I have tried very hard to follow the Slimming World rules today to ensure I lose weight by the end of the week. I had a very ‘off-plan’ weekend and do not want to gain weight or fail to lose any.
Very light breakfast of a large orange with 14 cashew nuts (HE B)
It was a lovely morning for a beach walk but I resisted the temptation as I was going walking in the Country Park later and I had loads of chores to do today. I enjoyed doing a lot of exercise last week but this week I need to get some work done too.
There were a few people down on the sand, enjoying the lovely walking conditions.
Sigh ……. no time to stand and stare today.
Lunch was easy. I boiled a few new potatoes and heated some leftover lentil and vegetable bolognaise with some extra baked beans added.
One of the Slimming World rules is to fill 1/3 of your plate with “speed” foods. Oranges are speed foods so I can definitely tick the speed box for breakfast but I am not sure about lunch. Onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and courgettes are all speed foods and the lentil bolognaise was full of those so I think I am ok here. This was delicious and syn free.
After lunch I took Milton to Hastings Country Park, with Rebecca and Beryl. 500 acres to walk around in.
Another lovely day in the park. I really enjoy walking on the beach or close to it but the views from the cliff tops across the sea are also immensely enjoyable.
I love these clouds.
There are lots of mushrooms growing on the ground but I have no idea if they are edible or even if we are allowed to take them so they are still growing there.
I snacked on some grapes and a small banana this afternoon. They are free but not speed foods. I also drank a few cups of tea, mainly Rooibos with soya milk (HE A).
Supper was a quick and easy black bean and sweetcorn taco meal. I bought a taco kit (contains the taco shells, a sachet of seasoning mix and a sachet of salsa which I didn’t use) and warmed through a tin of black beans with the kernels from 2 cobs of corn and 4 large spring onions. I added the taco seasoning powder and 150ml water and simmered it for 10 minutes. That was the same instructions as if you were using minced beef which the recipe of the taco kit says to use.
I had 2 taco shells, filled with the black bean mix, topped with a little vegan cheddar-style cheese and served with 2 huge tomatoes and a large chunk of cucumber.
- 2 taco shells = 7 syns (3.5 each !!)
- 10-15 g vegan cheddar-style cheese = 2 syns (estimated as SW online does not have the exact brand I used)
- 1/2 the Old El Paso sachet of taco seasoning = 1.5 syns
Total syns for supper = 10.5
I did well today and finished the day very much on plan.
Tate Modern had an adult playground (Superflex) in the Turbine Hall which was fun and spectacular, as everything in that huge space tends to be. Lara, Harvey and I had a go on one of the many huge swings they had installed.
I found these and other pictures fascinating.
We then set off for Granary Square at King’s Cross. We walked over the Millennium Bridge to get to the tube on the North side of the river.
We had lunch at Dishoom, my favourite Indian restaurant. There were 13 of us for lunch and it was was great fun. 
This was not a lunch to help with my weight loss as we had cocktails (gimlets and Pimms) and fried foods but it was worth it. I had gunpowder potatoes and green veg as my main which was delicious.
The food in Dishoom is amazing and I particularly like the building and decor at the Kings Cross branch.
I think we have done rather well between us.
The views from the park are spectacular.
This was Harvey’s first trip and he loved it too.
I had grapes and cups of tea for breakfast and a roast for lunch made with Linda McCartney red onion sausages and vegan gravy. Served with lots of vegetables.
I lost 2.5 pounds this week which is 13.5 in total and I really want to have lost a stone by Friday.
This is such a pretty castle.
One day I should go inside.
We went from Bodiam to the gym as we are both members of the same health club and had a swim, a sauna and a relax in the jacuzzi. I swam 50 lengths (1 km).
I always enjoy a walk beside the sea, even in the wind.
My socialising continued in the evening as I went to the White Dog in Ewhurst Green for a drink with Lucy and Clare. It’s a very traditional English country pub. I had one half pint of stout (Smild) which had 4 syns and 2 lime and sodas which I think are 3 syns each. So my fairly abstemious night out was a whopping 10 syns!
Lunch was delicious and full of nutritious vegetables. 
I made a stir fry with brown Basmati rice and all the left over veggies I had in the fridge, plus a large leaf of green kale and half a large green chilli. I also added half a packet of Taifun smoked tofu with almonds and sesame seeds which is my favourite tofu. I can eat it from the packet it is so delicious. Lunch was 6 syns for 1 tbsp oil and the tofu is 2.5 syns per 100 g which is half a pack. Only plain tofu is free, unfortunately.
By lunch time I was making slow progress with my errands and popped in to a Moroccan restaurant on George Street where I had a huge bowl of humous with pitta bread and olives. 
No idea how many syns in that lot but far too many. Ditto the vegan Turkish delight I had afterwards!
The very cloudy morning turned in to a very warm and sunny afternoon so my walk home was very enjoyable. 
I still find the climb up from the Old Town very hard work but it is steep. 
And long.
Worth it though, both for the exercise and the views when you get up to the West Hill and again along St Mary’s Terrace. 
I can see my house in the distance.
Nearly home.
I made a lentil and mushroom bolognaise for supper but I wasn’t actually hungry so I didn’t eat anything. I did however have a small bowl of CoYo vanilla yogurt with 3 fresh figs. 10 syns for 100 ml of the yogurt.
Not a great day for eating. I hope I get a better nights sleep tonight and that weigh day tomorrow shows me a small loss.
I have seen a few recipes online for scrambled tofu and two things were commonly listed in the ingredients:
and black salt. This was hard to find but I bought it from an Asian shop on King’s Road, St.Leonards. It is sulphurous so makes the tofu taste more egg like.
I chopped up about 6 chestnut mushrooms, half a courgette, one red pepper and one brown onion. I had some cooked potatoes ready to add too. I fried the vegetables in 1 tbsp oil (3 syns as I ate half the amount I made) and then set aside while I scrambled the tofu.
I made up a spice mix with:
To cook it I heated up a few tbsp water in a deep frying pan and when it was bubbling, I added the spice mix to “fry” it. When I had created the paste, I added the tofu which I had previously cubed. I then mashed the tofu in to the spice paste with a large fork and mixed it until it was all yellow and looked like scrambled egg.
The spices and seasoning was perfect for me. Black salt seems stronger than regular salt and I didn’t need to add any additional salt. This was an excellent breakfast.
I had a walk in the Hastings Country Park with Rebecca and Jacqui this morning. It was such a glorious day.
None of these photos have been edited at all, it really was this colourful. 
I am so lucky to live here.
It’s Autumn, the time of year when you can see mushrooms and berries.
Lunch was a combination of produce from the garden (mizuna, lettuce and radishes), roasted butternut squash and sweet potato and chickpeas with brussel sprouts, roasted with smoked paprika. It was a bit dry so I added a dressing I made with oil (1/2 tbsp = 3 syns), balsamic vinegar and Dijon mustard (1/2 tsp = 0.5 syns) and also 1 tbsp Vegenaise (4 syns).
I won’t have another one of these pies, because they have far too many syns and I didn’t even like it much but Harvey liked it so I will keep some for him.
The sea was far too rough for me to swim in today so I went to the swimming pool and swam 50 lengths (1 km total), followed by a relax in the sauna and outdoor jacuzzi.
I swam even though I knew I was going to be doing a decent length walk today. Laura and I walked from West St.Leonard’s to Bexhill, which is approximately 3 and a half miles. Then we walked back again, so a total of 7- 8 miles.
We kept walking along to Bexhill. It was windy but sunny and warm enough to be pleasurable. Hastings is not the only town with a fishing fleet moored on the beach; Bexhill has them too.
We had lunch on the first floor of the De la Warr Pavilion. It was lovely to sit in the cafe, looking out to sea.
I liked the cafe as it was bright and spacious. The service was good and the food came out quite quickly.
My lunch was fabulous. I had the vegetable mezze with red pepper humous, baba ganoush, marinated olives, grilled vegetables and a selection of breads with dipping oils. It would add up to many syns despite its small size but was delicious and worth every calorie. I am not sure how many syns though.
After lunch the weather turned and we walked back to Hastings under a heavy sky.
We made it back without much rain falling.
Laura had a long drive home and I suggested an early supper before she set off. I have resisted the Imperial successfully for a couple of weeks but I caved today so we had one of their delicious pizzas (with a soda and lime) for supper. Squillions more syns.
I did brilliantly with the exercise today but not so well with the eating. I have been far worse but I need to be much better or the walking and swimming will not be enough to lose weight.
I sat quietly and watched the sunrise.
I can see a face in this one and later in the day, many others too.
Clare led us in a Pawnee, a dance of life. The pawnee is a cleansing dance to help us cast away and release that which weighs us down and holds us back and to reconnect us to the cycles of life to keep energy move healthily through us.
Before we left we sang a song called The Earth is our Mother
Sunrise was very special in this spiritual place.
Towards the end of our visit, rain started in the distance but it was sunny at Stonehenge which meant we experienced a rainbow which was very special.
That was awesome.
We headed back to the hostel we had stayed in the previous night for a hearty breakfast.
Our next stop was Woodhenge, a Neolithic site close to Stonehenge. It was probably built about 2300 BC and it was originally believed to be the remains of a large burial mound. The site of each wooden post has been marked by short concrete posts.
We walked to the centre of Woodhenge and as we returned to the edge, we scattered seeds, to feed birds, animals, the land and our intentions.
We stopped at The Sanctuary where we lit 2 candles, a pilgrimage flame in honour of our ancestors that walked before us from the Sanctuary down West Kennet Avenue towards Avebury.
I see a huge face in this stone and felt compelled to stand very close, touch and lean against this stone.
I bought a book about Avebury as I want to learn more about it. I also bought two stones; aren’t they beautiful?
From West Kennet we had a good view of Silbury Hill, which was man-made, thousands of years ago.
As well as being a place to bury the dead, Long barrows also embodied meanings for the living. The barrow-form is thought to represent the human body. Placing the dead in the different chambers in the barrow might have been seen as a symbolic way of returning people to the womb, thereby completing the cycle of life. The long barrows may also have been territorial markers to identify communities and link the dead to the living. It is also thought that the barrows were opened at auspicious times of the year, when the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead were understood to be at their most permeable – to work with and honour the energy of the ancestors.
You are able to walk in to the barrow.
Once we were all seated in the centre, Mike led us all on a shamanic journey to invoke Dragon Heart energy, to focus on our intentions and plant our dream seeds. We ended by extinguishing the flame we carried all this way (thank you Ross and others who carried the heavy lantern), chanting/singing together and responding to the immense energy within the barrow.
Look at the colour of those potatoes! No filter added or colour enhancing used. I warmed the potato and left over stir fry on the baking tray with the Moroccan bake and did not need to add any fat for any of it. I had already included syns for the oil used in the vegetable stir fry yesterday so did not add them again today.
This was all very delicious.
And very colourful!
After a misty and slightly chilly morning the afternoon was warm and sunny so after school Harvey and I went for a swim.
I made dinner early because Harvey was hungry. I had seen a recipe for a vegan omelette and I made it for dinner but I would describe it as more of a pancake than an omelette. It’s a good source of protein as the pancake is made with chick pea flour and instead of an egg, I used a ‘flax egg’ which I actually made with linseeds. This was made easily by grinding 1 tbsp linseeds, and adding them to 3 tbsp hot water, stirring to mix well and then using instead of an egg. It worked very well.
I bought a new vegan cheese to try – thumbs down for this one as it has an unpleasant after taste. Most of them do unfortunately.
You make the omelette/pancake mix in a pan, when it is nearly cooked you add the cheese and then the filling then you fold the top half of the pancake over to continue cooking.
I added coriander and I also added a red chilli to my batter mix as I like things like this quite spicy. It was a quick and easy dinner to make and we both really enjoyed it so this will be made again.
Before shopping I swam 50 lengths, had a sauna and a relax in the outside jacuzzi at Bannatyne’s gym. It was good to be back in the water.
I had been recommended Cotswold Outdoor because they have well trained salespeople who spend a lot of time assessing your foot shape and size, what you need the boots for etc. I was really impressed and left with a well fitting pair of shoes and new socks (thank you Gini, Lucy, Sally and Michelle xxx) and also some walking poles. One happy customer.
Purple cauliflower, purple kale, red cabbage, purple potatoes and purple sprouting broccoli.
Before dinner I wanted to try out my new boots. I picked Harvey up from school and we went for a walk at Bulverhythe.
It was so beautiful there this afternoon.
Mild weather, plenty to look at
and photograph.
Peaceful.
It was going to be an amazing sunset but I forgot to go outside and watch it.
I really enjoyed the beginning of it though.
It was such a pleasant afternoon and my new boots are so comfortable I could have walked for ages but we had things to do so we headed home.
We also had some “squaffles” which needed eating up. Squaffles are slices of butternut squash cut in to a waffle pattern. I bought them in Sainsbury’s last week and it was beyond sell by so had to be used. I added 1 tsp oil (2 syns shared between 2) for cooking, which is brushed on the squaffles before roasting them in the oven.
So here it is, a nearly purple dinner. We also had some gravy made with Knorr gravy powder. I can’t find the exact type I had but I estimate 3 syns for 1 tbsp powder.
I left London from Kings Cross which is a stunning building.
Keven met me at the station and we walked up to our weekend rental.
Viv cooked dinner for us all and she likes to cook veggies which is great. I don’t think I have ever had so many different veggies in one meal before. The others had fish and I had chick peas. I enjoyed my meal very much.
Saturday was sunny which was unexpected. Viv made me a large bowl of fruit for breakfast which I had with some coconut yogurt (we shared a small pot).
We all walked in to the centre of Durham together. The town centre is within a large bend in the River Wear. These are some views of the cathedral (which seems to have a bandage on its head) and the castle from the bridge leading in to the heart of the city.
Its a very hilly city so good exercise as you walk around.
We walked along and came up by Elvet Bridge.
They are made of succulents and I thought they were beautiful.
My favourite part of the day was the long walk we did along the river bank.
We had a fun evening back at the property we rented. I have only very recently discovered the joy of a good stout and Keven and Ian really enjoy it so we shared three different types. I liked them all and the Durham Brewery ‘Temptation’ was my favourite.
I do confess I enjoyed being cooked for and having drinks served to me. It made a pleasant change.
It was sad to say good bye and I really hope these three make the long journey from Australia and come again next year.
A long journey ahead of me.
It was good to get home.
I did a lot of walking on Saturday (nearly 16,000 steps) and ate a lot of healthy food but I also ate some crackers, humous, cakes and bread things which are not diet food. Neither is stout or gin. I need to walk and swim a lot tomorrow and eat very strictly for the rest of the week to keep adding to me weight loss.
Just how I like it; sunny but with some clouds as it makes the view more interesting, a bit of wind, low tide so I can walk on the sand and hardly anyone else there.
I had the biggest smile because it was so perfect.
I got a sudden urge to run over the pebbles down to the sand, so I did. Go me !
I beat Milton down – come on slow coach.
Down at the seashore you appreciate the roar of the incoming tide. 
It is immense and powerful and charges up the beach and you feel tiny and insignificant in front of it.
Or you take no notice of it at all and hunt for and eat mussels. Each to their own.
We walked back to the car beside the railway.
At home I had a sweet and juicy mango with 3 ripe figs and a strong black coffee with cashew milk. The walk and breakfast set me up well for a morning getting through chores.
I really wanted to swim in the sea but it was too rough. I want to keep my swimming up over the winter and have looked around for somewhere with a decent pool and decided to join Bannatyne’s. I had some money for my birthday so that buys me 6 months membership which should take me through to Spring. I would always prefer to swim in the sea but if I can’t, at least I know I can go here. So I swam 1 km and then relaxed in the sunshine in an outdoor jacuzzi which was lovely.
I had a bottle of water and an apple in the car on the way home.
Then a late lunch of a small bowl of the last of the bean curry with fresh sprouts.
Plus a bowl of brown rice with stir fried vegetables (brown onions, spring onions, mushrooms, courgettes, broccoli, green chilli and coriander), flavoured with soy sauce. Simple and delicious. 6 syns for the oil as I wanted the taste of the coconut oil. 
For supper I chose something I am not keen on but Harvey likes.
Unlike some vegans, I have no interest in finding meat alternatives that look like meat or taste like meat. I don’t miss meat at all and find the idea of eating it revolting. But Harvey wants it and he does so well at eating what I like that sometimes we eat a meal he chooses – plus some salad on the side. These taste fine; I just don’t want to eat meat-like food.
So we had sausages, oven baked potato wedges (no oil, just rubbed with smoked paprika and salt) and baked beans.
This was a very enjoyable day and successful in terms of exercise in particular and also food. I had 7 syns, nut milk for HE A but no HE B.
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