One Week in Sarah's Kitchen: Thursday

It was a real struggle to get up and motivated to exercise. I had originally planned to do a weights class at 6.45am but the gym is a 30 min walk away and as I got to bed later than planned I changed my plans so that I could get up at 7am rather than 5.45am. Instead I went to the local park and did some fasted sprints. I also went out for dinner in the evening and after a long stressful week it was very difficult not to sucumb to temptation. I'd eaten well throughtout the day though so I didn't arrive hungry and made sensible choices.

Food and Drinks:

Breakfast: first thing I had lemon, ginger and hot water. After exercise I had an almond protein shake for my breakfast


Morning snack: Minted tuna and lettuce wraps. To make these I mixed some tuna with 1/2 teaspoon of mint, added a sqeeze of lemon juice and a tablespoon of 0% Total Greek Yoghurt and then used iceberg lettuce leaves instead of wraps to wrap them up.

Lunch: Roasted Cauliflower and Cumin Soup followed by a plum and an apple

Afternoon snack: Two oat cakes with hazelnut butter

Dinner: as the week had been long and stressful and it was another late finish in the office I was taking my team out for dinner. I eat out regularly, so I have become used to making good choices when on the move. As a rule I don't have alcohol or too much starch unless it's treat night. This time I had aubergine topped with chopped tomatoes to start followed by chicken with mushrooms and asparagus served with veg and I swapped the sauté potatoes it was supposed to be served with for salad. I didn't had a pudding but to prevent 'pudding envy' whilst the others were eating theirs I had a decaf latte.

Water: 3 litres (this included the sparking water I had in the restaurant)
Other drinks: 1 black decaf coffee, 2 mugs of decaf tea with skimmed milk.
Organised for tomorrow: in very late so nothing

Exercise and Walking

Walking: 15 mins
Exercise: 20 mins sprints - sprinting for 20 secs followed by rest and repeat

Relaxation and Sleep

Relaxation: none! Another seriously stressful day.
Meditation: none
Bed time: 11.15pm
Estimated hours of sleep: 6.5

Before bed I always eat a few walnuts and take a magnesium supplement. I also sleep with a black out blind and sleep mask and use a pulse aromatherapy oil made of relaxing oils.

One Week in Sarah's Kitchen: Tuesday

The second day started well with 30 mins of circuits followed by an early start in the office. Again I'd prepared most of my food the night before so pretty much stuck to plan.

Food and Drinks:

Breakfast: first thing I had lemon, ginger and hot water. After exercise I had an almond protein shake for my breakfast


Morning snack: Thai Chicken and Lettuce Wraps. To make these I mixed some left over roast chicken with 1/2 teaspoon of green Thai curry paste, added a sqeeze of lemon juice and a tablespoon of 0% Total Greek Yoghurt and then used iceberg lettuce leaves instead of wraps to wrap them up. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo

Lunch: Roasted Cauliflower and Cumin Soup followed by a plum and a pear

Afternoon snack: Low Fat Moroccan Spiced Hummus with cherry tomatoes and sticks of carrots, celery and cucumber

As it was a late night in the office I also had a cocoa made with oat milk about 6pm

Dinner: due to a very late finish in the office I raided the freezer for a 'ready' meal I'd frozen when I'd made extra dinner one time.I had a chicken and veg stew with some steamed broccoli, cabbage and spinach

Evening snack: an orange
Water: 2 litres
Other drinks: 2 mugs of decaf tea with skimmed milk
Organised for tomorrow: gym kit, soup for lunch and snacks

Exercise and Walking

Walking: 50 mins
Exercise: 30 mins circuits - elevated rear leg lunges x 10 (on each side), squat jumps x 10, burpees x10, tricep dips x 10, pushups x 10, bicycle crunches x10 (on each side), plank (30 secs), side plank (30 secs each side) - all repeated 3 times

Relaxation and Sleep

Relaxation: Reading a chapter of a book in bed before sleep
Meditation: ~10 mins
Bed time: 9.45pm
Estimated hours of sleep: 7.5 hours

Before bed I always eat a few walnuts and take a magnesium supplement. I also sleep with a black out blind and sleep mask and use a pulse aromatherapy oil made of relaxing oils.

Almond Protein Shake

This shake is high in protein and ideal for after a session at the gym instead of a bought protein shake, which contains god knows what!

Place the following ingredients in a blender:

Serves 1

- 100ml of your choice of chilled, unsweetened, non-dairy milk (I uses almond milk)
- 75ml of natural yoghurt (I use 0% Total Greek yoghurt)
- 1/4 a pack of silken tofu (this isn't the tofu that you get in the chiller which is spongy in texture. It's found in the Asian section in the supermarket in the shelves in a cardboard/foil packet)
- a small handful of roasted almonds (roasting them isn't essential but it gives a great flavour)
- a few drops of vanilla extract (I used Ndali, as it is fair trade)

Blend all of the ingredients until smooth and place into a plastic beaker with a lid for after your workout