Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: December Week 2

Last week I was so convinced I was facing a gain, and just hoping I could do enough for a STS. I didn't feel like I had gained, and I was doing everything I could to counter the few off plan meals I had. I upped the pace on my runs and it really paid off, as I managed to lose half a pound by the time weigh in came around! I was pretty surprised, but it does just go to show that if you make sure that you don't use a weekend full of events to lose the run of yourself then a loss is possible no matter what. I had 3 days where I had events at which I did not hold back, but other meals on those days were usual on plan meals. I worked hard and enjoyed my treats and it did the job. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: December Week 1

So last Tuesday I was convinced I would be up when it came to weigh in, but to my surprise I was down a pound this week. Obviously getting myself back on track first thing on Monday morning and upping my running did the trick, and managed to offset all the bad I did at the weekend. I will be surprised if I am as lucky this weekend, but I am hopeful for a STS. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: November Week 5

Last week I was up half a pound. Even though I knew I had oversnacked on Sunday, I really was hoping I had done enough to pull myself back. I know a lot of people can get away with an 80/20 attitude and still see losses, but I really can't. I can just about get away with having a night off pointing and see a small loss if I am 100% on plan the rest of the week. I find with every year older I get, the more difficult it is to maintain and the less I seem to be able to eat. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: November Week 4

This week started out fantastic and has gone a little downhill since my weigh in on Thursday evening. I managed to lose 1.5lbs this week, which is great and means I just need to lose half a pound to get  myself back into the 5lb of goal range and no longer have to pay for meetings. I went to bed on Friday feeling pretty motivated and great, and woke up the same. But then on the way to work my car started to act up. I had agreed to go to my in laws for dinner that night and then when I left work my car got worse. After waiting in the cold for my boyfriend and his dad to come, we got the car to his parents house (and then home later that night) but I was definitely feeling a little sorry for myself and probably ate a little more than I should have. I had 21 SmartPoints left for the day, so it should have covered it, but I was feeling a little guilty by the time we got home. 

Curried Turkey Filo Parcels

I'm always looking for new ways to use filo pastry. Its such a simple ingredient that if used properly can really make a recipe feel properly indulgent, and these parcels are no exception to that. The thin filo goes so crispy in the oven, its a very noisy but satisfying dinner to perk up the mid week bore that can set in.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: November Week 3

The weeks are flying by, can you believe there are only 6 weeks until Christmas Day and 6 more weigh ins. This week I lost half a pound which brings my total since rejoining class to 2.5lbs. I am still 7lbs above goal, and I was really hoping the progress would be a little faster and by now I would be at least back within my 5lbs of goal. I'm not going to lie, its really hard to stay motivated at the moment, and I am screaming at myself to take my own advice. If anyone else was saying this to me, I'd be telling them that as long as the scales are going in the right direction you should be happy, or stick with it and the scales will catch up....but it is so difficult. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: November Week 2

I have to say I've felt pretty great over the past couple of weeks. I feel motivated and excited about what I'm eating for the first time in ages. I really want to stay on plan and while I have been tempted to stray there is something inside that is making me stick with it. The only problem is, I am yet to see the physical benefits. I feel pretty bloated at the moment, and my skin is in bits. I have a rash on my face (which I think is stress related) and my skin is blotchy and uneven. I have very little energy and my running is improving but very slowly. Last weigh in I lost the half pound I gained the previous week.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: November Week 1

Happy Halloween!! I've always loved Halloween, getting to dress up and be someone else for a night. I think its been about 4 years since I last had a costume and I didn't get organised again this year, but next year no matter what I will have a costume. This year is also the first year we are getting trick or treaters being the first year in our new home. So there have been LOADS of sweets in the cupboard. I have so far had excellent self control and my plan is to try and forget that they are there. Since going back to class I have also kept a stash of 2 sp weight watcher bars in the cupboard and they have been doing the trick as a sweet fix in the evening. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: October Week 4

Had my first official weigh in after heading back to class on Thursday and I am delighted to report I lost 2lbs. Great start and really boosted the motivation to keep on going. I was meant to be out 2 nights in a row at the weekend, but I had such an awful week in work and I wasn't feeling well that all I could do was stay in. So instead of using up all my weeklies on booze, I spread them out over the whole weekend but they were well and truly used up by the end of the weekend but all tracked and counted. 

Chicken & Ham Filo Pie

I love a good pie and so does my partner. There is something really comforting about the rich creamy filling and nice crisp pastry. It can be hard to find a pie that is SmartPoint friendly, but filo pastry can be a real lifesaver in that regard.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In

This week I finally took the step to go back to class. I didn't really want to but I knew if I kept putting it off I'd never go back and I'd continue to be miserable and uncomfortable. So I found a class I knew would suit no matter what - halfway between work and home - and up I rocked on Thursday evening. I had a few on plan days in the run up, and I had some idea from my home scales how bad it was, but I was still not excited about standing up on those scales. I did it, and the news was not as bad as it could have been. I am 9.5lbs above goal and I have 10 weigh ins between now and Christmas. So 1lb a week to be back to goal.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In October Week 2

All my good resolve went out the window last week. I had a couple of tough days in work and I just caved and my eating suffered. I didn’t go completely off the rails but I did pretty badly. I didn’t track anything and I know my meals were not good. I have been putting off the inevitable – going back to class. I was hoping I could get things under control myself first so I could save myself the weekly fee but if I am being honest that is not going to happen. I need the accountability of the class, the motivation to stop paying the weekly fee and the truth of the scales in class (not weighing myself first thing in the morning stark naked while trying to rebalance myself to save 0.1 of a pound).

Weekly Meal Plan: October Week 1

Its been a few weeks since my last post, but I have had good reason for my absence. I only went and bought myself a house and spent the past month packing up my life and moving. I hadn't mentioned it here before but we first started looking for a home back in May 2016 and it has been the most stressful year and a half of my life. Last August we found what we thought would be our home, and after months and months of waiting patiently and doing all we could the sale got pulled and we were back to square one. Finally at the end of May this year we went to see what actually turned out to be our home and after a few stressful & nervous months we got the keys 2 weeks ago.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: August Week 5

Despite my day off tracking on Saturday, I still managed to lose 1lb this week. Then I had another weekend completely off track. Friday was the culmination of a bad week in work and I let it get the better of me having lunch from the market and then pizza from M&S for dinner with doughballs & chips. Saturday was not tracked at all and while I did get out for a run and do lots of walking, my food was not great. Of course the fight being on that night, we were out at a friends house and I consumed an awful lot of gin and some doritos may have found their way into my mouth. Woke up on Sunday afternoon with a god awful hangover and was craving stodgy food. I didn't eat a huge amount during the day but we ended the evening with a takeaway as I had no energy for anything. 

I'm pretty disappointed in myself. Since July 11th I have only lost 3lbs and I am still half a stone over goal. I seem to just sabotage myself at the weekends, my will power is completely out the window. On the bright side I am getting back into a proper routine of running - and while my distances won't be as long as when I was half marathon training I really hope to build my pace back up over the next couple of months. I have a hectic few weeks and stuff on every since weekend until the end of September so all I can do is my best between now and then and hope that things calm down a bit for me then. 

At least my meal plans are keeping me on track Monday to Friday. I am doing my best to fill this week with filling, comforting foods to keep me satisfied. I am heading to a friends for dinner on Friday night but I think I can suggest a healthy option for us to try and limit the damage, and I will be on the dry this weekend too so I can hopefully save a few SmartPoints for that. I am looking forward to when things settle down and I can get back to my weight watcher classes, its so hard to stay motivated without them!

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: August Week 4

I was a little worried that I had over indulged in the preparation & aftermath of the half marathon last weekend and it would show on the scales. I was pretty happy to see that I had maintained my weight! I reverted this week a little and didn't track a thing all day on Saturday and decided to then write off my weeklies. I went back today and tried to retrospectively track and I definitely went over my weeklies which is not great. I also was planning on heading back to running this weekend, but Saturday got away from me and I woke up on Sunday with one of the worst headaches ever that just did not seem to go away for the whole day and by the end of the day I was sick to my stomach as well. So while I got a fair amount of walking done on Saturday I got absolutely no exercise done on Sunday. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: Half Marathon Edition

Last week after my fantastic week I was looking forward to my weigh in. I knew I had followed the plan, done plenty of exercise and I was feeling pretty lean. I lost 1lb which I am pretty happy with. I was away on Thursday overnight for work and so my food was all over the place for the day and I did not eat well and it spilled over a bit into the Friday. I decided instead of trying to track SmartPoints, since I had a lot of running to do over the weekend, tracking calories might be a little easier. I did start my carb load on Friday and decided that I needed to eat back most/all of my excercise calories in preparation for the race. I am not sure I am going to have as good a result on the scales this Thursday but to be honest I am not that bothered, I needed the food and wouldn't have changed anything about the weekend.

Fish Taco's

I know I have been awful at posting recipes. I have been collecting them in my little recipe book for months but things have been so manic for me, I just haven't got myself together to post them. I am finally back into the rhythm of posting my weeklies meal plans I can get back to posting some recipes.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: August Week 2

Slipped back to my old ways a little last weekend and I didn't really track anything. I was out for dinner and made the healthiest choices I could, but I drank plenty and fed my hangover the next day. I knew I had done some damage and even though I got myself back on track on Monday, I was not surprised when I saw that I had gained 2lbs when I weighed in on Thursday morning. So I gave myself a bit of a kick in the bum and planned out my bank holiday weekend ensuring I would be able to stay within my weeklies and dailies.

Pan Fried Hake with Samphire Risotto

I love fish, and we try to have it at least once a week at home. My favourite fish tend to be a bit on the pricier side, so its always good to find interesting ways of serving the slightly cheaper cuts rather than just baking it in the over.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: August Week 1

Another week down and despite the crazyness of last weekend, I managed to pull things back and lose 2.5lbs this week. I got a little cocky after my loss and I have to admit I was a little lax at the weekend. I was off work from Thursday through to Sunday and I wasn't as good at tracking as I should have been and probably had one too many treats. I did a fair amount of exercise and have been back at it properly since yesterday so hopefully I have not done too much damage....though I need to really cop on to myself a bit! 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: July Week 4

End of July already, but at least the sun is making itself at home! Last week was a pretty good week for the most part. I used up all my weeklies at the weekend thinking I wouldn't use any for the rest of the week, but since my birthday was Tuesday it was rather silly of me to think I would skip dessert that day. And I ended up having 2!! So I was over my weeklies a bit and ended up gaining a pound at my Thursday morning weigh in (I think mother nature played a part in it too). 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: July Week 3

For the first week in a long time, last week I felt properly in control. Things were still fairly stressful in work, but instead of allowing the stress to consume every part of my life I made a conscious effort to concentrate on being good to myself and try to leave the stress at work. I focused on my meal plans and enjoying my time away from the office more than I have been over the past couple of weeks. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In July Week 2

I'm a little late again this week, I've a bit of a cold at the  moment and yesterday I just had no energy by the time I got home from work. My stress has not really reduced but I feel like I am managing it a little better and feel like I can finally get my head back in the game properly. I've been messing around for far too long, and its not helping anything. Knowing I am letting my health slip back is just adding to my stress. 

Weekly Meal Plan July Week 1

Another week over and I am still working at focusing on the positive. It was by no means a perfect week but I am working towards it. I would say I had more on plan days than off plan days which is the best I can do at the moment. I am getting back into the habit of meal planning and proper shopping lists, which I had gotten a bit lax on in June and that is helping get me back into my healthy lifestyle rhythm.

Weekly Meal Plan: June Week 4

Last week was not my best week, but there were definitely more good days than bad so I am taking that as a win. I feel like I am focusing too much on the all the negatives from the past few months and letting the guilt win. So for the next few weeks my aim is to focus on the good. 

Weekly Meal Plan: June Week 3

Since my last post, things have been a bit up and down. I had a couple of weeks where I felt I had my control back. I was following the No Count plan for a few days a week and it was really working for me. My plan had been to avoid the scales until I felt a bit better but that hasn't worked so well for me, and at first it was telling a good story. Then things took a turn again the past 2 weeks, and I've been all over the place again. My weekends were pretty manic, and until this sunday we hadn't done a proper weekly shop in about 3 weeks. So I was grabbing things on the go during the week and trying my hardest to eat as well as possible. The weekends were my usual, stop trying on Friday morning and then wake up Monday feeling both guilty and a little hopeless. 

Weekly Meal Plan May Week 4: Back From a Break

Last time I post I had decided I was going to take a bit of a step back from things and I took a bit of a bigger step than intended. The couple of weeks that followed were pretty tough. I have had a lot of stress in my life this year and I think I was fooling myself into thinking I could manage. It all got a bit on top of me and I needed a bit of time to myself. So I took a few weeks off blogging. I couldn't come back on here repeating the same thing again and again, as it wasn't helping. I just couldn't face it. I was still posting my usual food posts on social media, but not as much and I felt like I was just going through the motions a bit.

Weekly Meal Plan: May Week 1

Last week was a fantastic week. I tracked everything and ate well every day. I kept the running up and despite the fact I was very bloated I felt good. Then the long weekend struck! Friday night we were heading out for dinner with my boyfriends family and I had 22 dailies left as well as all 35 weeklies. I made good choices in the restaurant and counted my drinks and tracked everything in advance. I ended the night with 10 weeklies still in tact, but also incredibly intoxicated. I woke up the following morning with a god awful hangover and that was the beginning of the end. 

Weekly Meal Plan: April Week 4

April is nearly at an end, is it just me or is the year flying by? I haven't been to weigh in for a couple of weeks but I feel like I am in the zone and finding the balance. Since I skipped last weeks weigh in, I didn't feel like there was an 'end' to the week. I had gotten into the habit of having an uncounted treat after weigh in, and so everything I have eaten has been tracked. 

One Pot Cajun Chicken & Chorizo Pasta

One pot pastas are absolutely everywhere at the moment and I have found myself experimenting with a few different types and I landed on a winner with this one. It's not a recipe for every day as the points are quite high, but it is worth it every now and then to save enough weeklies and indulge a little bit!

The great thing about one pot pasta is how easy they are to throw together and how easy the clean up is after. I made this on a Friday night after a particularly tough week at work and it was just what I needed to start the weekend off. It felt like a total cheat meal but it was fully within my dailies!

For the recipe I used cooking chorizo, which worked out at 7 smartpoints for the 50g used. I find that different chorizos can vary a good bit so it can be worth checking the one you are using before cooking.

Serves: 2
SmartPoints per serving: 15
SmartPoints on No Count: 7
Ingredients:
200g skinless chicken breast
2 tbsp cajun spice
50g cooking chorizo
120g pasta shapes (brown for No Count)
1 red pepper sliced
1 red onion sliced
2 garlic cloves crushed
300ml chicken stock
40g low fat mature cheddar
90g philidelphia lightest
salt & pepper

Cut the chicken & chorizo into chunks and fry the chorizo in a pan over a medium heat to release the oils. Remove from the pan and set to one side. Brown the chicken in the pan and add the onions, peppers, garlic and cajun spice. Cook until the vegetables are soft and add the pasta. Pour the stock over slowly until it just covers the pasta and set anything leftover to one side.

Bring to the boil and then turn down to a simmer. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the pasta is cooked and the liquid has been mostly absorbed. You can add any leftover stock as required.

Stir through the chorizo, phildelphia and grated cheddar and stir until combined.Season to taste with salt and lots of black pepper and serve immediately. 

Weekly Meal Plan April Week 3

Last week was a really manic week so I skipped weigh in. I was on plan all week and I had a sneaky look at the scales at home and I know things are fine. I started out on Friday with a plan for how I was going to handle the Bank Holiday weekend. Easter is tricky for me because we have to divide our time between both families so 2 big dinners with dessert is on the menu. My plan was to keep all my weeklies, be the designated driver so I didn't have to spend any smartpoints on alcohol and have very low breakfasts filled with fruit. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: April Week 2

After my complete meltdown the week before last, the newfound resolve I had last Monday stuck throughout the week and I am back to myself. I went to my weigh in on Thursday and I was up half a pound which I happily took. I hadn't been in two weeks, and in that 2 weeks my trip to Bruges and a week off plan happened. So I am pretty sure my great week last week had an effect on my weight. It did still leave me half a pound above goal but I am not concerned about it. 

Fish & Chips!

I love fish and chips and it’s been ages since I made it at home. I mean, whats better than a nice big plate with fish, chips, minted peas and loads of tartare sauce! I used to make it fairly regularly, but it was something that almost fell off my radar. This week I suddenly had a craving for it. After a few terrible weeks I knew I needed to get my head back into it this morning, and having a meal like this, that feels a little naughty even though you know it isn't can really help keeping the motivation up. I find that having a fakeaway version of our favourite high calorie treats really helps remind me just how flexible and easy this plan is. There is no reason to feel deprived, or bored with the foods. 

Weekly Meal Plan April Week 1

Last week was not a good week. I came back from Bruges all ready to get back on plan in a big way and Tuesday started out great. Then disaster struck, just before I left work I got some bad news. Nothing serious, but something that has been in the works for the past 8 months basically fell apart - leaving me back at square one. I was pretty devastated and it completely threw me off for the week. I still haven't learned how to deal with my emotional eating.

Weekly Meal Plan March Week 5

I missed weigh in last week because I left for Bruges on Thursday. I was going to try and make it to a weigh in on Wednesday evening but it turned out it was the only time I could get an appointment to get my hair cut so I had to miss it. I have to say it was really difficult not to give into holiday mode and go off plan but I did well and stayed on track right up to Wednesday evening. Post Thursday is a different story altogether....

Creamy Smoked Salmon Pasta

Pasta is one of those easy, go to dinners you can throw together after a long day - and this a particularly quick and easy meal. You only need one pot for this which means clean up is a breeze as well which is always welcome mid week.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In

Last weeks weigh in was not great, but I knew it wasn't going to be. The previous weekend we had a brunch out planned with my family to celebrate my Dad's birthday. As we were going on the Sunday and it was brunch I didn't think it would be that bad - and so I used up some weeklies on the Friday & Saturday (probably more than I should have). Of course I should have known what my family are like and we ended up drinking copious amounts and staying out drinking until nearly 10pm. Then of course, I had to stop for a drunken McDonalds on the way home. 

Chipotle Turkey Stuffed Peppers

I'm a big fan on Mexican food; nachos, burritos, tacos etc. They can be so calorific though so I'm always looking for ways to have the flavour of Mexican food, without all the SmartPoints. These stuffed peppers do exactly that. I'd been thinking about what I could use to stuff peppers for a while and just started having a play around with some flavours before I decided on this one. Chipotle paste is quite hot, but it is full of lovely smoky deep flavour as well which really goes well with everything here. I always need to cool it down with a little greek yoghurt (which is a great substitute for sour cream in any Mexican recipe) for an extra SmartPoint and like any Mexican food you can't go wrong by adding a little salsa, jalapeños & avocado (if you have the SmartPoints for it). 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In March Week 3

Last week I had a great week. I found my motivation and really enjoyed the plan. I went to weigh in and was down 2.5lbs which brings me back in side goal range. I'm still 4lbs above my goal weight so I really need to focus to get myself back there. I have found myself quite complacent this year. I haven't really fully recovered from Christmas and it's tough going. I'm heading to Bruges the weekend after next and I was really hoping to be back to my goal weight in time for it, but its going to be tough going to get there. 

Chunky Vegetable and Lentil Soup

I am quite particular about soup, I'm not a big fan of the blended variety. I get bored eating it by the end of a bowl, and prefer something with a bit of actual eating to it. Any time I've made a batch to last for the whole week, I end up binning half of it. My favourite soup to get when I am out and about is the Chunky Vegetable Soup from Itsa Bagel, and I always thought it would be quite easy to recreate but I never really got around to it. A couple of weeks I finally decided to give it a go.

Weekly Meal Plan: March Week 2

Last week was both a great week and an awful week. I had a great week food wise, was on plan every day and tracked everything I ate. But I was not well at all last week. I felt exhausted and I had a constant headache that I could not seem to get rid of. I would usually just slip back into my old habits when I am sick, but I was determined to lose weight last week so I stuck to my resolve. By the time Thursday came around I felt awful and ended up leaving work early on Thursday to go home to bed. So no weigh in for me this week. I haven't let it trip me up and have been on plan ever since and am looking forward to weigh in this week. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: March Week 1

After a disastrous couple of weeks, last week I really gave myself the kick up tbe bum I needed to get myself back on track. No more mindless snacking, tracking everything I ate and really  got my focus back. I knew it was a tricky week for me in terms of weigh in, but considering the result the week before I was hoping for a small loss or at the very least a STS. Unfortunately it was not to be and I was up another pound on the scales this week. I am not going to dwell on the reasons why, instead I am just going to put my head down and keep on plugging away. Some weeks our bodies don’t cooperate.

Roasted Vegetable & Chicken Pasta Bake

I'm on a bit of a pasta bake buzz at the moment. My weight watchers class is so late on a Thursday, so getting home at 9pm means leftovers are the easiest thing to have ready to go and pasta bake is perfect for leftovers. Since we tend to have it so often, I am trying to find new ways to mix it up a bit and make it a little different each time. Now I have a few on rotation to have every few weeks.

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: Feb Week 4

I don't really know what happened last week, but as anyone who follows my facebook or instagram might know, I seemed to get worse and worse the closer it got to weigh in. So I can hardly be surprised when weigh in came around and I gained 3lbs!! My body can gain a lot of weight really easily in a short space of time and it seems to get worse the older I get. I faced the music anyway, and started my new week as soon as I walked out of that weigh in. 

Spicy Chicken Enchiladas

I've been meaning to give enchiladas a go for a while - but finding a way to make the sauce for the top was the tricky part. A lot of low cal versions just use a spiced up passata, but I was looking for something a little more authentic. I spent a few months reasearching some recipes online and looking for ways that I might be able to make it work and finally a few weeks ago decided to give it ago. 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In: February Week 3

Last week I wasn't sure how my weigh in was going to go. I had gone completely off track the previous weekend and while I managed to get back to it on Monday I wasn't sure it would be enough. Weigh in came around on Thursday and I was surprised to be down 1.5lbs. Thinking about it though, I had missed my weigh in the week before after having a great week, so I think it was that showing more than anything. 

Weekly Meal Plan: Feb Week 2

I had a great week last week and so I was really looking forward to weigh in, but by the time Thursday came around I knew I wasn't going to make it. I have a 45 minute walk from work to my class, followed by another hour to get home once it ends (15 mins on the luas and 45ish walking) and the weather was so bad on Thursday I decided to skip weigh in. If I had been skipping becuase I had a bad week and was afraid to face the scales, I wouldn't have done it. But as a gold member I need to learn not to be so dependent on my weekly weigh in's. I definitely still need to regularly go to weigh in's, but missing one every now and then when things are going well is absolutely fine. 

Prawn Panang Curry

Thai food is one of my favourite types of food. One of my best school friends was from Thailand and we lived together after college for 3 years. She didn't cook that much, but we ate out quite a bit at the local thai restaurant and a few times I was lucky enough to taste her Dad's cooking which was amazing. She moved back to Thailand the same year I went traveling around the world and so I stopped to visit her on my way back home and everything I ate was incredible! 

Weekly Meal Plan & Weigh In

So despite recovering well last week, I still had 3 full days off plan, so I knew I was going to be up last week. The question really was what sort of damage control had I managed. I was up half a pound which I will take and run. It could have been a lot worse, but there is a lot to be said for damage control. I also think I didn't fully deserve the 1lb gain I had the week before, but over the 2 weeks the gain makes sense.