Today...

... has been a very long day. Its well and truly horrible when you get hungry and try to avoid overeating because you don't want to use up too many calories on a snack. Fortunately I had a plan today when this happened; I had an alternative option for tea which saved me 100 calories I could use to treat myself with (aren't I a clever girl). Finding bread with 51 calories in a slice made my day! Hello Warburtons Nimble, welcome to my diet cupboard essentials.

I know what you're thinking, why on earth didn't she just do some exercise the lazy so-and-so? Yes I know I can be lazy but after falling down the stairs yesterday I though maybe squats and weight lifts were a little bit inappropriate. So no I have a lovely bruised elbow and a sprained ankle, which I'm probably lucky is the worst of it; at the time it felt like a lot more damage than that!

Food times
Breakfast
Ski raspberry yoghurt = 118 calories

Lunch
Smoky ham Quorn slice = 34 calories
2 slices Warburtons Nimble = 102 calories
Quavers = 88 calories

Dinner
Tesco Everyday Value Spaghetti in tomato sauce = 200 calories
3 slices Warburtons Nimble toast = 153 calories

Snacks
Grapes = 67 calories
Weight Watchers carrot cake slice = 84 calories

Total = 843 calories

While I was at my nans house today I thought it was best to get myself on the scales and double check I hadn't put on even more weight since the last time I went to the doctors. I haven't. I am still 16 stone and 2 pounds. Now I know what I weigh its time to decide how much I want to lose. I think I'd love to get down to around 11 stone, a nice healthy weight for my 5 ft 8 self.

Tonight is a night dedicated to me and taking it easy on my ridiculously sore ankle, so I have a big decision to make... what television box set do I watch?! Big, big decision.

Tonight is a girly night to myself

But the big question is, which of these box sets do I put on?!

I have a funny feeling it could be a night of Thundercats while munching my grapes. Sounds good to me!

Tomorrow will also be a day of job hunting and writing as I need to get on the ball and do something with my life. I can no longer wallow away in my self pity in my bedroom, I will find something. And hopefully having something to do will distract me from eating.

Tomorrow's post is looking thrilling already with an update on job applications and more dieting! It's like following the life of a student whose just finished their final year at uni and struggling to find a job... Oh that's right, thats exactly what this is! See you tomorrow :-)

I'm back...

... just like I said I would be. Back and taking my diet seriously! So last time I went for a check up at the doctors I discovered I'd put on all the weight I'd lost and was so miffed. I hadn't realised I'd put it all back on and was trying to convince myself that I'd only put 2 stone back on, but no such luck. My next appointment is mid July so here's to getting well under 16 stone by then!

I'd like to get looking like this again, as this photo was taken after I'd lost over 2 stone last year (my shorts are too big here)

So today is the first day of a new me and here's what the new me has eaten!

Breakfast

2x Tesco Everyday Value white bread (toasted) = 210 calories

Garlic and herb Philadelphia = 46 calories

Lunch

Due to going shopping I was naughty and only snacked! But on low calorie snacks, so not too bad.

Tesco Everyday Value Onion Rings (crisps) = 70 calories

Weight Watchers caramel cake bar = 88 calories

Dinner

Homemade Quorn steak balti = 238 calories

Sweet potato (jacketed) = 172 calories

Orange juice and Sprite Zero (mix) = 22 calories

Evening Snack

To get rid of the last extra special over 100 calorie-a-pop treats I ate the last Milky Bar.

Milky Bar = 137 calories

Total Calories = 983 calories

And don't panic if you don't think I'm including my drinks! Today I only had black coffee and sugar-free-under-a-calorie pop, and very little of it. I do need to train myself into drinking more water and I will. Promise. I also did a bit of exercise, which apart from walking I have done very little of for like a year nearly (I know, I'm shocking). So today I did sit-ups for the very first time (they probably weren't very good ones but I tried) and I lifted my little girly weights, 80 reps each arm.

On the shopping front I treated myself to a lovely maxi skirt from Primark to get into the summer spirit, which makes me very happy. As I am planning on wearing it tomorrow (if the weather allows me) I shall be posting a picture for you all to see my summer find. I am going to apologise in advance if the weather is shocking tomorrow, if it is its because I bought my summer skirt, blame me!

Now to enjoy my Milky Bar while watching Saturday night TV... Casualty followed by whatever tickles my fancy on DVD.

See you tomorrow with a food diary update and photos! 

My Little...

... Pony was one of my favourite toys when I was much younger than I am now. But what has this got to do with the news recently? Well the biggest story which has been reoccurring over the last few weeks is the mislabelling of foods and the discovery of traces of horsemeat in ready meals and products containing processed meats. So what foods have been affected, how did this happen and what's being done about it? That's what I'm going to be looking at now.

What?

The first products to be unveiled as containing traces of horsemeat were processed frozen burgers from Tesco and Iceland. Both stores removed their own brand burgers from the freezers following the allegations made by the Republic of Ireland's food safety authority (FSAI), after 27 burgers (beef) were analysed; they found that 10 of them contained horse DNA and 23 contained pig DNA.

A further 31 beef meal products were analysed (including; cottage pie, beef curry pie and lasagne), with 21 of the products testing positive for pig DNA.

Other stores have also chosen to remove beef products containing traces of animals other than cows from their shelves, including LIDL and Waitrose. Horsemeat has also been found in schools and hospitals too.

Although there are currently no suggested risks to health, there is clearly an issue with the ethical means of these products as well a moral issue with the labelling of food.

How?

It is suggested that many of the affected products have been shipped in from other countries, where the products are created and the ingredients are sourced.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) revealed that banned drug bute had probably entered the food chain through the introduction of horsemeat in the meals and products. This painkiller is potentially dangerous for humans but medical officers say a person would need to consume 500 horse burgers a day to reach a harmful dose. 

It has been suggested that traces of pig could have contaminated beef products purely by accident due to factories working with a variety of meat. Obviously this can still be criticised as labels should clearly  inform the consumer of all the ingredients which can be found in a product for legal reasons.

The other how which is important, is how did this issue pass by unnoticed by the FSA until now. This even bigger issue is the fact that the government was warned about rouge horsemeat two years ago and it has taken until now for it to be determined that horsemeat with drug residue has entered the food chain.

Next?

The FSA are currently carrying out even more tests into products and companies will be expected to make changes; either in the labelling and naming of their products or as to where they source ingredients. 

With stores currently removing contaminated products from there shelves and other products coming under scrutiny many people are turning to their local butcher in their hour of need. If you want locally sourced meat that you can trust then that's the place to go until the scandal is over. Homemade pies and lasagne are also much healthier for your family as the pre-packed equivalent often has excessive salt content and very little meat. Also if you are scared of what store bought mince contains the vegetarian equivalent is just as tasty and is pretty healthy too, so why not try Quorn or soya mince in your next spaghetti bolognese.

Opinion

It is usually at this point in the creation of my blog post that I rant and moan about the issues being covered in the rest of the post, but my rant isn't about the alien meat in the products but in peoples' reactions. When the initial discovery of horsemeat in UK burgers was reported people were disgusted by the idea that horses were being killed to be eaten. Do people find eating horse repulsive because we ride horses and see them as pets?

Other countries across Europe eat horse freely, often in factories from which UK products are sourced. If you are buying meat products from stores which purchase from these factories then you are supporting the killing and distribution of horse, whether it is in the product or not. 

It is much more reasonable for people to be disgusted at the fact we are being misled by these companies because their labelling is incorrect. We should be angry because we are eating things unknowingly, not because we are eating horse when we are happy to eat cows, pigs, sheep etc. 

To prove the point that it is possible for a carnivorous animal such as ourselves to cut meat out of their diet and eat a healthy diet of trusted ingredients I have decided to attempt the vegetarian way of life, firstly for lent, then hopefully for the considerable future.