Starting SW abroad.. which plan do i use? Help!!

stef2009

Gold Member
Hi guys, i did SW a while back... didnt fully understand it and probably didnt follow properly, i always went into a world of my own at the group for some reason, probably because i didnt know anyone and felt uncomfortable sat on my own in the corner! anyways i have gained nearly all my weight back apart from a stone, i have been sat debating all morning with myself whether i should do SW or go for atkins or a vlcd as i am desperate to have lost a good 3 stone before summer, as i cant take another summer living abroad feeling the way i do!! Is it do-able do you think??

I will hopefully try and join online when i have abit more money (trying to bring my balance back from xmas!)

I see theres a new plan, i knew of red and green days and EE, i was wondering if anyone could help guide me which i would be better with, here are the things i would be eating regularly on SW... Living abroad i am limited to quite a few things which is annoying!

Mug shots, SF jelly, Chicken, Veg, Bananas and oranges, pork, LF yoghurts, potatoes, tuna, salad .... Is there any of these that are not good for the new plan? I will have another look now see if i can find more details but any help from you guys would be great! I know SW is pretty easy to understand once you understand... but i never seem to get to that point lol thankyou!!! xx

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Hi Stef, I'm abroad and restarting too - not the same is it!!! However, in real terms the only things we're actually limited on are the processed stuff (brand names). You can still have all fruits, vegetables, meats, pulses, grains, eggs etc - in other words, all the "good" stuff. I can still find two brands of fat free yoghurts which are very low sugar too, so I use those as syn-free in place of Mullerlights etc. VLF cottage cheese, also available. Quark, not so much but I use the recipe for "yoghurt cheese" from lowfatlifestyle.com instead, as fat free natural yoghurt is a free food. This makes a nice spread for my bread and is also good added to soups etc. For my A choices I have 30g of cheddar usually but can get fat free milk if I want it, and for B generally I have 60g of wholemeal bread or 35g of rolled oats. Syns I just count as one per 20 calories, the My Fitness Pal website is great for finding nutrition info on a wide variety of foods. What I'm saying is you're going to have to make occasional tweaks but the main plan is still relatively easy to follow wherever you are in the world.

Did you keep your books and recipe books from before? If not, you can buy them on eBay as long as the seller will post international (use the "ask seller a question" if you need more info than is in the listing). I've bought quite a few books that way and would be lost without them. I generally do red and occasional green days as I like my two HexA and two HexB choices, but if you're a carb person and "need" potatoes, rice or pasta with your meals then perhaps you should go for EE. Don't worry about the new plan (EESP), it seems to be just a new version of the Success Express which should only be used strictly for a short while anyway if your losses aren't doing too well on the normal plan(s). There's lots of information on this site if you have plenty of time to read through it all though I agree it can be confusing at first, so an online membership is probably a good idea when you can do it.

As for losing three stone before summer, that sounds like you're putting a lot of pressure on yourself although if you're a person with a high metabolism (read: lucky, lol) and/or don't cheat, then it may well be possible. But just think, wouldn't you be a lot happier if you were even two stone lighter? It's so hard to cope with the heat when you're big, don't I know it. Can you just try to take one week at a time and be grateful for each pound lost? That's what I'm trying to do and I have a hell of a long way to go! One pound at a time...

Anyway, best of luck and do let us know what you've decided to do :)
 
Hi hun! Thanks for your reply :)
Yeah very true we can still access the most.important items. It can be so frustrating though.. I can get muller light but there about 2.50euros A yoghurt!! Absolute rip off!!! I've found some in lidls though that I reckon would be free.
Unfortunately I am.not one of the lucky ones my metabolism is shocking that's why I usually do vlcds or atkins type diets but I'm.miserable on them and can't stick to it long term. I guess I maybe should head for 2 stone... Wanted it to be more for summer but my own fault starting now! Also I'm so impatient which is one of.my most annoying habits!
Great thanks for clearing that up about the new part. I'm not a fan of pasta but do like.potatoes but I could.easily do red days so might give these a go! Thankfully I brought my pack with me :)
Thanks for your reply and.good luck with ur restart too xx
 
Hi Stef.

I would suggest you stick with the plans you know. As Swansong has said, the new plan (SP) is a short-term booster plan; it's not meant to be used for much more than a week at a time. If you hunt around this forum, you'll fine several threads about it, including a 'sticky', which 'may' help clarify matters. (If you find them, you'll understand why I've said 'may')!

I'm shocked by the price of Muller Lights; they're not worth that amount of money IMO! Could you substitute plain fat free yogurt with chopped up fruit and a little sweetener if needed? The yogurts from Lidl would have to be sugar-free to be Syn Free.

If you use the search facility on here, you may find some answers to queries about Syns, and if you ask for Syn values (there's a separate area for this), someone will most likely come along and answer.

If you can, particularly as you may do Red days, it may well be worth joining SW as an online member as you can then download the lists of Healthy Extras and use the Syn Online checker - Syn values for Red and Green plans are no longer included in the published directory.

Good luck!
 
Hi! Yes I know it's a big fat joke! You wouldn't believe the prices of other things! They import Iceland stuff and it says £1 on the box and they charge 5euros :-S it's ridiculous! And fruit and veg well done get me started!!
Oh dammit just checked the yoghurts there 0.1% fat but have sugars noooo :-( there's such little choice here it does.my head in!! X
 
Hey! It's these ones they have not sure if there the same? X
 

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Also I have this from lidl not sure if it's in the UK one or not but can't read the instructions!?
 
Hey! It's these ones they have not sure if there the same? X

I've just had a quick Google and it seems these are 2.5syns per pot!
Naughty as whenever I bought these I counted them as free! The individual pot ones (like Muller's) are lower syn but will work out more expensive in comparison to these- the unfortunate sw compromise :-/
Your second pic hasn't come up- what is it? X
 
2.5!!! Rarrrr!! Very Naughty! Next time I go shopping I shall go on the hunt for sugar free! Oh it's OK anyway I worked it out thankyou :) xx
 
Hiya Stef

Welcome to SW when abroad.
I've successfully followed it in Spain - totally on my own, no online membership (can't afford it) and just do it with help from my friends here on Minis.
So it can be done.

As Patty said - if you know red/green days stick with them - the new plan is causing quite a lot of angst and people are finding it difficult to get their heads round. Me included :cry:

I do mostly red days - as I am very sensitive to carbs - especially processed.
Carbs aren't the best for my weight loss - so I avoid them where possible.
In this category I include things like white pasta, white rice, white bread/baguettes and packaged stuff like mugshots. I know Mugshots are free but they have all sorts of yukkiness in them that isn't that good for you. But if it means you can have it as a quick lunch without straying from plan then go for it.

I stick to red days with meat, veg and spuds for my evening meal, plus fruit and yoghurt for lunch.

I buy yoghurt in Lidl - as I love their low fat Greek one as a treat (it has a few syns) but it is less than €3 her in Spain for a 500gm tub so excellent value.
Other yogurts you can get in Lidl - using good old fashioned red/green days syn values - are as follows

YOGURT
SYNS
Milbona Fat Free Strawberry Yogurt , per 100g0
Milbona Fat Free Cherry Yogurt , per 100g0
Milbona Fat Free Lemon Cheesecake Yogurt , 175g pot1
Milbona Fat Free Mint & Chocolate Sprinkles Yogurt , 175g pot ½
Milbona Fruits of the Forest Yogurt, Low Fat , 250g pot
Milbona Greek Style Low Fat Natural Yogurt , per 100g
Linessa Fat Free Natural Yogurt , per 100g0
Linessa Light 0.1% Fat Fruit Yogurt 8 multipack, 125g pot

I have an quick reference guide that I put together for the old red/green day plan that could send you if you want it - just PM your email address.

Good luck chica

PS Do you have Aldi in Malta - you can get some lovely syn free meat things in there.
 
Hey!! Wooooo thats great to hear and meet someone successfully following SW Abroad! We don't have aldi which is sooooooo annoying I love aldi!! Lidl isn't the same as UK Either!!

Before I followed EE. Carbs arnt my friend either that's why I.always went for a diet I can cut them out so I think I'll Deffo try the red and green days but I'll.need abit of guidance as I only ever knew EE :)

Great Thankyou I will pm u Now!!

Thankyou for that list I shall go in and have a good mooch!! Xx
 
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