I love this drink: Vita Coco

Hello just a quick post about a drink I am seriously enjoying at the minute! It's the Vita Coco coconut water. 

I've always been a massive fan of the milk you get out of a fresh coconut and stumbled across this drink at the NEC Clothes Show Live a few years ago. I tried and buyed as it were and enjoyed my purchase. But then I never saw the drink again to buy and forgot about it. 

When I saw this in my local Morrisons recently I had to retry it. I bought a 330ml size for £1.79. And yes I guess whilst that is pretty pricey I'd say the taste more than makes up for it. It's hard to describe but not only is it very much like fresh coconut milk it has a hydrating quality that I haven't experienced before. It's more refreshing than water. 

As you can see, nutritionally it isn't too bad. And based on the price (I think 1litre is currently on offer at Morrisons for £3) it's not a drink that you would consume masses off. 

I particularly like this drink as a nice refreshing treat or after a good workout to help put back in some energy without lots of sugar. 

Anyway if you happen to try this let me know what you think :) 

Morning LBT in Nike Shorts

Good morning! Nothing better than to start off the week with a good workout! :)

So having just devoured my post-workout breakfast after a good LBT (legs, bums and tums) class, I thought I'd share with you my current favourite gym shorts. 

They're Nike branded and my particular ones are black with a stamp of bright coral. The colours are actually the first thing that stood out to me. Another cool feature is the Lycra material built into the shorts, so essentially shorts within shorts.

The Lycra means that putting the shorts on is uber soft, comfortable and they fit tight like a glove. I'm guessing this feature is designed to help with sweat control and chaffing, and I have to say I've never had any aggravation whilst wearing them. 

I also like the writing on the waistband that says 'just do it' ...I do like my fitness motos :)

I've worn them many a time now to different classes. I even wear them to boot camp which often involves a fair amount of running and they've still remained comfortable.

I have a feeling I paid a little more than £20 but you can get them here for that price. So, if you're looking into getting some new gym shorts, or thinking of being brave and actually buying your first pair of shorts to workout in, I'd recommend these with their great support system and comfort. 

My running shoe journey

Hello!

So, I've never really classed myself as a 'runner' until recently. If you saw my gym challenge post you'll know that I've been trying to rack up the miles over the month of April in order to complete a marathon as it were (just bit by bit).

Taken from www.twenga.co.uk

Since starting my fitness journey in June 2012, I've come on leaps and bounds. I look back at what I was like in the beginning and I literally would be struggling for breath after about 2 minutes on the treadmill!

When I ramped up my exercise regime to near on everyday, after a month into starting out, I realised I would need some proper footwear to help avoid problems such as shin splints, knee pain etc...which can come from wearing the wrong shoes when working out.

Way back in July I did a post about upgrading my trainers...I can't believe I actually worked out in these...

They're pretty much as flat as you can get! No support whatsoever!

I headed over to my local sports store and got tested on the treadmill to see how my feet land etc whilst running. I would really advise having this done because it means you know what training shoe is the best for you in terms of support.

My result was a fairly neutral left foot, with a over-pronating right foot. This basically means my ankle rolls inwards slightly when it lands. Consequently I left the shop with...

A pair of Adidas running shoes. Unbelievably in a size 7...when I usually take a 5 in shoes!
The colour wasn't to my liking but...if they did the job then hey ho! And then a pair of insoles to help with my over-pronation! However, wrongly, I was advised to only wear the insole in my right foot...So for a little while I wasn't wearing them correctly.

Quick to follow came my blister complaint post. As I got fitter I naturally started to 'up' my treadmill usage and when I became able to run comfortably for 5-10 minutes straight I got really excited and quite proud! :)

However with this increased run time came the sheer burning pain on the inner arches of my feet, although the right foot was always severely worse. Convinced the insole was adding to the issue I removed it but found the blisters still reared regardless.

Having paid somewhere in the region of £60 for the trainers and insoles I headed back to the store unhappy and in exchange left with a new £70 pair of Asics.

The Asics brand are designed to help with over-pronation and generally support most runners' feet so I was confident they would resolve my issues.

Sadly, they didn't and although they were much better than the Adidas ones, they were still causing me painful inner arch blisters right up until this Saturday!

Now at the peak of my fitness, I am able to run for much longer periods of time (30+ mins) but this  is always cut short by the sheer pain of the blistering...usually occurring at around 15-20mins into a run.

Nearing the end of my marathon gym challenge, I was getting fed up of my skin being ripped apart quite franky and getting frustrated because my heart wanted to continue running but my feet wouldn't let me!

Sunday I returned to the store and possibly spent over an hour trying on different brands of footwear and running on the treadmill to test them out! This time both my feet were slightly over-pronating but again my right foot was definitely the biggest culprit.

This time I left the store with a pair of Saucony's! Apparently these are very highly regarded in the running world, featured in the running mags and what not.

Amazingly I also found myself a right bargain, with these beauties reduced from £90 to a mere £30! Result!

And the verdict?!

Well...I don't want to jinx myself but having tried them out last night...so far, so good AMAZING! I managed to complete a 3 mile run in 26 minutes (which isn't a brill time but for me it's improving) and I wasn't in agony at any point! I could have ran for longer to be honest but I had to stop for my Core Blimey ab class.

So, yes, I'm pretty happy at the minute knowing I can run without pain :D !!! As for the marathon challenge I only have 1.2 miles to complete so I will do that and more on Wednesday. (Tonight I have spinning and zumba so I can't fit a run in! hehe)

Hopefully I've solved my issues!!! Wish me luck :)

London Marathon Gym Challenge

Hello!

I feel like today has shaped up to be quite a productive day so I thought I'd mark it with a post :)

Admittedly my day didn't really begin until 12 noon. Since being back home and up-ing my exercise I've fallen back into the insomnia trap. Working out in the evening means that I find sleeping ever so difficult until around 1am/2am. Then I occasionally wake up early morning as well. Today I jumped awake at 7:30am before forcing myself back to sleep. Headache.

Why not exercise earlier? Well...it's difficult when most of the exercising I do is in the form of group classes, so I go whenever they are on...mostly around 6/7pm. Nevermind. I love it so I don't mind a few ill effects...

like the blisters...

OUCH!

Wednesday's are typically one of my gym days so I get to workout earlier than usual.

At my local gym they have started a challenge during the month of April where you can record the number of miles you run/walk on the treadmills, with the aim of essentially completing the London Marathon (just in however number of attempts it takes you).

I think it's quite a neat idea. The wall shows you where you would be in London in turns of the mile markers and you have a little tracker with your name on it to plot where you are.

I signed up to it today and managed to run 3 miles in just over 28 minutes, before my lovely blisters surfaced and meant I could barely walk afterwards, let alone run haha! NICE!

My name is somewhere on the wall along with many others...3 miles is a popular point at the minute though!

My sister ran 4 miles today which has given her 7 miles in total so far, so she's doing really well but it doesn't matter who finishes first...

At the end of the challenge everyone who's completed the 26 miles will get the chance to win a free month's membership (name in a hat type draw). I think this is good because it gives everyone a chance to do it in their own time but still having had achieved a fair amount of mileage :)

Apparently one guy completed the challenge on Day 1 in about 4 hours...Hats off to him I say!! :)

Anyway, aside from the good old fitness...Today has also been worthwhile for me in terms of revision. I'm currently in the process of revising for my Maths QTS skills test and boyyy is it grating on me! 

I've never been a fan of Maths and although I managed to somehow get a B in GCSE I've never found it to come easy to me. However I feel as though I am starting to make progress...slowly, step by step!

Actually finding the motivation to force myself into revising in the first place is half of my battle but once I'm doing it it's not too bad :P

So yes, revision CHECK, 3 miles CHECK...and the night is still young. Good times :D!!

How was everyone's day?

Ellie 

Battling the junk food

Hello :)

What I don't understand is why on earth it is so hard to be healthy whilst in student digs?! I go from being the most motivated fit person at home to a health disaster at my uni house.

A typical example was half term last week... I went home, temporarily signed up to my local gym and got back into loosely following the Weight Watchers plan. Piece of cake! Or shall I say no cake!

I felt motivated, in good shape, healthy and I still was able to enjoy a big meal out at the end of the week. In fact I ended up losing a lb or 2, just from cleaning myself back up.

 

I head back to uni, determined to carry on a good regime and what not, and even bring back a new exercise mat that I bought whilst home. I get back on the Saturday and do pretty well. Sunday I didn't make the gym but I do some floor workouts so all is well. Monday I'm doing really well and attend a Zumba class plus a short gym sess...

And then it takes a downhill path!

After a large meal on Tuesday, I decide to head down to my local Tesco's and buy a large tub of cookie dough ice cream. And if that wasn't enough, I then grab a bar of galaxy chocolate for good measure!

Funny thing is, I don't reckon to have a massive sweet tooth but obviously I did on this night. I eat a quarter of the tub, feel like that is enough but then piece by piece devour the galaxy bar and then return to the freezer for another quarter helping of ice cream. Then of course I feel sick and think why did I do that?! Was there any need?

The next day my stomach feels gross, it isn't used to such crap I guess, and I tell my housemate she can eat the remainder of my cookie dough ice cream...I did not what that screaming at me to finish it!

At this point I'm annoyed at myself because I've woke up feeling guilty and yucky on a day that is supposed to be a treat.

It was my friend's birthday and we were heading to Nando's for tea, watching Dirty Dancing the musical and then grabbing drinks at a local Wetherspoons. Thankfully I felt OK by the time she arrived and I was relieved that I was actually hungry for chicken, rice and creamy mash (my standard there), instead of feeling sick!

But I have to think to myself...why did I still binge on junk knowing full well I would be eating something yummy the following day? Failed on self control for sure!

I guess there's still that little part of me that has the junk food addiction! Sure, I've come a long way from being known as the 'Takeaway Queen' in second and third years of uni, but I still have many moments of weakness.

The worst part is that I don't even particularly enjoy the junk food. I mean sure it tastes nice at the time but often it upsets my stomach and I feel sick more times than not afterwards...either from eating too much or just from pure grease!

I'm not sure I'll ever be able to fully curb my junk food cravings, but I do take solace in the fact I associate home with being healthy.

I think the environment in which you're in makes a massive difference. At home, for example, most of my immediate family are pretty health conscious and this means the food shopping usually consists of fruit, veg and the likes. At uni, on the other hand, takeaways can be a regular occurrence... I mean at home I'd never dream of getting a menu out and ordering food randomly (for perhaps just me), but at uni it's a easy option...which is a dangerous thing!

Then there's the alcohol. At home I rarely touch a drop...To be honest I don't massively like the taste of it and drinking at home seems a bit odd to me if I'm not going out. There's also the issue of it bringing on insane hunger. Alcohol always equals food for me, no matter what.

Uni, of course, usually means big nights out at least every fortnight. I can never get drunk without following it with food...McDonalds, burgers, chips, pizza...standard. Unfortunately this usually carries on into the next day and a takeaway is my hangover cure.

At home I'm also quite lucky in that I seem to have inadvertently passed on the fitness bug to my  sister, who is now an avid gym go-er. This is good for me because it generates the motivation that I sometimes lack in actually getting up and going to workout.

Gym buddies are a good thing! But make sure it's someone you work well with...no point just going for a chat! At uni I have a few friends that occasionally go to the gym but it's not often enough to make an impact on my motivation :P

It's just hard to be healthy at uni...whereas at home, it's almost handed on a plate...a healthy one! Junk food is too easily obtained at uni...It's true what they say, if you remove all temptation then you won't be tempted.

I guess I'll just try my best for now and then go home in summer and live as I really want to live...healthily!

I reckon a takeaway is on the cards this evening...so I think a good gym session might be called for this afternoon...you know, in an attempt to limit the damage!

Owww stitch!

Hi. So I'm currently in the gym and doing what I usually slate people for doing...playing on my phone!

All was going well until 10 minutes in on the treadmill I started with stitch. No biggie, usually run through it.

Not this time! Chronic stitch, that hurts like a bitch lol. Ever the poet :p Owwww!
So, I did some sit ups and returned to the treadmill. Made it 6 mins in before having to stop my run again! Never had it this bad before :/

So now I've resigned myself to the exercise bike! Which to be honest, I don't overly enjoy. I just want to run but my stupid body won't let me haha. Booo. And now I've become one of those gym folk that 'play at' exercise :(

Any get rid of stitch quick tricks? I usually go with the pushing in the area of stitch with my fist...but that was to no avail today!

Oh well...best get on with my playing...

Broken record

Hi guys.

As I mentioned in my last post, it's half term in my area which means I'm home from uni. This also means I'm able to be reunited with my local gym and much loved exercise classes! :)

Starting as I mean to go on this week, after getting home last night, I hit the gym hard today. Just about  a 2 hour worth sess to be precise! On a side note, I have to admit I was coaxed into staying for that long by my sister who is also a religious gym go-er, but either way I did it.

In fact after my recent appauling-ness at anything fitness related I've been doing well over the last couple of days- even fitting in the gym before I was collected from Uni yesterday! Go me!

Any-how...today was a GOOD day...gym wise at least. Ask me about the revision that I'm supposed to be doing and that would be another story!

Maybe my productiveness came from realising I have in fact gained a lb...

And whilst I know it won't provoke the above reaction, it's still a gain. Fair enough a lb is neither here nor there but that's how it starts. That lb multiplies and before you know it you're back to square one and all your weight loss achievements have been undone! Been there, got the bigger t-shirt!

So...let's just say I'm being more careful!

Anyway, this was me on the treadmill today....

...Ok so, I jest. I was definitely miles behind Mo's speed, and fitness, and...whatever...but I felt like I maintained a faster speed than I usually would. It was quite odd because I started as I usually would, pretty much disliking running and giving myself a usual 10 minutes goal.

But then 10:00 came and went and I was still running. I felt better than ever so I thought...I'll run for 15 minutes.

...15:30...Wow can't believe how fit I'm feeling...

19:50...I might stop at 20?...20:01...Nah I reckon I can carry on...

24:00 God I can't believe I'm still running!! Hmmm think I can feel my inner arch blisters coming on though....

27:30...Bloody trainers!...I don't want to stop but yes definate blisters now...may aswell push to 30 though!

31:00 minus the 1:00 I walked for before running....STOP!...

Wooo personal RECORD! 30 minutes of running straight!...Might not be all that impressive to some people but let me tell you, for me, being someone who started out unable to run for the length of an average song,...it's a BIG achievement!

So, after a few weights and the cross-trainer again, I left feeling quite happy with my record. Shame that my trainer's tend to rub after constant running, otherwise I reckon I could have gone on for a lot longer!

Just thought I'd share my happy time with you haha! Let me know about any goals you've achieved or any aspirations, like running for a certain time etc?! 

Drop me a cheeky comment below or Tweet me @ellie1989