Weight Watchers: the Sixth Week

10st 4lbs today - I've lost half a stone since I started!  I got a little bouncing star on my on-line weight tracker, which was very exciting.  It's been a good week in that I've eaten well, although I've not done much exercise as I'm "between bikes" at the moment.  So a 1lb weight loss (counting from last Friday) is really good. 

One thing I can't stop talking about, though, is how brilliant I feel for eating an average of 10 portions of fruit and veg a day.  I tell you, forget 5 a day - eat 10 and I promise you will feel the difference within a week.  I feel positively evangelical about the benefits of eating more fruit and veg.  It's actually a lot less difficult than it sounds, and it's not that expensive either.  Because I'm eating so much less meat - stretching one chicken breast over four days in my hunt-the-chicken curry for example! - my weekly shopping bill has actually gone down.  Here's an example day to show how I do it.

Breakfast - either cereal and skimmed milk followed by a couple of portions of fruit (at the moment I'm still gorging on summer fruit, so a typical post-cereal bowl would be a cut-up peach and strawberries), or 0% fat Greek yoghurt (I'm still obsessed) with raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and blueberries (add a banana if you're hungry).

Mid-morning snack - I'm partial to a bowl of melon and a cup of coffee as my mid-morning snack (this was at Pret a Manger after my Dorset trip).

If I'm at work I usually have a Melon Medley from Tesco - very good for snacking at work or on the run.

Lunch - if I'm at work I usually have a houmous or peanut butter sandwich (made with wholewheat bread) and crudites (chopped up carrot, cucumber, celery, pepper, our own mini-courgettes eaten raw - unbelievably delicious - and cherry tomatoes), plus an apple.  If I'm at home I usually spread it all out over a plate and make it look pretty.

At about 4pm I usually have banana - so I'm all ready for cycling home after 5pm - and tea is usually some form of curry, casserole or bake made with tons of vegetables and sometimes a bit of meat.  Recent dinners have included a lovely vegetarian moussaka, bacon, courgette and tomato sauce with wholewheat pasta, ratatouille and baked chicken breast and of course the hunt the chicken curry.  This is today's Sunday lunch - slices of baked red pepper, marrow and aubergine topped with halloumi and tomatoes, on a bed of raw spimach leaves.  Served with our own potatoes from the garden, peas and french beans it made a splendid Sunday lunch!

I usually follow dinner with more fruit for pudding and a Weight Watchers biscuit or cake with a cup of tea for an evening treat - you've got to have treats!