BERRY BLAST BOWL
BERRY BLAST SMOOTHIE BOWL
INGREDIENTS
Half a cup of strawberries
Half a cup of blueberries
Several blackberries
Half a tablespoon of coconut water
1 ripe banana
A few ice cubes
METHOD
In a blender, washed strawberries, washed blueberries, washed blackberries coconut water and the banana. Top with ice cubes and blend until well combined. Add more coconut water depending on the desired texture.
Once blended, pour into a bowl and top with whatever you desire. I like to top mine with coconut flakes, pomegranate seeds and mixed seeds.
Healthy Smoothies
Here are some delicious super healthy smoothies, packed full of goodness to help you feel fabulous and boost your health.
Smoothies are a great way to help with your skin, hair, energy and an easy way to get an abundance of vitamins and minerals in a glass.
CREAMY BANANA SMOOTHIE
Add a frozen banana to your blender and a spoonful of Greek yoghurt. Add in a chopped mango and blend until smooth. Drizzle in honey to sweeten in needed.
VERY BERRY SMOOTHIE
Add a frozen banana to your blender and a spoonful of Greek yoghurt. Add in a handful of strawberries and raspberries. Add a splash of coconut water and blend until smooth.
THE CLASSIC SMOOTHIE
Start with a frozen banana and add it to your blender. Add in sliced strawberries, blueberries and a spoonful of Greek yoghurt. Add a drop of honey if too bitter. Blend until smooth and enjoy.
SWEET GREEN SMOOTHIE
Add a handful of spinach, one green apple, one frozen banana and half a cup of coconut water to a blender. Blitz until smooth. If too bitter, drizzle in honey until it is as sweet as desired.
Should you workout with trainers on?
Home fitness is more popular than ever now, with my YouTube Channel I have on average over 250 thousand people a day following my free workouts at home! A question I often get asked is “do I need to wear trainers if I am exercising at home”?
So this inspired me to write a blog answering just that.
Firstly, let’s set the record straight. Trainers are fitness shoes with a good cushioning heel and sole, so even though I do love my Converse I would never work out in these as they are a fashion shoe and not a workout shoe.
Basically, the sole is key when it comes to your trainers, fashion trainers are for looking fabulous in and not for exercising in.
What sort of workouts should you wear your trainers for? Anything that involves a high impact move, because your trainers help to take out the impact of the move through the cushioning in the shoe, (as this absorbs the shock) as opposed to landing barefoot, which causes the impact to go through our joints. This is why I would always recommend that you use trainers for this sort of exercise.
However, if you are doing low impact moves with no jumps, then you can do this “trainer free” as you have no impact. Therefore it is safe to workout barefoot and this is one thing I really love about low impact workouts at home.
A good way of thinking of this is, high intensity workout equals trainers – low intensity workout equals barefoot or cosy socks.
And finally as I always get asked, what are the best trainers? That one is hard to answer as there are so many good choices out there, so what I would say is have this tick list when it comes to buying your trainers, a supportive fitting shoe✔️ a well cushioned heel ✔️ and of course a lovely colour😂
Healthy Summer Salads
HEALTHY SUMMER SALAD RECIPES
Summer salads are a great way to get an abundance of vitamins and minerals in an easy and quick dish. They can be more than just green leaves.
Here are 4 easy to make tasty summer salads.
SIMPLE VINAIGRETTE SALAD
Add a handful of iceberg lettuce, sliced cucumber, sliced cherry tomatoes, half a sliced red onion,
a handful of olives and a spring of chopped basil.
Drizzle a vinaigrette of olive oil, salt, lemon juice and wholegrain mustard.
CAJUN PRAWN SALAD
On a bed of baby gem lettuce, add diced red onion, sweetcorn, diced red pepper,
diced avocado and thinly sliced red cabbage.
Fry off several prawns in a teaspoon of butter and garlic. Sprinkle the prawns with Cajun seasoning and add to the salad.
Drizzle a spicy mayo over the salad and enjoy.
GREEK INSPIRED SALAD
On a bed of rocket, add one roasted sweet potato, a handful of black sliced olives,
crumbled feta cheese and a handful of pomegranate seeds.
Dress with extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper and a light balsamic dressing.
FRUITY TOOTY SALAD
Start by preparing your fruits; Wash and slice it all! Add raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and cranberries. Add any other desired berry. Slice an avocado and place in the salad. Toss the salad in lemon juice and finish with some sprigs of peppery rocket
How to Make Healthy Ice Cream at Home
1 ingredient ice cream!
METHOD
How to Keep Hydrated
10 MOTIVATING REASONS WHY WE SHOULD DRINK WATER
We hear all the time how important it is to drink plenty of water every day, but have you ever thought why!
In this blog I will be explaining this in more detail.
So, why not pour yourself a glass of water, sit down and sip away while reading the benefits that you will gain from this simple, amazing drink.
First of all and most importantly, we need to drink water to survive. You won’t live long without it, maybe 3-4 days.
If you are someone who struggles with drinking water and perhaps only drinks that glass of water when you are thirsty (which is actually your body telling you that you are dehydrated) then having a clear understanding of the benefits, I think will make you want to drink those 6 -8 glasses of water a day.
10 GREAT BENEFITS YOUR BODY GAINS FROM DRINKING ENOUGH WATER DAILY
By drinking water you will help to control your core body temperature, it helps produce saliva and is vital with the transportation of nutrients around your body.
By being fully hydrated you help to energize your muscles which will make your body feel stronger.
The best beauty product ever will always be water! Your skin contains water. If you are dehydrated then this will make your skin look dry, so if you want that glowing appearance, be sure to drink your 8 glasses a day.
Drinking water daily helps protect your spinal cord, tissue and all your joints, as water helps to lubricate and cushion the joints. This is especially important if you suffer with arthritis.
When you keep fully hydrated, you will help to boost your endurance, speed and power.
Water helps aid healthy digestion and is a great way of helping you digest your food more efficiently.
By drinking water daily, you will help to increase your blood oxygen circulation which is going to help boost your overall health.
Water helps to keep your immune system strong, as it allows full absorption of all the important vitamins and minerals your body needs to stay fighting fit.
Lack of water can make you feel tired which can dampen our mood as well as causing fatigue. So lift your mood and energy and drink that water.
Not drinking enough water can affect your focus, alertness and your memory. So again, another great reason to keep your mind and body fully hydrated.
So you can see that drinking water daily is a great way to look after your body and your mind. We should ideally aim to be drinking between 6-8 glasses a day. It is a good idea to spread your water intake throughout the day instead of drinking all at once.
Homemade Body Scrub
D.I.Y Body Scrub
On your rest day it is nice to give yourself some pamper time. So why not make this Homemade Body Scrub and then take a lovely long bubble bath and use this on your skin, it is super hydrating and cleansing.
How it works:
The salt helps to exfoliate away any dead skin cells.
The oil helps to nourish and moisturise your skin.
The lemon zest helps to cleanse and tighten your skin
The Method
To make your body scrub, place your salt and oil in a bowl and mix together. Then cut your lemon in half and squeeze the zest of this into your mixture.
Again stir all 3 ingredients together. Then apply your body scrub in the bath, and leave on while you soak away in the bath. Then rinse off and finally apply your favourite body lotion on after your bath. This will leave you will glowing and super soft silky skin.
HOMEMADE BEAUTY TREATMENT
GET GLOWING HOMEMADE FACIAL
On a rest day it is nice to pamper yourself and give your skin a bit of TLC with a homemade beauty treatment. So today why not try my “Get Glowing Facial” This 3-ingredient face mask is easy to prepare and leaves your skin with a lovely glow and feels super refreshing.
How it works :
Yoghurt helps to lock in moisture within your skin
Honey helps to treat dry skin
Oatmeal helps to gently exfoliate and cleanse your skin
The Method
To make your facial, place all your ingredients in to a bowl and mix thoroughly. Before you apply this mixture to your face, be sure to have cleansed your face.
Then apply with either your fingers or a brush the mixture to your face. Leave this on for between 15 and 20 minutes.then rinse off with warm water. Pat your face dry and it will feel lovely and soft.
Then apply your normal moisturizer and to give you skin that extra hydration. And why not finish off with drinking a glass of water.
This is a lovely facial treatment that you can do once a week.
How can I lose weight during the Menopause
How can I lose weight during the menopause?
A common question asked by many women going through the menopause is “How to Lose Menopause Weight”, and especially how to lose the menopause belly! The good news is that with the right lifestyle choices you can look at losing middle age weight gain and getting your waistline back.
But the trick is to make sure you do the right exercises, alongside focusing on other important factors such as healthy food choices and the right portion sizes. Let’s start by looking at exercise. And as a trainer with over 20 years experience and over 225 Million views on my YouTube Channel I have helped literally millions of people feel and look their best.
When it comes to Perimenopause and Menopause we want to look at working on bodyweight moves, as this helps to reverse the effect known as Sarcopenia – this is where our muscle tissue starts to deactivate which will reduce our natural calorie burn. BUT THE GOOD NEWS is that with these exercises we can change this and naturally increase your body’s abilities to burn more calories and get back to how we felt and looked before.
The Menopause Belly Workout
(and do read down below for top tips on what to do and why and also what not to do)
MENOPAUSE EXERCISE ONE
This calorie burning move helps to shape and sculpt your waist as well as working on your balance and flexibility.
MENOPAUSE EXERCISE TWO
This step-back move is a great full body move and tones you all over, and this bodyweight exercise helps to strengthen your bones to help prevent osteoporosis.
MENOPAUSE EXERCISE THREE
This one is amazing for the menopause as it ticks all the boxes – a great fat burner, shapes your waist, tones your arms and legs, works on your balance, improves your flexibility and strengthens your bones
MENOPAUSE EXERCISE FOUR
Another great *MCM & *MDM exercise that has exactly the same benefits as move three.
MENOPAUSE EXERCISE FIVE
This floor-based move is great.You strengthen through the bones in your arms and shoulders, and it does wonders for lifting the bust, as well as shaping and sculpting your arms. If you find it to hard to come onto the floor you can do this leaning into a wall or a worktop.
What to Avoid
One common mistake many perimenopause and menopausal women make, in a bid to get their waistline back, is to do exercises like the Plank and Sit-ups, and these actually can end up broadening our waistline. So instead we need to be doing standing cardio ab exercises, as this increases the calorie burn, helping to reduce excess belly fat. And by doing a special combination of MCM and MDM (stands for multi compound moves and multi directional moves) you draw in the waist muscles and increase the amount of body fat your body burns.
The other form of exercise is cardio, as this helps to keep your heart strong and is also great for energy and reducing stress. This can be my Free Indoor Walking Workouts or simply going for a run, bike ride, swim, or anything that is going to help get your heart rate up.
And this is where exercise is truly a girl’s best friend going through the menopause, as it will help control your weight, shape your waist, keep your heart strong, reduce anxiety, keep your joints supple, and most importantly make you realise that this is simply a new chapter in your life where you can still look and feel your best.
More Blogs on the Menopause click here
Quick healthy lunch recipe
Quick healthy easy to make recipe.
RAINBOW JEWELLED RICE
Ingredients:
50 grams of brown rice
1/4 yellow pepper
1/4 red pepper
1/4 green pepper
Small red onion
Handful of cherry tomatoes
Several blueberries
Several pomegranates
1 tbsp of Greek natural yoghurt
Few mint or coriander leaves
Pinch of smoked paprika
METHOD
Cook your brown rice as instructed on the packet.
Then wash thoroughly your peppers, onion, tomatoes, and
blueberries.
Then finely slice all the ingredients into tiny squares.
Add to your rice mixing all together. In a small bowl finely chop up either the fresh mint or fresh coriander, then mix into your greek yoghurt.
Add a dollop to the top, then sprinkle on your smoked paprika and garnish with your chosen fresh herb. Enjoy!
How to keep fit at home
With so many gyms closed, fitness classes cancelled and hands on personal training a thing of the past, we have to look at the new way of keeping fit which is now Home Fitness.
Home fitness for me has always been a winner, I have been teaching this for over 15 years. The benefits are endless and I have helped literally millions of people all over the world and especially through lockdown.
My YouTube Channel was officially the most watched Fitness Channel in the UK through lockdown. Here are just some of the headlines YOU MAGAZINE
Interview on THIS MORNING ITV Click here to watch the Interview
As a trainer with over 25 years experience in Fitness, Weight Loss and Health I have hundreds of effective and FREE home workout videos on my YouTube Channel that range from my Indoor Walking Workouts, 7 Minute Calorie Burners, Kids Exercises to Seated Workouts. I really do have something for everyone as my passion has always been to give the gift of fitness and health to everyone for FREE.
The great thing is these don’t require any equipment, they cost nothing and most important of all, they work.
Check out my Transformations here you will see incredible results. My most popular workout video ever on YouTube is my 7 Minute Lose belly Fat Workout which has been viewed nearly 88 Million times (again, because it works).
.So to make life easy I have grouped together some of my workouts making it easy for you to select the ones you want.
INDOOR WALKING CLICK HERE
ABS CLICK HERE
7 MINUTE CALORIE BURNING HIIT CLICK HERE
FULL BODY CLICK HERE
SEATED CLICK HERE
LEGS CLICK HERE
ARMS CLICK HERE
20 MINUTE CARDIO CLICK HERE
DANCE STYLE CLICK HERE
GLUTES CLICK HERE
SENIOR FITNESS CLICK HERE
7 DAY CHALLENGES CLICK HERE
How to lift your bust naturally with exercise
7 DAY NATURAL BUST LIFT CHART
It is very easy to complete. Here is what you need to do. Firstly take a screen grab or photo of the chart below, so you can print this off. Then for the next 7 Days complete my 8 Minute Natural Bust Lift Workout, each day you have completed it simply tick it off.
My aim of this challenge is that by the end of 7 days you will have naturally lifted your bust. To get really good results from this 7 day challenge you could combine this with my 7 Minute Arm Challenge ( you can see this here)
