AD - Press Trip | I had such a great weekend at @p AD - Press Trip | I had such a great weekend at @pottersresortsfivelakes with @slwilson84. It was an action packed three nights with a full activity and entertainment programme, great food, lovely drinks and beautiful surroundings. 

The staff go above and beyond to make everyone feel at home and they ensure that everyone has the best time possible. I don’t think I stopped smiling all weekend.

The best thing about Potters holidays is that everything is included in the price you pay. Four meals a day, all your drinks - including wine, Prosecco, most spirits and soft drinks - great accommodation and so many activities. 

I’ll write a full review soon but for now here’s a little Reel of our weekend
I always have a lot of questions about accommodati I always have a lot of questions about accommodation when we stay anywhere as a family so I thought I’d share this little tour of our room at @windjammerlanding which was a pretty perfect place to stay.

It’s the ‘Ocean View Two Bedroom’ which was like a little house, with an upstairs and downstairs, built into the hillside. Both rooms had outdoor space and their own shower rooms. Such a great option for a family.
A little photo dump from our holiday in St Lucia. A little photo dump from our holiday in St Lucia. We’ve been back a few days now but still miss the heat, the food, the pool, the constant sounds of wildlife and the lovely people. It was such a great holiday and I’m sure we’ll be back one day.
And just like that, Athena is 12! What a joy it is And just like that, Athena is 12! What a joy it is watching her grow and what a wonderful young woman she is becoming. We could not be more proud. Love you Pickle, have a great birthday.
We’ve just got back from two glorious weeks in S We’ve just got back from two glorious weeks in St Lucia staying at @windjammerlanding and it was just the holiday we needed. Two weeks of sunshine and relaxation in what must be one of the most beautiful islands in the world. 

We can’t wait to go back again in the future. Here’s just a little snippet of our trip.
AD - Press Tickets | We had such a nice day at @na AD - Press Tickets | We had such a nice day at @national_motor_museum despite the rain! The children loved the Little Beaulieu play area and we loved exploring the National Motor Museum and Top Gear exhibit before having a ride on the monorail! We went on an old open topped bus, explored the Beaulieu Manor House and loved the gardens. 
Beaulieu is always a great day out - whatever the weather. This summer they have a whole ‘Summer of Fun’ planned, with activities most days - parades, bird shows and hundreds of sculptures within the grounds too. If you’re looking for a day out this summer definitely think about heading to Beaulieu.
AD - Press Tickets | Tonight we took the kids to t AD - Press Tickets | Tonight we took the kids to their first concert - but it was so much more than just a concert! @abbavoyage is incredible. With CGI ABBA and a live band, it’s like being at an ABBA concert 40 years ago but with modern lighting, effects and sound. ABBA look and sound real, it’s a mind blowing experience.
The set includes all the songs you know and love as well as a few less familiar ones.
You can’t take photos during the show which actually made a refreshing change. A whole arena focused purely on the show and soaking up the moment. It’s definitely something the four of us will always remember.
Now, I’m off to sing Dancing Queen all the way home.
AD - Press Trip | We had such a great day at @phdo AD - Press Trip | We had such a great day at @phdockyard today. They have a fantastic Ultimate Explorer ticket that lets you visit all the attractions as many times as you like for 12 months - and after a day at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard we can see that you need more than one day to really do everything!

We explored HMS Warrior, HMS Victory and the Mary Rose Exhibition - which is incredible! We also saw where ships are built and restored and spent time in Action Stations where the kids climbed and did an assault course.

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is such a fun, educational day out with something for all ages - we can’t wait to go on their harbour tours next time we visit!
AD | WIN!! Would you love to win a holiday? To cel AD | WIN!! Would you love to win a holiday? To celebrate #100YearOfARoads National Highways have launched their #ARoadsToSummer competition! It's all about celebrating summer holiday moments, time together, fun in the sun, days out and more.

So why not be in it to win it? To enter, all you have to do is send @nationalhways a DM on here with a photo or video of your favourite holiday moments. You can also comment on their Facebook or Twitter #ARoadsToSummer posts with your holiday photos. I've shared a few of our favourite photos to give you some inspiration.

The best six entries will each win a £500 @nationaltrust holidays voucher! SO what are you waiting for? Dig out your favourite holiday photos or take some new ones to share!

The #ARoadsToSummer competition runs from 24 July to 10 September 2023. Winners will be announced in September 2023.

Good luck!
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Collaborative posts, Health, Beauty & Fitness, Reviews, Weight Loss, Weight Watchers/Dieting · November 6, 2019

Two Weeks On Slim and Save | AD

*This is a paid post

Throughout the year I seem to be on a constant fitness and weight loss journey rollercoaster where I’m on a mission to be as fit and healthy as I can be for our summer holiday and after that I have six months of indulgence before the spiral starts again and I long to lose weight.

Last month Slim and Save got in contact and asked if I wanted to try their weight loss plan to review it and I thought it might help me to kick start a healthier lifestyle at a time when I usually focus on carbs and hibernation. I wanted to break the cycle and so I said yes and waited for everything I needed to arrive.

Two Weeks On Slim and Save

What is Slim and Save?

Slim and Save is a meal replacement diet. It works on either a lifestyle plan or simplicity plan with simplicity being four meal replacements a day and the lifestyle plan being three meal replacements and a fairly strict dinner.

100g protein and 200g vegetables – although there is a whole database of Slim and Save recipes that can help with this. With the lifestyle plan you also need to take a multivitamin as you will only get your full dose of nutrients each day on the full simplicity plan.

There’s also now a Simplicity Plus Plan for people over 17 stone that adds an extra product each day. There isn’t a Lifestyle Plus plan – just lifestyle, simplicity or simplicity plus but they are all the weight loss tools you’ll need.

The basis of Slim and Save is that it’s a very low calorie diet – around 650 calories a day – with low carbohydrates, putting your body into Ketosis. I knew nothing about ketosis before starting the plan and to put it simply, it forces your body to live off its own fat reserves, burning more fat than you would on a typical diet.

As a mother I am really aware of making sure the children know about having a healthy balanced diet and I like to follow diet plans that fit well into family life. I didn’t feel that either plan really did that so I explained to the children that I was testing out a meal plan for my work and because of that I went for the full simplicity plan for the two weeks to maximise the benefit of the plan to see if it really did work.

When you start Slim and Save you’re sent a package of information to read through before you start the plan. It includes things like making sure start the plan at a convenient time – not when you’ll fall off the wagon because of a wedding or birthday or something.

There are also charts to track your weight and measurements throughout the plan and more information about what you can and can’t have whilst on the plan too. I made sure that I started the plan at a time when I could commit to being on it as I really wanted to do as well on Slim and Save as I possibly could.

What can you eat and drink on Slim and Save?

One of the most important parts of Slim and Save is having 2-3 litres of water every day. I found this really hard at first but soon got into the habit of drinking much more than I previously would.

You must also have 150ml skimmed milk a day and you can have 600ml of certain diet drinks – not Diet Coke – and some spices/seasonings. On the Simplicity Plan you can also have an optional 200g of vegetables from the Slim and Save allowed foods list with your evening meal which I did every day along with a can of Coke Zero each evening too!

The Slim and Save meals are either a shake, a soup, a meal or a bar. You can have any combination of them each day but only a maximum of one bar per day – as no-one should just be living off chocolate bars! There’s also a really handy Slim and Save meal planner that I used daily to record what I’d be eating the following day and this really helped me stay focused on the plan.

Slim and Save Meal Planner

Are the Slim and Save products nice?

I am used to doing diets based around weight loss shakes so I found the Slim and Save meal replacement shakes really easy to make up in the Slim and Save shaker and great for having for breakfast or out and about. They came in a really wide range of flavours and they weren’t too sweet either – something I’ve often found with other diet shakes.

Slim and Save Shakes

The Slim and Save bars are lovely. There weren’t any that I didn’t enjoy and you had to chew them all quite a lot which made them last longer. On a diet plan like this little things like taking time over eating really make all the difference!

Slim and Save Pancakes

The meals on the Slim and Save diet had some great variety – pancakes, porridge, a burger, bolognese, noodles, soups. There was so much choice and the majority I really enjoyed. Many of them didn’t look great but when teamed with 200g of veg they were actually quite a filling meal.

Slim and Save Sweet and Sour Noodles

Some of the meals were nicer than others and there were a couple that I really didn’t enjoy which is obviously down to my own personal taste and it just means I wouldn’t buy those ones again next time.

Slim and Save Bombay Potatoes

Are there any negatives side effects of Slim and Save?

There are a few Slim and Save side effects. Whilst on Slim and Save I was consuming far fewer calories than I ever have previously. Because of this, at the start I felt quite weak and I also got headaches quite often. But, after about the third day, when ketosis set in, I started to feel a lot better.

Slim and Save Porridge

I didn’t really feel hungry at any point on the plan and just really appreciated the food that I was eating. I did feel like I had much less energy than normal but I think that’s to be expected when consuming so little.

Slim and Save Cottage Pie

Whilst in ketosis you can’t drink alcohol which may not appeal to some people. You can also only do light exercise so if you’re heavily into exercising this may not be the plan for you.

Slim and Save Pasta

Does Slim and Save work?

I followed the Slim and Save plan religiously for 12 days. I ended up coming off the plan two days early because I caught a virus and couldn’t seem to shift it. I felt my body needed more of an intake to get better before resuming the plan.

Slim and Save Measurements Tracker

Over those 12 days I measured myself at the start, after a week and at the end and also weighed myself at those three intervals too. Over the course of 12 days I lost a total of 47cm across my body and 10lb in weight. It took my BMI from 26.6 and overweight back into the healthy range at 24.8. There’s a Slim and Save weight tracker and measurements tracker online which is really handy too.

Slim and Save Weight Tracker

So Slim and Save definitely works. But, it is one of the hardest diets I have ever tried. I found it very restrictive not being able to eat normal food with my family or to have a picnic on a day out. I also had to ration my cups of tea – because of the milk in them – and by the end of the two weeks I was really looking forward to normal food again.

Over the two weeks so much has changed positively for me though. I feel like my system has had a much needed detox. I have got into the habit of drinking much more water than I used to and now, over a week after finishing the plan, I am still having much smaller portion sizes than I used to.

When you finish the Slim and Save plan it’s normal to put on up to 4lb whilst your body adjusts to no longer being in ketosis and I only put 1lb back on which I was really surprised about. I honestly didn’t think that weight loss on meal replacement diets like this could be sustained after it’s finished but I’ve managed to sustain mine quite well.

I don’t think a meal replacement diet is something I could do long term and I much prefer traditional weight loss of eating better and exercising. But, Slim and Save would be a fantastic option if you had a lot of weight to lose and wanted something very regimented to stop you falling off track.

It would also be great if you had a wedding or holiday coming up and wanted to see results quickly. Compared to 1-2lb a week weight loss I usually see when I’m focusing on a healthier lifestyle I lost weight much quicker on Slim and Save.

The Slim and Save diet plan is also a really affordable option if you’re looking for a meal replacement diet. They have so many Slim and Save offers with meals costing as little as 99p a pack – so less than £4 a day £120 a month and with free delivery when you spend over £30. As far as value is concerned I don’t think Slim and Save can be knocked especially with the amount of online help and support there is too.

Slim & Save isn’t for me long term but I know there are so many people it would be great for. If you’d like to give it a go or read the many Slim and Save success stories then you can find out more over on their website.

I’ve seen a lot of people asking for a comparison of Slim and Save vs Cambridge Diet. I have no experience of the Cambridge Diet but found this great forum conversation here that may help. The same has been asked about Slim and Save or Exante and again, I have no experience of Exante but this may help.

Slim and Save Spaghetti

In: Collaborative posts, Health, Beauty & Fitness, Reviews, Weight Loss, Weight Watchers/Dieting

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  1. Anonymous says

    September 18, 2020 at 12:14 pm

    This was really useful to read. Thank you

    Reply

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Hi everyone! I'm Donna. Mummy. Blogger. Social Media Manager. Traveller. Lover of stars, rainbows and gin. Firm believer that tea and cake can fix most things.

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