Find out how to improve your fitness, get in shape and feel more motivated and happier in a few simple steps! It’s totally free and as well as loads of great prizes you all get ongoing online support and advice after the event to keep you on track!

Feel free to invite friends / family / colleagues…

You can sign up at the registration page: http://www.fitbodyfix.com/nutrition-weight-loss-your-health-seminar/

Find out all this and more!

* What you MUST eat every day to GUARANTEE you lose body fat.
* How to protect your precious metabolism – so you don’t yo-yo ever again!
* The top tricks of the trade Personal Trainers use to get their clients in ROCKSTAR shape!
* The surprising foods you MUST cut down drastically if you want to spot reduce fat: Love Handles, Beer Bellies & Chunky Thighs are lost in the kitchen, not by localised exercises!
* The BEST way to exercise to bust through a plateau or kick start your body transformation. And it’s not hours of jogging…
* The most effective ways to get your MIND on your side – no more self sabotage!
* Why you MUST be aware of clever marketing and advertising in order to lose fat and get healthy – they want to line their pockets and it’s your body that WILL pay the price!

Register online for more info:

http://www.fitbodyfix.com/nutrition-weight-loss-your-health-seminar/

The more the merrier – spread the love and share the invite.

Special deals for attendees only & loads of prizes to be won – including places on the ALL NEW Bitterne & Totton bootcamps starting Jan 30th 2012!

Ditch carbs, drink green tea, only eat at 3 minutes past any hour, only eat things that begin with the letter ‘C’….

OK, so there are some wierd and wonderful things out there, but have you ever thought about the fact that HOW you eat trumps WHAT you eat in many ways?

This is not to say I advocate eating a load of junk, not at all, I am a definite proponent of eating fresh, unprocessed, natural foods – basing your diet on loads of veggies, meat, fish, eggs, nuts & seeds…

BUT, if you are eating the perfect diet but ramming it down your throat at hyper speed, especially when hyper stresssed, you will not be digesting and absorbing all the nutrients in the food anyway.  Cortisol, the stress hormone, and digestion don’t mix, so there is an argument to support the fact that a less perfect food eaten calmly is better for you than a manically eaten food that is otherwise ‘perfect’ (ever noticed that you can eat bread on holiday but it makes you bloated in ‘normal’ life?  That would be the stress factor in action…).

So, the simple magic step to take, is to SLOW IT DOWN!!!!  This is a brilliant thing to use ESPECIALLY at hectic times, or times when food is too plentiful – hence me writing this in the run up to Christmas!  If you can make sure that what you do eat you savour, enjoying every mouthful, you will enjoy more and naturally eat less.  You will notice when you are full before you have over-stuffed yourself, so you will truly be able to enjoy the food and not have the awful consequences that invariably lead to guilt and a cycle of denial.

Which is the other part of the equation – feeling guilty about your eating then promising to be super strict, or punish yourself on Monday, in the New Year, when you get back from holiday or whatever, is another counter productive mindset.  There are situations where you will eat more and times you will naturally eat less.  Those who stay slim seeminly effortlessly usually have a more natural and less ‘willpower’ based approach to this.  They don’t beat themselves up about the times when they eat more, they just naturally cut back a bit afterwards.  And mostly they eat much more slowly than those of us who struggle…

I say those of us, as I have always been a fast eater!  I have focussed on it at times, but default back to eating too fast very easily.  So it is my personal challenge too.

The added benefit is, that when you eat slower and savour foods, you can begin to actually taste that junk is often not very tasty!  The chemicals and the fat / salt / sugar drug-like effect keep us eating, and wanting more, but the actual taste becomes more noticeable when you slow it down.

Ever noticed that overweight people claim to ‘love food’ but then barely even let it hit the taste buds before wolfing it down and wanting more (as you don’t feel satisfied if you eat it so fast your body can’t register it has taken energy on board).

It seems hard at the start, but use the next few weeks to focus on this, and this alone.  Eat, chew, placing fork (or food if finger food) down, finish mouthful then start on the next one, taking a small sip of water if need be to help with the feeling that your hands need something to be doing!

If you don’t have time to eat then eat less!  And work on carving time to savour food.  Avoiding distractions is good too (although I do find eating slow easier when I am reading at the same time, and it helps if you really are busy as you can justify the time spent eating better.)

Time how long meals take you and work on gradually extending that – you may end up exactly the same if you are currently eating fast, then having seconds, anyway…

The best thing is you can start right now, no special tools or foods or anything needed – just the intention!  So whatever you are eating next, whatever you deem it on the scale of ‘good’ to ‘bad’ it doesn’t matter – slow down, savour and enjoy (and if you’re not enjoying it, get rid!).

Comments appreciated below!

XCaroline

Check out the new vid to see a bit more (thanks to Ross at Skysoclear for his handywork and forcing me in front of the camera, of which I have a bit of a phobia) and there is also the previous video below – all my handiwork which I am very proud of, especially as I managed to hide from view and let the bootcampers do the talking (for once, ha ha…)

Instead of reaching for the usual bowl of porridge, try this alternative that is low in starchy carbs, super high in Omega 3 and good fats, super high in fibre and also boosted with a good dose of appetite suppressing, metabolism boosting protein, an essential yet mostly overlooked part of our daily morning meals…

This is soooo ridiculously easy, it is quicker than regular porridge, yet is so much better for you – I do love a good ‘win-win’ and this truly is one!

You can get chia seeds from various places, try the wonderful Raw Living where you can also get the Sunwarrior protein powder that gives this fab recipe its protein boost.  They also sell all sorts of wonderful superfoods you could add in to this or your smoothies, such as maca and ashwagandha, and they do fantastic raw choclate bars and even raw cakes that make a fab alternative to a regular birthday, or even Christmas, cake!

So, once you have your chia, you can either use them whole or grind them in a grinder to make a smoother version.

Add 2 tablespoons of chia to about 250ml water, or use Kara coconut milk alternative (from all major supermarkets and health food shops).

Stir it well, and leave for 10 – 15 mins, the seeds absorb 10 – 15 times their size in fluid!  Best if you stir a couple of times during, if not you will need to stir well after the time.  You may need to add more fluid as you stir.  At this point, you can actually store the chia ‘gel’ for up to 2 weeks in the fridge (depending on what you have used in it) so you can do this the night before for an even speedier breakfast.

You could use warmed milk, or you could soak in a pan then heat the mixture (my preferred method), heating gently to your preferred temperature.  No need to actually cook it at all, this is simply to heat it for warming you up purposes!

Then add 2 level scoops of Sunwarrior – I prefer to use the chocolate, or vanilla if you prefer.  This is all natural raw brown rice protein sweetened only with the natural herb sweetener, stevia, so is the only protein powder I recommend.  Hemp is a great protein but not very tasty for this kind of recipe, but you could alternative try that or go half and half (or add ground hemp seeds for a different taste).  Soy protein (and milk) is a no-no…

Stir it all up and add some berries, or grated apple and cinnamon, or whatever you like! You could sprinkle a few chopped nuts on top for added crunch.  Add a teaspoon of coconut oil if you want, which can help boost metabolism and has lots of immune boosting properties, as well as increasing the satiety factor further.

Seriously simple – took me way longer to write this than to prepare a bowl, quite simply a brilliant way to start your day.

For more information about chia, as well as loads of great ideas on what to do with it – including turning it into a fruity gel for a kids (or adults’!) dessert, or topping, check out 40 Ways To Use Chia Seeds.  I am going to be trying several of these ideas and recipes, and this will be a fantastic way to prevent weight gain over the festive period – filling up with a fibre and protein rich breakfast like this (or having as a snack or dessert, hot or cold) and using chia in many recipes to boost the Omega 3s and fibre.

Let me know your favourite recipes below!

Cauliflower is a wonderful vegetable with a clever knack of being able to replace potatoes in pretty much everything, mashed (well you need to puree it with a hand blender to mash it) it goes well with stews & casseroles, sausages and onion gravy, as a healthy alternative to potato (perhaps along with some butternut squash) as a topping on a cottage / shepherds or fish pie, and the flavour goes soooo well as an alternative to rice with any home-made (or takeaway) curry – while doing some serious damage limtation at the same time!  Win-wins are what I’m all about, and so is the mighty cauliflower!

To make mash you just steam the cauliflower in chunks, for 10 or so minutes till soft but not mush, then puree with a hand blender, adding some celtic sea salt & black pepper, maybe a little butter or olive oil, or some coconut milk if serving with curry.  Cumin seeds or mustard also go really well, and you can mix it up with other veg such as squash, carrots or broccoli…

Anyway, that is one of cauliflower’s side dish roles, in this she is the main contender (in my view).  Again, as with most of my ‘recipes’ they are really invitations to get experimenting with whatever you have to hand, there are so many variations I can only begin to suggest a few.  Here’s the basic method, then it’s up to you!

INGREDIENTS:

Up to 1 small cauliflower or half a larger one per person.

2-3 eggs per person

Some other veg if you want to spice things up – I added some kale.

Butter and coconut oil.

Celtic sea salt & black pepper (feel free to try other herbs and spices, and garlic if you want!)

A very strong hard cheese, parmesan is great as you can get more flavour with less cheese…

METHOD:

If you want the cauliflower al dente then you don’t have to steam it, but if you prefer it softer then lightly steam cauliflower chunks for a few minutes to soften.  Cut the cauliflower into fairly small chunks.  I did this without steaming first and like the extra bite.

Heat the butter & coconut oil (I like a bit of both for this, nice buttery taste but also gets in the fabulous coconut benefits) then add the cauliflower.  Saute until the cauliflower is nicely browned and softened. You could add garlic here, or some chopped bacon. Add any extra veg after cooking the cauliflower for a few minutes, if you add spinach add it very near the end as it doesn’t take long.  Add seasoning to taste.

When the veg are done to your desired level, crack in the eggs.  Jiggle it all about, for a few moments on the heat to begin to cook the eggs, then take off the heat to finish – this is better if the egg doesn’t get too hard.  If you wanted extra creaminess you could add a dollop of Total 0% Greek Yoghurt at this point too, but the egg alone is great.

Transfer to a plate, you could have this alone or as a side dish (fewer eggs per person if a side dish than if that is the main protein) and then grate the cheese over the top – using a really strong cheese means you don’t need much, but you get all the flavour.

Enjoy!

Inspired by the wonderful Val Waters, creator of the Valslide and trainer to the stars we would all love to look like, this is one of their secret weapons!

INGREDIENTS:

2-3 eggs per person

Veg that you want to use!  I used red onion, mushrooms, kale and courgettes the other day,  adding kale or cavolo nero shredded makes it really nice and super nutritious too.  Basically a great way to use up random veg…

Coconut oil or butter to cook.

METHOD:

If you are using onions, saute those in the coconut oil till they are soft, then add the other veg, cooking so they are getting a bit browned (a matter of preference there though).

Add spices, herbs, celtic sea salt and black pepper to taste.  Garlic if you don’t have too many meetings!  This is a fab, quick supper so in that case I’d use more garlic than if its a breakfast!

Then add the eggs, 2-3 per person, you could also just add one and make this a side dish to a protein portion.

Cook until the eggs set, you don’t want them too hard as it keeps it nice & creamy.

As a real treat you could grate come parmesan over, you could add some chopped bacon (same time as the onion) and you can sprinkle chia seeds or other seeds on the dish at the end to add some extra crunch.

Another limitless set of options!  Enjoy – let me know your fave combos in the comments below!

The psyllium makes them fab for improving elimination, but you should ease into adding fibre gradually, and drink lots of water or herbal tea alongside…

The fillings are really all up to you (I have even been known to satisfy a random Marmite craving by having one of these with some butter and Marmite, but don’t tell anyone…). Would be ace with banana & peanut butter too.  And great with egg, bacon alongside a salad for a healthy version of a full cooked breakfast!  Oh yeah, super awesome with smoked salmon and poached egg or Total Greek Yoghurt (cucumuber works well here – always add some veg or fruit to each meal don’t forget!).

Yikes, making me hungry….

INGREDIENTS:

1 egg, a splash of water, 25g psyllium husks.

Coconut oil or butter to cook.

Fillings as per your imagination!  See suggestions and please comment below with your favorites!

METHOD:

Use some greaseproof paper to lightly grease a small frying pan with cocout oil or butter.  Heat the pan on a high heat.  Best to do this first, then crack the egg in a bowl, add a splash of water (less = thicker pancake, more = thinner, worth experimenting according to your preference) then 25g psyllium (I actually have psyllium mixed with inulin, you can get this as Lepicol but I order both from MyProtein as it is great value).

Mix with a fork, the psyllium thickens and gets gloopy – too gloopy if you leave it too long, so don’t delay, as soon as the pan is nice and hot, add the mixture (should sizzle nicely) and let it cook, till the edges crisp up and you can flip it.  Patience works here – too soon and you have a mushy dollop, give it more time and it will be fine!  You can start with 2 eggs and less water to practice, too – its the water that absorbs more…

Flip it and cook on the other side, while preparing your yummy fillings!
Enjoy, and let me know your filling ideas below!

Just a warning, I don’t really do recipes as such, more guidelines for chucking stuff in and seeing what happens…  I’ve tried to give you guidelines about amounts but in most of these recipes you will prefer certain textures….

This is the November 100 Burpee Challenge – which is as it sounds, 100 burpees a day for every day in November.  I started last week (had planned to do a random Daily 100, but then saw this challenge on FB and decided that would be more fun (?!): Facebook Group for 100 Burpee Challenge

I suggest the version where you fold forwards and put your hands on the ground, jump back to high plank, jump forwards between your hands, stand up then add a jump.  You can do whichever variation you like, I’m adding in the push up too.

If you aren’t up for burpees, then you can still do a Daily 100 – simply choose your favourite exercise (well, you know what I mean) and do 100 each day.  Or pick a few bootcamp exericses and do 100 of one of them each day, rotating as you like.  Just stick to the 100 each day and if you miss out you have to do 100 extra the next day!

So, comment below or on the FB group if you are in!

Caroline Radway from www.fitbodyfix.com started off the day with an energising yoga session, preparing bodies and minds for the on water activities. Suitably stretched, wetsuited and booted the ladies were ready to hit the water. Throughout the day ‘Learn to’ sessions were run alongside sessions for the more experienced, making it the perfect opportunity for waterwomen to bring along female friends and family members that they had not previously been able to tempt onto the water.

With calm winds and blazing sunshine, the lagoon was the perfect setting for all of the ‘Learn to’ sessions, as well as of course the wake boarding. The more advanced windsurfers may have wished for a little more wind, but took the opportunity to brush up on their light wind freestyle moves, mixing it up with everyone else on the lagoon.

Yoga with Caroline Radway

The more experienced SUPers took to the sea for a longer distance paddle, exploring the Hove beaches, and learning some new techniques in the idyllic conditions.

All of the women in attendance picked up the new sports with seemingly effortless ease, all female groups being taught by female instructors, seems to lead to a much calmer learning experience! Some showed a flare for wakeboarding, others a penchant for SUP and many were seduced by the sail power provided by windsurfing. As is often the case when trying new things it is more the experience of learning, stepping outside of your comfort zone and giving it a go that is most important, the fact that learning a watersport can lead to a boost in self confidence, a new passion and more toned legs is (almost) beside the point.

‘I hope all the women that attended had simply a fun day on and off the water, learning that the world of watersports is not quite as macho as some would have you believe, and that they will continue to progress and keep active in which ever watersport they choose.’ 

Throughout the day RRD, Ezzy, Tushingham, Tabou and Gaastra kindly provided our windsurfing and SUPing ladies with the latest toys to try, and we were supplied with our fuel for the day from the fantastic Grasshopper porridge ladies. The Nalu Beads ladies were also around all day, including team rider Lex Balladon, who not only gave out copious amounts of wakeboarding advice, but also helped run the Nalu Beads masterclasses, providing every female entrant with a beautiful necklace, headband, anklet or bracelet.

The ‘Blast 4 Breast Cancer’ became a 4 woman SUP relay race on the lagoon, with one team unfortunately down a member, promo king and BWA competitor, Chris ‘Muzza’ Murray stepped up to fill the spot. It was a close battle, with a few thrills, spills and the odd dirty tactic or two, but the winners were Linda Drummond, Anna Glasspool, Lauren Lewis and Muzz, (they were already in the lead before Muzz took over on the last leg!) closely followed by Lucy McCormick, Dawn Seymour, Emma Ray and Kira Krissinel in second.

Creating a Nalu Beads masterpiece

After a hectic day it was time for some more well earned yoga, this time of the relaxing variety, followed by the odd cupcake, before the grand prize giving and charity raffle. The top two teams in the ‘Blast 4 Breast Cancer’ took home prizes from Nalu Beads, Pepperfit and Grasshopper porridge, while there was a whole host of prizes on offer for the sold out charity raffle, including wakeboarding sessions from www.lagoon.co.uk , windsurfing coaching from www.sam-ross.co.uk , bootcamp and online training from www.fitbodyfix.com , a Flying Object Minx harness, LOADS of Ion and Fanatic goodies, £100 worth of Reef clothing from www.k172.com and more from Grassy, Pepperfit and Nalu Beads. With lots of lucky prize winners and all donations from the raffle and cake sales etc, as well as a part of the entrance fee going to female cancer care it was a good day all round.

So here’s to seeing all the happy faces from this event, plus many more at the next Go with the FLOW weekend, details to be announced right here on www.flowatersports.com 

With special thanks and sending lots of love to:

Lagoon Watersports www.lagoon.co.uk Harvey and all the staff for being fantastic hosts.

Breathe Unity www.breatheunity.co.uk Rebecca and Carole for all of their support.

Ready, set, SUP!

Stash!Brian, Martin and all of those from www.windsurfing4cancerresearch.com , Breast Cancer Care and Cancer Research UK.

The amazing female coaches Caroline Radway, Ellie Ross, Chloe Goodyear, Helen Trehane, Lucy McCormick, Rachel Cockle and Lilly.

Lisa and Lex from Nalu Beads www.nalubeads.com for coming down, sharing your beautiful beads, teaching us how to make a good bracelet and allowing us to keep a little reminder our of favourite surf spots with us at all times.

Adam Sims www.seaspritesports.com for bringing equipment, fab prizes, and the lifesaving filming.

Rich Marsh www.gaastra.com and www.tabou-boards.com for new sails and boards to try, plus some very handy waterproof phone holders.

Grasshopper porridge www.teamgrasshopper.com for lots of yummy, scrummy porridge.

Sam Ross Windsurfing www.sam-ross.uk for all the support plus the brilliant coaching prize.

Jan Sleigh www.k127.com for £100 worth of Reef goodies for one lucky winner.

Nik Baker www.k-66.com for prizes including gorgeous bikinis and the must have changing towel!

Mum and Dad, for bringing cakes, taking photos and generally putting up with my haphazard approach to life.

And finally to YOU for coming, donating and/or reading the write up!

Until next time, Amy x

For lots more photos check out FLOW on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/FLOWatersports.Riders

I provided my fitness and nutrition coaching services and the trainees donated to attend, and Roke matched everything raised – I believe we made about £2000 in total which is fab, although we are going to aim higher next time!

I was invited to tour Naomi House & Jack’s Place yesterday and was blown away – the services provided and the incredible attention to detail that is made to make every child and their family feel truly cared for and to feel good about being there was astounding.  Personalising children’s rooms with posters of things they like, watching their favourite DVDs, music rooms, art rooms, hydrotherapy pools are all available giving these children and young people with life-threatening conditions a way to express themselves, feel cared for and enjoy their often tragically short lives.  Naomi House also supports the families long term, giving support just not available any other way.

To find out more about how the place works, check out this video:

If you would like to help raise funds for Naomi House, there are millions of options!  Anything from having a Hallowe’en themed party, donating items to our shops or suggesting to your employer that they choose Naomi House for colleagues to fundraise for an volunteer at. Or how about a big challenge such as climbing Kili? And there are the Santa Fun Runs in early December. There’s so many options and any one can get in touch for inspiration!  Email fundraising@naomihouse.org.uk to chat to the fundraising team.

They also run open days – the last one was Sep 24th which looked fantastic and the day raised £10,000 for the hospice, I would definitely recommend going along to the next one if you can!

If your business would like to organise a lunchtime fitness bootcamp in the same way that Roke have, please get in touch, and I will come along free of charge (Roke did a weekly 45 minute session in their lunchbreak, for 6 weeks, and had access to online workout videos to do to make it up to 3 sessions a week) and also provide nutritional information and support via email too.  Email fit@fitbodyfix.com for more information and to discuss the options.

Another video:

Do you seem on autopilot when it comes to some of your less productive habits, resulting in self-sabotage that stop you from reaching those goals you were so dedicated to just a short while earlier?

There are always deeper things involved, so rather than getting further into that cycle of self-sabotage – guilt – denial – self sabotage why not think about things a little differently?

Our sabotaging behaviours, the mindset that triggers them and the overweightness that result can all stem from fear.

The patterns of behaviour are a comfort to us in times of need, they serve a purpose, even if its a misguided one, there are positives to be seen and recognised rather than just blaming.  Subconsciously we are protecting ourselves from perceived threat – whatever that may be.

The resulting layer of unwanted fat is also protection – from unwanted attention perhaps, if there has been history of traumatic experience, but also it is often more universal and self-propagating – it is a way of hiding the light we have to shine, for fear that we are not good enough to shine it!

No matter how much we say we want to achieve whatever our goal is, we will hit a brick wall if deeper down than we can consciously see there is an emotional warning light flashing away like crazy, thinking it needs to protect us.  This is enough to trigger seemingly pointless self-sabotaging behaviours.  If we can regognise that these behaviours are actually serving a purpose, if a misguided one, we are in a much stronger position to unpick the behaviour and replace it with a more productive means to the same end – one that has positive health and figure consquences and that will actually make you feel better, rather than propagaing the self-sabotage cycle.

To recognise the purpose in these behaviours and that they are a response to deep seated fear – of failure or, in many cases, of success, is like shining a light into darkness.  Send love to the behaviours and to yourself and the fear can no longer exist – as light does not just cancel out darkness, but actually dissolves it so it cannot exist.

Releasing and letting go of this fear is not about fighting anything, but about dissolving the resistance and letting a positive emotion and feeling take centre stage.

What is it we are afraid of?  Why are we wrapping ourselves up in a comfort blanket of body fat?

The physical act of eating, especially ‘self medicating’ foods that are high in the trio of sugar, fat and salt (carefully prepared by the food industry to hit all the buttons that make you coming back for even more!) is often a response to a feeling of fear or anxiety in the stomach – we are literally pouring food or drinks onto the pain.   Of course for some, the anxiety makes eating impossible, these people we often look at as lucky, but they are still suffering in their own way so it is not fair to judge – often these people wish they were healthier, fitter, had more energy and felt better about themselves, just that for some it won’t manifest in overweight.

Either way, the result is killing the pain and the fear and the emotions with food, or other substances, and also in many cases creating a protective blanket that shields us from making the next, somewhat scary steps in life.

How many of us think that life will be great when we’ve lost the next 5 / 10 / 20 lb?  How many people are constanly putting things off until they reach that magic weight?  The weight becomes an excuse not to move forward, and if you want to retain that excuse then it will mean losing the weight it extremely hard as your subconscious wants to keep you protected from the scary things that might be in store when you succeed!

A bit like an over-protective parent!   We all know the feeling of seeing parents and despite being supposedly fully fledged adults we are warned to ‘be careful’ or ‘wrap up warm’ or whatever.  And that can feel a bit restricting and limiting – yet our subsconscious is doing exactly that!  Learning to identify the self-sabotaging behaviours as the same as that over-protecive parent can help us to ‘outgrow’ the behaviours and begin to shed the emotional baggage as well as the physical baggage.

Without the blanket we no longer have that excuse to fall back on and we have to take responsibility for our lives – the good and the not-so-good!  We have to admit our supposed failures and weaknesses rather than hiding from them.  The crazy thing is, when we admit them and take responsibility for them they usually become the source of great strength.

Being unable to lose weight no matter what you have tried, is actually an excuse in itself, the more you blame and berate yourself the more you propagate the cycle and make your success even more elusive.  We quench the resulting emotions rather than letting them be, and dealing with them.  We literally stuff them down, and then they are stored in our actual fat cells.

This is why giving up certain foods or certain patterns of behaviour can be so hard and actually be a very emotional experience.  It is not so much the fact that you are not having something you may want, but that without that substance the feelings and emotions that the substance had kept under wraps begins to emerge and need dealing with!  But I hope you can see how persevering is well worth it, as once you are free from the emotions and have dealt with them, it will also mean those old, outdated self sabotaging behaviours can go, making your journey a far easier one than you ever imagined!

Combining the right mindset and approaches to dealing with the mental and emotional side of things, with the right eating and exercising strategies, means that achieving your goals is well within your reach.

Just thinking positive thoughts is self-sabotage too, you have to take positive action too, so take the first step and have a look at what habits in your life right now are causing you the most pain, but that you are stuggling with changing.  Identify what purpose these habits and behaviours are serving and then see how else you can meet that need, or let go of the emotion or feeling triggering the habit in the first place.

True self love and respect comes from exercising regularly, eating well whilst also enjoying things that are not nutritionally perfect once in a while without guilt or triggering a binge episode, and accepting yourself as you are now, as well as you as you will be when you achieve whatever your goal is.  Without love now, your goals will elude you, as the guilt / blame / fear cycle cannot be broken without it!  Love the protection your habits and resulting blanket of fat have given you, but let it go for good, as something that you no longer need!  Once you identify what you are afraid of, its like switching a light on in a scene of a scary movie – it’s really not so scary after all (why do they never switch the lights on?!).

Go on, let it go!

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” Marianne Williamson, A Return To Love.

We have all been there I am sure – all the best intentions and plans, matched with an actual belief that we really can stick to the plan.  There is a side of us that really, truly loves to eat healthily and exercise.  But then, when we least expect it, temptation stands in our way, and the alter-ego takes over.  Before you know it, BAM, best intentions out the window.

However, what if we are missing a trick by trying to suppress the so-called ‘evil twin’?  What if she is not so evil after all?  What if we need to stop trying to be so perfect, and start accepting that we can be ALL things.  By nature, we are contradictions, and that is fine.  We sometimes want healthy, sometimes want indulgence.  We sometimes want exercise, sometimes want rest.  Sometimes we are nice and sometimes we are, well, we’re not that nice.

We have all spent our lives learning to reject elements of our human nature that are not acceptable in society, or within our particular sphere.  If you grew up feeling that you could not express anger, then you will have learned to repress your anger, and in fact that is when anger can bubble up to the surface and cause even more pain.  By embracing the fact that you have anger within you, and also looking to what positives there may be in that, the anger need not be hidden and repressed, and can actually be acknowledged as an acceptable part of the whole you.  Sometimes showing displeasure when something is not as it should be really is OK – if you gloss over it so as not to appear angry as you judge that as bad, this anger will seep through in a more destructive way – if weight is an issue it is often these repressed emotions that lead to emotional eating.  You are directing the anger that could have had an appropriate outlet into self-sabotaging behaviour.

Using anger as an example, if you can embrace the ‘angry’ part of you as OK, you may realise that some kind of martial art or combat style fitness programme involving boxing is just the ticket – directing the previously repressed emotion into an extremely positive outlet (so long as you stick to punching pads not unsuspecting people of course!).

There is a very simple and hugely illuminating way to figure out what you are repressing or denying.  We project our feelings and emotions onto others, if you are a negative person, then you will see negativity in others around you.  The things you most react to in the people around you are the things you most need to address yourself. It sounds a bit crazy at first, but try it!

It can be obvious, such as if you are overweight and focus on that about yourself all the time, you may well look at others and judge them for their weight.  Imagine how much better you would feel if you stopped judging yourself, as you would stop judging others and stop thinking that others are judging you!  When you start to acknowledge the beauty, love and light within yourself, you will begin to see it in everyone, and the world becomes a lighter, happier place.

If you find descriptive words that really bother you, then say ‘I am’ followed by that word, over and over, until it loses its emotional impact.  Go on!  I am lazy, I am boring, I am mean, I am greedy, I am….  Find the things you least feel like you want to identify with, and learn to see there is a part of you that is or can be that.  Once you accept the dark side it has the effect of shedding light on it – and where there is light by definition there is no dark.

Often within the hidden, dark side, lurks some of our light that is too being hidden.  So this process has the added effect of allowing you to shine your full light.  Ever felt you can’t do something because you don’t want to ‘look like you are showing off’?  Well, say to yourself, ‘I am a show off’.  Accept that in life, we need to blow our own trumpets, no-one is going to do it for you, so accepting the show off can allow you to take some risks you were previously unable to (coaching myself here, one of my problems hence severe video-ing self phobia!!).

When this comes to getting in shape, or losing weight, there are many ways in which accepting the ‘shadow’ can eliminate self-sabotage, which is at the root of all failed attempts to get in shape.  If you accept that contradiction is totally fine, there can be no ‘all or nothing’ thinking.  There is no wagon to fall from!  Accepting that you may sometimes want some cake or dessert, you may sometimes want to drink more than you should, you may sometimes want to stay in bed not get up to workout – all these are acceptable parts of being a balanced, real, human!  Shine your light on these parts of you, and see the blessings within.

Blessings in being lazy?  Well, yes!  We can’t operate effectively if we are always ‘on’.  Recovery is a vital part of any training plan and is where all the real benefits occur.  We need sleep and good quality sleep, so this is a really important thing to focus on achieving, and there are many things you can do to improve your sleep quality.  By embracing your need to rest and recover you can improve your recovery and actually what happens?  You suddenly actually feel more energised anyway!  So that early morning training session is no longer so daunting.  But even if it is, you know that just because you are feeling lazy right now, it doesn’t make you lazy.  It is just what it is.  A feeling, that will pass.  There is no judgement, and there is also no feeling that you have blown it all now because of one ‘slip up’.

Learning to embrace the whole and celebrate yourself leads to a sense of peace within yourself and a feeling of completeness.  When we hide parts of ourselves we end up feeling empty and many people seek to fill this gap with food.  But that is a hunger that food simply cannot fill.

The SIMPLE Nutrition Plan is designed to allow you to make positive choices, and also respect the fact that sometimes you will want to have certain things that aren’t the best in terms of your goals, but the emphasis is on mostly making positive, supportive choices from a place of self-love.  You choose the good quality foods that will make you look and feel great, and I want to make sure you are all aware of what is actually healthful and what isn’t – mainly so that when you choose to indulge you can indulge in style!  Eating things you think are healthy (typical low fat packaged foods such as cereals, snack bars etc) puts you at a disadvantage from the start.  When you intend to eat the healthy stuff it had better be healthy, or you have wasted your effort!

By feeling good about yourself and your choices you will naturally want less of the things that aren’t great, but the minute you bring denial into the equation it becomes harder and harder to actually make the better choices, as the things you are denying call to you with an urgency you can’t quieten!  This is the same as repressing your evil twin / dark side.  The more you deny yourself the harder it is, the minute you shine the light of acceptance and allowance the power and urgency is removed, so you are free from craving and need.  If course, you have to actually have it if you really, truly want it, but often the knowing it is there for you if you really want it makes all the difference!

If you want to explore your ‘shadow’, ‘evil twin’ or ‘dark side’ (which I highly recommend you do!) then these books are brilliant:

The Shadow Effect (Debbie Ford, Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra).  There is also a DVD which I have yet to watch.  The authors have a slightly different approach to the topic, it is quite an easy read.

Debbie Ford’s book on the topic was really life changing for me, actually.  I haven’t even properly completed the exercises within the book, but just reading it and being aware of my thoughts and projections on a daily basis has been illuminating, literally: The Dark Side of Light Chasers.

I really recommend you check these books out, but in the meantime, be aware of your projections and what they might mean!  See if you can embrace and welcome your shadow, and shed light on your whole self!

Legend abounds but apparently they are a veritable ‘fountain of youth’ and by practicing daily you will see the benefits accrue, as well as see a noticeable benefit each day you practice them.

I became aware of the 5 Tibetans by exploring Kundalini yoga, in which they are sometimes practiced. I have just trained as  Reiki 2 practitioner and there is a focus on the 7 chakras, which are areas in the body where energy channels and spins, and by working on the chakras in both yoga and Reiki, energy, wellbeing and longevity are said to increase.  The 5 Tibetans are said to stimulate all 7 chakras, to restore health and balance to the body and mind.

Hope I haven’t lost you all there, I know it might sound a bit spacey and ‘out there’ to some of you, but regardless, the 5 Tibetans are fantastic to practice each day for several completely down to earth and practical reasons:

1.  They energise you immediately, raising the heart rate and creating a real sense of invigoration, setting you up for the day.
2. They are actually pretty strenuous, although you should take it at your pace and build up to it, so give you a metabolism boost too as well as a sense of achievement each time you practice them.
3. They create a balanced flexibility, including dynamic versions of yoga poses, that counteract the tightening, flexing impact modern life and sitting has on us all. This means better posture, fewer injuries and increased performance in your training sessions (which means better results!)
4.  They help create a sense of calm and are a great way to destress and balance hormones.
5.  They only take 10 minutes!

I was going to film a video for you but the one I originally found is so good you can have that instead – featuring Ellen Wood, who incorporates the 5 Tibetans in her system to reduce ageing – she’s looking pretty awesome for 73 so that is incentive enough for me!  Plus I adore the soundtrack.

You should start with 3-5 of each and gradually build up to 21 of each – there is said to be no need or benefit in doing more.  Ellen emphasises doing them slowly, I do them a bit faster.  Bootcampers you will recognise 3 of them from bootcamp!

You can also download a PDF to remind you of the movements as well as some modifications HERE and another version here: The 5 Tibetans.)

I have decided to commit to practicing these EVERY DAY and would love you to join me!  Post below if you are up for the challenge, race to see who lives to 150!

Coconuts are sooo good for you, coconut oil being one of the best cooking oils (as you all know from reading your nutrition guide, right?). You can get coconut oil in bulk from http://www.coconoil.co.uk/ which I very much recommend as it lasts ages and costs a lot in small batches from the health food shop.  You can also find out more about it there.  It’s great to use as a moisturiser and hair treatment too, and works great in raw chocolate treats.  If you want to try coconut milk check out: http://nourishedkitchen.com/how-to-make-coconut-milk/.

Anyway, this is not a nutrition topic, so let’s get onto the workout!  Remember to do the warmup (http://www.fitbodyfix.com/workouts for a video) and stretch afterwards.

KNARLY HAIRY SHELL BIT:

10 burpees
10 reverse lunges on each side
10 warrior jumps
10 press ups

SWEET MEATY BIT:

Tripod Extension x 10 each side
Mountain climbers x 10 each side
Dolphin x 10

SWEET NECTAR JUICY BIT:

20 cycle crunches on each side

REPEAT THE WHOLE CIRCUIT AS MANY TIMES AS YOU CAN IN 15 MINS & POST YOUR RESULT BELOW!

Enjoy!

‘Go with the FLOW: For Female Cancer Care’ will take place on Saturday 24th September 2011, at Hove Lagoon Watersports http://www.hovelagoon.co.u​k/ and will include a morning yoga with waterwoman and health guru Caroline Radway www.fitbodyfix.com and bootcamp sessions too!

Learn to windsurf, wake board and SUP (paddle boarding) with female instructors, intermediate and advanced windsurfing coaching from FLOW’s top Hunk Sam Ross www.sam-ross.co.uk , demo equipment, music, cakes (ahem), a movie and more!

Visit FLOW and register – places on the coaching sessions are limited so you want to get in there quick!  For Ladies of Watersports 4 Cancer Research

Warm up as usual, see the video at http://www.fitbodyfix.com/workouts

Set your timer for 17 minutes (yes, 17!  The Universe doesn’t do everything in neat 15 minute chunks you know!)

Complete as many rounds of the following as you can, record your number and enter below!  This will be set again at regular intervals, and you can do anytime you need an extra workout or miss a session, so the aim is to do even more next time!

• Cross body mountain climbers x 15 each side (squeeze knee as high to elbow as possible, good plank position!)
• Tripod Extension x 10 each side
• T push ups x 8 on each side – push up into side plank on one side then push up then side plank other side.  OK to do kneeling push up then off knees for the side plank…
• Renegade Row x 10 each side – plank position, draw elbow back powerfully to engage the back as if you are starting a boat engine or pulling a drawer that is stuck, to work the mid upper back muscles.  Aim to keep good plank positiion despite being on 3 limbs not 4!
• Forward & backward lunges x 8 each way each side
• Triple jump x 15 – one big deep broad jump forward into a low squat position, then 3 little hops back bringing the feet together.
• Triceps Dips on a chair or bench x 12 – aim for legs straight but start with them bent, keep butt close to the bench and bend elbows fully!
• Cycle crunches x 20 each way

17 minutes of fun!

Let me know how you go, comment below!

Love, hugs & burpees

One of the key aspects of the Dukan Diet is to have an ‘Oatbran Galette’ (pancake in French, fat one as opposed to a ‘crepe’ I guess) every day.  There is a lot in the diet that makes no sense to me, this is kind of one of them – you are not allowed any green veg on protein days but you can have unlimited low fat dairy which is high in carbs and you can have these that contain more carbs than a bit of lettuce, but that’s not what this post is about… Ignoring the contradictory details of the Dukan Diet, this is a recipe you can implement to support your goals while still eating salad and vegetables!

The oatbran is designed to boost the daily fibre content, we all need 25g minimum each day, while this is possible with generous servings of veg (which I recommend), boosting fibre is great for detoxification, if you have problems with hip and thigh fat it is linked to excess oestrogens and adding extra fibre is a real help there.  I personally use pysllium husks mostly for adding fibre (it is good to rotate fibre sources every couple of weeks as your body may adapt to one source, so I do alternate with ground flax, hemp and apple fibre / FOS, you can get all from MyProtein, I would stick to psyllium / oatbran in this recipe, could try hemp flour / protein though too).  This is a super tasty and also quite ‘bread-like’ way of boosting fibre intake and is very filling and will help with any cravings you might face…

So having tweaked the recipe by adding the psyllium I actually think it was better, lighter and held together better.

I tried this over the weekend with a couple of eggs fried in a little coconut oil and was fab, yesterday had as a kind of tuna open sandwich with cucumber & tomato, mixing mustard and a little 0% Total Greek Yoghurt with the tuna to make it like tuna mayo (could also use a bit of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and a bit of mustard I just had Greek Yoghurt to use and hadn’t done that in a while!).  Can also have sweet with berries.  Whatever!  Let me know your ideas!

I am on the fence with dairy, I don’t recommend unlimited amounts and don’t recommend milk for various reasons I will expand upon in a future article, but live yoghurt is something I have on occasion and recommend as a great breakfast alternative to cereal and milk, having 0% Total Greek Yoghurt with berries and a few nuts is a great, high protein and high nutrient start to the day.  Generally I prefer people go for Total Greek Yoghurt as it is higher in protein and you can have the 0% version but the carbs / sugars stay low and the protein actually gets higher – most yoghurt goes low fat and ends up higher in sugars.  You can add good fats from a few nuts and seeds to balance the meal, or stir in some orange flavoured omega 3 fish oil (not fishy, just orangey!).

This recipe calls for yoghurt which is what I tried it with but thinking about it I will probably use coconut milk instead – I love one from Goodness Direct that is super creamy: What on Earth Organic Coconut Milk or you can use Kara coconut based milk alternative but that will be thinner, you may need an extra egg if you do that…

If you have kefir that would be even better – you can make it from coconut milk or milk and it transforms a regular food into a healthy bacteria filled superfood!

Psilly Oatbran Galette

1 dessertspoon oatbran (this is not oatmeal or regular oats, it is the bran, so higher in fibre which is the goal_
1 dessertspoon psyllium husks (can get these from health food stores or online from MyProtein)
1 dessertspoon Total 0% Greek Yoghurt or coconut milk (see link above for my fave!)
1 large egg
1 tsp coconut oil (again, you can get small tubs from health food stores but I recommend you order in bulk from Coconoil as works out loads cheaper!)

Toppings as you wish!

• Stir the ingredients together, and heat a frying pan on the hob, use some greaseproof paper to grease the pan with coconut oil.
• Dollop the mixture (should be quite gloopy and dollopable) into the pan, pat it down a bit but if its too thin it will break when you try to flip it) into the hot pan.  Leave it to cook a few minutes (if you flip it too soon it will collapse!) the edges should be coming away from the pan a bit.
• Flip and cook a few minutes on the other side, preparing the topping.

This is a super high fibre, high protein bread alternative, great for those times you are missing your old frenemy (have you ever wondered why the French call bread ‘pain’?!).  Better than making a loaf with similar ingredients (although you can) because you make one at a time, and they are super filling too.

Adding the Psyllium was my tweak, I have it in my smoothies and it is a great fibre boost, I might actually try it in an omelette, which will make it more like a pancake, we shall see!  Psyllium, kara and a bit of Sunwarrior protein powder, mixed so it is thick, with a few frozen berries, is another great snack or dessert, fills you up and beats any craving!

Would love to hear your topping ideas – comment below!

Well there’s tennis fever as usual for Wimbledon, but that is not really the point of this article, it just reminded me to remind or alert you guys to the power of the tennis ball in helping you get more flexible and get more out of your training programme!

Yes, a tennis ball can do all that!

Confused? You may have read my article on foam rollers a while ago (along with a downloadable instruction manual and links to some good vids). A foam roller basically is a self massage tool, which you use by lying on it on the ground and moving yourself around to massage the tight spots on your body – for most people calves and ITB (outside edge of thigh) are top priorities (try it – if it is tender or sore you really need it!!!) but also great for quads, glutes and other areas (check out the link above for more info).

There are a couple of limitations to the foam roller, though. Firstly as they are quite big they are only really good for bigger muscle groups. Luckily, that is where the tennis ball comes in – it does the same thing with the same effect (releasing the fascia, or connective tissue, that keeps your muscles tight even if you stretch them regularly) but the smaller size means you can get into those tight spots more easily. You can place the ball against a wall, and use that to get your trap (shoulder / neck) muscles for example.

The use I want to focus your attention on right now, though, is the feet. And this is also where the ball has advantages over the foam roller.

You simply place the ball on the floor and roll the base of your feet over it, getting into all the nooks and crannies. This releases the connective tissue all the way up the body and can even result in improved hamstring flexibility, so is a perfect thing to do before each workout, as well as just generally. If you have any issues with feet, such as plantar fasciitis, it is definitely something you need to be doing daily.

The reason the ball may even trump the foam roller is convenience and simplicity. You can fit a ball in your bag easily but also you can leave a few around the house for impromptu usage. I have one by the sofa and one under each desk (one desk being the dining room table, I have an intermittent aversion to using the actual office!) and you can easily roll your feet while doing something else, which means you are more likely to be able to do it every day. Foam rolling you have to actively focus on (while you can do it while watching TV it’s still more active) and it does often end up being the thing that gets forgotten about.

So, find yourself a tennis ball and get rolling! Once things loosen up you can progress to a lacrosse ball and then a golf ball, I tend to use the tennis ball and the golf ball too. The spiky physic balls are really great too, you get a huge feeling of ‘foot massage’ with those.

You will improve your flexibility, which will improve your performance in exercises such as squats, which mean you can work harder at them and work your muscles more effectively, so you can burn more fat during workouts and get in shape more efficiently – result, huh?!

Feeling Slinky?

Are you struggling with motivation to take that first step towards a fitter, healthier you?

Do you feel that it could all be so easy, but you don’t really know where to start? Perhaps you feel overwhelmed because you then let your thoughts run wild and think about all the pitfalls – what if I can’t keep it up, what if it’s all too hard? Fear of failure is debilitating, so it is VITAL that you remind yourself that the only failure is not taking any action at all! There is nothing to lose by trying something – even if it doesn’t work perfectly it will help you decide upon a better route.

One of the best ways of thinking about your journey in life is as a series of spirals. We know how easy it is to take the downward spiral – you miss a workout and then start eating badly, or you eat one chocolate and suddenly the whoel day is a write off… But if we simply flip that notion on its head it is a stark reminder that creating an upward spiral can be as easy!

Yes, if we stop thinking about where each step will end up, and simply take one small step forwards and upwards, the next step seems to be there, waiting expectantly for another small, do-able, positive step!

So, if you don’t feel like going for a walk, just put on some exercise clothes and trainers. Don’t think about the next bit. Once you are kitted up, you feel more ready for action – when you are wrapped up in a dressing gown and pyjamas even an athlete is not in athlete mode, so simply a change of clothes can make a huge difference.

That simple, easy, positive step drives you forwards to the next one – getting out of the door. In life coaching and time management coaching the 5 minute rule is often used to get people doing things they usually put off and end up never doing. This works fantastically for exercise too – say you are going to do 5 minutes, and that’s it. If you feel like doing more when you start, great, if not, at least you have done 5 minutes! I am actually using that technique right now – writing articles is the thing that keeps staying at the bottom of my things to do list, as I have client emails, programming and ‘important / urgent’ tasks I need to do, so the ‘important / not urgent’ things can get forgotten. They can be more important than the urgent things – in the same way that putting off exericse today as its not ‘urgent’ whereas all the chores and jobs and emails screaming for your attention are ‘urgent’, but in the long run, you simply cannot keep putting off getting healthy!

I teach an outdoor fitness ‘bootcamp’ and all my clients LOVE the feeling of getting up and out in the mornings – there are evening sessions too, but the effect of getting up that little bit earlier, getting started with that pretty huge step, or series of steps, on the positive spiral, means making better choices for the rest of the day becomes easier. The feel-good factor is biochemical due to the endorphins released because of the exercise and being outdoors, but the sense of achievement and positivity has it’s own feel-good factor. Spiralling upwards!

Noticing that life operates in spirals makes it easier to halt those downward spirals – as you know that all you need to do is take one small positive step in the other direction, rather than thinking about the whole journey, to kick start that positive momentum taking you onwards and upwards!

So, make the choice right now – ditch the downward spiral of excuses, and say ‘YES’ to life and the positive spiral of taking positive action, and getting the cascade of positive effects that will surround you as a result!

BBQs themselves are brilliant in many ways – plenty of protein, loads of salads.  The key is to ignore the bread / buns and be canny on your choice of sauces – regular BBQ sauce is a disaster as its full of sugar, but you can make your own, using balsamic vinegar, agave or coconut syrup for sweetness, and BBQ spices, as well as lemon or lime juice for some more zing…

Drinking is always a dilemma, and I am certainly not a tee totaller myself!  The lure of a cool beer for some, or a cool glass of wine for others on a hot day in the sunshine can be too much to resist.  And the more you drink you also run the risk of messing up all your good intentions to avoid the junky parts like the buns and potato salads drowning in mayo!

A few brilliant beverage options to refresh you, and give you a bit of a taste sensation at the same time – use them for your first drink instead of cracking open the beers / wine too early, have them in between drinks to reduce overall consumption and aid detoxification at the same time, or even have these instead of drinking altogether!

1.  Sparkling mineral water with a squueze of lemon or lime.

This is not only super delicious but a great way to alkalinise and detoxify – I start every day with this drink and recommend you do too!  Beware of lime cordials, might seem inocuous but loads of sugar, have this instead, all taste none of the junk and so much better for you.  Add slices of lemon or lime and ice cubes as you wish.  Can also freeze lemon / lime juice into ice cubes for an even quicker way to achieve the same result.

2.  Spa Water - I got this from Valerie Waters, trainer to the best bods in Hollywood (if it’s good enough for them…). Simply add slices of cucumber to your water, could also add lemon / lime (Pimms optional, ha ha) for another refreshing twist.

3. Berry Fizz - another poach from Val, add a handful of frozen berries to your sparkling water – gives the drink a fab colour too!

4. Kombucha! Now, this is a bit more complicated.  You can buy kombucha but it is better to make your own.  It is a slightly intricate process but well worth the effort.  You have to get hold of a kombucha ‘mother’, then you can make your first batch, and every batch creates a ‘baby’ that you can give away so someone else can start it up.  I am making it so will soon have some progeny to give away, or you can order online, I got mine from HERE.  It is not only a super refreshing drink that tastes awesome, but it has a whole host of health benefits and has been used in many traditional societies for years.  I will do an article on it in more detail at some point, but in the meantime, hit up Google if you are interested!  I love to have a little kombucha in a tall glass of sparkling water with ice – tastes as refreshing and tangy as an alcholic beverage but does you good!

5. Iced Herbal Tea. I love Tulsi tea - it is also a great destresser, you can practically feel your cortisol levels dropping as you drink this stuff!  A sense of calm and serenity hits you gently over the head with every cup!    A great, refreshing way to have herbal teas when you are wanting something cool and / or sparkling is super simple – make a cup top up in a jug with sparkling water and ice.  Shazzam, yet another healthy yet lurvely refreshing alternative to booze…

What about the nibbles, I hear you cry.  Those darn kettle chips tend to scream at you at BBQs – I used to be haunted by the spectre of kettle chips and houmous, while houmous can be great, a whole tub along with most of a giant pack of kettle chips while the barbie’s heating up doesn’t a slimline bikini body make… Plus, they are, like the equally taunting yet even worse for you Pringles, ‘unstoppable’ once the salty, fatty, carby combo has taken over your hormones and taste buds and hijacked your bodily functions to the extent that your hand repeatedly reaches for more and seems to bypass conscious control.

Save yourself from this torment, and try some alternatives!

1.  Salt and Vinegar Cucumber Strips. Super lush, slice cucumber into cyclinders or big chunks, toss in balsamic and / or apple cider vinegar and celtic sea salt and black pepper.  Enjoy the salt and vinegariness and the smugness of a snack that is actually angelic.

2.  Celery / Carrot or Apple slices with nut butter. Almond butter is particularly good for this, while you can’t eat loads of nut butter (a personal trigger food I sometimes struggle not to over do so actually now avoid stocking it!) this is a great snack, any time of day. Protein and good fats keep you satisfied and energised.

That’ll do for now!  Comments or other ideas below gratefully appreciated!

XCaroline