For tortoises and slow losers….

Following on from a post on the 5:2 Intermittent Fasting Diet group on Facebook about slow losers, I thought it would be helpful to share some suggestions for those who are following 5:2 but get stuck without losing any weight for 4 weeks or more.

Provided you are actually managing to do 2 fast days a week of under 500/600 calories, and you really do have some weight to lose – well there are lots of things that you can do to make a difference.

In general, we aren’t overweight because we don’t eat enough (though not eating enough on a regular basis may confound our attempts to lose). Fast days will help us to cut back – maybe enough to stop us gaining any more, but for some of us, not enough to make a noticeable difference to weight loss.

Intermittent Fasting is excellent at helping you to burn dangerous visceral fat, so that at least should be shifting, as your body transfers resources to more easy to access locations. So you may realise that you are changing shape, even if the scales don’t budge.

You may be happy enough with the long term health benefits to continue with little or no weight loss, and that is absolutely fine. But if you are frustrated enough to want to change things, then here are my suggestions (in no particular order, pick whatever appeals to you):

  • Option 1. Add in an extra fast day. Try 4:3 for a couple of weeks and see if it makes the difference. That may be enough to kick start the process again, so then go back to 5:2. You may learn through doing this that non fast days are your problem and that you need to cut back, just a little, on your portion sizes or particular types of foods in future.
  • Option 2. Mindful eating. Consider what you are going to eat before you put it in your mouth. So much of what we do is habit and nothing to do with appetite or hunger. So much of what we eat isn’t really food! Close the fridge/cupboard door again and come back later. Leave some on the plate. Put less on your plate in the first place. Mindful shopping is a good adjunct to this – if you don’t buy it in the first place, it won’t be there to tempt you. Planning ahead so that you have a week’s worth of well thought out menus to choose from before you go shopping can really help too. With mindful eating, if you think about it, really want it, and are hungry, then go ahead and eat – but stop before you are full. Eat slowly enough so that your fullness sensor has a chance to detect that you have eaten!
  • Option 3. Portion control. Using the hand guide to portion sizes can be a simple way to limit your intake, especially of things like pasta and other starchy carbs. No more than a fistful of those. See the graphic for more info.
  • Option 3. Start tracking. Track everything that you are eating and drinking for a week or two – it can be really illuminating, showing you where you eat those little extra things that are really high in sugar, or just generally high in calories. Once you have a handle on what you are really having, you can target things to cut back on. 
  • Option 4. Cut back on non fast days**. We may be shocked to discover how little we really need to stay the same weight, and gaining weight slowly over the years, is testament to that. Check your sedentary TDEE – If it is the average of about 2000 for a woman, then fast days alone will give a 3000 calorie deficit (we need to drop 3500 calories or so to lose a pound, as a rough guide). But you need to not exceed your TDEE on the others! It can be helpful to vary your intake, so some days can be lean and mean, and others can be more indulgent. ** Please note, I say cut back (to normal), not calorie restrict as you would with other diets. Intermittent Fasting requires that you refuel properly on non-fast days and eat normal amounts, which gives a good contrast to fast days and help keep your metabolism working normally.
  • Option 5. Avoid snacking. Make your 2 or 3 meals a day truly satisfying and nutritionally sound, so that you don’t need to top up between meals or afterwards. Snacks are often calorie dense and nutritionally poor, so ditching them can save lots of potential excess and leave room for adding some extra deliciousness to your meals – have a starter course instead of crisps, have a dessert instead of reaching for the sweets and so on.
  • Option 6. Cut out added sugar. Lots of prepared and packaged foods have hidden sugar that we really don’t need. If you make your own sauces, dressings, desserts and so on, you can easily avoid the unnecessary extras. Don’t be tempted to substitute with non-nutritive sweeteners, or even natural alternatives; it is better to let your palate become accustomed to less sweetness. Fruit is naturally sweet. Vanilla, Cinnamon and other spices can enhance the natural sweetness in our foods. Lots of root vegetables are naturally sweet too and the more you stay away from sugar, the more you will notice and appreciate them.
  • Option 7. Ditch highly refined foods. Refined foods like white rice, white pasta, white flour, white sugar and anything made from them, not only rack up your carb intake and spike your blood sugar, but for lots of people they cause bloating, inflammation and water retention. Cutting back on these sources of carbs can help enormously. Don’t be tempted to cut back on carbs too far, they are a much needed source of energy and you will end up feeling tired and cranky if you go too low. Aim for mostly low GI carbs and go for whole grains, pulses, vegetables and fruits.
  • Option 8. Ditch processed and packaged foods. Go for fresh, seasonal, local and home-made whenever possible. You will know that what you eat is full of good ingredients and you can add liberal amounts of love while preparing your meal. Read the labels! Long lists of ingredients and unpronounceable names are a warning sign. Not all ready meals or packages are bad, but many of them make up for poor ingredients and short cuts with additives and fillers, plus ingredients and techniques to extend the shelf life, that rob the food of its intrinsic qualities. Home-made doesn’t have to be time-consuming or expensive. Remember that 2 days a week you are eating less anyway, so your shopping bill should be lower and give you a bit of leeway for buying fresh, organic, good quality food and supporting local producers.
  • Option 9. Ditch the low fat and light products. It may seem counter-intuitive, but fat is not the enemy. Fat helps to add flavour, texture and satiety to many foods and lowers the glycemic load of carbs when eaten together. Better to eat a small amount of the real thing than something that has been modified with fillers, flavourings and sugar to make up for what has been removed. Yes, fat has a high calorific value, with 1 tsp of oil coming in at 40 calories, but there are plenty of techniques to help you make the most of using just a little. Use a little strong cheese, such as parmesan, some real butter, flavourful olive oil, rich seed oils, full fat greek yogurt and so on to enable your body to benefit from fat-soluble vitamins.
  • Option 10. Add Activity. Exercise alone is not a good way to lose weight, but as an addition to your Intermittent Fasting regime, it will make you feel good, boost your metabolism, firm up your flab, help you get into fat burning mode on a fast day and may stave off hunger. Many of us have found that a small amount of weight loss has made us feel a whole lot more enthusiastic about various exercise activities. So go for it! Do be aware that starting a new activity may temporarily increase your weight, as your muscles retain water to repair and grow. Stick with it and you will get the benefits.

I hope this has given you some ideas to encourage you to stick with fasting and to realise that maybe just a small tweak here and there may be all that is needed to make the difference between staying the same and seeing the scales going down…

This may seem more like following a ‘diet’ for a bit I guess, but the way I look at it, this is a way of eating, something you are going to follow for the rest of your life, so you may as well make some small, permanent changes that you can really live with, that will give you the results you want – and enable you to look and feel good.

 

Hand Guide to Portion Control

 

A Taste of Summer – Bargeman’s Tomato Soup – 110kcals

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I came across this recipe in a book about cooking on a canal barge by Kate Ratliffe “A Culinary Journey in Gascony”. It makes a wonderful summery soup using loads of fresh tomatoes, but t it would be perfect for a fast day even in winter using tinned, bottled or frozen tomatoes. Adding an egg just before the end of cooking increases the protein content and gives added interest.

I would serve this over some toasted bread rubbed with garlic for a non-fast day.

So imagine yourself cruising along the Canal du Midi and stopping to buy a big bag of misshapen Marmande tomatoes, and enjoying this for lunch….

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Bargeman's Tomato Soup
Serves 2
A wonderful tomato, onion and garlic soup, simple as you like, perfect for making the most of summer or with tinned tomatoes in winter. Add a beaten egg just before serving.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
35 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
35 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 can (425g) of chopped tomatoes, or 500g fresh tomatoes, peeled and crushed (74 kcals)
  2. 1 onion, roughly chopped (46 kcals)
  3. 4 cloves of garlic, crushed (13 kcals)
  4. 500ml water
  5. Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  6. 1 large egg (70 kcals)
  7. A couple of sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves stripped from the stalk (or a tsp of dried thyme) or fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
  1. Put the tomatoes, onion and garlic into a pan along with the water and season well.
  2. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
  3. Bring back to a boil, beat the egg lightly and stir into the soup.
  4. Check and adjust the seasoning to taste.
  5. Remove from the heat and stir in the herbs.
  6. Per serving: kcals 110
  7. Carbs 13g Fat 3g Protein 6g
Adapted from A Culinary Journey in Gascony, Kate Ratliffe
Adapted from A Culinary Journey in Gascony, Kate Ratliffe
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

 

This recipe can be found in my book “5:2 Healthy Eating for Life“, available on Amazon in print or kindle format.

 

Kate Harrison’s 5:2 Podcast features Foodie Fasting in France

Much excitement chez Berry today, as my interview with Kate Harrison is released.

http://the5-2dietbook.com/podcast9

If you haven’t already come across them, do subscribe to these podcasts, or listen online – Kate has a lively, engaging series of chats with all kinds of useful hints and tips to keep you inspired.

The thumbnail photo for this edition features my lemony yogurt cheesecake with strawberries – a perfect seasonal treat.

Lemon Yogurt Cheesecake with Strawberries

 

Kate Harrison is the author of The 5:2 Diet Book, The Ultimate 5:2 Recipe Book (featuring my Raw Vegetable Salad with a Zingy, Spicy Dressing), 5:2 Your Life, and The 5:2 Good Food Kitchen, as well as several delightful novels. We share a passion for eating well and following 5:2 and I was delighted to have been chosen to share some of my story and enthusiasm for the 5:2 way of life with Kate’s many listeners.

We took the opportunity of having some other photographers here to get a photo taken of us both wearing the ridiculously large Hawaiian shirt that prompted us to take weight loss seriously. For your amusement, here we are..

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Decluttering the Spice Shelf – mmm, tasty!

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Over the last few weeks I have worked my way through my fridge, freezer and store cupboards, figuring out what I have and putting together a plan each week to use up some of the things that have been in store for the longest. It’s working well and I’m saving lots of money (at least in the short term) – and trying out some new ideas.

Next, I approached the spice and herb shelf. Oh dear, it is groaning. I have over 50 jars! 

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An article by Marie Kondo, Japanese tidiness expert, led me to approach my spice shelf with a new perspective. See 10 steps to make you more tidy now.

Each jar was looked at – do I love it? Does it bring me joy?

Out went anything that was really old, flavourless or unappealing, including some dried rosemary – I have fresh growing in the garden, all year round, so why bother?

Of the remaining spices, mixes and herbs, there were only two that I wasn’t sure about, juniper and fenugreek seeds.

The juniper must have been bought for something specific, but I have forgotten what. I tried using some at Christmas with cranberries, but the flavour was far too strong.

The fenugreek seeds are something that I occasionally use for sprouting; they have a bitterness and a distinct curry aroma, that can make an interesting addition to a salad or as a garnish.

I got some wonderful suggestions from the lovely members of the 5:2 Intermittent Fasting Recipes from Around the World group (a real mouthful in more ways than one!)

  • Juniper as a partner for game with the , such as venison or the league system.
  • mmmmmmm a chopped shallot soup with thyme, juniper, garlic and bay leaf…
  • a rub for pork, using salt, dried rosemary and juniper (damn! retrieve the dried rosemary 🙂 )
  • Juniper berries for braised red cabbage

and I found some interesting recipes on line:

I am encouraged to try growing my own, as fenugreek, also known as ‘methi’, is used widely as a herb in Indian recipes. An interesting addition to my micro leaves selection!

So, with spices in mind, what am I cooking this week?

I bought a whole free range chicken, which I jointed. I made the breasts into Butter Chicken, following a Rick Stein recipe, which was succulent and absolutely delicious. The joints are marinading in spices and yogurt. I will dry bake them in a hot oven for our fast day dinner, with leftovers for lunch another day. 

Having thrown out my old garam masala, I had no alternative but to make my own. In a hot dry pan, I roasted some cumin, cardamom and coriander seeds with cinnamon bark. I added peppercorns, fenugreek, salt and chilli powder and pounded all together in my pestle and mortar. Mmmm, wonderful aromas! This became an ingredient in the sauce for the Butter Chicken as well as a garnish for the dhal. It should keep well for at least a month.

The chicken carcass has made a lovely asian-flavoured stock, with star anise, chillies, peppercorns and lime leaves, and the tops of some fresh leeks – I have retrieved a surprising amount of meat from the bones, and with the stock this will make a wonderful soup, with the addition of some finely sliced mushrooms.

Hot and Sour Chicken and Mushroom Soup

My ‘treat’ purchases this week – a small whole camembert: bake until melted, then dip into with toasted pita bread; and a basket of small pears.

Sat lunch: Pizza and Salad; fresh fruit
Dinner: Butter Chicken with Naan and Red Lentil Dhal; Ice Cream

Sun lunch: leftover Pizza with Salad; fresh fruit
Dinner: Roast Rib of Beef, Dauphinoise Potatoes, Yorkshire Pudding, Carrots and Peas; Cinnamon-spiced Cherries topped with an Oat Crumble with chopped Hazelnuts

Mon Fast Day: Spicy Chicken and Mushroom Broth; Tandoori Chicken with Cauliflower Rice and Dhal; sliced Oranges with Dates and Pistachios

Tue lunch: Thai Style Roast Beef Salad with roasted Peanuts and a vietnamese dressing; fresh fruit
Dinner: Toulouse Sausages with Potato and Celeriac Bake; Fig Frangipani tart with custard

Wed lunch: French Onion Soup; Coronation Chicken Salad; fresh fruit
Dinner: Black Bean and Sausage Burritos; leftover Fig Frangipani tart with yogurt

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Thurs, fast day: Morrocan Cauliflower Soup; Salmon Teriyaki with Leeks and Mushrooms; Spiced Poached Cherries with Yogurt

Teriyaki Salmon

Fri lunch: Egg Mayonnaise Salad; fresh fruit
dinner: Baked Camembert with Pitta crisps;  Red Mullet with Coconut-Lime sauce, spiced puy lentil salad, Pears with Chocolate Meringue topping

Pear with Chocolate Meringue   

 Plenty of lovely meals to look forward to, and a spice cupboard in which I can almost find what I am looking for… still over-crowded, but at least I know what’s in there.

Anyone got any ideas for using dried rosebuds?

 

Meal Plan – Mad as a March Hare!

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Mad as March Hare? Well maybe not that crazy, my efforts to work my way through stores are going well and saving us money in the short term. It’s good to have space in the freezer for when there are special offers, or home grown produce to take advantage of.  

I did quite well at following my last plan, and it also saved a lot of effort, so I’m encouraged to continue. I still have a lovely assortment of things to use up from my freezer and store cupboards, and it means I can splash out on a really good piece of meat or a nice bottle of wine for Saturday night. All I have to buy apart from that is some more salad and fresh fruit and some yogurts and fromage blanc. I’m looking forward to making buckwheat burgers, I haven’t done them for years! I should have thought of them when the weather was really cold, they are great for warming you up from within. But I think they will be great for a fast day.  

So little in my shopping trolley this week! My treat is a bag of pink Brittany onions, which immediately say ‘French Onion Soup’..  so I bought some Comté cheese as well 🙂 Ah well, that leaves a ready made soup in the freezer for a busy day in future.

I’ll be taking photos as I go along, and if there are any winners, will be writing up the recipes to publish here or in my next book….

Mon, fast day: ; Butternut Squash stuffed with Mushrooms and Walnuts (leftover from Sunday), Plum Kulfi with toasted pistachios
recipe for Plum Kulfi in 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life

Tues lunch: Wild Mushroom Omelette with Fennel and Radish salad; fresh fruit
dinner: Boston baked Borlotti Beans with FrankfurtersFrench Apple Tart with custard

Wed lunch:  Griddled Halloumi, Hummus, Pita Bread, Spanakopitta and salad; fresh fruit
dinner: Marmalade Glazed Tofu with Sesame Seeds, Stir Fried Veg, Carmargue Rce; leftover apple tart
recipe for Hummus, Pita Bread and Spanakopitta in 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life

Thurs fast day: Miso soup with Wakame and Tofu; Buckwheat Burgers with veg stir fry; Poached Cherries with Cinnamon

Fri lunch: French Onion Soup;  fresh fruit
recipe for French Onion Soup in 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life
dinner: Corn Spaghetti with Salmon, Chillies and Sundried Tomatoes; Cherries topped with Oat and Sunflower Seed Crumble

Sat lunch: oh well, probably Pizza as usual, we love it! with salad and followed by fruit
dinner:  Steak with Peppercorn Sauce, Garlic Mushrooms and Oven Fries; Bread and Butter pudding with Red and White Currants

Sun lunch: Citrus baked Chicken with Pumpkin and Peppers; leftover bread pudding
dinner: Mushrooms on Toast with Bacon; Fruit Salad
recipe for the Citrus Baked Chicken and the Mushrooms on Toast in 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life

Meal Planning

If you’ve been watching the recent TV series “Eat Well for Less” you may have noticed that having a meal plan is suggested as a good way of cutting down on your food bills – it is also a good way to avoid waste.  Checking my fridge before going shopping means that I can come up with ideas to use what is left over from last week and sometimes this drives new creative ideas too.  I don’t always create a strict plan for all meals, but I do find that having an idea for most of them really does help, it also saves me from reaching for an easy option from the freezer because I can’t think of what else to do.  I am still continually surprised by how much we don’t eat, not only because of having 2 fast days, but because our appetites are smaller than they used to be. So I am as bad as anyone for buying more than we need… Plus my freezer is groaning with home grown produce, leftovers and various bargain buys….

So, despite not having been shopping for nearly a week due to having a cold, today I have the following to use up:- ¾ of a pumpkin, some broccoli, a few carrots, a leek, ¼ red cabbage, some potatoes that are about to sprout, goats cheese, lardons, duck strips, smoked tuna, peppered mackerel, blue cheese, halloumi, half a pack of feta, tofu, a little chestnut puree, kiwi fruit, some nearly ripe pears, a coconut, some long-life pre-packed beetroot. I also have some cooked cherries and some leftovers from last night’s dinner. I hardly need to go shopping at all really, but we do need some fresh salad and fruit. I have to try and include eggs in my plan, as our chickens are producing 4 most days.  We will often have a boiled egg for breakfast.

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Here’s my plan.

Tues for lunch :  
Fennel, Grapefruit and Blue Cheese Salad (leftovers), Peppered Mackerel and  Horseradish yogurt dressing (see above). Fresh Fruit

The recipe for the salad is in my book 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life

dinner:
Thai style Mushroom Soup (leftovers)
Smoked Fish Tart with Orange Gremolata, Steamed Broccoli and Carrots.
Pancakes with Lemon and Maple Syrup

The quiche could be a crustless one, which would be excellent for a fast day, but as it’s a non-fast day, I will make some shortcrust pastry using half and half wholewheat and plain flour. The gremolata will be finely chopped parsley, capers, garlic and orange zest, with some virgin olive oil. I’ll use one of the blood oranges for this and use slices of orange for garnish. Recipe here

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Wed lunch: leftover Smoked Tuna Quiche. Green Salad. Fruit.
Out for dinner

butternut squash soupDSCF1767Thurs, Fast day: Spicy Pumpkin Soup (using leek)
Marinaded Tofu and Broccoli Stir Fry with Cashew Nuts
Poached Cherries with Cinnamon-spiced Fromage Frais

 

 

 

I marinaded the tofu in garlic, ginger and tamari soy sauce. Damn! I forgot to add the cashew nuts!

 

 

 

Fri lunch : Omelette with Lardons, Onion and Potatoes
dinner: Duck, Pumpkin and Coconut Curry, with basmati rice
some kind of dessert using Eggs and Chestnut Puree…with some marrons glacé left from Xmas, maybe an ice cream or a soufflé. Update: Chestnut Meringue Tart, see below… – a triumph!

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I’m looking forward to dealing with the coconut. I will make coconut milk and toasted coconut flakes from the flesh – and drink the water as a treat!

Sat lunch: Homemade Pizza with Salad. Fresh Fruit
dinner: Steak Haché (from freezer) with Blue Cheese Sauce, Red Cabbage Slaw,  Oven Fries
Lime and Coconut Ice Cream with Toasted Coconut

Pizza

Sun lunch: leftover Pizza and Salad. Fresh Fruit.
dinner: leftover Duck Curry, with homemade Naan or Chapatti

Mon fast day: Spicy Pumpkin Soup
Warm Butter Bean, Halloumi and Beetroot Salad

So I managed to shop without buying anything off my list, which was mostly household items, salad and fresh fruit, plus topping for the pizza. My treats are a bag of small Pink apples and 4 blood oranges. If I’ve got it right, my fridge should be pretty empty by Tuesday!

Breakfast ideas

There’s been a lot of buzz about high protein – low carb, especially since the BBC Horizon programme ‘What’s the Right Diet for You?’ recently. This programme explored some of the science behind why people put on weight and how they can best lose it. They divided a group of obese people into 3 types – Feasters, Constant Cravers and Emotional Eaters – and devised specific diets to suit them. 

Smoked Trout and Scrambled Egg _MG_3123 _MG_0303 Hot and Sour Chicken and Mushroom Soup

Each dieter underwent a series of scientific tests to find out the main reason for why they put on weight. The Constant Cravers have genes that mean they feel hungry all the time, the Feasters have a misfiring gut hormone that stops them from knowing when they’re feeling full. The final group, the Emotional Eaters, eat in response to stress.

They picked participants for the 8 week trial on the basis that they were quite strongly characteristic of one of the 3 types.  There is an online test which can help you to determine your own type. Most people actually are a combination of the 3 types to a greater or lesser degree and many people may not be significantly aligned with any of the types. The test can be found here http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/z2csfg8, along with other related resources.

For the Feasters, a diet high in protein and low GI carbs, helps boost the lacking gut hormone and increases feelings of fullness

For the Constant Cravers, an Intermittent Fasting diet that restricts calories on two days a week, combined with very low carbohydrate intake on those days, helps to retrain the appetite and enables you to become more accustomed to not snacking or grazing.

For the Emotional Eaters, controlling intake by limiting high fat/high sugar foods and counting calories, combined with being part of a support group to help keep motivation levels high, is very helpful.

In my view, all the types will flourish by following an Intermittent Fasting diet (i.e 5:2), combined with limiting processed foods and cutting back on simple carbs such as sugar and white bread/pasta/rice. A diet with plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits, good fats and a variety of protein sources, with nuts and seeds, pulses and whole grains, is the way to go.

We have to be a little careful with the idea of high protein, as pointed out by Michael Mosley in ‘the fast diet’, as research shows that protein, and animal protein in particular, raises our levels of IGF-1, which is needed when you are young and growing but appears to accelerate ageing and cancer in later life. We should aim to keep our protein intake to within 0.8grams per kilo of body weight (per day) and aim to get as much as possible from plant based sources, says Prof Valter Longo. However, protein is very good at keeping you feeling full and so it is a very good choice for breakfast. 

So “revenons a nos moutons“, getting back to our sheep, or the main subject…. here are some ideas for sustaining breakfasts which have ample protein but are low in carbs or use low-GI carbs. I prefer not to have breakfast at all on a fast day, but I think it is a useful tactic when you are starting out with fasting and on any normal day it can stop you from reaching for the croissants mid-morning….

  • Get those little offcuts of smoked salmon and stir them into scrambled eggs… yum
  • How about going oriental and having a spicy broth with tofu?
  • Don’t forget nuts! Some oats soaked overnight in water with toasted chopped nuts and seeds and some fresh grated apple added in the morning makes a fab Bircher muesli
  • Make your own grunchy granola with whole rolled oats, wheat and rye flakes and add plenty of chopped hazelnuts. Stir in some honey or malt extract for a little sweetness and bake in the oven until golden. Then add in some luscious dried fruits. Serve it with natural yogurt.
  • Full fat greek yoghurt, with berries and nuts, or made into a smoothie with a banana 
  • Smoked salmon and cream cheese, on a thin slice of rye bread or crispbread
  • Cottage cheese with sliced pear and chopped walnuts
  • One of my favourites – wholewheat toast with almond butter
  • Another frequent one for us, as our chickens are producing so many – a boiled egg, I usually have it with a slice of wholewheat toast, but you could have asparagus spears to dip in for a low-carb alternative
  • egg and bacon, or egg and ham
  • bacon and mushrooms
  • smoked haddock with a poached egg
  • banana pancakes (banana whizzed up with an egg, made into scotch pancakes), use a little coconut oil or butter in the pan
  • veggie pops – grated pumpkin or squash with some parmesan cheese and ground almonds, mixed with a beaten egg, add some chilli or spice for variety and bake in silicone moulds or cupcake cases

I hope this helps you to avoid the elevenses….

Best possible start to your 5:2 journey….

Thousands of people like me have successfully taken up 5:2 Intermittent Fasting and succeeded in reaching a healthy weight, improving their health and reducing their risk of life shortening diseases.

But what if you are a little intimidated by the idea and not sure how best to get started?

Unlike other weight loss and diet programs, up to now 5:2 has been very much a thing for self-starters and there are a various websites, blogs, Facebook groups and forums where those following this way of eating have been discussing it and sharing their hints and tips. There is a lot of information and support, but it can be bewildering and confusing, especially if you are not accustomed to using social media.

Maybe you haven’t started yet or are ready to re-start after a lapse?

Now the people over at the FastDay forum have launched an exciting new online program designed to give you the best possible start and give you the resources that you need to help you succeed.

FastStart Program6 week FastStart program, beginning on January 15th

I observed the trial that was run before Christmas and was very impressed by the well-organised material and the resources made available to the participants.

If you would like to know more, pop on over to the FastDay site and visit The FastStart Program where you can read about it and reserve a place.

Maintaining and Improving!

If a fortune teller had told me 2 years ago that I would comfortably be able to wear clothes that I had for my honeymoon in 1996, I would have said they were giving me false hope. If they had gone on to say that I would wake up in the morning looking forward to going for a 5km run* dressed in lycra, I would have said they were a charlatan, or had got me confused with someone else!

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But the truth of the matter is that thanks to 5:2, both of the above are true! 

I also now have blood sugar level that is normal rather than pre-diabetic, low triglycerides, improved cholesterol and healthy blood pressure. I feel more energetic and thanks to having less weight to carry around, I am lighter on my feet and have much less pain in my joints.

I have easily maintained my weight around my target of 55kg without having to count calories or even particularly to watch what I eat. However, I have found that my tastes have changed, if I don’t have fresh vegetables and fruit I miss them. I eat far less in the way of starchy carbs than I used to. I rarely think of chocolate. My portion sizes are smaller and I seldom have a second helping of anything.

I do usually continue to do 2 fast days a week unless we are away on holiday. I find that allows me to not have to worry about the other 5 days at all plus I get the long term health benefits of the two days of going for 24 hours without eating and then having just 500 calories. It’s really not an effort now and is very much a part of our life.

Being fit and healthy and able to wear what I like in my mid sixties is very enjoyable!

So, if you are contemplating following this way of eating, I would encourage you to get started – you have nothing to lose except weight and poor health!

*If you are interested in how I managed to go from being a real couch potato to someone who enjoys brisk walking and running, then I highly recommend the Couch to 5k programme – I followed the podcasts created by the NHS and they really do work. 

Smoked Haddock and Cauliflower Gratin – 350 calories

Smoked Haddock and Cauliflower GratinWe really enjoy tasty smoked haddock on a fast day, but were getting just a tad bored with the same old simple wilted spinach, smoked haddock and poached egg that we have had so often.

IMG_1810IMG_1815So I looked online for some inspiration and found an interesting recipe on BBC Good Food, from which I developed this fast day friendly version.  Using cauliflower on top of the spinach and fish turns this into a complete meal.

Choosing a strongly flavoured cheese like parmesan means that you can use a lot less but get a fantastic flavour. 

This got the thumbs up from us both and I will definitely be making it again!

For a vegetarian version, you could use smoked tofu, which would have a similar balance of flavours. But I also think that it would be lovely with a couple of big mushrooms each and maybe some chopped walnuts in the topping and some extra cheese. 

 

 

 

Smoked Haddock and Cauliflower Gratin
Serves 2
A fast day friendly fish gratin! Totally delicious and satisfying, a one-dish meal. the cauliflower makes an excellent alternative to potatoes.
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
Ingredients
  1. 200g leaf spinach
  2. 2g butter (a trace)
  3. 170g smoked haddock, skinned and cut into 2 portions
  4. 1 large tomato, cut into 8 wedges
  5. ¼ cauliflower, cut into florets
For the topping
  1. 100ml creme fraiche
  2. juice ½ lemon
  3. 20g parmesan cheese, freshly grated
  4. ½ red onion, finely sliced
  5. a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
  6. 1 tbsp dried breadcrumbs
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 180c Fan.
  2. Lightly grease a shallow oven proof dish.
  3. Put the cauliflower florets in a saucepan of boiling water to cover and simmer until just tender.
  4. Put the spinach in a colander and gently pour over hot water from a kettle to wilt it.
  5. Freshen under cold water and then squeeze out as much water as possible.
  6. Roughly chop the spinach and spread over the bottom of the oven dish.
  7. Lay the haddock fillets over the top and tuck the tomato pieces around them.
  8. Drain the cauliflower florets and distribute evenly over the top.
  9. Season well with black pepper.
  10. Mix together the cream, lemon juice, parmesan and onion with some freshly grated nutmeg.
  11. Spread over the top of the cauliflower.
  12. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
  13. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until the topping starts to turn golden.
  14. Serve at once.
Adapted from BBC Good Food
Adapted from BBC Good Food
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/