Food: F&H Toffee Popcorn

I absolutely love popcorn and was so pleased when I saw it on the Filling and Healthy list, however I only like sweet flavours which proved a little tricky. However, I have found a way to make toffee popcorn for just a point on F&H.

Can you say guilt free snacking?

"Filling and Healthy Toffee Popcorn" servings="1-3" time="30mins" difficulty="easy"

Ingreidents:

100g Popping Corn

14g Dark Brown Sugar

3tbsp Water

[/recipe]

1) Place the popcorn in a pan (that's quite big) and secure the lid on top. Hold it over the heat until all the corn has been popped, constantly giving it a shake to prevent burning.

2) Put your popped corn to one side, and in a small pan mix the sugar and water.

3) Boil the sugar and water, without stiring until it has bubbled into a thick sauce.

4) You need to then quickly more the sugar over the popcorn and mix it all together. Leave it for around 20 mins until set and you're ready to enjoy.

Notes

I can get 3 servings out of that amount of popcorn, so you would have to repeat the sugar part three times or just reduce the popcorn accordingly.

Fitness: What I've learnt so far on the Couch to 5K programme

Aloha amigos (don't ask, just go with it!)

I'm now over half way through with the C25K programme and thought I'd give you my thoughts/some advice on what I've learnt so far.

On the day of writing this (I say this as I'm a post scheduler rather than a type and post straight away kind of gal) I've just completed week 5 day 2 and whilst the last couple of minutes were tough, I'm finding the programme ok. I like seeing the progression each week and continue to amaze myself with how much I can add to each run. How I'm going to complete week 5 day 3 is a mystery to me as it seems like a huge jump between running eight minutes and running 20.

Anyway, I'll cross that bridge when I run to hit (haha)!

So, the purpose of this post, what I've learnt/some advice:

You'll finally understand what people talk about when they talk about a runners buzz. It's amazing to see yourself hit goals and achieve what seems, and what was once, impossible.

Whilst each week seems scary, the programme actually works (go figure) and you'll amaze yourself when complete each day, looking at the past one fondly because it now seems so easy. Seriously if you ask me to repeat week one I'd do it with a smile on my face, it seems so easy now whereas at the time it was harder than choosing what pair of shoes to wear (which is a verytough decision I'll have you know).

You'll find yourself actually looking forward to each run as you know how great you feel when you get back knowing you've accomplished something you never imagined possible.

It's important to wear and use the right equipment. You need to make sure your water bottle is a good enough size to carry, you have to make sure you're warm enough and don't wear anything that could fall off or slow you down.

A minute seems like a lifetime when your running and a second when you're walking.

It's actually easier when you pick up pace then when you're doing a shuffle/waddle run.

Knowing you can do this makes you feel like you can do anything!

 

Measuring Progress #2

So a whole month has passed since I last posted progress, and I definitely think this is much better than a weekly weigh in result.

Since last time I've another 6.5 lbs and achieved my 2 stone award, wooo!!!

Pictures wise, when I looked I almost felt that I looked bigger than last months pictures, but I think that my boobs have shrunk along with my belly, so that's why there isn't much difference, if that makes sense?

So to make myself feel better I've done a progress from start to now along with the photos from each month!

My three NSV's of the past month are:

Going down a size in my jeans:

http://instagram.com/p/u-X8PwDJqV/

I can now get into size 16 jeans! I feel amazing when I'm wearing them. Here is a picture of the jeans I started in, the jeans I got when I hit 1 stone and my current jeans!

Doing all the buttons of my shirt up:

http://instagram.com/p/u8XrfqDJu9/

I've only ever been able to wear this shirt open as the buttons have never done up. Now I can do them all up and feel rather fab about it.

Finishing week 4 of the C25K:

http://instagram.com/p/vJGisQDJuW/?modal=true

So I can actually run (wobble) for 5 minutes consecutively now! So thrilled!

Food: Mexican Lasagne

After seeing something similar on Instagram and after lusting after lasagne for a while, I decided to make my own mexican lasagne.

It's so simple to make and can be totally adapted to suit your own tastes.

It will only cost you the number of propoints of the amount of cheese you use, so for me it was just one point on Filling and Healthy.

"Mexican Lasagne" servings="4-6" time="1 hour" difficulty="easy"

Ingredients:

500g Extra lean minced beef (5%)

Chilli Powder

Garlic

Chipoltle Chilli grinder

Garlic Grinder

Smoked Paprika

350ml Beef Stock

1 Can Chopped Tomatoes

Lea and Perins

1 can of red kidney beans

Sweet Corn

Weight Watchers wraps

Low fat cheese

Method:

1) Brown off your mince with the garlic and chilli powder

2) Add tomatoes, stock & Lea & Perins and bring to the boil

3) Add veg and simmer for half an hour minimum

4) Cut your wraps in half, then add a layer of mince and top with wraps, continue till your run out of mince.

5) Sprinkle with cheese and cook in the over for around 20mins until the cheese has melted.

Notes:

I used Asda's 50% less fat cheese and it was amazing.

I haven't put any serving sizes for spices as it's completely up to your own taste preferences.

Musings: Filling and Healthy Tips & Advice

I know from previous attempts at Weight Watchers that Filling and Healthy can seem like hard work and a recipe for overeating.

However after following the plan pretty much consistently (I have the odd pointed day) for 13 weeks now, I thought I'd share with you some of my tips for getting on with the plan.

1) Don't go overboard with carbs - whilst there is no rule saying you have to limit the amount of carbs you eat, I found that when I was eating them with every meal (especially bread type carbs like Warbutons Thins) I was feeling really bloated. Now I try to have just two sets of carbs a day and differ them.

2) Make sure things are available - Keep things like fruit, veg and meat stocked up. When I'm peckish I like to pick at cooked chicken rather than an apple as I find it satisfies my cravings more.

3) Try to listen to your body, don't eat for the sake of it - I'm a save the best till last kind of person and also wolf down my meals faster than Usain Bolt on the running track, but the longer I've been doing filling and healthy, the more I'm becoming in tune with my body. For example last week, I had a massive breakfast and lunch and was still full by dinner so just had some fruit. My cravings and hunger pains have changed and I'm slowly getting used to what my body needs, rather than what it wants.

4) Experiment - Since doing Filling and Healthy I've become much more creative with my food. I found that when I was pointing I was eating the same meals day in day out as i knew the points and knew what chocolate I could also fit in. Now I with the freedom F&H presents I feel like I experiment so much more and really enjoy the food I'm eating,

5) Don't forget your 49 - I can honestly say my sweet cravings have severely diminished since doing F&H. I tend to have one to two pieces of chocolate a week now and enjoy it so much more when I do. I like to make sure the sweet treats I have really warrant me taking points from my weeklies and find I enjoy it much more. It also makes me questions 'What do I really want.'

6) It may be slower, but it'll make you feel better - Whilst I'm lucky in the sense my weight loss is occurring quite quickly, I know it's not going to forever, and I feel much happier knowing I'm not deprived and I feel better in myself for eating good foods then I would if I was living on chocolate and biscuits and pulling big numbers each week.

7) Be honest with yourself - Do you really want that extra potato because you're really hungry or just because you can? How will it make you feel on weigh day? Weight Watchers (or any diet company actually) wouldn't promote a plan that doesn't work. Filling and Healthy is a great plan, just like pro points, however neither plan works if you don't commit. So many flutter between plans and weight loss groups or only half commit and get disappointed when they don't see results on the scales. You have to be so honest with yourself about what you're eating.

Advice:

If you're still dubious about trying F&H ( and this post is by no means saying YOU MUST DO IT) why not just give it a go for one day a week. If you wake up feeling like you could eat the whole house then try F&H that day. My leader had a good suggestion of putting a green label of every F&H food in your house so you know what it is you can eat.

For me I've changed my lifestyle to fit F&H. I'm more conscious about what foods I put in my body, I know how to treat myself now (once or twice a week, rather than once or twice a day) and for the most part I feel in control of it.

Make sure you still track everything you're eating as you never know when you might unexpectedly have to change your days to points.

Do you have any F&H tips and tricks to share? I'd love to hear them!