Fast Diet - Week 3 - #LoseDayTuesday

Week three of the 5:2 Fast Diet!! To find out more about it, read my original post here.

Week three, and what a rubbish week it was!! I apologise for having virtual radio silence on meg-made last week. I try to keep my blog a positive little haven of mine, and so didn't want to compromise that with the woes of a sick mama. 

It was a difficult few days of fasting though (not complaining, just being open and honest). On the first day I got a fast and furious 24 hour cold, and on the second fasting day I had a migraine, and in between, two days of IBS. To say I felt like depriving myself of all kinds of comfort foods would be LYING, but that is why I chose to continue on with the fast that day. Migraines are just the most soul-destroying illnesses. I would gladly go through all the surgeries I have had twice over if I could trade in suffering migraines. Since stopping breastfeeding the occurrence of mine has dramatically decreased, but I still get utterly wiped out when I do get one. And throw in the mix a little one year who can't see that Mummy is sick and still wants the same amount of love and attention. And then, remove my usual go-to comfort source for the day, and its sure to be a rough old fast day!  But wait, I thought this was a positive blog.....okay, moving on, you get the point, migraines are the pits. 

Here is what I ate to get through one of my fast days last week.

Breakfast - One poached egg on grilled tomatoes

This week saw the purchase of some low-cal oil spray, and it has changed my world. Who knew! One spray equals one calorie, and so you can just spray a few misty oil sprays into a pan to help the cooking process out. I photographed all 3 of these tomatoes, but only ate two of them (and counted calories for two). 

Not sure how to poach an egg,  I did a little viewtorial on it here...

Lunch - homemade Courgette & Mint soup

Finding the correct calorie count was the most challenging component of having this soup for lunch!! Oh and sticking to the right portion size too!!

All this soup consists of is courgettes, fresh mint, water, cumin, garlic salt, cinnamon,; and a small teaspoon of no-fat yoghurt to serve. I didn't want to add stock as I knew the salts would up my calorie count too much, so just kept it really basic. The mint and cumin were the star flavours that enhanced the courgette, and I found that it was delicious without being heavy. 

When searching for calorie information prior to making my soup, I found a delicious Pea & Courgette soup from London Unattached. I followed this recipe for a guide on quantities and calories,  but obviously left out the peas! 

Snack - Sweet Potato Fries

The photo is terrible sorry!! But the fries were not. They are dead easy to make and were filling enough to see me through the afternoon before dinner. I needed some kind of comfort this particular fast day, and so when I spotted the sweet potatoes in the fridge, I practically hugged them!! 

Peel and chop one sweet potato and lay it on a baking tray. Sprinkle with paprika and bake for 20 minutes, tossing half way. The sweetness of a baked sweet potato combined with the heat of the paprika gives a lovely symbiosis of flavours, without costing too many calories. I know that a lot of people save up their daily amount of calories and just have one big meal, but for me, I need a little bit of sustenance a few times a day, I just do.

Dinner - Fluffy Crab & Courgette Omelette

Ever since we had breakfast at Customs House in Brisbane, I've been wanting to make some form of crab omelette. I was browsing through the Fast Diet Recipe Book and saw a prawn omelette that sounded incredible. I followed this recipe, however, substituted my crab meat for prawns and used less egg yolk to reduce my calorie count a little more.

Ingredients, serves 2
100g crab meat
1 courgette, grated and liquid removed
4 egg whites and 3 egg yolks
Chilli flakes
Salt & pepper
Oil spray
Parsley for serving

Method

1. Grate the courgette and squeeze all of the liquid out.

2. Combine the courgette, chilli flakes (or tabasco) and crab meat in a bowl.

3. Separate the eggs and keep the yolks to the side. Season.

4. Whisk the egg whites with an electric beater until fluffy.

5. Combine the egg white and yolk together and gently mix through with a metal spoon.

6. Spray some oil into a pan and gently cook the crab/courgette mix for a few minutes until it starts to brown a little.

7. Add the egg mixture and cook until the bottom of the omelette is brown.

8. Finish the top of the omelette under the grill (or flip if you are a whole lot more talented than me!)

9. Dish up and serve with a little sprig of parsley.

If you aren't following the Fast Diet, I would probably serve this with either a tomato relish or a chilli jam type sauce. It was great on its own, but a little extra sauce would really give it that last bit of zing!

Drinks

I had about 32904 litres of water over the day, real terms, probably 2.5L. I could only take medication to help my migraine when I had food in my belly, so relied mostly on water to get me through the lingering headache. 

Total calories for the day = 467

Exercise

I started back at Reformer Pilates this week. I was doing it quite consistently before summer travel interrupted my routine, and I loved how I felt doing it. I was actually getting stronger, a bit more toned, and enjoyed the time on my own to not think about anyone else's needs for a whole hour! So kicking it off again on Friday night was fun for me. 

In addition to this, I did two 30 minute walks, with the pram, up and down hills. 

Weight loss?

Total loss to date = 1kg (2.2lbs)

Overall I definitely found this week a tough one, but I was really proud of myself for sticking with each fast day, even though I wasn't really feeling my best. I am enjoying the challenge of what to eat all day, and maybe the dormant accountant in me is also enjoying the numbers game, don't judge me! I was happy that I was down another 1/2 kilo this week, it surprises me each week! I do love that it is just two days of modified behaviour. I am gradually figuring out which foods keep me fuller for longer and so I feel like by the end of this diet, I will probably eat the same thing each time!! 

Are you doing the Fast Diet too?? Do you have any tips or recipes to share? I would LOVE to hear them! I'd also love to know how much exercise other Fasters are doing, as I kind of think I should be doing more....