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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.

New Year Low Carb Bootcamp - The Final Weigh-In!

979 replies

BIWI · 18/03/2013 08:27

So here it is - come and weigh in for the last time and tell us how much you've lost in Bootcamp.

The Spreadsheet of Fabulousness is here

OP posts:
littlermissstan · 21/03/2013 15:25

KKKKaty I'm no expert but I think it's to do with the portion sizes. The carb counts given on the spreadsheet are per 100g, I tried weighing some stuff and 100g of shredded cabbage was a giant amount, more than I would eat, but carrots and tomatoes are much heavier and denser, so your carb count per portion would be much higher.

spilttheteaagain · 21/03/2013 15:37

Thank you to MyHead and teaandthorazine who were trying to help with my dad's sugars at the end of the last thread. I've finally had a decent chat to him and a chance to do some reading. Whilst he is lowering his carbs (previous daily intake was about 400g/day, he's calculated!) he is now eating in the region of 150g/day, (as he also has no weight to lose, and that is often suggested as a good maintenance level on lots of websites).

So, the concept of physiological insulin resistance that he was concerned about should not be applicable. That appears (see the link there) to be something that occurs at very low carb intake in order to preserve the available blood glucose for your brain and stop your muscles using it - ie keep them in fat burning.

So I think that was a red herring in the high fasting blood glucose.

What it appears to be, is that in diabetics high fasting blood glucose is more likely to be due your hormone levels going wonky overnight which happens as the diabetes gets worse. linky if anyone is interested in the specifics

He's testing more regularly again now to try and see where he's at.
Seems to be mainly getting FBG around 8.2, and then testing before lunch it's much better (5.6-7 depending on exercise) which fits with the hormone explanation, and +1hr meals 9 ish, +2hr meals 6 ish, so it's not great but at least it's under the 8.2 for most of the day!
He confessed that his "low carb" day yesterday began with porridge, included a little parsnip at lunch, and 2 post bike ride crumpets Angry
It appears that he is very sensitive to exercise which is great (got a +2hr from lunch reading of under 4 whilst cycling hard) so clearly that is a way to bring the sugars down. But not then falling into the crumpets would be good....

I want to go and be all bossy and take all his meals in hand and see if we can improve things, but you can't do that can you??!

spilttheteaagain · 21/03/2013 15:46

QLB I too am having weird gut issues. I think its wheat or gluten. My transgressions that have caused issues have been 1 jam doughnut a couple of weeks ago, and some naan bread this weekend. No issue with actual weight gain but my gut puffed up like a balloon (Ilooked about 6 months pg) and I became utterly constipated and couldn't go for about 3 days and it was (TMI) massive and rock hard and painful when I did.

I'm reading Wheat Belly at the moment which is fascinating and horrifying in equal turn and I think (I'm also maintaining) that wheat is the one thing I will really steer clear of. Modern wheat is very unhealthy and causes issues for huge swathes of the population, often without them realising, so having eliminated it for a bit, it makkes sense for us to be spotting issues when we try it again. It's really made me think about whaht I am feeding DD too now. I hate her having cakes and biscuits at playgroups and it's not because of the sugar, it;s the wheat!

So like others have suggested, I would experiment with potato/sweet potato, then rice, then oats if I were you, but leave gluten grains til last. Then you'll know if they are an issue for you.

Most delicious lunch I have had in ages:
Leftover mashed swede heated up, with sauteed leeks on top, a rasher of bacon to the side and buttery broccoli. Heaven in a bowl! Grin

ecuse · 21/03/2013 16:36

Oh yeah, that's another reelation of this WOE. How much nicer greens are when slathered in melted butter!

Felt quite sad last weekend when I had my roast dinner (no spuds!) in a pub and the veg came all unbuttered. Poor, sad, unbuttered veg Sad

colette · 21/03/2013 16:42

thanks Prettybird and WillieWEggledEgger - sounds good , will try that.

Prettybird - liked your post yesterday (?) about what has been working for you.

MrsHeggulePoirot · 21/03/2013 16:47

tea glad you got to the bottom of those readings. I did think it would be impossible to be getting those readings if he had cut down the carbs massively. 400g down to 150 is a good start. I would say though that if eating that amount of carbs, he needs to be careful with his fat a little.

It is difficult to make people do what you know is right!!! As a diabetic I did manage my bloods an weight successfully having porridge for breakfast, but then had very few carbs later in the day eg salad with sandwich filling for lunch and then met and veg for tea.

What do his diabetes team say about his bloods? Is he on any medication?

Yama · 21/03/2013 17:46

Evening everyone. Can I ask those of you who are doing a leptin reset to explain what leptin is and why you are resetting it? Smile

Get this. My dh is doing a leptin reset. I asked him why and he said that it was because my learned Mumsnetters (my phrasing) were doing it so he looked it up and thought he'd give it a go.

Now, I could wait for him to explain it to me but he will read and research everything and garner a very complicated understanding. I want the idiot's guide.

BecauseImWoeufIt · 21/03/2013 18:07

KKKKaty

Your meals look fine - but I'm wondering why you're snacking so much. You shouldn't be feeling hungry between meals! Hopefully once you're into this WOE 'properly' ketosis will kick in and you will find that you don't need the snacks.

Just a couple of things. First, beware of including too much processed meat in your meals. You've got bacon and ham on day 1, (possibly the venison burger, unless you made that yourself), ham, smoked haddock and smoked salmon on day 2 and bacon, sausages and smoked salmon on day 3. That's quite a lot altogether, and on Bootcamp the aim is to eat natural/unprocessed foods as much as we possibly can.

Second, there is a fair bit of dairy. Three lots of cheese on Monday, as well as milk in your tea. Yoghurt, cheese and Philly on Tuesday and three cups of tea, then cream, Philly and yoghurt on Wednesday as well as the tea. Some people find that dairy impedes weight loss, so I'd cut this down a little if you can.

Avoid the carrots! The lower carb count has actually been removed from the spreadsheet, so I think you must have an earlier version.

And how much water are you drinking?

Good luck with it! I hope you're not suffering too much from carb withdrawal!

spilttheteaagain · 21/03/2013 18:26

Thanks MrsHP. I definitely have heard that if you are going to have a carbier meal (ie your porridge) you should have it at the start of the day to give your body time to get shot of the carbs whilst your metabolism is most perky, so sounds like you were doing it right Smile. He's not yet on any meds, but they were umming and aahhing about metformin at his last checkup and agreed to give it 6 months. Not sure how much help or how knowledgeable his team are - he's not discussed his dietary changes with them as far as I know.

Apparently todays FBG was 7.4 Smile so it seems to be coming down.

I have a rotten cold and feel a bit bleurgh. Having a medicinal coffee and cream instead of choccy. It's got the same lovely creaminess factor.

halfthesize · 21/03/2013 18:32

eve all, off to catch up on threadGrin

halfthesize · 21/03/2013 18:44

corvette ribbons in cream, garlic and shallots, black I am hookedGrin

halfthesize · 21/03/2013 18:45

obviously meant parmesanHmm

halfthesize · 21/03/2013 18:50

and cougette, stupid mobileAngry

AuntieMaggie · 21/03/2013 19:03

Another one who didn't have as much success this time round due to life getting in the way but if I hadn't done this WOE on and off then I would be a lot heavier rather than 6lbs off since xmas.

I am planning to boot camp next week and get back on track. I want to lose 3 stone in time for my July holiday so need to find the motivation from somewhere.

There's a lot of things that I haven't gone back to eating though like bread and pasta and I still find a lot of foods too rich especially processed food.

So thank you BIWI and Willie. Flowers

BecauseImWoeufIt · 21/03/2013 19:10

spiltthetea - glad you managed to get some expert help/advice! And good to hear that it seems to be having a positive impact already.

KKKKaty · 21/03/2013 19:38

Thanks for your reply BIWI. With regard to snacking, I guess it?s habit. Also, I?ve stopped drinking my lovely wine in the evenings and eating my lovely chocolate ? what do I have to look forward to after the kids have gone to bed?!!! Grin

Processed food ? I hear what you?re saying, but I guess I?m having trouble thinking of what to eat. I am also catering for two pre-schoolers and a non-LCing DH! Therefore if they?re having sausages, I can?t really then cook a steak for myself. Also lumps of meat tend to be expensive. My staple mince recipes all seem to include either tomatoes or potatoes. I like chinesey-type food, but that?s all soy sauce, brown sugar, sweet and sour etc. The thought of eating plain fish every day is not very appealing, the DCs won?t be impressed, and generally speaking DCs and DH aren?t big green veg eaters. As it is I seem to spend my whole life in the kitchen, so I don?t want to make different meals every time.

Lunches have to be cold due to time constraints ? I make them in advance a lot of the time. So it?s salad with something. Tuna and chicken are OK? What else could I have if not ham, cheese, smoked salmon or mackerel or eggs (which I have for breakfast since I have to cook them for everyone else anyway)?

Sorry if I sound negative, especially on your lovely upbeat victorious thread, but I really want this to work. I?ve read Briffa and I believe the science. I?m approaching a not very appealing birthday, and I would really like to be down from 10 st 5 to below 9 by then. I?ve done the dreaded WW three times and lost the weight only to put it all back on again when I stopped. I need something sustainable, and something that fits in with what everyone else eats.

Valdeeves · 21/03/2013 19:48

Just dropping in to say thanks to BIWI and Willie for the thread - and all you lovely ladies for your support.
I lost the last stone of my baby weight on this diet and am really grateful.
Am actually uber camping for a bit as it seems have the best results for me.
Am going to try the coconut chilli chicken - any tips before I cook it???

Ruprekt · 21/03/2013 20:54

B sausage, bacon and avocado

L prawns with coriander and avocado

D nothing yet but snacked on cheese and succumbed to some chocolate! Angry Twas lovely though

Water and spiced apple tea

flatbluebunny · 21/03/2013 21:09

Good evening all you lovely people, I hope you don't mind me posting here. I've been considering a low carb diet for the last couple of weeks, and after gaining yet another 2lbs at my weekly weigh in last night decided to bite to bullet and start today Smile. I've been dieting on and off with varying success for 20+ years, and this WOE goes against every single thing I've ever been told! But......if all the advice was true then surely I'd be lovely and slim now and not still searching for the answer?? I did a bit of shopping today and was terrified! Wish me luck Wink

BecauseImWoeufIt · 21/03/2013 21:17

"With regard to snacking, I guess it?s habit."

This is absolutely true. A conventional high carb diet means that we end up being hungry between meals, so we get used to snacking. Which means lots of extra calories! Once you're properly into low carbing, and you are ketogenically-adapted - i.e. you are in fat-burning mode - you really won't be hungry. So don't expect that snacks will be something you have to do.

"Processed food ? I hear what you?re saying, but I guess I?m having trouble thinking of what to eat. I am also catering for two pre-schoolers and a non-LCing DH! Therefore if they?re having sausages, I can?t really then cook a steak for myself."

I get you. But you need to think about cooking for all the family, and cooking the same thing. Low carb sausages (please tell me that the sausages you were cooking were low carb?!) are fine for all of you - but you need to reduce the amount of processed meat in the rest of your day.

"Also lumps of meat tend to be expensive."

Not necessarily. A stew made from shin of beef is cheap. Or chicken thighs. Or lamb breast. Or belly pork.

"My staple mince recipes all seem to include either tomatoes or potatoes. I like chinesey-type food, but that?s all soy sauce, brown sugar, sweet and sour etc."

There's a lovely low carb shepherd's pie on the recipe thread, that uses mince.

"The thought of eating plain fish every day is not very appealing"

Who says you have to eat plain fish every day?! The other day I cooked pan fried cod fillet with a choice of two sauces. A mushroom sauce, which I made with finely chopped mushrooms, fried with chopped shallots and garlic, with cheese and double cream.

"and generally speaking DCs and DH aren?t big green veg eaters. As it is I seem to spend my whole life in the kitchen, so I don?t want to make different meals every time." Of course you don't want to be cooking different meals. But I think the family are going to have to get better at eating green veg! What is it that they don't like? Lots of lovely things you can do with your veg. Do they like salad?

"Lunches have to be cold due to time constraints ? I make them in advance a lot of the time. So it?s salad with something. Tuna and chicken are OK? What else could I have if not ham, cheese, smoked salmon or mackerel or eggs (which I have for breakfast since I have to cook them for everyone else anyway)?" Nothing wrong with the options you have given here - just make sure you're not eating processed meats/fish more than once a day. How about making a frittata? There's a lovely asparagus frittata recipe on the recipe thread.

JakeBullet · 21/03/2013 21:32

B was omlette with mushrooms and a sprinkle of cheese. Added salad.

L was belly of pork with mixed veggies.
D..nothing. ..not hungry but had a few olives which DS insisted that I have Smile

LittleFrieda · 21/03/2013 21:41

I just cook separate meals. Fortunately DH is low carbing with me.

B missed
L homemade burger with coleslaw and green salad
D half an M&S seafood platter with green salad and a couple of cherry tomatoes.

3 cups of tea with a little milk

BecauseImWoeufIt · 21/03/2013 21:43

.... and my other sauce Blush was chopped prawns, stir-fried with shallot, garlic and chilli, with coriander and cream

QuickLookBusy · 21/03/2013 22:02

SpiltTheTea thank you for all that info. I think I'll order that book.

ChippingInIsEggceptional · 21/03/2013 22:15

Spilttheteaagain (it's MyH here, back in my normal name) I'm glad you have had a bit of luck working out what was going on with your Dad. It's hard enough doing it for yourself when you know exactly what you have been doing 24/7 & the hardest part is, that it isn't an exact science! It's very frustrating.

Is he eating things like porridge because life isn't worth living without it, or is he eating it because his diabetes nurse told him to? To get his levels down he's best to ignore anything he's been told by the NHS!

How badly does he want to stay off metformin?

His levels will come down if he low carbs I'm sure - but I'm talking about 30g a day, not 150! If you can, get him to try a week at 30g. I don't think he'll lose weight if he doesn't have it to lose -your body is pretty good at working it out and even if he does, surely it's better to get his levels down and then after that he can get his weight up with protein & fat etc.