Day 125 - Tuesday

Wow! The weather has suddenly turned very cold here in England, and I've had to bring out my winter coat. I do love it when the seasons change, but it feels like we've barely had a summer to enjoy!

Breakfast was porridge to keep me warm, and lunch was a small leftover portion of spaghetti bolognese.

This evening we had friends over for tea, it was lovely to catch up with them. I cooked a chicken and pasta dish, with salad and garlic bread. I was complimented by the guests about how tasty it was, so must have done something right! :)

Day 124 - Monday

And my favourite day of the week returns...!

My Nan has given me her old bedroom curtains, and they are such a lovely colour I couldn't bear to sell them! So today I went and brought some black out fabric and am planning to see it to the back of the fabric and put them in our bedroom.

Check back for my DIY progress! :)

Food Diary - Weetabix with banana
Lunch - Ham salad
Dinner - Spaghetti Bolognese

Day 123 - Sunday

Not much to report today guys!

Attempted to finish off the garden but realised we didn't get enough gravel, but it is looking good!

My parents came round in the afternoon and we enjoyed an Indian takeaway for tea. I stuck to vegetable pathia with salad and mint yoghurt. It was so tasty!

Day 122 - An Eventful Day

Sorry I've been MIA the past few days guys - it's been manic! I'll start from where I left off...

Saturday was abit of a rubbish one! We started the day gathering supplies to finish off the garden, and when we went to collect some tools that my partner uses for work, realised all of their work tools had been stolen out of the van. Not a great start!

Because our minds were elsewhere when we had to leave ours to go an sort the van out and speak to the police, we forgot to grab our house key... and locked ourselves out. Not a good day!

As our luck would have it everyone we had given a key to our house couldn't find theirs either, so after attempting to get in through the front door we had no option but to smash the back window in and climb through.

Not a good day!

We spent the rest of the day doing th garden and then went to a house party. It ended on a high atleast!

Food -

Brunch - Porridge
Dinner - Pasta with vegetables

Day 121 - Week 17 Weigh In

Start Weight: 13st 10lbs

Last Weeks Weight: 13st 0.4lbs

This Week: 13st 0.4lbs


Measurements:

Arms - 29cm
Chest - 101cm
Waist - 84cm
Hips - 114cm
Thigh - 62cm

NO CHANGE AGAIN!

I have been on three power walks this week, done my abs workout twice and done so much housework and sorting the garden I would've thought i'd lose some weight. :(

Time to up the ante!

Day 120 - I Love Food

The weekend it almost here! Have any of you got anything nice planned?

We are heading to a wedding this evening, and a house warming tomorrow. A weekend full of celebrations... love it!

Today I had the breakfast of breakfast champions...


Warm Weetabix topped with banana. SO tasty, and SO filling!

Lunch was pasta, my usual, followed by a strange but very tasty dinner! The other half was out so I didn't fancy slaving over the stove, so I had mashed potato with broccoli, and beetroot! It was just what I fancied, and took next to no time to prepare!

Day 119 - Steps Appeal

Is it not the weekend yet? This week is going sloooooooww!

My day started good, with a bowl of porridge to keep me going. I lasted until about midday when I then had two satsumas to keep me going until lunch... which was only an hour later! I am terrible at waiting for food!

My lunch was leftovers from last nights spaghetti bolognese, it was taaaasty! I could eat this meal all day long.

My sweet tooth got the better of me in the afternoon though and I caved.

I've not had skittles for ages, and they tasted amazing! I made sure I went for a walk after work to burn the calories off and set myself a little challenge. There is a wood near our house which have alot of steep steps in, and I decided to challenge myself to going up and down them twice, as fast as I could. It was intense, and I was shattered afterwards, but it helped get my heart rate up and it felt good that I complete my mini challenge! I got the other half to take some shots of me whilst I ran up and down the steps... excuse the unattrative action shots!!



There are more steps than the pictures show, it loops round at the top. I plan on doing it again in a day or two, it's not quite Santa Monica steps, but it's an alternative!

For tea we enjoyed a lovely homemade Chicken Curry for tea with boiled rice. It was very tasty and hit the spot!

A perfect way to finish the day!

Hope you are all having a good week x

Day 118 - Happy Chef!

I went on a brief walk after work today, as well as doing a crazy supermarket dash getting in our supplies for the next few days. My Mum, Sister and Niece came over for tea, but I hadn't got any food in so had to make a hectic trip after work. I was in and out within ten minutes, which must be a record! I had worked up a right sweat by the time I got home, surely that was worth a few burnt calories?!

I cooked spaghetti bolognese for us all, one of our staple, go to meals which is quick and easy to cook, especially when you have guests to occupy! I use extra lean mince which is the best to use, as there is less fat in it, and I make my own bolognese sauce with passatta and herbs, again the more healthie option! I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, but this is the leftovers for my lunch tomorrow...

The little one had fun with her tea, again! Today was the first time she crawled, so my sister had to bring her round to show me! It was amazing to see, and it is even more amazing how quickly she is growing!

Last night there was a little progress with the garden. We took up some of the slabs and began to level out the ground underneath ready for the gravel. It is really starting to take shape now, and I can't wait to see it finished!

Day 117 - Garden Progress!

The garden is taking shape now, hopefully by the weekend it will be finished! We have wanted to change the patio area since we moved in, but due to other financial ties we have been unable to. I am so glad we are now getting to improve our home!



Food -

Breakfast - Porridge

Lunch - Leftover salad from yesterdays dinner at my parents. I added some coleslaw and potato salad to it for some extra crunch!

Dinner - Homemade italian thin crust vegetable pizza. I was intending to take a picture but I was just too hungry and it tasted too damn good!

Exercise -

15 minute ab workout

Today I have been spending alot of time updating my blog and getting it more user friendly, but have a long walk planned for tomorrow evening. I can't wait to get out in the autumn sunshine!

Day 116 - Family Time

Not much to report today guys, I had a lovely relaxing day seeing friends and family!

My parents cooked a lovely meal of homemade burgers, made with extra lean mince, chirizo and onion, served with some french fries (I caved and had a few) with lots of yummy salad. It was nice to get together and eat tasty food!

It was then my little niece's turn for her tea, I am glad to say I don't get in as much mess when I eat. Heck, I wouldn't waste my food like that!

After she had been cleaned up I then read her a couple of books and had cuddles. There is nothing better :)

Day 115 - Green Fingers!

Don't you just love the weekends?! Even when you spend most of your weekend doing chores, well in my case, I still love the weekends! This weekend, with the weather still being quite nice, we decided to start sorting out our garden. We have wanted to sort out our patio area for a very long time, but just haven't had the time/money/effort to do it! So we started the day like this...

We are extending our patio slightly and will be laying down gravel for most of it. We have ummed and ahhed whether to use slabs or gravel, and personally I think gravel looks better, and thankfully is alot cheaper! Here is the other half working hard laying the railway sleepers which will act as the edge of the patio. I am impressed so far!

Whilst he was hard at work laying the railway sleepers, I repainted some of the fences (we are replacing some of them shortly) and moved some of the plants we were keeping further down the garden. When we lay the new patio area we are going to have several plant pots instead of a border. I have never been one for gardening but am really enjoying this project!

This is how the garden looked after our first day of work...

The railway sleepers are place and ready for the gravel. Before that we've got to level the surface, but hopefully that won't take too long!

After spending all day in the garden I can confirm it is a very good workout! My legs were quite stiff from crouching down, and I just generally felt like I had worked very hard - which I had!

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

Ellie x

Day 114 - Week 16 Weigh In & Progress Pictures

Start Weight: 13st 10lbs

Last Weeks Weight: 13st 0.4lbs

This Week: 13st 0.4lbs


Measurements:

Arms - 29cm
Chest - 101cm
Waist - 84cm
Hips - 114cm
Thigh - 62cm

No change again! Two weeks without any changes. To be honest I can see why there hasn't been any change. I did over indulge on my birthday last week so am still probably paying for that!

I'm not expecting weight loss every week, but definitely want to get into the 12's very soon!!

Today was a good day, after work I went for a brief walk and then out for a few drinks with the girls to celebrate one of my best friends birthdays. It was such a lovely night and it felt good to dress up a little!

Now, it's been a little overdue but I have included some progress pictures. Below are pictures taken in the first day of my new healthy lifestyle plan, 114 days ago, and this is me today. Can you tell a difference? I think I can, and can now see where I need to make improvements!

Excuse the picture quality, I really need to teach the other half how to take pictures properly! I think from this picture you can tell there is some change in my face, not so much anywhere else though!

 Now this is my favourite picture of the bunch! I think it is quite clear to see there is some weightloss from this picture. Plus, I am in my size 12 jeans in the pictures on the right which makes me feel amazing! They are a little on the snug size, but that is only making me want to lose weight more for them to fit properly.

Urgh, this is really where I need to work hard. Even though you can see an improvement, I seriously need to work on the back fat! I have never really taken much notice about my back, and just generally concentrated on the normal areas women are concious about, waist, hips, thighs etc, but can honestly say I need to and want to work alot harder on reducing the fat on my back. I mean, it just looks horrid! Luckily I rarely wear fitted tops (I do for the pictures to help show my body shape as easily as possible) so most people might not notice it, but taking this second picture has given me the kick up the backside I needed... again!

I have decided I will now be taking pictures monthly to monitor my progress, and I would love to see any progress pictures you have!

Ellie x

Day 113 - Broccoli Addict

Do you ever get that urge, when you suddenly crave a food and you just HAVE to have it there and then?

Well I got that today... for broccoli. Of all things!

So I went all out and had a whole broccoli floret with Stilton and broccoli flavoured pasta. The instructions for this pasta says to use milk and water with optional butter, but I only cook it with water as a healthier option and it taste yummy!

I thought I wouldn't bore you with another picture of porridge and blueberries, but that is what I ate for my breakfast, and had a ham salad for my lunch.

Join me tomorrow for another weigh in!!!!

Day 112 - Porridge Fever!

This is getting quite repetative... but I love it! It is so tasty and filling, I don't think anything else can beat it at the moment.

Not much else went on today, I got quite alot of housework done after work and did my abs workout. I am really trying hard to lose weight this week, but am feeling more bloated than ever! I am contemplating cutting down on my carb intake to boost the weightloss.

Let's see if I can actually do it!

Day 111 - Ivy Nightmare!

I am really enjoying my porridge and blueberries for breakfast, it is keeping me full for atleast four hours which is amazing!

My lunch was leftover spaghetti bolognese, delish!

After work myself and the partner had to lovely job of tearing down some ivy that had been growing up our house. It has been about 6 foot tall for the amount of time we have lived at this property, however due to the amount of rain we have had over the last few months it has grown so much and got the point where it was getting into the guttering, not good! So we decided to rip it all down, so we don't have to worry about maintaining it.

Also, I have never EVER seen so many spiders in my life! There was no way I wanted to keep that anywhere near my house!!

And this is it after...

It's looking a little bare, but alot better than it did before! The markings on the brickwork will fade, but at the moment it's looking a little rough around the edges!

I then spent an hour in the bath using a deep conditioning hairmask and body scrub, trying to capture a little of the experience I had at the spa the other day! It was lovely and very relaxing, but not a scratch on what I had the other day! Will have to try harder next time!

:)

Day 110 - Getting the Jobs Done

And it's back to the grind!

The day started well...

Lunch was a beetroot salad and two slices of leftover vegetable pizza from the otherhalves tea last night!  It was a very tasty and refreshing lunch.

Dinner was a spaghetti bolognese, what else would it be?! I have tried to decrease my portion size, therefore have the left overs for my lunch the next day. So far it seems to be going well, and I am looking forward to my lunch now!

After work I didn't get up to anything hugely exciting, just catching up with my jobs, and blog posts. It has been such a hectic few days I didn't get chance to update on the go. Back to it today though, and this week is looking like it's going to be a good one!

Day 109 - Walking on Sunshine

We started Sunday going for a lovely walk in the sun, it was a gorgeous day and when the weather is good in the UK there is nothing better than getting outside and seeing the countryside!

We went on a five mile walk from our house, through some local woodland, and then back up to our local supermarket. We then did our weekly shop and carried the shopping home, talk about multi-tasking! And it gave those arms a little extra workout, perfect!

We then went to a friends house warming / birthday BBQ.

Food -

Breakfast - Porridge

Lunch/Dinner - Vegetable kebab, pasta, salad and garlic bread

It was the best weekend I have had in a long time, and I am so happy to have such lovely friends and family!  Here's to many more weekends like this!

:)

Day 108 - Show Time!

IT'S THE WEEKEND PEOPLE - LET'S PAAARRRTAY! :)

So after our spa day break, I got home today and guess what I did?

...

No guesses? Well, it was a pretty eventful morning this morning....

I ORDERED MY WEDDING DRESS!

eeeeek! You can probably guess from all of the exclimations and capitals that I am pretty damn excited!

I ordered a dress that I have now tried on a total of FIVE times. I first came across the dress at the beginning of this year, but didn't want to commit to buying a dress with well over twelve months til the wedding day. So I kept shopping around and what do you know, kept going back to the same dress and having the same feelings. So today I took the big step and ordered it!!! I am so SO excited that it is now ordered, and I cannot wait for it to arrive!

After that pretty eventful morning we then spent the rest of the day at a local village show, where alot of my family were. It was such a nice day weather wise, and was lovely to see my family, as always! Especially this little munch...

I could cuddle her all day!

Food -

Breakfast - Porridge

Lunch - 1 x brown toast with peanut butter

Dinner - Vegetable Pathia with boiled rice and salad

Day 107 - Week 15 Weigh In

Start Weight: 13st 10lbs

Last Weeks Weight: 13st 0.4lbs

This Week: 13st 0.4lbs


Measurements:

Arms - 29cm
Chest - 101cm
Waist - 84cm
Hips - 114cm
Thigh - 62cm

Another no changer! To be honest, I have had a pretty bad week, what with my birthday and all, so can see why there has been no changes.

This week I plan to get in the 12 stones... it has been a while since I've been there! I am also planning on going on several walks, as well as doing my abs workouts several times this week.

Fingers crossed I can get there this week!

Day 107

Wow! I am well and truly a spa lover, I can't believe I have never experienced one before! We went to Lion Quays Waterside Resort in Oswestry, and it was amazing.

We stayed overnight prior to our Spa Day, and had a lovely relaxing evening going for a stroll, followed by eating dinner in our room (guilty for ordering room service - my bad!)

I ate a pasta dish with a vegetable pasta sauce, and yes I ordered some fries too. Heck, it was my birthday! The other half went for a very healthy (!!) burger with extra onion rings. It looked delicious but I have to say, mine was to!

The next morning we ate breakfast in our room again, we wanted to get to the spa early but didn't think we would be up early enough to get over the restuarant too to eat, so we brought the food to us! Our hotel room overlooked a canal and fields, it was such a beautiful way to start the day.



What a view!

The spa was just as good, if not better, than the hotel. We spent all day using their facilities which included the UK's first snow spa, along with two saunas, steam room, several jacuzzi's, sleep room, outdoor seating area, 25m swimming pool and individual treatment rooms. I enjoyed a facial and a Rasul Mud Body Mask, traditional Arabian cleansing ritual using coloured medicinal chakra muds to cover your skin while you relax in our starlit steam room, followed by a tropical shower.

Check out the Lion Quays website if you are interested in visiting - www.lionquays.co.uk

All in all it was a FANTASTIC day, and I will definitely return!