Holding your breathe - you have to let go eventually!

9^th April 2013

 

The only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday.

 

So you are what you eat so I must be delicious :) seriously though I don’t eat anything I don’t fancy just because I should and I eat what some would consider strange concoctions or odd food choices for the time of day but do you know what it works for me.  As we’re all different how I eat wouldn’t suit how others necessarily eat, although I think a few could learn from my approach to food.

 

I eat with passion, I see food as a pleasure and not as the energy, I don’t battle with it anymore I embrace mealtimes rather than dreading them.  HOW did this happen, well I started to listen to my body and trust my mind.  Yesterday consisted of;

 

Breakfast – slice of toast (3pp) with ½ tin tuna and low fat mayo (3pp)

Lunch – left over gnocchi (12pp recipe below) with olive bread (4pp)

Dinner – 50g clotted cream ice cream (3pp) Walkers ready salted crisps (4pp)

Snack – crust (3pp) spread & ketchup (2pp)

Glass of wine – 6pp

Total 40pp

 

Another day might look a whole lot healthier because that’s the way I’ve wanted to eat that day.  That’s because now I find when I eat what I fancy my body naturally balances itself out with what it needs, I still use the ProPoints as a way of seeing if that’s true but as you can see 40pp isn’t bad for a day when I chose to eat crisps and ice cream.  I’ve also realised I don’t need a huge amount to be satisfied but I do need to be eating the foods I adore.  This way of eating doesn’t mean I binge on any old rubbish, because remember I’m a Happy Owl which means taking care of myself is a priority!

 

For example bread, if I eat low calorie bread I want more because I’m not satisfied where as if I eat good wholesome wholemeal stuff I am, I just need to be aware of the fact I don’t need to eat as many slices, I now find one slice of toast is plenty it’s no different to 2 slices of low calorie bread. 

Both of these were 6pp for 100g, it’s all down to personal preference, I just prefer the none diet versions, but as I said at the beginning of my blog we’re all different and it’s finding a way that works for you, if having low fat versions or having someone else work the ProPoints out for you is working – great, it’s doing what works that matters.

 

I couldn’t stay on a healthy eating plan if it didn’t include the foods I adore or if I couldn’t include the foods I fancy or crave now and again, for example ice cream, I haven’t had ice cream for months I just fancied it and I probably won’t have it again for a good while, but I could because that’s how my eating plan works.  We need to eat certain foods for no other reason than because we adore them, for you that might be chocolate, it might be crusty white bread, whatever – it doesn’t matter if it has no nutritional value to your body at all, it will I’m sure have a great deal of value to your mind, your emotional state and your taste buds!  So if you’re trying to ‘resist’ your favourite foods – stop it because it’s highly unlikely to last and if it does it’s not much fun is it?

 

Resisting temptation, mmm not easy is it, it’s a bit like holding your breathe, you can only do it for so long!  And when you let go oh it feels so good initially doesn’t it then you’re back to how you used to be, now if I was talking about breathing still it wouldn’t be a problem but if you’re talking about how you ate when you were gaining weight that’s not so much fun because you end up with the weight gain and everything that goes with it. 

 

So what are your EatGorgeous happy foods, what would make your diet complete if it was included – think about it, then work out how to include those foods.

 

Here’s the recipe I mentioned;

#EatGorgeous Gnocchi St Agur Scrumptiousness (59pp, 12pp each total, serves 5 easily)

 

1 x 400g packet fresh Gnocchi 20pp

½ bag spinach

50g chorizo 4pp

20g Pine nuts 4pp

15g (tablespoon) parmesan cheese 2pp

4 or 5 Spring onions

cherry tomatoes

150g pack st agur cheese 15pp

Tablespoon Parmesan 2pp

 

White sauce – 12pp total

450ml skimmed milk

40g plain flour

40g low fat spread

 

 

Fry chorizo and spring onions for a few minutes until the juice / fat of chorizo has got into the onions. Remove from heat.

 

Make white sauce by putting all ingredients into a saucepan, place over medium high heat and cook; stirring all the time, it will become a smooth sauce.  When sauce thickens, add a few chunks of the cheese, let it melt a bit then take off heat.

 

Get cooking dish and place spinach in bottom them top with gnocchi, cherry tomatoes and remaining cheese broken into lumps, pour white sauce over the top then top with spring onions & chorizo finally sprinkle pine nuts and parmesan on the top then pop in oven on medium high for about 20 minutes or until it looks cooked.

 

It was delicious, although I’m not sure about gnocchi, I’ve been told home made is much better so that is my next task to make my own from scratch to see if it’s better.

 

Have a BeYouTiful day. xx