Morning Readers! I hope you got through the May Day Bank Holiday without too much damage. I'm pleased to say, I lost the 1.5lb that I gained last week.

I'm quite lucky really as Bank Holidays don't really worry me. Due to my Husbands job, he has to work every bank holiday so it's just another day to me. I'm happy that we could stop building the ark for a few days and actually enjoy some salad weather days but today seems to be back to the ark building weather. Hopefully though, summer will be just around the corner. Surely the country can't have all the drought conditions now?

The amount of rain and surface water got me thinking about the amount of water and fluids I drink. It's recommended that as part of a healthy lifestyle we should drink between 6 and 8 glasses of water a day. Slimming World say that tea, coffee, bovril, low calorie fizzy drinks, water and low calorie squashes can all be counted as your 6-8 glasses per day. Alcoholic drinks can't be included in your 6-8 glasses a day so those of you who do enjoy a tipple or two, you can't count it. It has really made me think about how much I do actually drink during a typical day. I don't drink tea or coffee but do drink 2 mugs of bovril and I also have 2 glasses of flavoured water. I'm definitely not drinking enough. Do you meet the recommended amounts to keep us healthy?

I've decided to keep a record of how much I drink daily for the next 7 days to see if I am taking in enough fluid to keep me healthy. It's part of my new outlook on my weight loss. I'm making a new commitment to help me lose weight but also to help me stay healthy long term. I've stuck to the "No Excuses" pledge so I'm adding a new one to my list. I pledge to drink 6-8 glasses of fluid every day. I want to see what a difference it will make to my weight loss next week. Why not keep a check on how much fluid you drink on a typical week. You may well be surprised at how much you don't take in. Salad Days How many times have we heard people say, "You're on a diet. You'll be eating rabbit food then." or "I can't lose weight because I hate salad." It's all excuses. There are so many wonderful things you can add to a salad to make it tasty and enjoyable. I used to be one of those people who hated anything remotely rabbit food like and now I can't get enough of my home made salads. Today I'm adding a recipe for Home Made Cheese Pie that can be served with a lovely colourful salad.

Home Made Cheese Pie

Ingredients

1 Packet of Cheese and Broccoli Pasta n' Sauce
1 Packet of Cheese and Onion Smash
3 Eggs
1 tub of Quark (you can use low fat cottage cheese but blitz it to make it smooth)
Boiling Water

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180/350 gas mark 4.

2. Place the Pasta n' Sauce and Smash in an oven proof dish, cover with hot boiling water and stir well.

3. Beat the 3 eggs and place in the dish with the tub of quark.

4. Place in the oven for 30-35 mins then serve with vegetables or a mixed salad.

My salads usually consist of carrots, sweetcorn, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, radishes, red onion, celery, rocket and vinegar. You could add things like, apple, melon, beansprouts, pickled cabbage and beetroot. To make a warm salad I add new potatoes and lean bacon to it. The more colourful and interesting you make it, the more you're likely to enjoy it. What would you add to your salads?

I hope you all have a great week and you keep losing those unwanted lbs. I'm pushing myself to get 3lb off this week so that I can reach my 7st mini target. Hopefully drinking more fluids will help. Don't forget to share your recipe ideas and any tips you have See you lighter next week, Love Wendy xxx