Newbie Ailsa diary - a new me here i come!

[ailsa73]

I have just found this website and spent the last hour looking through and getting inspired by everyone's posts so thought would quickly start my own..

it was my hubby's idea to do this and as he is very overweight then i said i would do it too to help him and me of course!! I started last Monday 25/06 and I am finding it a bit tough as i love my veg and fruit but i know it's for the greater good.

On saying that I had my first day of Cruise yesterday and the veggies tasted fab

what i am struggling with is the cost of it all... we are a family with 2 young kids and money is a bit tight and the cost of all this protein is adding up!! Any hints and tips??

will post again with weights, goals etc. i have 2 stone to get to my true weight ...

x

 

[Rhony]

Hi Ailsa I am a newbie too, and I see we were/are/aim to be around the same weight, taller would be a good goal, but not possible so we must do the weight thing : )
I have really enjoyed the first stage and am terrified of going to cruise in case i Freeze there, even though I am really looking forward to having a bit extra in my diet.
My favourite so far (and very family friendly) has been making my own burgers. I use a large pack of steak mince (woopsied if I can get it) one egg and one onion blitzed together with loads of spices & chilli flakes, hubby loves them too. I made 15 good sized ones today from a reduced to £2.50 pack. That will do us both tea tonight and tomorrow and I will have some for lunch tomorrow cold.
I stopped smoking (and started replacing fags with chocolate) on 10-10-10 so am using this anniversary to get back to my happy weight.

 

[CPL]

Hi welcome to Dukan it sounds like your getting yourself sorted quite well. Its not a cheap eating plan to follow but there are things you can do to make things cheaper. I invested in a yogurt maker because i use lots of yogurt for cooking and i was going through buckets of the stuff!! I also plan my meals for the week, i give my family the same food but give them rice pasta or potatoes with theirs.

I found that im not buying take outs or having to grab a butty at lunch times for work, chocolate i used to buy at the garage when filling up with petrol has stopped and im not buying as much fruit and veg as it used to. So i have saved money too.

There is a thread that people update about special offers that they come across in the supermarkets.

Have a read through the recipe threads there is loads of easy recipes to try out, im not the best cook, but im getting better and im eating healthier too which cant be bad.

Good luck with the weight loss luck forward to reading your about how your getting on. Cx

 

[ailsa73]

thanks for the comments it's good to have some support

at the moment i feel am never out the kitchen (poor kids!!) but i know it will be easier once i get a hang of recipes etc and can freeze extra portions. I did Atkins about 8 years ago and it went really well but i ended up feeling uneasy about the fat amounts etc so gradually good carbs/fruit went back in then since then all carbs ooops! I know that my body type/weight battles do work best on lower carb but its hard going

Am craving strawberries.. the kids are eating them by the punnet full and the smell, colour.. drool!

On a PV day today and so far have had :

b - smoke salmon, mushrooms, baby tomatoes and one poach egg
l -spicy red pepper and tomato soup, followed by one chicken breast (i marinated in light soy, ginger and lemongrass) with some veg stir fry (all allowed veg). feel nicely full for a change and enjoyed the flavours
d - will be homemade bolognese with some cauliflower or brocoli

i am enjoying the PV days but now dread the PP days. I did make a ham quiche for my hubby last night and it tasted quite nice so may do that for my PP days but its just finding the variety.

onwards and upwards as they say x

 

[Triniprinc3ss]

Welcome aboard the Dukan train...well done both of you

I know what you mean about the expensive but if you buy things in bulk, you can stretch them over a few meals. For example, you can buy a pack of 10 chicken drumsticks and use them for two meals. The drumsticks are always cheaper to buy too.

Living in London, the local halal butchers tend to be cheaper than buying meat from the supermarket, so that always helps too.

 

[charly1979]

hi there welcome to the dukan!! i too am a newbie like yourself, but i have found that it is cheaper now i am on pp and pv days.
good luck on your journey xx

 

[ailsa73]

well after stagnating for a few days :-( i went on the scales and dropped another 2lb. Time of month so i think it was more due to that than anything else. Also managing -JUST to ignore the sweet cravings i usually get at this time of month!

yesterday was a PP day, still struggling a bit on those days though i didnt feel as hungry which must be good

i ate :

b oatbran porridge and piece mackerel plus lots cold water
l ham 'quiche' and a couple spoonfulls of cottage cheese, ff vanilla yoghurt
d thai lemongrass chicken from the dukan recipe book.. it was ok.. next time i wont cook for the amount it says in the recipe as i like my chicken to still be moist lol
s ham rolls - 3 pieces of ham with small teaspoon quark/ff fromage fraise mix in the middle

pleased at the weight for where i am on the diet though

 

[charly1979]

hey yes i hadnt thought about the sweet cravings at the time of the month ... well that certainly explains a few things this last couple of days Ive had a little niggly feeling in the back of my mind for a bit of chocolate, thats why isn't it?
your doing really well x

 

[ailsa73]

yesterday was a tough one - it was buffet night at work. There were tortilla crisps n dips, sausage rolls, pasta dishes, homemade cakes, chocolates... yikes!! it was so hard but i resisted any temptation and instead munched on a bit of chicken i brought in for snack. Did get some comments about it all but hey ho.

so yesterday which was a pp day i had

b oatbran porridge - which i really enjoy though limits milk for the rest of the day, piece mackrel
l - 2 egg quiche made with salmon and cocktail prawns with some tarragon
d homemade turkey burgers x 2 made with turkey breast meat, coriander, red chilli and onion, with a serving of FF plain yogurt for a dipping sauce

snack was piece of ham and some cooked leftover chicken

we go on holiday on Sat - still in UK so should be ok food wise, but will be hard to be out and about and also when we meet with friends for 'drinks'. am getting fed up of water and diet coke!

 

[charly1979]

i do the oatbran porridge with just water and its jummy too!!

 

[Paulinegin]

Hi Ailsa

Hope you're enjoying your holiday and managing to stay Dukan good.

P x

 

[ailsa73]

What feels like holiday hell!!!

well week one into my holiday and i have stuck to Dukan but have to say very unmotivated and unhappy on it :-( I have only lost 1lb this week and have also been doing 30mins swimming, plus pool with the kids aswell as some long walks with the dog. I have watched my kids and fellow holiday makers tuck into all sorts of food and drinks...i have stuck to the Dukan but am now so sick of the sight and taste of chicken, steak and even salmon... I actually feel sick..and am constantly hungry. I cant afford to be buying any more protein as we are already spending too much on our food shop - dashes to the supermarket to get extra chicken or sea food to snack on. My only treat has been one yoghurt a day. I have tried some of the Dukan recipes but they are not that great and my hubby has told me not to bother as he will just eat the food plain as it tastes a bit better! the cheek!! Next challenge is camping for a week............. yikes! Not sure i can stick with it as feeling like i have bust a gut to stick to the diet for all of 1lb weight loss and if the diet can be harmed by one ingredient or so i am not aware of then is that really a good diet??? also, as a healthy eater (albeit used to be in big portions!!) i am thinking things like homemade lentil soup etc - are they really that bad to our daily diets (obviously non dukan!).. so still cruising but only just!!!

 

[charly1979]

the diet takes a little bit of getting your head around dosent it? but once you do you will love it! and to be fair other diets like weight watchers and slimming world ect .. they have the same if not slower (my personal experiance) loss rate 1lb to 2lb a week is a good weight loss, however i would try to change and spruce things up a bit flavour wise, ie curry powder ect otherwise it will be incredibly boring diet to follow. i too dont have much money to spend on all the protien but i find frozen chicken breasts are good and cheap (especially the value ones) i also buy big bags of frozen white fish portions and value steak ( i do have to look through for the leanest packs tho) if you like it plain have it that way but seriously i think a pot of yoghurt and spices make a boring old piece of chicken a lot tastier. and perhaps they will help you get your head around it!
if it really is doing your head in though then maybe your head aint in the right place, and enjoying your holiday might be the right route for you! then when you come home and are ready to get back on start again! i have done that before with a different diet sometime its not the right time if you know what i mean!!
good luck hope everything works out for you xxxxxxx

 

[stig]

Hi Stick in there.
How about saving money by having veggie stuff like Quorn. The big stores usually have offers on like 3 packs for 5 pound. I am veggie but am only on day two of cruise so today will be my first trip into that stuff but joodle uses veggie stuff perhaps have a look at her diary she has great ideas. I do use tofu a lot and I think it is the Tesco have 3 big packs for £5, I spice it up with curry powder and dry fry it, lovely and cheap. Quark is very cheap and tastes lovely especially with a little bit of lemon extract in and mixed with an egg. Good Luck

 

[stig]

Did mean to say, make sure you check which Quorn you eat some are high in carbs. Sorry

 

[Triniprinc3ss]

I agree Stig, I check any meatfree items individually, as they also differ from brand to brand.

 

[dukannotsofatty]

Its a shame you are struggling, if it really isn't for you then only you can decide that. I too have a family to look after and they don't eat any of the same as me. Am makign two completely diffeent meals a day. My hubby hates veg of all types except peas and sprouts....so its not always easy to give them the same stuff all the time anyway. My DD is more adventerous but doesn't like spicy stuff....so might as well do them something totally different LOL.

I found the first week was the most expensive, from then it was just buying the things I run out of . I make my own yogurts too (slow cooker varient). I buy smaller amounts of veg/salad than i used to as its only used every other day. meats wise I get the offers in farm foods or occasionally woopsie at Asda's if I'm there in time for them on the shelves. Aldi do an 800g pack of Mince Beef for £2.49. it might not strictly be the leanest, but its been ok for me so far, still losing and have probably had equivalent of 2/3rds of it.

Hope you manage to get it working for you
x