Weight loss: The photo diary

Hello!

As the majority of you know, this was me at my biggest back in 2009, size 20/22. 

I was happy but I wasn't happy. 

When I decided to lose weight, I wanted to try and take a picture of myself nearly every month so I could easily track my progress.

I would encourage anyone wanting to lose weight, however you're doing it, to do this!

The great thing about doing this is if you're having a 'fat day' or you haven't lost as much as you would have liked, you can look back through your pictures and be pleased with how far you've come. Little changes can make a huge difference on those down days and can give you the boost you need to stay on track.

Remember to start your photo diary when you start your journey and share it on the Facebook page :)

December 2011

February 2012

April 2012

June 2012

July 2012

August 2012

August 2012

September 2012

September 2012

October 2012

November 2012

December 2012

December 2012

February 2013

February 2013

March 2013

March 2013

May 2013

June 2013

June 2013

July 2013

August 2013

August 2013

September 2013

September 2013

It's been an interesting journey...

....and I'm nowhere near finished yet ;)

x

Skinny recipe #17 Simple Italian Bake

Hello!

 

 

 

After a couple of nights of takeaways (slaps wrist), I really needed to cook something healthy, full of vegetables and something that would use up the odds and ends in the fridge.

 

This was a really simple dinner to make and required very little effort, which was perfect for me in my 'hopalong' state.

 

This recipe serves two and can either be served on its own or with rice, pasta or bread.

Calories per serving (minus a side): 360 calories!

 

 

 

 

You will need:

• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 1 red bell pepper (yellow would work instead of/as well as)
• 1 red onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 100g chorizo
• 2 tsp olive oil
• Italian herb mix or any dried herbs
• Salt & pepper to taste

 

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 200C
• Chop the pepper, onion and tomatoes into rough chunks and add to a roasting dish along with the peeled and lightly crushed garlic cloves
• Thinly slice the chorizo and scatter around the dish
• Drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables and season with salt, pepper and dried herbs
• Season the chicken breasts seperately and lay on top of the chunky vegetables
• Bake for 35 minutes or until everything is cooked through
• Serve & enjoy!

 

I enjoyed mine with a cheeky bit of sourdough bread :)



 

This recipe could easily be tweaked to include a variety of different fish or vegetables.

 

Please share yours :)

x

 

 

 

Skinny recipe #16 Seriously scrummy, no fat/low calorie banana muffins!

Hello!

 

 

Being off work at the moment has been a bit challenging when it comes to eating healthy. For me, I need routine and without it, I binge on all kinds of BAD foods.

 

I do have loads of fruit in the house which I should eat, but it just wasn't doing it for me so I thought I'd bake something but it needed to be low fat and low calorie, so I found a recipe (which I tweaked slightly) to make these bad boys!

 

These banana muffins are a crazy 58 calories each and have no fat! I did tweak the recipe so half of the muffins had a teaspoon of dark chocolate spread in the middle, just for a treat :)

 

This recipe makes 12.

 

You will need:

• 1 cup of plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp of bicarb soda
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg white
• 1 & 1/2 cups mashed banana (over ripe ideally - approx 4 bananas)
• Optional: dark chocolate spread/nutella/nut butter

 

Method:

• Preheat your oven to 180c
• Mix all of your dry ingredients in a mixing bowl
• In a different bowl, mix the egg white and mashed bananas
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until combined - don't over mix though!
• Spoon into 12 muffin liners in a muffin tin
• OPTIONAL: If you want to add a tasty centre, blob a teaspoon of chocolate spread/nutella/any nut butter into the middle and top with more batter to cover.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes
• Test with a cocktail stick and if it comes out clean, then your muffins are ready
• Cool in the muffin tin for 5-10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack until cool.
 

The 58 calories are for the muffins without the tasty centre but depending on what you pop in, the calories will vary.

 

 



 

 

These are great for breakfast on the go, a snack with your tea or warmed up for dessert.

 

Let me know if you make these :)

 

Enjoy

x