Get Creative

January 26th 2016

Weigh in

Just the half a pound this week but I have to keep reminding myself that every little counts and anything off is better than on!  

Get Creative

Do you, like me, have lots of cookery books (not Slimming World) that you may think you will never open up again.  Well, time to get creative!  Unless it's The Great British Bake Off cakes and breads, most recipes can be adapted with a little thought and imagination.  This week I had a look through an old favourite - Jamie Oliver Return of the Naked Chef and on page 174 is his five hour lamb with wine, veg and all that!  The recipe serves 6, I have listed it as printed with my minor adjustments in brackets to make it Slimming World friendly...

1 large leg of lamb (fine as long as it's lean with all visible fat removed)
salt and pepper
olive oil (replace with fry light and a little water if needed)
6 rashers of thick, streaky bacon (I used back bacon with all fat removed)
3 red onions peeled and quartered
3 cloves of garlic peeled and sliced
2 handfuls of herbs - thyme, rosemary, bay leaf
4 large potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
1 celeriac peeled and cut into chunks
6 large carrots scrubbed and halved
3 parsnips scrubbed and halved
1 bottle of white wine (I used a 175ml glass which is 6 syns - divided by 6 is 1 syn per portion - if you want to use a whole bottle it will make it approx 4 syns per portion)

Preheat the oven to 170c.  In a large casserole dish, brown well seasoned lamb in fry light then add bacon, onions and garlic and fry for a further 3 minutes.  Add herbs and veg, pour in wine and top up with water (Jamie uses water equivalent to the amount of wine - you will need to use more water - a stock cube will also add more flavour).  Bring to the boil, cover and bake in the oven for 5 hours.  He serves with bread, I don't think you need anything as it's all in the pot but add extra veg if you wish.

Lunches in a bowl!

Variety is key to sticking to any plan.  I find lunch the hardest to be inspired for but I came across some more recipes for salad lunches and as I enjoyed the 'Burger in a bowl' so much I decided to give them a try.  Both recipes were in an old copy of a Slimming World magazine.  Firstly Mexican chicken: make up a pack of Ainsley Harriott Mexican style rice, top with grilled strips of skinless chicken, Old El Paso refried beans (I left these out), shredded lettuce and red onion slices (I also used red pepper strips).  Serve with 1tbsp reduced fat guacamole (1 Syn).  The second one was Club sandwich in a bowl: shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, grilled back bacon (all fat removed) and turkey slices, serve with mustard mayo made with 1 tbsp extra-light mayo and 1/2 tsp mustard powder with a tsp water.  Both lunches were delicious and have inspired me to think of some other sandwich fillings that I can turn into a low Syn salad.

The rest of my Week

Breakfast: Sausage sandwich made with 2 x Slimming World sausages and 2 slices of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf, tinned tomatoes on toast (2 x slices of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf), 30g Weetabix minis


Lunch: Burger in a bowl, homemade smoked salmon pate, Mexican chicken, Club sandwich in a bowl



Dinner: Cottage pie, Chicken and mushroom pasta, Salmon with soy & ginger noodles

My tip...Use the Slimming World app when shopping to keep on track and not purchase anything you may later regret

Iceland

January 19th 2016

Weigh in

I nearly didn't make it having had to work late but I got there and am delighted to have lost 2lb! Finally back on the weight loss wagon after Christmas.

Iceland

As you may know, Iceland sell Slimming World ready meals along with some soups, sauces, sausages and burgers.  If you can't get to an Iceland, you can order online and they will deliver free of charge of you spend £35 (on any of their products, not just Slimming World) so may be a chance to fill your freezer with both Slimming World meals and Slimming World friendly products.  I added frozen fish and vegetables to my order.  All of the meals are a good portion, possibly stretching to a meal for two when you add vegetables or salad and maybe potatoes or rice.  My favourite meal I have tried so far is the Chicken Tikka Masala and I also love the sausages and burgers.  A great way to use the burgers without the need for a bun is the 'Big Mac in a bowl'  The original recipe states 5% fat mince meat as the 'burger' but it works just as well with a Slimming World burger.

Life!
Work, children (for some, although not for me), friends and day to day 'stuff' can all get in the way of your slimming.  Last week I was running out of time to do a food shop so on Thursday I quickly logged on to Sainsbury's online and managed to get a delivery slot for 7.30am Friday - fridge and cupboards now fully stocked I was ready for the weekend.  Saturday is a working day for me (a 3-11pm shift) so I prepared a meal to take with me.  Sunday was our staff party and having already had a high Syn buffet this week, I decided to take my own food. Easier said than done I know but the event was taking place at the hotel I work in so I packed a lunch box, kept it in the kitchen fridge and when it was time for the buffet I retreated to the kitchen to empty the contents onto a buffet plate...returned to the room and no one was any the wiser!  Can't say I was a saint in the alcohol area though but as I spent most of the night on the dance floor I think I got my body magic in too!

The rest of my Week

So I mentioned last week that I attended a funeral of a close friend and on such an emotional day with a buffet provided, there is not much you can control food wise.  I had to just go with the flow and have a small portion of buffet...one thing I did have that I probably shouldn't (but it was something my friend and I shared a love of) was a slice of coffee and walnut cake.  The trip home took a lot longer than expected so it was early evening before I was home and it would have been so easy to get a takeaway but I was strong and felt as I'd already had more than my daily allowance of Syns I shouldn't add any more on the day so I cooked a quick Salmon fillet with soy and ginger noodles (thanks to my online shopping order on Thursday night we had food in the house to cook with!)

Breakfast: 2 x slices of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf topped with tinned tomatoes, All Bran Chocolate Wheats (30g) plus melon, Sausage sandwich - 2 x Slimming World sausages on 2 x slices of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf plus melon


Lunch: Chicken & rice salad with stir fry vegetables, jacket potato with tuna and sweetcorn served with a salad, Big Mac in a Bowl (lettuce, tomato, gherkin, 2 x slimming world burgers, cheese slices, thousand island sauce)

Dinner: Gammon, vegetables and potatoes (roasted in fry light), Prawn and tomato linguine

(sorry for the lack of photos this week, I forgot to take any!)
My tip...Plan, Plan, Plan... that's all I have to say, it's the main key to a good or great weight loss week.

I will point out cause I haven't yet that this is a personal blog and in no way affiliated with Slimming World.  Some of the recipes are from their books or websites but the opinions are purely personal.

Fakeaway

January 12th 2016

Weigh in

I have a confession....I was not going to publish my post this week but a friend and fellow Slimming World member has persuaded me that it's a real blog by a real slimmer...I just don't feel like it this week (a slimmer!).  Ok, I put on 1lb and I'm not feeling massively confident about the coming week with a close friends funeral to attend and a party at the weekend but I will try my best and hope that the 1lb comes off next week.

Back to reality

January can be a dull and uninspiring month, Christmas decorations packed away, house looks bare and going back to work after a festive break while payday seems forever away!  Time to get back into my morning routine.  I have to leave for work before 7am and although I have always been a 'get up and eat my breakfast immediately' type of person, I found that by doing this so early I was starving by 10am and purchasing high Syn snacks to keep me going until lunchtime.  I now prepare a Tupperware pot with either All Bran Chocolate Wheats or Weetabix Minis (both a B choice for 30g) which can be eaten with my fingers (no milk!!) on my journey along with a latte from my Nespresso machine made with 150ml of lactofree semi-skimmed milk (half of my daily A choice allowance) and two sweeteners.  I then chop up some melon and take it in a second tub to enjoy when I get to the office.  Lunch is usually also a Tupperware tub with something like a chicken salad or pasta salad.  This week has been quite hectic and I have to confess I've probably not had enough fruit, vegetables and salad in my breakfasts and lunches, although I have done my best to make up for it in the evening.

How about a fakeaway?

A Chicken Tikka Masala in an Indian Restaurant can 'cost' you around 22 Syns so why not save money and Syns and make your own from the Slimming World Fakeaway book.  
Mix lime juice, yoghurt and tikka curry powder, add chicken and marinate.  After a minimum of four hours or overnight, add onion, garlic, chilli, cumin and some tikka curry powder to a pan and fry for a couple of minutes.  Stir in tomato puree and water, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 mins.  Grill the chicken pieces and stir into the sauce.  The curry is FREE, serve with rice FREE and for a little treat, I like a poppadom (Sharwoods plain ones are 2 Syns each)

The rest of my Week

Breakfast: almost full English - bacon, mushrooms, tinned tomatoes, 1 slice of wholemeal break (400g loaf - B choice) plus a tablespoon of tomato ketchup (1 Syn)


Lunch: Prawn salad, smoked salmon salad, tomato pasta mug shot (you must put salad or fruit with this but I was too busy that day)



Dinner:  Sweet and Sour Pork with rice (1 Syn),  Cod wrapped in parma ham with baby corn and mange tout (1 Syn), Chilli prawn linguine (free)

My tip...I mentioned using half of my milk allowance on my morning coffee.  A latte feels like such a treat that I sometimes have a second one during the afternoon or after my dinner (I'm not much of a pudding person) using the remaining 150ml of my A choice

I hope I have better news for you next week!

Entertaining

January 5th 2016

Weigh in

Here we go then, first weigh in of the new year, not quite a full week of sticking to plan and I have managed to maintain.  Still the eight pounds to go then but feeling positive about the coming week.

Party Season!

Christmas and New Year are well and truly over but we all have special occasions and parties throughout the year so here is my Slimming World buffet to impress your friends and keep your weight loss on track.  I served this on Christmas Eve.  It takes a bit of effort but well worth it.

Smoked salmon, Chinese duck wraps, Indian spiced chicken nuggets (SW little book of light bites p65 & 75), Mediterranean fish cakes (SW little book of lunches p16) mozzarella cups (SW Christmas p123 - 1 syn each), merguez sausage bites (SW summer days p55) and prawns coated in breadcrumbs (my own recipe and free if using bread as healthy extra). Potato wedges and salad. All free unless stated and all delicious.  

Dinner Party

It's always lovely to have friends round for dinner and why should that change just because you are on a diet....sorry - healthy eating plan!  On New Years Day (My husband and I worked New Years Eve so we had our celebratory meal on 1st Jan) I decided to push the boat out and make what Slimming World called a Beef Wellington.  Traditionally of course Beef Wellington contains pate which would push the Syns up way too high so I think this would more accurately be called Beef en Croute.  Still 6 Syns for the filo pastry which is higher than I normally like to use on a meal (I prefer to save my Syns for what I consider to be a proper treat) but delicious and a great alternative to the traditional version.  I used fillet steaks (the recipe didn't mention this but I sealed them in a pan, sweated off some finely chopped mushrooms, onions and garlic - you can use any type of mushroom but they do suggest a mix of Porcini and chestnut, which gives the dish a fantastic richness - cut a filo pastry sheet in half and wrapped both halves around the steak and mushroom mixture to make a parcel and cooked on 200 (fan oven) for 15-20 minutes (this makes the steak fairly well done so if you prefer rarer steak, cook it for less time).  Served with some Slimming World Chips (more in these in a future blog) and vegetables.

The rest of my Week

I have returned to following the Slimming World plan, making sure I plan my meals for the week and have low syn or no syn snacks available for emergencies!  Here are a few of the other meals I have enjoyed this week...

Breakfast: Weetabix minis with chocolate chips (30g B choice) plus melon, bacon sandwich (cutting off the fat) with 2 x slices of wholemeal bread from a 400g loaf (B choice) with tomatoes and mushrooms


Lunch: Homemade vegetable lasagne (1 syn per serving), pastrami, gherkin and pepper lettuce wraps (free and SP), smoked salmon and prawn pasta salad (made with 1tbsp thousand island dressing - 1 syn)

Dinner: Lamb Hot pot (1 syn per portion), Spaghetti Bolognese (free), Chicken Tikka Masala with rice (free)

My tip...When you have the oven on cooking your dinner, pop a jacket potato in to cook, they keep in the fridge for a couple of days and can be quickly heated in the microwave for lunch or a quick tea.  Not quite the same as eating one straight out of the oven but a quick and easy meal when you don't have much time.

A little bit of history

About me...

My name is Louise and in June 2016 I will turn forty!  In my childhood and teenage years I was always skinny...underweight if anything and wearing clothes years younger than my age.  At 21 I was still slim, then at 22 I moved into my first flat alone and that's where the trouble started!  Now those of you that know me would maybe never have labelled me as overweight but it's all about feeling happy in your own skin.  I lost weight for my wedding, I lost weight for my 30th and have basically been on a permanent diet! They say age is just a number and it's how you feel that matters, well I feel the same about my weight.  I have a number in mind that I would like the scales to say and I've come close but never quite made it....something I intend to change in 2016.

Diets...

I've tried Weight Watchers, Rosemary Conley, Calorie counting, Atkins and the 5:2.  I am sure many of you could reel of many more than that but I have never been tempted to attempt Slim Fast or any other replacement diets (I like my food too much!!). When being strict and sticking to any of the diets, they all work so if any of you are currently doing any of the above, and it's working for you, stick with it.  A few years ago I discovered Slimming World which I have found to suit me the best, it combines healthy eating with my love of cooking.  I tried to follow the plan at home but my lack of will power without the dreaded weigh in in front of someone else meant it didn't work well so I joined a group in January 2014.  

A difficult couple of years...

Now this isn't a heart wrenching weight loss story in the style of the inspirational members you read about in the magazines, it's an up and down, couple of pounds at a time story which is never likely to get a mention but it's mine and I thought I would share the slow amble to the finish line with you.   The final straw (this time!) was a Godson's Christening in the winter of 2013 when I finally gave in and purchased a size 16 dress.  I had, for the most of my adult life, been a size 12 which I am happy with, crept up to a 14 which I was ok with but the purchase of a size 16 dress was more than I could take, even more crushing when I split it at the seam!  Things had got to change! I weighed in at 12 stone 5lb in January 2014 (I am 5ft 3) and set my target at 10 stone 10 (My ideal weight at this stage in my life is 10 stone 7 but you are allowed a 3lb either way window so this will be the lower for me and my upper allowance will keep me under 11 stone).  During 2014 I made it down to 10 stone 11...only one pound to go then things went wrong...I was unhappy at work so made the decision to leave in July 2014 without a job to go to, this left me at home for two months, resulting in boredom, picking and generally eating things I shouldn't.  I persevered with the Slimming World class but then in September 2014 my luck changed and I went from no job to two jobs (both part time).  Getting back into shift work at one job and used to a new regime in the other with lots of travelling meant more unhealthy, snack type on the go foods for the rest of 2014.  I gave up going to class as I couldn't face the result each week.

The turning point...

Fast forward to June 2015.  A light came on on my 39th Birthday, I had one more year left in my thirties and I wasn't planning to be 'fat at forty!' A friend had joined another Slimming World group and as I knew how good the diet was I decided to go along with her.  My first weigh in on July 14th was 11 stone 13 pounds...not great but at least I hadn't quite put on everything I'd lost.  I've again had an up and down six months weight wise and have finished the year eight pounds away from my target (it was six but Christmas added two to the pot!!)

So why the blog?...

Well, it's 1st January and in the words of my screen heroine Bridget Jones I 

have decided to take control of my life...and start a blog...to tell the truth about me... I plan to share the final steps of my weight loss journey on the road to my milestone birthday with hopefully some inspirational recipes and tips for you along the way