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Food: Re-Creating Old Classics #2 French Toast

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When it comes to weekend breakfasts I like to have something quite special. In the week I tend to stick to some variation of scrambled eggs, but for me, you can't beat a sweet breakfast.

Therefore I've decided to make a healthier version of French Toast and share it with you all.

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You will need:

1 egg

1 banana

Some raspberries

Warbutons Sandwich Thins

Cinamon

Skimmed Milk

Choc Shot

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Mix together the egg, with a splash of milk and some cinnamon. IMG_3782

Then coat the thins in the mixture. Don't leave them for too long as they'll get a bit soggy.

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Then just place them in a frying pan with some fry light and cook till crunchy.

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Top with the berries and banana and a teaspoon of choc shot.

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All of this is 0 pp on filling and healthy.

Enjoy!

Musings: Staying healthy on holiday

IMG_3537For me holiday usually symbols a time for me to gorge myself on all the food I wish and slob around doing nothing all day. This time however, things were a bit different.

I decided that I wanted to carry on doing Weight Watchers and decided I'd point and track everything I ate and did. If you read my previous post you'll know I even attended a Weight Watchers meeting whilst away, though I wasn't best pleased with the outcome.

With all this in mind I decided to share a few tips and tricks I learnt along the week to help my fellow weight watchers.

First up, breakfast.

It's a tradition in our family that we have a massive fry up for breakfast on holiday.

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Ah man, look at that! Whilst you could obviously point for all that and have it and enjoy it, I decided to follow Filling and Healthy, which meant I could have all of this:

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0PP. Whilst it's not as enticing as the above picture, this bad boy plate filled me pretty much until dinner and didn't leave me feeling left out. Also, one day I really wanted a sausage (oo-er) so had one, and pointed it!

I swapped the normal bread for a Warbutons thin and scrambled my egg instead of fried it.

For lunch I rarely had a proper meal, choosing instead to snack on fruit as I wasn't that hungry. A big brunch really filled me. My tip for lunch would be to pack something to take with you, for example a Warbutons thin with some ham and fruit/veg to snack on will get you out of a jam, or look for places selling jacket potatoes.

When we're normally on holiday we tend to eat out every night, however this year we made the most of being self-catered (we self cater every year, just never eat in!) On the nights we did go out, I opted for steak and tried to get a jacket potato to go with it. however nowhere really sold them. One night I decided to eat what I really wanted off the menu, 'cause I was on holiday, and the rest I tracked and pointed everything.

To get around the jacket potato situation I've found that by only putting half the chips I've been served on my plate and giving the rest away made me realise I don't need the whole lot of them, and I can save points.

So an average meal out ended up being:

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Overall my tips would be:

1) Find smarter substitutions.

2) Don't deprive yourself, but don't go overboard either.

3) Keep active!

4) Split things with others.

5) Stop when you're full.

What are your top holiday tips?





Food: Re-Creating Old Classics #1 Chicken New Yorker

Chicken New YorkerAfter a week on holiday watching everyone else order all the delicious but high-pointage food I decided to create a series on this ol' blog here of pub classics made Weight Watchers friendly.

The first of these is Chicken New Yorker and chips.

You will need (for one person)

1 potato

1 tbsp of oil

1 chicken breast

1 bacon medallion

1 tbsp of BBQ Sauce

1 Weight Watchers Cheese slice

To begin, start by chopping your potato into chip like slices.

IMG_3714The put the tbsp of oil into a pan and add the potato strips to it.

IMG_3716Cook them in the oven for around 20-25 minutes on a high heat.

It's now time to prepare the chicken.

IMG_3719Grab your skinless chicken breast and wrap the bacon medallion around it.

Add it to the pan with the chips and cook for around 20 minutes.

IMG_3720Once the chicken is cooked add the BBQ sauce and cheese over the top. I chose to break my cheese square up. Then but it back in the over for a couple of minutes until the cheese melts. Be careful as I've found the Weight Watchers cheese melts quickly.

Then it's time to dish up and devour!

IMG_3727 IMG_3728All of this is just 3PP on filling and healthy. Enjoy!







What do the Scales Say?

What do the scales say?This week has been a bit tough for me! I've been on holiday since last Saturday so Internet has been very hard to find, hence why this post is late.

Also due to being away I had to be weighed in on a Tuesday (a day early) and in a different location; I feel this is important to note.

Now I'd been as good as I possible could whilst away, I sat and watched everyone eat cakes, chips and high pointage food whilst I however, tracked everything I ate and stuck to the plan 100%. I walked everyday, sometimes even uphill:

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And cycled 18 miles:

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So when it came to Tuesday morning I admit I was feeling quite positive. I then got on the scales and my heart sunk, I stayed the same

Now don't get me wrong, on a week where I may have slipped a bit I'd be thrilled with a stay the same, but due to the fact I'd been so good on HOLIDAY and exercised my large arse off, I was disappointed.

So I did what any rational person would do, I had a cry, considered eating all the cakes in the cake shop that I walked past on the way to the meeting (who positions a weight watchers meeting near a cake shop?) but instead settled for an iced lemonade from Costa (a small for 3 pro points) and calmed down a bit.

After reading lots of lovely comments on Instagram and talking to my parents I realised that these things are going to happen on this journey and I need to learn to deal with it. I then began to figure out all the non scale victories I had and felt a lot better. I carried on pointing everything for the day, and then, when we went out for dinner at our favourite holiday restaurant I ate what I wanted and enjoyed every mouthful. I had over 20 weeklies and almost 30 activity points left so didn't feel guilty, and carried on the rest of the week, pointing like normal.

Now let's just see what the scales say next week, shall we?

Food: My Favourites So Far

When I set up this blog I decided to set up an Instagram to go along with it as I quite like taking pictures and thought I'd enjoy documenting my food that way.

What I didn't realise was that I'd really come to love doing so. It's also challenged me to be more creative with me food, which is a massive plus.

Therefore I thought I'd show you my favourite meals so far.

Breakfast:

I'm finding that eggs really help to fill me right up till lunch time. Scrambling them with grilled tomatoes and mushrooms adds some flavour and helps me get my five a day. I've been enjoying them with sandwich thins and WW wraps. All for 0 propoints on Filling and Healthy.

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Of course, a Friday has to be a Bacon Sarnie. 0 propoints on Filling and Healthy. Man do I love Filling and Healthy.

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One day I even made French Toast. 0 propoints again.

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Lunch:

At home a Spanish style omlette was made and devoured. o propoints

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Bacon, sandwich thin, mushroom and sweetcorn. Odd combination but tasty. o propoints

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Beans, sandwich thin soliders and some fruit. Perfect for this wintery summer that's going on now,

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I think this post is now long enough without main meals. But don't worry (not that you are) I'm hopefully going to start posting more recipes over the next few months for my fave meals.

If you would like sneak peaks and full access to what goes into my gob on a daily basis, you can follow my Instagram account here.







What Do The Scales Say? #2

What do the scales say?

Second weigh-in today and I'm pleased to report that I'm another 3lbs down.

That makes a 9lb loss in total and my first half stone acomplished.

I was feeling slightly nervous this week as I had a weekend away where I wasn't in control of what food I was eating very much, but I stayed away from as many bad things as I could and made sure I pointed everything.

I'm really enjoying filling and healthy and think I'll carry on with it for longer.

Here's to the next weigh-in!

Food: Smoothie #2



If you saw my Instagram earlier then you'll have noticed that I've got quite a thing for smoothies at the moment.

I've previously shared one of my smoothie loves, and I thought I'd share another one today.

This is 0pp on both Filling and Healthy and regular pro points, so it's great for everyone!

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The ingredients are pretty simple and can be varied as much or as little as you like!

I take a handful of frozen blueberries and raspberries (the frozen-ness adds a nice texture to the smoothie!)

A couple of nectarines which are easier to sort when they're a bit ripe.

Some Pineapple and half a cup of water.
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I then throw them all in my smoothie maker. I like to add the soft stuff first, then the frozen and finish with the water.

I find it blends better then!IMG_3455Et Voila!

Simple to make, and if I do say so myself, truly scrumptious.

You could add some greens to make it extra healthy too, but I love the dark red colour this gives.

Food: A Turkey Pasta Recipe

Turkey PastaFor me there is nothing better than a nice pasta sauce, and whilst doing the simple start programme I decided to make some nice sauce to go with wholewheat pasta and this was my creation. It got a thumbs up all round so I decided to snap and share with you guys!

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You will need:

Onion

Garlic

Mushroom

Pepper

Wholewheat Pasta

Fry Light

Mixed Leaves

Passata Chipolotle Chille

Lea & Perins

Turkey Steaks

IMG_3360 IMG_3361 IMG_3365Begin by getting your chopping on. I chose to dice the onion so it would disolve into the sauce and also cut my peppers quite fine too. Which ever way you wish to do it will be fine though.

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I then fried the onion with the garlic and a few sprays of Fry Light.

IMG_3367Once the onions had started to brown I added the turkey and continued frying until the turkey was cooked.

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Whilst the turkey was cooking I added the pasta to a pan of boiling water.

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Once the turkey was cooked I added the pepper and mushroom and gave it a good stir.

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It was then time to create the sauce. I used a pack of passata with a few grinds from the chipolte chilli grinder and a good splash of Lea & Perins. I then seasonsed to taste.IMG_3373 IMG_3376

I then added the cooked pasta and some leaves and left it to simmer for another 20 mins so the flavours could all get aqquainted.

IMG_3379Et Voila!

A nice and easy turkey pasta. Due to it being whislt I was doing simple start there were no measurements and no points, but I can't see it being too high as you would just need to count the pasta and turkey. It was extremelty filling too.

A winner all round!

What do the scales say? #1

What do the scales say?

I've just got back from my first meeting and I must say I'm feeling rather chuffed with myself.

I posted yesterday about how I really enjoyed the Simple Start plan, but was slightly worried as I wasn't weighing anything.

Well, I'm very pleased to say that it was working just fine as I have lost a whole 6 pounds!

Whilst I was hoping for a big-ish loss this week, this is just incredible.

I'm so happy that I made the decision to join last week, as I'm already starting to feel better in myself, and at the moment I have the motivation that was missing when I tried to go at it alone. I've found Instagram to be extremely helpful too, so I suggest you check it out if you're struggling.

I've also made the decision to carry on doing Filling and Healthy as I like not having to weigh foods and I've found eating these healthier foods have left me feeling a lot healthier too.

Here's to next week!

Musings: First Week on Simple Start

Simple Start

When I joined Weight Watchers last Wednesday and was told I'd have to do a week on Simple Start, I'll admit that I was a bit dubious.

First of all, as you can imagine due to the sheer fact I had to join Weight Watchers, I have no off switch. If you tell me I can eat as much as I want, I will. All you can eat buffets are a dream come true, I turn into a grown adult in a sweet shop! Even eating the right foods on the list still gave me slight fear, as everything in moderation, even moderation, right? No scale of portions definitely did give me slight anxiety.

Secondly, whilst the list is quite extensive I'm a very fussy eater. I hate fish! So quite a lot of the list had me turning my nose up. Also, I thought it'd put limits on eating out and eating at other people's houses.

However, I can safely say I'm officially loving this plan. I feel better in myself for eating healthier foods and not having to weigh and track anything is actually rather nice. I love the tracking and planning of Weight Watchers, but I've enjoyed the eating specific food thing quite nice.

I've also managed to have a varied amount of food too, and haven't just stuck to the same things each day! You can see what I've been eating on my Instagram (fattywantsabiscuit)

I haven't found myself feeling hungry, I've enjoyed every meal and I'd even consider doing Filling and Healthy days once I'm counting points.

That being said, let's see what the scales say tomorrow! Wish me luck, please!

Musings: A Non Scale Victory #1

NSVThrough all of my weight loss attempts I've been told you can't just focus on the scales to measure your success; you have to count the non scale victories too. This is something I wholeheartedly agree with.

On previous attempts with weight watchers I've always counted my non scale victories with what size clothes I can get in it, and whilst that's a great way to measure success and makes me feel damn good about myself, this time I want to document more non scale victories.

I feel that documenting my NSV will allow me to keep motivation later on when the beginners motivation is starting to dwindle. So, even though I'm only 4 days in (and already having weird dreams about weigh day, just me?) I thought I'd document my first non scale victory.

Last night I went out for dinner with my friends and whilst I'd never really worried about meals out in the past on weight watchers (I'd always just pointed. I love the eat out guide by the way) this time I felt different. As you have to do simple start on your first week it was difficult finding a meal which fit in with this plan. I was determined that I was not going to give in though, I was going to make it work.

Therefor I order new potatoes rather than chips; something unheard of for me. Consulted my eat out guide to see what the lowest points were, and chose what I considered the healthiest choice. I chose the Pollo Milanese from Ask and asked for the sauce on the side. So, whilst the chicken was breaded and I may have dunked a couple of pieces in the sauce I feel that I managed to stay on track really well. I drank water all night and watched whilst everyone ate a McDonalds before the taxi home.

This morning my plan is to go for a nice long walk, and I'm filled with confidence that I'll be able to make smarter choices when eating out now.

Yay me!

Fitness: Easing in genlty

Easing in GentlyFitness and I have never been friends.

We've occasionally shared the odd moment together but really, we're just acquaintances.  We don't know each other very well, we're unsure on what makes each other tick or how to start to even start a relationship.

That being said I've realised that my weight's not going to get moving if I don't. So something needs to be done.

Therefor I've decided to dip my toe in the water, as I'm so not ready to dive straight in. My fitness levels have seriously declined over the past few years, leading to one of the reasons I'm on this journey and joined Weight Watchers the other day. I know I need to start small and build up to things. I don't want to come on to strong and then have my phone calls left unanswered for weeks. Know what I mean?

With all that being said I've made myself (and also fellow people of the Internet) a pact; I will do fifteen minutes of physical activity a day. Whether that's a walk at lunch, a go on the old Wii fit (once I've brushed the dust off) or following a  (gentle) workout from Pinterest.

So what'dya say fitness? Ready to be friends?