Tick Tock

Starting weight: 9 stone 1.6 pounds

Previous weight: 8 stone 8.6 pounds

Current weight: 8 stone 8.6 pounds

I am going to keep this short and sweet as I am feeling sick at the moment, after catching a bug it is invading my body rapidly and making me feel like awful. I have had another no loss week, although I am happy to remain the same. These last two weeks have been busy with study and I have ate out several times.I did not restrict what I ate when dining out and allowed myself to have what I wanted. I could do this because I have increased my exercise, I now walk for 90 to 120 minutes at least 4 times a weeks. This has helped me maintain my weight loss, even with some bad choices. With all the extra exercise it is important to increase your diet/fluid intake to maintain energy and overall health. I find it very hard to increase my fluid intake and find I can only do it if I add a flavour to the water, it is a good trick.

Here is a recipe I tried for dinner during the week and found it very tasty, try it out for yourself.

Ingredients

Chicken fillet

Peppers

Red onion

Mushroom

Cherry tomatoes

Side salad

Chop sticks

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Chop vegetables and chicken fillet into large cubes. Push the chunks through the chop stick in any order you like. Place them in an oven proof dish with some olive oil and seasoning, cook for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Finish on the grill pan to crisp up the vegetables. Serve with a side salad and enjoy.

On reflection it was a shame to stay the same this week but I am starting to feel confident in my skin and am happy with the way I look and that is the most important thing. I have checked my BMI and it is healthy so any more weight loss or toning will be a bonus. The plan for the next two weeks is to prepare for the big day itself, I can’t believe it is almost here. Time flies when you’re having fun.

The Truth Hurts

The other day I came across an article in the Metro and I was completely shocked by the big bold statement that was right in front of my eyes. It screamed ‘Burger meal is a full day’s food’. I knew that a burger meal was not the best option in a restaurant or take away but I was absolutely gobsmacked at the realisation of this. As I read on I was informed that almost one quarter of an adults consumed food is prepared outside of the home, and one in four people admit that they eat fast-food once or twice a week. These numbers terrified me and made me realise how important healthy eating is.

As I walked around the buzzing city centre, I began to observe the shoppers. Instead of looking at their sense of style as I would usually do, I looked beyond the clothing and noticed the frame they were hanging on.  To my horror I noticed that almost every third person was overweight, I wondered to myself do they know the health risks they are imposing on themselves. I then began to think of the reasons behind Irelands expanding waist lines, and as I opened my eyes everything became clear. Meal deals in local stores have a lot to answer for, in these hard times everyone likes a bargain, so if you see a poster offering a lunch deal for less than 5euro you are in the queue like a shot. I decided to look into this matter and try and calculate the calories within these meal deals. The first deal I came across was a can of coke, a mars bar and a packet of Tayto crisps for 1euro, this clocks up an outstanding 604 calories. The next deal was a chicken fillet roll with three fillings and a bottle of coke for €4.50. A plain chicken fillet roll without butter or fillings can vary from 600-750 calories. The last deal I came across was any size pizza for 10euro, and horrifyingly the calories for a 6 inch plain cheese pizza was 620 calories. These are three examples of deals which should be avoided or eaten with extreme caution, after all these deal could be consumed for lunch or a mid day snack, and they take a huge chunk out of your daily allowance. These meals are generally not balanced and contain high portions of carbohydrates and fats and little fibre and vegetable. Although they are high calories foods, they usually contain empty calories and wont keep you full and energised for long periods of time. They contain huge amounts of sugar and will increase your blood sugar levels for a short time and then blood sugars will decrease drastically leaving you feeling tired. These are only three examples of the low priced high calorie meals out there, there are many more that a consumer should be aware of, try look beyond the price.

Back to basics, use this as your healthy eating guide.

It is widely known that if a women’s waits is greater than 32 inches and a man’s greater than 37 inches there is an increased health risk as does a BMI of 25 plus. These health risks include heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and various forms of cancer. Is this the future for Ireland, convenience over health? Its time people open their eyes and realise that this is a real issue, stop the self destruction. 

Measure your waist and see if your at risk

One Month To Go

Starting weight: 9 stone 1.6 pounds

Previous weight: 8 stone 9.6 pounds

Current weight: 8 stone 8.6 pounds

Well it seems I have finally started to lose the pounds steadily, which I am truly delighted about. Things a finally starting to look up and the hard work is paying off. The last two weeks have seen me get creative with my meals, because as most of us know when dieting we tend not to experiment. We stick to the same seven meals week in and week out, and inevitably you get tired of the lack of variety. So on your behalf I tried out three new recipes to tickle your taste buds this dinner time!

Ingredients

Steak

Corn on the cob

Carrot

Parsnip

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Prepare vegetable, chop carrots and parsnip into small cubes. Blanch in boiling water for 5 minutes. Place the blanched carrots and parsnips in an oven proof dish with seasoning and a table spoon of olive oil for 30 minutes. Wash the corn on the cob, wrap in tin foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Season the steak with salt and pepper, preheat pan. Cook steak for desired length. Serve and enjoy.

Ingredients

Quorn mince

Garlic

Onion

Peppers

Tomato pasta sauce

Cheese

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Prepare vegetables, heat a wok with a little olive oil. Cook the quorn mince for 8 minutes, add the onion, garlic and peppers and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the tomato pasta sauce and allow simmering for 10 minutes. Half a pepper and deseed, blanch in boiling water for 3 minutes. Place upside down on a tissue to cool. Once cooled spoon the quorn mixture into the pepper, sprinkle with cheese and put into the oven for 20-25 minutes. Serve with a side salad.

Ingredients

Cod fillet

Pepper

Mushroom

Onion

Carrot

Pesto

Baby potato

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Prepare the vegetables. Blanch the potatoes, peppers, mushrooms and carrots in boiling water for 6 minutes. Place the cod fillet and blanched vegetables in an oven proof dish with olive oil and seasoning. Cover the cod with two spoons of pesto. Place in the oven for 30 minutes.  Serve immediately.

These three recipes were extremely satisfying and I can assure you the will make meal times more exciting. Don’t get stuck in a rut while dieting, you do not have to limit your range of food to achieve your goal. Broaden your taste buds and try new things and sure if you don’t like it there is always beans on toast!

A Result At Long Last

Starting weight: 9 stone 1.6 pounds

Previous weight: 8stone 11.2 pounds

Current weight: 8 stone 9.6 pounds

What an amazing two weeks I have had, I been so busy. Between trips to the zoo, nights out with the girls and concerts I have certainly been kept going, passing my summer exams and shedding a couple of pounds has certainly added the icing to my imaginary cake!

During my hectic two weeks I experienced a couple of extremely bad headaches, as I am not one for pain killers I did a little research and decided to start a ten day detox programme. I am currently on day five and feeling great. I will admit this strict regime is not for the faint heart as it requires a serious amount of strength, determination and will power. The detox allows you to have a smootie for breakfast and lunch, two one hundred calorie snacks and one meal with no carbohydrates a day. As you can see it is quite hard, but the most difficult component for me is cutting out caffeine, so far I have coped with the withdraws. It is important to pack the smooties with as much fruit as possible to ensure you are satisfied and to minimize cravings. Here is what I have been having, this is enough to cover both breakfast and lunch.

Ingredients

6 strawberries

12 grapes

12 blueberries

1 kiwi

1 banana

1 apple

4 tbs natural yogurt

250ml cranberry juice

Method

Add all ingredients to a smootie maker, blitz and enjoy.

A good option for the one meal a day is stir fry, as you can pack it with vegetable. Here is one I made mid week. 

Ingredients

Beef diced

1 packed of stir fry vegetables 

Sweetcorn

Peppers

Stir fry sauce

Method

Heat the wok with a little oil, add beef and cook until turns brown, add vegetables and cook for a further 3 minutes, add sauce and cook for 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

I am really glad I made the decision to weight myself every second week as it seems to have done the trick.  It took alot of pressure off the weight loss process and it helped compensate for days when I fell off the wagon, because let’s face it, they do happen.

The Real Issue

Starting weight: 9 stone 1.6 pounds

Previous weight: 8 stone 11.2 pounds

Current weight: 8 stone 11.2 pounds

Well, I have gone off the radar for almost two weeks now, as I had some soul searching to do. I have been getting quite upset over the last few days about the fact that the weight isn’t coming off as steadily as I first imagined. The worst thing about this is I cannot pin point what I am actually doing wrong, it is not like I am over eating and under exercising. I eat the right amount per day for a woman with my physic and lifestyle, this is approximately 1200 calories per day. I have even upped the exercise this week and made sure I got out every day. I became an exercise junkie if I wasn't spinning, I was playing football or being walked by dog, yes he genuinely walked me!

 As I am writing this I still feel clueless, although I don’t think the problem is with nutrition or exercise. I think I have gotten myself so discouraged over a reading on the weighting scales, that my mind has started to overrule my body. That is the problem with the scales one week it can be your best friend and then the next it is your enemy. I think it is baffling that by standing on the scales a person’s view of them self can change instantly. For instance, you wake up in the morning and go through your normal daily routine, you put on the perfect outfit and you feel good, looking more fabulous than ever and you begin to think that the diet is starting to pay off, you are practically glowing. Then you decide to stand on the scales, just out of curiosity even though weight day isn’t until Friday and to your surprise you are 2 pounds heavier than the previous week. There in a matter of seconds your mind has instantly changed how you feel about yourself, if you walk back and look in the mirror now I bet you will point out all that is ‘wrong’. This I have to admit is my biggest dilemma and the route to my weight loss mishap. This has to change,I don’t want to let the number on the scales determine how I feel about myself.

So the conclusion I have came to is to weigh myself every two weeks, I will also discipline myself to only step on the scales every second Friday. I think this could really help as weight loss is about more than the physical act of losing weight, your mind has to be in the correct place, and after some weeks of staying the same on the scales, my spirit has gone, the motivation I had at the beginning seems to be the only thing I have been losing. But now that I have acknowledged the problem I can try to fix it and get back on track and remember the real reason for starting this project, the DRESS...

Slow Progress

Starting weight: 9 stone 1.6 pounds
Previous weight: 8 stone 11.2 pounds
Current weight: 8 stone 11.2 pounds

The last couple of weeks have been slow, but on the plus side, no weight has creeped back on which is something to smile about. Like I mentioned previously my timetable is manic for the next few weeks, so weightloss is being temporarily put on hold. My focus will entirely be on maintenance and healthy eating. I know it is extremely hard to choose the right foods day in day out but I find the best way to do this is to plan. Planning for me is a life savour. I am a complete organizational freak, I like to know what I am doing, when I am doing it and how long it will take, yes I have a tad bit of OCD, but what woman doesn’t! If I plan my breakfast, lunch and dinner the day before I am more likely to stay on track. I do this by preparing my breakfast and lunches for work the night before. I find this very helpful when lunch time comes and the stomach is grumbling all I have to do is take the prepared meal out. If I had to open the fridge to prepare a meal when I'm hungry disater would strike, all my common sense and control would go out the window, because my main focus is filling the gap and satisfying my stomach. Can you see the logic in preparation, it really is a key factor in weight loss and weight maintenance.

This chicken curry is simple to make and extremely tastey. Although the portion is larger than what I would normally consume, but with the long shifts my body needs the extra fuel. Why dont you try this and spice up your dinner.

Ingredients
Chicken Brest (diced)
Onion (diced)
Peppers (diced)
Chilli (diced)
Unice Bens Curry Sauce
Long Grain Rice

Method
Prepare vegetable by dicing. Cut chicken breasts into small cubes. Heat wok and cook chicken until it is golden brown. Add vegetable and jar of sauce, cook for a further 15 minutes. Boil rice as per guidelines. Serve and enjoy.

Eggs are a great snack and super easy to cook. I'd call an egg the 'master food' you can do so much with it between pouching, scrambling, boiling and frying and they are all as yummy as one another. Its ready in a matter of minutes and is a perfect match for brown bread, making a nutritious and calorie controled meal.

Staying on track Monday to Friday also means that on the weekend an unplanned meal out does not lead to sacrifice. For instance last Saturday I headed to Toscanas for dinner, I know if I had had a week of bad choices I would not have enjoyed this night out as much as I did. It was such a treat, the food was amazing and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a dainty, romantic Italian restaurant. Definitely somewhere I would go back to again and again.

Last night was one to remember also, I ended up at the JayZ and Kanye West concert in The O2, definitley not my normal music style but it actually was a great night. The crowd was great which really added to the atmosphere and the production was brilliant. If there is tickets for tonight Id suggest getting on and taking a well deserved night off. Sure you will be burning calories while you bop along, its a win win situation!

Starstruck

Starting weight 9 stone 1.6 pounds
Previous weight 8 stone 11.2 pounds
Current weight 8 stone 11.2 pounds

Lets just say the week did not go according to plan. I am not that surprised though, this week has been hectic. After finishing my exams on Thursday I thought in my head that this is my week to have a really substantial weight loss. That wasn't meant to be though, between visits to the hospital to visit my sick brother, 21st birthday parties and work placement, I literally haven't had a minute to myself. You can agree with me that it was literally impossible to fit in an exercise regime.

This week saw me focus on what I was eating, which was extremely difficult with all the BBQs. With BBQ season in full swing us dieters need to be cautious. Although the method of cooking is fine it is the accompaniments that you need to watch. The burger and hotdog buns, the rolls and the salad are things which you should be weary of. I am certainly not suggesting to cut carbohydrates out I am merely suggesting choosing to either have a burger or a hotdog instead of both. On a positive note, with a BBQ always comes a beautiful salad. It is like a match made in heaven. Load up on these fresh ingredients and you will be surprised how filling they actually are. If you find the salad bland then a salad dressing may jazz it up for you. The Tesco light options dressings are super tasty and contain literally no fat. They are worth a try.

With work placement continuing for the next two weeks my schedule is going to be turned upside down. Working 15 hours a day leads little time to fit anything in. My main focus is going to be watching what I am eating and my portion sizes. Portion sizes is a major flaw for a majority of people, I myself used to be one of them. Here is a few examples of correct portion sizes to keep you on track.

Brown Bread: 2 small slices
Pasta: 1 cup
Rice: 1/2 cup
Cereal: 1/2 cup
Cheese: 30 grams (size of a matchbox)
Lean meat, poultry, oily fish: 150 grams (size of your palm)

I was at 21st birthday party this week, and temptation was every where with a candy land theme! I stayed true to my word and did not deprive myself of anything, so instead of heading for the chocolates I had marshmallows. These are a great treat, they are really sweet and fill you up easily, which means you cant eat too many. When we headed out on Saturday night I became starstruck when I met Damien Byrne a contestant on The Biggest Loser UK 2012. I couldn't help myself I had to go over and introduce myself and congratulate him on his success. He is looking absolutely amazing and is a true motivator.  Unfortunately he had no secret tips for me just hard work and determination. Best get cracking!