Coq au vin and a mixed day

I checked my syn allowance and currently I can have 5-25 syns by virtue of being a certain weight. This will reduce as I lose weight. I ended up not having anything else to eat because I didn't fancy anything specific despite being hungry.

Today I had fruit and yogurt with 35g of healthy extra B cereal, tea using some of my healthy extra A milk and 1.5 syns of juice.

I packed some grapes with me to take to work, but ended up having them after lunch, which was leftovers from yesterday's dinner if couscous and Moroccan veg.

Worked myself up to a nice shade of pink when doing a deep scrub of the bathroom before picking up the boy from school to take to the park. He's announced he now loves swimming and asked if we can go at the weekend. So that's body magic for the weekend planned. I'm looking forward to him being able to swim so I can do lengths. I used to swim a mile a day at uni before I was in a car crash. I've no issue with people seeing me in a swimsuit. They don't like it they don't have to bloody look. So off to the pool we'll go.

And here's dinner! Coq au vin. I upped the wine and flour, changing my portion from 1 to 4 syns - totally worth it. Chicken thighs (skinless), bacon medallions, carrots, leek, garlic, shitake mushrooms, sugar snap peas, stock and the flour and wine. We had it with mashed potatoes using milk from my allowance. Here it is plated up!

I weighed out 3 chocolates, which came to 9 syns, then ate one before taking a picture! Haha! See, I can make use of my gift, I just have to not be a greedy cow! 

My darling son was being a darling pain in the butt at dinner and bed time. He simultaneously announced that he wasn't going to eat dinner and that it was the best dinner. I'm putting it down to tiredness. Either that or he just decided to be a bit of an arsehole. 

That's day two. Not particularly thrilling. I have tomorrow off work and as my parents are going to Honiton I might go with them, or I might go by myself. The problem with going with my parents is that I'm not in control of when and how long etc. It makes me anxious, but sometimes putting myself in situations that make me anxious is a good thing so I'll decide tomorrow. Mum has slimming world in the morning so we'd go after lunch, but they have other stops too. I sound like a total control freak! Either way I'm stocking up with yet more food!

Day One Chow

Day One

Day one has to start somewhere and for me is was a big bowl of fruit (strawberries, blueberries, banana and grapes for the especially nosy) and a blob of 0% Greek style yogurt. Decided to use 250ml semi skimmed milk as my healthy extra A. So we had a cup of tea and 1.5 syns of cranberry juice drink, because I like it and no one should have to try and swallow a pill with tea. Literal pill, the fruit was yum.

My tea isn't that pale, but I'm not faffing with lighting for a cuppa and I'm not going to show anymore boring drinks, I needed this to remind me to syn my juice.

We hopped off, when the rain stopped to take the dog we were dog sitting for a walk and my boy cycled/pushed the bike complaining about inclines being too hard and declines being too scary. The joys of motherhood. Apparently laughing was not the correct response.

When we got back lunch was on the cards before a thrilling bank holiday trip to the supermarket, although for 12p jersey potatoes I'm glad I went! Lunch was a "noodle bowl" noodles, chicken, cucumber, carrot, red onion, tomato followed by a half banana and some strawberries.

Finally, dinner! I kinda felt like "finally, dinner!" When I had finished cooking it. It's my fault, I started it later than intended, but it's a quick and simple make. Moroccan veg and mint and lemon cous cous. I made my own spice mix, because, quite frankly, I'm too cheap to buy a blend when I have the spices already! I might use less white pepper as it was going to be too hot for my wimp's mouth, hence big blob of natural yogurt on top.

The child who said he wasn't going​ to eat dinner, then that he'd have the veg but not the couscous (thanks nanny!) ended up eating the lot. I made enough for my lunch tomorrow too. 

The boy saw the slimming world magazine and burst into tears telling me he didn't want me to get smaller and lose weight and he loved me just as I am and he didn't want me to change. Absolutely adorable and beautiful. I explained it's not about losing weight, but being healthier and he seemed happy with that. He's loving his fruit and veg chart and has ticked off 6 portions already. It's been more variety than that, but weight-wise it's been about 6.

Later tonight I'll be tucking in to my healthy extra Bed of two hifi light bars, and I've still only used 1.5 syns so I might have to open the bottle of wine I was given today for dog-sitting. Yes, day one and I was given a bottle of wine and a box of chocolates as a thank you and being told that they knew I'd refuse money, but I can't refuse a gift. Thankfully I have a good sense of humour about life and these things aren't off limits, but you just need to have one or two chocolates not the whole sodding box! Actually, I might have a g&t or something. I need to double check how many syns I can have as I am a great big heffer. It's normally up to 10 or 15. I'll be sure to update tomorrow what I decide to use my syns on tonight. 

I keep getting crazily hungry, thankfully you can eat loads with slimming world so I might end up eating the whole blinking melon sitting in the fruit bowl.

The Start

Everything has to start somewhere; and if you fall down eventually you have to start again.

I've lost weight before, 7 stone in fact, don't congratulate me just yet! Over the past three and a half years it's all come back, plus 5lbs, which is neither here nor there when you look at the bloody total. I lost the weight with slimming world, then I got ill and the weight wouldn't​ move, I became more ill and couldn't do anything much beyond the minimum to get through the day. I slowly got better, but carried on using sugar to get through the day, then I'd just eat whatever (read everything).

I also have had a reoccurrence of depression, for which I've been on medication for a few months​. My symptoms have improved to a point where I feel able to lose weight again. I know how great slimming world is for me and I kept all my magazines and cookbooks from before so I've planned out the first 3 weeks with the help of my bullet journal.

My son is 6 and is a little star, even if he crazes me often! He'd always been a great eater, but with me snacking less on the good stuff, even if we always had plenty of veg at dinner, and with his peers having different rules and people giving him biscuits when I've offered an orange, he became a bit of a fruit/veg dodger. It wasn't too bad, but as it is just the two of us it's always good to both do healthy eating. I said I needed his help and support and explained what we were going to be doing and I've made him a fruit and veg tracker, which he loves.

So here we are, at the start (of sorts) and hoping this isn't a weight loss blog that falls by the wayside.

Breakfast has been strawberries, blueberries, banana and grapes with natural fat free Greek yogurt for both and boyo had a portion of cereal too. I've had 1.5 syns of cranberry juice drink and a cup of tea using 250ml of semi skimmed milk as my healthy extra A. When I have worked out how to add photos from my phone we'll be having lots of boring pictures of food for you!

Note: my son is not overweight at all, and he is offered to have the same lunch and breakfast as mummy or something different, but our evening meals are the same because I'm not a short order cook and never have been! He's not weighing himself and I discuss things in terms of being healthier and doing more, not losing weight and there is no negative body talk in my house at whatever size I am.