Protein World, Slender Blend Review

The Protein World has become a very popular brand, with celebrity endorsements, promises from them that you will lose weight, look better then ever and hitting the headlines (for the wrong reasons...but hey they say any news is good news).

My twitter feed became bombarded with Protein World, and particularly their Slender Blend range. People......mostly females were claiming they had "lost 4-5 pounds in a week".... "a stone in 3".... "had never looked better".... "wouldn't know what I'd do without this".... hashtag this hashtag that.


I'm always sceptical on meal replacement diets especially celebrity endorsed ones. They tend to turn out to be a con and normally consist of a chemical bomb ingredients list....and then over time it turns out the celebrities themselves have been training for a year with a Private PT costing the same as small Hyundai car, have been living on celery, chicken breast and air and their PR team are trying to up their clients celebrity status, so  they are also bringing out a fitness DVD. YAWN! But with the constant tweets popping up on my feed, from everyday ordinary people I thought I'd give it a go.

What particularly attracted me to the product was that they don't use any GMO's (genetically modified organisms) they don't use aspartame, its 100% natural flavourings, no artificial colourings, its also suitable for vegetarians, diabetics and its gluten free. The ingredients list wasn't too overwhelming, Im one of these people who analyses the backs of packets, and if the ingredients list is a bit too long for my liking, or there is even one ingredient which I don't agree with I won't consume it. The full ingredients list of this product is at the bottom of this page. Personally my diet is very clean, I would say now I'm finished Protein World I'm 95% Vegan (its just the odd occasion when I struggle in a restaurant) with everything coming from plant based sources I very rarely eat things from a packet now. Protein World unfortunately isn't suited for Vegans because it contains whey protein concentrate from milk. My reasons for switching to Veganism will come in another post, but just to let you know its not for weight loss reasons.


Oh and FYI  the model pictured in the controversial advert with the heading ' ARE YOU BEACH BODY READY' ...... which have now been pulled down by the Advertising Standards Authority, is a strict VEGAN (Renee Somerfield), so she wouldn't of used the product herself.


I decided to go for the chocolate flavour, after all a chocolate shake which helps you lose weight?! Bring it on!! How can this be a diet? Aren't they meant to be filled with torture? With belly aches from starvation, and constant day dreams about sandwiches, ice cream, and curly fries?....
Well actually to my surprise I found I didn't have any of these feelings!


You can buy their Slender Blend range for £62.00, with the 1kg Protein Shake, Slender Blend weight loss tablets and the multi vitamin tablets all from the website. I decided just to buy the protein powder on its own for £32.00, I don't agree with taking supplements or weight loss pills.

I went for normal delivery, but it arrived the next day so their service is brilliant. It came in bright yellow packaging, with recipes, a meal planner guide inside and some fitness tips.  They recommend 2 meal replacement shakes a day with healthy snacks in between. I replaced my breakfast and lunch, as I have to have a meal in the evening. Some of the shake recipes are really nice, in particular I liked the chocolate protein shake made with unsweetened almond milk and blueberries (pictured above). The powder mixed really well, unlike some protein shakes which are a bit gritty and have powder floating at the top, it also tasted really nice, Ive had some awful chocolate protein shakes and this was the nicest I've tried. Apparently the vanilla is delicious! The shakes filled me up all day, and I rarely had a snack in-between. Which is really odd for me, I've tried a juice diet before and I was crippled with hunger pains, was hangry all the time (hungry + angry) and felt like I was really deprived but I didn't experience this with Slender Blend. In the evening I would have a healthy meal, recommended by Protein World themselves and my regular fitness regime is 5-6 workouts a week with a range of different training sessions. I really stuck to the diet for 4 weeks, but unfortunately I didn't get the results I was hoping for after all the hype on Twitter. I lost 2 pounds in the first week, non in the 2nd, 2 more pounds in the 3rd week and non in the last. So overall 4 pounds in a month..... not the WOW results I was promised and hoping for....and you can get the same results from eating 3 meals a day, just being a bit healthier.

I'm glad I tried it, but I won't be trying a meal replacement diet again, the results I got weren't the best, and I like to have a lot of variety in my diet, with all my nutrients coming from food. I would recommend it to other people, just because they are really nice tasting, not full of chemicals, filling and you can use them as a recovery shake after hard training sessions, not just for meal replacements.


Ingredients list

Chocolate: Whey Protein Concentrate (95%), Protein World thermogenic blend: Guarana extract (22% caffeine) & Green Tea Extract (40% polyphenols), Protein World Multi Vit/Mineral blend (1%), Cocoa Powder (alkalized), Natural Flavourings (3%), Sweeteners; Sucralose.


www.proteinworld.com


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Restaurant Review - El Coto, Newcastle

Spanish food has got to be one of my favourite cuisines.  I've given this much thought over the years and had conversations with everyone in my family, so they all know if I was on my death bed, my main meal would definitely be Paella. The Starter and Dessert have already been picked out too.
With such a mix of variety and flavours, depth and simplicity, health and indulgence its like having a mini buffet. Having been to the Canaries over Christmas the selection and variety of really excellent fresh wonderful healthy food they have out there still has me day dreaming about the place now. So when my friend picked out El CoTo for her birthday, I was over the moon. Any chance of replicating authentic Spanish food and I'm on board.

I've been to many Spanish restaurants before and I know how unhealthy they can be, tapas choices tend to all be deep fat fried or smothered in cheese and fatty meats. I wanted to see if I could actually eat healthy here, adopting my new Vegan lifestyle as I did in the Canaries. My friends are not vegan or vegetarian so they tried different choices to me but all gave me their feedback.

Now my friends and I love our food and we can really eat. We chose 3 tapas choices each, which the waiter scoffed at and looked perplexed that we would choose so many (12 in total), but we thought this was completely reasonable and to be honest we were holding back a bit for pudding. Because of the waiters reaction we were expecting overwhelming giagantic portions and worried that we would waste food.

I have to start on a bad note and say the service was shocking, we felt hassled for our order when we first arrived and then they seemed to forget about us later on, there were 2 or 3 different waiters bringing us food and most of it was wrong. The first 2 dishes got sent to our table instead of someone else's and then most of our food were sent elsewhere, Im hoping that the staff were new, and that they simply didn't know the floor plan. With much confusion we eventually received our food with one or two dishes missing.

I went for the Arroz de Verduras (rice with vegetables), Tomato Alinado (tomato salad) and Garbanzo (chickpea casserole). The Garbanzo was delicious I wish I had a big bowl of it and nothing else, while the rice was just ok and the tomato salad was beautiful.
The girls went for a wide selection including Arroz de Matanza (rice with chicken, pork, chorizo), Ternera a la Mesonera (beef stew), Pata con Salsa de Mostaza (potato with creamy mustard and honey dressing), Gambas al Ajillo (king prawns will chilli and garlic), Pollo al Ajillo (chicken with white wine, olive oil, parsley, garlic) and MORE! They all said the food was absolutely lovely, really rich, large potions and could tell it had been made fresh. Although I finished my dishes they left a little of theirs and we ended up not having pudding! Partly because we were full and partly because we probably wouldn't receive it anyway.

On a health focus I would say most of the dishes are quite indulgent, like I said a lot of tapas dishes in England are deep fat fried, so if you're watching the waistline at the moment you may have to treat this place as a 'cheat day'. They do plenty of vegetarian dishes and only a couple catered for vegan. They also have a gluten and dairy free menu too, which is great. I did enjoy the food and the prices are good too, its just a shame about the service, maybe we will give it a while before going back and hopefully the waiters will know the floor plan by then.

Rating (Out of 5)

Quality of Food ****

Food Variety ****

Cater for intolerance's/allergies *****

Health rating *

Restaurant & Staff *

Cost ****

Reviews This Week- COMING SOON

Protein World- Slender Blend Review

Lean Mean Green Protein Machine

This green powerhouse drink is full of goodness! As I'm starting my journey into a Vegan diet, I've really struggled to find a nice tasting Vegan Protein powder without nasty chemicals and additives. If any of you readers find one, do tell me! So I've taken it upon myself to make my own nutritious protein drink for after training sessions or breakfast.

Ingredients 

• 1 banana
• 1 big handful spinach
• 200ml coconut water 
• 1 thick slice of fresh pineapple
• 1 tablespoon hemp protein
• 1 teaspoon spirulina (depends how earthy you like it)
• 1 teaspoon wheatgrass powder

Add water if you want a thinner consistency

Whizz everything up in a blender and off you go!

Enjoy x

Restaurant review- The Herb Garden & The Sausage Emporium

Monday is a dreaded word to most people with 9-5 jobs, in Newcastle it mostly consists of grey skies, traffic and roadworks. Me and the partner decided to take a lovely lunch out in Newcastle, to break the monotony up, and boy did it brighten our day. Unfortunately it started off with a bit of a disaster, we had booked in to the restaurant next door called The Sausage Emporium...... which we ended up walking out of.

We were greeted in Sausage Emporium with four members of staff standing around chatting, one of them reluctantly came over and showed us to a table upstairs. Safe to say they definitely had a relaxed attitude and weren't in a rush for anyone, unlike most of the customers who were trying to cram in a working lunch in the middle of their hectic rat race lives. 

Upstairs was okay, a bit bland, with half the tables taken, but as we sat there staring at the dull menus we couldn't help but realise that everyone had either only a drink on their table or nothing at all. Staff didn't come to serve us at all in 25mins, and we eventually realised that everyone else were waiting too, or waiting for the food they had ordered. For 25mins not one member of staff came to take our order, or anyone else's for that matter, not even for a drink and not one meal was served in the restaurant. So disappointing, I'll never attempt to go back in there again, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. On another point after analysing the menus over and over again, I can confirm that anyone who leads a healthy nutritious diet and for anyone who is on a health kick, do not attempt to eat at The Sausage Emporium. If the name didn't give it away, the menu is loaded with processed meats, white bread and greasy sides. 

 

So we walked out of there, leaving everyone else behind looking miserable and fed up. Not us...not when I'm hungry!

We took a chance and went next door to the Herb Garden, I've always wanted to eat in there, just because there a massive wooden horse outside.  

The smell was divine as we walked in, chefs to the right of you cooking the stone baked pizzas and watching them make true master pieces (or pizza's)! The waitress was just lovely, really bubbly, kind and gave us loads of attention. Explaining the menu thoroughly and even giving me options when I told her I was trying to be healthy. I went for the Super Sexy, Super Healthy, Superfood Salad and added chicken to it, the partner had a Spicy Pepperoni, Garlic, Mozzarella, Basil Pizza. My salad was humongous! And filled me right up until 7pm that night, when normally salads have me snacking all day. The salad was stuffed with super delicious ingredients including alfalfa sprouts, seeds, spinach, a pic-a-mix of pure health, even with edible flowers on the top! It was a beautiful dish, and certainly didn't look better then it tasted (which normally happens with healthy food). My partners pizza, looked lovely, freshly made and not heavy like American style pizzas, this was light, but filling and not greasy.....just how pizza's should be! The stone baked style gives it such a wonderful taste to it, and he said he wants to go back to try the rest!

On a health rating, because of their great selection of salads, the staff are so welcoming, they don't mind when they are asked to add or take ingredients away from their dishes and cater for various intolerance's/allergies id give it a well deserved 5/5. Yes they do pizzas, but they are not greasy, double stuffed crust, deep pan gut abusing pizzas,  they also do a vegan pizza which I can't wait to try, and because they don't use much cheese on their dishes (you can always ask them to not add it, don't knock it i think pizzas taste even better without it), also they don't deep fat fry things, this is a perfect place to have a healthy satisfying meal. Tasting exotic ingredients but also watching the waistline is very easily possible here! 

Rating (Out of 5)

Quality of Food *****

Food Variety ****

Cater for intolerance's/allergies *****

Health rating ****

Restaurant & Staff *****

Cost ****

www.theherbgardenuk.com

Here's a pic of my beautiful salad.....but it doesn't do it justice! And didn't quite get a picture of the pizza, as the partner gobbled it too quickly.