Week 1- Diet Update! Eat Less and Move More

So I headed into week 1 full spirited and ready to go. I wanted to cut out chocolate/high sugar snacks and drink more water. My basic idea for the week is to eat less and move more. I also decided to lower my carbohydrate intake, for at least the first week. Choosing healthier choices seemed like a good choice to start with!

My goal was to lose 3lbs. After all, week 1 you lose a lot of water weight, so 3lbs seemed realistic.

I chose to do my day 1 photos as well as weigh myself...

Breakfasts

For breakfasts, I generally stuck to a breakfast protein shake, as it is quick to make, and you can drink it on the go.

To make the breakfast shake, I blended in a nutribullet:

1 x banana

1 x scoop of chocolate protein powder (I use whey protein)

240 ml water

2 tablespoons oats

It tastes delicious and literally takes like a minute to make.

At the weekend, I had a little more time, so I treated myself to fried mushrooms followed by full fat greek yoghurt with blueberries. (I try not to measure too many things, otherwise it can get obsessive!)

Lunches

For lunches, I generally had leftovers from dinner. If I was out and about, I would take with me a little lunch box of healthy snacks, preventing me from wanting to binge eat chocolate.

I discovered Deliciously Ella apple and raisin bars- gluten free and vegan friendly apparently. They taste a little bit like apple crumble, so I was happy.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away- and they keep you all and satisfy your sweet tooth!

Dinners

Monday- Bolognese with courgette spaghetti. I make my bolognese using passata- avoiding the added sugar a jar provides. The base is: onion, carrot and celery, fry it for a few minutes, then add the mince and garlic. Cook until the mince has browned. Sprinkle on some Italian mixed herb, add a dollop of tomato puree. Finish it off with a carton of passata and extra water. Leave to simmer. For the courgette spaghetti, I just peeled to courgette repeatedly. Yummy!

Tuesday- Lamb cutlets with vegetables. I made mash potato for my partner, but stuck to the carb free dinner for myself. (I generally tried to avoid evening carbs, sticking to having them at lunch time.

Wednesday- Chilli with lettuce instead of rice. I discovered the rice alternative when a friend used it. Lettuce actually tastes nice with chilli, I don't even really miss the rice. You could of course switch to brown rice instead. I make my chilli in the slow cooker.

Thursday- Jamie Oliver's recipe for pork with chickpeas. Using pork loin is new to me, I have decided to try and cook new things- so I browsed the web for recipes. This looked fairly healthy, and the chickpeas provide extra protein! I found the recipe here (of course, mine did not look the same, I also substituted the rainbow chard for spring greens, because even Waitrose seemed to not supply chard!):

https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pork-recipes/chickpea-chard-pork/

Friday- Mediterranean chicken. I was at a loss what to cook today. We had chicken breasts and then a load of random vegetables that we get delivered from riverford every 2 weeks.

Saturday- Steak night! Yummy fillet steak that my partner tastily made. We have homemade wedges and broccolini and asparagus as a side. A very balanced meal, a lovely treat, and a nice way to celebrate the weekend.

Sunday- A delicious Sunday chicken roast! Chicken, roast potatoes, roast parsnips, stuffing and vegetables. Topped off with gravy obviously. It was a very tasty way to finish off the week, I had the carbs but didn't go too crazy.

I have recently (before this week) been cooking a lot of curries and Mexican food that do not contain a lot of vegetables, so I am pleased that this week I have managed to up the healthy greens intake, and I feel much better for it!

Drinks- I have stuck to mainly water, with coffee and tea per day as my "other" drinks. I have been avoiding sugary fruit juices and fizzy drinks. Every little helps!

Exercise

I have yet to start back weight training. I decided that it was important for me to lose the fat first. I opted to run most days, as well as upping my dog walks, so that they are longer and more fat burning. I downloaded map my run to track most of my runs and walks. You can set a goal per week- so I set mine to 30km, achievable I thought. I definitely did over 30km, but didn't manage to track it all.

My dog walks are great fun with Harper, a great mummy exercise that you can take your baby on. I strap the dogs to my waist and push Harper in the pram. She often snoozes through most of the walk, but it is great to not have to ask someone to watch her whilst I exercise!

I added exercising with a friend to the mix, which was great moral support, and the time went so quickly! Chatting away whilst we burned calories.

Mood

Day 1, I was so ready to go, very "on it". The mood was high, I could imagine losing the pounds! I drank loads of water, went to the gym, life was great.

Day 2, I still felt great, I still had the buzz for exercise. Water intake reduced.

Day 3, training with a friend kept my diet goals insight, together we could provide motivation, and exercising seemed much easier! I must admit, the urge to see, how much I had lost so far, was great, but I resisted, because I know the fluctuations would have put me off.

Day 4, I could definitely scoff a slice, or 8, of chocolate cake... The sugar cravings and hunger (for sweets) were kicking in. It was killer... MUST STAY STRONG...

Day 5... Continuing to feel the hunger...

Day 6, What can I say I WANT SNACKS

Day 7, Sunday, all made worse by a cream tea being served at my parents house, I avoided... The delicious looking lemon drizzle slices... the large box of cookies... the little millionaire shortbreads... scones... carbs... I RESISTED. I joked: If I close my eyes, I could imagine eating one, and hopefully it will satisfy me... Weigh in tomorrow- MUST STAY STRONG!

Results

Drum roll please... I LOST 5LBS! Smashed my goal and I think that it is a little bit noticeable. Obviously, the more the weeks go by, the more significant the changes will appear. I am overjoyed with the progress!