Not much to talk about today.. another boring 11 hour shift at work. So I thought id post a little story what my consultant read out this week. Some people may have heard it. I dont really do what the girl does in the story often but I have had a few uncounted syns after weigh in in the past.. so that will be stopping!
Ivy was really disappointed this week having maintained after ‘such a good week’. She couldn’t understand - her food diary was perfect! 10 Syns per day… maximum! Take a closer look at a typical Extra Easy day...
Ivy has her normal breakfast of branflakes, milk and a banana. She tips them into the bowl, and then thinks. ‘I’d better just check the weight of them - I want to get a few pounds off this week!’ She puts them on the scales to find they weigh 1½oz. ‘That’s my Healthy Extra ‘b’ choice,’ she thinks, taking out the excess and unconsciously popping them in her mouth.
As she puts the milk away she spots an open carton of orange juice and decides to have a small glass whilst making a boiled egg for her daughter’s breakfast. When clearing up the dishes, Ivy spies two left over soldiers. ‘I can’t remember the last time I had REAL butter!’ she thinks, and into her mouth they go!
After breakfast it’s a trip into town shopping. Armed with a Hi-fi bar, just in case temptation strikes, she sets off.
In WHSmiths, her daughter gets restless in the buggy and Ivy opens her a packet of crisps to keep her quiet. And she ends up testing a couple herself – just for freshness!
Lunchtime comes and the shopping trip is not done yet - there’s still money left on Ivy’s credit card! And as she knows she’ll be a while she decides to grab something from Marks & Spencer’s healthy Count On Us range as ‘it’s bound to be low on Syns!’
Spoilt for choice, Ivy scans the range. She spots a salmon and cucumber sandwich. ‘That’s a great choice… the bread will be my Healthy Extra ‘b’ choice!’ she thinks. She buys it as a meal deal, along with a diet coke and a packet of salt and vinegar crisps - to eat later.
Later on, Starbucks beckons and Ivy stops for a coffee. ‘No cake for me though!’ she say, savouring the skinny latte she’s treated herself to. ('Well, I didn't have much milk on my cereal this morning', she thinks. 'This can be the rest of my Healthy Extra 'a' choice.'). As she takes the weight off her feet she congratulates herself for not needing the ‘emergency Hi-fi’ while out today.
Back at home after shopping, she makes cakes with her daughter. She resists the fairy cakes when they come out of the oven… but CAN’T resist licking the wooden spoon!
She feeds her daughter early – a chicken nugget and two chips remain on the plate – and they don’t go in the bin!
Dinnertime comes – a nice juicy steak, fresh salad and a filling jacket potato topped with quark. A tablespoon of Hellmann’s Light Mayo goes on the salad – ‘only 2½ Syns’! She says, ‘my first today!’
Her hubby prefers mashed potato with his. She wouldn’t dream of eating that it herself, but she does just taste it to check it contains the right amount of butter and milk!
Dessert for Ivy is a Müllerlight yogurt. Hubby has sponge pudding and custard. ‘It just doesn’t bother me,’ Ivy says, licking the spoon she used to stir the custard!
By 9.30pm Ivy fancies a ‘little something else’. Remembering the crisps she picked up with the meal deal, she checks the Syn value and finds they’re only 7 Syns. ‘Only 9½ Syns today’ she thinks, ‘that’s a perfect day!
So, here's a breakdown of the syns Ivy really had:
extra ½ oz of branflakes 2½ Syns
Orange juice 125ml 2½ Syns
Eggy soldiers 4 Syns
Couple of crisps 1 Syn
Sandwich 19 Syns (6 Syns can be deducted if using bread as Healthy Extra 'b'... but Ivy had already had hers at breakfast!)
Latte 8½ Syns (Grande from Starbucks - her 'a' choice was all used at breakfast!)
Cake mixture 4 Syns
Mayo 7½ Syns (it was a heaped tablespoonnot level!)
Chicken nugget 3 Syns
2 chips 3 Syns
Spoonful of mash 3 Syns
Spoonful of custard 2 Syns
Packet of crisps 7 Syns
67 syns!!
Just to put this into perspective, those 67 Syns are the equivalent of an average portion of Chicken Tikka Masala, Pilau rice, 1 naan bread, a pint of beer and two small vegetable samosas! We’d all know if we ate that!
Todays Menu
Breakfast - Scrambled egg, cheese (HEX A) and ham, an apple
Lunch - Tomato and basil soup, 2 bread (HEX B), small chicken tikka salad with laughing cow on (1 1/2 syns), an orange
Dinner - One pan roast chicken (From SW mag jan/feb) includes lots of roasted veg, some brocolli and roast potatoes. Gravy on top (4 syns)
Total syns: 5 1/2