Saturday

Breakfast
Bacon, egg, veggie curry

Snack
Pistachios and cheese (more like 2 or 3 handfuls of nuts, so too many really. But it was a kinda early lunch around 11am, and then I went to bed. I just woke up and it's 3pm, and now I'm going to have lunch)

Lunch
Leftovers - beef stew, mashed potato and cabbage.

Dinner
Homemade lentil soup.

Friday

Breakfast
Bacon, egg, leftover apple & onion from dinner the other day.

Snack
teaspoon of peanut butter

Lunch
Veggie curry with cheese on the top.

Dinner
Crockpot stew, cabbage, peas, sweetcorn and a couple of spoonfuls of couscous.

Evening
2 glasses of lemonade. I know, I need to find something that's got less sugar...
handful of pistachios and a piece of cheese (weird combination, I know, but I like it!)

Thursday

Breakfast
Bacon, egg, veggie curry

Snack
A mini pumpkin muffin and a piece of cheese

Lunch
Lots of salad (which included lettuce, pepper, sweetcorn, kidney beans, grated carrot, croutons, a few bits of pasta with a tomato sauce on), half a small brown roll and spit-roasted chicken. A fairly big glass of lemonade (I was eating out with an old school friend. Cos the weight has been dropping off again this week I haven't worried too much about sticking to a proper phase one)

Afternoon Snack
Hot chocolate with whipped cream on the top (ok, so this really wasn't on plan!)

Dinner
Bacon joint, cabbage, peas and a few pieces of carrot, couple of slices of pineapple and gravy.

Oh, and last night I had 2 small glasses of lemonade when I was out in the evening.

Wednesday

This has been a bit of a funny food day. I couldn't fit in eating breakfast before I had to leave to get the bus, so I ate an apple and a pear on the bus for breakfast.
Morning snack was another pear (but I got less than half of it, cos S&R were both demanding bites of it too!) and a babybel cheese.

Lunch was veggie curry with cheese on the top. Then this afternoon I had another pear (they were pretty small, and needed eating!).

Dinner
Pork chop, apple & onion, and broccoli.

Tuesday

I got about 3 or 4 hours sleep, so we'll see how the day goes..

Breakfast
My usual - bacon, egg, veggie curry

Snack
Babybel (cheese) and bits of satsuma (we ate a few, but I didn't get much of a look in with S and R begging for more every two seconds!)

Lunch
Veggie curry with cheese on the top

Snack
A couple more pieces of satsuma.
A spoonful of peanut butter

Dinner
Not veggie curry! But not very inspiring either - 3 little beef burgers and half an aubergine cooked on a griddle pan.

Monday Weigh-In

I just weighed myself and got the number 212.8 fives times in a row.
Since the scales were a lot less decisive than that yesterday, I'm just going to ignore the 217.4 figure I recorded yesterday (cos there's no way I can have lost nearly 5lb in one day, even on phase 1. Although I guess, some of that could be water, but anyway!)

I'm going out for the day, so I will try my hardest to stick to phase one, but I'll be out in a big group, so I have to be prepared for the choices not to go my way (for examply if we end up eating in an Italian place!) But most places do sell salad, so it should be ok. (Just it is raining, so salad may not be exactly what's on my mind!)

Breakfast
My usual - bacon, egg and veggie curry!

Lunch
2 sausages with sweet potato mash (which also had normal potato in it too) and red onion gravy.

Snack
Two chocolate sweets.

Dinner
Bowl of veggie curry
A mars bar

Today has been all over the place emotionally, and I don't want to talk about it right now.

Giving my poor neglected blog another chance

Life's been a bit gloomy the last couple of weeks. The eating plan pretty much went out the window, and I've spent too much time wallowing in self-pity. Today things are changing.

I've accepted Brandi's 21 day habit challenge, and from today onwards I shall endeavour to keep a food diary/journal here on this blog, to keep a track of what I eat, and in particular to break the habit of mindless eating that I seem to have developed recently.

I weighed myself this morning, and although my scales still seem to need a little persuading to show the same number more than once, the number that came up most this morning was not a good one. I am recording here that this morning I weighed in at 217.4. That's up 11.4 above my lowest weight so far (which I logged on the 5th May).

As of this morning I've put myself back on phase one, properly. I'm not sure what I'll do about furit. I think I'll see how I go, and start by cutting it right out, but possibly add fruit back in sooner than other carbs.

Breakfast
I had my usual bacon, egg and a bit of veggie curry. I'm pretty happy with what I eat for breakfast, so I probably won't be messing with it!

Lunch
Meatballs, some veggie curry and asparagus and aubergine (eggplant) cooked together with a little soy sauce.Dinner
Veggie curry with cheese on top (Yes, I realise I've eaten veggie curry for 3 meals in a row, but I'm tired, people! And not feeling very inspired. And I'm sure it never hurt anyone to eat the same thing at every meal. Or not if it's something as innocent as veggie curry ;-) )

Monday morning weigh-in

This morning I weighed 206.0
That's 3.6 down on last week.

Maybe tomorrow, Jack*

Over the weekend I bought some more clothes, got to see my grandparents and uncle, went to Steve's baptism and lots of other stuff besides. I have got pics from Sunday, but I will have to loads them up tomorrow or sometime, cos this evening I'm going out for a drink with the boy.
See y'all tomorrow.

* That's a line from an advert, and it just came into my head when I was deciding what to call this post.

Weigh-in

209.6
Yay :-)
Down about 2 1\2. can't remember exactly.

Friday's here again

I have no idea what I've eaten this week. I was just concentrating on remembering to eat SOMETHING! I don't think I'm doing too badly though. I'm pretty sure I will have lost weight this week, but not so dramatically as last week, which is good, cos that was a bit scary.

I'm just happy being ME and enjoying the unexpected things life has thrown at me this week.

And I'm feeling so happy right now, I don't think you could say anything much right now to upset me (but I'm also tired, so maybe best not to test that one!)

I'll report back on Monday if not before.

Monday weigh-in

212.2
Um, yes, that's down quite a lot on last week. I was kind of distracted yesterday and didn't eat any carbs, or anything much at all in the afternoon or evening. So I started the day with porridge (made with bits of apple in) and then I've had two apples, and a big lot of veggie curry with cheese sprinkled on the top (that I had to share some of with two demanding little ones who didn't want to be left out!)

I loved wearing the dress to the wedding on Satuday and had a fantastic time. I'll add a pic to the sidebar at some point soon.

The end of the week in review

Well I did take a few more pictures of the things I was eating, but I didn't photograph everything, and I can't honestly remember everything I ate over the last couple of days. I think taking pictures of my food does help me to stay on track more, so I might so it again at some point, but I figured you were probably all getting bored of it by now.

Rach Wibbs asked how I can eat curry for breakfast. Well, I dunno. It's just warm and squidgy, and tastes good with bacon and egg, which have become my standard things to eat for breakfast. This morning I was out of curry and had to have broccoli instead, which just wasn't the same. But it's ok, because I made some more curry this evening, so I can have it again tomorrow.

On Thursday I went to Cambridge and managed to find a shrug, necklace and shoes to go with The Dress. We've also added new ribbon straps, which is good, because having lost more weight this week, it was kind of in danger of falling down. I will post pictures in due course.

I haven't done much official exercise this week - I went on my treadmill on Tuesday, but Wednesday and Thursday I was just content to walk around Covent Garden and Cambridge. Actually, I didn't have much choice, because the front room, when my treadmill is, was full of HP's stuff, so I'm not sure there was space to unfold the treadmill (it gets folded up when not in use, just to make a bit more space in the room). This evening I did a wonderfully intense hour on my treadmill - 25 minutes while dinner was cooking, and then another 35 minutes after dinner while the curry was cooking. (I didn't eat curry today, just made it ready to be able to have some tomorrow). And it felt really really good. Earlier in the day I was feeling a bit sad and lost because HP had gone back to university - my Mum took her today, so I was helping them pack and then load up the car this morning, but this afternoon the house felt really empty).

Hmm, now blogger doesn't want to save this post, but hopefully it'll change its mind in a minute.

She realises that she really better eat some carbs today

It's not that I think my food is boring, it's just that it's time to change and eat something else. I think I could probably actually eat what I've eaten for the past few days for the rest of the month, and not have a problem with it. Only, I weighed myself this morning, and I'm down from Monday. Quite a bit down. Let me explain some of the reasons why this might be, before I tell you what I weighed this morning.
1. I've been on a course of oral steroids for a week. I took my last dose on Monday morning. Although I don't know exactly what they do, I do know that steroids can inhibit weight-loss, or at least make it harder to lose.

2. My Monday weigh-in was 219.4. I've been in the 219s since about Friday, so I guess I'd hit a bit of a plateaux. So, remembering that I've been on phase 1.5 (still eating fruit) so expecting to lose faster than when on phase 2, and if you take an average of the weight lost from Friday until today that's 5 days) then it's not quite so alarming.

All that said, my weigh-in this morning was 215.6. So I need to start eating carbs, cos it's just not healthy to drop that quickly for an extended period of time. (I'm down 7.6 in a week and a half, and that's plenty). I think I can almost get stuck in a phase one rut, and not want to stop, but I am determined to... So much so, that I'll probably eat porridge for lunch.

I have no idea if any of what I wrote was coherent, but hopefully it was possible to catch the drift of what I was on about. Besides, I have to stop losing weight, or else this dress will fall down too much when I wear it on Saturday.

Breakfast
Bacon, egg, veggie curry.Snack
Pear

Lunch
Porridge, made with 1\3 cup oats, skimmed milk, and a chopped apple. With cinnamon on the top.

Afternoon
Hot chocolate and a small piece of chocolate brownie (I'd taken a box of Brownies with me for Jeana and her family, and I ate a piece to show them that they weren't poisoned or anything...! Besides, it was small and yummy.

Dinner
Mini turkey burgers (made them the other day, and reheated them today), veggie curry, purple sprouting broccoli and broad beans. Two mini pumpkin muffins.

After dinner
Some nuts. Probably over did them really. Need to keep an eye on myself tomorrow.

Tuesday (was a long and busy day)

I was looking after kiddos, and then when I got home I went on the treadmill, and then had to have a super-quick shower before heading out for a meal with my church small group friends. And decided that 11pm was too late to start uploading photos and all that jazz.

Breakfast
Guess what?Snack
Once again..Lunch
Veggie CurrySnack
Pear and a spoonful of peanut butter (I really pushed the boat out for that one!)

Dinner
Ok, so this where it gets exciting. Or not, but less predictible, at any rate.
I went out to dinner to Caffe Uno. I'd looked up the menu on Sunday, and discovered they had a few different salads. On closer inspection last night, there was only really one that sounded me, but one option is good enough! I read through the whole menu several times (I was one of the first there, and we waited a while for the last group of people to arrive!) but I didn't find anything that seemed worth wasting a carb or more on - sure, the pizzas and pastas looked nice, but they'd all be made with white flour, and the salad did sound good.
And it really was. I had them leave the dressing on the side (not so much for healthy reasons, but because I tend not to like salad dressings!) and just added some balsamic vinegar. There was plenty of chicken, and lots of interesting salad leaves, and I even ate the green beans. (I didn't take a picture, but you can see the description instead)

Insalata di pollo contadina...Succulent pieces of char-grilled chicken served with mixed salad leaves,roasted vegetables, green beans, artichoke, Caesar dressing and toasted pine nuts

Monday, Monday, so good to me

Morning weigh-in 219.4 (Yay!)

(I think I may be staying on phase one until I make up my mind about whether I'm wearing a dress that Little One's Mum has lent me, to go to a wedding this weekend!)

Breakfast
Bacon, egg, veggie curry

Snack
PearLunch
Veggie Curry
Snack
Pear

Dinner
Cashew chicken with roasted spiced chickpeas with spinach on the side (I actually added another handful a bit after I'd taken the photo)(This recipe, but with some slight changes. Or maybe more than slight changes. We don't put in fish sauce, because I don't eat fish. Instead tonight I just put in some hot water instead. I used three onions instead of the shallots. We didn't have rice, and I don't put the spinach in it, but serve it on the side as a salad - it's a good way t cool your tongue from the spices, because I always put more chickpeas and more spices than the recipe says. But other than that, it's similar!)

Sunday, or Just how much veggie curry is too much?

Ok, so I've been photographing my food for several days now, is anyone getting bored? I'm not really, it's just that basically I'm stuck in a veggie curry rut at the moment, and there are possibly only so many time y'all will want to look at veggie curry in a variety of bowls and containers!

I think that my modified phase one has probably done its job - the weight loss has been kick-started again, and unless something very strange happens between now and tomorrow morning I should be safely below my next short term goal (220). I'll start adding in some carbs again, but I am aware that I'm going out for a meal on Tuesday evening to Cafe Uno which is an Italian restuarant, so it could be easy to go overboard on carbs there. I've just been looking at the menu online, and will probably go for a chicken salad of some type - they have a couple of different ones. If things don't go according to plan, or I just can't face salad on the night, then I can always cut the carbs again for a day or two (but my intent is to go down the sald route. I'll let you know how I do.)

Breakfast
2 rashers bacon, egg, veggie curry.Snack
As is often the case on a Sunday I didn't have a snack this morning, but I did successfully stay away from the cakes and biscuits at church. Actually, I looked at them and though 'nah' and that was that. They didn't even tempt me. That IS an achievement!

Lunch
Turkey burger (homemade, and sort of fall apart-y) - that's Parmesan cheese on the top, leftover broccoli and some veggie curry (you may see a theme emerging!)
Half a pomegranate.

Afternoon snack
It kinda felt a little bit like I was snacking all afternoon, but I think all I ate was two pears (only took a picture of the first one!), some pistachios, and a couple of spoonfuls of peanut butter. Ok, so I need to watch the nut intake, but I think it was liveable with today. I know that's got potential to be a problem, so I will keep an eye on myself.

Dinner
Guess what? Veggie curry, with low-fat cheese on the top. This was actually the last of last week's plus some more of today's batch, and with some leftover sweetcorn thrown in for good measure. I like leftovers - they're fun!
I'm still feeling hungry, but I haven't decided what to have next.Evening Snack
Seems like it was all about the green - I started off with some sugar-free jelly, but after one mouthful I realised it was too sweet and was giving me a headache, so I gave it to my Mum. And instead finished off some sald that was leftover from lunchtime and the last three macademias in the pot. I still feel hungry, but I've got to the 'blow-this, I'm off to bed stage of the day'!

Veggie Curry

I was going to take pictures as I made some this afternoon, but the camera was in the other room. Anyway, Brandi wanted to know how I made my veggie curry, and although it is different every time, here's a basic recipe.

Onion, garlic, curry powder, dried thyme, stock\broth, vegetables (sweet potato, courgette(zucchini), carrot, parsnip, squash, swede, anything that's a root vegetable really), tinned chopped tomatoes, tinned chickpeas (garbanzos)

Chop a couple of onion (quite large - I usually cut the onion in half, and then in thirds each way, if that's any help at all!) Crush\Chop a couple of cloves of garlic and then fry together in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, until beginning to soften (try not to burn the garlic, like I did today).

Toss in a couple of teaspoons of curry powder (I used medium heat) and a teaspoon of dried thyme. Mix together until the onion is coated.

Add some stock - I use vegetable bouillon which you mix using a couple of teaspoons of stock powder and some hot water. I make about a pint (20 fluid oz). Pour in the stock (carefully, watching out for the steam - especially if you used boiling water)

Peal the sweet potatoes\squash\anything else that needs pealing! Chop into small cubes (I usually make them pretty small, but not always cuboid - the bigger it is, the longer it'll take to cook) Also chop any other vegetables, such as courgette. I sometimes throw in some bell pepper too.

Add all the chopped vegetables to the pan (did I tell you it should be big?!). Also add some chopped tomatoes (I usually put two cans) and some chickpeas (also 2 cans). Chuck in some salt and pepper, give it all a big stir, and then gently simmer for around half an hour, or until you come back and remember you left it cooking. The vegetables should be soft (you can easily cut them with a knife) or even going a bit mushy, if you've left them a long time.

Does that help? Today we didn't have many interesting vegetables so only used onion, sweet potatoes, courgette, and carrot. When I eat it I'll sometimes throw in some frozen peas or sweetcorn before heating it up in my bowl in the microwave. It should be good to keep for about a week - that's about how long it generally takes me to get through it, but it depends who else is eating it, and how many meals I've eaten it for.

Saturday, hungry day

Breakfast
1 rasher middle cut bacon, egg, veggie curry.Snack
A pearLunch
Bowl of veggie curry with cheese on the top.
Spoonful of peanut butter (yes, it seems I'm back on nuts!)
Snack
7 Macadamia nuts, a pear, quarter of a red pepper, a bit more peanut butter. Oh dear, that's a lot, but I'm just so hungry today! (See I told you I was hungry - this is the pear, about to be bitten again!)Dinner
Roast Lamb with roast parsnips, peas, sweetcorn and purple sprouting broccoli. There's mint sauce on the lamb, and I put a bit of gravy on after I took the picture (I thought you'd be able to see the pretty colours better if I took it before I did that!)
After Dinner
Argh! I just ate a whole bunch of nuts. I'm about to go to bed, and I felt really hungry, and had some nuts, but then I couldn't stop eating them. Tomorrow's a new day. I'll start again then. I'd better clean my teeth quick before I eat any more.

Friday's Finally Here

Weigh-in this morning 220. Woo-hoo!

Breakfast
2 rashers bacon, egg, a couple of spoonfuls of veggie curry and some yellow pepper (that's the ingredient I'll be adding to most of my meals today - we have lots and it needs eating up!)
Snack
I ended up not having a snack this morning, but having lunch fairly early. I'll see how I go this afternoon - maybe I'll have two snacks then!

Lunch
Veggie Cury with extra yellow pepper on top.
Snack
A pear and a raw mushroom.
Dinner
Too tired to tell you now what it was, see if you can guess!
It was some thin beef steak, cut into strips and cooked with pepper and rosemary. Then augergine, cooked on the griddle pan, and the remains of the chickpea/onion/courgette/pepper mixture that I'd put in my lunch the day before.After Dinner
A piece of my newly invented apple cake (I had to go off phase one to try it, but it was worth it!)