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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.

Week 6 - New Year Low Carb Bootcamp _ Where I start to wave my big stick again

616 replies

BIWI · 11/02/2013 08:39

Morning all

Here it is - come and confess all

Now. Three things have come to my attention.

  1. There is a lot of baking going on. Sweet things and bread substitutes.

Please remember that we are trying to avoid sweet things and that we are trying to avoid using artificial sweeteners.

  1. A lot most of you are falling off the wagon - either 'accidentally' (Hmm) or because situations arise where you have not planned ahead or deliberately.

This is not a very forgiving WOE. Lapses/cheats like this will have a big impact - at the very least you will not see any weight loss for a while - most likely, though, you will see a gain of around 3-7lbs. You really have to plan ahead and make sure you do everything you can to stay focused and avoid the carbs. Going out for a meal or to dinner at a friends does mean that you have to think about what's going to be on offer. You cannot assume that low carb options are going to be available (although most restaurants should be fairly easy to navigate).

  1. There is a lot of moaning about seeing a weight gain or not losing.

May I refer you to 1 and 2 above?

Please, please, please go back to Bootcamp/Bootcamp Light rules. They are there for a reason!

I can tell you that almost every time someone posts "I don't know what to do, the scales aren't moving for me/I've gained half a stone and I don't know why, because I'm being really good/have been following the rules" this is a massive signal that, actually, they haven't.

Fat is key.
Water is key.
Too much alcohol will stop weight loss.
Dairy - especially cream and cheese - can be an issue for many (yoghurt is better tolerated)
Artificial sweeteners are to be avoided.
Fruit should be severely restricted.

We have only five weeks of Bootcamp left, including this week. Let's get serious and back on track.

OP posts:
hazchem · 16/02/2013 20:33

Wow. So pleased I decided to log on this morning instead of doing my final essay for uni.
Totally doing the three day menu but will need something other then pork belly as OH is Muslim so I don't cook pork for dinner. Love the fact it includes a shopping list.

Yesterday was a pretty reasonable food day considering i spent most of it in A&E. I have watch House far to many time! I am fine and just have contact dermatitis on my hand and not some hideous life threatening infection which was going to render my right arm useless for life.

B) home made beefburger (spiced with cumin and paprika) with braised cabbage
OK essay now I promise

NoveltySlippers · 16/02/2013 20:33

Wowzers, good luck with that! Must be v. helpful for business.

NoveltySlippers · 16/02/2013 20:34

Hazchem - that's good news!

BIWI · 16/02/2013 20:41

Oh goodness, hazchem! Still - it wasn't Lupus ... Grin

How about doing roast lamb instead of pork?

(I know I can't please everybody!!!)

OP posts:
Bessie123 · 16/02/2013 21:35

hazchem glad to hear you are ok.

I had a delicious dinner today: tuna burgers in oopsie rolls with celeriac chips and coleslaw. I have also been thinking how nice it is just to eat on this woe without feeling bad about anything. Dp was Hmm at all the mayonnaise in the coleslaw and said I wouldn't lose much weight that way but I ignored him Grin

Lavenderhoney · 17/02/2013 04:40

Thank you for all the kind words about my dd, she seems illness free today:)

Black, next time you do roasted lamb, if you have any figs or dates you could rest the lamb on those to slow cook it. It's fabulous- you don't have to eat the figs/ dates. They melt anyway and make a lovely jus for the lamb for other diners:)

Yesterday

B- eggs, bacon, mushroom
L- lettuce and avocado salad
D- foie gras again as it needed eating:) with cauliflower stirred into the fat and toasted.

Not enough water, but will be making up fr that today!

Biwi, I like your blog. I have a small issue with my ds too, could i post about that? I feel you might be really helpful ( and others of course)

halfthesize · 17/02/2013 07:59

good morning all Brew the sun is out here which is always a good way to start the day. Hope you all have lovely Sunday'sGrin

LaVidaLoCarb · 17/02/2013 08:12

Low carb message going mainstream alert:

www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-2278053/The-DIET-MISTAKES-making-fat.html

LaVidaLoCarb · 17/02/2013 08:13

Sorry link failed

www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-2278053/The-DIET-MISTAKES-making-fat.html

halfthesize · 17/02/2013 08:18

fab article Grin

TheHumancatapult · 17/02/2013 08:18

Jumps back in BIWI still doing slight owb thibg but stuck with the low carb .

I'm so nearly there am now thinking about maintaining what's best . Slowly increase the carbs weekly ? I have 12lb to go but now officially a healthy weight for my height which is a very very big thing since was morbid obese back in June 2012 at 20 stone I'm now 10.12 Grin

bulletwithbutterflywings · 17/02/2013 08:19

I have been more off the wagon than on this past week Blush So as of this morning I am on strictest boot camp at least until Saturday, if not longer.
Lovely buttery scrambled eggs for breakfast and black coffee, got to go to the supermarket later for the rest of the days food. I think I will join those doing biwi's menu :)

halfthesize · 17/02/2013 08:25

Thehuman that's an amazing loss, well done youGrin

EwanHoozami · 17/02/2013 08:41

THC Wow! Absolutely bloody brilliant. BIWI mentioned something about a pre-maintenance phase, based on Atkins, that slowly reintroduces the more nutritious carbs.

I'm about to do my fortnightly online shop so will deffo be including the Three Day Boot Up The Bum.

Tigglette · 17/02/2013 08:54

That's an amazing amount to lose thehuman, well done - in such a short space of time too. I've got a good bit to loose, it's great seeing people who've done it on this woe. What an inspiration!

Valdeeves · 17/02/2013 09:22

Thehuman - that is amazing!! That must be a live changing amount of weight you've lost. Well done.

LaVida - eventually everybody's going to be at it as in terms of losing weight but not going hungry it works well - great article!

Had a fab day yesterday - eggy breakfast then swimming with friends and all their kids in a lovely gym. Then amazing tuna steak for lunch and homemade curry for tea (they are Asian - never pass up a curry in an Asian household or you miss the real deal!) with broccoli and green veg for me. Then late journey home and some water and The Shred at the other end.

I can't reccomend the shred enough - I've been at it two weeks now and it's making a difference. My body is not the skinny type so my muscles are regaining their old fitness reasonably well.

When you are on a diet it does bother me that people give me grief as if I have an eatimg disorder when I am a quite a full size ten and maintaining now really. I eat big portions of meat and fish and loads of green veg or celeriac. It just frustrates me because its the wrong perception. Also I live with a medical condition which has been massively improved by this WOE - so it's all the oposite of being unhealthy.

Valdeeves · 17/02/2013 09:25

Btw I'm sitting in bed drinking a soya tea - we've got no heating or hot water as the boilers gone - bracing myself for artic shower and refrigerator style house.

Valdeeves · 17/02/2013 09:28

BIWI - am going to do your three day thing as much as cab but may have to do it next week due to things going on - I really like the menu. Haven't had smoked salmon for a couple of weeks so may get on to it.

BIWI · 17/02/2013 10:24

THC - Thanks what a brilliant achievement! You must be so proud.

Re maintenance, it's all about finding what works for you - i.e. what you can eat on a daily basis without the weight creeping back up again.

If you have a copy of Atkins, have a read of his section on Pre-Maintenance. He suggests that you increase your carbs so that although you are still losing weight, you are losing it at the rate of less than a pound per week, and that you do this for anything up to 3 months. This allows you to determine what you can and can't tolerate.

When you reach the weight you want to be, then set a 5lb upper limit. Weigh yourself every week, and the minute you reach that upper limit, go back to really strict eating until you're back at your desired weight. It means, obviously, continued and ongoing vigilance - but hopefully you will be enjoying a diet that you know suits you and keeps the weight off by then.

OP posts:
BIWI · 17/02/2013 10:27

That article was really good, I thought. Interesting that the Daily Mail seems to be behind low carb/high fat eating - Zoe Harcombe writes for them as well.

One point really hit home with me, and I suspect is something that many of us here will need to consider. I've c+p the paragraph:

WEEKEND BLOWOUT

Myth If you eat healthily all week, it?s fine to treat yourself at weekends
Fact Even after five days of restraint, two days of freestyle carbicide will make you gain weight

?Say you sensibly manage your carbohydrate intake during the week and then binge on burgers, ice cream and cakes at the weekend ? over time, you can technically gain up to five kilos,? says nutritionist Zoë Harcombe, author of Why Do You Overeat?When All You Want Is To Be Slim. As carbohydrates are first stored as glucose and water, this won?t be fat ? yet ? but will turn into fat if it isn?t worked off, so you?ll need to do extra exercise during the
week.

Insidiously, weekend blowouts keep you feeling deprived psychologically, says Sarah Flower, author of The Healthy Lifestyle Diet Cookbook. ?People liken the fun and relaxation of weekends to unhealthy eating,? says Flower.

?They equate their working week with dieting and deprivation, which locks them in the mindset of ?good? or ?bad? eating. If you feel compelled to overeat every weekend, it suggests the way you?re eating most of the time isn?t satisfying you,? says Dr Briffa.

?You?re waiting for the weekend when you can enjoy your diet. But the healthy eating should be making you feel better, not be your penance.?

What you should do To avoid the temptation to binge, pepper your working week with small amounts of what you fancy, such as a small glass of wine, some cheese or a few squares of good quality chocolate.

?At the weekend, with children around and more social events, it can be harder to stick to a diet,? says Dr Briffa. ?If you have a croissant with jam and a fry-up on a Saturday morning, go back to your regular eating habits for the next meal.

The damage will only be done when you start mind games such as, ?Oh, I have been bad now, so I might as well continue all weekend,?? he says. ?That?s how fat people think.?

OP posts:
BIWI · 17/02/2013 10:30

I've highlighted the last sentence as that is definitely something I am guilty of. Take this week - because I knew we were going out for dinner on Valentine's day, and that I would be drinking, I used that as an excuse to have a drink every night, whereas normally I don't drink much during the week. And then, because I also gave myself 'permission' to have a dessert, I've continued off piste this weekend.

Anyway, next week is definitely Boot Up The Bum Time! (Thanks for that, Ewan Grin)

OP posts:
sybilfaulty · 17/02/2013 10:46

Thanks for the info. As the grand master of "sod it, I'll start again tomorrow so I'll just finish XYZ for today" I have been pleasantly surprised by how easy I've found it to go back to this WOE after a binge planned departure. I suppose as I don't really eat sweet things and always want cheese, ham etc it might be a bit easier, but I do like wine. And gin. I think I'll be doing the 3 day plan too as I could do with being a bit strict.

We had people over last night so I made low carb (with potatoes for them) and 2 puddings. Didn't have any of either but had a vat of wine. Now off for a bracing walk up to Crystal Palace to try to clear my head.

timidviper · 17/02/2013 10:56

So instead of Bootcamp it's Boot Up The Bump Camp!

I am going to have a go at it as I need it. Ate stupidly and mindlessly on Saturday night so yesterday I had a kind of fast day just eating my evening meal which was very nice (steak, onions, mushrooms, pepper sauce, swede mash, green beans, asparagus) Had a few macadamias and a vodka with Diet Fanta Lemon (yes I know diet pop is bad but it was a can left over from Xmas) then I ruined it because the indian restaurant man, on Sat, gave me a little box with 2 valentines chocs in and I ate the buggers! Ggggrrr! Still at least it's a small slip up.

BIWI That article is really interesting as I still promise myself a cheat at weekends if I fancy one but use it as a tool to stop carb creep during the week. It motivates me to avoid the odd glass of wine or the odd little thing in the week which could potentially add up to more although I am becoming aware that it may not be the best outlook in the long term. It does look as though the article is referring to overeating and off-piste for the whole weekend rather than one meal/pudding/treat though. As I have so much weight to lose I would sooner be a bit more "scenic" than end up stressing myself and sinking back into a diet mentality as I know, for me, that is the fastest route to failure.

TheHumancatapult · 17/02/2013 11:05

BIWI

Oh I will be doing no intention going back there .

I shall have few days of in April while away and accept the gain but since June think I had 5 days of in total, rest I been strict including Xmas so figure I'll just deal with and go back on after and I may just close my eyes on holiday at Wdw September till I get back but I have lost my sweet tooth so that should help

LavenderBriggs · 17/02/2013 11:51

Am having big pain flare-up. Very gentle hugs to anyone who isn't feeling great.

Love the Mail article - is it just me or has anyone else noticed the change in information away from low-fat? It seems to be happening very quickly.