Hello, fellow Consolidator!
Here are my answers. Hope they'll be of help.
1) I don't really pay much attention to counting calories as I don't think that's so important on Dukan - it's more a question of what you eat (ie, still heavier on protein and lighter on carb than normal). However, Jo did persuade me to join myfitnesspal and I found it quite enlightening. Discovering how many calories are contained in just one of my chocolate brownies
was extremely effective at convincing me not to overdo them!
I still complete my daily info on myfitnesspal but it's only out of interest and I don't actually try to keep at or under the recommended calorie level. In fact, gala days can take the calorie level to scary heights, whilst my PP day is usually 200-300 below target. I reckon that it kind of levels itself out in the end.
2) Again, I've never kept a count of carbs consumed. All I've done is to follow the Dukan rules as strictly as possible throughout Attack and Cruise. I also started do this strictly during Conso but increased my daily bread ration to 55-60g in the end because I kept on losing too much weight.
So I don't think you need to actually count them (as you say, you're no longer likely to be in ketosis), but try sticking to the recommended rations, increasing only if (like me) it becomes necessary due to continued and unwanted weight loss.
3) I do take my wholemeal bread ration every day (apart from PP days, obviously), but I know that both Laura and Anja sometimes substitue theirs for another form of carb. (Try reading their diaries for inspiration on this if you're not a big fan of bread.) It is very important, however, to eat the equivalent amount of recommended type of carb (eg, wholemeal, etc) because we need to slowly re-introduce it to our diet - otherwise, we'll pile on loads of weight again when we do start eating carbs (relatively) normally again in Stab.
4) I don't know about the level of tolerated items during Conso, embarrassingly enough!
All I can tell you is that I do have the occasional tolerated item and it hasn't done me any harm. I'd advise trying not to overdo them, particularly at first, and you can always cut back on them if you get into difficulties.
5) For me, an important factor of this diet has been re-educating myself in preparing food using as little fat and sugar as possible. Particularly during Conso, you need to stick to PVs and PPs (with the exception of the allowed new rations) as before. Best not to overdo things, especially whilst your body is still adjusting to all of the food re-introductions.
In theory, I suppose that you could add a bit of oil, etc, during gala meals - but, from a personal point of view, I think it's a great idea to get into good practices. So I cook my galas using as little fat as possible. I do use EV olive oil for gala meals, but I just put a small dash in my frying pan, heat it up, and then wipe it around the pan to lightly coat and remove most of it.
6) It's extremely important not to skip a gala meal (remember, it's 1 per week fo the first half, then 2 per week for the second half of the Conso phase). After all, we need our bodies to get used to eating more normally - otherwise, the shock of eating extra calories once Conso is over will just result in us piling those pounds back on again. Slowly but surely, it's a question of preparing for Stab so that our bodies can maintain the loss whilst eating in a much more normal way.
