Junk food really throws your body around. After last night's Treat Meal, (which wasn't even really 'junk'. It was all organic, gluten-free, low-sugar .... just heavy on the carbs), I was awake until 3am. My usual bedtime is 11pm. I went to sleep with a bloated sore stomach, and woke at 7am with a feeling of something being not quite right in the belly area. 

I was also absolutely starving.

I hadn't had my 8 hours, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't go back to sleep. My tummy was grumbling and crying out for breakfast. It was supremely aware of the leftover Italian Octopus Salad hiding out in the fridge, and my mind began to concoct octopussy-breakfasty scenarios. 

It was all over. I had to get up.

I'm going to focus on detoxing today. No fruit, no sugar, no dairy. Just meat and greens with good fats, (olive oil, avocado, chia seeds and nuts).

I can't believe how amazing this Octopus Green Salad tastes for breakfast. It's putting a zing back in my carb-overloaded step.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Toss 3oz grilled octopus with 1 tsp good quality organic olive oil, 1 tsp red wine vinegar, 3 cups of green vegetables, (I used broccoli, beans, celery, bell pepper, cucumber and collard greens), 1 tsp chia seeds, cayenne pepper, and salt and pepper to taste.


Incidentally I weighed myself this morning. I hadn't gained or lost any weight. I was pretty stoked that I managed to treat myself last night without eating more calories than I burnt off. Sure, I didn't hit my 625 deficit, and I went over the 1700 daily maximum, but I didn't do any damage either. I ended up with 90 calories to spare.

So tired. I had a cup of Green Tea to get me out the door. Then Dave and I ran a billion wedding errands before walking Downtown.

We had a bit of a hair mishap last night. Dave went to the barber. Bear in mind, this is the second last haircut he will have before the wedding, so it had to be good. 

He came home looking like Danny Zuko from Grease, (short back and sides with a huge protruding curly bouffant-like mop over his forehead). It was so ridiculous I could barely look at him without bursting into hysterics. He gave me the scissors and asked me to chop. 

Big mistake. 

I cut too close to his scalp and he ended up with a freakish punk hairdo. Thankfully our mate Beck is a whizz with the scissors. We headed to her place today for an emergency makeover. Now my fiance looks semi-decent. More like Jack Johnson than a candidate for GRease on Broadway.

I also stirred 1 Tbs of Psyllium Husks into a cup of water and drank the sludge. It filled me up for hours. I couldn't believe it. Even though I was surviving on very little sleep today, I didn't get my usual blood sugar crash before lunch. 

It was a gorgeous sunny day, so we grabbed a Whole Foods salad for lunch and ate in Madison Square Park.

I stuck to Greens and Roast Chicken Breast with Walnuts and Sunflower Seeds. I dressed my salad with Vegan Hot Sauce and a fresh dressing made from Pears, Strawberries, Ginger, Garlic and Red Wine Vinegar.

I had an unsweetened Iced Green Mint Tea on the side. I actually couldn't finish the bottle as the caffeine overdose today was giving me a headache. I just need sleep.

Oh, before I forget, have a look at my new purchase. It's a BPA-free Metal Water Bottle.

I've been hanging for one of these for a while. I guzzle bottles and bottles of tap water daily, but I've been really naughty and refilling the same plastic bottle for months. Those things leach dangerous hormone-disrupting chemicals into our bodies even when you crack open a fresh bottle. (Most water brands hot pour and the heat reacts with the plastic, leaching the chemicals into our water).

Jillian Michaels talks a lot about the effects of these chemicals on your body and weight-loss in her book, "Master You Metabolism". 

Now that I have my proper water bottle, I have no excuses.

I had 6 Raw Organic Brazil Nuts in my bag. I ate them around 4pm.

Dinner followed the green theme. I made a huge Lamb and Greens Stirfry with Chinese Rice Vinegar, Wheat-Free Tamari and loads of Fresh Basil and Chilli.

To be honest, I'm getting sick of green vegetables. I don't know how those serious body transformation people live on broccoli and tuna for months leading up to competitions. I can barely make it through 1 day!

My body is craving the rainbow.

Having said that, I am amazed at how my appetite decreased rapidly without any sugar in my diet.

I topped it off with 2 x Coconut Water Icypops.

These a full of natural sugars. I am now hungrier than when I started.

Half an Organic Brown Rice Cake with Pink Salmon and Sun Dried Tomato.

Had to break the green rule just once. I'm feeling kind of deprived now and craving Pumpkin Sesame Cookies, Chocolate and Milk.

Dairy-free yesterday felt clean and good. I'm going to try it again today. I am slightly addicted to cheese sticks and Fage yoghurt. My system could do with a break from the same old foods.

Amanda Brown from Fit Life has some great tips on flipping your training and eating upside-down. In her blog post entitled: 'Fitness Idiot. Some facts. How you can Jump on a faster highway to fat loss success', she suggests cutting dairy and sugar from your diet for 2 weeks, and eating only meat and green veggies. After 2 weeks you slowly add berried and dairy back into your diet. It's called Paleo Eating and is succinctly described by Charles Poliquin as this: "If it doesn’t fly in the air, swim in the sea, live in a field or is a green vegie then don’t eat it."

I'm intruigued. However, I have a fridge-full of 2% Fage Greek strained yoghurt, part-skim mozzarella string cheese, fresh organic berries, grapefruit and pink lady apples. I'm not one prone to waste food, so I'll get through my supplies and then possibly give Paleo Eating a whirl in Week 7.

Breakfast today was 4 boiled Organic Egg Whites with Coconut Aminos, Tabasco and Cayenne Pepper, (have I told you how much I love a bit of spice?).

That was the protein quotient. I then tried soaking some Steel Cut Oats overnight with Chia Seeds, Berries, Coconut and Unsweetened Almond Breeze. It turned out kind of watery without the strained Greek yoghurt I usually add. I wasn't sure whether to eat it hot or cold. I ended up microwaving the bowl for 3 minutes, wary of the nutrient-zapping potential of the old microwave. But a warm bowl of cereal on a minus-temps morning was just what the doctor ordered.

Speaking of the doctor, he is also ordering rest today. I feel exhausted. Today is supposed to be my Treat Meal day too. I'm a bit hesitant to rest on the exercise and eat extra calories and carbs all at once. Although Charles Poliquin at shredded.com.au suggests not training on your Cheat Meal day. We'll see what happens. It's experiment time. As scary as that is when I'm only just hovering slightly below my using minimum weight. I have 8 weeks to go though, so now is probably the best time experiment. There'll still be enough time to undo any damage done.

2 Organic Vegan Choc-Coconut Cookies ....

Aaaah, sugar-free, gluten-free goodness.

I really need a chocolate boost today. I am done.

.... and 1oz Boiled Chicken Breast with Mike Geary's Sugar-Free Chocolate Fudge ....

I make mine with a twist on Mike's recipe. I skip the stevia, dried fruit, protein powder and rice bran. I sweeten it with Peach Butter and a frozen Banana instead. I also double the oat bran quotient.

I may try making it next time with some gelatin for protein. I'm a total convert on this new secret protein source. And who doesn't love jelly?

So tired. Seriously dragging my ass through today. I had a Green Tea to open my eyes ....

.... Then another half a cup right before the gym.

Organic Grass-Fed Beef Salad with Balsamic Dressing ....

.... and a piece of Coconut Lime Chia Slice.

Half a 2% Fage ....

(gotta get rid of all my dairy supplies now)

.... half a Ruby Red Grapefruit ....

.... and 1/2 Tbs all natural Almond Butter.

I noticed something today. After missing a day and a half of dairy intake, when I ate my yoghurt I got a bit of a belly ache and it seemed to stimulate my appetite. It could be a coincidence, but I now can't wait to test out Paleo Eating in a week's time.

At 5pm I ate 1oz Chicken Breast ....

.... and the other half of my Ruby Red Grapefruit.

.... plus 7 Raw Organic Almonds.

Someone made a comment on my blog regarding my portion sizes being out of whack. What my photos probably don't illustrate properly is that I always serve my food on a small side plate, (the one shown in the top right), or a small bowl (left). The full-size dinner plate is shown below for size contrast.

I find if I use a smaller plate I can cram it full and feel as though I'm enjoying a huge meal whilst cutting my calories in half.

It's Treat Meal time. Woo-hoo!

As per Kat Eden's rules, I ate my protein first. It was 4oz of Italian Octopus Salad. 

Yum.

Now for the treats. The Treat Meal rules state that I must serve everything I'm going to eat on a plate, sit at the table to eat, then once I leave the table the Treat Meal is over.

It's been a while since I ate a load of carbs, so I wasn't too sure how much to prepare. I tell you what though .... I learnt a few huge lessons tonight.

* My eyes are bigger than my stomach.
* I don't enjoy feeling full and carby.
* I miss the rainbow of colors in fruits and vegetables.
* I prefer toast to chocolate. (What!?!? This surprised me more than you can imagine).
* I should always use a small side plate to serve up Treat Meals. For some reason I decided to use a huge dinner plate this time. No idea why. (Well, perhaps refer to the first point above).

I served up a glass of 2% milk. I then cooked 2.5 slices of gluten-free 'Food For Life' China Black Rice toast and spread them with Coconut Butter and 100% Fruit Jam and Marmalade. I grabbed 24 gluten-free pretzels, 3 sugar-free Chocolate Fudge slices, 4 squares of high quality 75% Chocolate, and finally I baked some gluten-free sugar-free Pumpkin Sesame Cookies. (The recipe was adapted from ohsheglows.com). I left out the sugar, molasses and maple syrup, sweetening with 1 frozen banana and 1/4 cup of peach butter instead. I also replaced wheat flour with garbanzo flour and used 1 egg + 2 egg whites instead of a chia egg. I served up 3 of those on my treat platter.

After only a few bites of everything I was full. I couldn't bear to leave that warm toast smeared with delicious toppings, so I polished those off, all the while conscious of overeating. I didn't overeat, but I definitely felt more full than I have in a long time. Next time I would only cook 1 piece of toast.

The cookies were so filling I could only manage 2. And the chocolate .... well, look what was left. I only had 1 Chocolate Fudge slice and 1 square of 75% Dark. Shock horror! 

As for the pretzels .... meh. Not worth it. I ate about 10 and put them back in the pack.

There was a bit of tahini left in a jar, so I ate it with a spoon, (about 1 tsp). It tasted overly oily and wrong. Then I was done.

I ate all this at about 8pm. It's now 12:15pm and I am still full with a bit of indigestion. Man, how did I ever used to eat like this on a daily basis? Yuck.

Psychologically the Treat Meal worked a treat. I now can't wait to get back onto my healthy low-carb diet tomorrow. Let's hope it worked metabolically too. The scales will tell all on Sunday I'm sure.

P.S. I love the Treat Meal rules. Protein first forms a great filling base. Then having to stare at your whole plate of goodies while eating them is very confronting. If I'd simply followed traditional 'bingeing' habits and kept returning to the kitchen for a little more of this and a little more of that, I can see how the Treat Meal would transform into a Treat Evening with no end in sight. I would also have ingested far more than I did with these guidelines.

I'm a bit scared to add up my calories today. The Golden Rules were broken in order to treat myself, but I must remember this is all part of the speed-up-my-metabolism-and-burn-fat-plan.

Apart from seeking out the most delicious, nutritious foods on my Eating True Before 'I Do' Skinny Bride Mission, I'm constantly expanding my heart, soul and mind with a wealth of positive influences. These are what keep me bouyant. They are the the driving force behind my motivation and the basis of an online community of like-minded people.

One of my most favorite discoveries is Kat Eden and her brand new blog: Woman Incredible. Her launch post brings together 29 inspirational women and their top tips for mind and body health. It is truly amazing to read. I felt bowled-over by the intensity of the healthy vibes bouncing off my screen and I can't wait to delve into daily updates from Kat's world.

Thanks Kat, for living your own dreams and bringing such a powerful gift to women across the globe!

Organic Berry Brazil Nut Smoothie.

This is the most energizing, clean smoothie in the world. I made Brazil Nut Milk from scratch, (recipe from Kat Eden), then blended it with organic berries, collard greens and coconut water jelly. Before I added the greens it was the most stunning shade of pink, and tasted simply divine. The greens boosted the nutritional benefits, but also greyed out the flavor and color. The sacrifices we make for extra health, eh?

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: To make nut milk, soak 1/2 cup organic raw brazil nuts overnight in purified water. (8 hours). The next morning, pour off the water and place nuts in  blended with 2 cups fresh water. Blend for 3 minutes. Strain through a tight sieve.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Berry Brazil Nut Smoothie - blend 1 cup of brazil nut milk with 6 organic strawberries, 1/4 cup organic blueberries, 1 leaf organic collard greens, 4 cubes of coconut water jelly and 4 ice cubes.

P.S. I'm going dairy-free today. It's always good to shake things up. If my experience has taught me anything it's that routine kills weight-loss momentum.

2 x Organic Vegan Choc Coconut Cookies ....

I am totally obsessed with these cookies. They are my absolute shining glory in recipe invention, even if I do say so myself. How can such a chocolatey treat be so darn good for you?

.... and 3 slices of Applegate Farms Smoked Turkey Breast ....

.... and a cup of Wild Sweet Orange tea.

Turkey Burger Stirfry.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Fry 1 Applegate Farms Organic Turkey Burger. Chop and stirfry with 2-3 cups vegetables, 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp fresh ginger, 1 tsp wheat-free tamari sauce, 1 tsp coconut aminos, 1 Tbs coconut vinegar, tabasco and 1 fresh jalapeno chopped. Add 1/8 of an avocado and serve hot.

Organic Coconut Lime Chia Slice.

Time is running out for Dave and I in New York City. We have only 4 weeks left before we fly home to the land of Oz. Thanks to my cooking frenzy this past few month, the freezer is bursting with sugar-free, gluten-free treats and there's not enough time left to eat them all.

I've been trying to sneak these superfood Coconut Lime Chia Slices into Dave's nutrition plan, but her turns his nose up everytime. He says he can't stand the consistency of raisins. (They're the best bit! So sweet and juicy). So I've taken to picking them out of the slice and shoving the holey mess into his cake hole. He's still not convinced, but I think these are the greatest superfood muesli bar this side of Mars.

I cheated with half a Green Tea for pre-gym energy today.

After a lunchtime gym workout I sliced half a Pink Lady Apple ....

.... and wrapped each slice with Applegate Farms Smoked Turkey Breast, (3 slices in total).

I then added a dose of good fat via 7 Raw Organic Almonds .... and an hour later I ate 14 more Almonds.

That damn cardio spiked my appetite today.

Instead of struggling against my hunger, I grabbed a jar of Cilantro Green Olive Salsa and a pack of pre-cut veggies for dipping. I ended up eating half the jar, but it was only 70 calories of all natural ingredients from the earth.

I dipped Green Beans ....

.... a chopped Carrot ....

.... and a Celery stick.

At least now I'll be able to make the journey home from work sans grumpy mood.

Secret Banana Nut Smoothie.


Oh MY, this is the most insanely scrumptious liquid meal I've ever tasted. In. My. Life. It tastes like Banana Bread with a surprising springy texture thanks to a secret ingredient: gelatin!

It came about thanks to an accidental mish-mash of things I had in the fridge. Only 4 ingredients, (and a few spices). Seriously, I could live on this stuff for a year.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Blend 1 cup of homemade Brazil Nut Milk with 5 cubes of homemade Coconut Water Jelly, 2/3 of a frozen organic banana and cinnamon, ground ginger and nutmeg to taste. Drop in 4 ice cubes and whizz until the jelly separates and disperses. Drink immediately. (If you leave it in the fridge, the entire smoothie will set).

I usually grab yoghurt or milk before bed, but since I'm going dairy-free today I was forced to get creative.

I had Half an Organic Brown Rice Cake with 1/3 small can of Wild Atlantic Pink Salmon and a Sun Dried Tomato (oil washed off).

Carob Lime Bircher Muesli with Organic Green Tea.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Combine 2 Tbs steel cut oats with 1/2 cup water, juice and zest of 1/2 lime, 1/4 cup organic blueberries, 2 strawberries, 2 Tbs unsweetened shredded coconut, 1 tsp chia seeds and 1 small tub 2% Fage strained Greek yoghurt. Soak overnight in fridge and serve topped with a dollop of sheep's milk yoghurt and a few fresh organic blueberries.

This stuff is great. The chia seeds and the oats expand to form an impressive serving by morning. I didn't even notice the half-serve of steel cut oats compared to yesterday's recipe. It's filling and delicious.

1oz Boiled Hormone-Free Chicken with 2 Organic Vegan Choc Coconut Cookies.

A cup of Wild Sweet Orange Tea.

A cup of Passion Tea.

Organic Grass-Fed Beef Salad ....

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Fry and chop 1 4oz lean organic grass-fed beef burger. Toss into 2-3 cups fresh vegetables. Dress with 1 tsp balsamic vinegar, tabasco, cayenne pepper and 1 tsp coconut aminos.

Oooh, what a beautiful salad. It's a rainbow of crisp freshness. Yum.

.... and half a Ruby Red Grapefruit.

After a huge weights workout, I ate half a small tub of 2% Fage Strained Greek Yoghurt ....

.... 1/4 Tbs All Natural Almond Butter ....

.... and half an Organic Pink Lady Apple.

Truth be told, I was craving chocolate. Garden of Eden sells a minature block of Michel Cluizel 99% chocolate that it packed with healthy flavoniods and minimal sugar. (How can less than 1% do any harm?) I am daydreaming of that thing .... Might have to get some later. If I ignore a craving for too long, I often give in eventually and eat 10 times as much.

Oh my God, I had to!

It was EXACTLY what my soul has been crying out for. A teeny tiny (30oz) block of 99% Dark Chocolate.

Every cell in my body is singing. I feel like sunshine is bursting through my heart and beaming across the world.

Man, I love chocolate!

I balanced it with 3 slices of Applegate Farms SMoked Turkey Breast.

After walking all the way home from work, I cooked up an Organic Frittata with a Sheep's Milk Parfait on the side.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe - Organic Frittata: Fry 2 cups vegetables, 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp ginger, 1 tsp psyllium husk, Chinese rice vinegar, coconut aminos, dried chipotle, and fresh jalapeno. Pour over 2 egg whites whisked with 1 whole egg and 2 Tbs water. Cover top with 1 string cheese stick separated into strings. Cook over low heat for 1 minute, then transfer to broiler for 5 minutes, until eggs are set and cheese has browned.

And for the dessert ....

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe - Sheep's Milk Parfait: Grab a small glass and layer the following: 4 organic strawberries sliced, 1/4 cup organic blueberries and 1/4 small tub sheep's milk yoghurt.

I just stumbled upon this great recipe on BodyIncredible.com for homemade nut milk. I'm going to give it a try in the next few weeks. I've never considered Brazil Nut Milk before, but it could be the basis of a fabulous new smoothie recipe.

Red Chia Bircher Muesli and an Organic Green Tea.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: 1/4 cup steel cut oats, 1/2 cup water, juice and zest of 1/2 small lemon, cinnamon, 1/3 cup raspberries, 2 strawberries, 1 tsp chia seeds, 1 tsp fresh grated ginger, 1 small tub 2% Fage. Mix together and allow to soak in fridge overnight.

Mid-way through eating this expansive bowl of goodness, I calculated my calories and discovered that Steel Cut Oats are twice as dense as regular oats. This, of course, means double the calories and carbs. Next time I'll make it with only 2 Tbs of steel cut oats.

So I stopped eating (2/3 of the way through) and added some more protein to my breakfast in the form of ....

.... 3 cubes of Coconut Water Jelly.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Add 2 sachets of Knox plain gelatin to 1/2 cup Taste Nirvana coconut water with pulp. Boil another 1.5 cups coconut water and add to gelatin mix. Stir until dissolved, (about 3-5 minutes). Pour into ice-cube tray and allow to set.

This jelly is so awesome, only 2 tiny cubes has 8 grams of protein. (I made 16 cubes from the mix above). It's fat free and low carb, it's full of nutritional benefits and tastes delicious. My next plan is to make a huge jelly mould of the stuff and cram it with fresh berries, and maybe even nuts or unsweetened shredded coconut for a blanced meal. Too much potential!

1 oz Poached Chicken and 2 Organic Vegan Choc Coconut Cookies ....

.... 4 Strawberries ....

.... and a cup of Wild Sweet Orange Tea.

Chicken Avocado Salad.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: 3 oz chicken breast, broiled and chopped. Toss with 2 cups fresh vegetables, 1/4 of an avaocado, coconut aminos, tabasco, lemon juice, fresh grated ginger and cayenne pepper.

.... and half an Organic Pear.

I hit the gym for 40 minutes of cardio at lunchtime. Even though I've decided to ramp up my weights sessions and cut down my cardio, I'm not going to cut it out altogether. I love the feeling of getting my heart rate pumping. I love feeling fit and unstoppable. Without cardio, I'm not sure how you keep your fitness up.

After the gym I grabbed half a 2% Fage ....

.... mixed in 1/2 Tbs All Natural Almond Butter ....

.... piled on 1/4 of a Ruby Red Grapefruit ....

.... and 1/4 cup of fresh Blueberries.

2 hours later I grabbed the remaining half of the 2% Fage, added 7 chopped Raw Organic Almonds, 1/4 cup BLueberries and the other 1/4 of that juicy Ruby Red Grapefruit.

This should keep me going until dinner.

I used to eat a whole tub of Fage after the gym, but I'd be hungry again before leaving work and end up eating even more snacks. Breaking up my afternoon snacks like this is the best way to keep my metabolism firing and my hunger at bay.

While preparing my fish, I munched on a handful of Pumpkin Seeds ....

.... a handful of Organic Grape Tomatoes ....

.... and handful of Organic Mushrooms.

The main course was Oven Baked Sole with Organic Broccoli and Sweet Potato Chips.

Skinny Bride Mission Recipe: Wrap a 4oz fillet of Sole in aluminum foil with 1/8 Tbs organic butter, sliced spanish onion, 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp fresh ginger, and 1 tsp coconut aminos. Bake at 450 F for 5-10 minutes. Slice 1 medium sweet potato. Coat lightly in butter and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 450F until brown and crispy. Boil 2 cups broccoli and serve.


I ate a few too many carbs in this dinner. The sweet potato was larger than I thought. I just wanted to keep eating and eating thanks to the carb overload.

Dessert was 2 x Coconut Water Icypops ....

.... and 1 Vegan Organic Choc Coconut Cookie.

It was difficult to stop at 1. I'm having chocolate cravings today and I started daydreaming of eating 10 of these cookies in a row.

Being accountable to this blog was my saving grace. As was a large bottle of Fiji water.

Carob Bircher Parfait.

I used the remaining 1/3 bircher muesli from this morning, added 2 coconut jelly cubes, 2 sliced strawberries and a 1/2 Tbs unsweetened shredded coconut.