24th November 2010

Make the iron hot by striking it. John Haggai

My members weight loss to date on ProPoints plan = 1,351lb! That's 96.5 stone!

Willenhall did brilliant yesterday losing a total of 197lb or 14 stone – WOW, it seems this year that you lot aren’t afraid of Christmas you’re looking forward to the challenge ;-) It’s only 31 sleeps away! 4 members this week already have achieved their 50lb weight loss, which is just awesome. That’s 4 fifty-pound certificates I’ve ordered in two weeks, which is just wonderful. There’s nothing better than celebrating the weight loss milestones from silver seven’s to 10% to goal, they all count and the all deserve to be celebrated because you all work so hard to achieve them.

I had a fabulous dinner yesterday, Co-op tinned minced beef with onions (15pp in the whole tin ¼ can each) - depending on your taste, I add a couple of oxo cubes and a bit of cornflour. Mash made with 200g potatoes (4pp), and zero veggies. I had mine with julienne carrots, roast peppers & savoy cabbage. For 8 points it was delicious and easy, it was so good I had the spare dinner for my tea!

Today I think I’m going to do something with turkey pieces I’ve defrosted, maybe sweet and sour, I’ve just found a recipe on esource mmm, yeah I’ve got everything but the water chestnuts, not sure if I have the sauce but I do know I’ve got a sweet plum sauce or something similar which will do. Keep this recipe for Christmas to use the leftovers and just throw the cooked turkey in when you add the pineapple.

Sweet and Sour Turkey
Serves 4 at 4 ProPoints each.

2 teaspoons Oil, Sunflower
350 g Turkey, Breast, Skinless & Boneless, Raw, cut into strips
2 medium Spring Onions, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) lengths
2 medium Pepper, All Types, 1 red, 1 yellow, de-seeded and sliced
227 g Water Chestnuts, can, drained
350 g Uncle Ben's Oriental Sweet & Sour Cooking Sauce, Light
115 g Pineapple, canned pieces in natural juice, drained
1 pinch Salt, season to taste
1/2 teaspoons Pepper, Black (Whole, Cracked or Ground), season to taste (ground)

Instructions
Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying-pan or wok. Add the turkey and stir-fry briskly for 2-3 minutes, until sealed.

Add the spring onions, peppers and water chestnuts and stir-fry for a further 3-4 minutes.

Pour on the sauce and add the pineapple. Mix well, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Season to taste and serve.

Weight Watchers esource is brilliant for finding meal ideas, if you haven’t already got a monthly pass make it this years Christmas present you yourself, the first month is only £12.95 and you’ll be able to log on over Christmas to keep you motivated. (buy it in your meeting)

I’m sat drinking a smoothie, it’s not my best work I have to admit, a bit too thick and I shouldn’t have put the apple in! But I’ll drink it because it’s good for me. Whatever you’re having for your breakfast, I hope you’re enjoying it more, speaking of which we have fruity cereal bars arriving today I think! Mmm can’t wait to try those, only 2pp.
Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

23rd November 2010 - facebook email

If you judge people, you have no time to love them.


My members weight loss to date on ProPoints plan = 1,091lb lost on ProPoints so far, that's 78 stone!

Bloxwich lost 53lb yesterday morning and Wednesfield lost 76lb last night so still going well, someone wrote on my facebook page last night that they may come back after Christmas to see what its all about, but why wait, I have members losing now and still going out on nights out, for meals and to Christmas do’s and losing weight. Rather lose half stone before Christmas & gain it over Christmas so you’re the same weight January than ;-), not bother and gain half stone over Christmas so you’re even heavier than you are now ;-(

Well I was proper cold all day yesterday from the time I got up to the time I went to bed! It’s stew weather that’s for sure, and luckily I had made one on Sunday but I ended up having a veggie stew as Alfie ate the meat! He’s great for my diet ;-)

I did have a delicious fish finger sandwich for tea though, using salmon fishfingers and 50/50 bread, made the sauce with low fat mayo, chopped up red pepper, spring onion and capers mmm. Delicious.

Today I plan to have mince beef and onions (from a tin! It takes me back to my childhood as it used to be one of mom’s specials, with extra onions and oxo cube) and I’m having it with smash and mushy peas mmm nice, can’t wait for dinner time. Foods more than just sustenance isn’t it; it’s comfort, memories, flavours, and tastes so it’s really important not to make food the enemy. I’m off to Belgium at the weekend with friends and I plan on eating and drinking at the Christmas market so I’m saving my 49 points and all my pedometer points for then.

Oh and can I just point out if like me you’ve been tempted by the bottles of Baileys reduced in the stores, it’s 108 ProPoints for a litre bottle! That’s 3pp for 25ml ;( I bought a bottle of ginger wine instead which is the same points as ordinary wine but has more of a wintery sweet taste to it, and I’m loving the mulled wine recipe in this months Weight Watchers magazine.

Yes for me I finally realised Christmas is almost upon us yesterday, after watching a couple of Christmas films at the weekend, yesterday I walked round the shops in Cannock and could hear the Christmas tunes playing, then driving home from work last night there were lights and decorations up in some house.

So holidays are around the corner, it’s that time of year, they start earlier each year in the shops and bring out bringing out the holiday treats immediately after Halloween. Next thing you know they'll leave the displays up year-round. With all the colorful packaging staring at us now, weeks before Christmas, instead of, "I’ve got to get some now because it won't be

here long" frame of mind, we can realize, "It's not going anywhere. I can eat these foods any time I want."

They're making what used to be special seem not so special after all. That, for me, was always part of the allure of the season: treats you don't see the rest of the year, pretty wrapped boxes and ribbons that seemed far more special when it was just for a few weeks. Now it's just pretty paper and the food is ordinary. I used to love the mini party foods but you can buy those all year round now and suddenly a mini quiche is no different from a slice of quiche ;-(

Don’t get SSD!!!!

If you start buying your Christmas food goodies early it's more than likely you'll start sampling those goodies early as well. I call that SSD (Seasonal Sugar Disorder)

So how to start getting things you need ready for Christmas without eating half of them before the event? If you have to buy them now or want to because they’re on offer or it’ll save you time later on, like the Baileys I’ve bought, you could try the out-of-sight out-of-mind" trick. Once you’ve got it home, put it way somewhere out of sight then forget about it. I’ve found stuff in April that I’d bought specially for Christmas in the past which proves I didn’t need it!

If you’ve bought selection boxes or any edible gifts wrap them up immediately and put them in a cupboard, you’ve got to keep your wits about you cos those things talk to you!

Just because things look lovely, doesn't mean you need to forget your resolve to eat when hungry, stop when satisfied. If you want a treat, have one, but eat it slowly and really taste it. See if you can tell the difference between cheap and expensive chocolate by taste or texture, if you want. Enjoy the treat. Make it special.

Now where was that Baileys? ;-)

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

22nd November 2010 - facebook email

The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction not a destination. Brother Angelus


Well I’m rested and ready for another week of ProPoints – are you? I hope you had a great weekend and have recharged your batteries.

I’d been starting to put together a Bev’s Bites over the last few weeks, a bit here and a bit there but yesterday I spent about 8 hours solid on it – I got a little engrossed! At least it stopped me eating ;-) So it’s done and will be available as soon as I can get some printed, all proceeds to charity of course. There’s over a month of menu plans and recipes (104 meal ideas). Hopefully it’ll help you all get into the plan even quicker and easier.

Just a quick reminder of the weekends emails, if you read them and took on board what they said, you should now know that the most powerful and influential person in your life is you. You are the thinker of your thoughts. You have the ultimate responsibility, the final say in defining who you are and how your life is. In particular, you have sole responsibility for choosing your response to any and every situation in your life, past, present and future.

So today’s all about taking responsibility for yourself, taking ownership of your attitude and approach to life. You may not always be in control of what happens in your life but you can be in control of your response.

It’s so easy to blame others, I know so many who are still blaming there parents for the way they are! Once you’re over 16 you gotta stop blaming the parents! It’s so easy to blame others, friends, partners etc, the truth is people can hurt each other no matter how much love they share. There is not perfect partner or parent who will never hurt or disappoint. But if you can come to terms with the concept of forgiveness, you can make allowances for human weakness and start making amends.

For some there will always be someone to blame for something, in this country we have a reputation for moaning and blaming, 52% of us say we’re not happy and we want to change but according to a survey conducted by American Express our main excuse for not changing is “Who can’t find the time”!

So if you’d like to change, first work out how you’d like to change and then the steps towards that change, then identify your excuses and take responsibility.

The reason most people moan is because they think they are powerless and don’t have a choice, they see themselves as victims. Never believe that thought, you always have choices, they may not be easy ones but remember staying stuck and complaining is a choice in itself.

I’m not saying you have to look on the bright side, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea. Instead of dwelling on negative images from the past, reliving things that went wrong, decide from today to look at the good stuff instead. Count your blessings, rather than your burdens and this will improve your mood, it’s been proven.

According to medical findings – laughter really is the best medicine! So start to enjoy life, laugh at the stuff you can’t change, learn to be happy with your lot or change it!

If you’re holding onto a grudge or something negative that happened to you – let it go, don’t let it eat you up. Remember what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger – The choice is yours.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

21st November 2010 todays email

I discovered I always have choices and sometimes it's only a choice of attitude.

Sunday morning, I love this day, I love Sunday’s because I’m usually back to full energy after my busy week, and I’ve got nothing planned so I can just go with the flow which is fabulous when you have had such a busy week – was in bed last night before 8pm! So today, I’m chilling; I’m thinking movies, magazines, maybe a bit of cooking and walking Alfie. Bliss.

As everyone seems to be doing so well on the new ProPoints plan I thought for today’s email we’d stick with the feel good stuff and continue working on your Indestructible self believe. When you look around you’ll notice two types of people. Those that life has taken its toll on and they’ve sunk under the weight of it all, you can see a defeated look in their eyes. The other type look fresh, they’re undefeated, they’ve had their share of knocks and challenges but they handle themselves differently. They haven’t allowed themselves to be ground down, worn out. They refuse to resign or give up on themselves. This is because of that INDESTRUCTIBLE SELF BELIEF. Take every day as a miracle; enjoy your day, because nothing can guarantee you are going to see another sunrise! Don’t worry if you’ve become a little defeated, as long as you’re willing, you can change.

So what do you think of you? Do you think you’re amazing? I know you are, I’ve just got to get you to realise it!

What do you want to believe about you? The reality is you can believe anything you decide to. Whatever you choose to believe will be your truth, because that’s the view that you’ll give out. Seriously, I believe I’m the best damn Weight Watcher leader on the planet, I’m guessing there’s a few leaders out there and my boss on occasion who’d disagree with me, but hell “what do they know!” ;-)

As a race we have a need to be right, so whatever we believe, whatever that perspective is becomes our reality. I’m really lucky whatever situation I’ve found myself in I’ve never felt any less special than anyone else, I’ve always been as good as everyone else, I’ve always been good enough. I thank my mom for this, she always made me feel beautiful and special and capable of doing anything I wanted to and being as good as everyone else.

Sadly a lot of women don’t think they’re amazing and feel depressed when looking in magazines at supermodels, they don’t feel good enough next to other people; maybe you weren’t lucky enough to have a mom like mine. Luckily though now you’re a grown up, the most important influence in your life is YOU. This gives you unstoppable power to influence yourself. You have the power to be your greatest ally or your deadliest enemy. What is it to be? Enhancing your self-belief begins with a decision, the decision to improve your view of yourself! Are you ready to feel great about yourself no matter what? Are you willing to have indestructible self-belief?

What is your opinion of you? Is it good enough? Could you think better of yourself?

From this day forward, choose to be a “Believer in YOU”, don’t wait for someone else to show faith in you, back yourself. Know in your heart that you are far bigger than anything that can happen to you. xx

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

20th November 2010 today's facebook email

It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult undertaking which, more than anything else, will determine its successful outcome. (William James)

Yay it’s the weekend, and hopefully most of you will have your 49 weekly ProPoints to spend it with ;-)

Smoothies seem very popular with the new plan, remember though for them to be zero pointed you have to make them yourself, innocent smoothies have juice as well as whole fruit in and I’ve worked them out at 15pp a litre carton!!!

Also if you enjoy eating out, then invest in the eating out guide, its under a fiver and worth every penny, saves making those huge mistakes, just quickly looking at the Indian food section main courses vary from 15-40 so it’s best to check!

Cinema Popcorn appears to have disappeared out of the listing though ;( When you can’t find exactly the food you’re looking for you need to look for similar, so I would suggest searching your shop guide. Using popcorn as an example, Butterkist make a sweet cinema style popcorn which is 5pp per 50g, unfortunately the salted isn’t less! Using esource if you have a monthly pass, just type in popcorn that brings up a list of different suggestions which include, sweet or salted popcorn 75g = 9pp. Please remember I’m not a mobile food list ;-) I don’t mind on the odd occasion but …..

Kebab Meat!!! I’ve been asked why have we not given the ProPoints values of kebabs in the Eating Out guide?

The answer is that there are foods that, if Weight Watchers do not know what the nutritional content is of that food, they cannot ‘work out’ the ProPoints values. Kebab meat is one of the few.

We’ve managed to ProPoint crocodile, alligator, even frogs legs - but we don’t have kebab meat. When this happens it’s either the manufacturers will not give us the information – or they have not had it analysed so they can’t give it to us. Despite repeated attempts to get the nutritional content of kebab meat, we have no idea what it is. PERSONALLY I think that speaks volumes and would seriously make me consider whether I should be choosing to eat it at all!!!!!

If you decide to have another type of meat at the kebab house, such as chicken skewers or slices of lamb, you can easily work out the ProPoints values using your Pocket Guide, SHOP or eSource by adding up the separate parts of the dish - for example add chicken with a pitta and any sauce you may have. You can do this with anything you eat outside your home that you can’t find listed.

I have to admit, I’m still smiling over my members losing 69 stone, and it’s just fantastic and proves that the ProPoints plan certainly does work as long as you do.

We’ve spent so much time talking about ProPoints this last two weeks we haven’t do any feel good stuff. I think that needs rectifying ;-) Although I think you’ll agree when you eat well, you feel good anyway.

So Let’s do a little bit of work in giving you Indestructible Self-Belief! Fancy that? It really is the greatest asset you can have in life. Self-belief is feeling good enough; it’s feeling that you can handle anything that life throws at you. It’s having a healthy appreciation of your talents, characteristics and abilities. It’s seeing yourself as special and entirely unique like no other person on the planet. That’s fabulous and so are you!

So the first step I’d like you to make towards having this INDESTRUCTIBLE SELF BELIEF, is don’t belittle yourself!

Sounds obviously, so why would anyone want to make life harder for themselves? But so many of you do it and I witness it from you, you may be doing it in a joke manner but you’re still doing it. You many not to it intentionally, but constant self-criticism can really turn you into the kind of person you’re so desperate not to be. So start to become aware of the relationship between your thoughts and how you behave. If you constantly belittle yourself, or tell yourself you’re not good enough, you’ll start behaving in a way that reinforces that thought pattern. But if you tell yourself you are talented and special, you’ll behave in a way that fulfils that belief.

Trust me, I’ve met almost every one of you reading this and I can confirm you are amazing and wonderful and gorgeous! And for those I haven’t met, trust me you’re gorgeous too!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

19th November 2010 - facebook email

Positive anything is better than negative nothing.

Absolutely astonishing week, Bloxwich yesterday WOW, 148lb on the night 180lb on the morning, which brings the total for the week in all my meetings to 962lb that’s a

DRUM ROLLING TOTAL OF 69 STONE - WoW WoW WoW WoW

As a comparison that’s the weight of your average horse or an Alaskan grizzly bear, neither as scary as having that fat on your waistline!

Well I have to admit this time last week I was a little nervous about how successful ProPoints would prove on the scales and what the first week would show, but I didn’t dream it would be this fabulous. So well done to you all and let’s aim for another loss next week for all.

Don’t forget you can ProPoint everything just like you used to Point everything, you do it in exactly the same way but with different information, so use your tools. If for example something isn’t in your eating out guide then use what is as a guideline.

Fish & Chips isn’t in the eating out guide because it’s in your folder on page 54 of pocket guide. Alcohol is in that pocket guide too.

Below is the link for my facebook page which is the page I can access easily from my phone and keep you in touch throughout the day on offers I find and other tidbits of information you might find useful, so if you haven’t already add yourself to it.

Bev's Weight Watcher Facebook page

As I said earlier in the week I’m working on some meal ideas, recipes etc but if you wanna save a few of your daily points for a drink tonight, here’s a 1 ProPoint stir fry recipes to help you with that;

1 ProPoint mushroom stir fry
Takes 20 minutes, serves 2

100g tender stem broccoli
225g fillet steak, cut into strips
low fat cooking spray
2 garlic cloves, sliced
25g fresh ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks
400g mixed mushrooms such as shitake, oyster, chestnut
½ red pepper, de-seeded and diced finely
3tablespoons teriyaki sauce (2pp)
Juice of a lime

Cut the florets from the broccoli stalks and set aside. Then cut the broccoli stalks in half lengthways and then in half again to make short stems. Set aside.

Heat a wok or non-stick frying pan until really hot. Spray and add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 1 minute.

Add the mushrooms, pepper, broccoli florets and stalks. Stir fry for 3-4 minutes stirring occasionally until just tender, then add the teriyaki sauce. Remove from the heat, as it will bubble very quickly due to the heat of the pan. Squeeze over the lime, stir once more and serve immediately.

Either serve alone or with 40g dried rice noodles per person cooked according to packet instructions for 2 points each.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

18th November 2010 todays facebook email

For success, attitude is equally as important as ability. Harry F. Banks

Well it’s my last day of meetings for the first week on ProPoints losing and the Amazing Ashmore Park Angels did not let me down last night, they lost WHOOP WHOOP and double WOW, 147lb, how awesome is that, for those not fab at the maths, that's 10.5 STONE!!!! GO ASHMORE!! ;-) Running total this week 45.5 stone (634lb) OMG! How proud am I of all my members, probably even more so of the few that didn’t lose and have gone away more focused and determined to get a loss next week because attitude is everything!

Just for info there’s a typo in shopping guide Mullerlight Strawberry Fruit Corner is 5pp not 2pp (p103). Please if you check something using the packaging and it differs always go by the packaging as errors occur (of course they can occasionally occur on packaging too!) Let me know if you find any.

I think I realised last night that the one thing members need right now are meal ideas, menu plans and recipes so I’m working on it honestly and over the next few weeks I’ll have some stuff sorted. In the meantime here are a few zero point soup recipes to help you on these cold, damp days.

Asian-Inspired Zero ProPoints Value Soup

Makes 12 servings, ProPoints® value
0 per serving

Ingredients

140g pak choi, chopped
150g Chinese cabbage, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
20g fresh ginger root, thinly sliced and julienned
100g oyster mushrooms
100g spring onions, chopped
140g canned water chestnuts, sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
1440ml vegetable stock
70g beansprouts
200g mangetout

2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

25g coriander, finely chopped

Instructions

Put pak choi, Chinese cabbage, garlic, ginger root, oyster mushrooms, spring onions, water chestnuts, pepper, red pepper flakes and vegetable stock into a large soup pot. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partly covered, for about 10 minutes. Toss in beansprouts and mangetout during the last 3 to 4 minutes of simmering. Add soy sauce and coriander. Serve.

Italian-Inspired Zero ProPoints Value Soup

Makes 12 servings ProPoints® value
0 per serving

Ingredients

40g chicory, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
160g onions, chopped
30g baby spinach
2 small courgettes, cubed
1 medium red pepper, chopped
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1440ml vegetable stock
800g canned chopped tomatoes
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh oregano, finely chopped
¾ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
25g fresh parsley, chopped
25g fresh basil

Instructions

Put the chicory, garlic, onions, spinach, courgette, red pepper, fennel bulb, vegetable stock, chopped tomatoes, red pepper flakes, thyme and oregano into a large soup pot. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low, and simmer, partly covered, for about 10 minutes.

Stir in salt, black pepper, parsley and basil. Serve.

Mexican-Inspired Zero ProPoints Value Soup

Makes 12 servings ProPoints® value
0 per serving

Ingredients

200g sugar snap beans, cut into bite-size pieces
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 small courgettes, cubed
120g tomatillos, chopped (optional)
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
400g canned chopped tomatoes
25g green chilli
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
½ tsp cumin
1 tsp fresh oregano
1440ml vegetable stock
2 roasted peppers, pureed with …
1 Tbsp chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
¾ tsp salt
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
25g fresh coriander, chopped

Instructions

Put sugar snap beans, garlic, courgettes, tomatillos, jalapeno, chopped tomatoes, green chilli, onion, green pepper, cumin, oregano and vegetable into a large soup pot. Puree roasted peppers with chipotle in adobo sauce in a blender or food processor, and add to soup. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low, and simmer, partly covered, for about 10 minutes.

Stir in salt, lime juice and coriander. Serve.

So no excuses and no need to buy ready made soup! I bought a fresh carton from Tesco garage the other day that was 11pp for the carton – ouch! Won’t be doing that again.

If the ingredients in those soups are too fiddly, just remember you can use any veggies, any herbs or just stock cubes and water, it'll still taste good.
Good look to all my Bloxwich Babes today, let’s take the roof off!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

17th November 2010 facebook email

You've done it before and you can do it now. See the positive possibilities. Redirect the substantial energy of your frustration and turn it into positive, effective, unstoppable determination.

As you can imagine I’m crazy busy at the moment with the new plan but yesterday I sat and read the latest Weight Watcher magazine which has the new ProPoints plan in and I couldn’t believe it was the Christmas edition, actually made me realise it really is that close now. I’m loving the recipes in their though, especially the one for Mulled Wine. There’s a very inspiring story from a lady named Nicola who says ‘Life’s to short to be unhappy’ how true is that statement!

The quote at the top of the page is directed at anyone who feels that learning something new is too much like hard work, trust me the rewards will be well worth the effort. So far this week we’ve lost a staggering 417lb in my meetings that’s 30 stone in just 2 days worth of weight loss!

I received the following email yesterday which I think sums up how a lot of members are feeling about the change to ProPoints, so rather than try and explain it, I thought I’d let the member do it for me with her email.

- - - - - - - - -

Hi Bev,

Hope you are ok,

I am away this week so will not be able to attend the meetings - the good news this should be the last time this year.

WW plan news

Like anything that's different and new it can seem a little daunting especially if time is an issue learning a whole new programme - and that's what I found last week and so it was Saturday before I sat down to go through everything. I have the food and eating out guides and calculator and your sticky labels and when I started, I could not stop pointing up everything and looking through the books for low points options. I am eating better so that's a plus I have been aware for a while I was in a rut using my points unwisely just because as you said it was nice not filling.

I really enjoyed your evening meeting last week and although I find it useful to weigh in the morning I am going to make more time for myself and come along to your evening class when I can as I really felt I got a lot out of it.

I liked the idea of putting the ingredients list on to eSource and getting menus.

I also like the fact that everything we do...eating all your points early in the day or even early in the week you have done and admit to so there's no pulling the wool over your eyes!

Lastly I want to change to the monthly pass will it still be on offer next week?

Regards,

- - - - - - - - -

So as you can see it is worth putting in the effort, I think this member has summed up in an email everything that is great about Weight Watchers, the plan and the importance of staying to your meeting. Attending a meeting to get the diet folder and never coming back will not help you get to goal and be successful, there’s so much more to weight loss and changing. I hope you all agree and I know I will enjoy and take great pleasure in helping your all on your weight loss journey to goal.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

November 16th 2010 facebook email

Never keep up with Joneses. Drag them down to your level. It's cheaper.


As Kylie Minogue would say, WoW, WoW, WoW, WoW! What a great first day of ProPoint results at the scales, yesterday my scales saw a massive 159lb weight loss; I saw lots of smiling and surprised faces. The feedback has been fantastic, a few members hadn’t had time to sit and read the folder so were going to do that this week, but those that had were happily walking round the supermarket and sitting on the floor in the kitchen with their new little ProPoints calculator working out all the new points and boy was it worth it when they lost weight.

Some members were a little concerned about the Zero ProPoint fruit, remember it’s about eating until you are satisfied which we all know takes a bit of practice but can be mastered. And to reassure you, I’ve never had anyone join Weight Watchers with a fruit problem!

A satisfying amount of fruit and veg has been taken into account in a members daily allowance – so if you cut back because you’re nervous it’s free, then you are actually depriving yourself of something that’s already been allowed for.

On the other hand – if you’re stuffing yourself on fruit then it’s likely you are eating more than the system has built in. Eat until satisfied is the message with fruit. Don’t make fruit the baddie. Remember fruits are some of the healthiest foods there are.
When you get yourself a piece of fruit, take one piece (this can be used with any food) and remind yourself you can have seconds (after all Weight Watchers has given you a 49 weekly ProPoint allowance for such an occasion with none zero foods)! Eat a bit slower, and then check in with your stomach before grabbing for something else.

It’s brilliant to see such weight losses in the middle of November when people are usually struggling to stay afloat because their thinking about Christmas and losing the will. But it’s still 6 weeks away and a lot of weight can be lost in that time, I mean 159lb was lost in just one day!

I just about managed my meat-free Monday but it was difficult, I can’t believe I was a vegan for 8 years! I did succumb to a chow mein from the Chinese takeaway, I’ve been wanting one for weeks now, so it was Alfies lucky day because I picked out all the chicken for him ;-) I had to have the Chow Mein, it had started coming to me in my dreams!

In the words of Oscar Wilde "The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself." (The Picture of Dorian Gray, 1891)

Translated – a little of what you fancy does you good, I still managed to still within my daily allowance of 29!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

15th November 2010 facebook email

Happiness lies in good health and a bad memory. Ingrid Bergman

Can’t believe it’s Monday already, and I’m already looking forward to weighing everyone after their first week on ProPoints.

I made a type of strawberry ice cream with organic yogurt yesterday and it’s in the freezer as a treat for this week, followed the general recipe from yesterdays email.

I also cooked Leek and mustard bake that I love and the sauce can be used on any vegetables not just Leeks, it’s nice on broccoli and cauliflower. I’ve put the recipe below, I thought we could all have a ‘Meat free Monday’. I’ve just had a punnet of blueberries for my breakfast and I’ve made a smoothie, which is cooling in the fridge. I’ve got leftover leek bake for lunch and I’m going to think about my tea, but eggs will probably be involved as there’s a few of them in my fridge.

There’s also an autumn vegetable balti recipe in this weeks copy of ‘Your Week’ and a tasty veggie pasta dish too or a tofu and noodle soup recipe. In last weeks copy there is Winter Minestrone, you could make the chilli con carne from soya or quorn mince and of course the deserts are all meat-free. I might make my whole week meat free; I’ll include a little fish at most.
Leek and mustard bake Serves 4 total 25pp – 6pp each

700g baby leeks (wash & cut in half lengthways)
50g low fat margarine (5pp)
50g plain flour (5pp)
600ml skimmed milk (6pp)
100g low fat soft cheese with garlic & herbs (4pp)
1 tbsp wholegrain Dijon mustard (1pp)
50g low fat cheddar cheese (4pp)
Salt & pepper
· Preheat oven to Gas Mark 5 / 190oC. Steam leeks for 5-10 minutes or until softened.

· Meanwhile, melt margarine in a non-stick saucepan and stir in the flour to make a ball. Remove the pan from the heat, add the milk and whisk until the roux ball is completely broken up into the milk.

· Return to a low heat and whisk until the sauce thickens. Add soft cheese and mustard, season to taste.

Place the steamed leeks in the base of an ovenproof dish. Pour over the sauce and sprinkle with the cheese, then bake for 15 minutes until bubbling and golden.

This bake is so easy to make and quick too, just what you need after a busy Monday.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

14th November 2010 facebook email

If A is success in life, then A equals X plus Y plus Z. Work is X, Y is play, and Z is keeping your mouth shut.

Good morning, well I’ve just got back from an hour walk with Alfie, as we walked it got misty and now we can just see the houses across the road! Well I stuck to my word and really chilled yesterday, watched tv all day and slept through XFactor, best way to watch it I think! I managed to cook some roasted vegetables which were delicious, had them with huge potato wedges, I microwaved the whole baking potato first, then cut into 4 sprayed with my oil sprayer and put in with the veggies so it was all ready at once, I sprinkled them all with BBQ seasoning too, delicious.
Whilst watching a couple of Jamie Oliver’s 30-minute meals, a couple of quick recipes caught my eye, one was an adult version of the good old slushie, remember those – brain freeze! And the other was a frozen dessert, which looked scrumptious and low in ProPoints once I’d tweaked it, so I’ve put them both below for you to try. I need to get me some cordial and soda water first! There are quite a few of Jamie’s recipes I plan to convert in the coming weeks.

Berry Slushie (Zero ProPoints)

Ice cubes
2 sprigs fresh mint
50 ml elderflower cordial
150g raspberries
1 litre bottle of soda water

Using a food processor fitted with the standard blade attachment add a pint glass of ice cubes and the leaves from 2 sprigs of mint and blitz to a slush. Leave the processor running and add 50ml of elderflower cordial and the raspberries. Pour in 500ml of soda water and leave to whiz until combined. Taste, adding another little splash of elderflower to sweeten if needed. Pour into a large jug, top up with soda water and stir again before serving.

Mango Dessert (serves 4 at 3 ProPoints each)

500g bag of frozen mango chunks (or any frozen fruits)
2 tablespoons runny honey (8pp)
1 lime
a few sprigs of fresh mint
250g natural yogurt (3pp)

Whiz the frozen mango chunks in food processor with 2 tablespoons runny honey, the just of 1 lime, a good pinch of mint leaves and 250g of yogurt. Once smooth, pop into the freezer until ready to serve.

I’m just loving the enthusiasm from everyone, the text messages, the phone calls, the posts on facebook; it’s fabulous to see everyone loving the plan.

The mist has already cleared always so you can enjoy the day.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

13th November 2010 facebook email

All meaningful and lasting change starts first in your imagination and then works its way out. Imagination is more important than knowledge.


Lesson of the day – DON’T ASSUME because it makes an ASS of U + ME! Yesterday I had a McDonalds and instead of having the big mac which I knew was 14 I had a Big Tasty because I’d never tried one, I ate it then using the nutritional information on the box worked out that it had 24 ProPoints in! Ouch, if I’d stuck to the big mac I’d still be within my total weeks points, now I’m exactly minus ten which means I’ve either got to do some serious walking this weekend or accept that there will be no weight loss. Luckily I’m back at my goal so can afford to go up and down by a few pounds now I’m maintaining but if you’re still losing it’s not the case. So please realise that everything has changed and you need to be recalculating things, that burger was twice the size of the big mac so why was I surprised it would be almost twice the points!

Well I’m thrilled with the feedback I’m getting, everyone seems really fired up and loving the new plan, you all seem to be making the most of your tools, i.e. calcs, scales and the Weight Watchers esource.

I’m loving the fact it takes away the guilt, when I sat eating that burger yesterday I was thinking to myself I have weekly and activity points to cushion this, okay I’ve got over and I need to move more now but 10 over is better than 24!

What I have noticed is ProPoints has made me more honest, whereas in the past I would have suffered from ‘diet amnesia’ and omitted things from my tracker, or maybe had ‘portion distortion’ and made things less points than they were, now I’m being 100% honest because we have that safety net and Weight Watchers have by giving us that weekly allowance made me realise that everyone is obviously the same, we all do it, we all overindulge, we all like a treat, we all have moment of greed and that’s absolutely fine now as long as its within reason.

If you haven’t already done so, use this weekend to go through your cupboards and re-point everything, maybe do a bit of cooking, try that celeriac and apple soup from in the week or something out of the December magazine – can’t believe we have the Christmas magazine already – don’t forget to buy your copy next week.

I’m planning a very relaxing weekend, I’m treating my back to its first massage in 3 weeks, I need it after the hectic week I’ve had, then I have lots of Sky+ programmes to catch up on, I’m going to do some cooking from the new Weight Watchers cook books and I’ll try and earn some of those ProPoints back by walking Alfie.

Keep chatting to each other on our group wall too. If you can’t access it from your phone there’s always the group page,

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=91140272928&ref=ts#!/pages/Bevs-Weight-Watchers/133361767350

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

12th November 2010 facebook email

The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude. Oprah Winfrey

WOW I’ve had the most amazing week, I‘ve always loved my job but this week was just the best! It’s so great to see everyone so fired up in the meetings, and posting on the wall, let’s keep this momentum going, I’m seeing a lot of little black dresses this Christmas (not you though Colin please xx)

So it’s coming up to the first weekend of ProPoints for you all, I wander have you saved you 49 to share the weekend with or have you been dipping into them over the week. I’ve been dipping in because I’ve had a crazy week, I’ve used all my weekly allowance and I’ve used most of my pedometer (wineometer in my case!) points, however this shouldn’t be a problem as I’ve now plans this weekend other than catching up on sleep and chilling out and getting ready for next week.

Apparently the chilli recipe in Your Week is delicious and can I just point out the Weight Watchers products have been ProPointed in the centre pages so you can still go buy your favourites.

I think I’m going to cook the Thai Lamb Curry on page 12 of Your Week as it looks scrumptious and I’m also going to be making more soup this weekend as that really hit the spot this week, me and my helpers had a cup full in the meeting to keep us going. I must say my girls have been amazing this week, I couldn’t run my meetings without them, so please always remember that when you’re being served by them, most of them help me for fun, they’re not paid so always be nice to my ladies.

The new cook book has arrived in meetings too and its only £5.95, let me know which recipes you try and what you think from there too.
Esource really is making my life easier with ProPointing things, it’s so easy just to type something in, this morning I found out that Walkers Cheese & Onion crisps from the multipack are 4pp, so I’ll be eating the new Weight Watcher four cheese and onion bakes for 2pp from now on!

If you’re still a little hesitant about the change to ProPoints, remember Weight Watchers wouldn’t change something for fun, they wouldn’t do something that didn’t work and mostly all the people that have tried it so far have lost weight including my helpers. I had a couple of members last night who’d been following it since it was launched on Monday and they both had lost weight so trust in ProPoints, it’s liveable, it’s do-able and its enjoyable xx

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

10th November 2010 - facebook email

Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change!

It’s a sign its Thursday, its raining! I’ve noticed we have more rain, snow and bad weather on a Thursday when I go to Bloxwich than any other day, but luckily my Bloxwich Babes are tough cookies and they come to their meetings no matter what ;-)

I’ve had the most amazing week, everyone is so enthusiastic and positive, it just makes my job better than ever if that’s possible, Ashmore Park last night was out the door, and I’d just like to thank everyone for their patience and once again my amazing helpers for their hard work and for losing weight and proving the new plan is as fantastic as they are.

As you can imagine my week has been none stop which means I haven’t really had time to cook for myself or plan my meals so I’ve not made the lowest ProPoint choices, but because of the new weekly allowance I’m still on track and within budget which makes me feel confident about the weekend, I know once today is finished, tomorrow I will have time to plan the rest of the week and pull back by making some truly scrumptious low ProPoint meals and catching up on my sleep so I won’t be eating ;-)

My members that have been commenting on my facebook group and page seem to be getting into the swing of things too, it really is wonderful seeing you all so open to change and optimistic, long may it continue. Here’s to shifting a few pounds before Christmas. Can I just ask if it’s an urgent question for me, email me, as I’m not notified when someone posts on the wall or page and I have to try and remember to look regularly.

Gemma has commented that the Spicy tomato and Butternut soup in the new folder is delicious, so there’s something else for you all to try. Please let us know how you’re getting on either directly or via facebook. Anything you’ve tried, anything you’ve found that’s low in ProPoints and delicious. Anything you’ve realised is high in ProPoints, let us know anything of use to others.

Let’s help each other make the Change, and enjoy the new Liveable, Do-able, Enjoyable plan! Here’s to a week of Weight Loss – hurrah!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

10th November 2010 - facebook email

If you don't change your beliefs, your life will be like this forever. Is that good news? Dr. Robert Anthony


The meetings are just amazing this week, everyone is so enthusiastic and it’s great to see everyone staying to the meeting to find out all about the new plan. It’s also brilliant to see people finally using the group wall, if you can’t access it from your phone use the group page which you usually can access from most phones http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#!/pages/Bevs-Weight-Watchers/133361767350

A huge thank you to all my helpers, they’re doing the most amazing job and with a smile on their face, please be patient with my girls this week, its all new to them too and we’re extremely busy. Almost sold out of stock already so make sure you get yours asap.

Mmm smoothies, bought frozen berries yesterday and made a batch of smoothie, it’s great when your super busy like I am this week as it’s quick to make and quick to drink and very, very filling. You can make zero pointed ones but I do quite like the look of this one I’ve found on Weight Watchers esource;

Coffee and Banana Smoothie

ProPoints® Value: 4

Servings: 1

This Nescafe smoothie is sure to put a spring in your step - perfect to start your day.

1/2 medium Banana, ripe
150 g Yogurt, Greek, 0% Fat
200 ml Milk, Skimmed, cold (7fl.oz)
1/2 teaspoons Cinnamon, plus extra for dusting
2 teaspoons Coffee, Ground, Nescafe Half Caff & 6 ice-cubes

Place all the ingredients except the ice cubes into a blender. Process, adding the ice cubes one at a time until smooth and creamy. Pour into a tall glass, dust with cinnamon and serve.

That sounds extremely nice, I shall be trying it with decaf coffee though as I’m off caffeine and made the mistake of having a coffee at my meeting Monday night and was nearly bouncing off the walls! (yes more so than
usual ;-} )

Have you got a favourite recipe you think other members would love, if so email it to me and I’ll ProPoint it up and maybe add it to my next Bev’s Bite or email it out in my daily email. If its one from a Weight Watchers book, I may have it so just send me the book and recipe title and page number.

Yesterday afternoon I found myself with 30 minutes to spare before going back to a meeting so I had a quick look on Weight Watchers esource to see if there was a recipe using Celeriac and found the following soup, which not only is it zero points but it was delicious, took it to meeting for my helpers and they loved it.

Celeriac and Apple Soup

ProPoints® Value: 0, Servings: 4

1 medium Onion, All Types, chopped
2 cube(s) Stock Cube, Vegetable, (make 1 1/2 pints)
1 teaspoons Curry Powder, or paste (optional)
250 g Celeriac, about half a standard size, cut into 1 cm cubes
1 medium Apple, cooking, peeled, cored and cut into quarters
1 sprig(s) Parsley, fresh, chopped, to garnish (fresh)

Instructions

Put the onion in a large pan, with enough stock or water to cover and the curry powder or paste, if used. Cover the pan and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the celeriac and the remaining stock, cover and cook for a further 15 minutes.

Add the apple and cook for a further 5 minutes, until the apple has collapsed.

Either mash the soup with a potato masher or liquidise it in a food processor or liquidiser.

Serve sprinkled with parsley.

It was truly delicious, how great is this new plan xx

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

9th November 2010

Embrace Change. True success can be defined by your ability to adapt to changing circumstances.

What a day, what a day! Yesterday was amazing, my meetings were absolutely buzzing and members couldn’t wait to get going on the new plan, everyone seemed really enthusiastic and motivated to get going – it was fan-blooming-tastic and I loved every second of it! I can’t wait to go to work again today and all this week, and look forward to seeing all of you to get you started on the new ProPoints plan.

It’s a fabulous plan and has helped me get back to goal and I feel fabulous even though I’ve not had a great deal of sleep or rest due to the dog and the local foxes waking me up at 3.30 for the last two nights and how busy I’ve been in the day time. I’ve got so much energy and it’s wonderful.

Yesterday I managed to spare 20 minutes to dash in the supermarket to stock up on my fruit, I was pleased to find small tins of pineapple in juice for 13p, which will do for my breakfast with Greek yogurt, and I also got 400g frozen mixed berry’s for £1. So if this is how cheap I can buy it in Sainsbury’s there’s no excuse not to buy fruit of some kind. Hollybush nursery does cheap fresh fruit too so that’s always worth a drive.

If you were in my meetings yesterday thank you for your patience and enthusiasm, I know change can be a bit daunting but embrace it and it will seem so much easier. Remember to use the group wall to chat to each other and of course if you get stuck you have my email and phone number so don’t struggle.

I’ve just used the Weight Watchers online esource to ProPoint up my tracker for yesterday and it’s great, although because I was so busy and unprepared I ended up using 20 of my weekly allowance, so it’s a good job I’ve been and bought fruit! If you haven’t already got a monthly pass, maybe now is the time to treat yourself this week when you get to your meeting, only £12.95 for the first one (£19.99 afterwards). I hope to ProPoint some of my favourite recipes over the next few weeks too using the recipe builder, which saves lots of time, so look out for a new Bev’s Bites.

Give yourselves time to get used to the changes and trust me you’ll love them. I’m still adjusting and learning and loving the journey and I’m sure you will too. My helpers have been following the plan for a couple of weeks now and they’re all absolutely loving it, Julie my weigher from Tuesday has been doing it a little longer than everyone else and in six weeks she’s lost 21lb and found more motivation and positivity than I’ve seen in her for a very long time.

It’s really wonderful to see everyone so ready to lose xx

Have a great day and I look forward to seeing the rest of you this week. My meeting times are listed on the left of the group page and don’t forget your purse to buy your new bits and bobs, the new calculators are very popular.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

8th November - facebook email

A key to a vital life is an eagerness to learn and a willingness to change. Mary Ann Radmacher


So today is my official launch of the ProPoints plan, if you have a monthly pass you will be able to have a sneaky peak online before your meeting this week, for those of you who haven’t got monthly pass and esource, consider buying it from me this week in your meeting (£12.95 for the first month), please buy it in your meeting otherwise it doesn’t count towards my stats.

Anyway for all of you if you fancy giving it a go before your meeting, here’s an example of a day on the plan if you were on the average 29 ProPoints a day. Remember you can snack on fruit throughout the day to keep the munchies at bay!
BREAKFAST (5pp)

Fried egg & turkey rashers on toast

Fry 2 turkey rashers and 1 egg in calorie controlled cooking spray, serve on 1 slice of wholemeal toast with mushrooms and tomatoes

OR

Crumpets & Jam

Spread 1 toasted crumpet with 1 tsp low-fat spread and 1 tsp jam; 100ml glass of apple juice,

LUNCH (8pp)

Sunday Roast Lunch

Grill 150g skinless chicken breast and roast 50g potatoes in low-cal cooking spray. Serve with vegetables with a ProPoints value of zero (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower) and top with gravy using 1tbsp of granules.

OR

Ham and Cheese Tortilla

Fill 1 tortilla with 40g wafer thin ham, 30g reduced fat grated cheese, lettuce, 1 tomato, 1 tbsp low fat mayo and 1tsp mustard.

DINNER (11pp)

Steak & Mash

Grill 105g lean sirloin steak and 1 tomato (halved). Fry sliced mushrooms in calorie controlled cooking spray until softened. Serve with 80g plain mashed potato, mixed with 10g soft marge, finely chopped red onion, 1 tsp wholegrain mustard and 125g corn on the cob.

OR

Toad in the Hole, serves 2.

Whisk 1 egg, 65g flour, 75ml skimmed milk, 70ml water and 1tsp mustard to make batter. Spray a small cooking tin with calorie-controlled cooking spray and heat in ove. Arrange 4 thin pork sausages in the tin and pour over the batter. Cook for approx 30 minutes at 200oC or until browned on top. Serve with 80g peas and gravy made with 2tsp gravy granules. For dessert have 1 banana and raspberries with 2tbsp of low fat fruit yogurt.

If you have one of each of these meals you still have 5pp left which you could chose one of the following;

ProPoints Treats

5 Almonds – 2pp
20g roasted peanuts – 3pp
Curly Wurly – 3pp
Croissant, 1 medium (60g) – 6pp
Twix = 8pp
Ben & Jerry’s Cookie Dough Ice Cream, 100g – 7pp
Ambrosia low-fat rice pudding ½ can – 5pp
Muller light strawberry (200g) – 3pp
Dark rye Ryvita spread with 20g Philadelphia light with garlic & herbs = 2pp
Olives x 10 – 1pp
250ml glass wine – 6pp
Vodka or gin 1 shot (25ml) with low cal mixer – 2pp
1 pint lager – 6pp

So I’m in for the busiest week of my year so I better get started, hope the rain stops! Have a great week.

Remember life starts now? (And it just got a whole lot more satisfying!)

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

5th November 2010 todays facebook email

Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.

Not long now, only a few more days, keep your patience ;)

YAY it’s Friday and I’m off to enjoy a couple of days away with my bestest girls before the crazy busy week of the launch of ProPoints starts Monday. I can’t wait to get back and share it all with you but at the same time I hope my weekend goes slow because I enjoy them so much. It may not be everybody’s idea of fun, slobbing around in your pj’s, eating and drinking but for me because I get to do it with those important people in my life that I don’t get to see enough of at other times of the year, I love it. It’s a bit like an early Christmas for me, and a personal tradition that I’d really miss if it didn’t happen.

We’re all different though aren’t we and that’s why Weight Watchers has always got it right because they’ve always ensured you can follow their plans whatever your tastes and lifestyle is, and the new plan is no different at all. So if you’re a little concerned don’t be, if you liked the points plan, you’ll love ProPoints, and if you struggled on the points plan because you always seemed to be playing catch up all the time, you will absolutely adore ProPoints. Believe in the plan, believe in my and most importantly believe in yourself because you can do anything you put your mind too.

It’s almost time to share it all with you and next week you’ll get that early gift of the new Weight Watchers ProPoints book and everything you need to know to start losing on it.

Last night was the last time I’ll run a meeting based on the old points system and at the end of the meeting I threw away the programme meeting that I still had relating to it, that felt like a clear out of the past in preparation of the new, you can’t beat a good clear out. Maybe look at getting yourself prepared at home ready for next weeks meeting, sort your cupboards in your kitchen maybe.

Well I’ve got a lot today before my weekend away begins, I haven’t even packed yet! So take care and enjoy your last weekend on the points plan, and get ready for ProPoints – it’s totally different and fabulous!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

4th November 2010 todays facebook email

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. Buddha

I’ve felt a bit like a politician this week trying to defend Weight Watchers and their actions because not everyone wants things to change, and I now change isn't always easy, but it is possible.

Here are tips to affect lasting change.

We are creatures of habit, but change is possible if you have the desire. Motivation for self-improvement stems from caring about yourself. You can do it if you open up to the idea of change and stay focused on the positive end result.

Know Yourself:

When people make Behavioural changes without identifying their motivations, these new behaviour patterns are less likely to stick. Think about what you want to change and why. Write it down in the form of an affirmation and frequently say it out loud.

Mine for instance would be;

I want to change and follow the new plan because I had started to take the old plan for granted, so I needed something new and fresh.

Affirmation “By changing my actions, I’m improving myself!”

Make a Plan:

Outline incremental, achievable goals and build in rewards along the way. Measure your progress. "When it comes to losing weight, one of the most effective methods is self-monitoring," says psychologist and weight-loss researcher Daniel Kirschenbaum. "Systematically observing and recording target behaviours, such as reduced calorie and fat intake and increased daily exercise, helps you stay on course."

Even the weeks I haven’t lost weight, I’ve congratulated myself on my improved attitude to food and activity; I feel better whatever I weigh.

Create an environment for success:

If you want to eat better, and temptation is your downfall, rid your cupboards of those tempting foods and keep healthy snacks on hand. I can actually keep my favourites in the cupboard now and resist the majority of the time. To exercise more, make sure your workout gear is always clean and put it where you can see it. I’ve always got my walking boots where they can be seen and my dog scoop bags are always in my pocket so I don’t have to get ready, my dog walking gear is at the read.

Swap Bad for Good:

Our bad habits fill a need. As you break old patterns you still need a way to meet these needs. Identify what the payoff is for the bad behaviour and find a positive way to meet it. If you overeat when you're tired or stressed out, try napping, meditating, or going for a walk instead. If you order high-calorie takeaways to save time, prepare a healthy meal but use paper plates to cut down on the clean up. Or learn what you can order that won't throw you off track.

Join Forces:

Numerous studies have shown that if you partner up with one or more people with similar goals, you're more likely to achieve them. Find friends on the group wall or at your meeting. Look for other opportunities, such as enlisting a friend for regular walks or trips to the gym.

Strategise for Relapses:

If you have a plan for how to deal with failure, you'll spend less negative energy on the relapse and be able to get back on track. I’m away this weekend and it’s an annual break that I look forward to so much and I know weight loss is not on the agenda, so Monday when I return whatever the scales say, I will go straight back on the plan.

We can all change, but we have to be willing to!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

3rd November 2010 todays facebook email

Telling someone the truth is a loving act. Mal Pancoast

What a crazy week I’m having, I’m so rushed and busy but still making sure I take care of me, early nights mean I can get up early to get my meals prepared for the day and walk Alfie before my work days starts. I feel great, my backs still playing up (apparently its my facet joints according to the physio at the hospital!) but because I feel so good in every other way it’s not on my radar so much. I’m sure eating plenty of fruit and veggies are giving me more energy and making me feel good in myself, this new plan rocks!

It is feeling a little like Christmas come early though, I’ve got lots of little packages in my house for my members but I can’t give them out till next week ;-) I’m not the best at holding back on good things I want to share, that’s why I tend to buy my gifts throughout the year when I see things people would like rather than all at once in December. It’ll be worth the wait for sure, trust me. Patience everyone!

Having said that, I would just like to add
The new plan isn’t a miracle cure, there’s no such thing!
The new plan isn’t a quick fix option either!

The new plan is however liveable and loveable, it’s realistic, it’s logical, and it fits in with everyday real life situations. It’s fantastic and I love it and I know you will too.

There’s been lots of media coverage this week regarding the new plan and I can say some is accurate and some not so accurate, so if you have any questions ask them this week in your meeting and then next week we can focus on the important stuff, like how do you do it!

A few of the newspapers are saying things like you can have alcohol, fast food and naughty bits. Erm, excuse me, haven’t you always been able to include those things with Weight Watchers, isn’t that what makes Weight Watchers work, because it realises we’re real people living real lives!

You can all have confidence in the new plan because Weight Watchers is an international company with a fantastic reputation. They wouldn’t change something if it didn’t need to be improved and they certainly would change it without being sure it worked!

Some of my helpers have been following the plan for at least a week now and all had excellent results and given me great feedback. I opened them their own facebook group so they can discuss it online and that seems to have really helped them support each other, so I would suggest you use your group wall for the same thing, if you have a query about the new plan or anything else post it on the wall, either me or someone else will answer it. Maybe just use it for comments about what you’re eating, what you’re losing, anything that’s relevant. The group was put there for you, not just so I could send you a daily email but so you could share ideas, and motivate each other in-between meetings.

SO what are you waiting for, go on now and make a comment of what your feelings are about the new plan.

Remember life starts now?
Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

2nd November 2010 todays facebook email

An excuse is worse than a lie, for an excuse is a lie, guarded. Alexander Pope

I receive lots of emails from various subscriptions, too many to list, but one I had last week made me think about my relationship with the Weight Watchers Points System, this was the content of that email;

---------

How to Know When Things are Over Between Friends.

Everything with a beginning has an end; friendships are no exception. Whether through death or by choice, the human bonds we share are not forever.

In last week’s “Ask Davey” post, Nardo90 asked:

When is an appropriate time to admit things are over between best friends?

My experience has been that people grow, change and evolve over time. Sometimes we change in ways that are complimentary with each other – and sometimes we change in ways that push us apart. I don’t think this is a bad thing; in the same way that some people are allergic to shellfish or peanuts, some of us can be allergic to a given relationship.

It’s great to love and honor every human person – but we need not be everyone’s best friend.

When I was in high school, I became good friends with a girl in the town next to me. We even went to one of her proms together. We had a lot of fun, but when we went on to university, we temporarily grew apart. Years later, we reconnected. As often happens, time had changed both of us – and it was obvious to me that this wasn’t the most fulfilling relationship for me to be experiencing. Painful as it was, I expressed this to her and we parted ways. Maybe we’ll reconnect down the road – I don’t know.

All of us deserve to be in relationships that are healthy and fulfilling. When a relationship becomes toxic, you owe it to yourself to cease participating in it. Just as breaking up with a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife is difficult, so too is it difficult to break up with friends. But the difficulty is no justification for being a part of something that isn’t lifting your life up.

The measure of a friendship isn’t how long it lasts – it’s about the laughs, experiences and good times that you shared. Nothing can discount that or take it away. And sometimes the best way to honor a relationship is to know when it’s time to say “Goodbye.”

---------

I think the article in itself is brilliant advice in a non-diet way, we’ve all had those friends we no longer have anything in common with, or that we’ve just grown apart. And sad as it may sound, over the years the Weight Watchers Points Plan has become almost like a friend to me, someone who’s there everyday or every meal ;-) and it’s been hard for me to let go of it. As you probably already know or have guessed I’ve been following Weight Watchers new plan for just over a month and OMG was it difficult to leave behind my points. I’m so used to checking the calories and saturated fat on everything that I was still doing it, heck I can work points out without the aid of a calculator, I knew it so well, I was so used to those points.

Having now made the changeover, I’ve realised I had started to take the Points Plan for granted (a little like friendships), I thought I knew everything and didn’t have to think anymore, I’d become set it my ways, learnt how to take advantage of the system and get away with it without doing my diet too much damage. Unfortunately because of this, the points system started to let me down or did I let it down? It wasn’t the system that was flawed it was me!

So with this new plan, I’m having to give it more attention, to be more accurate, to actually check what I’m doing and to put myself first. And it’s great, I’m feeling fantastic, I’m almost back at goal and I’m enjoying it. So it’s almost time for you to get yourself a new ‘none-human’ best friend, and next week you can join me on Weight Watchers fabulous new plan.

Remember life starts now? (And it’ll get even better next week xx)
Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

1st November 2010 - todays facebook email

In truth, people can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really the time but the will that is lacking. Sir John Lubbock
“Why are you losing weight?” Or if you’re not “Why do you want to lose weight?” Is it something you really want when you think about it?
Do you find yourself sabotaging yourself after a few good weeks?
From experience I’ve found that people who focus solely on the scales for the feeling of success tend not to have the most success because think about it at the end of the week its just a square gadget that has numbers on it, if it does make you feel better, it’s only for a moment isn’t it, at most a few hours whilst you share with your friends in the meeting and your family when you get home. I believe you need more ways of appreciating why you are losing weight.
Personally, for me losing weight is merely a side effect!
Yep, a side effect to feeling a whole lot better than I do when I’m gaining weight In what ways? Well I enjoy my food much more when I plan it, cook it, concentrate on it and taste it. It’s true that food cooked with love tastes better I believe.

I also feel better physically, not just my back and joints but everything; I have more energy and more enthusiasm to do things, when I’m gaining weight I become lazy and lethargic.
I get a more positive outlook on life, when I feel better about myself, I feel better about everything else. Instead of getting wound up when something or someone bothers me, I shrug my shoulders and focus on something that makes me feel better and leave that situation to annoy itself!
I get this really good feeling of satisfaction sitting her eating my bowl of fruit for breakfast knowing it’s full of goodness that’s taking care my body, than I would if I was sat here eating 4 rounds of toast with butter, knowing I was going to have indigestion later.
Yep I’ve realised I love myself enough to take care of my body by feeding it with good, tasty, healthy food and because I’ve had that realisation I’m almost back at my goal and it hasn’t been hard work at all, I’m enjoying every day of it and I don’t feel deprived at all.
So in anticipation of the arrival of the new plan, ask yourself the question;
“What are my reasons for wanting to lose weight?”
Then ask yourself what’s stopping you! Because as the quote at the top of the page says, “In truth, people can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really the time but the will that is lacking”. Sir John Lubbock
Over the last few weeks, I’ve managed to make time to walk my dog each day without fail, to cook at least one meal from scratch, to prepare fruit or a smoothie for breakfast. I even managed to find the time to do two weekends worth of work this weekend so I can still go away next weekend even though it’s the launch of the most important plan of my career so far! Yep, if it’s worth doing it’s worth making time for, so always ensure you give yourself that hour each week for you to get to your meeting and take the time you need to succeed. Don’t wait till next week and the launch, do it this week and spend this week sorting yourself out and getting in the right frame of mind – remember the new plan isn’t a miracle cure – it’s fabulous but it’s not a miracle! You still have to put the effort in, so I’ll see you in your meeting this week - my job isn’t to beat you up it’s to wake you up!

Remember life starts now?
Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

31st October 2010 todays facebook email

Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.

So the newspapers are trying to steal my thunder and let the cat out of the bag before November 7th! Well you’re still going to have to wait, and all I can say is be patient and don’t believe absolutely everything you read in the newspapers ;-)

All I will say is I’m losing weight because it works, it’s liveable and I love it and I can’t wait until I can share it with you. I haven’t felt deprived since following it and I haven’t needed to cheat and go off track – it is fabulous!

So quickly changing the subject because I’m rubbish with secrets anyway, me and Alfie had a couple of lovely walks yesterday he’s really helping me get active and it’s something I enjoy doing, I love to walk anyway so having to go out once or twice a day and getting fresh air and thinking time is great. It’s so important to find an activity you enjoy otherwise you’re not likely to stick to it.

I continued with my active day, did the ironing, even altered a dress I’d bought a couple of months ago so can now wear it at last, and ended my energetic spurt with a cooking session we had chicken thighs, mushrooms, bacon, broccoli and cauliflower and it was delicious. I made a pineapple and banana smoothie too which I turn a glass of into a cocktail by adding a single shot of rum, mmm. Then decided on an early night but Alfie was having none of it because of the fireworks, he wasn’t scared just interested so wouldn’t settle ;-) hey ho, I got the extra hour this morning.

Got another busy day today in preparation, because I’m away next weekend which is bad time but coming back a day early for the launch, gutted because it’s my annual girls weekend and other than my Christmas holiday it’s the break I look forward to most as I get to spend time with those that really matter to, we don’t need distractions to make it interesting we just spend the time chatting and catching up on each other lives and enjoying each others company, can’t wait. At least being busy earns activity points – yay, I’ve earnt loads this week ;-)

How could you get active today, remembering the “dust if you must” from yesterday, what could you do today that’s more enjoyable, you could spend that extra hour under the duvet with your loved one! Or if that’s not your idea of fun ;) you could go for a walk, the trees are just gorgeous at the moment with their red leaves. Halloween tonight, so how about hollowing out a pumpkin, I’m sure that can be quite hard work, not that I can say I’ve ever done it. I’m going to make grey peas and bacon for the first time ever today though, I love them but have never cooked them!

Here’s some ideas and the duration you’d need to do to use roughly 100 calories, but remember the most important decision when choosing to be active is, “will I enjoy it”.

Aerobic – 20mins
Cross training – 15mins
Cycling – 15mins
Dancing – 25mins
Gardening – 25mins
Jogging – 15mins
Netball – 20mins
Playing pool – 30mins
Sex – 20mins (you have that extra hour!)
Skiing – 20mins
Swimming (breaststroke) 10mins
Tennis – 15mins
Walking – 30mins (less hassle than sex!)
Weight-training – 40mins
Yoga – 40mins (also stress relieving)

Here’s to a none-lazy Sunday ;-)

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

30th October 2010 todays facebook email

Use your imagination not to scare yourself to death but to inspire yourself to life. Adele Brookman

I made my mom laugh yesterday, I was reading a magazine and there was a piece that said people who drink 2 glasses of red wine a day are healthier than teetotalers, it then went on to explain why and I read it out to my mom and finished it with what I thought was a very serious question, “how big are the glasses?” ;-) I’m guessing unfortunately that they’d be 125ml not 250ml like I drink! Hey ho, at least one of the two I drink is legitimate.

Today I shall mostly be being a domestic goddess and finally getting round to probably 6 weeks of ironing, so I’d say that’s most of the day! Me and mom will also take Alfie out if its dry, if its not I get to go on my own round the estate.

Yesterday I made a lovely vegetable curry (if you were in your meeting this week we talked about fruit and veg) I used all the leftover fresh and frozen I had, so in it went frozen okra and spinach, then fresh peppers, courgette and a potato, I microwaved the potato first then put it all in a pan with a jar of Sainsbury’s own brand curry sauce, the entire pan was only 8 points! And there was no need for rice because it had potato in it. Good filling evening meal that left me with enough points for a glass or two of that healthy red wine!

We also had a vegetarian lunch, I’d bought two of the meal deals from Sainsbury’s and we had the cauliflower cheese for our lunch with lots of roast vegetables, it was 12.5pts but absolutely delicious and because my tea was only 2 points it balanced out through the day.

Once I’ve done my ironing, I’m going to continue my domestic goddess by doing my weekly meal planning and today’s lunch is chicken with bacon and mushrooms, which was also part of the sainsbury’s meal deal. I know they come with dessert but you are allowed a small piece and if you have a family they can eat the rest!

I’ve just cleared my email inbox and normally I don’t have time to read the jokes but I just read through this one and totally agree with its sentiment, I may be being a domestic goddess today but normally my belief is “dull women have tidy houses!” ;0) I haven’t got time to tidy. Here’s the email;

LADIES!!!

Remember...a layer of dust protects the Wood beneath it.

A house becomes a home when you can write 'I love you' on the furniture.

I used to spend at least 8 hours every weekend making sure things were just perfect - 'in case someone came over’. Finally I realized one day that no-one came over; they were all out living life and having fun!

NOW, when people visit, I don't have to explain the 'condition' of my home, they are more interested in hearing about the things I've been doing while I was away living life and having fun.

If you haven't figured this out yet, please heed this advice.

Life is short. Enjoy it!

Dust if you must .......
but wouldn't it be better to paint a picture or write a letter, bake bikkies or a cake and lick the spoon or plant a seed, ponder the difference between want and need?

Dust if you must,
but there's not much time . . . .
with hot chocolate to drink, rivers to swim and mountains to climb, music to hear and books to read, friends to cherish and life to lead.
Dust if you must,
but the world's out there with the sun in your eyes, the wind in your hair, a flutter of snow, and a shower of rain. This day will not come around, again.

Dust if you must,
but bear in mind, old age will come and it's not kind....
And when you go - and go you must - you, yourself will make more dust!

It's not what you gather; but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived.
I like that, don’t you ;-)
Remember life starts now?
Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

29th October 2010 - facebook email

Honesty is as much saying everything as it is saying what is true. Richard Snelling
Good morning, good morning it’s 6.30 and still really dark outside and the clocks go back this weekend – boo! Have you tried scooping dog poop in the dark! Not easy as I found out yesterday but since I’ve bought a special torch with inbuild poop bags – is there nothing they don’t think of, how good, you gotta have the right tools for the job! What can I say I’m easily pleased and I love gadgets, yesterday I also bought an apple corer, I can’t eat an apple unless its cut up and the corer/slicer thing does that in one sweep – excellent ;-)
At the moment I’m really started enjoying my new ritual of meal planning. I know this may sound boring but I have a busy life and nothing leaves me feeling more frustrated and out of control than desperately trying to come up with something delicious and quick for my tea each night when I’m driving home from my meeting! So now I put aside some time once a week usually at weekends to think about some meal ideas. I sit there with a cuppa and armed with old copies of YOUR WEEK and Weight Watcher cook books and magazines and my laptop too (I make a lovely mess). I look for other meal ideas too as I don’t want to eat the same lunch everyday. I keep all the recipes in a pad or on my desk top for future use, last night I had stuffed mushrooms, ten minute they take in the oven and about ten minutes to dice the courgette and pepper or whatever contents I choose to include, a delicious meal on a Thursday after a very busy work day.

By having ideas ready for the week ahead, I feel safe in the knowledge that I can still to my plan and stay on track, if I know I’ve got a delicious meal to look forward to, I find it easier to resist temptation. I love to experiment with new recipes and foods because I may be able to lose the fat but I never want to lose the flavour! I love food, plain and simple, I love eating and sometimes I overeat, that’s who I am and who I will always be, there are still days when I eat double my daily points allowance and I just can’t stop myself!

For lots of us overeating is the one behaviour we find almost impossible to change forever. It’s something we feel completely powerless about; it usually makes us feel guilty, ashamed, out of control and overweight. Because let’s be honest overeating is one of the main causes of weight gain and anyone who’s overweight overeats to some degree, some of us are just better at it than others! ;-) When we eat more than our bodies need we put weight on. What I’ve found has helped me personally is admitting that fact, trying to work out why I do it and sometimes if I’m honest I can’t think of a reason or the reason is as simple as ‘because it was there’, or ‘because I was hungry’ other times it can be more complicated, it can involve an whole array of emotions, and stress. However just admitting you do it, and trying to work out why and reminding yourself it doesn’t make you a bad person makes it easier to deal with.

I find the whole subject fascinating, which of course is one of the reasons I do my job. I also don't think it's a bad thing and I don't think it makes a person weak or hopeless or addicted if they do it. It’s not a condition or a disorder, and people shouldn’t be labeled as 'over-eaters', they’re just people who sometimes overeat and let’s be honest probably every women (and a large number of men) you know overeats in some form or other. It is definitely the norm, not the exception in today’s society.

Overeating works doesn’t it? Whether we overeat because we love food, whether you’re overeating out of habit or to give yourself a treat, or whether you’re overeating as a way of avoiding everything that's uncomfortable and challenging such as your feelings, your thoughts, your lives... it does the trick and it does it very well indeed. Otherwise we wouldn’t keep doing it would we!

My aim both personally for myself and professionally for my members is whilst helping you to lose weight, is to get you to think about how to stop overeating and live your life without turning to food as a treat, a comfort, a celebration, to zone out or to escape. I’m here to support you every step of the way.

I’ve learnt to control my overeating I would say 90% of the time, I have lapses for sure, but I don’t beat myself up over them, I don’t use them as an excuse to continue on the destructive pattern and I’ve learnt the reason for my overeating. If I can do it – YOU CAN!

And the best thing of all, the new change on the 7th November realises we do it to!

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

28th October 2010 facebook email

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower. Albert Camus


It’s new, it’s breakthrough, it’s coming soon.

The biggest innovation from Weight Watchers in 15 years!

Oh have I said that already! Never mind just a reminder so you don’t forget!

I’m not saying I’m in the zone, but I was making strawberry and mango smoothie this morning at 5am! Feeling much healthier including plenty of fruit and vegetables and eating meals I enjoy, it’s so important to enjoy your food especially when you’re trying to lose weight. My helpers are in the zone too, Chris and Sandra each losing 5.5lb this week we’re all helping each other and staying in touch and it’s making a real difference.

Our poppy appeal in the meetings is going fab too, they have these gorgeous hessian bags with poppies on and they’re just the perfect size for the new programme material when you receive it and a couple of boxes of bars off the shop, she has orders for quite a few, I’m hoping to have an army of members carrying their bags with pride ;)

It’s Halloween this week and you may be buying a pumpkin to do those lanterns, here’s what sounds like a delicious recipe to use the middle with;
Pumpkin, Sage and Mushroom Lasagne
POINTS® Value: 2.5, Servings: 6,
Preparation Time: 30 min, Cooking Time: 70 min, Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Now that the weather is starting to cool off, it's nice to cosy up with some satisfying food like a lasagne.

1500 g pumpkin
5 spray low-fat cooking spray
4 clove garlic, crushed
750 g mushrooms, (button and Shitake) thinly sliced
375 ml skimmed milk
3 portion shallots, ends trimmed, thinly sliced
2 teaspoon dried sage, or fresh, chopped
250 g lasagne sheet
1 pinch salt, and freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6/200°C/400°F. Peel and seed half of the pumpkin and cut into 2cm cubes. Remove the seeds from the remaining pumpkin.

Spray a non-stick baking tray with low fat cooking spray. Place the unpeeled pumpkin on the baking tray, cut side down. Roast in oven for 35-40 minutes or until very soft. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, spray a large non-stick frying pan with low fat cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Add half of the garlic. Cook, stirring for 10 seconds or until fragrant. Add cubed pumpkin and mushrooms and cook for 8-10 minutes or until tender. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Combine milk, shallots, remaining garlic and sage in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil. Cover and remove from heat.

Scrape flesh from roasted pumpkin. Place in a large bowl. Mash with a potato masher. Add milk mixture and mash to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spray a 24cm x 24cm square casserole dish with oil. Spoon 1/3 mashed pumpkin into base of casserole and spread. Top with 3 uncooked lasagna sheets. Spoon over 1/3 of mushroom and pumpkin mixture. Top with 1/3 mashed pumpkin. Repeat with two more layers, ending with remaining mashed pumpkin.
Cover with foil and bake in oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for a further 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Divide into 6 pieces and serve immediately.

Notes
This lasagne is little different to the standard. We've used roasted pumpkin, sage and mushrooms. By using skimmed milk and mashing pumpkin, we haven't had to use a heavy béchamel sauce. Plus it's cheese free too, so this really is guilt free! This lasagne will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days in an airtight container. It is also suitable to freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?

You’re not alive unless you’re living!

27th October 2010 facebook email

If you think education is expensive - try ignorance. Derek Bok

I’m finding it hard to contain myself now;

It’s new, it’s breakthrough, it’s coming soon.

The biggest innovation from Weight Watchers in 15 years!

I’m so excited about it because it’s so liveable, I can’t wait to share it with you in November, I’ve been following it for about a month and have lost the same amount in that month that it’s took me all year to lose on the discover plan. I think I was just ready for a change, something new to get my teeth into. It’s lovely to feel like a new member with a fresh programme. I can’t tell you anymore because it’s a secret, and I probably shouldn’t have told you this much, so ssshhhhhh! Don’t tell anyone else, just subtly suggest it’s a good time to get back to their meetings ;-) I could do with a few more members, it’s coming up to Christmas and I’ve got to take mom on her annual trip to the seaside, Devon this year, we’ve been to the same place in Wales for a few years now so we thought we’d get cold and wet in a different part of Britain!

Don’t forget to buy your poppy this year, I’ve got a lady selling them in my meeting this week, she’s got some other lovely stuff too, like a poppy bag, armbands etc. Again not sharing too much information but the new programme material will fit in those poppy bags lovely! So get one now. Also can I just tell everyone that although help for heroes is a good charity, it isn’t the same thing as the poppy appeal which has been doing amazing work for 90 years! And the money we’re raising in my meetings will be used around this area too.

Anyway onto food ;-) how do you fancy a fruity breakfast for a change to ensure your hitting some of your 5 a day, I’ve just found this delicious smoothie;

Cranberry, blueberry and cherry smoothie (3pts)

100ml cranberry juice
75g cherries, (defrosted if frozen)
75g blueberries, defrosted if frozen)
1 small banana

Blend all ingredients until smooth and serve immediately.

Aldi sell frozen fruit berries 500g for £1.29, which is a lot cheaper than fresh and ideal for smoothies.

Or if you fancy cake for breakfast, how about a bit of baking –

banana muffins 4 pts per serving, 10 mins to prepare, 30 mins to cook

2 bananas
1tbsp clear honey
100g low fat spread
150g brown sugar
2 eggs
175g self raising flour
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp baking powder

Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180oC. Prepare a muffin tin by lining it with paper muffin cases. In a small bowl, mash the banana and the honey with a fork. In a large bowl, cream the low fat spread with the sugar until light and fluffy with an electric hand whisk or in a food mixer. Next, add the eggs and continue to beat for a few minutes.

Fold in the mashed banana mixture. Sieve the flour, nutmeg and baking powder into the bowl and fold through with a large spoon until all the ingredients are combined.

Pour the mixture into the muffin cases and then bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 30 minutes. Once cooked leave to cool on a wire rack. Store the muffins in a cake tin to keep them fresh.

I’ve had a request for the Weetabix cake again too.

Weetabix pudding 1pt per slice (12 slices)

2 Weetabix
100g sultanas
150 ml skimmed milk
150 ml water
1 quantity self raising flour
1 teaspoon Mixed Spice,
1 teaspoon artificial sweetener, (optional)
1 medium egg, beaten (or use a banana instead for 1 of your 5 a day)

Preheat oven to 180c, 350f or gas mark 4. Put Weetabix and sultanas in bowl, pour milk and water over the top and soak up all the liquid. Stir in flour, mixed spice, sweetener and beaten egg. Spoon mixture into (1lb) lined / non-stick loaf tin and bake for 1hr 15m until cooked. Cool on a wire rack before serving, and then cut into slices.

It has the texture of bread pudding. Delicious, and for a desert why not add a bit of custard for extra points treat.
Remember life starts now?
Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!

26th October 2010 - facebook email

The most difficult thing I have ever had to do is follow the guidance I prayed for. Albert Schweitzer


Ouch, I spent yesterday afternoon at the dentist – boo, the silly man told me as he was about to give me the injection, this needle has to be bigger because the tooth’s at the back of your mouth! I explained after swearing at him – I was able to do that even with his hand and a huge needle in my mouth, that you shouldn’t tell people that especially if they’re scared of needles, so it was a good few hours after the filling that I had full function of my face and mouth ;) and I paid for it, £45, expensive maybe, worth it absolutely! My teeth are precious as is the rest of my body. This is one reason I was a little surprised at a comment I received in my meeting last night, my members were asking me about the new products that are arriving next month and I told them that Weight Watchers are giving a discount until the end of the year and also doing a special bundle back worth over £100 for £69.95 (includes scales, pedometer, new cookbook, clicker, deluxe essentials pack which has shop, eat, track, calculator, pen and tape measure in and a box of toffee bars), the comment that surprised me was, “I’ve got better things to spend seventy quid on”, why did it surprise me, because I’m always shocked at how little importance we put on ourselves and our well-being, we only have one body and by taking care of it we get to hang around this planet a bit longer and enjoy it because we’re healthy and happy. If you look in peoples trolleys and shopping baskets they think nothing of paying £15 for the latest dvd or album, £50 for the lastest video game, £5 for a bottle of wine, £3 for crisps or a pizza. On a night out I know people spend at least £50, I mean how much is a pint these days! I don’t know because I don’t drink in pubs very often.

Money’s tight at the moment for everyone, so by cutting back on things we don’t need such as junk food we can save money, Christmas is around the corner so make sure everyone knows your Christmas list has new Weight Watchers products on it. ;)

I’m following the new plan at the moment, oh have I not mentioned that in my emails yet?! Well all I’m saying is it’s NEW, it’s BREAKTHROUGH and it’s arriving in your meeting from November 7th! Anyway as I said I’m following this new plan and for the first two weeks only had a calculator and the programme material, well I don’t know how people cope without the tools! I’ve always been a Weight Watcher and I’ve always bought the books and tools etc even before I was a leader, and to suddenly not have them was really difficult for me, I love my pedometer to tell me how many steps I’ve done and what its earnt me, I enjoy trying new recipes and using none WW ones, so I use Weight Watchers esource to work everything out for me and suddenly I was having to do it myself which takes up my valuable time! I like my life to be convenient, heck I know I can turn the tv over by getting up and walking over to it, but I don’t have to because I have a gadget called a remote control which makes it quicker and easier. I know if I want to talk to my sister she only lives round the corner, but I have a phone and email so I don’t have to go out in the cold anymore. Yes I love my gadgets and I love anything that makes my life simple, most of all I LOVE ME! Because I’m the most important person in my life, by taking care of me and putting me first, I have the energy to take care of others and help them.

So this Christmas don’t forget you deserve to be on that Christmas gift list too! Because you should learn to love you too ;-)

This week practice putting yourself first, make time for your meeting, stay and listen to the talk if you usually rush in and out, get into the habit of making time for you.
Benefit by staying to the talk, sharing ideas and tips with others and getting support and motivation from people who are experiencing weight loss just like you are. It’s critical to come back every week – research shows that people who attend the greatest number of meetings have the greatest weight loss success.
So become part of that success, you’re worth it; nothing is more valuable than you!
Remember life starts now?

Are you living yet?
You’re not alive unless you’re living!