And the winner is ...

Congratulations CM, Karen, Janene and Rachel! - So what is all that stuff thats in it? Let's have a look in Wikipedia ...

Polydextrose - Polydextrose is a multi-purpose additive synthesized from dextrose, plus about 10 percent sorbitol and 1 percent citric acid. Its E number is E1200. The FDA approved it in 1981. Because Polydextrose, and its sorbitol component, are not properly digested by humans, it is recommended by some experts that it not be given to children. Despite these warnings, Polydextrose is a key ingredient in many popular children's cereals. Sorbitol, also known as glucitol, is a sugar alcohol the body metabolises slowly.

Humectant - When used as a food additive, the humectant has the effect of keeping the foodstuff moist. Humectants are sometimes used as a component of antistatic coatings for plastics. Humectants are also found in many cosmetic products where moisturization is desired, including treatments such as moisturizing hair conditioners. However, I'm sure the humectatnt in this bar is ok for human consumption.

Preservative 220 - Sulphur dioxide - Derived from coal tar; all sulphur drugs are toxic and restricted in use (in USA, FDA** prohibits their use on raw fruits and vegetables), produced by combustion of sulphur, hydrogen sulphide or gypsum. Known to provoke gastric irritation, nausea, diarrhoea, skin rash, asthma attacks and difficult to metabolise for those with impaired kidney function, also destroys vitamin B1 (thiamin), and should be avoided by anyone suffering from conjunctivitis, bronchitis, emphysema, bronchial asthma, or cardiovascular disease - mmmm that sounds appetizing!

Emulsifier 471 - This emulsifier can be derived from both animal and plant origins. For commercial purposes most companies (but not all) will most likely choose the plant version due to its lower cost. This emulsifier is added to products to ensure the product has an even consistency.

Citric Acid - Is usually derived naturally from citrus fruit i.e. lemons and limes. However, in the world of high production there is another way of producing it quickly. In this production technique, which is still the major industrial route to citric acid used today, cultures of Aspergillus niger are fed on sucrose to produce citric acid. After the mold is filtered out of the resulting solution, citric acid is isolated by precipitating it with lime (calcium hydroxide) to yield calcium citrate salt, from which citric acid is regenerated by treatment with sulfuric acid.

Colour 153 - Carbon blacks or Vegetable carbon - Now you see this is sneaky, cos by quoting "colour 153" they dont have to say exactly what it is ... Carbon black is a material, today usually produced by the incomplete combustion of petroleum products. The most common usage [70%] of carbon black is as a pigment and reinforcing phase in automobile tires. Naaaaaaa they wouldnt put this in our food would they?

All that aside, although the bar is low in fat and high in "fibre" (which is derived from polydextrose) one bar has 11.7gms of sugar - um thats about 2.5 teaspoons of the stuff.

Now this stuff is ok in moderation ... like every now and again cos in the short term it is safe for human consumption ... but ... you add that up over years and years ... hmmmm I wonder what the long term prognosis is? No-one seems to know, cos lots of this stuff has only been around for 25-50 years or so.

Ok ... so here endeth the lesson. To the winners of my wee competition, email me your postal address and I'll send you a box of em *giggle*.

Anyway enough about that stuff and more about meeeeeeeeeeeeee!

I woke up the most sluggish I've woken up in the two weeks I've been following my new bible. (Yes I did eat a WW cereal bar last night after dinner, but didnt write it in my food list or you would have guessed my quizz!) I wasnt hungry and TOM had also arrived which pissed me off to the max cos it's weigh in day! ARGHHHHHHHH Got to work and I was still feeling absolutely knackered so when my mate suggested we head out for a coffee (or cuppa tea in my case) I jumped at the opportunity. I decided to have a peppermint tea cos I'd heard thats quite a good pick me up ... well I have to say - I swear by the stuff now - within seconds, I felt energised, my TOM cramps had gone and I didnt feel bloated! Peppermint and ginger are supposed to be great for digestion so I must try that again sometime.

Trial and error, trial and error, this has been my focus over the last couple of weeks - so far things seem to be going ok.

I wombled off to see Hamish at 4 and was extremely distressed about weigh in ... I wasnt expecting fantastic results because of TOM but I was ecstatic when those scales showed a 700gm loss and a .6% drop in body fat! WAHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOO

He then put me through my paces and I had a gruelling workout in 100degree temparetures I'm sure of it. I have now officially found THE HARDEST exercise to do on a swiss ball. Ok ... all you gym bunnies ... give this a go ... it sounds really easy and I hope you do find it easy, but damn it was hard work for me! you'll need a swiss ball and a bench - like a press up bench. Put the ball about half a foot away from the bench. Put both hands on the bench and then kneel on TOP of the ball - keeping both hands on the bench and feet off the ground - so you are balancing on the ball, like you are on all fours on the ground, back nice and straight. Right? great. Thats the easy part ... now lift your right hand off the bench and hold it up for 3 seconds. Great, put it back down and now lift your left hand off the bench. Come on guys balance! Pull your tummy button in towards your spine and squeeze your glutes ... repeat side to side 8 times. Well done ... now rest and repeat twice more.

FARKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK, so that combined with the rowing machine 1,000 mtr sprint (x2), squats and press with a 20kg powerbag on my back (15 reps x3), swiss ball press ups (15 reps x 3 sets), deadlifts and press with 20kg bar (6 reps x 3), deadlifts with 20kg bar no press (10 reps x 3), swiss ball hip extensions with side twists (8 reps x 3). I was the most beetroot colour I've ever seen myself and I thought I was going to chunder on the last rowing machine sprint - but good god I felt good LMAO @ me! He pushes me bloody hard, but gives me good rests in between SOME sets.

Food:
Breakfast - branflakes, banana, yoghurt, seeds
Lunch - chicken salad sandwich
Dinner - pork chop (with the fat mmmm), brown rice stirfry with cauliflower, mushies, corn
Snacks - 2 apricots, nectarine, 2 plums, peppermint tea, mini chocolate bagel!, apple, 5 brazil nuts, low fat vanilla icecream in a cone
Water - 5ltrs

Crikey thats a lot of food today and I most of the snacks minus the apple, nuts and icecream before weighin! LOL