Back on Track and changing it up

After last weeks sts... i have to admit i was really downhearted but i worked hard and stuck within my pp and used a lot more weeklies than i usually would.

My nerves were gone getting on the scales because it wasn't the kind of week with pp that i usually have. I needn't have worried. DOWN 2.5lb. I was delighted with  myself. until i remembered that I had 3lb to my first stone! what a kicker! haha! but at least I know I that if i work at it this week i will definitely have my stone next week.

I have started to change up my food too. More fruits. Different veggies. More fish.

Come on, how many times have you had chicken in the last week... it gets so tedious!

Chicken is so versatile, don't get me wrong and can be brilliant. But come on...chicken, chicken, chicken.... blah blah blah!!!

So this week, I bought some fresh fish in the fish mongers, lovely haddock with a pp value of only 2pp for 165g. Add in some mash (WW mash only 2pp for 3 discs) and loadsa free veggies, you are looking at a lovely dinner for just 4pp!!!

Made a lovely veggie stir fry with some noodles and then add in some frozen (or fresh) prawns instead and a dash of sweet chilli sauce... another nice dinner for 7pp.

I also like lovely creamy cheesey pasta. I chopped mushrooms and red onions and lots of garlic and fried them up in my spray oil... (all free so far) I cooked up 2pp worth of pasta (I use 20g of tagliatelli) into the veggies I throw half a tub of philly garlic & herbs (4pp). Once the pasta is cooked I throw it into the cheesey veggies and then just before I served it up I threw in some wafer thin ham for 1pp. This is HUGE!!! not too shabby at all for 7pp....

If like me you are mad for the likes of garlic bread, I made up my own, using the small ciabattas rolls which i have pp at 5pp. I cut them in half, use low fat spread to make the garlic butter (I use 2 teaspoons for 2pp) add some garlic and some herbs like parsely and stick it under the grill. It was MAGIC!!!!  I just had one half of the ciabata garlic bread myself so I pp at 4pp just to be safe.

What I have realised is, I can still have what I like, I just need to be careful in the preparation of it and make some good choices.

Don't get me wrong I would murder a batter burger! haha!!!

This weeks aim is to get that stone!!!!!

Static @ Week 6

This week was a mish mash of really good and then total deflation.

I worked really hard and got at least 30 mins of exercise in each day.

I stayed withing my points each and every day. Mixing up my meals so as not to get bored. i really felt like this was going to be a great loss.

Wednesday came and as I hopped up on the scales... -0.0lb

Granted it was not a gain, for that I was happy but to stay the same after all the hard work was so disheartening. Especially as I had such a surprise loss the week before.

Needless to say I was pretty disappointed, feeling sorry for myself because it was the first static week I had had since i started on Pro Points and restarted Weight Watchers.

Mary, my leader, was great. She advised me that earning so many activity points and not using enough weeklies could be my downfall.

So this week, well from Thursday morning onwards, I started a new. Trying to use at least 2 or 3 weeklies a day, or even using 5 one day and one the next. Just to even things out.

Am still exercising everyday, walking at pace or Wii fit or Zumba dvd.

So far I have used 22 weeklies and gained 15 activity points. Trying to resist the temptation to check my scales at home to see how im getting on...

Just back from a 3 mile walk (knocked 8mins off my usual time :) ) and felt motivated to update this...

Aiming for a decent loss this week...so fingers crossed! 

Goal List.... :D

Start - 12st 6.5lbs (04 Jan 2012)

• Lose 7lbs - into the next stone & Silver 7 (11st 13.5lbs)  (Reached 25 January 2012)
• Lose 2.5lbs - 5% goal (11st 11lbs) (Reached 8 February 2012)
• Lose 4.5lbs- 1st stone (2nd silver 7) (11st 6.5lbs) (Reached 29th February 2012)
• Lose 3.5lbs - 10% goal (11st 3lbs)
• Lose 3.5lbs - into next stone (3rd silver 7) (10st 13.5lbs)
• Lose 2lbs - 20lb down (10st 11.5lb)
• Lose 5lbs - 2nd stone (4th Silver 7) (10st 6.5lbs)
• Lose 5lbs - 30lbs down (10st 1.5lb)
• Lose 2lbs - into next stone (5th silver 7) (9st 13.5lb)
•  
• Lose 3lbs - 35lb down (9st 10.5lb)
• Lose 3.5lbs - 3rd stone (4th silver 7) (9st 7lb) GOAL!!!!!!!

Soupful Sundays recipes...

Firstly I made a vegetable stock from the peelings, skins and off cuts from all the vegetables. (Butternut squash skins, carrot skins, a stick of celery, offcuts of leek, apple skins, onions and herbs and 1 litre of water.) I brought this stock to the boil with some salt and pepper and then simmered on a low heat. I used this same stock for each of my soups.

 Tomato, Celery & Apple Soup 0pp

Taking my lead from the WW Fabulous & Filling cookbook, I made this recipe a zero pro point soup.

• Chop 2 sticks of celery and use some low fat cooking spray to fry them with some finely diced shallots. Add 1 apple (I used a granny smith apple) and fry until soft.
• Stir in a tin of chopped tomatoes and simmer
• Add a few spoonfuls of the stock at a time and then transfer to a blender or food processor
• Once blended, return to the pot and check consistency, season to taste

Butternut Squash & Carrot Soup - 0pp

• Sweat off some onions and add softened butternut squash & carrot (I steamed them in the microwave... )
• Saute these in the pot for 5 minutes and add some parsely
• Stir in some of the stock and blitz in the blender/processor
• Check the consistancy add more stock if needed, season to taste

Roasted Tomato & Pepper Soup 0pp

• Roast half a red, green and yellow pepper in the oven @ 180 for 20 mins with about 8 cherry tomatoes & lots of black pepper
• Once roasted add to a pot and saute with some onions
• Add some of stock, and let simmer for 5 mins.
• Blitz in the blender/processor
• Add more stock if required
• Season to taste

Leek & Sweet Potato Soup - 1pp

• Steam some sweet potato in the microwave (I used 100g for this recipe)
• While this is steaming, saute the 1 large leek with shallots or onions
• When the sweet potato is steamed, add to the leeks and break the sweet potato up and saute off for 5 mins
• blend to a paste in blender/processor
• Return to the pot and add stock until you get the consistency you like
• Season to taste

I haven't got a lot of lunchboxes/ containers so I decanted these soups into zip lock bags. The plan is to take them out the night before I need them and put them into a lunchbox to be reheated in work! :D

Hope you find these as tasty as I do... :D

Very productive Sunday after less than productive week...

So after struggling with points all since Wednesday... I have decided to take the bull by the horns and plan ahead this week.

Today I made soups. 4 different soups which I have ready to freeze for the whole week.

Butternut Squash & Carrot
Roasted Tomato & Pepper
Tomato, Celery & Apple
Leek & Sweet Potato

I have been really struggling to get moving. TOTM is a nightmare... never usually this bad. The motivation to get up and get moving has totally left me. So while Im trying to get my skates on, I am concentrating on getting myself ready for the week ahead...

Onward & Downward!

Week 4... still on the way down.... :D

So this week I had worked really really hard, both with food and exercise. Was naughty at the weekend and had a KFC so that dipped into my weeklies in a big way!

Weigh in on Wednesday evening is always something I dread. The whole week... "I can't wait to see what I am this week" then when I'm standing in the queue i get petrified.

But this week I needn't have worried.... down 1.5lb! That is 8.5lb in 4 weeks. Very happy with that!

This weeks meetings were all about getting out and getting active. I can honestly say, I haven't been very active this week. I hate this "time of the month" :(

For the last few weeks I had a great routine going... We would arrive in from work and change straight away into our trackies and runners and head right out the door. I have been knocking a few minutes off my usual route consistently over the last few times I have done it. 50 minutes for a brisk 5k walk. not too shabby, for me anyway.

I haven't moved at all since Wednesday...not even the Wii fit, so i am determined to get out tomorrow and get moving. Hopefully any retaining weight I have will be going this Wednesday.

I am in no position to be preaching about getting fit and I am hardly going to run a marathon but trust me, the old adage... Eat less, move more is really working for me. Between being overweight, a smoker and having a dodgy leg (thanks to blood clots last year... which I blamed for putting on the 2 and a half stone I now need to lose.... any excuse except for the real reason which was that i just got plain lazy and ate my way out of depression and in a vicious circle ended up right in the middle of it again.... ), I can honestly say I am enjoying getting active again.

It is onwards and downwards from now on.... i just need a shot of motivation to get up of my hopefully soon decreasing ass!

Goal for this week is 1lb.... if i get there, I will have 5% in 5 weeks!



Weight chart week 4

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