Zone Fail & Yummy Food

Happy weekend everyone!

Some of you might have seen my status about giving up on the zone, 3.5 measly days in! Many things attributed towards this decision. Thai food being one of them.

I was lucky enough to have a job interview on Thursday and to lessen the stress of interview day, I had arranged to stay at my brothers in London so that I didn't have to worry about being late. We decided to go out for dinner and at that point I realised that there was absolutely no way I was going to be able to stick to zone rules in a restaurant and didn't want anything else to worry about so I just let it go.

Without going into to much detail there were some 'hormonal' issues that were also making crave a lot of things. Being a lady can be so troublesome sometimes.

Anyway I came to a very unsurprising conclusion. 'Diets' are not easy to stick to, and they make you feel rubbish when you slip up. I did not allow myself to feel rubbish about this because I knew all this heading into the 'zone'. I even blogged about it the week before! If you can't see yourself sticking to it for a year, then don't do it! Which is why I have safely returned to the comforting, un regimented world of clean eating. I can eat when I want, how much I want, how often I want and combine whatever macro nutrients I so please. Much easier (and tastier).

Now being in London for the day, I of course headed straight to my favourite store, Wholefoods! I sat down for lunch on my own and overheard the guys sitting next to me talking on their lunch break. "I can't believe I spend £200 a month here on lunch, it is good food though" here here pal, if I could, I would.

I had a big burrito with brown rice, black beans, peppers and onions, pork, guacamole, salsa, cheese and hot sauce. In your face zone diet. You would never have allowed for that combination of carbs and proteins and fat in one meal. But I care not for this worry anymore! To top it off I had a super carby smoothie which I believe was called the 'super healthy detox smoothie'. Yum.

So in conclusion. Diets = bad. Clean eating = good. Eat well, choose good quality ingredients and enjoy it! I cut out processed foods on January 1st (after a burger - the bun being the problem, not the burger) and its been so easy. I'm not 100% strict on this - but you should all know this by now! 80% clean, 20% of what you fancy!

I couldn't help but take a few photos in Wholefoods, it had changed since I was last in there and I was so impressed with it. I do wish there were more stores like this around. There was loads of fresh fruit and veg, walls covered in every type of cereals and grains - just grab a pot and fill up on what you want. You could even get your own nut butters made right in front of you at the push of a button. Needless to say I was in there for a long time and I bought myself and Dan some treats for the weekend.

All that shopping made me very tired and hungry so I even bought myself something from the bakery section... Little naughty but hey, life's too short and I've been so good all year! I waited until I got back to my brothers flat and had this with a nice cup of camomile and vanilla tea. It was so delicious but boy did I feel it after. I was exhausted! I felt bloated, I didn't even eat my dinner until 8:30 that night - and anyone who knows me will know that as soon as one of my meal ends, I'm waiting for the next!

So friday it was back to work and back to lots of delicious food! If there's anything I did take away from my brief encounter with zoning, it was preparation, preparation, preparation. Chopping up your vegetables and storing them in the fridge is something I shall still be doing. It makes lunch so much easier! It took me 2 minutes to throw this wrap together this morning! Steak, cheese, black bean, peppers, onion and black beans - with a refreshing side of water melon :)







I got back to having my morning snack (thank god). Graze box is 'cookies and cream' little cookies, white chocolate drops and lots of sun flower seeds. Plus I spotted this new flavour of Nakd bars at wholefoods, rhubarb and custard!




I cooked for Dan Friday night, not strictly clean but the only ingredient in there that I wouldn't usually eat is a little bit of double cream. This is one of my favourite all time meals! Try this recipe please!! Mexican curry. I made enough for 3 people so I have it for lunch Monday too :)

And finally! I got myself another raw pudding from Wholefoods - this time I went for the carrot cake! It was really nice, and no nasty refined products either which makes me very happy!

So all in all it looks like a good weekend for food!

I am writing this blog because I hope to inspire lifestyle change. Only a few months ago I was eating a drinking like a champ and I honestly I felt like shit. I didn't like what I saw in the mirror and I didn't have a positive body image. I decided it was time to change and I'm tackling this one small step at a time. I am seeing progress and more importantly I feel great on a day to day basis, I have more energy and I just feel more positive all round. This is one of the best decisions I have taken and I am not finding it restricting at all!

I know this has been a rather long post with some not so healthy food in it but I really have to stress that restricting yourself and depriving yourself from the things you love is not the way to health! There are plenty of amazing unrefined foods out there to be discovered and enjoyed :)

Anyway, enjoy your weekends. Make it a good one!

Minnie
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