Busy and Hard Week ..

So just come back from last minute workout before weigh in. Me and Gareth did 40 lengths in the pool. Feel quite good about it as well today. Before that I had a simple ham and cheese salad getting my Healthy A in there. I am now just munching on an after body workout snack of a Hi-Fi bar, getting my Healthy B in.

 

This week is a busy Christmas week for Gareth and I, we have 3 meals out so it's going to be hard to get a loss in next week. We're going to try really hard all the other days and get lots of body magic in to try and make up for it, we now have something going on every day up to Thursday next week. Not to mention I'm going to see him everyday until Thursday next week, that's a lot of Gareth. Haha.

 

Today was Swimming getting our body magic in.

Tomorrow, I'll be at my son's Christmas play in the morning, then in the evening is weigh in. But tomorrow is a special weigh in, because straight after is our SW Christmas meal. I am very excited to have a great meal with great people. I think there is about 30 of us out of our group going. I've already chosen my meal of Tomato and Basil soup, Traditional Turkey dinner and for desert Raspberry Blondie.

On Wednesday we will be shopping then off to the gym, that day will be a food good day, of pasta or salad!

Thursday is London day, we're going down to London for a spot of shopping, meal out and into Winter Wonderland (if you want to know about Winter Wonderland, it's on Gareths blog here). This will be a hard day of hot chocolates, Harrod's cake's and a Mexican meal at Chiquito's. I'm going to try and choose good in the restaurant and restrain myself from the delicious cakes, but I'm not that strong!

On Friday it's gym day, trying to burn off what I ate in London.

Saturday is another day out. This one in York, where there will be a lot of walking around which I hope will help but will consist of a meal at Lendall Cellars which is a gorgeous restaurant in the centre of York.

Sunday is damage control once again by going to the gym, I'm going to really push myself to try for if anything a maintain!

Monday is back to Swimming, a last chance body magic session, and then we come round to Tuesday once again and weigh in, where we will learn our fate of the week.

Wednesday will be gym, depending on the results of the night before weigh in, it could be just a normal work out or pushing it to lose the gain!

 

So you see a hectic week of up and down food, I am actually optimistic that I can control this and not get that much of  gain. I use the in between days of meals as body magic days and eat syn free or very low syn foods such at pasta, salads or jacket potatoes. Also trying always to get my fruit and veg in (superfree foods). One things for sure is there is no bad snacking and no bread. I am cutting them out this week. I am in the zone!

Aching & Cheesecake ..

Ow. I am in some pain, on my legs and stomach. Gemma had me and Gareth doing circuit training in the gym yesterday afternoon and I can feel it. I mean it was a great workout, I was panting by the end of it but my god I hurt today. I've just come back from doing a few lengths in the pool to maybe ease my muscles, it helped a little.

Last night I made vanilla & chocolate cheesecake so it would be ready for lunch today. The dish serves 10 and each slice is 6 syns. Not bad for a lovely dessert. Here's how its made.

 

 

Ingredients:

10 digestive biscuits, finely crushed

50g low fat spread (suitable for baking), melted

50g dark chocolate

2 level tbsp powdered gelatine

3 x 165g pots Müllerlight New York Style Cheesecake yoghurts

100g quark

1 tsp vanilla extract

4 tbsp sweetener

 

1. Mix the biscuits with the spread in a bowl, then spoon into a 20cm diameter, non-stick, loose-bottom cake tin. Flatten with the back of a fork, cover and chill in the fridge for about 30 mins.

2. Meanwhile melt the chocolate and allow to cool a little.

3. Sprinkle the gelatine into 75ml of boiling water and stir to dissolve. Put the Müllerlight, quark, extract, sweetener and gelatine mixture in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour in the mixture of the biscuit base and swirl in the melted chocolate. Cover and chill in the fridge overnight.

4. Serve by cutting into 10 slices, try adding some raspberry to add a little fruit.

 

 

 

 

Before I went out swimming I made Grilled Lamb Cutlets with sautéed Rosemary Potatoes. Absolutely delicious and syn free.

 

Ingredients:

1lb 5oz potatoes, peeled and cut into 1.5cm cubes

seasoning

Fry Light

1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

12 lean lamb cutlets or chops, all visible fat removed

 

1. Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil and add the potatoes. Boil for 8-10 mins or until just tender. Drain thoroughly.

2. Spray a large, non-stick frying pan with Fry Light. Add the rosemary, garlic and potatoes. Stir-fry over a medium heat, turning the potatoes regularly for 6-8 mins or until golden.

3. Meanwhile mix together the Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce and brush over the lamb. Season well on both sides and place under a medium-hot grill. Cook for 5 mins on each side or until cooked to your liking. Remove from the grill and serve with the sautéed potatoes and vegetables.



PB Best Record Broken!

So just got back from doing some exercise in the pool. I have just broken my personal best of 50 laps and done 60, I'm ecstatic, I really am. I have never done this much swimming, I don't even like swimming that much. Ha ha.

I was lagging when it came to 55 but me and Gareth really pushed ourselves and really tried and I am quite proud of us. I am hurting and I'm most likely going to feel it tomorrow but it will be worth it!

Before I went swimming I made Beef and Bean Hot-Pot Bake for dinner. Yes it's the return of the one pot but I love them, I really can't stress enough how easy they are.

 

 

 

Ingredients:

 

750g lean stewing beef, all visible at removed, cuubed

2 large onions, peeled and roughly chopped

450g carrots, peeled and rougly chopped

1 level tbsp plain flour

salt and pepper

200ml boiling hot beef stock

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

400g can baked beans

2 bay leaves

600g potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

 

1. Preheat oven 180c/Gas 4.

2. Place the beef, onions, carrots and flour in a baking dish, season and toss to mix well.

3. Pour in the boiling hot stock, then add the Worcestershire sauce, baked beans and bay leaves. Stir to mix well and arrange the slices of potato on top of the meat mixture.

4. Cover with foil then place in oven for about 1 and a 1/2 hours or until the potatoes are cooked and tender.

5. Remove foil, then turn the oven up to brown the potatoes, or finish under grill for 5-8 mins until brown.

 

I served mine with some greens and it was gorgeous, serves for and it's 1 syn each serving.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Meal Plan for the Week ..

 

So, normal Sunday protocol today. I had a scrummy Sunday lunch of chicken, veg, small Yorkshire pudding and gravy. I've done well with my snacking today, I chose grapes instead of anything fattening. I unfortunately couldn't get any exercise in today so I'll have to push myself tomorrow at swimming.

 

There is something I have tried different today and that is a meal plan, I have set out meals for the week and worked out the syns for each meal.

 

 



 

 

Sometimes when it comes to dinner I haven't thought of anything and I'm rushing to find something or I throw something easy together that I didn't really enjoy, and then that is when I snack on something that isn't good for me, so hopefully this will help with that, and working out before will give me some knowledge of what I can have for lunch or as a treat/snack. 

Body Magic? ..

 

 

Today was meant to be a body fitness day, gym and swimming.

Unfortunately things went wrong, 40 mins into the gym session I was feeling sick, maybe I had done too much already or not had enough water. I think mostly though it was because we went early and I hadn't eaten. This is my downfall, no breakfast. Admittedly I have never had breakfast, it is not something that sits well with me, but now I'm being active more and having longer days maybe I should invest in it?

 

So that was the gym cut short but then we went forward onto the swimming pool, unfortunately that did not go as planned either, only half of the pool was open so we couldn't really do lengths or for Gareth's sadness we couldn't go on the flumes. So all in all a pretty poor day for body magic, but I know I'll get 50 lengths in at the pool on Monday so looking forward to that.

 

When I got back it was time for dinner, not really planned anything today so it was pretty much throw something together. I decided on ham pasta salad with a jacket potato, I haven't had Healthy A today so I used that on cheese for JP. Sometimes its just really easy to throw a salad together for dinner, can be really filling and depending on what your vital ingredient is can be really flavourful. And don't forget completely syn free!

 



Productive Day? ..

 

Today was what I would like to call a 'productive one'. Sold a hell of a lot of old clothes on EBay over the week so it being the first business day after, I had to package, stamp and post them all. I have found it to be a really easy way of making money.

 

Next I was putting a ham in to cook so I can have a nice ham salad in the week and some thick ham sandwiches, they are the best!

 

I even tackled my ironing pile today, I was on a roll.

 

Yes a very productive day indeed. It was next onto dinner, minced beef hash with petit pan.

 



 

 

 

This is what I like to call comfort food, it just so warm and delicious and is all made in one pot so it's easy to make and there isn't many pots to wash up after.

 

Ingredients:

 

Fry Light

2 onions, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp ground cumin

450g extra lean minced beef

2 carrots, peeled and diced

300g potatoes, peeled and diced

400g can of plum tomatoes

100ml beef stock

1 tsp dried oregano

4 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

salt and pepper

 

1. Spray a large lidded frying pan with Fry Light and place over a medium heat. Add the onions and stir-fry for 2-3 mins.

2. Add garlic and cumin, stirring for a few moments to release the flavours.

3. Add the minced beef and cook on high, stirring all the time and breaking up any lumps, until all the meat is sealed and brown.

4. Add the carrot, potatoes, tomatoes, stock and oregano and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, covered, for 12-15 mins.

5. Remove from heat, stir in parsley and season to taste before serving.

 

You can add more veg to get more superfree in, or some green chilli to maybe give it an extra kick. I served it with a weight watchers petit pan and used it as my healthy B.

This is a completely easy and syn free meal.

 

After the gorgeous meal had settled it was off to do some laps at swimming to get my body magic in. I usually do 50 lengths but got sidetracked chatting so only managed 32.

 

Got talking to Gemma (friend and fellow slimmer) about a great idea to freeze soup, so she gave me some to take home and try. She has her own great blog with more wonderful ideas and recipe Here. Go check her out!

 

Tomorrow is weigh in day and also taster session, looking forward to it, I'll let you know how I got on.