It's all about that dress!!

June 17th 2016

New York New York!

After reaching my target weight a month ago, I went on holiday to New York.  This could have been disastrous for my weight but I continued to food optimise where possible while allowing myself a few treats.  I am lactose intolerant so by default my plane meal had no butter, no cream and fruit instead of dessert and cheese.  We were self catering for the first 5 days in Montauk, Long Island and knowing we would have to eat out for every meal for the second half of the trip, we were cautious not to spend too much on food and ate most of our meals in the studio apartment plus some picnics on days out.  Once in New York City I always had melon with my breakfast and generally salad with lunch and dinner to make sure I was getting my speed foods in.  We also walked miles...clocking up an impressive 70 miles over the nine day break.

Weigh in

Thinking I had been as 'good' as I could without depriving myself of the things I love (mainly wine and cocktails!!) I returned to class last week and to my delight I had lost half a pound!  This week (14th June) I weighed in again and had lost a further 1.5 pounds, giving me my One and a half stone award in this class.  In total since my weight loss journey began in January 2014 I have lost 2 stone which was my ultimate goal!

The Dress

So yesterday myself and 16 of my friends and family set off for Royal Ascot Ladies day to officially start celebrating my 40th Birthday, we had a fabulous day and even the weather was amazingly kind to us (despite continual torrential rain and flash flooding closer to home).  As we were catering for everyone, and it was a celebration, I decided to have a 'day off' which I know goes against Slimming World philosophy but actually having eaten bread, pastries, crisps, cakes and chips for one day I felt really sluggish by the end of the day (alcohol and an eight hour round trip probably didn't help!!) and today I'm back on it with melon and ham for my breakfast!!

Before

After

Target!!

May 17th 2016

Cannot quite believe that I am TARGET!  Exactly 40 days before my 40th Birthday and one month until Royal Ascot (and that size 10 dress!)

Weigh in

Its been a difficult few months weight wise and I re-read my last blog where I challenged myself to lose 2lb to get my club 10!  This took a little longer than the week and I've been so busy I haven't had time to sit down and write.  So a little later than I hoped for but finally I achieved my Club 10 last week and my target weight this week.  It's been very up and down for me and I didn't think it had been so long since I published a blog but here's how I got to today...

29th March lost half a pound
5th April put on 1lb
12th April didn't weigh
19th April lost 2lb
26th April put on 1.5lb
3rd May lost 1lb
10th May lost 2lb
17th May lost 2lb

Clothes

I have spent so much of my blog talking about food that I thought I would cover another area, one that anyone who has lost any significant weight will relate to.  Clothes!  At the start of my blog I talked about being almost a size 16.  Most of my size 14 clothes (especially trousers!) were very snug and I was delighted when they became comfier and looser.  I was even more delighted when I felt it was time to purchase some size 12's.  As the summer now seems upon us, I fetched my 'summer wardrobe' out from hibernation and started to sort through what still fit me.  I found a pair of black trousers, that although a 14, and felt a bit big I thought I would give them an outing at work.  As I mentioned before I sometimes have an early start so cue me shopping in the 24 hour Tesco this morning at 7.30am for a new pair of size 12 black trousers - otherwise I feared it could be an embarrassing day! 

At the start of this blog I had the intention of losing a further 8lb...I have actually lost 11lb. 

Now I just have to keep it off!

Restaurants

March 22nd 2016

Weigh in

Another pound lost and tonight I changed my target officially to motivate me to do it.  I didn't get weighed last week and if I'm honest it would have been a slight gain after all my meals out so my aim for next week is 2lb which will mean I achieve my 10% award.

How to survive eating out...

So the last two weeks have been a flurry of catching up with friends and family, involving various meals out.  Trying my best to stay on track, here are my suggestions for the restaurants I visited:

Miller & Carter

Their menu states that you could enquire about their lighter steak accompaniments - so I did!  They swap the lettuce wedge for a tomato and mozzarella salad, chips for new potatoes and no onion loaf.  A pretty good effort as long as you save your HeA choice for the mozzarella.  I decided to create my own healthier meal and opted for the lettuce wedge with bacon and honey mustard, no chips, potato or onion loaf and I requested no butter on the steak.  So a few syns for the honey mustard dressing but overall a fairly Slimming World friendly meal.

New Inn Wombourne (A Marston's pub)

An unexpected lunch out with a friend, I chose a jacket potato with barbecue pulled pork (syn the BBQ sauce) and a salad.  Again I requested this without butter - beware though, neither the menu nor the waiting staff advised me that it was topped with cheese. 

Britannia Northampton (Chef and Brewer)

Another lunch out and I didn't have time to have a look at the menu prior to my visit but armed with the Slimming World rules, I opted for the Asian-style chilli duck noodles.  This was a delicious meal of noodles, duck and pak choi.  I am certain there would have been a few syns in the cooking of the noodles with oil but I cut the skin off the duck to minimise the syns.

Plough and Harrow Aldridge (Marston's Premium Country Pub)
This time I did have a look at the menu before I went and was planning to have Prawn and chorizo linguine.  However, when looking at the specials, the salmon with potatoes and tenderstem broccoli seemed like a better option.  It was served with a white wine sauce but there was only a small amount of sauce.  

My advice - try to check the menu before you go (most are now online), keep your app handy in case you need to search for something you are not sure about and don't be afraid to ask for your meal exactly as you want it (Most restaurants will be open to you asking for alternative accompaniments or no butter, no sauce etc. Just be aware that some meals will be pre-prepared and unable to be changed) and if all else fails, have a few SP days to compensate!

Stay positive

March 8th 2016

Weigh in

Stayed the same! I feel a bit let down with that as although I have had my Syns, I have stuck to the limits and I've also swapped potatoes and rice for vegetables on at least two main meals this week.  I will not be defeated though and will persevere.

Positive Comments

I've had a few comments recently from friends and colleagues that they have noticed my weight loss.  It's always nice to hear that when you have been putting in the effort.  I am also going to mention my Slimming World group leader Claire.  I had attended a different group before I found Claire and I only continued going there to meet up with the friends I had made.  Claire is an inspiration, we have a weekly text about the topic for class and she has a Facebook page for us to share ideas and get news.  I have also received personal texts from Claire, when I've done well she acknowledges it and when it's not such good news she provides support and encouragement. At a particularly bad time in January she even sent me a card which was such a lovely gesture.  I may only have lost a stone but I can't thank Claire enough for everything she has done, a real credit to Slimming World. 

Working Life

I don't think I have mentioned my work life before other than my shift patterns.  I'm not using it as an excuse but I read another Slimming World blog today about a lady who works with food and I thought it appropriate to mention that I do too!  Three days a week I am an Assessor of Hospitality Apprentices and two days a week I am a Hotel Receptionist.  I have had to learn to say the word 'No' a lot!!  To assess students at their full potential, the best time to visit them is meal times when they are serving the most customers, this often means being offered whatever is being served while I am there and not always being able to eat my lunch at the right time.  I tend to start and finish early where possible so as I mentioned I take my breakfast and coffee to have on my car journey and I have to take a packed lunch prepared the night before.  My receptionist job is Saturday 3-11pm and Sunday 7am - 3pm which means I have to be super organised before I leave for work on a Saturday to make sure I have dinner, snacks, breakfast, lunch and even Sunday night's dinner planned otherwise the staff meals (almost always involving chips), left over buffet and cakes are too much temptation.  

I'm sure you all have difficulties when it comes to sticking to plan so I know I'm not alone.

The next two weeks

I have a few days off work and a lot of meeting up with friends and meals out so I will see you on the other side....

Try something new every day

March 1st 2016

Weigh in

I did it! 2lb loss and my 1 stone award. I am so happy! Yes I know I'm not a great advert for the Slimming World diet as it has taken me since last July to achieve this award but I stuck with it and I've finally achieved the award.   

Something new
My challenge to myself this week was to try something new everyday.  I don't necessarily mean a new food although most of them are!

Wednesday: Cloud Bread
I had heard of this before but an item on the radio yesterday morning made me look into it to see what it was all about.  Cloud Bread is a carb free, gluten free alternative to bread and it turns out that is the case because it is predominantly egg!!  Now as I have said before, I don't do eggs but I decided to give the bake a go.  The recipe I followed was 2 eggs, separated, whisking the whites with 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder until stiff peaks and mixing the yolks with 2 tablespoons of cream cheese (I used Quark to keep it totally Syn free).  You then fold the yolk mix into the white mix until pale yellow and cook in an oven at 150 for about 20 minutes (to create bun like shapes).  It is not something I would have again but I did try it.  To give you a better idea, I gave it to some friends and I had comments such as 'tastes like Yorkshire Pudding' 'It's like eating cotton wool - not literally, its just very light and fluffy!', 'It's a bit like souffle', 'It tears exactly like bread' and 'I'd be happy to eat that with a slice of ham!'.  So the verdict - definitely worth a try - you can add herbs or spices to the mixture to give it a different taste.  Search Cloud Bread on Google for a selection of recipes.

Thursday: Cauli Rice
I started to talk about cauliflower rice in my 'Vegetables but not as we know them' blog and I have been putting off trying it until today, but in the spirit of trying something new I decided it was time to open the pouch.  I purchased Cauli Rice plain in a pouch for £1.99 in Sainsbury's.  You can heat in the microwave or, as I did, warm it in a pan on the stove with just a couple of tablespoons of water.  The smell is quite pungent when you open the pouch but this goes away as it cooks.  I added cumin to the 'rice' and served it with a Slimming World version of Chilli Con Carne.  My verdict: It was better than I expected and I would have it again, great if you are doing an SP day or want to cut down on your carbs.  It's not rice but it's not a bad substitute.

Friday: Exercise on the Wii
Using the Wii to exercise isn't new to me but we've had a problem with our machine so it's been a while since I've used it.  While I was in Game searching for a gift I came across pre-owned Wii games and one in particular - Dance on Broadway was only £2.99 so I made a purchase.  I love musicals and its full of songs I know so i have enjoyed dancing along to the characters on screen and some of my favourite songs from the musicals.  Body magic is encouraged by slimming world and its all about moving more so while the weather is still a bit grotty I will be dancing around my living room!


Saturday: A different hair colour
Like many women, I colour my hair on a regular basis to keep it looking fresh and to cover my (very few!) greys.  I use Avon hair colours as they are very reasonably priced and suit my hair but I always use the same colour which is basically my natural brown hair colour.  On my last Avon order, however, I ordered one with a reddish tint and today I tried it out.  It's always a slightly nervous moment after you have coloured your hair as the colour does not show correctly until you have dried it but I am pleased with my new colour and will be purchasing more of it, and maybe even another different one!

Sunday: A fresh(er) start!
An article in Essentials magazine (April p65) suggests 5 ways to start the day with a spring in your step.  In the article they state that coffee on an empty stomach stimulates hydrochloric acid and promotes the release of stress hormones, so today as they suggested, I have had a glass of water as my first drink to kick-start my metabolism. (I've still had my usual coffee, just delayed so it wasn't on an empty stomach!).  I will continue doing this to see whether it makes a difference.

Monday: Carrot crisps
I was purchasing petrol in Tesco and came across Crunchy Carrot Slices by the till.  All natural (tick), oven dried (tick), 1 of your five a day (great), ingredients listed as only carrot and lemon juice - fab, or so I thought.  Thinking how virtuous I was to have chosen these over crisps or chocolate I ate them on my journey.  When I finally had time to input the details into my App to find out if there were any Syns (I was expecting 2 or 3 at the very most) I was shocked to find they contain 5.5 Syns! Needless to say I won't be purchasing those again (they are £1 for 30g if anyone is interested and they also do sweet potato and apple versions) 

Tuesday: Nespresso Caramelito
After yesterdays disappointment over the carrot slices I was concerned that the new flavoured Nespresso capsules I had purchased would be dangerously high in Syns.  Nespresso is not listed on Slimming World so I hunted the internet in search of someone that might know.  There are many sites and forums on Slimming World but none of them have come up with a conculsive answer, giving anything from zero to 5 Syns as a guesstimate.  Once again I checked the packaging and the nutritional information states 0g in all areas, making it zero Syns...Yey.  Now I can have a Caramel Latte (using my HeA) with none of the guilt.

Food Diaries

February 23rd 2016

Weigh in

Well I think that proves that keeping a food diary works...I lost 1.5lb.  Very pleased with that as it's not been a perfect week but by writing things down I have definitely kept on track.  Going to carry on with the food diary next week in an attempt to lose 2lb which will bring me to my first stone since re-joining.

My Food Diaries

Wednesday:
I was a bit dis-organised for the first day of my food diary week so ended up with no S foods for breakfast - I had my coffee with sweetener and lacto free milk (some of my A choice) and 30g of All Bran Chocolate Wheats (B choice).  Then I had a very stressful journey to work resulting in a flat tyre, the RAC, an expensive Kwik Fit Bill and a two and a half hour delay!  After pulling off the Kwik Fit carpark, I realised I needed petrol so stopped at the next garage...and purchased a 4 finger kit kat (whoops).  It was only after I'd eaten it that I checked the Syns - 11.5!!  Not a good start to the day or the week.  Fortunately I had prepared lunch of tuna, sweetcorn, cucumber, broccoli, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar.  When I got home I had a coffee with the rest of my A choice - lacto free milk.  For tea I had a chicken breast with ratatouille made from tinned tomatoes, red pepper, onion and mushrooms.  I drank water and diet coke.  All in all not a bad day, SP really although I didn't have my 2nd B choice. (11.5 total syns)

Friday:

Samosa and bhaji

I started the day again with 30g All Bran Chocolate Wheats, coffee, sweetener and some lacto free milk along with some melon.  I had planned an Indian feast for my parents coming to dinner so I had a very busy day preparing.  For lunch I ate leftover chow mein (made for tea the night before) which contained noodles and lots of vegetables.  Dinner as I said was an Indian feast starting with homemade samosas (1 syn each), homemade onion bhajis (1 syn each), poppudoms (2 syns each), tomato, onion and cucumber salad then a main course of pilau rice, prawn dopiaza, chicken tikka masala and lamb rogan josh (all Slimming World recipes and all syn free.  I had 2 each of the starter items so 8 syns for that plus a few glasses of wine!! (uncounted syns)

Indian main course 

Saturday:
It is a bit of a tradition that we have bacon sandwiches on a Saturday morning so this morning's breakfast was bacon (all fat removed), a wholemeal roll (B choice), 1 tbsp tomato ketchup (1 syn), melon afterwards and coffee made with lacto free milk (some of my A choice).  For lunch I had a tuna salad but this time with extra light mayo (1 tbsp - 1 syn), tuna, sweetcorn, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, grated carrot, gherkin.  I work on a Saturday evening starting at 3pm so I took a bag of poshcorn (6 syns) for a snack and leftover lamb rogan josh with pilau rice for my tea.  Drinks were water, coffee and diet coke (8 total syns)

Sunday:
Work starts at 7am today so I took melon and ham, half a tin of tomatoes and 1 slice of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf to toast (B choice).  For lunch I had made double of the tuna salad yesterday so 1 syn for the mayo then for tea I had chicken cooked with peppers, onions, mushrooms and pasta with a 1/4 pack of fajita spice mix (1 syn) topped with 15g mozzarella (half an A choice) along with a glass of rose (6 syns) (7 total syns).  Drinks today were water, diet coke, coffee and wine.

Vegetables but not as we know them!

February 16th 2016

As I told you in my first blog, I will be 40 in June this year and instead of a party I am taking a few close friends and family to Royal Ascot for Ladies Day.  I hate not being organised so I have already been looking for a suitable dress to wear for this special occasion.  Having tried a few and discarded them, I came across a beautiful dress from Whistles in the sale on the John Lewis website...the only problem - they only had a size 10 but ever the optimist I ordered it anyway to give it a try...and....I can fasten it!!!  Now it could look better but did I mention that I fastened it!!? A size 10!!  So in the words of another screen character Carrie Bradshaw: 'The dress has upped the ante!' and while I would be more than happy with the eight pounds I set out to lose at the start of this blog, my ultimate aim for June is to weigh 10 stone 5lb which would be a fabulous two stone weight loss since I first joined Slimming World in January 2014.

Weigh in

So after missing a weigh in last week, I've put on half a pound.  As the lady at the scales said it's neither here nor there but I know I need to put in a bit more effort.  Attending group each week certainly keeps me on track and this week I am going to do a food diary which will either tell me where I'm going wrong or encourage me to stick to plan.  I will keep you posted!

Spiralized Veg

Inspiralized.com describe spiralized vegetables as: The art of turning vegetables and fruits into noodles. Simple as that, but so revolutionary. Spiralized vegetable pasta or “Inspiralized” pasta is inherently gluten-free, paleo, vegan and vegetarian friendly, low carb friendly, and of course, it’s a cleaner, more wholesome way to eat. Spiralized pasta is not only nutritious and filling, it’s easy to make. Spiralizing is for all ages, diet lifestyles and skill levels. The spiralizer allows you to transform a healthy, low-calorie, low-carb vegetable into a giant bowl of pasta! Top with the right sauce and protein and you’ve got a delicious meal that won’t break the diet bank– in minutes.

I have purchased a spiral cutter to have a go at making my own but if you are short of time then most of the supermarkets have their own versions of spiralized veg.

I tried a bag of Butternut Squash noodles (or Boodles!!) from Sainsbury's and I have to say I was not impressed.  I cooked it, took one taste and thew it out! To be honest I'm not a huge fan of ready prepared, pre-bagged vegetables as I find they become slimy very quickly, but don't let me stop you.

Sainsbury's also do a 300g bag of Courgetti for £1.20

 I found a carrot spaghetti on the Tesco website but it is currently unavailable to purchase

Waitrose do a Courgette Spaghetti at £1.29

Cauliflower Rice

As well as spiralized veg, an alternative to rice or cous cous is Cauliflower.  This has always been suggested by Slimming World as a good option especially if you are trying to follow the SP diet.  I have to say I have never tried it before now although I do like cauliflower so I'm not really sure what put me off - probably the time consuming preparation!  It seems that producers have cottoned onto this and like other pre-prepared veg we can buy to save time on our busy lives they are now selling cauliflower rice.

Here are a few options I found looking around:

The cauli rice pouches come in different flavours but it is useful to note that only the original one is free.  I haven't got round to trying my cauli rice yet but I will let you know when I do.

See you next week