Bootcamp Week 4 - Come Whine With Me

[BIWItheBold]

Welcome everyone!

Now we're into the difficult weeks - those of us who are actually in week 4. You may have found that your weight loss slowed down last week or even - as for me - has gone back up again.

Don't panic!

This is very common. Keep on keeping on (my mantra for this WOE) and things will start to happen for you again soon.

Don't think it's all falling apart and 'treat' yourself by cheating. That will only exacerbate things, and you will very definitely be reporting back here with a weight loss or - worse - disappearing altogether, thoroughly disenchanted with yourself and the whole low carb thang.

If you're gaining, or not seeing any weight loss, have a long, hard look at what you were eating last week. Did you relax too much, if you moved to Bootcamp Light? Have you allowed carb creep to happen?

If you're doing as I suggested and keeping a food/drink diary, compare last week with your first week. Why not go back to what you ate/drank in that first week - especially if it was a week when you definitely did see a loss?

And remember, weeks 1 and 2 are weeks where you are primarily losing fluid. From weeks 3 onwards, we are now dealing with the fat - and the going will, naturally, be a lot tougher.

Reasonable, long-term and sustainable weight loss is 1-2lbs per week. I know that doesn't sound a lot, but that's 2-4 packs of lard.

Come and share what's working for you - how are you feeling about this WOE now, now that you're a bit more used to it? What tips can you give to your fellow MN Bootcampers?

What's frustrating you? How can we help to make it better, or work more easily for you?

I am drizzling oil on my salad...do I need more fat than that? Also drinking sooooooooooo much water, I need the loo all the time so I have that one covered!

Yes, you need more than that - I assume drizzling means small-ish quantities.

Chicken with skin - or, better, fattier cuts of meat.

Veg cooked in butter.

Mayonnaise with everything.

Well I went back to work this week after 6 weeks off sick. Loads of people said I had lost a lot of weight where in fact I weigh exactly same as when I went off. I know I look better and clothes are looser. So woo hooo

Ok yup I'm doing chicken skin and having mayo so hopefully I am doing ok on the fat front. DP is also concocting a bacon/spinach/cream side for me as I speak.

Have been horrendously busy ,feel shattered and still have a whopper of a day to face tomorrow :(
Not cheated at all this week, sooooo tempted by choccy sweet things again, it's only emreging when I'm tired. Always eat a protein source for lunch, and have been nibbling on a handful of almonds to try and offset cravings, but actually quite surprised I STILL experience this at now almost a month into WOE. It's not the taste I want, it's the sugar rush...

Oh dear.

so, B's this week have been scrambled egg or mackerel
L has been cold lambmeat balls, salad and mayo
S has been curry from LC recipes (lovely) or broc with bacon and cheese
nibbles - almonds, few blueberrys, few strawberrys, smoked salmon pate on flaxbread.

Not been on the scales at all this week (trying a different tack BIWI!) so am feeling a bit nervy about the end-of-week weigh in, fingers crossed - but frineds are starting to comment I've lost weight so

Well I am well and truly off the LC wagon - the conference I am at is in the middle of nowhere, its bread for breakfast, lunch and tea (thou i am still weighing up sneaking out for a glass of wine and a steak at TGI Fridays)

Eugh. 4 hours motorway driving last night had me diving into a bag of minstrels (thou in fairness I did spill half of them on the floor and didn't pick them up!) and the coffee breaks (3) today has cakes and biscuit and i didn't touch them. So I am trying BIWI - honest I am!

Oh, it's a bugger when life gets in the way, isn't it, slowly?

I know exactly how you feel, and have been in that situation many times. All you can do is get on with it, and just get back on the wagon as soon as you can. Don't beat yourself up about it. These things do happen to the best of us!

Was really snacky today, no idea why.

B - Boiled eggs
L - Leftovers - Mushroom soup and prawn & coconut stir fry
D - Steamed Haddock with Celeriac Bravas and courgettes & garlic fried in rosemary oil. No idea how IPD expect celeriac bravas to serve 2 as a main course....it's not enough food! Made the dcs Patatas Bravas with their Haddock and they loved them - again clean plates all round - even seconds were requested today! Starting to get the hang of putting family meals together - we're all finding new foods to love.

Planning to make the chilli from IPD tomorrow night, I haven't eaten proper mince in 25 years, I might load it with habenero chillis to mask the taste.

Snacks - 85% choc (scarily, developing a real taste for this), almonds and strawberries with a smidgeon of double cream & maple extract.

Exercise - walked eight guilt-ridden kilometres to make up for snacking.

My lunch kept me really full (it was feta cheese, mayo, salad, tuna) until afternoon tea sort of time, which was spent in Starbucks.

After some deliberation I had an Americano with a splash of soya milk. Hoping that was ok...... and a packet of almonds (I think there were about 20 in the packet).

Dinner: I've just had green leafy salad, with a tomato in it, plus lots of mayo. Didn'nt feel like much else, considered a bit of feta cheese but remembered BIWI's wise words to keep the feta under control. and I am now stuffed! I am loving the feeling of fullness!

Tea can you tell me what berries you like to have with your Total? I thought fruit was not allowed and I'm feeling excited about the prospect of berries - yummy with yogurt!

and even nicer with cream!!!

Nigella - blackberry, raspberries, strawbs, blueberries ate supposed to be the lowest carb fruits. But still pretty carby. I lobe them but have to be really careful with them. Have just reintroduces them with yog for breakfast.....

Nigella - and everyone else lurking and/or reading this

If you're on Bootcamp, then fruit of any kind is not allowed!

You can only start to include fruit when you move onto Bootcamp Light, after the first two weeks of Bootcamp.

Do celeriac crisps still taste like celeriac or just crispy veg? Are there any other veg that make good crisps?

I am going to try cauli mash, thanks QueenStromba. I tried to make it last week, but used creme fraiche, and it was way too cheesy/sickly, Next time it's butter all the way!

Todays food has been:
B: 1/2 a greek yoghurt
L: Shephards pie with swede and touch of carrot mash, extra mushrooms in.
D was snacky as was at work til 9, rest of greek yoghurt, cheese triangle, handful of turkey breast chunks, 3 squares of 94% choc from tescos. I too a developing a taste for it!

Trying to plan for tomorrow, as starting work at 7. B will be a greek yoghurt, L more shephards pie, with cabbage and leeks. Have some cocktail sausages as a snack, and a dairylea triangle

Any ideas for dinner? Won't be home til gone 5, want something light I think.

BreakOut - are you on Bootcamp or Bootcamp Light?

Potentially you are eating a lot of carbs - the yoghurt, carrots, chocolate, cocktail sausages - and how many carbs in the Dairylea?

Bootcamp, but tbh it seems to be working OK like this at the minute- I wonder if it's because I have gone from such extremely high amounts of carbs, that my body is in shock? I think even the loss of carbs from my drinks alone is massive! I used to drink 8-10 cupts of tea a day, and I like it REALLY milky- i.e. a third of the cup milk. I'm down to two a day now, imagine how many carbs less that is, just on tea.

The dairylea has 1.6g per triangle, it was one carrot between a two portion serving of mash/shepherds pie, and I'll check out how many are in the greek yoghurt later.

From this morning I've got rid of the 2lb I gained in my weekend binge, and another 1lb down, so 9st 12lb 1/2 now.

I've just read through, and it sounds as if I'm trying to make excuses, but I'm not- I'm just trying to find a way that this WOE could fit my life. I am a person who prefers to snack rather than eat a meal, and big meat meals aren't natural in my diet, so I find having these mini 'cheats' is keeping me away from the big ones. If I need a snack, I would rather reach due that square of chocolate than fall into the biscuit barrel, and those cocktail sausages have saved me from a family bag of kettle chips before! But I am trying to be aware when I eat them, not just eat them for the sale of it.

This WOE is a bit like a religion - when things are not looking good you still have to hold your faith and believe that fat will not make you fat, but it's hard.

My faith has been tested this week, I haven't been able to run due to an when I gained nearly 5lbs on the scales think it was just water retention from TOM but I did start to think about starting to reduce my fat intake but this morning my weight was back to target and my faith is fully restored. I think I retained more water than I normally do...a few months of this kind of eating should help me figure out my new rhythms and reduce the panic when the scales wildly start to climb.

I need this WOE to be a do-able way to maintain my weight loss because I'm terrified of putting all my weight back on - I love being this slim...love playing about with my wardrobe, love getting dressed in the morning and wearing what I like rather than what fits ok and what covers up all the bits I hate. BUT I also love food, not just eating but cooking it, reading about it, searching out new recipes, new restaurants...it's my thing and this way of eating can embrace my love of food - ok maybe not my love of puddings but I can still eat puddings when I eat out and just not have them at home - that rule seems to work just fine for now.

We are not going to talk about what I ate last night. I'm blaming it on poor sleep and TOTM. Plus I think the Low Carb Gourmet muffins I made a few days ago bought on carb cravings . in the bin they go!

Still, Briffa says eat well 80% of the time, right? I think I had my 20% last night...

Back on the wagon. On call tonight and working all weekend. Don't wanna.

Nigella - yes, sorry for tempting you with berries btw! I have blueberries mainly... but not on bootcamp

Something else has just occured to me - I haven't had hayfever for ages - normally I sneeze for 2 hours most mornings and get intensive head itch but it's gone, is this another low carb side effect?

Any one else notice an improvement?

Tea that's ok! i can look forward to them in 2 weeks in that case. Thanks for clearing that one up, BIWI ....

and BettyBathroom that is interesting - I suffer from hayfever but not so far this year - I've only been low-carbing for one day, so i put the lack of sneezing down to the very wet weather we are having. I will continue to monitor the hayfever though and see if this WOE appears to be having any effect on it especially once the weather gets drier (will that ever happen)?

I felt so stuffed after my evening meal last night, the fullness feeling lasted right until about half an hour ago when i decided i really should have breakfast and so breakfast has been 2 boiled eggs (and half a tomato that DH had left lying around).

Have bought single cream to use with my morning coffee instead of the usual milk.

Morning. I am going to stay on bootcamp for another week and then I'll review. I miss fruit but I willl be going on hols at the end of May and I'll have fruit, in limited quantities, then.
B boiled egg
L bacon & avocado salad
d Chicken breast (skin on) in green peppercorn sauce made with cream with brocolli.

Maybe not the low carbing then Nigella - but certainly a reason to love the rain

Karaoke - it is strange when you look back at your 'old' WOE and compare it, carbwise, to this one.

eg, my old daily diet:
B - nothing except a cup of tea. Weekends would be fry-up (with hash browns, toast etc) or cereal like crunchy nut cornflakes

L - if I was working, nothing. Or if I got the chance, a sandwich, crisps, choc, fizzy drink grabbed from petrol station.

D - pasta, potatoes, pizza, something on toast. veg would be carrots and peas.

snacks were my downfall - chocolate, crisps, cakes, every single day, often several times a day. I was probably dehydrated too, never drank water except in times of extreme thirst.

it's amazing I'm not the size of a house tbh... but I felt like crap the whole time. No energy, bloated, sluggish, awful skin. This WOE is like a miracle (when I stick to it!!)