Welcome to my ultimate guide to Slimming World. Get ready for a full walk through of the Slimming World Diet Plan. Including the free food, the healthy extras, the speed foods and of course the Syns.
I recommend that you have a good read of this before you embark on the Slimming World plan.
Table of Contents
Me & Slimming World
I originally joined Slimming World in my early teens when I had some puppy fat to lose. I lose just short of three stone on the Slimming World plan and went from feeling fat to being skinny.
That was 1995 and it was based around just the green or the red days. It was very simple and you would either have a low carb day with meat/fish with vegetables or a veggie day with no meat and as much pasta and rice as you wanted. It was ideal for a teenager to follow.
I followed it again in my 20’s after gaining too much weight after having my on and it hadn’t changed that much.
And here I am again following the modern day extra easy plan in my 30’s. After having another son.
So you could say that I have followed Slimming World in 3 different decades and have got an understanding for how the diet works. And how to make the most out of it without feeling like you are in information overload territory.
How Does The Slimming World Diet Work?
The Slimming World Diet is made up of a few types of foods. You can have as much free food as you like. And from these free foods there is also SP foods that help weight loss.
SP foods are foods that are high in speed and protein. They give you a great balance to a meal and can give your weight loss a boost.
As well as this you have healthy extras. These are what Slimming World deems as healthy add ons. They include milk, cheese, bread and cereal to name a few.
On top of this you have Syns and these are basically everything else. The idea that you have the bad things or the high calorie bits in moderation.
You can have between 5-15 Syns per day and this can include alcohol, chocolate, fats and many other things.
Slimming World Free Food
It starts with the Slimming World Free Food. Otherwise known as foods that you can have as much as you like while you are on Slimming World. They are all low in calories making it easier for you to control how much you are eating.
In a nutshell they are made up of:
- Fruit & Vegetables
- Potatoes
- Meat & Fish
- Tofu
- Quorn
- Eggs
- Rice & Pasta
- Couscous
- Noodles
- Pulses
- Herbs & Spices
- Vinegar
- Worcester Sauce
- Soy Sauce
- OXO Cubes
- Tomato Puree
- Fry Light
- Stevia
- Fat Free Dressings
- Marmite
- Fat Free Yoghurts & Quark
Or for drinks you have:
- Water
- Tea
- Coffee
- Bovril
- Diet Squash
- Diet Fizzy Drinks
Though of course with the drinks it only applies when you are not bulking it up with white sugar, milk etc.
Yes sorry to burst your bubble but you shouldn’t be having Diet co*ke if you can help it. It is really bad for you and is full of bad chemicals.
If you normally drink it a lot try to wean it down to 1 a day, then 1 a week and then get yourself off it if you can. As nothing beats drinking water and how good it makes you feel.
Another thought is that sadly avocado has a Syn value as do pureed fruit.
Also among the free foods is a few processed foods including:
Slimming World Speed Foods
After Slimming World free food is the speed foods. These are foods that are particularly good for weight loss and what I would suggest that you have to excess.
In other words make it the star of each plate of food you eat. Whether this is breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks. Give it the speed food power.
Speed foods are made up of fruits and vegetables:
There are some fruits and vegetables that don’t have the speed power and they are part of the free foods list.
Slimming World Protein Foods
There are loads of foods on Slimming World that are high in protein and are suggested that we all have on a daily basis. If you can, try and have them with every meal as you feel so good when you do.
The Slimming World Protein foods include:
Slimming World Healthy Extras
Slimming World Healthy Extras are made up of healthy extra A and healthy extra B choices.
The ones that we recommend that you have on a daily basis as part of the Slimming World plan is outlined below:
Though I do find that its not the end of the world if you go a couple of days without using them. I don’t eat cereals or bread and unless I eat a lot of cheese I find it very hard to use it up.
But in the old days of the red and the green days you would have a tablespoon of olive oil instead. So sometimes I will follow the old red original plan depending on what I am planning on eating.
Slimming World Syns
Then there are the Slimming World Syns. I would of course list them for you, or put them in a pretty graphic, but sadly all these foods you love have a Syn value and I could go on forever.
So instead what I have decided to do is list the top searched Syn requests. I.e. what we all want to know the most and put into Google everyday. Then you can save it to Pinterest and refer back to it whenever you need to.
They include:
- How Many Syns In A Freddo = 5 Syns
- How Many Syns In A 2 Finger KitKat = 5.5 Syns
- How Many Syns In A Curly Wurly = 6 Syns
- How Many Syns In A Jaffa Cake = 2.5 Syns
- How Many Syns In A Crunchy = 9.5 Syns
- How Many Syns In A Wispa Bar = 11 Syns
- How Many Syns In A Blue Riband = 5 Syns
No surprise there then that all the top results are for chocolate. I must admit when I have searched in the past, I have always looked for chocolate more than anything else.
10 Slimming World Recipes You Should Cook First
The question among new Slimming World members always starts the same:
“Do I really have to use all these processed foods?”
Well no you don’t. I have never bought Fry Light, margarine, Muller Light or any of the other popular Slimming World foods.
I just made sure I had good kitchen gadgets to cook them instead. I have a slow cooker, an Instant Pot, an airfryer and a really good blender.
What we have done, is create Slimming World Recipes using wholesome ingredients. We have then made them with little or no oil. They are either Syn Free or incredibly low in Syns, or use a small amount of your healthy extras.
These are 10 recipes that we cooked in the first month of returning to Slimming World and what helped us lose over 20 pounds. Plus all these recipes are fantastic for returning to over and over again.
#1 – Slimming World Chicken Curry
This is one of these recipes that you need to cook first on Slimming World. You always miss the takeaways first and then with this recipe you can recreate a chicken curry at home and then serve it with some boiled rice.
#2 – Carrot Risotto
This is a Slimming World genius moment. Using grated carrot or thinly sliced carrot and then mix it with fat free yoghurt and you then have a speed food alternative to rice or pasta. Seriously worth trying out!
This is another favourite of ours. It is perfect to combine some delicious chicken in the crockpot with homemade mash.
A real comfort food and perfect for if you are at work all day and need something slow cooked for when you get home.
#4 – Dutch Oven Loaded Bolognese
Can you believe that this is really low in calories? Yet it is perfect for filling your family with a comforting meal.
Use low fat mince, baked tomato sauce and you are onto a winner.
#5 – Butter Chicken
This is another favourite Indian dish and my dish of choice when I went out for a curry.
The only difference here is that this one is really low in calories, is creamy and tastes like it is bad for you.
#6 – Slimming World Chilli
This is an example of how you can still do your favourite recipes on Slimming World. It is easy to prepare and even my 2 year old loves it and she is a real fussy eater.
#7 – Syn Free Cheese Sauce
This is an absolute must have. We all love cheese sauce and want to eat it in our lasagne, vegetable bake or in our gratins.
But with this sauce it is 100% Syn Free and so easy and quick to make. In fact it is quicker than the old packet mixes.
#8 – Chicken Burrito Bowls
Loaded with salad, beans, sweetcorn and of course marinated chicken = the perfect Slimming World Chicken bowl for this summer.
#9 – Slimming World Keema Curry
Another delicious Slimming World Curry and great for a quick meal. This recipe has just 3 ingredients in it and is so simple to make. Share it with your other half for a romantic night in or how about a girls night in?
#10 – Homemade Tomato Sauce
If you are on Slimming World and want a simple sauce for your meals then start with this. It is an easy home baked sauce that can be used in a variety of dishes and is a must have for successful food optimising.
Slimming World Tips & Tricks
Before you go we decided to put together our top tips for getting the most out of Slimming World:
#1 – Use Your Healthy Extras Wisely
I found that when I did Slimming World years ago that I would have cereal for breakfast and then a sandwich for lunch.
This would then mean that I had no healthy extras left and the bread and cereal would always make me feel rubbish with them being processed foods.
However if you save the healthy extras towards cooking your meals can go so much further. You can mix together milk and cheese to make an amazing cheese sauce (like we have done here).
Or make breaded chicken and chips for dinner. You could also use these allowances for desserts and so many other great things.
#2 – Carbs DO Make You Feel Bloated
If you have a lot of carbs you will find it harder to lose weight. The heavy feeling that having pasta, rice and bread with can make losing weight so much harder.
The best thing to do is having one of them every 3rd day. Then you don’t feel like you’re missing out.
#3 – Regularly Eat Fat
Our bodies need regular good fats in order to burn fats. Therefore make sure that you have them on a daily basis.
A bit of olive oil, some avocado, or some coconut oil are all really good for you and can make your food taste exceptional.
#4 – Avoid Processed Foods If You Can
I am not going to lie. Processed foods does taste good but it damages your body and makes you feel rubbish.
A week off processed foods and you will see what I mean. Plus if you suffer from IBS or High Blood Pressure you will find that along with the Slimming World diet you can cure it.
#5 – Don’t Drink All Your Syns
The worst thing is to be constantly drinking your Slimming World Syns. This means that the rest of the time you have zero Syns left and will feel more deprived.
If you drink a lot of wine, then look at turning it into a lower Syn offering. Or if you normally have cream in your coffee, or full sugar Cola look at how you can improve things.
#6 – Recreate Your Favourite Meals
There is nothing worse then entering the diet mindset and then missing all your favourite meals from before.
Just make them with more vegetables and less calories. Buy the lower fat pack of minced beef or make your own sauces rather than shop bought ones.
#7 – Make Speed Foods The Star
Whenever you cook a meal put the speed foods first. This will then help you fill up and enjoy the most healthy foods. Make changes in your diet so that this happens.
Otherwise what often happens is that you just end up eating a lot of pasta and don’t have a nutritional balanced diet.
#8 – Food Optimise For YOU
Never mind what other people are eating on Slimming World, we all like different things so eat what you like the most.
If you like curry then make Slimming World curries and have them everyday if you want to. You could then load them with vegetables in order to get your SP kickstarted.
#9 – Sign Up To Pinterest
Sign up for Pinterest and search for good Slimming World boards. It is a great place for ideas of giving you new inspiration for recipes. There are also a lot of Syn guides on there too. You can find our Slimming World board here.
#10 – Cook For The Family NOT Just YOU
It’s a nightmare when you announce you are on a diet and no one else in the family is on board with you. Instead go for wholesome meals that are Slimming World compliant and cook them for the whole family.
You will be amazed by how much your other family members will enjoy them.
