Ambronite Supermeal Drinks Review

We all know that to maintain a healthy diet ensuring you eat regular meals is essential. One meal that I often struggle with is breakfast. I often find that I am not hungry first thing so put it off then before I know it lunch time has arrived and I have missed the all important first meal. So when Ambronite got in touch with me to ask if I would like to try out their drinkable super meal shakes I though it would be the perfect way to start the day.

For me it was important that the shakes were not to be used for slimming purposes as I do not think shake diets for slimming work in the long run. But the shakes are an ideal way to make sure you are not missing any meals while getting a boost of vitamins, minerals and nutrients.

Each serving of Ambronite shakes contain:

• 10g of plant based protein
• Fibre
• 9 veggies, berries and fruits
• Omega 3
• 29 food based vitamins and minerals
• NO dairy, wheat or GMOS

Weight Loss Fashion

Today I am sharing a post that is a little different to my foodie post. I have spoken in the past about my weight loss journey. I still have not reached my final target but I have reached my original target and I am finally feeling happy with how I am. Since I returned to the working world a few weeks ago I have been getting glimpses of the old Kirsty coming back and I love it!

Along with the weight loss and returning to work I definitely needed some new clothes. So when I got an email asking me if I would like to try out some summer clothes the timing was perfect. When it came to deciding what to try I knew that I would need some blouses and dresses. But I like clothes that can be multi functional, items that can be worn for work but also at the weekend.

Super Boost Green Matcha Smoothie

Since starting Slimming World 25 weeks ago I have noticed my body and tastes change a great deal. Now that I have stepped up my weight loss plan to include more activity what I eat and drink has changed even more. On the days that I exercise my appetite is bigger but for good foods. Before I exercise I have an oat based breakfast and try to include banana for energy and a natural peanut butter to help the long term release of energy. My favourite way to start a gym day is with a lovely big bowl of my Full of Energy Porridge.

Whether you are exercising or not what you drink is also an important part of your diet. When I drink alcohol my whole body feels it and it effects the way I eat. So I am trying to make a conscious effort to not drink as much, limiting it to the odd drink. I have started to add super green matcha to my drinks again and on a gym day the matcha really does give me an added boost! In the past I have written about matcha and what a great drink and ingredient it is. I have used it in porridge, cakes and drinks. When I have matcha in my diet I find that my energy levels are higher, my moods are better and I generally feel better in myself. Over the last few weeks I have been starting the day with a delicious, green smoothie. It has become a loved part of my daily routine hence why I am sharing it with you today!

Kale and Egg Brunch

Since starting the Slimming World eating plan back in October I have been focused on good, healthy food to get my weight down. I have now lost 30lbs and now is the time to start thinking about toning up and getting fit. My weight loss has slowed down and this is due to me relaxing the eating plan a little and then need for more exercise. I was recently referred to the gym via my lovely doctor who could see how my belly was affecting me. During my twin pregnancy I got huge and my poor stomach was stretched more than I thought it was possible. I carried two, beautiful, healthy babies so believe me I am not ashamed of how my stomach looks now. It is a testament to carrying two 6lbs babies at the same time. But I do get very uncomfortable as I have been left with excess skin. After visit the doctor, who I will admit was so much more understanding than I was expecting she advised me to loose weigh, which I am doing, and improve my fitness. After waiting for almost 4 months I got the call from the gym! I have had my induction session and a tailor made workout has been set for me. This week is my second week of going to the gym. At the moment I have only been twice but I am hoping to up it to 2 sessions a week. 

Now that I am focusing on my fitness, the food, on my gym days, has changed. I am not concentrating so much on the 'syns' but eating what I know is good for me. Before I go to the gym I start the day with a bowl of my Full of Energy Porridge. This bowl of porridge is full of goodness from the oats, banana, cinnamon and peanut butter, just what my body needs before a good workout. What you eat after a workout is just as important. Protein is essential after exercise as it helps to repair your muscles. My go to protein foods are eggs and chicken. Today I am sharing with you one of my favourite post workout meals, Kale and Egg Brunch. This is such a simple meal that is full of flavour and full of goodness!

This is what I did...

The Ultimate Syn Free BLT

Who doesn't love a good sandwich? I certainly do but now that I am following the Slimming World eating plan I cannot always have bread. So to keep lunches exciting I have been thinking of ways to enjoy a sandwich type meal without needing to count the syns.

One of my favourite sandwiches has to be the classic BLT, bacon, lettuce and tomato. This recipe was created one hungry lunchtime when all I wanted was a BLT. I got thinking about how I could make it without using bread and, in my opinion, this is even better that the classic bread version.

My Ultimate Syn Free BLT is packed with speedy vegetables and protein so you know that with each bite you are getting nothing but goodness!

This is what I did...

Clean Eating with MuscleFood's Live Clean Meals

You may have read that I am currently on a weight loss journey with Slimming World. But this time I am not seeing it as a diet, it is a lifestyle change that is for good. Starting my journey has made me evaluate what I eat, how I prepare food and ensuring that my meals are full of goodness. As much as I love to cook all of our meals from scratch sometimes life takes over and all I want is a healthy meal that is already prepared for me. This leads me to the next problem, finding a ready meal that is nutritious and wholesome. This is where MuscleFood's Live Clean meals come in!

If you have not heard of MuscleFood before let me tell you a little about them.

MuscleFood is an online food and nutrition supplier. They specialise in foods that are not only a high quality but also contain the necessary nutrients and proteins that you need whether you are a keen sports and fitness person or if you, like me, want to eat as healthily as possible with the aim to get to a healthy weight and maintain it. All of their meats are of the highest quality and all carry quality stamps such as the red tractor, RSPCA assured, free range, Organic Association to name but a few. So you know that you are getting exactly what you want. MuscleFood is tried and trusted by professional athletes, they are suppliers to some of the top British restaurants and deliver straight to your door without adding any water or salt to their products. Their meat has never been frozen and is even classically butchered on the day that it is dispatched to you.

With this ethos in mind MuscleFood have developed their new range of meals, Live Clean. The meals are nutritionally balanced, full of clean ingredients and will never contain added sugars or anything artificial! The Live Clean meals have been hand cooked by a Michelin star trained chef and are ready in minutes!

Christmas Bakes

Christmas is a great time for bakes. I would love to have the time to bake more for Christmas but life simply gets in the way and I am not able to bake everything that we love. Thankfully Aldi have got a deliciously tempting range of Christmas bakes this festive season. Whether you are looking for tempting sweet bakes or some savoury baked snacks you can be sure to find what you are looking for. Today I am going to show you my top Aldi finds of sweet baked products and share with you a healthier Christmas cake recipe.

Before I tell you all about the sweet treats let me tell you about a little bit of news. You may have seen in the media how this year Christmas dinner is going to cost more, that everything is more expensive, however if you shop at Aldi this is not going to be the case. Yahoo recently published an article how this year, thanks to Aldi, your Christmas dinner will be the cheapest in 8 years! The Good Housekeeping Institute have conducted a comparison survey of the main supermarket retailers and found that Aldi was the cheapest, coming in at just £22.03 to feed a family of eight! That is just £2.75 a head! This is yet another reason to go to Aldi and save money!

Now back to the sweet treats!

Here are my top sweet baked treats from Aldi this Christmas...

Full of Veg Pasta Bake

Since starting Slimming World seven weeks ago how I cook our meals has really changed. Now when I cook I am striving to cram in even more vegetables. This includes already healthy recipes. Bulking out dishes with more vegetables simply means bulking out with even more goodness!

When I was looking through one of my Slimming World cookbooks, Family Feasts on a Budget I found a lovely recipe for Sweet Potato Pasta Bake. I had planned to follow the recipe but, in true Hijacked By Twins style, I could not stick to the recipe and added a lot more vegetable goodness.

This meal was a huge success and I wanted to share it with you today.

This is what I did...

Forza - Shake It Slim

You may remember that in the past I have written posts about how I want to loose weight and suddenly stopped. Today I thought that I would tell you why I stopped writing them and what has changed.

I have mentioned before that I once suffered with eating disorders but, thankfully now, they are behind me. This came with finding my inner peace and happiness. But finding my body confidence did not come as easy and I have been trying to loose weight again. But I have one problem. I like to eat, I like my food, come on, I am a foodie blogger, I need to love food to write passionately about it. Before I decided to put my calorie counting, not eating, rigid diets behind me I was asked if I would like to try some shakes to which I agreed. So when the Forza Supplements Shake It Slim shakes arrived I was curious to what they were like as I was wanting to trim up a bit ready for our holiday.

The starter pack contains all the shakes that you will need for one week, 14 shakes. There are two ways to use the shakes:

• Replace 2 meals with shakes
• Replace 1 meal with shakes

The 2 meal replacement is for weight loss while the 1 meal replacement is for weight maintenance. I decided to have just the one shake for breakfast. I am truly awful at having breakfast. I often find that I am too busy and simply forget about the most important meal of the day. This is how Shake It Slim has helped me. I have been having a shake in the morning as my breakfast and kicking my metabolism into action!

The shakes mix up easily and create a smooth drink. I have tried other powder shakes in the past and have found some of them to be difficult to get a smooth drink without using a powerful blender. But Shake It Slim shakes mix with the water using just a shaker cup.

Each shake contains just 204 calories as well as 22 different vitamins and minerals to promote good health. They come in three delicious flavours, vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.

After having a shake at breakfast followed by healthy meals have I lost any weight?

To be honest, I do not know. I have stopped stepping on the scales. Instead I am going by how my body feels and how my body looks. I definitely feel less bloated and am not snacking as I was when I missed a breakfast meal or shake. If this is thanks to the shakes or thanks to eating a healthy balanced diet you decide. I will admit that I am swaying to the healthy eating option but if you do not have time to sit and have a meal these shakes give you the perfect and healthy option. If you want to loose weight the best way to do it is by exercising and eating healthily.

Now that I have said goodbye to the fad diets I feel stronger in myself. For the first time ever I am accepting how my body shape has changed since having the twins and that it is now part of me. When I don't eat or am stressing over calories I am so miserable and moody. I don't want to feel like that. I want to feel happy and my body needs to eat healthily for both my physical and mental well being. Also have a daughter! I do not want her to think that she needs to be obsessed with dieting as I once was. We all need to show our children that having a healthy balanced diet is essential and that you can enjoy a piece of cake or some chocolate in moderation. We need to stop showing our girls how our bodies should look according to the media. We are all different, we all have different shapes, there is no "perfect figure" and we need to embrace our bodies as they are! This may not be the review that you were expecting but I am being honest. They are nice drinks, they probably do help you loose weight if you have more will power than I do but they are just not for me and I do not want to be hypocritical and tell you something I do not believe in.

If you would like to try the Shake It Slim starter pack it retails at £25.99 and is available at Boots and Holland and Barrett. Or you can order directly from Forza and pay £18.99.

Disclosure: I received a Forza Shake It Slim for the purpose of this post. All words, views and opinions are my own and 100% honest. No cash payment was received.

Nutribuddy - Weight Loss Starter Kit Review

A few weeks ago I was sent the Nutribuddy weight loss starter kit.  Regular readers will know that I am wanting to loose weight ready for the Carnival Cruise that we will be going on in the summer. So when I saw that Nutribuddy were looking for bloggers to try their product I was excited to give it a go. I truly believe in eating a balanced diet to loose weight but do believe that sometimes we need something to give us that initial push. I also like to try out new slimming products to see if they really do what they promise to do!

When I received the Nutribuddy starter kit I was excited to get going. The started pack consists of:

• Sculpting Whey
• Hunger fix capsules
• Multi vitamin tablets
• Shaker bottle
• Free - Little Book of Weight Loss

Healthy Spinach and Ricotta Style Cannelloni - Slimmerseekers Thursday Week 7

For this weeks Slimmerseeker Thursday I thought that I would share with you a super healthy recipe. I don't know about you but I love ricotta cheese, especially with spinach. But with Slimming World ricotta equals syns. So I thought that I would have a go at making my own syn free version of this much loved, cheesy dish.

In the past I have used cottage cheese as a lasagne topping so I thought that I could substitute the ricotta for fat free cottage cheese and it worked perfectly!

This is what I did...

Slimmerseeker Thursday - Week 6

Welcome back to another week of Slimmerseeker!

Last week I mentioned how we are now going to be eating one meat and one fish meal a week and this week we have enjoyed more of a variety. Last week the Hubby finish a day early and over the weekend we did over indulge. On the Thursday night we enjoyed snacks and wine and on Friday we went out for a meal and I ate exactly what I wanted to, I even had bread! The weekend went on in fairly the same direction so I was not expecting any great changes in my weight this week. But in life you need to have a bit of time off and definitely need to enjoy some treats every now and then.

Before I tell you what my weigh in results were this week let me tell you about the other Slimmerseekers that joined in last week...

Slimmerseeker Thursday - Week 5

This week has seen another weigh in and another successful week. I am also delighted that I have leaped over my first hurdle.

Today I want to talk a little bit about diets. When I say diets, I do not mean slimming diets, I mean the way we eat in general.

Wow it can be so confusing! Knowing what to do to be right, what really is best for your health. There are so many conflicting opinions!

You may remember that I have said that we were trying different ways of eating. We have been trying a more vegan, plant based diet but after reading further into what health benefits there are from meat and fish it really has got me confused as to what is the best way to eat. What really is the way to eat for optimum health benefits?

After a lot of discussions with the hubby and wanting what is the best diet for the children we have decided that we will be eating meat and fish but keeping it at one meat dish a week and one fish dish and have the remaining meals as vegetarian. But when it comes to buying meat I will be sourcing it from local farm shops where the meat is reared locally and can be traced 100%. We will be following a clean eating diet which is one that we both believe in and do already part follow. We are going to cut out heavily processed foods and try and limit ingredient lists on products to just 5 ingredients. This will not be hard with regard to our main meals as I already cook our food from scratch but with the children's treats I will be more strict. If they want cakes and biscuits I will bake them! Yes it will mean more kitchen time for me, but I am not complaining!

Before I tell you this weeks results let me tell you a bit about some of the posts that were shared with Slimmerseeker Thursday last week...

Slimmerseeker Thursday - Week 2

This is now my third week following my Slimmerseeker plan. My regime is to follow the Slimming World eating plan, listening to my Thinking Slimmer Slimpod and exercising daily. My exercise is a combination of the 30 Day Shred with Jillian Michaels and regular keep fit classes and walking more. My goal is to feel confident with my body when we go on holiday in August.

Before I tell you about my week I would like to say a big thank you to the people who joined in with the first week of the Slimmerseeker linky.

Pempi's Palace shared a great food planner that she uses. It is a great way to record what food you eat and the amount of water that you drink. I know that I need to use a water chart as I certainly need to increase my water intake.

Pempi's Palace - Food Plan

This led perfectly onto Lucy Locket Loves post about the 4 Week Water Challenge that is to raise money for Water Aid. For every £1 that is donated the government will match it until 10th February. Again this has made me think about my water intake and how lucky we are!

Mrs Shilts shared a delicious Butternut Squash recipe. Butternut squash is such a versatile vegetable that is perfect for soup. You can add a variety of spices and herbs and can be changed in so many different ways and flavours. But best of all it is a syn free soup! Yay!

Madhouse Family Reviews shared how after Christmas she was finding it hard to get back on track. But I am sure that everything will get back on plan. I always struggle after Christmas especially when there are treats around! I hope to see that the Slimpod has helped this week!

Now on to my week. This is how I have got on...

Slimmerseeker Thursday - Week 1

Yay, week one has been completed!

The first week of the diet has been a great success! If you did not see last week post about why I am wanting to loose weigh, what my motivation is and how I plan to do it you can see it all in my first Slimmerseeker post.

When I finished writing this post, I went to link up with the support linkys that I used to join in with only to find that they had stopped. When I was slimming last year I found these groups to be a great support and encouragement. So I was disappointed to see that they had ended. So this gave me an idea to make Slimmerseeker Thursday into a linky where you can join in and share your weight loss journey posts, fitness posts and of course your healthy recipes that will help and inspire others. I really do hope that this new linky is a success and we can all help each other on this difficult path to self contentment.

Anyway, let me carry on telling you about my week.

Before I tell you my weigh in results, let me tell you a bit about my week. I am going to be totally honest with how I am getting on and how my weeks are going. If I have a hard time, I will tell you. Weight loss and transforming your body is not easy and I cannot stand it when people make out that it is. For normal people it is hard work and I want to show you a true picture of how it is.

So how was week one?

Slimmerseeker Thursday - Starting Week!

As you may already know we have got an important summer holiday to go on this year! Last year we were selected as Carnival Cruise's Foodieseeker Family. That means we will be going on our first summer holiday abroad as a family of five!

Before the twins arrived I regularly went abroad and loved lazing by the pools and exploring unknown countries. Before the twins arrived I was slim and owned more bikinis than I can remember. Back then I was confident about my body. But after having children your body changes. As I was so big during my twin pregnancy by body and shape changed a lot!

Now I have zero body confidence.

I did gain back a lot of my confidence last year after doing the Juice Plus programme but as soon as I stopped and started to eat again the weight went back on and my body confidence went tumbling back down. Before I started having problems with my back I was regularly attending a keep fit class and started to see the weight coming off and was at the fittest that I have been in a long time. Then disaster struck and my back started to play up. This led me to feeling down, unable to walk far and yes I comfort ate! As my mobility was minimal the weight came on. Now I am at my heaviest and I am not happy about it. My body confidence has vanished and I love nothing more than hiding under a big baggy jumper to hide my body.

Now I want to change and I have a goal!

I want to loose weight, improve my fitness and feel confident to wear a swim suit while cruising through the Mediterranean. I want to wear pretty little summer dresses and skirts. I want to not only look good but I want to feel confident. I want to be happy to be in our holiday pictures and I want to like what I see.

Thank you Carnival for giving me the fighting spirit back!

So what am I going to do to achieve my goal? Well I have a few strategies in place and I want to tell you more and make Slimmerseeker Thursday a regular post to keep me going and to motivate me further.

Here are my Slimmerseeker, Project Swimsuit plans...

Beef Kheema - Cook Blog Share Week 1 2016

Welcome to a new year of CookBlogShare. I am delighted to say that CookBlogShare will be continuing every week during 2016. I am also delighted to tell you that Mandy from Sneaky Veg and Hayley from Snap Happy Bakes will be joining me.

I am currently looking into further ways of sharing and promoting all of the lovely recipes that link up each week. We currently pin and tweet the recipes as they have been the most successful ways. There is a Google+ community which I am hoping to grow. Please come along and join the CookBlogShare community and share it, the more people in the group wider the reach for the recipes will get! I am also thinking about sharing the weekly round up collage on Instagram but would love to know what you think so please do let me know. 

Now, onto this weeks CookBlogShare. After an over indulgent Christmas I am craving some healthy meals and am kick starting my slimming plans, so expect a lot of healthier recipes coming soon!

This week I am sharing my Beef Kheema. Kheema is a perfect way to enjoy the flavours of curry without all of the calories from a creamy sauce. Kheema is also a great way to use up any bits of vegetables that you may have, whether they are leftover vegetables or an odd carrot left in the fridge.

This is what I did...

Sculptress - A Great Way to Kick Start the Diet!

If you are a regular reader you will know that I have been struggling with back ache for the last couple of months. This meant that my diet and weight loss was put on hold until I was feeling better and was more active again. This resulted in me putting any weight that I had lost back on again and this ultimately got me down.

So when I was approached by MaxiNutrition asking me if I would like to try some of their products I saw it as an opportunity to re start my diet and give it the kick start that it needed. 

MaxiNutrition are an online sports and body fitness site who specialise in sports protein drinks that enable you to have the best body performance possible. To help you get the products that you need you simply tell MaxiNutrition what you body goals are. Whether you are looking to loose weight or take part in a triathlon, tone up your body or develop a six pack they have all of the information that you need. They can tell you what exercise plans you need, what food is best to eat and what supplements will help you reach your goal. So when I saw that they could help me to loose weight I knew that this would give me the kick start that I needed. 

I decided to give the Sculptress range a try and was sent a two week plan to get me started. I received a tub of the Sculptress chocolate flavoured powder meal supplement, the Sculptress tablets to help improve my metabolism, six pre prepared Sculptress strawberry drinks and the shakers. In the past I have tried meal supplements and I will admit that I do not agree with using them long term. I am a true believer in a healthy, well balanced diet and that means eating a variety of foods, not just liquids. But I do think that they are a great way to kick start a diet and give you the weight loss that will motivate you to stick with a healthy eating diet.

SlimmerSeeker - Weigh In 2

This week has been a good week. I have felt in control of my eating and feel that I am starting to enjoy the Slimming World plan.

I will admit to feeling quite nervous when I stood on the scales this morning. I knew that I had followed the plan and that I had not been going over my syn allowance, but I still felt nervous.

Nervous because this week I have always been full and I have eaten a lot of food! Well it feels like a lot of food but that is probably because I am used to snacking and picking so never really feeling full. But following the Slimming World eating plan the majority of my meals have been syn free. Consisting of meat, fish, vegetables, pasta or rice. As they have been syn free I really have filled  my plate so that I feel full. This has stopped my urge to eat between meals and eating the wrong foods! I will be  sharing some of my low syn and syn free recipes. So far this week I have featured these two delicious syn free and low syn recipes...

SlimmerSeeker - Weigh In 1

Last week I mentioned that I am going to restart my slimming campaign and explained why I now have a goal to work to.

I have now been following the Slimming World food optimising plan since Monday. I have tried to follow it before but I lacked motivation. This time it feels different. I am making healthier choices and enjoying them. Last time I wasn't completely honest and did not follow the plan 100%, hence why I failed and returned to my unhealthy ways! This time I have got motivation and determination behind me, but more importantly I have something to work to.

When I weighed in at the end of last week I was not surprised to see that I have put on all of the weight that I lost last year. Last year I decided to follow the Juice Plus plan which I can now see was not the healthiest way to loose weight. You are denying your body of food so therefore crave it more. As the diet is mainly shakes as soon as I started to eat again the weight came back on. As I had denied myself so many foods when I did start to eat I wanted all of the foods which I had missed. I am a true believer in everything in moderation. We can enjoy treats as long as they are not all the time and are balanced out with both exercise and other healthy foods.

That is why I feel that the Slimming World plan is going to be the best plan for me. I am a foodie, I love my food, I love trying new foods and it is a big part of my life!