It's a Green House

I have been doing Crossfit about a year now, I get a lot of interest in real life about why I started it and what it is. It's often seen as an extreme or hard option, or something that only super fit people do. As with a lot of things though it's not as scary as you think! I always share the free taster sessions on my Facebook page and get comments like 'Oh no I could never do that' or 'I'm not fit enough' or 'that's too hard'. Here's why you should give it a chance though guys: 'I don't even know what half of it is! Let alone know how to do it!' This was me after looking up the first WOD (workout of the day) I went to before I left home (It involved squat cleans and I had never touched a barbell), I googled what I didn't know and was a bit apprehensive when I saw the results. Just ask the coach, they won't just say "right today we are doing this" and leave you to get on with it. If you are unsure or s...

I touched briefly on my fitness build up and initial goals back  here .  This post is a more in depth training guidance for anyone planning to climb Kilimanjaro.  Obviously you may have a different fitness level than I did and you should take into account any health conditions or injuries etc. before taking on such a challenge – so this plan assumes you are reasonably healthy with no injuries, and you haven’t done anything like this before. Basically my thoughts on the challenge are that you do not need to be running ultra-marathons or be mega fit to make the summit, but the fitter you are the better time you will have and you need to be in good shape.  Having had time to think about my training and what I did right and what I could have done more of it’s good to write it all down, hopefully it will help someone! The top things I did to train were: Walking In the year or more leading up to the trek you should go on at least a few challenging hikes (at leas...

Honestly who gets up at that time to exercise? Apparently me... In my post here on having a break over Christmas I talked about being back to crossfit more in the new year, and also about finding a better schedule and going more when I could use the car. So the first week back to work in January I tried out going in the morning before work. Sounds a bit counter-intuitive to get up earlier so that I get more rest, I reasoned that if I went to the 6am class I could be home in time for Tom to take the car to leave for work, and enough time for me to then shower and get to work.Then my day goes on as usual but I've already done a solid hour of exercise. Now I can't say I ever thought I would want to go to the gym in the morning, I love my sleep, I love my bed, and I hate getting up early for work as it is. I never thought I would be volunteering to get up earlier! So how did it go? First the obvious drawbacks, I won't lie getting up at 5:20am when it is dark and -5 out...

Having recently gone vegan I noticed a few things happen that I didn't expect and I've been making a note of these things as I go, as I know once I get a bit more experienced this new phase gets forgotten! I didn't give up dairy with the aim of any of these things happening, but they are all very welcome. If you are thinking of going vegan, or just curious as to how it goes, then these are the benefits you may not expect: You will automatically start eating better, even if you aren't trying to, I expected to eat more fruit and veg but didn't think about the fact that I would eat more variety of fruit and veg or that I would make healthier food choices due to choosing vegan options. It's not all health food though if that's not what you want! You will get excited about food again. I'm trying new recipes, new foods and new ingredients that I never considered before.  You will learn to appreciate your supportive family and friends, and learn who your ...

My second post on vegan food through the past month, don't worry I'm not going to spam you with food pictures every month but just documenting my finds over the first few weeks! November saw some new meals for me, my first roast dinner at someone else's house for one. My dad cooked it for me, I brought Linda McCartney pies and left one in his freezer for next time, he did all the veg and potatoes with no dairy :) We had the second one shortly after and Toms mums and I took Tesco nut roasts. First take away too, from Eurasia in Cheltenham - no photo as we got a power cut as it arrived so we ate in the dark! Tom likes an Indian takeaway so I knew this would be a hurdle to cross and bulk emailed a load of local restaurants to see who offered a vegan choice. I had mushroom sagwalla, chapati and poppadoms - just not having the mint and yoghurt dip. I like a korma so am looking for somewhere that does vegan korma (theirs has dairy), but it was a really good alternative and ...

First few weeks vegan went well! Feeling good, lost weight/bloat not sure but I look slimmer around the middle, eating well, not hungry, actually liking the lack of fat and grease from cheese. All in all it's been an easy-ish transition this time and I think it's going to stick. Here's my finds, lessons and gratuitous food pictures. I can still have  macaroni and broccoli 'cheese' I went to a vegan fair on the 31st of October, so I went vegan fully 2 weeks before. I figured I'd be able to find any gaps in what I wanted and fill them at the fair. I was a little disappointed in the food choices there, a lot of bakery stuff so I had some nice cakes but I was looking for some food staples and a lot of it was cosmetics, accessories, and animal charities. Don't get me wrong all really good just not what I was hoping for as a new vegan. Rice, tofu, spinach and nutritional yeast However I did speak to some people from Pulsin' and got some vegan prote...

Everyone knows the big benefits of getting fitter, like losing weight, living longer and reducing your risk of certain health problems. There are however smaller, more personal or less talked about benefits that are also amazing, these are the ones I've experienced: Life is just easier, I can take the stairs, I can run around at work all day and still have the energy to go to the gym, I don't have to ask Tom to open jars for me any more, I can carry things that are heavy for longer, I can reach the top shelves without asking for help, I can sprint for the bus, I don't get tired standing at gigs and I don't overheat so quickly... You will eventually love feeling exhausted and sore, and the hour killing yourself at the gym or track will be the best part of your day. I relish getting covered in sweat, and feeling out of breath and tired. That's how you know it's working! I absolutely must come home at least one day a week and flop into the sofa proclaiming that...

Over the last 2 years I have lost, gained, then finally lost again a lot of fat. Really as a side effect of training for various things, but often others seem to focus on the weight loss as my main achievement. Which kind of nags at me, like I've done a lot of cool stuff recently and all you ask about is my weight? I was asked again the other day how much weight I've lost. My reply was I have no idea. I'm not being modest, I never used to weigh myself. Plus I am probably heavier on the scale that I was when I was 'heavier' anyway, but I'm pretty happy with my progress at the moment and I've changed a lot recently in terms of training and nutrition. The person asking again said how much did I think I'd lost. If you go by weight on the scale and that works for you fair enough, but please don't define the health and progress of yourself and especially others by that number We are all a lot of things more than that. For example I am not a number ...

It's getting colder and the nights are drawing in, I love this time of year before the novelty of winter wears off! I'm still loving my new scarf and the fact I can wear boots again. Talk to me in a month when it's rain again . Lets be honest we don't get much of an Autumn most years it's chilly and nice for about 2 weeks then it's cold and wet until March. This year I wanted to focus on the positives though! A winter bucket list of things I want to do this year over the colder months. Watch a fireworks display. I know, me, firework phobic who once hid under the family car after bolting from my parents at a firework display. I figure it's time to get over it now I'm a big girl. This year I'm going to go watch a big display maybe with my niece and nephew (so I have to be brave not to freak them out) or maybe just Tom and I. Either way I want to wrap up warm and ooh and ahh at fireworks, not hide at home like the last 20 years. Cycle more. I rece...

Part time vegan I've been a vegetarian for almost 15 years now, meaning I don't eat any animal products. No not even fish, and no I don't miss bacon (I miss haribo tangfastics, chicken and mayo sandwiches and ordering whatever I want off a menu just fyi), and no if I was trapped on a desert island with a pig I wouldn't eat it... Now the usual questions are answered...my rationale behind stopping eating meat (so far as I remember, I was 14) was that I was against animal cruelty, also it's healthier to eat less red meat and I never have to worry about getting my 5 a day. I recently also started reducing my dairy intake, not going vegan necessarily (I don't check every label and ingredient) but let's say part time vegan, I've substituted as much dairy as I can so far...I'll probably go the whole hog sometime this is how I went veggie.  For anyone thinking of going veggie or just curious, some of the myths and misconceptions I've encounter...