Wednesday, 9 March 2011

9th March 2011

The trouble with some women is that they get all excited about nothing and then marry him. Cher
DAY 1

Did you have pancakes? If so I hope you enjoyed them and tracked them, no excuse of I didn’t know how many ProPoints they were – work it out ;-)

So apparently Lent is the period of 40 days which comes before Easter in the Christian calendar. Beginning on Ash Wednesday which is today, I’m not religious in the slightest by the way but I probably spend more time in churches than most people because of my job and therefore it interests me to a certain degree. Lent is a season of reflection and preparation before the celebrations of Easter. By observing the 40 days of Lent, Christians replicate Jesus Christ's sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for 40 days. Lent is marked by fasting, both from food and festivities. So there’s your religious education for today. And I thought it was all about pancakes and chocolate eggs! These day’s a lot of people aren’t quite as rigid and just choose one thing to give up for lent and for some crazy reason yesterday I decided to make that WINE or more precise alcohol of any kind! OMG what have I agreed to, I’ve just looked and Lent lasts for 46 days until Saturday, the 23rd of April.

Can I do it? Of course I can, why am I so positive that I can succeed – because if you start off not believing you can – YOU WON’T, so I always start with a belief I’ll succeed and then usually I do. Think of the weight loss and the money I’ll save whilst also proving that I can survive without a glass of the red stuff ;-D

So for the next 46 days I will track on my blog to show you I’m not cheating, I’m always honest when I blog my meals, I will weigh in this morning at the meeting and then again on Good Friday and let you know how much difference cutting out alcohol can make. So fancy joining me? It doesn’t have to be alcohol, it could be chocolate or whatever your ‘thing’ is, prove to yourself that you can choose not to eat or drink something because in the words of Christopher Robin whilst talking to my favourite bear Pooh, “You're braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than u think!”

Or as Weight Watchers isn’t about deprivation if you don’t fancy giving something up, why not take something up, tracking maybe, or walking every day, or eating 5 portions of fruit and veg, or drinking 2 litres of water. So whether your giving up or taking up choose something that will help you feel better, write it on our facebook wall for everyone to read, maybe you’ll motivate them to join in.

I’m actually looking forward to having all those extra ProPoints to spend on delicious food! I will actually be able to make that Nigella spaghetti recipe that’s 29 ProPoints per portion! WOW, can’t wait. I’ll also save at least £50! I have an idea what I might spend that on but we’ll see. I’m looking forward to getting back on track, the weekend I obviously went a little off the rails and if I’m honest Monday wasn’t great I had a tray of chips and a roe, then yesterday because I’d decided I was gonna do the Lent thing – well you can imagine ;D

So 29 ProPoints is a lot when spent wisely, plus I’ll have my activity ProPoints and my weekly allowance to play with, so today I’m thinking

Breakfast

3 egg omelette with spring onions & mushrooms = 5pp
Or
Fruit depending on how much time I have

Lunch

Smoked salmon & lemon risotto served with steamed fresh spinach

Serves 4– 14pp per serving (13pp with Philadelphia light), Prep 5 mins, Cook 20 mins

Ingredients
1 onion , finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil (8pp)
350g risotto rice, such as Arborio (32pp)
1 garlic clove , finely chopped
1½ l boiling vegetable stock
170g pack smoked salmon, three-quarters chopped (6pp)
85g mascarpone (10pp) (I’m going to use Philadelphia Light for 4pp)
3 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
grated lemon zest , plus squeeze of juice
handful rocket

Fry the onion in the oil for 5 mins. Add the rice and garlic, then cook for 2 mins, stirring continuously. Pour in a third of the stock and set the timer to 20 mins. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the stock has been absorbed, then add half the rest of the stock and carry on cooking, stirring a bit more frequently, until that has been absorbed.

Pour in the last of the stock, stir, then simmer until cooked and creamy. Take from the heat and add the chopped salmon, mascarpone, parsley and lemon zest. Grind in some black pepper, but don't add salt as the salmon will be salty enough. Leave for 5 mins to settle, then taste and add a little lemon juice if you like. Serve topped with reserved salmon (roughly torn) and some rocket.

Per serving 500 kcalories, protein 21g, carbohydrate 75g, fat 15 g, saturated fat 5g, fibre 4g, sugar 5g, salt 2.58 g

Dinner

Sainsbury’s taste difference, Spinach and ricotta cannelloni with sunbaked cherry tomatoes, 14pp for 1/3 packet, vegetables 0pp

Total for day = 31pp with omelette for breakfast, 27pp with fruit – WOW can’t wait.

What you eating today?

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