenched due to ketosis."
BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:13

Here is an interesting blog, on sugar addiction.

Read the comments below as well ...

slowlyburningcalories · 18/04/2012 13:15

between us we are going to totally counteract the effect of the hosepipe ban

that had me running for the loo!

GreenEyesAndHam · 18/04/2012 13:18

Irritable? Petulant?

Yup that's me Grin

I'm really hoping that I'll be able to take my wedding ring off soon- not that I'm kicking out my husband or anything, just that not being able to budge it is like a big fat reminder that I've put on weight.

BIWIWhoMustBeObeyed · 18/04/2012 13:20

All the stuff about being more emotional/sugar suppressing the emotions was really interesting, and news to me. Perhaps that explains why it's so easy to use sugar/chocolate as comfort foods?

But - if you're prone to depression or anxiety, it would be worth being aware of this - and possibly looking to increase your levels of carbs somewhat.

Realitygf · 18/04/2012 13:27

2lbs down since Friday. Is that good? Never done the l/c thing before.
Any tips for the constipation?

ledkr · 18/04/2012 13:30

REALITY I have been taking a husk tablet daily since we started and ive had the opposite but i also think my bod isnt used to all the fat after years of low fat everything.
I am staring longingly at the fruit bowl which i would never normally do.