14 Healthful Foods for February - No. 3 GREEN SMOOTHIES

Green smoothies are 'all the rage' just now. They are quick, easy and cheap to make. They give you pure nutrition (i.e. none of the vitamins and minerals from the veg you use are lost through cooking), plus the fibre remains unlike in juices. They are easy to digest, filling and hydrating.

The downside? You can make some horrors if you just experiment with what's in your fridge..! (But don't let that stop you!)

Here's my favourite that I take to work often for my mid morning snack (it's great for supping in the couple of minutes I have between each client session)

I also have a Nutribullet, which I have to say is one of the best things EVER! You just chuck everything in it, pop on the lid with the blades, whizz it for 30 seconds, pop a different lid on and away you go (minimal chopping, cleaning or hassle!)

This smoothie is Apple, Spinach, Kale, Pumpkin Seed and Coconut Water.
(1/2 a large apple, decent handful of each of the greens, tablespoon of the seeds and about 200ml of coconut water)

(Contains Vits A, C, B1, B2, B6, E, K, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Magnesium, Niacin, Potassium, Phosperous, Manganese, Selenium, Zinc plus amino acids and electrolytes which help digestion, absorption of the vits n minerals plus hydration levels).

Yuuuuummmmmmm!!!!

If not now, then when?

This quote has been floating around my head this week. It often does when I know I'm ready to action something new that I've been wanting to do but where it's just fear and a lack of confidence in myself that is holding me back. It is the phrase that builds the energy and positivity in me to get me on and doing it.

A client of mine (who is happy for me to share this with you) came in yesterday and was in a similar space. She has been wanting to move forward with a few things but wasn't sure if her previously frozen shoulder was ready or not and feared that she might set herself back or dent her growing confidence with it. She had been watching some of the holocaust documentaries on last week and her mantra struck her loud and clear 'one life, live it well'. She got herself to the swimming pool and discovered that far from being an issue her shoulder actually flourished from the swim and her confidence got more than just a wee boost!

So whether you have your own internal quote, or you wish to borrow either of ours, ask yourself what you might be holding yourself back from due to fear of moving forward.

Because, if NOT now, then when?

Happy Thursday everyone smile emoticon x

14 Healthful Foods for February - No. 2 ALMOND MILK

Almond milk is so incredibly easy to make and so yummy. 

I don't tolerate cows milk and have never really taken to shop bought almond milk, so making my
own has been brilliant. I make just as much as I need for the odd cuppa, over muesli, or a smoothie. Plus, almond milk doesn't need to be refrigerated (although I usually do), so I can carry a wee bottle with me for when I go out for coffee.

It's packed with vitamin E, B vits and has less calories and fat than cows' milk. Less protein than cows milk but a source none the less. Cows milk does outweigh almond milk in terms of its calcium content, so if you can tolerate lactose or aren't vegan then animal milks are a good calcium source for you. Homemade almond milk doesn't contain the stabilisers and emulsifiers that shop bought does, some of which can be irritant to anyone sensitive the gluten.

Here's how I make it:
Soak almonds overnight in water (I have 50g soaking here) - this breaks down the phytic acid and neutralises the enzymes so the nutrients are better absorbed.
Pop them in a blender (or nutribullet if you have one) with 5ml of water to every 1g of nuts). Blend.
Use a fine sieve to separate the milk from the pulp.
Voila - milk.
(I mainly keep the pulp and have it with fruit later in the day or I stick it in smoothies or make ice cream with it).

The hardest part is just remembering to soak the nuts (and buying a fine sieve for the first time if you don't already have one). When you've done it once you'll realise how easy it is. I soak the almonds at night and then it takes less than a minute in the morning to make my milk....

The Leg Strengtheners Continue - Lunges

31 days in January may be over but movement still matters! 

My little video here sets you up for some lunges. They are a great leg strengthener and good for working on stability and balance. Technique and alignment is everything with a lunge however, so set them up well, position yourself correctly and then you will benefit from them. And breathe aswell!

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=516167318524072&l=2264256902198386575

14 Healthful Foods for February No. 1 - MINI FRITTATAS

These are one of my regular 'on the go' lunches. I love them because you can use any veg that you have available, whatever is in season and you can add herbs or garlic if you fancy. 

Mine today are made with carrot, shallot and broccoli. 

Since these are made with some root veg I have roasted the carrot (1 medium carrot chopped into small cubes) and shallot (2 small shallots, 1 for each ramekin), first with a little sesame oil, for 25 minutes in the oven at about 200 degrees (softer veg need less time - eg peppers only need 10-15 mins depending on your oven). I then added some finely chopped broccoli heads on top of this before covering with a large beaten egg (1 egg per ramekin). 

Back in the oven (now down to 180degs) for 15-20 mins. 


I make them the night before and pop them in the fridge once they've cooled down so that they are ready to go in the morning. 

If you don't have ramekins you can use a muffin tin (a little less cooking time required). You can literally put anything in these so they always vary. My fave is beetroot, sweet potato, tomato and garlic! 

They are packed with protein so filling and are good for a post workout lunch. 

Who's Up For 14 Healthful Foods in February?

Happy February!!! 

Who's up for 14 Heathful Foods For February? 

Food is such a fundamental part of our health. What we put into our system determines what we can put out. The quality of our nutrition impacts on our physical, mental and emotional energy so it's important that we get the balance that is right for ourself.

Last year i overhauled my diet. It was never that 'unhealthy' but it wasn't right for me. I ditched all processed sugar, yeasts and dairy. I've never felt denied of anything, quite the opposite actually as I've discovered a whole range of new foods - and a whole load of new energy! Leading a busy life I want things to be as simple as possible so I've learned what I can make that is quick and easy but wholly nutritious. I thought I'd share some of that with you during February....

There'll still be lots of moving and exercise tips too :-))

Making Movement Matter - Day 31 Reflecting on Your Progress

Well! 31 days are complete. January is at its very tail. Days are getting lighter and longer and Spring actually looks like it's peeking around the corner! 

How was your January? Where are you with any intentions that you set for yourself?

Whether you are where you thought you'd be or not, the important thing is to look back and take positives from the last 31 days. January is completed and you can't go back and change it. Learn from anything that you thought you'd do, but didn't, and go forward into February with that lesson. Celebrate what you did do but perhaps thought you wouldn't, or couldn't, and take that sense of achievement forward with you as motivation.

I would love to hear how your January has been smile emoticon

Myself? Well, I admit that I let the first half be more stressful than I really needed it to be and it slowed down some of my momentum into 2015. I haven't achieved 3 runs a week. I have however done 2 a week, I have exercised most days and have done most of that outdoors which was one of my main goals. I am incredibly delighted that I can finally snowboard and it has opened up a whole new dimension of movement to me. All in all I'm in a place that I'm happy to be in and determined to get that one more run into my week in February.

I hope your January reflection is positive too smile emoticon

Thanks for coming with me through these 31 days, I have genuinely loved doing these posts smile emoticon

Making Movement Matter - Day 30 - Strong Squats

Here's my wee demonstration of how I'm currently getting myself strong in squats. Using the door like this really allows your knees to bend deeply at a lovely 90 degree angle without pushing pressure forward into the knee caps and ankles. It allows your pelvis to open deeply so that your glutes can lengthen and then contract which is where strength develops. No actively squeezing or scrunching your bum, you just need to stand tall and fully and the glutes will do what they need to do :-)

I'm working on this myself at the moment and chair pose in yoga eludes me. I know I'm making a shape but I also know i'm not doing it efficiently. I'll get there though! :-)

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=514150278725776&l=5697745388948413327

Making Movement Matter - Day 29 - Love Your Body

Let's today celebrate all the wonderful things that our body can do, and where and how it moves well. 

It can become all too easy to focus on what isn't 'working', what feels weak, where we have issues, what we don't like about our body, or focusing on what we feel we need to be improved. 

Our bodies ARE wonderful. They take us through life, they tell us exactly what we need and they store our memories and emotions.

Our body is always trying to return to an optimal level of health, a homeostasis. Some of our aches, pains, ailments and issues are the signals that it trying to do this, and it is the body's way of communicating that it needs some changes to be made. The signals can be loud, and for some all consuming at times. Sometimes we can get frustrated by how our body looks and it perhaps doesn't seem to represent how we feel inside. Or we discover that we don't seem to have the strength we thought when we try new moves or activities.

But there is always something good to find in our body. There is always somewhere that we can be grateful for within our body. Just knowing that what you are feeling is your body's signals to you, can change the way you look at them. Look for some positive signals, even if that is just it telling you it needs to sleep, eat, stand up, sit down..... It's there. If there is part of your body that you don't like then find somewhere in it that you do - you will.

In my job I often hear people say that they feel their body has let them down, or they wish they'd done something about xyz earlier, or that they are discovering where they are weak. In actual fact, your body always wants to support you and help you to be the best it can be. You are with your body for life, so let it love you and let yourself love it.

Start today with something positive smile emoticon

Making Movement Matter - Day 28 - Starting Squats

This move here is the basis of squats, that we are going to look at in the next couple of days. 

This may seem such a small move or focus but it's something that I often go through with clients to ensure that their legs are getting the maximum strength from their squats, not their knee joints being forced into a locked position. 

Play with this and discover the feeling of lifting your hips and body up and over your feet.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=513061205501350&l=2192406064975571958

Making Movement Matter - Day 27 - Knee Bends

Lower body is the name of the game for the next wee series of videos! We're going to start with some foundation moves, for our physical foundation. Starting with lifting a leg and standing on one leg - sounds simple. It is really, but are you doing it as efficiently as you could? Get this right and your walking will feel easier, your lower back will be able to relax and you'll develop functional strength around your thighs, hips and bum.

It can be helpful to look at yourself doing this in then mirror. I find it really interesting watching the videos back once my husband has recorded them, as I'm going purely on feel now.

Let me know how you get on, what you see, and what you feel :-)

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=512875105519960&l=1889179667352198812

Making Movement Matter - Day 26 - Maintaining Goals

What do you do to keep your goals and intentions to the forefront of your mind? 

Goals can be something we desire to achieve or reach in the future. Intentions can be something that we intend for ourself. When we are doing something active about our goals and intentions then they are in our mind, but what about when we aren't actually working on them in that moment. For example, when I am running I'm in it, I'm on it and all the reasons that I want to bring my running back into my life are right there in my mind body and soul. But on the days that I'm not running I do find it easy to forget why I need it back in my life. Other stuff takes over and I can forget to make time for it during the week.
There are many things that you can do to keep these important things for you in your attention. Some example are: meditation, diary planning, placing notes in visible places, buying something that motivates and reminds (eg new running kit), getting friends or family on board with support (be careful with this one, make sure they are fully on board and only have your interests at heart).

I do two things: I take a piece of a4 paper, write 3-4 bullet points on it, and stick it to the mirror in my bedroom where I dry my hair every morning. I also make a visual collage of my aims, dreams and desired life balance. The first works really well for me for short term quick reminders. The latter keeps me in tune with the overall balance of my life.

The mirror reminders have been working really well for me this last couple of weeks. I'm long overdue in making a collage though, so that's what I'll be doing this week smile emoticon

Making Movement Matter - Day 25 - Perfect Presses

Alignment. Alignment. Alignment. 

Building strength without knowing your alignment is like makinga teapot out of chocolate - it might take a lot of effort and time and look pretty, but it doesn't function and will eventually fall apart! I don't want you to fall apart, I want you to function beautifully :-)

The exercise in the video is a classic one that I find that people try to do because they want to get stronger (and it WILL get you stronger!) but get the alignment right first, take your time building it correctly and the strength you feel will be clean, pure and efficient.

This is the last of the series on our hands. We're going to build stability, balance and strength in the legs after this (even if it runs into February!) :-)

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=511902022283935&l=961443667985284971

Making Movement Matter - Day 24 - Keep It Varied

Variety is the spice of life...

For general health, fitness and wellbeing the best tip that I can give you is to move often, in different ways, in different directions and at different paces. This ensures that your body utilises a good range of its movements and experiences different levels of stimulation (from meditative rest to challenging the heart and lungs).

Consider the different activities you do. Are you balancing them out with contrasting activities. For example, if you always run do you stretch, do yoga, use your upper body etc to balance it...? If you swim do you do things that are weight bearing....? If you do strength work, do you do aerobic activities? If you don't 'formally exercise' do you move often and regularly and mix calming activities with ones that raise your heart rate (because that's ok and healthy too...)...

Consider this over the weekend. It's all about balance.

Making Movement Matter - Day 23 - Are You Your Healthy You

I have a question:
Are you being the health that you want to be? 

It's January 23rd 2015, and, TODAY, are you walking that health dialogue that you want for yourself...(or are you just talking it?)?

I ask this because this is when new year resolutions start to wane, or any that haven't been actioned yet get completely forgotten (until next new year). It's the week when it feel much easier for many to just return to old habits.... Weather, money, time and so on and so on can sound like reasons not to put talk into action. Or we can put things off until the weather gets warmer, until we get paid, until this stressful period is over etc etc etc.

If you are not actively working on your health and wellbeing then you are not being your health and wellbeing.

This can mean many things to different people: daily meditation, regular aerobic exercise, daily stretching, eating organically, training for a specific event, dealing with pains and niggles or illness.....

Whatever it is that you want for yourself do something about meeting that goal today. Even if it is just something small, do something.

If daily meditation was your goal but you haven't done any today or don't know here you'll get the time, do 1 minute. It's still meditating today. 1 minute today, tomorrow, the next is 3 minutes more than aiming for 30 mins every day and doing none.

If daily stretching was your goal, pick 1 stretch and do it today. Pick another tomorrow.
If it was yoga three times a week, can you go today, if not then plan when you will.

You get the idea smile emoticon

Me? I'm hauling myself outside today for a run because I've not been outside as much as I need to be to feel happy and healthy. I might walk / run it if it's a bit icy or my legs get a shock from being off the treadmill, but I'm getting out there and getting on with it or it'll just feel even harder the next time....