How to Make Small Steps Towards Positive Change

*This is a collaborative post*

We all face a whole host of challenges in life and it's entirely up to us how we choose to deal with them. If you know there are things in your life that are not going the way you want them to but you’re still not sure what to do about it, it’s important to start thinking about how you might do things differently and start taking small steps towards positive change. If you’re not sure where to start, the tips and ideas below should help you with that.

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Get Out of Unhelpful Routines

The first thing you should try to do is get out of unhelpful routines that are doing anything for you. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut but it’s not always quite as easy to dig yourself out of one, and that should always be your main focus to begin with. Break those routines and start creating new ones.

Do Something for Yourself

Doing things for yourself is not selfish and you definitely shouldn’t view it that way. If you’re in the habit of seeing everything you do as being about other people or for the benefit of those around you, that’s eventually going to become a problem for you but it doesn’t have to be that way. Making positive changes can and should start with doing things for yourself.

Start Replacing Bad Habits with Better Ones

When you develop bad habits, they can start to stick. That’s why you should find small ways to replace those bad habits with habits that are a little better for you. For example, if you’re a smoker, you might want to head to https://smokersparadiseclub.co.uk/ and replace that with vaping. It’s a small step but it’ll make a difference to your health. And that’s just one example.

Eliminate Negativity from Your Life

Next, you should think about how you can start to eliminate negativity from your life entirely. With so many negative things and even negative people out there, those things can really start to bring you down if you’re not careful and that’s the last thing you want to happen. So try to eliminate negative things from your life if you’re trying to remain positive.

Make Each Day More Productive

Making each day more productive should be one of your top aims and main focuses when you’re looking to make truly positive changes in your life. Lacking productivity doesn’t have to be a never-ending cycle of negativity. Make changes each day and take note of how, where and why your productivity levels are falling to unacceptably low levels and make changes there.

When you want to make change in your life and you want it to be sustainable, it’s all about being slow and steady. Small steps might not feel like much on their own, but they build up over time and that’s how you eventually get to where you want to be. So make the most of the ideas discussed above.

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Shrimp Salad

Enjoy this simple light refreshing shrimp salad over the upcoming warmer months! The lemon juice, dijon mustard and fresh dill gives this salad some zing! The mayo makes it creamy while the celery adds a nice crunch! Adding old bay seasoning kicks it up a notch and the splash of hot sauce gives it a little but of heat! Serve it over a bed of lettuce or with your favorite veggies!

Shrimp Salad

Ingredients:

14 oz cooked shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed,

chopped into small pieces (2 Leanest)

1/2 cup celery, diced (1 Green)

6 tbsp light mayo (4 Healthy Fats)

1 tsp dijon mustard (1 Condiment)

2 tsp lemon juice (1 Condiment)

1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped (1/16 Condiment)

3/4 tsp old bay seasoning (3 Condiments)

1/2 tsp Frank's hot sauce (1/12 Condiment)

Garnish:
green onions if desired, but subtract

from your Greens

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve with lettuce or your favorite veggies!

Makes 2 servings

Each serving provides

1 Leanest, 1/2 of 1 Green, 3 Condiments and 2 Healthy Fats

(Add 2 1/2 Greens to complete your Lean and Green meal)

Click Here to Print

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SWEET BABY RAYS BARBECUE SAUCE CLONE

We love thick and sweet barbecue sauce like the Sweet Baby Ray's brand. When I found myself out of BBQ sauce recently, because of the Corona Virus grocery shortage, I dug out this old recipe....it is DELICIOUS and very MUCH like Sweet Baby Ray's regular barbeque sauce.



Bacon wrapped Shrimp coated with

BBQ Sauce and Baked

1  1/4 cups regular ketchup
1  cup dark brown sugar (deeper flavor than light brown)
1/4  cup molasses
1/4  cup pineapple juice
2  teaspoons hickory liquid smoke
2  1/2 teaspoons ground dry mustard
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2  teaspoon garlic powder (not salt)
pinch of cayenne pepper
1  1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (not fine table salt)
1 teaspoon black pepper

Put everything into a saucepan and whisk it together. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to slow simmer and simmer 5 to 15 minutes, depending on how thick you want it to be.

You can use this immediately or store in fridge for a week or so or portion it out and freeze it for future use. 

NOTE: If you don't have kosher salt, you can use regular table salt, just use LESS, since kosher salt and table salt measure very differently.





 Happy Grilling!!

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Roast dinner leftover ideas - Make the most of your roast

Is there anything better than a classic Sunday Roast? I love the process of pulling it all together and serving up a treat on a Sunday.

Succulent meat, vegetables, crispy roast potatoes, and lashings of thick rich gravy.

With the way the world is at the moment (we are currently in COVID-19 lockdown as I write this!) it is more important than ever to make the most of any leftovers you have.

I find it almost impossible to cook a roast for any less than 4 people, so always find plenty of veg and potatoes leftover as well as meat.

I challenged myself to see how far I can make my roast chicken dinner stretch during the following week.

I added a few extra ingredients, but created 5 whole meals from the leftover chicken and veggies! 

All 5 of these recipes were made using the leftovers of one roast dinner.

Breakfast Patties

Extra Easy Syn Value: Syn Free (if you used my syn free roasties, otherwise check your own syns!)

Healthy Extras: A (if topping with cheese)

This is a tasty breakfast patti that's made from the leftover roast potatoes and some veg. It is absolutely delicious with some melted cheese and a poached egg on top!

You will need:

All of your leftover roasties

Pinch of salt & pepper

1tsp smoked paprika

1 OXO cube crumbled up

1/2 an onion, finely diced

low-calorie cooking spray

To serve: 40g extra light cheese per patti

Poached egg per patti

Method:

Use a masher to break up all of the roast potatoes.

Spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray, and add the onions. Cook until softened.

Add the salt, pepper, oxo cube, smoked paprika to the crushed up roast potatoes and mix. Add to the frying pan and heat for a few minutes.

Remove the mixture and allow to cool for a moment, then shape into burger-shaped patis.

Add back to the frying pan and gently fry for 5 minutes on each side, over a low heat.

Add some cheese and allow to melt. Remove and serve with a poached egg.

Paprika Chicken Sandwich

Extra Easy Syn Value: 2 syns

Healthy Extras: None

You will need:

Leftover roast chicken

1 tsp smoked paprika

Pinch of salt & pepper

1 tbsp Extra light mayo

Any leftover veg which is sandwich friendly!

Method:

Mix the leftover roast chicken with the mayo, salt, pepper and smoked paprika.

Serve in the bread of your choice with lots of salad!

Chicken Fajitas

Extra Easy Syn Value: Syn Free

Healthy Extras: A (if topping with cheese)

You will need:

Leftover roast chicken

1 red pepper, chopped

1 yellow pepper, chopped

1 red onion, diced

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp cumin

2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

1tsp chilli powder

Juice of 1 lime

1 clove garlic, crushed

2tbsp tomato puré

To serve: cheese and fajitas

Method:

In a frying pan add the peppers and onion, fry until softened.

Add the chilli, smoked paprika, cumin, chilli, chilli powder, garlic and lime juice. Mix and cook for a few mins.

Add the leftover chicken and enough tomato puree to make a sauce.

Leave to cook on low for 5 mins.

Serve in a fajita with cheese and salad.

Quick & Easy Leftover Stir Fry

Extra Easy Syn Value: Syn Free

Healthy Extras: None

You will need:

Bag of pre-mixed stir fry veg

Any leftover roast veg like carrots etc.

2 tbsp tomato purée

2 tbsp low-salt soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

2 blocks of  dried egg noodles

Low-calorie cooking spray

Handful of beansprouts

Method:

Mix together the garlic, ginger, chilli, soy sauce and tomato purée and set aside.

Boil a large pan of water, add the noodles,

Spray a wok with low-calorie cooking spray.

Add the stir fry veg and fry off for a few minutes.

Add the leftover roast chicken, the sauce and the cooked and drained noodles.

Fry off, mix well and serve.

Chicken Dirty Rice

Extra Easy Syn Value: Syn Free

Healthy Extras: None

You will need:

Leftover roast chicken

200g Rice long grain rice, cooked. 

1  Red Pepper sliced

1  Red Onion diced

2 Spring Onion, Finely chopped

1 Tin sweetcorn, drained

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp Cajun Seasoning

1 tsp minced garlic

1  Chicken Stock Cube, dissolved in 125ml water.

2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Frylight

Method:

Spray a large frying pan with Frylight, then fry the onions until softened.

Add the smoked paprika, garlic, and Worcestershire Sauce, Cajun seasoning and Balsamic. Stir and allow to cook for another minute

Add the peppers, spring onion and sweetcorn and stock. Cook for a further two minutes. Add the leftover cooked chicken.

Stir in the cooked rice, mixing well to ensure it is fully coated in the flavours.

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Mexican Shrimp Bowl

I am trying to use up what I already have in the house so I threw this together last minute! I wanted to share how easy it is to create a delicious Lean and Green meal in less than 20 minutes!

One thing I always have in the freezer is shrimp! I absolutely love shrimp and it also just happens to be a Leanest Lean so it allows me to use 2 additional Healthy Fats. Yes! I also tend to have bell peppers in the fridge. They are so good and can be used a variety of ways such as stuffed bell peppers, as nachos, in fajitas or stir-fry! They are loaded with Vitamin C with a single red bell pepper having up to 169% of the recommended daily requirement of Vitamin C! Such a great way to get that Vitamin C in and boost your immune system, especially during times like the present! I cooked the peppers in the air fryer but they are just as good roasted in the oven. Add the shrimp, peppers, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa and you have shrimp fajitas with all the fixings. but without the tortillas! So yummy!

Mexican Shrimp Bowl

Ingredients:

9 to 10 oz raw shrimp, shells and tails removed ~ should yield 7 oz cooked (1 Leanest Lean)

1/2 tsp Stacey Hawkins Southwestern Seasoning or your favorite taco or Mexican style seasoning (1 Condiment)

1 1/2 sweet bell peppers, sliced (about 1/4 inch) ~ 7.2 ounces cooked (3 Greens)

2 tbsp sour cream (1 Healthy Fat)

2 tbsp guacamole (1 Healthy Fat)

2 tbsp red salsa (2 Condiments)

Directions:

Lightly spray a non-stick skillet with cooking spray. Add shrimp and season with Southwestern seasoning. Cook shrimp over medium high heat for about 5 to 6 minutes or until pink and cooked through. Place shrimp in a bowl.

While shrimp is cooking, add sliced sweet bell peppers to an air fryer. Cook at 400 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through. You can also roast them in the oven at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes, stirring halfway through. Add peppers to the shrimp bowl. Then add the sour cream, guacamole, and salsa to the bowl. Enjoy!

Makes 1 Serving

Each serving provides

1 Leanest Lean, 3 Greens, 3 Condiments, and 1 Healthy Fat

Click Here to Print

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Best Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe | Slimming Friendly Low Calorie

This is my best ever low calorie Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe. Slimming World Friendly Syn Free Spaghetti Bolognese that's perfect for calorie counting or low-calorie meals. 

I absolutely love Spaghetti Bolognese, it is such a simple dish and so full of flavour. My mum used to cook it all the time when I was growing up and I would always be so excited when I knew it was being prepared.

Everyone has their own recipe, so I thought I would share mine! This is my slimming friendly spaghetti Bolognese recipe that I cook every time.

The beauty of this dish is that you can throw in any veggies that you have in the house. I always use carrots and mushrooms, but you can leave them out if you don't like them.

Scroll down for the full recipe and instructions 

This Bolognese recipe makes up a pretty big batch, which means there are plenty of leftovers that can be used the following days.

I love having it either in a wrap with some cheese or on some toast with melted cheese on top.