Question Thread for New Year Bootcampers

[BigStickBIWI]

As there are so many of us doing this, the chat thread is moving pretty quickly - and it means that lots of questions are being missed.

So here is a specific thread you to post any questions you might have about Bootcamp or low carbing.

[nappyaddict]

Does anyone have the carb count for beetroot and spring onions?

[nappyaddict]

BIWI

I know we are not supposed to be drinking alcohol but I have decided to let myself on special occasions.

This is my usual sangria recipe, what do you think? Previously you said it would be OK to add to wedges of fruit to water to drink so I was wondering if this would be OK, minus the cointreau/grand marnier, if I sieved the fruit out of mine and just drank the remaining liquid? Should I omit the juice of 1 lemon, lime and orange as well?

2 bottles of red red wine
250ml sparkling water
2 oranges, 2 lemons, 2 limes - juice 1 of each, chop the other into small pieces keeping the skin on
1 nectarine, pitted and thinly sliced
1 peach, pitted and thinly sliced
1/2 red apple, cored and chopped into small pieces
1/2 green apple, cored and chopped into small pieces
brandy or whiskey
cointreau or grand marnier
1 stick cinnamon
1/2 vanilla pod
6 cloves

Mix all the ingredients together in a jug apart from the sparkling water. Put in the refrigerator overnight. When you want to serve it add ice and sparkling water to the jug.

[BIWI]

If you're just putting a slide/wedge in the water, then it should be negligible

[nappyaddict]

BIWI Do you know the carb count for lemons/limes/oranges? Am wondering whether it would be ok to make fruit infused water or not for drinking?

[BIWI]

I have no idea, although it could be that there is more dextrose in the second one. Although the ingredients are in the same order it doesn't tell you about specific quantities. Have you got the whole nutritional breakdown there?

[nappyaddict]

I don't understand this!!

Sainsbury's basics peanut butter - Roasted Peanuts (87%), Rapeseed Oil, Sugar, Palm Oil, Salt. Carb count is 3.9 per 100g.

Morrison's savers peanut butter - Peanuts (87%), Sunflower oil, Dextrose, Palm oil, Salt. Carb count is 15.5 per 100g

Dextrose is just another word for sugar isn't it so how come the carb counts are so different when they have virtually identical ingredients??

[BIWI]

No - I've adjusted it for us. (American sites list the fibre content, which you have to deduct)

[nappyaddict]

If it's an American value do you have to do some sort of calculation to it?

[BIWI]

Found this on an American site:

Marrow - peeled, raw 100g 3.0
Marrow - peeled, boiled 100g 3.5

[nappyaddict]

Do you have the carb count for marrows?

[colette]

thanks Biwi definitely the former !

[BIWI]

Lots of water and fat.

Make sure you are getting the vast majority of your carbs from veg and salad.

Exercise can help, as can:

• high strength vitamin c
  
• coffee
  
• sugar-free sweets - Thornton's sugar-free/diabetic chocolate/toffee especially!
  

Just be sure you're actually constipated as opposed to not going as often.

[colette]

I am sure this ( must have ) has been mentioned before, but can't find the answers - what's the best thing for constipation ?

[BIWI]

Atkins is actually much stricter and you have to be very disciplined to follow it properly. And that's the thing - very, very few people actually follow it properly.

There are four different stages of the Atkins diet, and you have to weigh/count your carbs in each stage.

Bootcamp, although it starts with a strict couple of weeks, is designed to be easier in that you don't have to weigh/count anything, as long as you follow the rules.

I'm wondering, though, if your friend has actually read Atkins? Does she know what it's all about?

[nappyaddict]

I've been trying to convert my friend to this WOE but she thinks it sounds very much like Atkins. How can I explain to her the differences between this and Atkins and why this is better than Atkins?

[intravenouscoffee]

Thanks BiWi!

[nappyaddict]

Thanks :)

[BIWI]

Read Briffa here

[BIWI]

nappy No. Ignore them. There isn't a problem with eating saturated fat at all. But Supersize programme (like the mainstream media) insist on telling us we should avoid it.

Honestly - read Briffa/Taubes and it will give you the full low-down on this.

IV - your meals sound fine. If you're tired, it's most likely carb flu. Eat plenty of fat and drink plenty of water. In your case, I think eating the berries will be fine.

[nappyaddict]

I was watching Supersize V Superskinny and they recommend that you only eat 20g of saturated fat per day which should be 10% of what you eat in a day. I know we are supposed to eat a high proportion of fat but BIWI would you agree that only 20g/10% should be saturated?

[intravenouscoffee]

Thanks for the answers. Okay, basic meal plan has been:

Breakfast: Greek yog with berries, coffee with splash full fat milk.

Lunch: omelette with cheese and spinach, salad. Or a chicken Caesar salad with cheese dressing.

Dinner: Bolognaise sauce with spring greens instead of pasta.

Snacks: (not felt the need for many) Cheese or few nuts.

How am I doing? For the first few days I felt great but yesterday was a bit shattered. Although I worked a night shift on Friday which may have has something to do with it! Should I ditch the berries for the first couple of weeks?

[BIWI]

Oh, and nuts/seeds will be good for you to eat as well, seeing as you're not focussed on weight loss. (Just check the carb counts on the back of the packet, as some nuts can be surprisingly high in carbs)

[BIWI]

Morning, IV!

You are absolutely right, you can low carb in a maintenance way. The key thing is to keep your food in the following proportions: fat:protein:carbs

So in reality, this means cutting out all bread, sugar, pasta, rice and potatoes and adding into your diet butter, oil, cheese. If there's anything you are eating that is 'low fat' or 'light' or even worse, 'lite' (!), stop eating that immediately and look for the full fat version.

For now, I'd avoid all fruit as well. As captainmummy says, it's important when you first start to low carb to really break the hold that carbs have on us. And sugar is hugely, hugely addictive. So although you may be able to introduce some fruit later, I'd steer clear of it for the initial two weeks.

The first phase of Bootcamp is two weeks as this seems to be how long it takes not only to switch to fat-burning from carb-burning, but also to break the sugar addiction.

Good luck! Let us know how you're getting on.

[captainmummy]

Hi IVcoffee - i think the point ot bootcamp is to crush your cravings for sweet stuff - make no mistake, sugar has a huge hold on us that is hard to break. It's like nicotine, it's an addiction. The 'carb crash' is exactly that - it's to try to force your body to give in and eat carbs (in any shape)


I would still recommend that you do 2 weeks bootcamp, because after that the sugar will no longer be relevant.

What have you been eating?

[intravenouscoffee]

Hi, I'm not on the boot camp threads but have a question so hope this is the right place.

I read Briffa's book and really enjoyed it. I've been realising over he past few months how completely reliant I am on refined carbs and how tired and ratty this is making me feel. So I started lower carbing last Thursday and other han a bit of a carb crash yesterday I think it's going well. However, my concern is that I am a healthy weight and really don't want to lose weight. I am guessing it's perfectly possible to eat
Low carb in a 'maintenence' way so what do I have to be careful with. Increased protein? Or do I need to keep some extra carbs in my diet?

Thank you wise ones!