Susie's 2022 campaign

[ladyfelsham]

Starting tomorrow Charley. Going to log it all into MFP and I've reset my cals a bit lower - think that was half my problem last time.

So, WI tomorrow morning, gulp!

And I'll post menus hun, glad you enjoy them .

 

[ladyfelsham]

Afternoon all - awful WI but expected TBH.

Don't feel 100% in focus but I'm out of the starting blocks anyway . Just going to try and eat healthily - and no alcohol for as long as I can avoid it!

B - pineapple and coconut yogurt smoothie with cinnamon (340)
L - tomato salad - using my very own toms! Plus cucumber, iceberg lettuce, red pepper, spicy salami, yogurt dressing (457)
D - leftover pasta in passata with black olives and pancetta - like the salami, not clean eating, but just using it up (722)

Total - 1,517. I've set the cals at 1500, according to the Livestrong calculator, so OK with going over a little.

Have a good one - and keep in the shade!

 

[Charleybarley]

Afternoon all - awful WI but expected TBH.

Don't feel 100% in focus but I'm out of the starting blocks anyway . Just going to try and eat healthily - and no alcohol for as long as I can avoid it!

B - pineapple and coconut yogurt smoothie with cinnamon (340)
L - tomato salad - using my very own toms! Plus cucumber, iceberg lettuce, red pepper, spicy salami, yogurt dressing (457)
D - leftover pasta in passata with black olives and pancetta - like the salami, not clean eating, but just using it up (722)

Total - 1,517. I've set the cals at 1500, according to the Livestrong calculator, so OK with going over a little.

Have a good one - and keep in the shade!

Well done Susie, forget about the WI, you are starting a clean slate and your meals sound lovely, especially dinner - and using your own produce, how exciting! I harvested 4 strawberries from my plants last night, I was so proud, had them for pud - OH MY GOD - they were so sour!!! I had to douse them in double cream and meringue just to take the taste away!!!!! Diet is going great by the way !

 

[ladyfelsham]

Thanks lovely gal - yep I like a fresh start, helps me be more positive .

Awww poor you on the strawbs, what a shame (but yum to the cream!). My toms were nice, and one plant is still producing plenty but think the other two are dying off. I'm not a natural gardener and my tendency is to over water - but they need a morning and evening drench here because of the heat - but are still not looking happy . Oh well, at least I had a go! I'm hoping to go out F&V shopping with an Italian mate tomorrow - she seems to know just where to get the biggest, juiciest, most yummy stuff!

I'm also not going to worry too much about going over the cal limit - as long as it's healthy (ie, not pizza!) and fruit or veg based, I'll be happy enough - there's plenty of time on this journey to reduce cals once I get a rhythm going. So - this week I'm going to finish off the dry pasta (there seems to be a lot of it in the house!), and then concentrate on using skinny noodles and spiralized veg instead.

Later - been having a lovely time googling clean eating blogs and free Kindle books - lots of scrumptious recipes! I feel really excited about it now yaye, and will take the advice of one author, who said to have one treat meal a week - which means I can go out socially, have a pizza or pasta, and still be on track.

 

[ladyfelsham]

Morning all

Phew what a hot night! My feet and ankles swelled up and I had an awful time with cramps in my calves - kept popping magnesium and potassium but the feeling cramps were about to strike never quite went away. Couldn't sleep and ended up getting up at 5.30am but I have managed to get a lot done since then and it's only 8am...watered the plants, put bamboo stakes in the toms, fed the cats, cleaned up the kitchen, made brekkie and got lunch in the slow cooker, as a friend is coming for lunch. She loves trying my experimental cooking, bless her .

B - omelette cooked in coconut oil, with toms, red pepper, chorizo and parmesan - lush! (345)
L - veg coconut curry (broccoli, spinach, red pepper, cannelloni beans, pumpkin) with spiralized carrots (352), followed by overnight oats with berries, sultanas and yogurt (288)
D - more curry (352)

Total - 1,337. I upped my cals again to 1,800 so I can get all the good oils in - but was surprised at how little coconut oil is in terms of cals. So there's plenty left for an apple or some nuts to snack on. Because peeps this is now an alcohol and chocolate/sweets free zone! Day 6 of no alcohol and I feel miles better for it. Been reading up on uric acid caused by alcohol which can make sore knees much worse and lead to gout (yuck!), so am hoping that this clean living will help my mobility .

Have a good one! xx

 

[Elanor]

All sounds good Susie! I think there is always far too much emphasises on calories, rather than actually consuming more fruit, veg, lean meat etc. Cals are still important to track, but healthy eating is so much more. You are taking positive steps, especially cutting out the vino, and the calories sounds good, and no wine means more yummy food xx

 

[jules1981]

hey hun i am starting cal counting and you reminded me i have some coconut oil in the cupboard. xxxx

 

[tipperary]

Well done...a great start. You need to tell me how to keep away from wine, I manage about 4 days and then cave in.

 

[ladyfelsham]

no wine means more yummy food xx

Yes that's my thinking too El - loved the veg curry and the spiralized carrots yesterday, will definitely do that again. Am going F&V shopping with my Italian mate tomorrow, so the kitchen will be brimming full of good stuff. Her farmer is more expensive but as I'm saving money on meat and wine, I don't mind in the least .

hey hun i am starting cal counting and you reminded me i have some coconut oil in the cupboard. xxxx

Hiya Jules welcome back. Coconut oil is great stuff, I try and use it once a day .

Well done...a great start. You need to tell me how to keep away from wine, I manage about 4 days and then cave in.

Not sure if I've found the secret Tipp, but as someone who can all too easily binge drink for England, I'm happy to report Day 7 of NB (no booze). My friend brought her husband for lunch yesterday and he was rather alarmed at the fact that there was a) no wine and b) no bread in the house LOL. One or two glasses is fine but - like with food - I don't have a stop button with wine - so it's better not to have any in at all.

Well, another scorcher - 34 today - and I'm off to lunch at the beach restaurant we all like. The chef comes out to tell you what's on the menu - lots of fish but he always does me a lovely non fishy starter and main - and the son speaks good English. So food today is likely to be pasta or antipasto, then grilled meat of some kind and salad, plus lots of fizzy water! But will treat myself to a scrumptious home made gelato!

If someone can remind me how to upload pics, I'll try and do that when I get back x

 

[Scrumbles]

Oooh...lunch at the beach sounds perfect!

But you can keep the 34C weather - we were in the low 30's for 4 days straight and I was proper fed up with it by the last day! Is it like that the whole summer where you are or does it vary?

Med diet sounds like a great idea, not to mention extremely appropriate If you're living on mostly fruit and veg though, what are you doing for protein? Beans, lentils, that kind of thing? I'm curious because although I wouldn't go fully vegetarian I definitely wouldn't mind having some meat-free days if I could think of what to have to still get about 80g protein a day. I shall be taking a close look at your menus!

Hope you have a lovely day and best of luck with your new plan!x

 

[ladyfelsham]

Temperature was 40 degrees in the car - blimey! It's going to be in the high 20s to high 30s, apart from a day here or there, through to September now.

Lunch was lovely - and I was SO good .

B - cup of tea
L - small (as in, normal) portion of fresh tagliatelle with passata and a small amount of crumbed sausage, followed by...a salad with oil dressing - go me! (678), followed by an amazing liquorice gelato (270)
D - avocado and cherry tom salad with oil dressing (684)
Total - 1,632

Scrummie - re the protein, I'm going to up the bean intake. So yesterday I added cannelloni beans to the veg stew. On the way home today I bought a kilo of huge dried chickpeas (for €3!) and kidney beans - tried some at a friend's house last week and they were lovely - so that's another source of protein. Plus cottage cheese, etc. In fact, might have cottage cheese and prunes for after dinner - got huge prunes from the same lady who sells the chickpeas (and other amazing stuff, I could have bought loads).

I'm also rather chuffed because I did a bit of walking today and, although it was painful, I'm really glad I did it. Another week or two and I'm going down the beach in the mornings to walk along the promenade - they call that "passiagata" here .

 

[Charleybarley]

Oh wow Susie your menus are sounding phenom!!!!! Just like me to hone in on the naughty but...liquorice ice cream??! Be still my beating heart! That sound amazing. Med diet sounds amazing and is clearly right up your street. Keep it up lovely xx

 

[tipperary]

Getting hungry.

I thought passiagata was the evening walk wandering after the heat of the day and window shopping in very expensive shops.

 

[ladyfelsham]

Just like me to hone in on the naughty but...liquorice ice cream??! Be still my beating heart!

Oh Charley it was lovely - and the restaurant makes its own gelato - about 20 flavours - so it's nice and fresh .

I thought passiagata was the evening walk wandering after the heat of the day and window shopping in very expensive shops.

It is that too - but a lot of people use it here to refer to a post-lunch stroll . I was strolling round the supermarket so that counts haha.

Well I'm sitting here sooooo angry. Poor Stella, my youngest cat, has had constipation for the last day or so and she's really in discomfort. I tried everything - swapped her to wet food from dry, gave her malt paste, but panicked this afternoon when I saw her straining and a few drops of blood coming out (sorry if tmi). Bundled her into the car - which she hates - to go to the vet - which was closed! A sign on the door saying closed Friday to Tuesday and the emergency number went through to their voicemail. In the end a friend told me to go to the pharmacy, which is where you get all the animal treatments - so I got a child's laxative and worming tablets (at 5 times the prices in the UK!) - but what if something really serious had happened?! There's no other vet around for miles. I appreciate they need a holiday too but you really think they would have sorted out some sort of cover...argggghhh! Ok, rant over.

It's times like these I'd love a few glasses of wine - but resisted - so that's my day's NSV, I guess. Although the day isn't over yet....

 

[Elanor]

Aww, poor Stella! Hope she's on the mend. It's horrible seeing pets like that.

Lovely to hear you having some lovely food and sounding positive Your food sounds so lovely, I'm tempted to forget SW and try a Med diet!! Especially if avocados are involved!!

And that's great about the walking! Soon, you will be off everywhere!! xx

 

[tipperary]

I was on holiday in Rome and passiagata was after dinner stroll....lots of couples in very expensive clothes. But it seems to be any sort of a stroll that has the purpose of watching others stroll.

Poor cat, I hope she's OK.....I wonder if it just the extreme heat, does she need lots of liquids.

 

[jules1981]

aw hunny, your poor cat ;( mine currently up with me and now I am living here on my own ( no ex husband or my 5 year old son) is my only company how is she now hunny?

Your meals sound yummy xxxx

 

[ladyfelsham]

Poor Stellie is still bunged up but I'm hoping the laxatives will work their magic today. She's still pretty chirpy, been running round the garden like a maniac, then had some food, so let's hope she gets some relief soon!

Up at 5.30am again (!), so got lots done before it gets too hot and am now relaxing for a bit, before I give the fridge a good clean and scrub. Pleased with today's menu, am using everything up before the big F&V shop this afternoon -

B - Spanish omelette with red pepper and chorizo, in coconut oil; small avocado salad with toms and lettuce (368)
L - Leftover avo salad; coconut yogurt smoothie with pineapple and prunes (552)
D - Huge salad - lettuce, carrots, fennel, cucumber, cherry toms - with l/f cottage cheese (281)
S - Overnight oats with berries (198)

Total - 1,399 - so plenty of room for some nuts or an apple or whatever to snack on.

Have a good one, all xx

 

[Tessa2000]

Hope your cat is better soon.

Very healthy food. Sounds lovely. X

 

[ladyfelsham]

Very healthy food. Sounds lovely. X

A friend turned up unannounced today with fresh pizza slices for lunch! Ooopsies - best laid plans and all that .

All OK though, I figure if I drop the lunch salad and overnight oats, that still leaves plenty of cals for the pizza. It's so lovely - spinach and ricotta/ham and mozzarella fillings in between two very thin pizza slices - and all home made, so that fits with the clean eating plan .

Later - just back from the F&V shopping trip and I have to boast - I got SO much stuff for under €20! Cherries, apricots, peaches, lettuce, potatoes, 2 different kinds of tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, cucumbers - and all grown by the families selling them. I also got wholemeal bread made without salt, so that's for brekky tomorrow. If I can figure out how to upload a pic, I will.

Just had my leftover salad with extra toms, then the pineapple, cinnamon and yogurt smmothie - and I am ready to pop!