Why do it

Every day I am always going on about Slimming World,
At work
With friends
With family
On face book
And of course this blog and why, well here is the reason
Between us we have a combined weight loss of over 9 stone in under 12 months
If I can you can
Live it Love it Lose it

Still chance to join up and drop a dress or trouser size by Xmas. Grab your copy and come and see us this Thursday at St Cuthberts Church @ 5:30 or 7:30. What you got to lose other then lbs? xx
Of course this a venue close to me, but if your looking to lose that extra couple of pound for Christmas or after Christmas or are just looking to change that lifestyle to a more healthy one then have a look at the Slimming world web site, http://www.slimmingworld.co.uk/ it worked for me and it can for you too.

Winter warmer stew

The cold snap is on its way and when the weather is like this you really want something that will warm the cockles, well there is nothing better than a good hearty stew.
To be fair stew is not really an unhealthy choice it's just those couple of extra things that tip the scales  between good or bad.
If you have dumplings, bad
If you have bisto gravy granuals, bad
Everything else, good
Potatoes, good
Swede, good
Carrots, good
Onion, good
Parsnip, good
We used oxo cubes instead of the Bisto and left out the dumplings, now there is a way of getting some dumplings, but you would have to use Atora vegetable suet (25g) and flour (50g)
Put the flour and suet in a bowl,add a pinch of salt and 2-3 tablespoons of cold water and mix well to make a soft dough. Season well and divide the dough into eight equal pieces. Shape each one into a ball and add them to the top of the stew and cook for the last 20-30 mins, It will cost you 4.5 Syns for all 8, but if you can't do without them!

This picture was taken at the preparation stage.
When your ready, bang it into a slow cooker and let it cook all day, by the time your in from work its done. 
Enjoy.
Live it Love it Lose it 

Impossible.....NO

If you believe you can do it, you will.
If you want to do it, you will
If you try to do it, you will
I DID IT YOU CAN TOO!

Slimming world Voucher

Happy Ham, Eggs and Chips

Practically every meal featured or eaten has been prepared by the hands of my loving wife Angela ,I have managed to throw together the odd meal' but If it wasn't for her I would live off of frozen Slimming World meals, now don't get me wrong they are really nice and the Tikka Masala is my absolute favourite, chuck in a load of spinach & Happy Days with or with out rice scrumptious.
However cooking fresh is always the best and tonight she put together an old favourite Ham, Eggs and Chips
A few slices of ham, a couple of eggs, home made Slimming World chips (cooked the usual way, put onto a tray covered in baking paper sprayed with fry light and seasoned with garlic) and throw, in some tomatoes and mushrooms. Enjoy
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Pasta on the go

Got some left over chicken from the Sunday roast, here something you can do for that meal on the run
Batchelors Pasta n Sauce, very tasty and most of them are Syn free.
If you like it with a little kick, have my choice for today the Arribbiata flavour.
Just follow the instruction in the microwave or the hob mix in the left over chicken and pop in some extra speed, tomatoes, mushrooms or onions etc.
If you want to you could do it in the morning before you go to work and stick it in a thermos or even eat it cold, lovely and totally Syn free. Enjoy
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Monday morning quickie

I, like most of us, hate the Monday morning rush, the hustle of getting ready for work, sorting the kids for school (that's the wife's dept) and generally struggling to come to terms that the weekend is over far to soon, even if like me , you have spent the whole time watching Christmas movies lol.
So really you need something quick but filling and something that will give you that warm feeling and of course healthy option so I go for Weetabix

• 2 weetabix in a bowl
• Hot water 
• A little milk from your allowance (350ml of skimmed is mine)
• Sweetener to taste
• Mixed fruit

When I make mine I have a porridge like consistency, some what similar to baby food, sound yuk I know but piping hot mmmmm.
Put the weetabix in the bowl and add a little milk, pour over hot water and if you like it really hot whack it in the microwave to your preferred temp.
Take it out Stir it add a little sweetener and Stir again, at this point you can either add the fruit or have it in a side bowl, should keep you going til lunch.
Enjoy
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Low Fat Desert Yummy

like something sweet after that Sunday roast then try this on. Low fat trifle

• Sugar free jelly
• Custard
• Low fat spray cream
• Fruit

This is a little Syn full but well worth it, about 6 Syns depending on the amount of custard and cream you use but...we'll just try it you won't be disappointed
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Traditional Sunday Lunch

For many people the hi-light of the weeks food is Sunday lunch and it is no difference for me, once again it's one of those meals that could, if you let it, destroy A lot of your hard work of healthy eating.

Not with the Slimming World life style it won't, for starters most of the plate should be speed, at least a 3rd of the plate, so fill it with veg there are some really tasty veg to eat and different ways to cook it that is all healthy. You could, like we have today, steam it or a personal favourite of mine is roast them using Fry light, season them with whatever you like before or after roasting.

Potatoes are a must and again cooking them the right way is important, boiled potatoes are great and also mashed, watch the Syn value, but my option is roast potatoes and you can have them trust me.

Peel them, cut them and if you prefer part boil them first but the next bit is important, put some baking paper in a roasting tin and spray it with fry light then add your potatoes and spray them with the fry light, don't worry about the amount of fry light you use as it is free, so spray till it hurts, now you can season with salt and pepper or even things like garlic, we use an oxo cube and crumble it over the top and they come out crispy and really tasty. Awesome.

Today we had roast chicken and took the skin off, but any meat will do again just watch the Syn value i.e. Make sure it very lean

Adding extras to the meal is always nice but remember you may need to Syn them, today we have had stuffing, 25g Paxo is only 1.5 Syns, well worth it.

Gravy was made with a chicken oxo cube so it was Syn free, if you have yorkshires they will have to be counted Aunt Bessie 12 pack frozen is 2.5 Syns for one.

Sunday lunch, everyone's favourite even those on a healthy life style. Enjoy

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#liveitloveitloseit

Sunday morning breakfast

so guys today's breakfast of choice is none other than............the same as Saturday, yes that's right today we went for the choice of the good old fashioned breakfast of champions, the fry up.
We spend all week trying to be good and often that means starting the day with a healthy, and sometimes tasteless breakfast (although it has to be said that all of the choices I have had on the Slimming world lifestyle have been very nice indeed) also we don't always, if ever during the week day, have time to prepare and cook a great deal before we venture off to our working days, so on the weekend why not spoil yourself and indulge in that tasty and scrumptious fry up.
WAIT A MINUET I hear you shout isn't that unhealthy.... not if cooked like Saturdays, using Bacon medallions, quorn or another low fat sausage, eggs of your choice, even fried if using fry light, and of course plenty of speed food like mushrooms and tomatoes etc, you could even have a couple of slices of whole grain toast as your Heb. It really is your choice you just need to try it.
I know it sounds crazy to all you people sitting there and thinking "I can't give up my weekly fry up" well you can and still eat healthy, trust me I have done it and lost the weight, 5 stone in under 12 months, enjoy.
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As you can see added some tomatoes today, and I couldn't wait to tuck in, nearly forgot the photo

Chocolate fix drink

This is for all those people that must have a chocolate fix but of course the Syn value may be to high or you just don't have enough, well for 1.5 Syns you can have a option chocolate drink (some options are slightly more).

Tonight we raised it a little, the wife and I had Mint chocolate option with a twist

• Option chocolate sachet
• Sainsbury's white and pink mini marshmallows (180g packet) 45g is 4.5 Syns
• Anchor light spray cream 
• Hot water

Put your options sachet into a mug and fill it 3qtr of the way, the trick is not to put in too much water as it kills the chocolate taste.

Spray in 12.5g of the anchour spray which is 1.5 Syns.

We then weighed out 10g of marshmallows which is about 1 Syn and then shared it between us, which is halve a Syn each and sprinkled them over the top, WOW chocolate fix met, craving over

Total Syn value 3.5  Syns, enjoy

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Saturday StirFry

Before we settle down for a little bit of Strictly, sorry guys but I can't do the trash that is Xfactor, you say Honey I say "totally crap please no more" enough said about that the better. back to the matter at hand we, and by we I mean the wife, have just cooked, a superb stir fry using
Sainsbury's fresh mixed peppers

• Extra mushrooms 
• Fresh chicken breast
• Chinese 5 spices
• Soy sauce
• Salt and pepper 
• Fry light
• Medium Egg noodles

Put a pan of boiling water on and add the egg noodles, cooking for about 3 minutes
Cut the chicken in to bite size pieces and using the fry light, as always use as much as you like, cook the chicken in a large pan/wok adding the soy sauce and 5spices, for about 5 minutes making sure it is cooked through fully, once done remove it to a side dish.
Now put the mixed pepper, vegetables and mushrooms into the large pan/wok and cook for about the same time, but this depends on how you like the veg i.e. Crunchy or soft and again if you want to add more soy sauce and 5spices.
Once the veg is almost cooked to your liking return the chicken to the pan and finish it all off
Season with salt and pepper, drain the water from the egg noodles put it all in a dish and enjoy your totally Syn free Stir fry
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Saturday morning Breakfast

so this morning I wake up and feel like last weeks cold has returned and I want something a little more than oats or weetabix, so we (the wife and I) managed to russle up a quick fry up.

• Mushrooms
• Bacon medallions 
• 3 quorn sausages (frozen so they are 1/2 syn each), now I'm no vegetarian but these are really tasty, try them.
• 3 egg omelette 
• Salt and pepper and a little Worcester sauce to season the eggs

Unfortunately we were out of speed food, apart from a few mushrooms, as the shopping will be done today you can however add all sorts to the dish like onions peppers etc, but as I mentioned this was something to russle up quick and very substantial to last you till lunch time

Fry the bacon, sausage and mushrooms together in fry light and mix the eggs with the seasoning and a little water, I like to give them a good wisk to make the omelette really fluffy
Once it is all done throw it on a plate and enjoy. Live it Love it Lose it

It really works

I have had to get rid of a lot of my clothes, you could too, Live it Love it Lose it

A coat made for one, now fits two
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Tonight's food

Quick and simple
Packet of fresh vegetables from Iceland as an appetiser followed by a Slimming world Tikka Masala, no rice but loads of Spinach

No photo guys but trust me really lovely.

Tomato soup recipe

I have being doing Slimming world since January 2016 and to date (11/2016) I have lost 5 stone, one of the things I found helpful, especially in this cold dark nights is a lovely warming soup.
Here is the recipe
Serves 6-8 and is Syn free

• 2 Carrots
• 2 Sticks of celery (optional, I leave these out or use leeks instead)
• 2 Medium onions
• 2 Cloves of garlic or the equivalent in garlic granuals
• Olive oil fry light
• 2 Chicken or vegetable stock cubes 
• 2 x 400gtins of plum tomatoes
• 6 large ripe tomatoes
• Fresh basil leaves (again optional but they do add flavour)
• Salt and ground black pepper

Peel and roughly slice the carrots and chop the onions & slice the Celery/leeks
Put a large pan onto a medium heat and spray with the fry light, as much as you need.
Add all the chopped and sliced ingredients and mix together. Cook for 10 minuets with the lid askew, until the carrots have softened but still hold their shape and the onion is lightly golden.
Put the stock cubes into a jug and add 1.8 litres of boiling water from the kettle, stir to dissolve the cubes, then add to the pan with the tinned and fresh tomatoes.
Give it a good stir then bring to the boil.Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on.

Remove from the heat, season with the salt and pepper and add the basil.
Using a hand blender pulse until the soup is smooth season again if needed (I like to add a little Worcester sauce) and serve piping hot.
You can freeze if there is only 2 off you