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Health and Fitness Goals for September 2016

As I am due to return home today it's time to start thinking about actually getting back to reality. Holidays are always a time for me when I relax and let go of what I am usually so focused on. September is a time when everyone is getting back to their school and work routines and I’m going to be a sheep and do the same.  

 Five weeks away meant that my diet has gone absolutely shocking - I've been eating chocolate like everyday and definitely not enough fruit and veg. Although I don't really restrict my diet too much even when I'm home I know I've gone too far with eating whatever I want when 1) all my trousers are suddenly very tight, 2) I constantly feel sleepy and too full. Next week I am therefore making drastic changes and cutting out all sweets from my diet. Of course this isn't going to be a permanent change as I believe it's all about balancing the healthy and the unhealthy however I am going to try my best to stick with it until I feel like I am back to normal. I feel like I've entered the same vicious bad diet-lack of exercise circle as a couple of months ago. It will take some serious determination to break these habits again.   

 This brings me onto my second point – exercise. Although the first couple of weeks of my holiday have been quite active, the last three weeks haven't. I'm not even sure why as I've brought everything I need to go running or to the gym with me. This month I am going to start thinking about longer term goals. I am quite keen to try and run a half marathon next April. I know, it seems like ages away but I think after these few weeks of laziness I would struggle to run 5k never mind 21. So I have come up with a plan to suit my own level of fitness and one I can evaluate and change when needed.    I think I should be able to run 4k without any major difficulty right now. So this is going to be my starting point. I will try to go running 3-4 times a week and increase the distance gradually to run 7k by the end of September. This leaves me with 7 months and 14k to add to the distance – nice, easy maths. So next months goals would be: October: 9k November: 11k December: 13k January: 15k February: 17k March: 19k April: 21k.    

 I haven't run more than 10k before but I know that I won't be able to run e.g. 15k 4 times a week in January. I will therefore plan for 1-2 longer runs a week and then shorter ones in between. This is however only a plan and it can change. I might find that I can increase the distance more quickly or I may reach a point where I really struggle. That's why this plan isn't going to be rigid but adaptable to my own fitness levels and goals. I'm lucky to have some friends who are really into running so I'm sure I'll be asking them for lots of advice. 

   

Bike the Baltic

My summer holidays are soon coming to an end – just like most people’s. With that in mind I wanted to share a little bit about what I've been up to since camping in Cornwall. 

I'm currently in Warsaw, the capital of Poland but today’s post is dedicated to my trip to the coast of the Baltic Sea (to Sarbinowo)  but specifically about the cycling route I came across whilst there. 

We did no prior research at all, just hired some bikes and headed in the rough direction of the next village where we knew we’ll find a lighthouse. The village is called Gąski and it’s tiny! We also found a poster outside of the lighthouse showing all fifteen lighthouses along the coast. This is when I had the idea of cycling to the next one down which was about 27km from where we were staying. We didn't manage the challenge that day, we got to Ustronie Morskie (about 10km from Gąski) before we decided we've had enough. The cycling track from Sarbinowo to Ustronie Morskie was mostly a dirt road going through the forest. The best thing about it though was the fact that we were right next to the beach throughout the whole trip which pretty much allows you to explore the whole coast along the cycling track. 

Whilst cycling through the forest I noticed „Bike the Baltic” signs which together with small groups of people who were very obviously on a cycling/camping holiday gave me the clue that this cycling track must be a long one. I was right. The route is a not-yet-realised part of the EuroVelo 10 route which goes around the whole of the Baltic Sea through Denmark, Germany, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland and Sweden. When I say not-yet-realised I mean that the route is pretty much there but is not yet up to the EuroVelo standards but it's due to be completed in 2017/2018

Two days later we set ourselves the challenge of cycling to Kołobrzeg to see the next lighthouse. The track from Ustronie Morskie to Kołobrzeg is completely different to the first part that we cycled - it's fully paved with clear signposting, which following my research about Route 10 shows that this part is possibly ready to be interconnected with other completed parts. The whole route is over 8500km long so even our longest total of 27km to Kolobrzeg is just a tiny part of it but was enough to impress me. When the route is complete with all of its facilities (like bike and bed hotels) I would seriously be tempted to go for a cycling holiday there. I just love the fact that you are right next to the beach all the time (okay, maybe no more than a few hundred yards in the towns but that's still really close)! 

Lighthouse in Gąski

View from Gąski Lighthouse

Czerwona River

Czerwona River

One of the beaches along the cycling track.

Lighthouse in Kołobrzeg.

My thoughts on camping in Cornwall

This year (and the next year actually) my summer holidays are planned almost down to the minute. With my breaks being shorter than other students’ I do my best to make the most of the time I have off. I have spent last weekend in Cornwall with my friends and boyfriend and I wanted to share my thoughts on the trip. A couple of months ago we booked a campsite in Penhallow, not that much thought went into the process of choosing it, we just found one on tripadvisor with decent reviews and thought why not. By that point we were a little sick of looking for one as we have booked a space in a holiday park before that but apparently 2 couples camping together are a “group” and groups aren't allowed (that was Newquay View Resort by the way). In my opinion that's just them trying to get more money out of you because if two couples book two separate pitches then that's absolutely fine, but anyway I'm digressing. The campsite we ended up going to was called Higher Golla Touring Park and is situated about 2 miles inland from Perranporth. When we arrived the man in reception/shop was clearly organised and expecting our arrival even if there was a slight mix up with pitch numbers. Pitching up our four man tent was definitely a good teamwork exercise and I definitely felt like we've accomplished something when our temporary home was all set up. Our pitch was about a 2 minute walk from the shower block where the facilities were better than I was expecting for the price that we've paid. The facilities were kept very clean throughout our stay and the only two issues we thought might be worth mentioning is that there are only 4 showers for what I thought was a decent size campsite (we were pitch number 33 and that was only about half way up the campsite) and when all showers were in use there were definitely issues with the water pressure. But hey, that's part of the experience right? And it definitely didn't have an impact on our trip. Outside the bathrooms, on kind of a porch, were three sinks which were very useful for washing up the dishes. It's such a simple thing but I was pleasantly surprised by it as I was expecting to have to wash up in a bowl outside the tent. Although we did not use the shop, there was one on site and it looked like it had all the necessities excited campers may have forgotten to pack.

On the day we arrived we went to explore the nearby beach in Perranporth. Although the town was mildly touristy it had a quiet and calm feel to it. On the “high street” we found a couple of pubs, a pasty shop (a must in Cornwall right?), a chippy, surf shops and a variety of “tourist junk” shops. We only found one supermarket, a Co-Op which was obviously everyone’s evening stop before heading back to their hotels or campsites as the queues were ridiculous. The beach itself is great too – the main area close to the shops and toilets got quite crowded but if you're willing to walk a little further on there was a bit more space. The toilets and showers by the beach are clean and clearly newly refurbished. There is even a doggy shower and drier outside as the beach welcomes man’s best friends all year round. As I am very much a dog person this was a big plus for me as I may decide to take my dog with me when I go back there in the future. There is also a great-looking bar right on the beach called The Watering Hole. On a sunny day it made you feel like you were on a cool surfing beach abroad rather than in the UK with lots of tables and benches on the decking outside. 

On our second day we headed for Newquay which is about 9 miles from the campsite. To make the trip more fun we decided to ditch the boring sat nav and found our way the old-school way by just using road signs. Newquay definitely had a more commercial feel to it with lots of your usual high street shops however we did find what I thought was a hidden gem – Martha’s Tea Room. The café had a homely and traditional feel to it and served some of the British classics including cream teas. This is what I opted for and was surprised that for the price of £4.50 I had a pot of tea and 2 scones! This may be too much for some people but I didn't really struggle to finish it haha! After walking along the beach and visiting some of the shops we decided to head back to Perranporth.

 

 

Day three was all about the beach. After spotting a good deal in one of the surfing shops in Perranporth we treated ourselves to surfing lessons. Not one of us have surfed before but we were all excited to try it. The shop is called Piran Surf and is situated directly opposite the main entrance to the beach. On arrival we were all weighed and fitted with wetsuits and boots. After changing we sat together with the rest of the group (8 of us in total) in the shop’s outdoor area for a safety briefing with the instructor who appeared to be experienced and really knew what he was talking about. After that we picked up our soft boards and headed for the beach. The instructor talked us through the basics and encouraged us to just have a go which I thought was great. Once in the water the instructor went around the group and helped us to catch a good wave and gave us a little push to make sure we caught it. Two hours with the instructor was enough for us to feel comfortable enough to head back into the sea after lunch and carry on practicing. The currents were really strong and made it quite difficult to stay within the surfing zone so we were all knackered from having to keep moving back across however we had the equipment hired until 6pm so had plenty of time to rest in between surfing. Personally I had enough by 3pm and sunbathed on the beach for the rest of the afternoon. The lesson and the equipment hire for the day cost £25 which I thought was a bargain compared to what other shops in Perranporth offered. 

We spent our evenings barbecuing by our tent and playing cards. Having to be really organised with the cooking meant we were all involved. The being organised part didn't work 100% of the time and occasionally the odd fork had to be shared between two people but that just added to the experience. Apart from the odd Facebook scroll when I managed to catch a bit of 3G we all kept phone use to a minimum and it felt bliss to be away from it all. I felt like we were all present in the moment and enjoying spending time together which is what I loved most about this trip.   

That's enough of being soppy for today. Now time to start packing for the next trip this Friday.

Holiday Check List

In August I will be going away for five weeks which means I am already stressing about packing as I don't want to take too much or too little. The answer to my problem is universal to all organisation problems - a check list! And since I was making one I decided I might as well make it pretty and share it on my blog.

I have included four sections - essentials, clothes, toiletries and gadgets. What you need will of course depend on where you're going and for how long but this list should be useful for your typical getaway to somewhere hotter than the UK. I have also left some space in each table so things can be added to it.

The Essentials don't really need explaining - you're not going to get very far if you've forgotten your passport. 

Clothes very much depend on where you're going so I only included the essential bits that I think will be needed wherever you go. I will probably end up creating another list for the clothes that aren't on this list ;)

Toiletries are a very individual matter so again I included items that will be needed wherever you go. Moisturiser and sun cream are a good idea whether you're off to Barbados or skiing in Switzerland - sun protection will be needed everywhere (there's a whole post on this here) and if the sun doesn't dry your skin out, the wind definitely will. Hair bobbles and clips are on my list because they are the things I always forget whenever I go away. 

I'm not a fan of too many gadgets on holidays however a phone and a camera are essential to me. I love taking pictures when I go to explore new places and a phone is a matter of personal safety (as my mum has drummed into my head ;))

Here is the link to the check list if you think it might come in handy:

Holiday Check List

International Yoga Day and the beginning of a new challenge

The 21st of June was first declared as the International Yoga Day in December 2014 at the United Nations General Assembly, following the Indian Prime Minister's call for an annual celebration of yoga. He said "It is not about exercise but to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and the nature". I definitely found this statement thought-provoking. 

Yoga is a form of exercise to me, despite what some people believe it can be a good work out. It does however help with a lot more than just keeping your body toned. Yoga classes taught me how to use my breath to focus the mind and enjoy the practise. Being present in the moment is definitely a struggle of mine, it's so easy to get caught up in our to do lists and forget that actually it's okay to stop for an hour and relax. The world is not going to end if you leave some things to do later. I guess this is what the second part of the above statement is about: taking the time to focus on yourself, check in with your body and your mind without feeling guilty or selfish. 

Source: reddit

International yoga day also seemed like a good day to start working on something I would like to improve within my practise. I think that tight hamstrings are something that limits me still and something I would like to improve. I have therefore started a 30 day hamstring challenge and am hoping to make progress with daily practise.

Hamstrings are the muscles responsible for bending your knee as well as limiting how far forward you can bend. They also play a role in our posture as they play a part in straightening the curvature of the lower spine when sitting. These muscles are a crucial part of walking, running, jumping etc. so working on them would probably benefit the majority of people. Although it takes a long time, apparently stretching the hamstrings is relatively easy (we'll see about that), one study showed that a straight leg raise angle can be increased by 25% in 4 weeks with easy daily exercises. It may also be a good idea to work on your hamstrings if you do a lot of sport, e.g. running, as tight hamstrings can lead to muscle injury as inflexible muscles might not be able to bear the full force of the action.

So how am I going to do this? My challenge only has one rule - to practise a minimum of 30 minutes every day. I will be applying what I have learnt in yoga classes as well as using YouTube videos from my favourite YouTube yogis - Yoga with Adriene (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mirm7LKvKk) and SarahBethYoga (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOfTY39I8rU). I have a busy schedule ahead (as per usual) so I'm sure it will be challenging at times but I will do my best and let you know how I get on next month.

DIY Notebook/Planner

Last week I went into town for a wonder around the shops and obviously ended up in Paperchase. I love that shop so much, if someone gave me £1000 to spend in there I don't think I would struggle. One of the things I found was a gorgeous Blogger's Journal - a fancy notebook organised into a calendar and pages for blog post ideas. The temptation to buy it was unreal but the hefty price tag knocked some sense into me, I mean as much as I love Paperchase I refuse to spend £15 on what is essentially a notebook. Yes it was hardback and had a fabric cover but other than that it was just paper. This journal then gave me the idea of creating a similar thing out of what most of us already have at home. 

First thing's first - gather everything you will need before you start. For this project you'll need a cardboard box (I found that a cereal bar box worked perfectly), coloured card, wrapping paper, paper for the inside of the notebook (I used lined paper), a ribbon (approximately 30-40 cm), scissors, ruler, pencil, glue and a stapler.

Cut the box so that you only have the front, back and one side left. Then use the box as a template to draw around on the back of the wrapping paper (which will become your cover). Leave around an inch of wrapping paper around the edges to fold over later.

Glue the wrapping paper and the cardboard box together. This is the tricky part as you don't want to end up with wrinkly paper in your cover. Don;t rush this step and avoid using too much glue.

Now fold over the sides and stick them down to the cardboard using glue. 

You will need three pieces of coloured card for the inside - two of the same size for the front and the back and one that's more narrow for the middle. You want them to overlap but to be exactly the same length. 

Stick the middle piece of card down first, you want it to be a couple of centimetres over to the front and the back covers. Then stick down the front making sure that doesn't go past the fold.

Now staple the ribbon on the left side of the piece of card which will be glued to the back cover. Once you've done that glue the card the same way as you glued the second piece.

Next you will need to cut the paper down to the right size. The best way to avoid mistakes is to thread one sheet of paper through the ribbon and use a pencil to mark how much you need to cut off. Once you've cut that, use it as a template to cut out however many sheets of paper you think you will need in your notebook. Don't put in more than the thickness of the spine of your notebook - it won't close! To avoid the ribbon splitting I used a lighter to melt the edges slightly, but be careful not to burn your house down!

Tie the ribbon in a bow and voila! DIY personalised notebook that costs a fraction of a shop-bought one! You can use this idea for all sorts of different things - just a plain notebook, a planner for an occasion, a diary, journal, organiser... You could even make a cover for the Filofax fillers you can buy in shops.

This is how I organised my blog planner - a monthly diary in the front and pages for blog post ideas in the back along with photo ideas and to do lists. 

Room swaps, clear outs and clutter

This weekend me and my housemate decided to swap rooms ready for the next academic year. This meant that everything had to be tidied, possibly even packed up for a day or two before it finds its place in the new room. 

As most people would, I have started off really excited thinking I will get rid of unnecessary things (and I have A LOT of those) to make sure my new room is as clutter-free as possible. This mentality didn't last very long. Yes, I got rid of a few old t-shirts that I haven't worn in ages and decided to upgrade my mirror but other than that I ended up with 3 drawers of random clutter than doesn't really have much of a purpose and doesn't belong anywhere. I'm sure many people can relate to this, whether it's the messy kitchen drawer or a whole spare room full of things that "might come in handy". 

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't want to live in a plain white room and be able to store ALL my belongings in a back pack but a chaotic environment definitely makes me feel like I'm not in control of my life. But how do you break the habit of hoarding?

I think that there are three main reasons as to why people hold on to objects (but I'm not a psychologist, these are just my thoughts)

• We feel emotionally attached to things ("sentimental value").
• We feel we should keep them because someone bought them for us.
• "In case they come in handy".

I think often we don't want to upset people. If the object was a gift, it may not have much of a use in our house but we worry that it means more to the person who gave it to us, so it's easier to just keep it. We also don't want to seem ungrateful because I'm sure most of us appreciate both the gift and the thought, but how long do you keep a present for if you don't end up using it? In these situations balance is key. It would be wasteful to throw away, for example a spare light bulb but at the same time is there point in keeping a birthday card from 3 years ago? I mean, is there any sort of social etiquette that I am not aware of when it comes to hoarding, especially hoarding gifts? If anyone has an answer to this I would really appreciate it. Maybe it would help me decide what to keep and what to pass on to the charity shops.

Clothes are the next big thing I think people hoard. The jeans we wish we still fitted into, or that cute top you bought in the sales 2 years ago but haven't even worn yet. Even though I still have some things I keep "just in case" I feel that after a few years of practise I finally have my wardrobe under control. I have one double wardrobe and one chest of drawers of clothes (plus a few spare bits and bobs at my mum's house in case I come home and have forgotten something) and, compared to some people I know, I feel like it's not that much. I try to have clear outs every couple of months and I ATTEMPT to follow some rules. I ask myself if the item in question still fits me? Do I like wearing it? Does it still look decent? Have I worn it in the last couple of months? The last question can be subjective, especially when it comes to clothes for special occasions or seasonal items, and this is where the slippery slope begins as it can be a good excuse to hold on to things for that little while longer. 

I wish I had a solution to the issue that hoarding is but unfortunately, for now, this is just a post where I had a good rant about it and that’s it. If I ever do come up with a solution, or find out how long you should keep things before you can get rid of them, I will let you know.

Sleep, exercise and diet aka a viscious circle

I think May is definitely the time of the year when the majority of students go into panic mode about deadlines - I still have two exams next week and one more piece of coursework due in July. I'm so jealous of everyone who has now finished the year and has a ridiculously long summer. Combined with working long hours over the last couple of weeks I couldn't be bothered to do anything other than sleep really - and even that routine got a little messed up.

First thing to go down the drain during the last 4 weeks was exercise. When I came home from work I just didn't have the energy to go out for a run and couldn't make yoga classes as I finished work after they started. 

Then its the diet. This month I've had pizza for dinner more times than I care to admit. I wasn't even adventurous with it, apart from one Sainsbury's vegetarian pizza it was all cheese and tomato. I have also now run out of healthier freezer meals that I made a couple of weeks ago which only addded to my 'pizza problem'. Oh and dinner usually ended with chocolate. Don't get me wrong - you've got to treat yourself from time to time but everyday is definitely too much. 

I have also been struggling with sleep which is unusual for me. I don't think the lack of exercise and comfort eating helped and with deadlines hanging over my head as well I found it really difficult to sleep. First of all I struggled to get to sleep - the classic racing mind, thinking of everything I still needed to do and worrying about totally pointless things. Then once I have fallen asleep I would wake up in the middle of the night a couple of times only to be woken up by my alarm at 5:50 when I had to go to work (or 6-7am by my body clock when I didn't have to go to work). But last night I finally slept well and this morning I was so excited about it I rang my boyfriend at half past 8 to tell him (waking him up as a result). 

All these 3 things combined meant that I just wanted to curl up in bed and sleep. It's a viscious circle because I know that all it takes to fix this is to go out for a half hour run (half an hour is 2% of our day by the way), prepare my lunches the night before to give myself more time to sleep in the morning and cook a big batch of food on the weekend to have meals for the week. But doing all that takes that little bit more energy than sitting on the sofa the whole evening and just sticking a pizza in the oven, and when I haven't slept well where do I get the energy from?

 I think there is only one cliché way to fix this - new week is going to be a fresh start. Sorting this out one by one just wouldn't work because I need to exercise to sleep and sleep to exercise so I need to do these two together. And if I'm addressing those two in one go I might as well get my butt in gear and cook proper food.  

If anyone has any tips on how to fit 10 hours of  work, 8 hours of sleep, commuting, cooking, exercising and housework into a day I would really appreciate it as I seem to be struggling at the moment.

I'll post an update on how I get on next week.

Have a good Bank Holiday weekend everyone! 

An Idiot's Guide to Sun Cream

Sunscreen is a must in the summer – we all know that but why? How does it work? What are the different types? What the hell does SPF even mean? Are we wasting money buying the expensive stuff or does it actually give you better protection? What’s the impact on our vitamin D levels? These are all questions that I have about sun cream, and I’m sure I’m not the only one, so I will try to answer them all in this Idiot’s Guide to Sunscreen.

What are the different types of sunscreen and how do they work?

There are two types – chemical sunscreen and physical sunscreen. You can also get hybrid products which contain both physical and chemical filters.

The two types protect us from the sun in different ways. Physical sunscreens deflect the sun’s rays whereas chemical ones absorb the rays. But how do we the difference? From experience I know that this is not always easy and you may have to look at the ingredients lists to find out. The active ingredient in physical sunscreens is usually Titanium dioxide(TiO2) or Zinc oxide (ZnO) and in chemical ones the list is a bit longer: Octylcrylene, Avobenzone, Octinoxate, Octisalate, Homosalate, Helioplex, 4-MBC, Mexoryl SX and XL, Tinosorb S and M, Uvinul T 150 and Uvinul A Plus. There is no way I could remember all of these when I’m in a shop trying to pick one so my tip would be that unless you can see Titanium dioxide or Zinc oxide in the ingredients list it’s a chemical sunscreen (source). The consistency of the product may also give you a clue about what type it is. Physical filters tend to be thick, opaque and leave a white tint whereas chemical filters tend to be colourless, odourless and runny. As far as I know physical filters currently cannot be used in sprays or aerosols so if it is a spray it's probably a chemical filter.

What does SPF mean?

SPF stands for sun protection factor and it is a measure of how long a sunscreen will protect you from UVB rays. The calculation depends on your skin type (source), and multiply the time for your skin type by the SPF, fair skin = 10 minutes, olive skin = 15 minutes, dark skin = 20 minutes. So for example, I burn but not very easily so I would go with olive skin. If my sunscreen is SPF 30 then the product will protect me from UVB rays for 7.5 hours (15 x 30). This calculation doesn’t apply to UVA rays (the ones that damage collagen and elastic tissue in the bottom layers of your skin but also cause you to tan – a response from your skin to the damage that has already been caused and an attempt to limit any further damage). It’s important to remember though that you will not be protected against 100% of UVB rays. Yes, the higher the SPF the better the protection but some rays will still get through.

Does sunscreen have a negative effect on our vitamin D level?

This is a big debate and with rickets making a comeback it is something many people are concerned about. In 2013 King’s College London carried out a study to find the answer to this question and according to them it’s a “no”. They found that the participants (whose baseline vitamin D levels were about 50 nmol/L and were thought of as adequate) despite using sunscreen still produced significant amount of vitamin D from sunlight exposure. Another study published by The British Journal of Dermatology (source) found that sunscreens can reduce the production of vitamin D under very strictly controlled conditions however their normal usage does not generally result in vitamin D insufficiency.

What’s available?

With the holiday season fast approaching this is the time to go out and buy sunscreen (not that we shouldn’t be wearing it all year round). I had a look through what’s on offer in Boots and compiled a list of the more popular products and some that you may not have heard of, how much they cost and which type of sunscreen it is. I also only included ones with SPF 30 or above because no one wants to be reapplying sun cream every hour ;) 

Garnier Ambre Solaire Protection Lotion SPF 30 200ml | Hybrid | £7.50

Garnier Ambre Solaire Clear Protection Water Resistant Spray SPF 50 200ml | Chemical | £7.50

Garnier Ambre Solaire Dry Mist Protection SPF 50 200ml | Chemical | £8.50

Nivea Sun Moisturising Sun Lotion SPF 50+ 200ml | Hybrid | £7

Nivea Sun Swim & Play Lotion SPF 50+ 150ml | Hybrid | £8.50

Soltan Adult Dry Touch Spray SPF 30 200ml | Chemical | £6

Soltan Face 8 Hour Sun Protection Moisturising Cream SPF 30 50ml | Hybrid | £4.50

Soltan Moisturising Suncare Stick SPF 30 5g | £4

La Roche Posay Anthelios XL Anti-Shine Dry Touch SPF 50+ 50ml | Hybrid | £16.50

La Roche Posay Anthelios Comfort Protective Oil SPF 50+ 200ml | Chemical | £18

No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Facial Sun Protection SPF 50 50ml | Hybrid | £14.50

No7 Protect & Perfect Intense ADVANCED Anti-Aging Sun Protection Spray SPF 30 200ml | Chemical | £14.95

Vichy Ideal Soleil Face & Body Milk SPF 50 300ml | Hybrid | £14.25

Vichy ideal Soleil Mattifying Face Dry Touch SPF 30 50ml | Chemical | £12.37

Should we be using sunscreens all year round?

Yes. UVA rays are present all year round meaning we might not necessarily tan however it can cause damage to the superficial layers of the skin.

Destabilisation

The majority of chemical filters will destabilise due to a variety of factors within a couple of hours of application. This means we are not getting the sun protection that we think we are. Not all chemical filters are photo-stable (most sunscreens use a few different ones in their products) meaning that being out in the sun decreases the length of time they protect us for. Another common factor that contributes to sunscreen destabilisation is the application of other products, e.g. make-up. This is where physical filters are better than chemical ones as they tend to be more natural and don't destabilise anywhere near as quickly as the chemical filters.

The sunscreen debate could go on for days but I hope this post answers at least some of the basic questions and makes it clear what you should be looking out for when buying sun cream.

My first race - ABP Southampton 10k

Last Sunday I took part in my first race - if you read my blog you may have already figured that out as I have been going on about it for months. 

I think it was last November that me and my housemate Jack decided to sign up for the ABP Southampton 10k following a couple of beers ;) At the time 10k seemed almost impossible, I could only run 5 km at a push and in rubbish time, but signing up gave me a goal to work towards. My training wasn't very consistent. There were weeks where I ran 3 times a week but I also went 3-4 weeks with no running at all. I did a couple of park runs along the way if I had a free Saturday (which isn't very often) and finally managed to get closer to my goal distance on the 12th of March - that was my first 9 km. I never actually managed 10km before the day of the race, I just thought if I managed 9 I can do the last one on the day as I find it a lot easier running with other people.

Just under two weeks before the race I received my race number and a little good luck note along with the run route from the event organizers. That's when it hit me that that's it, time for training is over. I suddenly felt so unprepared! I wanted to go for a couple of longer runs the week before the race and really had to consciously stop myself to make sure I wasn't sore on Sunday. 

On the 24th of April I woke up at 7.30ish to make sure I had breakfast early enough - by now I figured out that a full stomach + exercise = stitch. I know there are people out there who exercise best on an empty stomach but that's just not me. I don't do anything on an empty stomach. By quarter past 8 I was dressed, ready and SO excited! I had so much energy I was bouncing off the walls! 

We made our way to the start just after 9 o'clock ready for the warm up but we were actually there way too early. We ended up standing around for quite a while but it was nice to see all the half marathon runners start first. 

Once they were off it was time for us to line up with the pace-setters. We went around the 70 minute mark as that was roughly what we were aiming for. There was a great, positive atmosphere to the whole event - live music along the way and encouragement from most of the marshalls. I managed to run to the Itchen Bridge but running uphill is still a challenge for me so I ended up walking most of the Bridge itself. I figured that since I wasn't running I might as well take a picture as the weather was nice and the view decent, unfortunately an iPhone camera doesn't really capture it very well ;)

My next milestone was St Mary's Football Stadium. After the bridge I managed to run all the way there and just before the stadium I realised that the 65 minute pace-setter was right in front of me so I decided that I will make that my goal. I managed to keep up with her right to the end of the run and finished in 1:05:15. I couldn't be happier with the result! I shaved 5 minutes of my goal time! That's how much of a difference running with other people makes to my running! 

At the finish line I was very pleasantly surprised by the amount of goodies waiting for us. Along the way I picked up a banana (which I ate straight away as I was starving by 8km nevermind 10!), a goodie bag with tons of leaflets about other races and a yazoo milkshake, a non-alcoholic beer, a t-shirt, women's running magazine, a couple of tea bags and a medal. Considering the run costs around £25 I think you definitely get your money's worth!

Oh but let's not forget the ACTUAL motivation to finish this run ;)

So with my first 10k behind me I think I cought the running bug - I'm seriously thinking about signing up for the half marathon next year. But for now, I'm going to just carry on running and increasing the distance :)

Weekly meal prep and money saving

Recently there has been a lot of media coverage on food wasted by supermarkets. Some companies have listened to their customer's opinion on the subject and have started making changes to reduce the amount of waste they produce. I think that a good example of this is Asda introducing their 'Wonky Veg Box' where for £3.50 you get 5kg of veg that didn't quite meet the shape criteria for the main shelves. Why hasn't anyone thought of this before? To me it makes no difference if a carrot is wonky or not, it will still taste like a carrot. I have attempted to get my hands on one of these boxes a couple of times but they're always sold out! But anyway, I'm digressing here. Different people will have different opinions on the subject of food waste - from there being nothing wring with it to it being unethical. And even though I strongly agree that wasting perfectly good carrots just because they're wonky when there are people starving is totally wrong, my reason for trying to avoid food waste is a lot more down to earth - money. Wasted food = wasted money and when I'm living off student loans and bursaries I can't afford to waste money on food I'm not going to eat. 

In order to avoid food waste preparation is key. My weekly food prep starts with my diary. Once I know how busy I am likely to be during the next week I can plan how much time I want to spend cooking. For example, I know that I will be out of the house for 10-12 hours Monday to Thursday next week so I need to make sure I plan my lunches and snacks well to keep me going as well as quick and easy dinners because slaving over the cooker for two hours will be the last thing I want to do at 7pm. And this is where my lovely magnetic meal planner, a gift from my boyfriend, comes in. It is one of the best organisational tools you can buy. My one is from Paperchase and cost around £8 which seems pricey however you need to remember that you only use 1 sheet a week so it will last a good couple of years. Of course you can also make your own versions or just use any odd piece of paper you can find, it doesn't matter where you write it. 

The meal planner is where I write my dinner plans. Once I decided on ideas I can write my shopping list to make sure I buy all the ingredients I will need. 

Then it's time for lunches. I don't write these ideas down because not much changes in my lunchbox from week to week so by now I know what I need to buy. Before I go shopping I will check what I need to stock up on and add that to my shopping list. On a typical day where I am out of the house for a long time my lunchbox consists of:

• Yoghurt (preferably natural Greek)
• Oatcakes (dipped in yoghurt they're a perfect morning snack)
• Nuts
• Salad or a sandwich
• 2-3 different types of fruit
• Sunbites

My weekday breakfasts tend to be pretty boring (it's definitely something I should work on). It's usually toast, porridge or granola. I like making my own granola as I find that the shop-bought ones are too sweet to have so early in the morning and it costs a fraction of the ready made ones. I don't currently plan my breakfasts and, similarly to my lunches, I buy things I know I am going to eat. 

In terms of snacks - I tend to have them anyway because I use them for my lunches. But if I come across a recipe I want to try I will add the ingredients to my shopping list ready for when I have time to make them. This weekend for example, I decided to try making some homemade Nakd-style bars and I have to say that they turned out incredible. They taste like the shop-bought ones but cost less than half the supermarket price.

So, with my shopping list complete I head for the supermarket. Since my list includes only the things I am going to use for the meals I planned for next week, provided I stick to it, I'm not going to buy too much food which would only end up in the bin. And this is where the question of promotional offers and bulk buying comes in. Buying in bulk certainly is cheaper however bulk buying fruit and veg is pointless when shopping for one because there's only so much you can eat before it goes off. Cupboard foods, such as pasta, are the products I tend to buy more of however still only when I need it. When it comes to offers I'm obviously not going to turn down a buy one get one free but also within reason - if it's fresh food it needs to be on my shopping list. 

If I follow this process chances are there isn't going to be any food to waste, which means I get to spend the money I would spend on extra food on something else.

Home-made cacao, nut and fruit bars

How I use my Fitbit Flex

Last year for Christmas I asked for a fitbit - a gadget to help me track my activity and sleep. Previously I used iPhone apps which you only activate when going to sleep or exercising but I wanted something that would track my activity all day. 

I have the fitbit Flex which tracks my activity and sleep. It came with a small and a large wristband, a charging cable and a wireless sync dongle which you can plug into your PC but I have never used it, I tend to stick to using the iPhone app instead. The manufacturer claims that the Flex' battery lasts up to 5 days and that it takes 1-2 hours to fully charge - I think that is fairly accurate. The battery life is most definitely affected by how often you set the silent alarm though - the vibration drains the battery much more quickly. It is also supposed to be water resistant (as in splash proof but not swim proof) but I was never brave enough to test this ;)

The dashboard allows you to see the following: the battery level of your fitbit, how many steps you have done and what distance that's equivalent to, how many minutes you have spent being active that day, any exercise you tracked/logged, how many calories you have burned, how much fluids you drank and how long you slept for. The recent Fitbit update also introduced a new feature - hourly activity which allows you to set an hourly step goal and the amount of hours in a day that you want to track this for.

 There are also another three things you can track: your weight, calories eaten and the amount of calories you can still eat that day. I chose not to use these options as I am not currently tracking calories or aiming to lose/gain weight. I have tested these options out previously though just to see what my average daily calorie intake is. The database of food products is absolutely huge! You can find the data for most products and if not, there is definitely a product similar enough for you to be able to get a rough guide. The product information also includes the nutritional value of products including some micronutrients - it's always handy to know where you are with those as well as with your calories. 

So let's break the dashboard down into its separate components. The first two are steps and distance. When you tap on their dashboard titles you can see past data in number and graph forms. The horizontal line on the graph indicates the goal which you set for yourself. Once you set your step goal fitbit will calculate what that is in kilometers/miles and set your goal for you. Throughout the app the stars show that you have met your goal, so as you can see over the past week I met my goals twice. I have set my goal at 10 000 steps because that's when I feel that I have been fairly active and not been lazing around all day. It's also an achievable goal - there's no point in setting goals you are never going to achieve because it will only make you feel worse.

The next item on the dashboard is Active Minutes. On their website fitbit state that Active Minutes are any activity which is more strenuous that normal walking, for example, brisk walking or cycling. Active Minutes are calculated using metabolic equivalents (METs) which measure the energy expenditure during different forms of activity. Active minutes are earned at 3 METs or above. However there is a catch. That level of activity needs to be sustained for 10 minutes or more in order to earn your active minutes. This was developed to help people achieve the Centre for Disease Control's concept of '10 minutes at a time is fine'. Current guidelines recommend 30 minutes of being active a day 5 times a week which is what I based my goal on - 30 minutes 7 days a week. The app page for Active Minutes is very similar to the steps and distance pages - you get the number form data history as well as a graph.

Exercise tracking/logging is the next heading on my dashboard. Flex gives you the option to track three forms of exercise which are walking, running and hiking, all the other ones you need to time yourself and log them afterwards. I like running so I use the app to track my runs however it's important to remember that it's the phone that tracks the run not the Flex band. When I first started using it I used to go for my runs with my band on and with the app tracking on which resulted in the steps being counted twice. The GPS in your phone allows you to review your run on a map and gets the pace and distance data. The app then splits it all up so you can see your run kilometer by kilometer and works out the impact this activity had on your daily stats.

Fitbit can also estimate the calories you have burned throughout the day. Some of the data is based on your basal metabolic rate (BMR) which is based on the data you enter into the app at the beginning - your age, gender, weight and height. The app then combines the BMR with all the activity you have undertaken that day (steps and exercise which you tracked or logged).

Drinking enough fluids throughout the day is really important especially if you are reasonably active. If I don't drink enough it is almost guaranteed that I will get a headache, this is something I figured out thanks to this app. I set my goal at 2 litres a day because I walk around a fair bit and I may be no athlete but I try to exercise a couple of times a week too and I feel that this is about the right amount for me. There are days when I find meeting this goal really easy however more often than not it's difficult and I try to make it up to 2 litres just before going to sleep (within reason of course because if I drink 500ml before bed I will be going to the bathroom every 5 minutes rather than to sleep).

Sleep data is definitely my favourite part of using my Flex band. There are two ways of using it: setting it to sleep mode and not doing anything at all. When you start 'sleep mode' (by continuously tapping the Flex for a few seconds) you are telling the app that this is the time you have gone to bed and are trying to get to sleep. This then allows you to determine how long it takes you to get to sleep. I like to just leave it alone and let it track my sleep once I have actually fallen asleep. That way I can still determine how long it took me to fall asleep because I know what time I went to bed. The issue I have with 'sleep mode' is that I forget to switch it off in the morning so I prefer to just leave it do its job. The layout of this part of the app is essentially the same as the activity, steps etc. The only difference is the background colour. Similarly to the rest of the dashboard you can set a daily sleep goal. Different people will need different amounts of sleep, if I don't get my 8 hours (which as you can see I haven't been getting this week) I can get a little grumpy which is why my goal is 8 hours. The band I have also has the option of setting up a silent alarm which I mentioned earlier on. You set it on the app and it is synced with the Flex. It works by vibrating for a few seconds. I hate being woken up suddenly, such a horrible disruption to my sleep is not a good start of the day so the silent alarm is the perfect solution. If you don't dismiss it, it will snooze automatically and go off again in 10 minutes. 

The final part which I track on my dashboard is the new Hourly Activity. It allows me to see if I'm being active continuously throughout the day or whether it's short bursts of activity. My goal for the day is 10 hours with more than 250 steps per hour. It's set between 07.00-17.00 which is when I anticipate to be the most active. It also allows me to see how long I've been stationary and active for throughout the day. 

I think that with these type of gadgets their accuracy is often questioned. On their website fitbit state that the algorithm used for step counting looks for certain intensity and motions - that's what the step count is based on. They also state that certain movements may affect your step count, for example pushing a trolley whist wearing a wrist-band tracker may result in a slightly lower count and doing a lot of arm movements may result in a higher count. I have noticed this to be the case whilst using my Flex - I often wake up with 10 - 15 steps already on the app when I have stayed in bed all night. When compared to a daily total of, say, 10 000 steps that's only 0.1% of the total, for me that's a low enough inaccuracy to ignore it.

I think that the app and the tracker definitely play a part in keeping me active and well rested. I love my Flex but would definitely think about upgrading to a model that does even more, such as the new Blaze or the Charge HR - it would be nice to be able to track my runs/bike rides without having to take my phone with me.