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 

Chips and Egg

"I like chips and egg on a Tuesday, today's Thursday - where's my steak?' 

(Shirley Valentine)

Chips

I said in my first blog that I would let you into the secret of Slimming World chips.  You can have chips, with anything and everything, they just have to be Slimming World ones you make at home (not chip shop or oven chips!).

The ones I cooked for the photos were french fries but you can use the same method for thick cut chips or wedges, just increase the cooking time for a thicker cut.

Cut your potatoes into thin fries, 












pre-heat the oven to 200c (180c for a fan oven) then boil the fries in slightly salted water for a couple of minutes before draining 





















(I like to pat them dry on kitchen towel as well), 











spread them on a baking tray that you have sprayed with fry light (or you can use baking parchment), 











spray the fries with fry light and bake for 15 minutes, turning half way through cooking, until lightly golden.  











Season with salt to serve.









Thicker cut chips should be boiled for 5 mins and baked for 20 mins, wedges don't need to be boiled, just baked for 30-35 mins

Eggs

Eggs are a Slimming World member's best friend and I can't stand them!!  I wish I could face eating one as there are so many FREE recipes you can make with an egg, from simple scrambled, poached or boiled to something a bit more challenging like chicken and tarragon frittata, crustless quiche, ham and mushroom or asparagus and roasted pepper 'muffins' or a tortilla.  You can use them to make a wrap, use them as an alternative pizza base, make fritters, sauces for pasta...the list is endless.  There is no limit to the amount of eggs you can eat in a week either.

This week

I'm posting a bit earlier than usual this week as there is no weigh in for me on Tuesday.  I am doing my best to stay on track and not using the 'holiday' as an excuse to over indulge.  I love popcorn and have discovered that by microwaving 25g of natural kernels with no oil then adding a teaspoon of icing sugar you can make a cheap 5 syn snack!!  I have also purchased a spiralizer for my veg so I will be giving that new craze a go when it arrives.  

It's Magazine day!!

February 2nd 2016

Weigh in

Another half a pound gone tonight and in the words of the famous fable 'Slow and steady wins the race!'.  Like I said in my first blog, I'm not going to win any awards for amazing weight losses but at least it's all in the right direction and I'll get there in the end!

The Magazine

I love receiving the text from my lovely group leader Claire each week and I'm even more delighted when she announces that the new magazine is out.  As members we have access to it earlier than in the shops and at a reduced cost so double whammy!  

The Slimming World magazine is full of stories of members who have achieved their own goals and have their own journeys you can read about which is always nice, but for me it's the inspiration of new recipes to try and new foods that are around (from 17th February, Iceland will have two new meals and I can't wait to try the Chicken & Chorizo style sausage Paella).  

Next Week

Short and sweet this week, I haven't tried any new recipes to share with you, been sticking to old and new favourites due to being busy at work and having other commitments.  There won't be a weigh in next week but I am still working on a blog for you, this coming week I have a night away in a spa hotel for a friend's 40th (I will be taking my Slimming World magazine for pool-side reading!) and a night out at the theatre so hopefully my weigh in in two weeks will be positive.