So in lieu of what promised to be a heavy(ier) weekend, on both the eating and the drinking front, I decided to make Saturday morning as healthy a start as possible. This was all in the knowledge of two meals out and several gin and tonics (and/or wines) to contend with. Awake at dawn, for some inexplicable reason, I decided to get a healthy breakfast prepared for when I came back from my morning run. Again, this was another sly manoeuvre – all in the name of damage-limitation.
Contrary to how it might sound above, I really don’t mind sacrificing a day or two from my health(ier) regime for family occasions or drinks in a pub. It’s just that in the past, that could have been an excuse to forgo all healthy eating in the run up to the event just because I knew I would be dining out and what’s the point of eating a bowl of fruit for breakfast when you’re having a pub lunch, just start with a fry-up now or it would have been the start of a very slippery slope. One that winds up with me drinking alcohol most evenings and demolishing family packs of greasy crisps…then eating biscuits and cakes in the week just because I let my (rather short) hair down for the weekend.
Well, this weekend, I have had my weekend. I had a Friday-night takeaway and wine; I had gnocchi; I had birthday cake (at least twice!); I had a slab of chocolate brownie with chocolate sauce and hazelnut ice-cream; I had chips; I had a fry up with two sausages and white bread, with a croissant and jam chaser; I had crisps; and I washed the whole lot down with at least one bottle of white wine and several gin and tonics. Do I feel guilty? No, not really. This is because I knew I laid good foundations with my salads at work this week and with my physical activity. I also felt the metaphorical return of light and brightness to my health-food halo when I went food shopping and stocked up on broccoli, avocado, butternut squash, spinach and salads; it was a good feeling because I knew I was back in control. I’m making a cleansing green soup for dinner tonight, packed full of veggies to help re-nutrify my body and get it ready for the week ahead.
One of the reasons that I feel able to regain control is the fact that I made a healthy start to my weekend. I had a cold Chia Seed and Raspberry Porridge. And it was delicious. It sat marinating in my fridge, whilst I went for my run and was perfect with a cup of tea – it was cold on Saturday morning – when I got back. I am a big fan of the tapioca texture derived from simmering chia seeds in with my porridge but knew time would be precious when I got back so I bit the bullet and tried them soaked, but without cooking. I’m glad I did, because I suspect this mixture works well over night and will be welcome in summer when I have relinquished my grasp on steaming bowls of oats.
To prepare: put about two handfuls of raspberries in a bowl and mash with a fork. Drizzle in a little honey at this stage to balance the tangy bite from the fruit. Add two tablespoons of porridge oats, a tablespoon of chia seeds and just cover with milk. You could use almond, hazelnut or rice milk I guess, but I went for good old semi-skimmed. Leave this in the fridge for at least 30 minutes and then add some more oats, a drizzle more honey and a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds for some much-needed crunch. With the protein hit from the chia seeds and milk and vitamins from the fruit, I felt it was the perfect remedy to an early start with exercise. It would also be great with a blob of Greek yoghurt.
Enjoy!
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