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.

Re. point 5 of bootcamp rules- 'minimal dairy '. i have just discovered marscapone cheese- fried leeks and musrooms in garlic butter and then added it- it is truly amazing.
However I think I may be eating too much- about 100g ! So my question is how much is advised during bootcamp ?

There isn't really a set amount - it's just a warning that some people find they have an issue with it. If you are still losing weight and eating dairy, then it's fine for you. The only way to find out is to try it!

That said, I would caution you to restrict dairy - hence minimal cups of tea/coffee, and not cream/cheese with every meal. Yoghurt, apparently, is better tolerated, so you may be alright with that.

Thanks biwi, my dh wants me to have a glass of something with him tonight and I am torn between white wine spritzer and the dark rum( never had it before)

I am def not hungry at all. It's so weird- and have totally ignored kids leftovers which is very unusual for me. I haven't had any more loo emergencies so I think it was a one off to do with my new woe. Fingers crossed . Dc were bad before Christmas, so I think I escaped it.

Thanks BigStickBIWI

I'll have to add myself to the spreadsheet later, my rickity old works laptop isn't playing ball!

Can you eat mozzarella and halloumi cheese when LC'ing? It says virtually zero carbs on the labels but I've never seen them mentioned on any of the threads.

Thanks BigStickBIWI

I am a bit puzzled by the veg question. Some people seem to be assuming that tomatoes are def okay. Others are shunning the fruit of the tomato vine as too carby.

However, there seems to be universal approval of the cabbage (especially braised in cream).

Now, tomatoes have 3.1g/ 100g carbs, whereas cabbage has 5g/ 100g, so this is illogical. So are tomatoes okay after all? And, if not, is cabbage really okay?

I had a stir fry last night and was shocked to see that 1/2 a packet of stir fry comes up as around 10g, this seemed to be consistent for all the packets (in Waitrose). *Aren't stir fries what we are supposed to be eating?"

I am doing a stew with boned and rolled shoulder of lamb tonight; the family are having baked taters alongside. I will be eating the veg in the stew. I have deliberately put in lots of celery, because I am sure that will be ok. Otherwise there are onions, leeks, turnips, carrots, parsnips. It is rather disappointing that plain old veggies that ought to be fine and healthy can harbour so many carbs beneath their skins. Apparently parsnips are the vegetable with a higher GI than potatoes, so I will eschew them.

I was also a bit surprised at the "how many carbs in carrots" controversy. Now, with potatoes, the new ones have less carbs, but apparently, with carrots, the little baby ones have more carbs. Is that right? And upon which root veggies should we be chowing down?

Thank you very much!

What does BIWI stand for?

Oh, also, my DH is quite interested in this WOE and is very willing for me to feed him some of the food I am cooking, for example I did a carbonara sauce which he had with pasta and I had with ribbons of courgettes cooked in the juices from a ham joint. This went down very well.

However, if DH is eating lots of carby pasta (and mopping up the sauce with crusty bread) he will not be priming his system to go into ketogenesis. Instead, his body will be happily burning all the carbs as glucose and probably storing all the fat for future use. DH likes vegetables and proper home cooked food and is interested in a healthy diet but says he likes carbs too much to give them up altogether.

Since DH is rather gorgeous, albeit a little concerned about his slight tummy, I would be reluctant to be the agent of future problems in the weight gain area. Any advice on managing this one (ie making sure that a way of eating that is healthy - as long as you don't have any carbs at all - isn't causing problems for other people in the household who are still eating wheat flour goodies?)

herecomesthesun My DH is like this. He would never give up carbs, I don't think. Instead, I've encouraged him to cut out all refined sugars as a way of starting out a more healthy lifestyle in general.

I've ordered him sourdough bread and rye bread, as it has no sugar in it and it's a break from constant wheat. It's from a local bakery, and organic and lovely and crusty, so I doubt he'll notice. He does like greek yoghurt; so he has that for breakfast, with a teaspoon of honey or a small handful of blueberries stirred in. I made him a soup with loads of veggies in (including potatoes and carrots, but not many for the amount he'll actually be having each day), which he'll be able to take to work over the next 3 days. I pureed it down in the Magimix so he can't see what's in it.

Also, with bread I say things like 'can you just have one or two slices? I need some for your sandwich tomorrow' or 'DS really likes that one, can you make sure you leave enough for him for his toast tomorrow please?' As well as buying 400g loaves, ensure less is eaten all round.

I also dish out a LOT more meat, so there's less room on the plate for pasta. I also mention that 'pasta is quite boring really, isn't it? I'd way rather have a few pieces of chicken extra' If he says anything about the lack of pasta. Also, M&S do a wide tagiatelle style pasta (it's got a posh name but I can't remember it), and it's in little curled up balls. If you're serving plenty of meat, one of these balls of pasta will be enough. It also unravels in the pan and looks more than it actually is (use a smaller pan obviously!)

Some people might say it's mean and that I'm tricking him... Maybe it is, but he's said loads of times he wants to eat healthier and be healthier. He doesn't need to lose weight, but why wait until he does? Loads of bread and pasta isn't great for you anyway, and I'm not stopping him going into the kitchen and getting it himself. He's perfectly capable of doing so. He is eating what I am serving him. I love him very much and want him to feel as good and as healthy as I do and I want to take care of him.

Hello Is it the coconut oil that is good for the fat? If so wondered if anyone had a good ways of having it? I am dairy intolerant so am finding it difficult to get much fat at the moment, thanks

Slatternly I think BIWI stands for Because I'm Worth It

But (random) it always makes me think of the old ad for BIWIA* Airlines - Fly away with BI-WI!!

*British West Indies Airline, based in Trinidad. My friend's sister used to work for them.

jules try a frittata - you can make up loads in a silicone large muffin tray or in a cake tin. Roasted veg with thyme and some feta, ricotta, goats cheese etc, stick portion sized pieces in the freezer.
My favourite Celia Brooks Brown recipes are the artichoke stew and the paneer curry, gnocchi was good too, Asian pancake thing also good. Puddings don't work well, stevia tastes too distinctive.

Waitrose have interesting veggie low carb recipe this month, don't be too worried about their stated high carb count - they must have included the crusty bread. I worked it out as 7g/serving.

Savoy Cabbage Parcels with Mushrooms & Ricotta
Serves 4
Prepare 20 mins
Cook 30 mins

Ingredients:

1 medium essential Waitrose Savoy Cabbage
1 tsp olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
100g chestnut mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp caraway seeds
½ x 250g tub essential Waitrose Italian Ricotta
50g LOVE Life Pine Kernels, toasted
350g tub essential Waitrose Tomato and Basil Sauce
Crusty bread, to serve

1 Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Remove 8 outer leaves from the cabbage and shred the remainder, discarding any thick stalks. Cook the whole leaves in a large pan of boiling water for 2?3 minutes until tender. Drain and run under cold water then pat dry with kitchen paper. Cut out the base of the central stalk on each leaf.

2 Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and add the shallots, garlic and mushrooms. Cook for 3?4 minutes, stirring, until softened then add the shredded cabbage, caraway seeds and a dash of water. Season and cover the pan. Cook over a gentle heat for
5 minutes until the cabbage is very tender. Stir in the ricotta and toasted pine kernels.

3 Spoon the sauce into the base of an ovenproof dish. Using a teaspoon, divide the mushroom mixture between the cabbage leaves and roll up into neat parcels, folding in the ends. Tuck into the dish so they fit neatly. Bake for 15 ?20 minutes until heated through. Serve with crusty bread.

Nutrition 365kcals/13.9g protein/39.2g carbohydrate/12.2g sugars/17g fat/4.1g saturated fat/7.3g fibre/1.4g salt per serving

Waitrose recipes may only be used when Waitrose is credited for the recipe and for the photography. Within the credit, please state that more than 5,000 recipes can be found at www.waitrose.com/recipes.

Thanks BIWI.

I can't take Ibuproen as it does odd things to my stomach so I'll stick with the paracetamol.

I did try and drink enough water yesterday but only managed maybe 2 ltrs. I also had 3cups of coffee so that probably crossed out a litre of water. I was so tired though as DS had been up the night before.

This is day 5 for me and I've been feeling very tired and very in need of chocolate or something. I have resisted, but the urge is sooooo erm. There!

I will resist.

Hello everybody. What info do you have on 'yo yo' dieting? I ask because I lost a lot of weight (3 and a half stone) about 18 months ago on Dukan, and did it relatively quickly, having been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. I started off at 15 stone 6lbs.

Then last year I didn't go crazy, watched what I ate to a decent degree, exercised and when I saw it was creeping back on went back to Dukan for a week in June. Felt dreadful, awful constipation, so ditched it and went back to WW. However, I didn't really get my head round WW this time round, although have had success with it in the past, so ditched that. The upshot is I'm 1.5 stone up from my lowest weight at the beginning of last year, and have completely given up the exercise.

I started on the Bootcamp on January 1st, weighing 13 stone 3, and have stuck to it religiously. I'm really enjoying some of the lovely recipes people are posting, and not finding it a chore at all. However, my weight loss is not dramatic (4lbs in 10 days). Now, I'm not bothered about that per se, as everyone says stick with it and it will come off. Now I know MN's don't lie, so I'm happy to keep on with it. However, I'm just a bit worried that I might have wrecked my system, with different diets, and think I've read that the more you 'diet' the more difficult it is to shift the weight, and you need to eat less and less to get any results. Well I'm not eating any less on this WOE, just differently, and think I'm just looking for reassurance that if I keep it up I will get results, as looking to lose 2 stone by May, which shouldn't be impossible. I have also taken tentative steps towards starting to exercise again, but hate it, so never prioritise it I'm afraid. I don't think I can be the only one that has tried every diet in existance!

That's probably your problem - switching from one diet to another.

But

4lbs in 10 days is perfect! You should be aiming at an average of 1-2lbs per week, for sustainable long-term loss. So don't be downhearted.

The key is that you say you're enjoying low carbing and not finding it a chore - so stick with it, and the weight will come off.

Hello kind Low Carbers! A bit low on meat stocks and have unearthed some diced beef in the freezer. Just need some inspiration on a recipe, I did check the low carb recipe list but couldn't see anything suitable. Any thoughts? I have a range of LC veg, cream, cheese and black olives too. Thanks!

I'm a bit of a pants cook so not very good at creating meals out of what I have in the fridge but I do plan to do an online food shop later based on some of the brilliant meal plans on the main thread.

What kind of beef is it?

Is there anything I can add to water which is ok? I am really struggling with plain still/sparking. Usually have sugar free squash to make it bearable.
only managing about 2.5-3 of my 4 litres at the moment.

Thanks BIWI! It just says 'diced beef' on the packet, it's 400g, organic from sainburys. It's quite lean unfortunately so I was thinking I should add cream to it. Have just found some blue cheese, could I brown it off, leave it to simmer with a bit of stock (not sure how long?), then add cream and the blue cheese to make a... Beefy creamy mess type thing?! I could steam some veg to go with.

chickens definitely stick with it. When I low carb properly my H1abc is amazing, when I don't it is a bit pants. Type II diabetic like you (although also currently on insulin as TTC and had a mc last year). The weight will come off, like someone else (Jac?) said the doctors are very about it as it goes against their 'official' advice. However I have found that once they see it is working and weight, cholesterol and bloods are all improved they kind of can't argue with it! I have agreed to be reviewed every 3 months instead of 9 for now so they can see I am OK!

herecomesthesun I think, and it is only me thinking, that tomatoes weigh a lot more so for example to hae 100g of tomato compared to 100 gram of cabbage leaves means you probably wouldn't eat so many carbs. Also the sites I have seen have tomatoes at 3g/100g and savoy cabbage at 3.7g/100g. The problem is that so many different sites have different carb counts and it depends on the age of the veg, how you have cooked it etc etc... Would that be a possible explanation?

I tend to use tomatoes sparingly but don't hold back on the cabbage.

I can't be in ketosis already can I?!? I only started yesterday!

I have a feeling (could well be wrong) that the tomatoes thing might come from some paleo stuff, because I think they avoid nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers). I'm not sure why though!

I expect mrshp is right too though about the weight by volume comparison

Hi
Can someone advise on salt levels... Feel like I am having too much with olives and cheese for snacks