Giving up carbs for Lent!

Hey guys!

I hope you enjoyed reading my 'products I'm currently using' post :-) I always love reading other peoples' so let me know if you liked mine!

So you may or may not know that I gave up carbs this year over Lent! Last year I gave up caffeine (coffee, coke, chocolate, etc) and this year I decided to ditch the carbs instead. I was initially going to ditch all carbs but after much research I found that carbs have considerable health benefits (including releasing energy) and so I decided just to cut out the...

refined complex carbs!

Which meant, I quit:

* White pasta

* White bread - including rolls, pitta etc

* White rice

* Pizza

* White flour

So I continued to eat wholemeal bread/pasta, and the natural carbs in fruit and veg etc.

So how did I do it?

EATING IN

I didn't eat much white bread before Lent, but over this period I specifically ate wholemeal bread and pitta instead. One of the easiest substitutes I found for white pasta/rice was this microwavable wholemeal rice by Uncle Ben's. It was healthy and filling, but in hindsight I would rather have a bowl of 'real' pasta or rice!

EATING OUT

Eating out I found to be more difficult, as there was a very limited choice of carb free dishes in restaurants!

Bella Italia:

I had one of the few wholemeal pasta dishes on the menu which was Rigatoni Pollo e Spanaci (Rigatoni with Chicken and Spinach).

(picture taken from eatingideas.com as I forgot to take a picture of the dish!)

It was a wholewheat rigatoni with sliced chicken breast, field mushrooms and baby spinach in a creamy gorgonzola sauce and it really was yummy! You couldn't taste that the pasta was wholewheat, which is one of the qualms I have with substituting pasta. The gorgonzola sauce was VERY strong, though! Otherwise the only other carb-free dishes on the menu were salads, which I didn't fancy.

You can visit the Bella Italia website here.

Wagamama:

The thing I really liked about Wagamama is that you could substitute any of the noodle dishes for the wholewheat version instead! Luckily the dish I chose was made out of wholewheat noodles anyway so I didn't have to make any requests. I chose the vegetarian Yasai Chilli Men.

It contained stir-fried tofu, courgettes, red onions, peppers, mushrooms and mangetout in a spicy tomato chilli men sauce and was served on whole wheat noodles. This was absolutely delicious! Firstly you couldn't tell that the noodles were wholewheat, and secondly I didn't notice that it was vegetarian, either! It was so full of yummy ingredients that I couldn't stop eating it. I would definitely have this again!

You can view the Wagamama menu here.

Nando's:

The bf wanted to visit Nando's, and I tried not to kick up a fuss, but really there was little to eat on the menu that was carb-free! I mean, come on, it's Nando's! In the end I opted for a salad and, coming from an Italian family, I chose the Mediterranean Salad with Chicken.

It contained mixed leaves, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, celery & olives, and was topped with feta cheese and chicken. It was then splashed with olive oil, garlic & lemon juice. I have to say this salad was actually MUCH tastier than I was expecting! I wasn't even tempted to nick some of the boy's chips! To be honest though, next time I go to Nando's, I will definitely having me a 'proper' chicken dish!

You can view the Nando's menu here.

McDonald's:

As you can probably imagine, McDonald's is NOT the best place to eat carb free! After all, it's essentially a glorified burger bar!!! The trouble is, my fam eat there quite a lot (ashamedly) and so I often had to eat there, too. I would always choose a Grilled Chicken Salad.

This is actually really yummy! It's the only salad I like on the menu, as I don't like the bacon there and the crispy chicken doesn't take my fancy. I have to cover this grilled chicken salad in caesar dressing though as it's way too dry otherwise, but it's really filling and I will definitely get it again!

Btw, did you guys know that there's more calories in the deli wraps than a big mac?! (Aside from the veggie one!)

You can view the McDonald's salad menu here.

In conclusion

For me, the hardest part about cutting carbs wasn't the cravings (which were very infrequent) but more the inconvenience. As I mentioned, I've grown up on a fresh, Mediterranean diet all my life (plenty of pasta, pizza, fresh tomatoes, olive oil, etc) and so cutting out pasta is a massive inconvenience. When everyone else was having spaghetti bologanise, I was having bolagnaise and wholemeal rice. It just didn't make sense to me. I think more than anything I've learnt it's silly to try and cut full food groups out of your diet. Can you imagine the cavemen sitting there saying they don't eat carbs? No, they hunt, they gather, they eat! Food was primarily for survival. I agree that to maintain a healthy weight you should eat less of some foods over others (eg less sugar and fat, more fruit and veg) but overall a balanced diet is a healthy diet and there's no reason to cut out food groups unnecessarily!

Rant over :-)

Did you give anything up for Lent?

Let me know!

Love,

Sophia

xo

My Valentine's Day look...

Hey loves!

I hope you've all had a SPLENDID week and you're all looking forward to the WEEKEND! :-)

Apologies for this post being slightly belated, but I figured it's better late than never, right?

THE OUTFIT

FASHION:

Dress - H&M (see blog post)

Belt - Vintage (Moschino)

Shoe boots - Missguided.co.uk (see blog post) (similar style here)

I showcased my new dress from H&M as I thought the lace detailing was nice and romantic for Valentine's! It only cost £12 in H&M recently so it was an absolute steal. I teamed it with a chic waist belt to define my smallest feature, and added these wedged shoe boots from Missguided to add a bit of height!

BEAUTY:

FACE: Benefit That Gal Primer, Benefit Boi-ing Concealer (02 Medium), YSL Touche Eclat (#1), Benefit Some Kind-A Gorgeous Foundation Faker (02 Medium), Benefit Dallas Bronzer, Benefit Coralista Blusher, Benefit Girl Meets Pearl as highlighter.

EYES: Urban Decay Primer Potion (Original), Urban Decay baked e/s (Buck) all over lid, Urban Decay baked e/s (Hustle) on outer corners, Soap & Glory SUPERCAT Carbon Gloss liner on top lid, Avon Color Trend Kajal Stick (Black) on lower waterline, 2 coats of CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara. Ruby & Millie Brow Enhance on brows.

LIPS: Rimmel 1000 Kisses lipliner in Red Dynamite, smudged in with a Body Shop lip brush. L'Oreal Kiss Proof Lipstick + matching Lipgloss in shade 513, applied using said lip brush.

HAIR: Straightened using Original GHD's and held using TIGI Masterpiece hairspray. Clip from H&M.

As my outfit was essentially all black, I had to add some colour with some classic red lips! I used the L'Oreal lipstick as it's a Kiss Proof formula which is ideal when consuming a lot of food lol.

NAILS:

Rimmel Lycra Pro - Celebrity Bash

I swear this range of nail polishes are absolutely second to none compared to other drugstore brands! I ALWAYS come back to them as the range is trend-led, the consistency is thick and glossy and it features a massive fat brush which makes it so quick & easy! It's the Rimmel Lycra Pro range and it's available from Boots, Superdrug, Tesco etc.

THE MEAL

We went to the River Kwai in Horsham town centre. Anyone local will know that this is pretty much the only Thai restaurant in town and we fancied something a little different from the standard Italian, Indian, Chinese etc.
We had a platter to share for starters that consisted of curried chicken skewers, sesame prawn toast, fried pork and pork wraps. Very yummy!!!
We shared the mains that were on offer in the set menu we paid for. It included chicken & cashew nuts, chicken chow mein, black bean pork and spicy pork, etc. We didn't think we would be full enough but we were absolutely stuffed after it all!

Happy campers after devouring all the Thai food lol!

What did you do/wear/eat this Valentine's day?

Let me know or leave me a link of your post in the comments :-)

Love,

Sophia

xo

Recent OOTD pics! (ft Matalan, Boohoo, Next, Topshop, H&M)

Hey loves :)

Now it's not often I post OOTD photos, I don't know why but I suppose I never feel like it's worth a WHOLE post if you know what I mean! So today I've compiled a list of some of my recent OOTD pics, let me know what you think!

WHERE: STARBUCKS, HORSHAM

Tartan shirt - eBay (but originally Topshop)

Black cord shorts - Boohoo.com (link!)

Black Moschino belt - Vintage

Black fleece lined tights - Next

Black biker boots - Matalan (link!) (blog post)

I bought these high waisted shorts from Boohoo recently and I just love them, they're quite a thin cord material but they can easily be dressed up or down! I wore this tartan shirt to give the look a bit of colour, I'm guilty of wearing too much black at times! The boots featured in a Bargain of the Week post from me :)

FYI I had a skinny hazelnut cappuccino & skinny ginger muffin (YUM but so many kcal!)

WHERE: NANDOS, CRAWLEY

Gingham shirt (just seen) - Next (link!)

Black skinny jeans - Next (link!)

Black ankle boots - New Look

Black coat - F&F at Tesco (old)

Black snood - Next (link!)

Black leather bag - H&M

The bf and I took a spontaneous trip to Nando's recently and we watched The Descendants afterwards (which is amazing btw). Again I added the gingham shirt for a pop of colour, it will be fab for wearing in the summer as well, tucked into a pair of high waisted denim shorts!

FYI I had a chicken pitta (no mayo/cheese) w rice & diet coke, delicious! Froyo at the movies :-)

WHERE: WESTFIELD, LONDON

Faux fur coat - Vintage

Burgundy cord shorts - Boohoo.com (link!)

Black fleece lined tights - Next (as before)

Black biker boots - Matalan (as before)

Black leather bag - H&M (as before)

I had to up the glam factor visiting Westfield as there's so many posh shops! I couldn't go into MAC in scruffy jeans and UGG's lol so I wore this super warm faux fur coat teamed with another pair of Boohoo shorts. I was quite proud of adding colour to this outfit! lol.

WHERE: IN THE SNOW, HORSHAM

Tweed coat - H&M (old)

Black fleece lined tights - Next (as before)

Black ankle boots - New Look (as before)

Black snood - Next (as before)

Black beanie - New Look (old)

Black gloves - Primark

You can't beat tucking up warm in a cosy coat! I've had this coat for years (and when I say years, I mean since I went to college, which is about 6 years ago now!) Other than the buttons coming a little loose and the fit getting a little tight, it's still as new!

WHERE: SHOPPING, CRAWLEY

Cream bobble hat - H&M

Black coat - F&F at Tesco (old) (as before)

Black skinny jeans - Topshop

Cream socks - Next

Black ankle boots - New Look (as before)

I swear I've worn these boots in every outfit! Lol. I bought them after seeing Leanne Marie blog about them, she was right, they are super comfy and add a little height to a severely short person! Haha.

What have you been wearing lately? Do you often find yourself having to jazz up an 'all black' outfit? Link me up!

Lotsa love,

Sophia

xo

Health foods haul!

Good afternoon guys!

How are you all today? I don't know about you lot but I am on a bit of a health-kick at the moment! I don't know why, but something just clicked and I really WANT to be healthy from now on :-)

So I dragged myself into town this morning and spent a small fortune in Holland & Barratt lol. I made myself a little list, consisting mainly of items that I've seen on Keeping Healthy Getting Stylish and Sweet Potato Sarah - 2 of my favourite healthy living blogs!

Here's what I picked up...

• Dried mango slices
• VitaCoco coconut water (original, passionfruit, pineapple and peach & mango)
• Aspire Cranberry calorie burning soft drink
• Ecomil almond milk
• Yogi chocolate + spices tea bags
• Yoghurt coated raisins
• Sula sugar free sweets (strawberries & cream, caramel cream & clear mint)
• Salad sprinkle mix (sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeks)
• Flaxseed
• TREK bars (cocoa brownie & mixed berry)
• Nakd bars (cashew cookie & gingerbread)

I've separated all my foods into cupboard foods and fridge foods and stored them accordingly.

I've put all my cupboard foods into a little container and placed it by my bed (which used to have a tray full of chocolate, nono!) in case I get hungry.

I've also placed all the fridge foods into a lunch box and popped that in the fridge so that it's all nice and organised... I'm a bit OCD with things like that LOL...

Of course, I will review these all fully when I've had a chance to indulge in them lol, but I have to say I am really looking forward to trying these foods & drinks!!! So far, the only thing I've tried is a cup of coffee with almond milk, which leaves a lovely sweet taste to the coffee, and the TREK cocoa brownie bar which I enjoyed much more than I would! I'm going to bring the cranberry drink and the sugar free sweets on the train with me in case I get peckish :-)

What do you think? Have you tried any of these health foods before? What are your favourite health/superfoods?

Let me know!

Sophia

xo

When the Easter Bunny paid a visit...

Hey girls!

HAPPY EASTER!!!

This is the collection of Easter eggs I received yesterday. I have yet to eat a single one. I don't really know when to eat one?! After lunch I just fancy a yoghurt and then in the evening I'm already feeling kinda sluggish! I've got a feeling these aren't going to get eaten before I go back to uni on Sun! Any willing consumers in the Horsham area please contact me ASAP, lol!

I was also able to drink caffeine again after giving it up for Lent - I had a Diet Coke and a cup of coffee. As soon as I did, I felt bloated, my teeth felt funny and I was dying for the loo, so I think I'm going to continue to cut it out of my diet! If I'm tired I'll just have a glass of water instead...

Yesterday I just went for a run (did I mention I've signed up to do the 5k Race for Life for Cancer Research? Woop!) and then I had a Sunday lunch, before helping my Dad move his stuff out of his house. I earnt 20 squid, score, especially considering the amount of online shopping I've been doing recently!

I wore a simple tank, black leggings and a pashmina. Chill-out clothes :)

Here's how I did my make-up...

FACE: No7 Colour Calming Primer, Bourjois 10 Hour Sleep Effect Foundation in 72 Rose Clair, Maybelline Pure Cover Mineral Concealer in Natural (I've gone off Benefit Boi-ing at the mo - my skin's been really bad!) and GOSH Natural Touch Cream Blusher in Peachy Rush.

EYES: Urban Decay baked e/s in Buck all over lid, Avon Color Trend Double Ended Kajal Stick in Brown on upper lid and lower waterline and No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara in Brown. Mac Eye Brows in Lingering.

LIPS: Sleek Pout Polish in Pink Cadillac.

Here's how I did my hair...

After said run, my hair was in no fit condition to be worn down! I simply sprayed some of my new Batiste Blonde dry shampoo and tied it up into a messy bun.
Lovely jubbly!

How did you spend your Easter weekend?

Love,

Sophia

xo

Healthy meal idea: Vegetable broth...

Hi ladies!

Following on from my recent blog post 'My Daily Diet' I'm going to suggest a healthy (but seriously yummy!) meal idea for you guys! This is a unique take on pasta and stock, which was a staple part of my diet growing up. It's a quick, easy, Italian supper and I've just added some hearty veggies :)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 chicken/vegetable stock cubes
• Potatoes (2 small baking potatoes would be fine, or a handful of new potatoes)
• Cherry tomatoes (a handful)
• 50g spaghetti
• Handful of green beans (optional)
• Handful of olives (optional)
• Any other veg that takes your fancy :)

METHOD:

• Peel and slice the potatoes into small cubes
• Slice the tomatoes into small cubes
• Slice the olives in half
• Dissolve 2 stock cubes into boiling water (check the packet for quantity)
• As you add the spaghetti to the pan of boiling stock water, break it up with your hands into 1-2inch sections
• Add the potatoes
• Simmer for 5-10 mins (until the spaghetti & potatoes are cooked)
• Add all the other veg
• Season till your heart's content - I add oregano and grated parmesan :)
• Serve with a crusty roll

It should look something like this in the end...

(Serves 2 people)

TASTY AS HELL! & virtually no calories.

Enjoy!

Let me know if you try this recipe! :)

Love,

Sophia

xo

FOTD & OOTD: The sun comes out to play...

Hi lovelies :)

Living in Bournemouth town does have it perks, it has a moderate climate all year round really and never really sees extreme weather! This week it's been beautifully sunny & yesterday I chillaxed with some mates on campus with some free Waga's... result :)

Make-up wise, I wore...

FACE: Avon cream-to-powder foundation in Shell. Benefit Boi-ing concealer in 02 Medium. Nars bronzer in Laguna and Nars blusher in Orgasm (see post here).

EYES: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer potion, baked e/s in Buck all over lid & Smog in outer corner (all part of Naked palette). Rimmel Exaggerate liquid eyeliner in Brown on top lid. Avon Color Trend double-ended kajal stick in Brown on lower waterline. No7 Exceptional Definition mascara in Brown (see review here).

LIPS: Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Lip Protectant (read review here) followed by Sleek Pout Polish in Pink Cadillac (review!).

Oh, btw, I didn't straighten my hair... It's naturally like that :)

Outfit wise, I wore...

Similar to Friday's post really, except this time I wore my new leather gilet from Primark. It was the perfect weather for it; I probably would have got way too hot in my blazer! Just a reminder, I'm wearing...

• Trousers from ASOS
• Pumps from eBay
• Tank from Dorothy Perkins and
• Snood from New Look (one day I'll switch to a more summery pashmina!)

Oh, and did I mention I met Dave Berry today?

Here he is in all his gorgeousness... My claim to fame is that he asked me for a fag. Sadly I declined. Damn my healthy lifestyle...!

That's it for this time! Let me know what you think :)

Love always,

Sophia

xo

My Daily Diet

Hi ladies,

My health is really important to me and I thought I'd share with you the kind of things I eat on a daily basis to try and stay healthy. I exercise at least 3 times a week (running/the gym/boxercise, etc) which allows me to eat more of the kinds of food I want.

I don't really believe in diets - I love food and I've been brought up to enjoy it. I'm half-Italian so I grew up eating quite a traditional, Mediterranean diet (lots of pasta, homemade pizza, tomatoes, olive oil, cheeses, bread, that kind of thing). You may immediately think that those are the kinds of foods that will make you put on weight, but they're actually incredibly good for you. Brits are 3 x more likely to be obese than Italians, who have the 2nd lowest obesity rates in the whole of Europe! If I really want to shift some weight for a holiday or whatever, I'll just up my exercise regime! I'd rather do that and be able to eat more of what I want.

I prefer to make small changes to my diet that I can implement on a daily basis. For example, I eat...

• Low-fat margarine instead of butter
• Skimmed milk instead of semi-skimmed/full-fat milk
• Wholemeal bread/pasta/rice instead of white bread/pasta/rice
• Half-fat cheese instead of full-fat cheese
• Sweetener instead of sugar

These are things that I don't even have to think about now which makes it really easy to stay healthy.

Here's a sample of what I eat daily...

Breakfast:

• Scrambled eggs with one slice of wholemeal bread (using 2 eggs)
• Omelette (same as above)
• Porridge with bananas & honey/apple & cinnamon/raisins
• Granola with natural yoghurt
• Muller light yoghurt + a banana

Porridge with bananas and honey...YUM!

For those of you who skip breakfast... DON'T DO IT!!! It's the most important meal of the day!

Lunch:

• Wholemeal pitta bread with ham & salad/tuna & sweetcorn/houmous & veg
• Wholemeal bagel with ham & low-fat cream cheese
• Healthy soup (New Covent Garden/Sainsbury's Be Good to Yourself) with a wholemeal roll

Wholemeal pitta bread with ham salad, Muller Light and Robinson's No Added Sugar Squash

Dinner:

• Breaded haddock with brown rice & veg
• Breaded cod with homemade potato wedges & veg
• Quiche with homemade potato wedges & sweetcorn
• Thai green curry with brown rice (chicken or prawns)
• Stir-fry with noodles & veg (chicken or prawns)
• Jacket potato with tuna & cheese/ ham salad / homemade chilli con carne
• Spaghetti bolognaise (using 250g mince, Dolmio low-fat bolognaise sauce + wholemeal spaghetti)
  
  
  Homemade chilli using chopped tomatoes, kidney beans, chilli flakes, onion & garlic...

I try not to snack but I do get peckish mid-morning, mid-afternoon and after dinner.

Snacks:

• Fruit (apple/banana)
• Muller Light yoghurt
• Muller Rice pot
• Ambrosia low-fat custard pot
• Raisins
• Cereal bar (Frusli/Go Ahead)

Drinks:

• Water
• Robinsons No Added Sugar Squash

I've cut caffeine!

I've also given up caffeine for Lent, which means no chocolate, coffee, tea, fizzy drinks or energy drinks for 40 days. I haven't found it that hard actually. I've found that where I thought I craved chocolate, I was actually just craving something sweet, and a pot of custard or Muller Rice usually does the trick. I used to drink a cup of coffee every morning and one mid-afternoon. I don't miss the morning coffee but sometimes, when I'm nearing that mid-afternoon slump, a cup of coffee would go down nicely! Remember, if you drink a lot of tea and coffee, try and use skimmed milk instead of semi-skimmed, and swap the sugar for sweetener or try and cut it out altogether! I've found that by cutting out caffeine I've been drinking a lot more water - you should aim for 2 litres a day! :)

I hope you've found this post helpful - I know a lot of people struggle with their weight, but what I've learnt recently is that I love food, but I also love exercise, and so hopefully by eating healthily and exercising regularly I can maintain my weight. By sticking to a healthy diet regularly, it also means I can afford to pig out when I want to and not have to beat myself up about it. Believe me, I love a tub of Haagen Daaz just as much as the next person...!

What do you think? Do you eat healthily or do you think improvements could be made to your diet?

Love,

Sophia

xo