Snow's Health Living Rambles v2

[snowbryneich]

v2? More like v20 but oh well. I'm having another attempt at losing weight and a fresh food diary to go along with it. Last time using mini mins and slimming world I lost 5 stone gone from 27st something to 22st something. I fell off the wagon and put all that back on and some (there was a stint at weight watchers along the way lost some - put that on etc) and am I now attempting a combination of calorie counting (on my fitness pal) and using huel which is a food replacement shake. I've seen lots of stories of people who switch to Huel entirely and that automatically sorts out calories. I'm starting on one huel shake a day for a filling nutritionally balanced breakfast that I can prepare very quickly. One of my major downfalls eating wise is that I don't normally have breakfast and then i pig out because i am hungry - huel is very filling. I also plan to have huel for lunch on days I haven't planned something else rather than popping to the canteen of doom.

I think my myfitnesspal is in my profile? - it used to be if not I will add it. I have a quite high calorie allowance due to my weight and I am trying to use it because I have in the past cut calories quite drastically and left myself know where to go when the weight loss stops and you need to cut down further.

So hello again to anyone who remembers me from last time and hello to everyone else!

 

[ladyfelsham]

Hi Snowy! Lovely to see you again :|).

I think of you often and remember how well you were doing - and you will do it again!

I've followed your example (from before) and joined SW a year ago, lost nearly 5 stone and am loving it, despite regular slip ups and gains haha.

Looking forward to cheering you on x

 

[snowbryneich]

Hi Snowy! Lovely to see you again :|).

I think of you often and remember how well you were doing - and you will do it again!

I've followed your example (from before) and joined SW a year ago, lost nearly 5 stone and am loving it, despite regular slip ups and gains haha.

Looking forward to cheering you on x

Thanks - regular slip up and gains are I think a part of any diet, but the plan is no more falling off the wagon and then running (more like waddling even) away from the wagon. I do have slimming world as a sort of back up plan if I don't get on with calorie counting or i might alternate if i hit a plateau one issue is I can't get to a group at the moment and resent that it costs as much online as it does in person. That said I could follow it mostly off the top of my head and using google for syns as it is pretty well ingrained in me even after all this time.

I forgot to put in the intro though I'm going to weight monthly to stop any hormonal fluctuations putting me off (I used to weigh daily and have a tendency to obsess over it which is not good.)

 

[snowbryneich]

Today's food

Breakfast
2 scoop Huel shake with banana flavouring
1 scoop Huel porridge with 45 calories of golden syrup
556 calories

Lunch
Heinz Lentil Soup
2 Protein bagels with butter
731 calories - too much butter I normally have a smaller lunch and more calories in snacks but weekends always a bit different

Dinners
Roasted carrots, onions and sausages in the actifry
150 g tesco frozen mash
50mls gravy
1 tsp chutney
746 calories

Snacks
Raw carrot
Dolce Gusto caramel coffee
1 ginger biscuit
225 calories



Total 2258

Drinks
2 coke zeros
1000 ml water
1 dolce gusto

My fitness pal gives me 2810 calories per day. Today it has taken 237 calories off me for being inactive (thanks fitbit) which means I have around 300 calories left if I fancy something but I'm not going to eat for the sake of it (for once!)

 

[snowbryneich]

Sunday weird day due to migraine
Breakfast
No breakfast - migraine until after 4pm

Lunch
Heinz Lentil Soup
2 Protein bagels with butter
620 calories (less butter than yesterday)

Dinner
Pizza
855 calories


Snacks
Raw carrot
Dolce Gusto caramel coffee
Dolce Gusto hot chocolate
tunnocks teacake
319 calories

total 1794 calories

goal 2405 calories as I was v inactive due to migraine but still well under goal

Today
breakfast
3 scoop huel shake with 150g frozen raspberries
580 calories

lunch
naked noodle pot
Melon medley
150g yogurt with 10g jam
542 calories

snacks
celery and 25g homous
banana
cheddar cheese pretzels
351 calories

Not having any calories deducted yet so that leaves me with 1400~ for dinner thinking of doing pasta of some sort.

 

[ladyfelsham]

Looks good and sounds yummy!

 

[snowbryneich]

dinner
Spinach and mascarpone sauce with penne pasta and smoked cheese
590 calories

And a snack update
snacks
celery and 25g hommous
banana
cheddar cheese pretzels
Graze punnet
crisps
Nutri-Grain bar
868 calories

that number under snacks is making me panic a bit but I still am only at 2580 calories out of my total of 2810

Today Fitbit has given me 471 calories for being active but I only did 4k steps so I think that's nonsense or a sign of how unfit I am? I don't eat back exercise calories because I think Fitbit overestimates but I do reduce when it gives me a negative adjustment because i want to be sure I'm in a deficit.

I plan to have a dolce gusto coffee or hot chocolate and a tunnocks teacake which will be 200 cals so I'll be just under my 2810 (it's so many calories) what if my metabolism is so messed up by all the diets? and I don't need that many. Argh.

Anyway even though I started last Monday and am planning to weigh monthly I'm going to weigh on Friday and make the 1st of the month my weigh day and that might reassure me (or make me rethinks.)

 

[Grumpy Space Princess]

Welcome back, snowy!

I've never found my fitbit to be good at estimating what I actually burn. It always overestimates. I've turned that bit of it off on my tracker so I don't even see it, since I doubt it's ever been correct.

Weighing monthly is a great idea! I did that for a while when I was obsessing over the number too much. I think there was a challenge somewhere on minimins to put our scales away for a month, which I joined in with.

I remember freaking out about the number of calories I was allowed when I started, but you can always adjust the number downward if you aren't losing. Better to start off with too many and gradually reduce until you find the right number, I think. That way you aren't suddenly going from a whole lot of calories to barely any, which will leave you hungry all of the time. Going hungry has never been sustainable for me!

Good luck! xx

 

[snowbryneich]

Thanks GSP! You're quite right the fitbit isn't trust worthy I only deduct the minuses it gives me because it only gives me them on days when I've sat on my bum all day (mainly weekends) so i am more sedentary so less calories make sense - I am nearly always give extra calories on weekdays because just the act of getting to work means i do enough steps that it gives me some - today i was in a meeting all day and it gave me an extra 76 which i'll ignore.

I'm hopeful that as my calories come down this might prompt me to be a bit more active on weekends just to avoid fitbit nicking any off me. We shall see!

I know the amount of calories make sense really - it's just one of the many things i worry over but i suppose friday will tell! A lot of getting into this is getting into a routine of planning food and tracking everything.

Today
Breakfast
2 scoop huel shake with banana and 50g raspberries
481 calories

Lunch
2 protein bagels with 60g Philadelphia light
duck crackling
hartleys 10 cal jelly
583 calories

Dinner
KFC
957 calories

Snacks
celery and 25g hommous
banana
biscuit
roasted corn snacks
438 calories

Total 2459 calories so about 350 under allowance (but 11g over my fat allowance) and really full of kfc so calling that a day. I blame my OH - he really wanted KFC and it's cheap on tuesdays.

 

[ladyfelsham]

What's the shake like? I have to say, even though I can't stand the selling techniques of the Cute Company, their choc shake is very nice and blends in well. I think it's about 130 cals per serve. They are expensive though, £20 a jar (although it's a big one).

 

[snowbryneich]

What's the shake like? I have to say, even though I can't stand the selling techniques of the Cute Company, their choc shake is very nice and blends in well. I think it's about 130 cals per serve. They are expensive though, £20 a jar (although it's a big one).

I like the shakes - they mostly taste of oats to me so it's a bit like cold thin porridge (not exactly selling it there am I) but they are made of oats and pea protein and brown rice with some fat from coconut and a load of vitamins and meant to be a nutritionally complete meal. (The internet said they were filling which they are which I was hoping would help me not snack - but then i have calories for snacks - currently) I have vanilla (vanilla flavour is not overly strong) and berry (this tastes like strawberry milkshake berry flavour in that it doesn't actually taste of berry just vaguely reminiscent) the flavours aren't strong.

They are high calorie really shake wise and not designed as a weight loss product but as a kind of now you don't even have to think about food type product and most people who use them for weight loss seem to go entirely huel so three 500 cal shakes a day. I don't plan to go above two I kind of went for it because i wanted to minimise the amount of planning i have to do. I don't have to think about breakfast now and if I haven't planned for lunch I can take two. They are nicer blended with fruit but I have some flavour pouchs to add to them as well - going to try chocolate mint tomorrow.) I had the banana flavour pouch on saturday and it was nice but that is my favourite milkshake flavour.

It was £40.50 for 2 1.75 kg bags which is a month worth of 3 scoop shakes. (£1.35 a day - cheaper than buying crap in the canteen like i used to) I plan to have 3 scoops if plain and 2 if fruit added.

 

[ladyfelsham]

it's a bit like cold thin porridge (not exactly selling it there am I) but they are made of oats and pea protein...

LOL yep you really are selling them to me . But chocolate mint sounds nice.

 

[Tibbs]

saw you on Suzie's diary a couple of times so popped over to say hello and offer support X

 

[Bigbear]

Hi Snowy!
Welcome back xx

I also do calorie counting and use meal
Replacement shakes (Inuse slim fast) for one of my meals a day - almost always breakfast

 

[snowbryneich]

tttt

LOL yep you really are selling them to me . But chocolate mint sounds nice.

The chocolate mint was nice! Tomorrow I'm having pineapple and coconut!

saw you on Suzie's diary a couple of times so popped over to say hello and offer support X

Thank you Tibbs! Nice to meet you

Hi Snowy!
Welcome back xx

I also do calorie counting and use meal
Replacement shakes (Inuse slim fast) for one of my meals a day - almost always breakfast

I remember you did so well with slim fast Claire - how is baby bear doing? What kind of calorie goal do you aim for mine seems enormous currently but I'm at my heaviest ever.

Today's food - I'm 500 calories under and I have had so many snacks. Maybe i need to build more calories into my meals but they've all been satisfying? For the most part I am eating full fat things (hummous, yogurt and cheese etc) so I can switch to low fat when i need to reduce calories but I don't want to switch to full sugar things! because they are not healthy and also it will interfere with my tolerance to sweetners which is good now but for years i hated them and drank full sugar everything and every time i have full fat coke it spoils me for diet (I am that person who can tell and will send full fat coke back in bars/restaurants which I am sure makes me very popular.

Breakfast
Huel 3 scoop shake
500 calories

Lunch
Mulligatawny Soup
Ryvita Protein Crispbread (4)
No added sugar jelly
384 calories

Dinner
Lasagne
453 calories

Snacks
25g Houmous & celery sticks
Banana
Pear
Roasted corn snacks
Cocktail onions and 30g cheese
Biscuit
Yes! fruit bar
Dolce Gusto chococino
tunnocks teacake
947 calories

2284 calories

500 calories left but not going to eat for eatings sake.

 

[Tibbs]

Menu's looking good Snowy..and yay for being 500 calories under Are those corn snacks the ones that are flavoured corn kernels? If yes, I love those. X

 

[ladyfelsham]

Pineapple and coconut - YUM! That has to be one of my most favourite combos - enjoy

 

[NamesJames]

I read that dark chocolate is good for increasing energy levels. Has anybody else heard of this? I find it hard to believe but it would be nice!

 

[snowbryneich]

Menu's looking good Snowy..and yay for being 500 calories under Are those corn snacks the ones that are flavoured corn kernels? If yes, I love those. X

Yes! That's them. I really like them too. These were jalapeno flavoured. I had them in my desk from pre diet but i can have them if i count them.

Pineapple and coconut - YUM! That has to be one of my most favourite combos - enjoy

Ha mine too. I bought a sample pack of flavour boosts to try with the huel and then you can get a big bag of the ones you like. I am definitely repurchasing this one.

I read that dark chocolate is good for increasing energy levels. Has anybody else heard of this? I find it hard to believe but it would be nice!

Dark chocolate is meant to have all sorts of health benefits but it is the only form of chocolate I don't like sadly!

Well i was supposed to weigh tomorrow but i was unable to resist and weighed this morning so i guess my weigh day will be the last day of the month not the first. I lost 13lbs which is such a relief. I know a lot of it will be water. I always have a big whoosh at the start of a diet but it does show for me that 2800 calories is a deficit even though it seems loads. Also now that I update my weight in mfp I get 2690. But it is a great start and a great boost. Will update food later when not on mobile. (Work internet blocks minimins as health forums-suspicious which seems a bit harsh

 

[ladyfelsham]

WOW! That is a fabulous loss Snowy!!!!

My gosh that's almost a stone, you must be chuffed to bits!

Well done love xx

Just been looking at the Huel flavours - it's your fault, you mentioned pineapple and coconut LOL. Less than 10 cals per serve, so that's only half a syn - might get a couple of flavours to boost smoothies.