Slimming World questions
 

Hi

I live in the US, though I am english. I moved here 6 yrs ago, from Cornwall!

So I have read about Slimming World, and it sounds great. I have only ever tried the WW diet, and it doesn't work well for me because I like food so much! I want to try Slimming World, but it is hard as obviously they don't have groups over here. So my question is, do the SW books have info about syns and free foods in them? I can get the books of Amazon. I would join online, but it is about 75 quid for one month, which I cannot afford. How else can I get this info if it isn't in the books? Is there a website? I am veggie, so I'd only be doing green days as far as I can see?

Thanks for any help! Hopefully SW will be coming to the US soon :D

Lucy

I think the ww no count is a bit like sw, if you get the main sw members handbook from ebay that gives you all the basic non branded syns and the plan they go for around 10 - 20 quid.

Oh and welcome to the forum. :D

I do Slimming World, I find it great! I lost 10 and a half pound in my first week. I never feel hungry... apart from weekends, but that's cause they're my lazy days... I usually had pasties and chinese on a Saturday! LOL!
I only have the SW book I got when I joined, the Syns and free foods are in there.
If you're a veggie, all veg and fruit is free... if you're doing green days, so is your potatoes. ;) I do mainly green days even though i'm not a veggie, I just find it easier to have a plate of Jacket potatoes and beans in work! Pasta is free too.
In the classes they do green day recipe books, I haven't picked one up yet, but they look good.
The Syns, I don't know if the syns in the book would be much help, because not sure what US alternatives would be. Stuff like your healthy extras would be your cheese, milk and bread etc. It's pretty simple and you can stuff yourself silly on veg and it's all free! :D But, funnily enough pureed fruit you have to syn!? LOL! Apparently you can consume more if it's pureed... ok, so if I sit there with 7 bananas and 7 apples as long as I chew them it's fine, but if I puree them it's not!? LOL! Or perhaps i'm meant to chew them but spit them out? LOL!

Yay on your being a Southwester! I'm from Plymouth. :)

Thanks for the welcomes!

Homersmummy, My mum lives in Exeter, so you're neighbours! I will be going to Exeter in July, so I'll go to a meeting then, and hopefully pick up the materials ( do you get them all in your first meeting?)

There's a Slimming World magazine you can buy in newsagents, that is really good and motivating and quite cheap, perhaps your mum can post that to you occasionally. It has basic information but doesn't give too much away, but it has great recipes and ideas, and of course motivating stories.

I don't do SW, one of my friends at work is, but it looks like a solid plan.

Ello and welcome!

I have seen Slimming World and if I didn't do Rosemary Conley, that would probably be my next choice. It's not dissimilar in some ways - just sensible, healthy eating with a little of what you fancy thrown in.

Rosemary Conley does have an online and international club, slimwithrosemary I think it's called. So she might be an option for you. I've heard good things about it, but I've just used her books. It might be worth a try til they get Slimming World. I used to live in the US too - the only food we could eat there was Mexican, but we were in Colorado!

Hope that helps.

Hi Lucy - and a big welcome. :wel3fc:

OMG - Mexican food - my favourite! Slurp!!!! Its amazing how many ways there are to cook a tortilla. :love:

yeah, tell me about it. I live in San Diego, about 30 minutes from the border w/ Mexico, so there is a LOT of Mexican food here. I am not a fan though really, which is just as well (not the best food when you're trying to lose weight!)

I am going to try and get the books for SW off Ebay- thanks for the tip!

:hug:
Small world. ;)

You get a wallet when you join, which contains your big book of food, free foods, a-b choices, syns etc. The little book of syns, some other random bits and bobs and they have recipe books on sale for a few £ each.

I didn't get the little book of syns :tantrum: ;)

Oh I dunno what it is then lol! It's a little book of something!? LOL! I haven't looked at it to be honest. ;) I think it might be the main stuff of the book, but squished down. :)

I tell you what is good, the Free Food pocket book. Oooooh, it's ace! I have been taking it everywhere with me! It lists foods by make/shop and whether they're free on red/green or both. It's excellent! Cost £1.75 or so. Really really handy! So practically lived off of free food this week. If I haven't lost weight, i'm gonna be veeery annoyed!

It is probably the little book of syns maybe your consultant had loads left and wanted rid. ;) My free food book is ancient two years old. I've never been very good with free food that's my problem.

I know the consultant told me she gets it all the time, how can I eat all this but still lose weight, you can... But still confuses the heck out of me!

What shocked me is in the last Free Food book, something which was free on a green day is now 19 syns?!?! How the heck they work that one out? LOL! Bit of a hike me thinks!

Oooh, but if I don't loose this week, i'm gonna call her a liar! ;) Well, I might just think it. :D

Must of had the ingredients changed or something. :shrug: If all the ingredients aren't a free food then the cals from the non free ingredients are 20 cals = 1 syn.

Yeah, that would make sense. :)

ok, so I had my first day today. it went ok, but it is hard because I am not really sure what I can eat yet! Plus I have no clue what american foods would be free foods. I really want this to work, as it seems like the perfect diet for me, but I need to work a lot of stuff out. Does a food become free if all the ingredietns are free, or there other foods that re free that have some syn ingredients, iykwim? Also, you said about 20 cals being 1 syn. Is that how they work them out in general? So many questions, sorry!

There's a syn calculator on the website have you tried that? Free foods are mostly unbranded stuff I only really know the green plan - eggs fruit very low fat yoghurt pasta rice potatoes etc.

yes

and yes. ;) If it is not a free food it is synned 20 cals = 1 syn. Say you have roast veg or baked in the oven chips they are free then if you have 100 cals of olive oil on them that would then be 5 syns or a healthy extra as olive oil is a HE.

thanks evggie, you are helping so much! Where can I find out where the branded free food is? I know there is a pasta and sauce mix.. anything else? Is it on the website? I have a British shop up the food from me, so I want to see if it sells any of it. (they sell mostly sweets..yummmmmm..which is why I don't go there much!)

The branded food is on the syns online bit of the website.

I meant the branded free food- like the Bachelors pasta and sauce.

Yes if you put them in it will tell you if they are free or not. Apart from that there is a branded free food book.

Hi

I am new to this forum..let me get this straight Green days you can have as much pasta, potatoes, beans fruit and veg as you like. Red days as mch meat, fish, fruit and veg as you like. Plus healthy extras like bread and milk and syns!??

How many syns can you have and how many healthy extras are allowed. I really like the sound of this diet, i have bought the magazine to have a quick spy!

Any advice is greatly recieved! xxx

Hi GymRabbit! Yes, that about sums it up! You can have between 5-10 syns a day, I usually have a maximum of 10, but it depends on how active you are and how much weight you need to lose. There are two types of Healthy Extras, A's and B's. The Healthy extra A's are calcium type foods, such as milk and cheese, and they suggest that you have one or two of them per day.

The B's are usually full of fibre but also have portions of what is free on the opposite day. So if you're on a green day for example, then meat and fish is included in the Healthy Extra B's, and on a red day, potatoes, pasta etc are included. You should have 2 of them per day.

It is a great diet and the magazine gives you sample menu's for a week, so you can try it out a bit before you join! :)