Fitness

If you’re anything like me, then you want to have J-Lo’s body without a huge change in lifestyle. Although I know that’s never going to happen without all the hard work I’ve been managing to shed some weight without living on rabbit food and running machines.

I’ve put on 7lbs in 3 months due to exam stress and a lack of routine over the Summer so I decided it was time to do something before I run out of clothes that fit! These are a few things that have helped me:

Diet

In my opinion your diet plays the biggest part in any weight loss because no matter how hard you exercise, if you’re putting too much crap in your body you’re not going to be able to burn it all off.

So I’ve been trying to manage my normal diet a little better:

Portion control – I’m eating the right AMOUNT of food. Just by eating a smaller volume of the bad food I’ve seen a big difference in my weight. So good news; I can still eat that Mac and Cheese.. just maybe one scoop instead of two ;). Here’s a general guide by BUPA.

Moderation – I don’t like to deprive myself of anything because I’m more likely to over indulge if I’ve been suppressing a craving. So instead of never having anything unhealthy I allow myself one treat a day and I eat it slowly. When I do treat myself I’ll have half of whatever I’d used have, for example half a KitKat instead of the whole thing.

Snacking – I’ve been snacking more often. If I refuse myself a snack I’m so hungry by meal time that I eat far too much. So when I do snack I’ll usually have a handful of fruit and nuts because the fat content in the nuts really satisfies my hunger pangs. Speaking of fat content, try and have full fat rather than 0% fat natural yoghurt if you’re having it as a snack (how controversial!) – the 0% fat one really isn’t going to satisfy you.

Exercise

I literally despise exercise, everyone says ‘Don’t you just feel invigorated after a good workout?’

No. No I don’t. I feel sweaty and breathless. Good workouts don’t exist.

But I know I won’t tone up unless I put in a bit of work. So I do 20 minutes a day 5 days a week (I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t have enough energy to at least do 20 mins) and an hour for 1 day of the week.

20 min routine – 1 mile jog (takes around 8 – 10 mins), then 1 set of 30 crunches, 30 leg lifts, 30 second side plank on both sides.

1 hour routine – 2.4 mile jog (takes around 17 – 20 mins), then 3 sets of 30 crunches, 30 leg lifts, 30 Russian twists, 30 squats.

I do struggle to keep up with conventional exercise because, lets face it, it’s bloody miserable. So I’m going to start roller blading on a couple of the days, it’s great for both cardio and toning and it’s fun!

I’ve been doing this little routine for 3 weeks and I’ve managed to lose 3lbs so far – I hope these tips are helpful for some of you too!

Let me know you’re little tips and tricks for healthier lifestyles and weight loss in the comments.

Please go and check out Carolyn’s Simple Life – I’d like to thank her for nominating me for the Leibster Award 🙂

I realise I’m a day late..but look at my pancakes!

I didn’t end up having them for breakfast because I’m a hurricane of haphazardness in the mornings..so I had them for dessert instead! I used it as an opportunity to try and make salted caramel sauce; I’ve been wanting to for ages but haven’t had a decent excuse to make a jar of delicious diabetes.

Seeming as I’ve been eating pretty healthy and doing some Jillian Michaels exercise videos I thought I’d treat myself.

I won’t bore you with the recipe for pancakes but here is the recipe for the sauce that I tried. With the help of my super Mum we whipped it up pretty quick – it wasn’t perfect, a little grainy but it tastes amazing! For a first attempt I must say I’m very pleased. I’ve popped it in an old jam jar in the fridge and it should keep for a couple of weeks. It wasn’t difficult at all, it just requires a little patience and, in my opinion, two pairs of hands.

I’m looking forward to spreading it on, well, just about everything!