January's Weight Progress Feat. Nutribuddy*

January is the month where I always try and get back on the straight and narrow with my diet and exercise. After an indulgent month in December I couldn’t wait to try and shift some of those pesky Christmas pounds that I piled on.

When I was contacted by Nutribuddy to try out an exciting range of natural sports supplements which aims to aid weight loss in a healthy way, I jumped at the chance and knew it would be the perfect addition to my January routine. I was kindly sent the Nutribuddy's Weight Loss Starter Kit which costs £69.99 and contains Sculpting Whey, Hunger Fix, Multivitamins and a Shaker bottle. Everything you need to kick start that weight loss. I received the chocolate flavour but there was also the option of vanilla. The pack also came with a handy weight loss guide packed full of recipes and a meal plan that you can follow alongside the Nutribuddy products. I like to think I eat fairly healthily anyway but loved adding some of these recipes to my diet which I think really helped to contribute to the results I got.

The Sculpting Whey comes in a 908g pouch and works best as a snack replacement. This whey based protein drink is made from the milk of free-range, grass fed GM-free cows. It also includes natural ingredients such as green tea and guarana to boost metabolism. I drank this mid-morning to replace the chocolate bar or packet of crisps that I would have usually grabbed. I mixed 30g of the whey with 300ml of water but you can also mix this with milk. I put this in my Nutribuddy shaker bottle which was the perfect addition to the essential pack I received as I don’t own a shaker. The more you shake the mix, the smoother it gets. I half expected it to taste artificial but the drink was actually really tasty and a pleasure. I did notice that it took the edge of my hunger too and I would happily replace my unhealthy snacks with this. The Sculpting Whey is suitable for vegetarians and contains 30 servings so will last you a month if taken once daily. At first I realised the scoop in the whey pouch was slightly too big for the bottle but Nutribuddy have now introduced a smaller scoop and are offering a £3 discount code to anyone who has the larger one. I think that’s great customer service and shows the company are really thinking about our needs.

I then received some Hunger Fix capsules are there to help reduce hunger cravings. I took 1 capsule just before each meal. You can take 2 if you need extra help but no more than 6 a day. The capsules need to be taken with a full glass of water. I am not sure if it’s the water that reduced my hunger cravings or the tablets but I definitely noticed a difference and found myself snacking less frequently than usual. The tablets takes up space in your stomach to help naturally suppress appetite. These capsules are suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

I also received the Nutribuddy Multivitamins which you only need to take once a day at any time that you can fit into your schedule. These are good for general health and wellbeing and whilst I didn’t notice any specific improvements I felt better and healthier overall which could contribute to taking these. There is enough tablets for 2 months and these are also suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

I added the Nutribuddy products to my diet straight after Christmas and continued for a total of 3 weeks alongside a healthy lifestyle and exercise regime and I am really impressed with my results. To see the types of food I ate during these 3 weeks, head over to my Instagram. I tracked the 2 things that are most important to my progress which were my weight and my waist circumference. I am trying to lose weight and tone up so by tracking these 2 elements I could really see the progress and I think the photos and results speak for themselves. After just 3 weeks I lost 7lbs and 2.5 inches from my waist. I was so impressed and could definitely see the difference in my waist in that it curved in more and my stomach bloating decreased rapidly. All from introducing Nutribuddy to my lifestyle!

When I showed my boyfriend my before photos he thought I was pushing my stomach out but that is genuine Christmas bloat! I can see my waist is already more defined from the before photos!

Starting stats:
Weight: 12 stone 5
Waist Measurement: 34"

Ending Stats:
Weight: 11 stone 12
Waist Measurement: 31.5"

I am happy with the range I received from Nutribuddy and recommend it to anyone wanting to aid and improve their weight loss. I feel more energetic, my clothes fit better and I have even noticed improvements in my skin and my hair. I am a happier person and this is only after 3 weeks. To see results so quickly from only making small adjustments is simply fantastic. I can’t wait to continue on my Nutribuddy journey and see what the future holds! To try the range for yourself, head over to the Nutribuddy website and chose your products now.

*I received these items free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way. This post contains affiliate links.

Vegetarian Lasagne Recipe

I love lasagne, the cheese sauce especially, so when I recently got a new vegetarian slimming world recipe book the lasagna was the first thing I wanted to try. Not having half of the ingredients I needed, I ended up making the recipe up a bit and not really following it at all. It turned out so good, I thought I would share it with you. Disclaimer: This is an adaptation on a slimming world recipe, but does not fall under part of the plan and will contain syns!

 

You will need:
Lasagne Sheets
Mushrooms
Onions
Passata
Mozzarella
Cottage Cheese
1 egg
Red Pepper
Garlic
(serves 4)

Firstly, fry the onions and mushrooms in a frying pan. I 'fry' mine in frylight for a healthier option. Then add the garlic and continue to cook for a few more minutes, then set aside.

For the 'cheese sauce' I whisked together one egg and one pot of natural fat free cottage cheese. Blend if a smooth consistency is desired.

Get your lasagne pan/dish and spray with frylight then layer the bottom with some passata. I used a garlic and onion flavoured one. The pop some lasagne sheets on top.

Layer half of your onion/mushroom mixture on with some red peppers, then add half of your cottage cheese mixture. Add more lasagne sheets and more passata, then repeat.

When you have added your top layer of lasagne sheets, top with passata and remaining cheese.

Pop in the oven at 200 degrees covered in foil for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes carefully remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15 minutes until the cheese has melted and the lasagna sheets are cooked.

Eat and enjoy! Let me know how you make your lasagne?

Gingerbread Raw Nak'd Bars - Recipe

I absolutely love nak'd bars. I am obsessed with them, this is my current stash and when I run out I will most likely be very sad. Until I decided to look at the ingredients and put my food processor to the test! I was unsure of the correct ratios so I sort of made it up a bit but they turned out amazing!

Ingredients:

4 pitted medjool dates

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup almonds

1 cup pecans

Water

I firstly ground the almonds and pecans until they were finely chopped. I wanted some texture to my bars so didn't completely grind these to a powder.

I then added the dates, the ginger and cinnamon and a teaspoon of water and blitzed everything together until it formed a sticky paste.

When the paste had formed, I took it out of the food processor and pressed it into a lined baking tray. I then put this in the freezer for 20 minutes to set, then chopped into bars. this made approx 10 mini bars. I didn't even get a chance to get a photo of the finished product because these went down so well in my house! Apart from being a bit more crumbly than your average nak'd bar these tasted spot on. Perhaps I will add more dates next time to help them stick a bit better.

I can't wait to experiment with other flavours! What's your favourite nak'd bar? Will you be making your own version?

Chicken, bacon, quinoa and bulgar wheat bake - recipe.

My mum recently bought a bag of Bulgar Wheat and Quinoa Mix and I've been wondering what to do with it for ages. I scoured Pinterest and BBC Food for recipe ideas but nothing took my fancy. I made up this 'bake' recipe using different recipies put together so it's a bit random and I wasn't sure how it was going to turn out but it's lovely!

 

Ingredients

200g Chicken

Peppers

Tomatoes

Bacon

40g Light Cheddar

Garlic Salt

Chicken Seasoning

Sweetcorn

Quinoa and Bulgar Wheat Mix - 1 cup

(makes approximately 4 small lunch portions)

First I cooked my bulgar wheat and quinoa as per the instructions on the back of the packet. I poured 1 cup of the mix into the pan and added 2 cups of water and boiled for around 15 minutes.

In the meantime I chopped my chicken and put this in a separate pan to cook. When this was cooking I chopped my peppers, tomatoes and bacon which I removed the fat from. I then added this to the chicken and simmered it all down whilst the bulgar wheat/quinoa cooked.

 

When the bulgar wheat and quinoa was cooked, I drained this off and added it to the cooked chicken and bacon mix. I then popped this into 2 glass dishes.

  

I then topped the dishes with the cheddar - which is of course optional! Then baked in the oven for 15 minutes until the cheese had melted. This tasted really creamy and delicious and was really filling.

Please let me know if you have any other ideas on what to cook with this quinoa and bulgar wheat mix.