This week in photos...

I've been taking a lot of pictures this week.  The mini-challenge this week for the Marathon Weight Loss was to take a photo of everything you eat.  It's basically a way of logging all of your food (which I do anyway with My Fitness Pal).  However, I thought it would be a very useful thing to put on the blog to show exactly how much food I eat in a day (to lose weight).  A sort of - "This is what 1400 calories looks like" idea.

In addition to all the photos of food I've been taking this week, I have also attempted to load a selection of before and current photos onto a new tab on the blog.  I'll be honest and admit that most of these pics have been "hidden" on iPhoto because I was so repulsed with how I looked that I didn't want anyone else to stumble across them!  However, I can look back at them now and not feel bad because I know I'm a changed person now.  Looking back at old photos is a very tangible way of seeing how far you've come, so I really do recommend taking lots of pics during your weight loss journey.  I almost wish I had taken more photos - like every ten pounds or so - to really see a gradual difference!

My glass pebbles arrived earlier this week, so my "Pounds Lost" and "Pounds to go" jars are now displayed proudly in my dining room.  I haven't included all my pounds lost, but rather kept this visual illustration specifically for the purposes of the Lose a Marathon challenge.  Earlier today I had to move some of the pebbles back into the Pounds Lost jar because one of my kids had sneakily transferred them back into the Pounds to go jar!  No thank you, I don't want those pounds back!

So, here are some photos of what I've been eating this week:

My usual breakfast, 100g low fat natural yogurt, 40g low GL granola.  Including my cup of coffee, my breakfast calories normally come in at about 330 calories.  Now, I know this doesn't seem like a lot of food at breakfast time, and while it's not - because it is low GL granola, it releases the energy slowly throughout the morning, and so keeps me filled up til lunch!

I can't get enough of this salad at the moment - unfortunately for my American followers, it's a bought salad from a shop here in England - basically it has Hot Peppered Salmon, King Prawns, couscous (of course!), green lentils, chickpeas, peas, red pepper and a lemon vinaigrette dressing - all for 320 calories!  I'd thought of trying to figure out how to make it myself, but fish is ridiculously expensive here (we're an island - go figure?!), so I actually think it's cheaper for me to buy the ready prepared version!  This was my lunch on Monday :-)

This Spicy Cod recipe I featured recently - again it's served with couscous and is incredibly yummy, not to mention a very quick meal to make.  452 calories.

Do not adjust your monitor, this sorbet really is this bright!  This is raspberry sorbet and it's a fabulous way of getting in a little indulgence that doesn't hurt too badly!  This serving was 105 calories.

Now I'm normally a 1300-1600 calorie a day kinda girl and it just happened that on this particular Monday, I ended up being a 1200 calorie girl!  Personally, I think 1200 is a bit too low most of the time, but that Cod and couscous is really filling, so I didn't feel like having much afterwards.  I ended up doing a workout DVD and then had the sorbet straight after.

So now a question for all of you!  What does a typical food day look like for you?  Are you adventurous with food or a creature of habit?

Catch up Sunday

It's been another busy weekend!  We had my son's 12th birthday party yesterday (a bowling party), and I was SO exhausted when I got home yesterday.  You'd think I would have slept like a baby, but sadly no.  I drifted off only to wake up at 2:30am and just couldn't get back to sleep!  I ended up watching The Big Bang Theory (my latest craze - a bit late!) until about 5 and then managed to get a couple more hours.

The birthday boy

The party went well and my son had a good time with his friends.  The bowling place we went to provided a really good spread of food and we even had our own party hostess who did absolutely everything from taking the kids to get their shoes, putting the names in the computer to serving the food.  I thought it was really good value for money.  The food was incredibly hard to resist and I must admit I did have a handful of potato wedges.  After that I went to get a cappuccino, in the hope that the warm drink would suppress my desire to pick at the junk food!

A selection of the food for the boys - there was a mountain of potato wedges!

Today, it seems I wasn't the only one that was tired.  We headed into London to have lunch at my niece's new flat and on the journey there the kids fell asleep - I had a take a photo because they were both leaning exactly the same way!

I just got back from my 5k training session - today was Day One of Week 5.  The running intervals are getting longer now, today was a 5 minute warm up walk followed by 3 minutes run, 3 minutes walk, 5 minutes run, 5 minutes walk, 8 minutes run, cool down walk 5 minutes.  It was all OK and I'm actually finding that my breathing has come on leaps and bounds in the training.  In fact, I could probably run for longer distances with my breathing at the moment, but I'm actually finding that the thing stopping me from doing that is pain.  It's not horrible pain and it's not even the same pain each time!

At first it was my left knee, but now that seems to have gone.  Now, my calves really ache when I first start running - it does ease up and it never stops me from running.  I can only assume that it's just my body getting used to all the changes that regular running brings!  My training sessions are going to get much more difficult from here on out.  The next session involves a 12 minute run!!!  Flip!

Tomorrow is weigh in day for the Marathon Weight Loss challenge and as usual I am not expecting great things!  I've weighed myself a couple few times this week and can see that I've lost a pound and that's it.  Whether that pound remains after my niece's roast chicken today, well, we shall have to wait and see!  Fingers crossed!

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Lastly, I decided that this summer would be a productive one for my kids and one of the first things we did last week was get library cards for them.  In addition, I decided to order them each a book from Amazon that they could read after they finish their library books.  For my daughter I bought 'Anne of Green Gables" - a book I've never actually read, but have heard lots of good things.  For my son, I bought "Where the Red Fern Grows" - a book I read in school when I was about his age and for which I have the fondest memories!  So much so, that I couldn't resist picking it up the other night and now I'm halfway through!  It's just as good, if not better, than I remember and reminds me of growing up way out in the country in Indiana.

So - my question to all of you - what was your favourite book(s) as a child and do you ever find yourself re-reading them as an adult?

My very first guest post!

A bit slow on the uptake today - just got back from a birthday party for my son - forgot how exhausting that is!  I will sleep well tonight!  More on that later, for now please check out my very first guest post over on Divya's blog Eat Teach Blog.  I really want to thank Divya for the opportunity to share my journey with her readers and of course I hope all of you enjoy what I've written too!

A soaking wet run and a cracking new recipe

This evening tested my resolve to get fit.  It was raining - quite heavily - outside and I don't own a treadmill.  I've already waxed lyrical in a previous post about how I loathe the gym, so it was run outside or not run at all.  My husband had already been out for a run on the field opposite our house and I reckoned if he could run on that (which would have been like a swamp), I can get out and do my usual circuit on the sidewalk.

Tonight I decided to bite the bullet and start my 5k programme straight from the door - that's a 5 minute warm up walk, followed by 2 x run 2 minutes, walk 2 minutes, run 5 minutes, walk 2.5 minutes.  I knew that this would mean that I would hit "the hill" running.  I've been avoiding this like the plague - it's not a steep hill, but it's a steady incline of about 1/3 mile.  Because I knew I would have to run continuously for five minutes in this programme, I avoided starting my official time until after I walked up the hill!  Tonight I thought "sod it!" and decided to tackle the beast head on.  And, as usual, I needn't have worked myself up about it.  It wasn't easy, I was sweating quite a bit when I got to the top and cursing every additional minute of running after I reached the top, but I'm glad I did it.

Can you see how soaked I am?!  Thankfully no panda eyes this time!

I did take my rainmac with me, but at the top of the hill it was tied around my waist because it was making me far too hot.  Needless to say, I did get absolutely soaked!  I seriously need to invest in some proper running gear, because running in a cotton t-shirt in the rain is not the best idea!  When I got home I noticed not only was my t-shirt soaked, but my bra too!!!  So, it's another session ticked off my 5k training and I think when we can get ourselves out and exercising even in not ideal conditions, it makes the victory taste even sweeter :-).

So, tonight I tried a fab new recipe, which I want to share with all of you.  I am really adventurous with food - I love to try new things, but I am limited in what I can cook at home because my husband is a stick in the mud with food, as is his father who lives with us.  However, everyone in the house likes lamb, so when I saw this recipe I thought surely I'm onto a winner!  It's from Annabel Karmel - a lady who specialises in recipes, food and nutrition for families with young children. I've always found her recipes to be very yummy and my kids love them, so that's even better!  These lamb koftas are basically little lamb burgers served in pitta pockets with salad and greek yogurt.  The lamb burgers are about 132 calories each and my pitta bread was 161 calories - but I know these can vary quite a bit.  One large pitta bread with two lamb burgers, a dollop of greek yogurt and loads of salad was enough to fill me up tonight.

         Lamb Koftas

2 onions, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

500g ground/minced lamb

80g fresh breadcrumbs (breadcrumbs don't weigh much, this was equivalent to about 1 cup)

2 tbsp chopped coriander (cilantro)

2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley

1 tbsp mild curry powder

2 tsp ground cumin

1 lightly beaten egg

1 beef stock cube, crumbled

1 tsp sugar

salt and pepper

vegetable oil for frying

7 pitta bread pockets

salad with tomato, cucumber and lettuce

a pot of greek yogurt

Method:

Saute one of the onions in the olive oil until softened.  Mix together the sauteed onion, raw onion, minced lamb and all of the remaining ingredients (aside from the pitta bread, salad and yogurt, of course).  Transfer to a food processor and chop for a few seconds (I didn't do this because I only have a spice-grinder).

Form the mixture into 14 koftas (small burger shapes) and saute until golden and cooked through.  Drain on a bit of paper towel to soak up any excess oil before serving in the split pitta pocket with salad and greek yogurt - enjoy!

A swift kick up the arse!

I am now into week four of the Marathon Weight Loss challenge and I'm incredibly frustrated with my weight loss.  The first week I lost nothing, the second week I lost four pounds and this week again I lost nothing.  There are just over 9 weeks left to go and I know that there's no way I'm going to hit the magic 26.2 pounds in that time.

Last week was a bit of a washout what with 2 parties and my son's birthday cake to contend with - to be honest I am relieved that I didn't gain any weight.  But again, this week has been difficult with exercise because my husband and I were out on Monday night, Tuesday night I had drama group here at my house (so again, no exercise).  I have no excuse tonight, so I will be doing the Jillian Michaels DVD, and thank goodness for it because at least I can see some calories coming off on My Fitness Pal!

I think sometimes it is so easy to get stuck in a rut.  Life gets in the way and it almost feels like we are treading water where weight loss is concerned.  Part of my choosing to take part in the Marathon Weight Loss challenge was extra motivation - so to prevent exactly this sort of thing from happening.  But what it really comes down to is that I need a swift kick up the arse!  I need to make time to exercise, instead of all these excuses.  The fact is that I could go out for a walk in my lunch hour, if I were really serious I could wake up 40 minutes early and do my DVD workout then!  I would still need to fit in my 5k training, but that is three times per week (32 minutes each time) and if I'm struggling to fit that in - well - I need to re-evaluate my priorities!

It's a tricky situation because whilst I am still utterly determined to lose the weight and ultimately I know I will succeed - it's purely the length of time it takes to get there that is frustrating!  I can't ever see myself going back to the way I was before.  I know I have implemented positive lifestyle changes and that's all for the good.  But, I guess with a week and a bit of falling out of routine, it's just shaken me a bit and it becomes easier to make excuses for not exercising!

If I really put my mind to it and aim to lose 2 pounds per week to see the Challenge out, I would have lost 22 pounds by mid-September - which would mean that I would only be 11 pounds off my goal weight.  I need to keep reminding myself that victory is SO close!  But I need to stay focused to reach that goal!  One of the ways I thought I can do this, is my implementing one of Jess at Run with Jess's suggestions for seeing weight loss.  It's one thing to look in the mirror each day and to notice physical changes, but this clever jar idea with glass pebbles is fab!  Each pound you lose you move from the jar "Pounds to go" to "Pounds Lost" and slowly you'll see the balance tip!

The plan is to put this somewhere prominent where I will notice it every day.  I also want to take more photos of my journey.  I think it is important to record every 10 pounds or so and that way, sometimes if you hit a bit of a rut (like I have now), you can look back through the photos and remind yourself how far you've come!

So - no more excuses!  I'm off to change into my workout gear and exercise!

By the way - I have done my first ever guest blog at Eat Teach Blog which will be featured later this week (Saturday 14th July), watch this space for a link to the entry :-)

No gym membership required!

I started Week 4 of my C25k training programme today.  As per usual, I was super nervous just before I started!  Seriously - has anyone ever heard of someone getting nervous before running?  I don't know what's wrong with me!  I suppose I'm just frightened of failing - which is understandable.  But, I needn't have been nervous because the intervals went fine.

This week consists of the usual 5 minute warm up walk, followed by 2 mins running, walk 2 mins, run 5 mins, walk 2:30 - repeated twice, then a cool down walk.  It was purely the "Run 5:00" that scared me!  It was fine - the first 2 minutes of running are always the hardest for me - usually because my route starts uphill.  Once I've got that out of the way the rest of it is fine.  For some strange reason I got it stuck in my head that the intervals were repeated three times, so on my way back home I was expecting to hear "run" in my ear and instead heard "cool down walk" - I must admit I was a bit disappointed! ha!

And these are my stats - still hovering around 4mph average - but this includes my walking intervals too.  I'm not concerned with speed at this stage - I'm purely interested in building up my running distance and then I'll work on speed.

So, when I started today's training session, it occurred to me looking at the path ahead of me that this was effectively my"gym".  Most of the 143 miles I have run and walked this year (by the way, my daily mile gadget doesn't include all my mileage!) have been on this path.  So, most of the weight I have lost has been burned off either walking or running this circuit.  And the wonderfully, blissful thought that crops into my mind now is that it hasn't cost me a penny - only my time!

"My gym" - and the hill at the start of my running circuit!

Whilst I would never discourage anyone interested in getting fit from joining a gym and pursuing their fitness goals there, I will forever more avoid the place like the plague.  But instead of writing about all the things I hate about the gym, I will write about the reasons why I love to exercise outside of the gym!

1. As already mentioned - it's FREE!  Yep, I hate spending money to sweat!  Even more, I hate spending money to watch other people sweat!  For me, fitness is a personal thing - I want to do it in my own time, with my own initiative, my own way and I don't want to do it in an aquarium.  Many of the gyms I've been to in the past have huge mirrors so you can watch yourself wobbling in every conceivable direction, and huge windows so that passers by can mock the wobbling!  And - I paid for the privilege!  No thanks!
2. I love nature!  Thus the name of this blog.  If I can burn 400 calories outside, breathing in fresh, clean air and taking in the stunning views of countryside, it can't get any better than that!  More than that, give me a mountain to climb and I'm in my element!  Nothing compares to reaching a summit and the amazing views at the top.  I would take that experience over sweating on the treadmill any day of the week!
3. It's unnecessary!  I can walk, I can run, I have weights here at my house along with a selection of very reasonably priced fitness DVD's (The 30 Day Shred, for example, cost me all of £5).  For an aerobics class at my local gym it costs £6 and that's for an "hour" - but the instructor easily spends the first 15 minutes of the session talking about fitness injuries, etc (which no-one in the class has!).  When I do a DVD at home - I know I'm going to get a solid workout and I don't have to wait around for 15 minutes before I start.
4. "What about the weather?"  I hear you ask.  Trust me, this is a major consideration - especially living in England (it's been raining virtually ALL summer!).  However, what I have found, especially recently, is that if you want to train - you will find a way to train!  If the weather is not bad, I simply take my rainmac or get wet!  If it's absolutely diabolical outside, I simply pull out a Jillian Michaels DVD.
5. It's Personal.  I'm not discouraging anyone here from having a fitness or exercise buddy.  I quite often go walking with a friend.  But I also know that the major way I am going to measure improvement in my fitness is through ME.  In a gym environment I'm constantly reminded of comparing myself against OTHERS, and I really don't think this is how we should progress.  It all goes back to the glass bowl scenario.  I want to feel free to wobble and jiggle in private, and to rejoice when I don't wobble and jiggle so much!  I used to find it so discouraging going to the gym in the baggiest clothes I could get my hands on and literally be on the stepper next to some tiny, young thing in spandex.  We should feel encouraged in this journey because every day we are making great strides to fitness!  

So, that's it - my encouragement to anyone who, for whatever reason, refuses to join a gym!  I may be a work in progress at the moment - but every ounce I have lost has been through my own blood, sweat, and tears at home or on the road/path/mountainside!  Long may it continue until I reach my goal and beyond!

Stop by Saturday...

My fellow blogger, Melinda @ Does this scale make me look fat has had a fab idea for sharing both blogs and recipes!  Basically, she has asked a question on her blog and invited her readers (and fellow bloggers) to answer that question on their blogs.  So, today's question is: What food or recipe are you loving right now?

Well, without doubt, the food I am eating copious amounts of (and thankfully, requires no cooking or recipes of any kind!) is STRAWBERRIES!  Oh Dear Lord, do I L-O-V-E them!  English strawberries in June and July are, well, in my humble opinion, as near to heaven as it's possible to get!  I never thought I could enjoy a food that is good for you so much!  I have already mentioned that we had a party earlier this week and I stopped by the local farm shop for some olives (OMG - another fabulous food that I love!) and noticed this beautiful basket beckoning me!

And yes - they did taste as delicious as they look!  The wonderful thing about strawberries (and all berries actually) is that they are low in calories and high in vitamin C (one cup of strawberries has 46 calories!).  So not only are they a low fat snack - they're also super good for you!

Not wishing to cop out of actually contributing a recipe, the other food that I've been mental, mental for lately is Couscous!  We went to a BBQ a couple of weeks ago at a friend's house and she made the most delicious couscous with raisins, cranberries, blueberries and chickpeas - it was amazing!  Since then, I've been seeking it out for my lunchtime salads - I can't get enough of the stuff!  So, here's a Jamie Oliver recipe, taken from his fantastic 20 Minute Meals app on iPhone (if you don't already have this - get it!  It's great for working moms looking for a quick after work dinner for the whole family!).

Spicy Cod with Lemon Courgette Couscous

(Serves 4)

4 garlic cloves

1 small bunch fresh coriander

1 fresh red chilli

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

2 medium courgettes

1 medium red onion

4 x 150g skinless fresh white fish fillets (such as cod or haddock)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 lemon

extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

Method:

Get a frying pan on a medium heat.  Peel and finely slice your garlic (I just put it through the mincer).  Finely chop the coriander stalks and reserve the leaves for later.  Finely chop the chilli.

Add a splash of olive oil to the hot pan along with half of the garlic, all of the chopped chilli and coriander stalks.  Fry for a couple of minutes, tossing occasionally, until the garlic is golden brown.

At this point, add the tinned tomatoes.  Season lightly with salt and pepper, then simmer gently on a medium heat for 5 minutes.

While the sauce is thickening, roughly chop your courgette and slice your onion into wedges.  Add your fish fillets to the pan and cover with a lid, simmer for 10 minutes until hot and cooked through.

Heat a splash of olive oil in another frying pan and add the rest of the garlic, the courgettes, and onion with the cumin and pinch of salt and pepper.  Toss around and allow to soften.  Put to one side.

Put your kettle onto boil.

Tip your couscous into a bowl and pour over 200ml of boiling water. Cover with cling film and leave for 4 minutes, then mix in your fried veg and recover with cling film.

Check your fish is cooked through, then take off the heat and season with a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Grate the zest of half the lemon and put to one side.  Cut the lemon in half.  Remove the clong film from the couscous, squeeze in a good bit of lemon juice and fluff up with a fork.

To serve, out a big spoonful of couscous on each plate.  Spoon over the sauce with the fish fillets in it - it doesn't matter if they break up a little.  If the sauce is too thin, then reduce it on a high heat for a couple of minutes.

Sprinkle over the lemon zest and add a good pinch of salt and pepper and the coriander leaves. 

You get a lot of food here - I would go so far as to say there is too much couscous (am I complaining that I've been given too much food?!).  But, even given the amount of couscous, this dish works out at 452 calories per serving - which is not bad at all for a full main meal!

So, I hope you all enjoyed Stop by Saturday!  And thanks Melinda for a fantastic post idea!