I've been catching up on all the competitions I've missed during the week whilst I've been at work. I've probably entered a couple of hundred this weekend.

Some of these sites require you to be registered to enter. Once you have logged-in it makes it easier to enter the comps as they already have your details. Often it is one click per comp.

I'm currently updating my details on sites where I'm registered as I recently changed my email address. Which brings me to another golden competition rule I forgot earlier: keep your details up-to-date.

Whilst changing my email address I've come across several sites where some of my other details where out of date. For instance some had my old home address on them, others had my old mobile number.

It's quite possible that I have won prizes which have been sent to my old address or that people cannot get hold of me to tell me I've won (and therefore I forfeit the prize!).

You don't want to spend time entering competitions when you have no chance of receiving the prize because your details are out-of-date. So make a regular check of the sites you use a lot to ensure they have your correct details.

Many competitions are run in order to obtain your email address/details for future correspondence. Usually there is an option to opt-out of future contact.

I have read people asking the question: "Will I still win if I don't sign up to the newsletter/request further details?". In my experience it doesn't make any difference, although it wouldn't surprise me if some sites "drew" regular customers rather than strangers.

However, I always opt-out to keep my email inbox as free as possible from unwanted mail and I have certainly won my share of prizes. Take a look at my competition wins.

I'm watching the football results now as they come through and keeping track of my Championship fantasy football side. It reminds me that I've just done the Football Pools for the first time in ages this week.

I played many years ago, without any meaningful success, as a result of which I received a mailshot reminder through the post with some free offers from Vernons. I've signed up for 100 weeks in order to get the maximum free entries, taking me through until 2011!

My thinking is that in a few weeks I will forget about it and then a (big) cheque coming in the post will be a nice surprise. Would a pools win improve my future? Absolutely.

I've also done the Euromillions and National Lottery online this week so things are pretty desperate here!

I started betting and gambling at a young age (it runs in the family) and always liked a flutter on the horses or a bet on the football. However as I've got older I've realised that £5 on a 5-1 winner, fun though it may be, is not going to change my life.

I think you can safely class me as a dreamer! Nothing wrong with that, as long as you are not betting more than you can afford to lose. But there are better ways of earning reasonable money, although they will require more effort.

In the coming weeks I will be setting up the business opportunity side of the website with some genuine opportunities. These will NOT be get rich quick schemes or promise unrealistic earnings.

They will require some work on your part but in return you could earn yourself an extra income or a full-time income, depending on your circumstances and requirements.

So keep reading and let me know if you come across any genuine business opportunities you think should be listed.

The post has just arrived and I've won a DVD - "Max Manus Man of War" from BritFilms.tv.

Looks like a good film, although I've not heard much about it. I'm certainly looking forward to watching it.

It will be added to my list of prize wins accessible from the competitions page all of which should be finished by the end of today.

A prize win always spurs me on to enter more comps and this is the secret of regular winning - enter as many as you can.

I recently helped my Dad out with some work he was doing. My job was to get people to fill out a quick form to enter a free prize draw to win a brand new Mini.

It was amazing how many people just weren't interested, citing reasons such as "I've already got a car". Not sure they realised an extra car could be sold and the money spent in any way they wanted.

Still, this kind of attitude means that winning prizes should be easier for the rest of us.

I will be running my own competitions from this website too. I already have the first few prizes in my possession, however if anyone wishes to sponsor a competition prize in return for some free publicity please contact me.

I got my Wii Fit back last night and had my first go on it in six months (192 days to be precise).

Pleasantly surprised, firstly that I'd only put on 4lbs in all that time, secondly that I found it all pretty easy so I cannot have lost too much fitness either.

I even got a Wii Fit age of 36, three years younger than my real age, and got close to my records on hula hoop, step and skiing.

Whilst it is a lot of fun, can it really help in my weight loss quest?

On its own it is just not hard enough for anyone of even moderate fitness. I've seen that there are other games out now that utilise the board and perhaps train you harder. If I can get one cheap I'll give it a try.

In the meantime the Wii Fit is an extra weapon in my armoury, something to be used in addition to a sensible diet and trips to the gym rather than instead of.

I intend playing for 30 minutes minimum each night after my son has gone to bed. Maybe the yoga and muscle exercises, of which I'm not a fan, will prove a better option in toning and trimming rather than full out aerobic exercise.

If nothing else it makes it easy to keep track of my weight and to see how I am progressing.

OK some of you may think it is too early to be thinking about Christmas but it will soon come around again and many shops will be starting their Christmas displays in the coming weeks.

One of the reasons for this blog entry is to talk about budgeting for Christmas so the earlier you read this the better.

It is difficult to be indifferent about Christmas, most people love it or hate it. Personally I am nearer to the latter category thanks to the rampant over-commercialisation and the expectation of a food/drink/cash binge.

However, as my wife and family don't agree with me I have to make a token effort (and it will be a VERY token effort) and buy a few gifts, food etc.

As money is tight, finding an extra couple of hundred quid in December is not going to be easy so I have set up a better way of budgeting.

Over the past few months, in light of a very tight budget generally, I have restricted food shopping to once a week. We make a list in advance and try not to deviate from it.

At first I did not restrict how much we spent, I just monitored the situation to find out exactly how much we were spending. It worked out around £55-60 per week.

Then I set a budget of £50 per week and added up the items as we went around (much to my wifes displeasure and embarrasment!) to make sure we did not overspend.

Once we were managing at £50 per week I reduced it to £45 per week and this has been the figure for several weeks now. It is difficult to go below this as it includes formula milk, nappies, wipes etc. for the baby which we can't skimp on!

By the way, we are not exactly starving on this new £45 budget, as can be seen from my belly photo, so a lot of the extra cash we were spending was just wasted on unecessary items.

So we are spending around £45 per week on food and around £15-20 per week on diesel (I can't reduce this as I need to get to work).

I have obtained a cashback card which gives me a 5% discount off my shopping and petrol. This is NOT a credit card, you have to load it with money first.

We are loading it with £300 on the first of every month and this covers our shopping and diesel costs of around £250, leaving around £50 in the account each month.

By Christmas this should have accumulated to around £200-250 (we started in August), enough to pay for Christmas, plus we get 5% off everything we spend.

Using this card gives us more control over our spending as well as the added bonus of a 5% discount.

This is a much better idea than putting Christmas on your credit card and worrying about how to repay it in January.  

It's been a terrible week, for a variety of reasons (although that's really just me making excuses), and I'm sure I've put weight on rather than lost any. I'm too miserable to step on the scales just now.

Instead I've got my wife to take a couple of photos of my ever-expanding gut as a form of shock therapy, hoping that this will give me a spur into action. They will also act as nice "before" pictures for when I've lost the weight!

The other picture, a nice side-on shot, will be added to the weight loss page in due course.

On top of this depressing news I've just found out my neighbour has swine flu. He says he is OK and is getting over it but I will be keeping my distance for the time being.

Getting back to the weight loss, my next plan is to retrieve my Wii Fit from the friends who borrowed it a few months ago. I stopped using it as the exercises were a bit too easy after a bit of practice but maybe with the extra weight they will be a bit more of a challenge to me.

Also my wife was pregnant when I initially bought it so couldn't use it much. She is interested in losing weight too, just a little baby fat, so I can see us using it together and trying to break each others records as a bit of an incentive to exercise.

Good luck if you too are trying to lose weight, hope you're doing better than me! If you want to get in touch for a bit of mutual support please contact me.

There are many different types of tea and some are claimed to help with weight loss, as well as provide other health benefits.

At the moment I'm drinking Rooibos tea (with orange) from South Africa. This is not advertised as a slimming tea but it is a naturally uncaffeinated drink with known antioxidant properties. It is also thought to aid digestion.

I regularly drink green tea for similar reasons and it makes a nice change from drinking coffee or tea with milk which tends to make me feel a bit bloated.

When researching my weight loss page I came across a tea which is claimed to specifically aid in weight loss, up to 3kg per month without strenuous exercise or major diet change.

This tea is called Cho-Yung and is a type of green tea. Currently they are offering 14 day free trials so you can try it and see how it works before making a major commitment to buy. 

To find out more and for your own free trial visit my weight loss page.

I'm thinking of giving it a try to see how it works and to see if there is any truth behind the rumour that drinking tea can help with weight loss.

Not really a long-term future improver but the chance to get away from work, relax and unwind will certainly improve your life for a week or two.

If you book early enough you have something to look forward to for a few months, giving you a bit of escapism from your day-to-day troubles or the dreary UK weather.

I'm looking forward to a late November/early December break, subject to available funds and getting time-off work. I may have to take unpaid leave for a few days as we have to save 4 days holiday for Christmas but it will be worth it.

I've added a holidays page to the website with a few links to sites for your holiday booking. This includes my parents apartment in Spain.

Their website is Spanish Golf Apartment where you will find out more about the apartment and local area. You can't really go wrong with a Spanish holiday, you are almost guaranteed good weather, great food and the prices are still reasonable, although a better exchange rate for the Euro would be a great help.

The golf course on which their apartment stands is very good I'm told although it's a few years since I've played golf.

There are plenty of weeks rental available so please get in touch for a great price!