Today I shall mostly be opening my Essington meeting (5.30pm)

13th May 2016

Luck is what you have left after you give 100%, I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it!

So today's the day, I open my new Friday teatime meeting in Essington, I'm going back to where it all started, to where I met one of my most precious friends, to where I got to goal, where mom achieved her goal too and to where I did my training to be a leader and where I held my first ever meeting!  12 years on, Vicky and me are still on our journey together, she'll be joining me tonight and I can't wait!

Now all I've got to do is wait... Hope that other people want to join me on a Friday to get on track and lose weight.  For me it makes treat night and weekend the same thing, limiting the damage.  It also makes me more mindful at the start of the weekend because my meeting reminds me why I've joined in the first place and gives me some fresh ideas and motivation for the week ahead. 

I heard a couple of things yesterday that helped me, the first was a chat we had about alcohol free drinks, it reminded me I really like Becks Blue and could happily drink them at the moment instead of wine.  So I'll be buying some today.  The other was last night, the lovely Natalie said, she was going to go back to Smart Points as she loved No Count but at the end of the day she kept saying to herself, "I've been really good all day, I deserve a glass of wine and a bar of chocolate!" This she knows over the week is taking her over her weeklies and it made me smile because it's exactly what I do when I'm on No Count, only without the chocolate.  We've made a tracker pact, both of us are going to keep an honest tracker this week to ensure a good weight loss next time we step on those scales.

To help me do this, I'm going to drink more water, less wine, buy some becks blue, continue to eat plenty of salad because I'm enjoying it and make sure I make some tasty food.  I'm also going to marinade some chicken legs this morning so that I have my tea ready to cook when I get home tonight and they'll just have to be popped in the oven for half hour which won't be difficult.  I'm going to track on paper I think, but use my phone app to keep a tally when I'm out and about. I'm also going to put my fitbit back on, it's been sat on the side giving me dirty looks for weeks and I've ignored it but today I shall pick it up, I've already missed the 30 or so steps I've done this morning by not having it on!

I'll start my day with a decent breakfast, I have a few beans left from the tin I opened, a giant crumpet and egg I think with mushrooms and tomato to bulk it out.  80p for a beef tomato!  And they wonder why people buy a 99p burger from McDonalds!   

If we have time for lunch out, I fancy a nice salad, I'm thinking cheap Wetherspoons, ooo a skinny chicken burger with salad is only 11sp, I could live with that.  So then that leaves me with another 10 for my evening meal which can be a piece of Tandoori chicken leg with salad.  Sorted.  And this is why tracking works!  Had I not locked at the Smart Points in a chicken leg I wouldn't have cared or thought about the fact that a skinless leg (135g) is 7sp but if I leave the skin on that's going to cost me 12sp!  5sp, that's nearly a big glass of red wine!

Right I'm off to get me another pint of water, here's to a great day, I hope to see some of you later and also some newbies, we know the plan works, it's a Smart decision to follow it.

Have a great day BeYOUtiful, focus on the healthy and happy, make time for you - you're important too. xx

Oh and before I forget here's today's recipe, it has to be Tandoori Chicken doesn't it and it's lower because they use chicken breast.

Tandoori Chicken with Mint Yogurt

Prep time:10 min ~  Cook time:10 min ~ Serves:4 ~ Easy

This is a delicious Indian favourite to prepare at home. It's super easy, tasty and low in fat.

600g Chicken breast, skinless, raw (4 breasts) 6SP

2 tablespoons Tandoori  curry paste, 7 SP

125g Low Fat Natural Yogurt  3 SP

2 tablespoons mint, fresh, finely chopped

15ml Lime Juice, Fresh (1 tbsp)

1 clove Garlic, crushed

1 portion Cucumber, ends trimmed, thinly sliced

Brush chicken all over with Tandoori paste. Place in a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for 10 minutes to marinate.

Preheat grill on high. Add chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes each side or until brown all over and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm.

Combine the yogurt, mint, lime juice and garlic in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Arrange the cucumber and some mixed green salad leaves on plates. Use a sharp knife to cut each chicken breast into thick slices and arrange on each plate. Drizzle with mint yogurt sauce and serve immediately.

Notes

This chicken can be marinated in the Tandoori paste up to one day in advance, resulting in super flavoursome chicken. Prepare the yogurt sauce in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge. Any leftover cooked chicken can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days and used in sandwiches, wraps and salads. It is delicious served hot or cold.