Wooster's Veggie RTM

[wooster]

So where do you train Ken? I've joined a gym in Hounslow for my lunchtime workouts and I think that you live around there.

Flurry of activity when I got home yesterday. I did a huge BBQ / veggie stew which I'll live off for the rest of the week. Forgot how nice brussels sprouts are. Really fresh and nutty. Meanwhile, I stuck a whole load of tofu in a baking dish and mixed in tomato puree, garlic, balsamic and paprika. Baked it for about 45 mins and it came out lovely - some crunchy bits, lovely flavour. I can now have that in my salads for lunch. Did have a slight problem with 'tasting' the tofu - could not leave it alone! I also made some quinoa with mixed herbs to have in the fridge as a stand by.

I am still eating too much I think. My weight is only staying constant probably due to the amount of exercise I'm doing. I burnt over 400 cals in one 30 min session the other day!

Slight accident yesterday when I managed to coat the entire fridge in jelly - serves me right for making up a batch when I really wasn't hungry. Food karma

 

[kenshin112]

the gym i use is springhealth near erm heathrow airport
which hounslow one do you use? i also do alot of road running and use of my home gym too
yeah cant beat a solid workout i train for 2-3 hours but i do 1 hour intervals and hiit

 

[wooster]

I've joined the gym next to Asda - it's like the Easyjet of gyms! Cheap and basic but does the job. Some hilarious 'muscle marys' to laugh at while you work out ;-) They do more strutting than working out!! I'm also a member of a gym near home which I use at weekends and sometimes in the evenings if I'm back home in time. If it weren't for my 4 hour daily commute I'd be able to do a lot more exercise - I'm a bit of an endorphin junkie!

Just got back from kickboxing and enjoying day 2 of my veggie stew. Might have to add some jerk spice for day 3 tomorrow to add some variety. Was wondering if you could make a generic tomato based stew at the weekends and just add different spices to each portion as the week goes on? Just trying to think of time saving options.

Only had one pack today but had enough calories so giving it a miss. No point forcing 'food' down for the sake of it. Any thoughts on missing out packs at this stage??

 

[kenshin112]

oh the gym where you just swipe your id and go in?
i think you can make tomato stew, but i think its week 3 your allowed tomatos hopefully jez or someone can clear that up for me
well i had the packs when i could, but some days i just couldnt manage so left them

 

[wooster]

Think week 4 is cooked veg - you can have low fat sauces in week 3 but no cooked veggies yet so I didn't really see the point to that.

I hit week 5 on Thursday and it's a welcome return to olives, sweet potatoes and carrots.

 

[kenshin112]

oh my your on week 5 damn time def flies
so how you finding rtm thus far?

 

[wooster]

It's not been without its' problems! Just had about a gallon of jelly which I think is totally going against everything we've been taught. Even now I'm absolutely stuffed but wondering what I could grab from the fridge to nibble on. Madness.

Yes, the gym is the basic swipecard one - no receptionist, water, towels anything. Some of the machinery looks a bit pre-war but does the job.

 

[thin_inside]

...enjoying day 2 of my veggie stew. Might have to add some jerk spice for day 3 tomorrow to add some variety. Was wondering if you could make a generic tomato based stew at the weekends and just add different spices to each portion as the week goes on? Just trying to think of time saving options.

Great idea. I guess you could make up a big batch and then separate into meal sized portions and add a different spice to each when you reheat. The world is your spice rack on that one.

I just bought some star anise as I love aniseed flavours and will put it in a marinade of something.

xx

 

[wooster]

Joining the Compote Club

I'm having a lovely chilled out Friday night on the sofa so thought I'd post a few updates.

Had my weigh in on Wednesday night and stayed the same. Ok with that as it's TOTM and my home scales hadn't gone down at all. Still feel I want to lose some more weight though. I had to start RTM earlier than planned due to dizzy spells and hair loss. The good news is that my hair isn't shedding too badly now and I feel full of energy.

Halo points this week for going to the gym every lunchtime. It hasn't been an ordeal either - i've discovered that I can survive on less sleep if I get my workout in. I had 4 hours sleep last night (went to the O2 to watch the tennis and got back very late) but felt absolutely fine at work after my workout. In my fat and lazy sofa bound days, the less I did, the less I wanted to do. God I wasted so much time doing nothing and procrastinating!

Food updates, I've finally made some compote! I used kiwi, plum and pear and it was lovely. Also, added some cranberries as I think I overdid the Splenda and it was way too sweet. Liberal sprinkling of cinammon as always . It's freezing tonight so just the job. Reckon it would be lovely with the vanilla pack made up as custard.

My speedy meal discovery is: inch of water in a small frying pan with ginger, garlic, lime and soya sauce. Add a quorn fillet and simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed - about 5 mins. Can be used with chicken and tofu for similar results I reckon. Lots of variations possible - balsamic, herby version, tomato puree with BBQ sesasoning etc. Certainly keeps the fillet nice and moist.

Weekly shop tomorrow and I can't wait to get some sweet potato and make a lovely spicy soup.

I'm not getting many of my packs in as I think I've eaten more than enough calories and it just seems pointless eating it for the sake of it. Due to the amount of exercise I'm doing, it just seems to work better for me to have my calories in the form of protein - ie cottage cheese, tofu, quorn etc. I'd be interested what everyone else thinks about this.

Hope everyone is looking forward to the weekend. Anything exciting planned??

 

[kenshin112]

this weekend is crazy with the football so watching that mainly sunday though
tomorrow online shopping, cleaning the house and gym as usual hopefully get my protein shakes as im needing them right about now, im still having 700-900 calories

and i agree now that we have more energy we require less sleep, and so on, but when we were big we were lazy and just wanted to chill on the couch but glad those days are behind many of us now, to a slimmer lifestyle yeah baby yeah

 

[wooster]

I've just been shopping and bought the most inappropriate pair of knee high boots. If I wear them out I'm going to have to be carried everywhere as they are so high. Either that or I take up pole dancing as a career.

The first time that a knee high pair of boots have got over my cankles though so I just had to buy them. Very happy!

arty0011:arty0011:arty0011:arty0011:

 

[kenshin112]

pole dancing ahem lol
aint it wicked buying new clothes and shoes/boots/trainers that you never thought would fit or whatnot
im waiting for january sales

 

[wooster]

Soup Sensation

Yesterday I think I made the best soup I've ever concocted:

1 large sweet potato
3 carrots
onion
marigold
coriander
cumin
lots of ginger
turmeric

Boil it all up and then blitz in the blender. Blowing my own trumpet now, but it was awesome!! The ginger gave it a real kick and I nearly had it for breakfast this morning I loved it that much.

Going to make some more soup today but not too sure how on earth I can top that. Soup heaven!

How long until lunchtime when I can have another bowl of it??

 

[kenshin112]

Wow I wanna make soup might make some tonight

 

[Jezebella]

Yet another exciting low cal but yummy and filling option you can put on your menu ken!!! The more experimental you get with the cooking the better. You can then increase a greater variety of foods into your diet instead of the odd quorn fillet and things.

Wooster your soup sounds gorgeous!!

Jez
xx

 

[slendablenda]

YAY Wooster

Boots and soup - both sound fabulous.
Another addition to the soup can be a small butternut squash.
Wash it, don't need to peel it, just chop it in chunks, remove the seeds.
Add it to all your other ingredients. You'l need to cook it for longer. I use my slow cooker.
Then blitz it all up. Makes a smooth, thick, velvety soup.
You can also add tinned tomatoes or puree, a bit if curry powder or cumin.
Chick peas, lentils. Basically the only limit is your imagination.
Serve with a dollop of the Yeo Valley 0 fat natural yogurt. YUM.
One drawback-everyone wants it !!!
Enjoy xx

 

[wooster]

I've always peeled butternut squash so will definitely try it with the skins on - it's usually the part that has all the nutrients. I love pumpkin, sweet potato and squash. A great addition is low fat coconut milk. I've also done the same sort of idea as a curry with lentils, or made the spices a bit more Thai to do a green curry. I never measure any spices so it tastes different every time!

Busy day so no cooking done for the week - I'll have to do it tomorrow when I get home. Still got gym kit to sort out and pack lunches to make. But X Factor is distracting me from the kitchen....

 

[wooster]

Spicy Soup Version 2!

I've just had the latest version of my soup and used squash this time instead of the sweet potatoes as suggested. Garam masala instead of cumin. Mainly because I couldn't find it - I'm sure Delia does the same sort of thing... I then added some quinoa that was lurking in the fridge which made it into a nice hearty soupy stew thing.

Meanwhile I baked 2 lots of tofu: one with cranberries, balsamic, sage and onion as a trial for Xmas day and a classsic chinese one with soy, lime, garlic and ginger. They'll both be used for lunches or quick meals if I'm out this week. The tofu definitely gets better if you leave it for a while - a lot firmer and more of a cheese consistency.

Cottage cheese with strawberries for pub. Stuffed...

 

[kenshin112]

pud darlin, not pub

 

[wooster]

I skived off my LL mtg last night as the weather was awful and I had lots to do at home. The scales said STS and I've got loads of packs at home so didn't see it as a problem.

I made a BBQ stew with sweet potatoes, quorn mince, brussels and carrots alongside a vat of carrot and sweet potato soup with the usual ginger, garlic, curry spices etc. I can take this to work and easy to have in the evening as well if I'm rushing out somewhere as I usually am!

The baked tofu was lovely and definitely improved with time. Yesterday I took some to work with raw mushrooms, asparagus and sweetcorn and just nuked it in the microwave for a quick post-gym lunch.

I am now definitely an exercise junkie!! I have been going to the gym every lunchtime, plus 2 kick-boxing sessions in the evening. At the weekend, I go to the gym, play tennis, swim etc. I'm even thinking of getting a trainer at the gym to push me more. I don't feel like I have to do it, I just enjoy the extra energy it gives me. The house has never looked so spotless!

I have realised that the less you do, the more tired you feel. Hence why I was a fat, lazy, sofa loving coach potato who spent most of her evenings surfing the internet for weight loss miracles! Or watching The Biggest Loser, or other weight loss shows, with a 150g bag of kettle crisps