So Much Room for Activities!

Hey! So much to fill you all in on....Yep, you guessed it, it's been another manic few weeks....here's a quick run-down of what's been going on...!

Fitter Food Health, Fat Loss and Performance Seminar - April 26th



Road Trip with Zuz and Howard!

So this saw a three hour (!) journey to Lowestoft, Suffolk for an intimate seminar with Matt and Keris of Fitter Food. The afternoon was packed full of useful info, from tips and tricks on how to speed up fat loss, to how to make the most of your rest days between training, to the ways in which different societies view what is healthy or not 

(did you know, that there is actually such thing as the potato diet?! Yep, you only eat boiled, white potatoes...hmmmmm....nutrition at it's best!)

Three take away points from the Seminar would include:
+ Adding Cinnamon to my Post Workout Shake - It helps with Fat Loss!

+ Medicines taken in our younger years can have a huge effect on our hormones and body composition in later life - something I am keen to do more research into as I have used a vast array of medicine throughout the years!

+ The Importance of understanding your genetics and what this means for body composition and training methods.

I was already familiar with a lot of the topics covered, but it was great to learn some new and interesting facts surrounding diet and how opinions like ''fat / carbs are bad for you'' greatly differ across the world. If you are interested, research The Masai Tribe Diet or The Kitavin Tribe Diet to see how attitudes and tolerances of dairy, carbs and fat differ!

Matt and Keris are very knowlegdeable and it was a great afternoon - Thanks for having us!

The Spicery Curry Night

For Christmas, James and I were given a 3 month subscription to http://www.thespicery.com/ and we finally started using it last week!

Our first pack arrived with all the spices and herbs to create a Laal Maas with Vegetable Sabji, Chana Masala, Lemon and Herb Raita and Masala Pooris. If you love to cook and eat good food and don't mind a culinary challenge, I would highly recommend placing an order with these guys! Here is my plate of food, made from scratch by me, with a glass of red to accompany this delicious lamb dish! Looking forward to the next dish already!

 

 

 

Newlyns Cookery School

 

In keeping with the food topic (this just highlights how much my life revolves around food!) a birthday gift from James was a cookery evening at our local farm shop http://www.newlyns-farmshop.co.uk/ 

 

The evening included recipes and full demonstrations (and tasters!) of three gastro dishes cooked by their resident chef. We then had the opportunity to cook the starter and main course ourselves and take all our food home to eat - we even received a huge sirloin steak each to cook to our liking in the comfort of our own kitchen. The chosen dishes were;

 

+Warm Ham Hock and Asparagus with Sauce Gribiche

 

+ Sirloin Steak with Herbed Butter and Creamed Spinach

 

+ Chocolate Soufflé - demo only

 

 

I learnt that I like asparagus cold in a salad! -  And that you should cook it for no longer than 50-60 seconds to get the right amount of crunch - I can't abide soggy / limp veg!!



Also, to cook meat to it's best, you should leave it out of the fridge for at least 2 hours before placing in a hot pan - that way, you won't end up with a burnt outside and still rare in the middle. I did know meat had to be room temp, but not that it takes more than two hours to achieve! And I don't mind rare steak...but you know what I mean!

 

 

I certainly would love to do another of their evenings, they offer different themes so I will be keeping my eye out for a Thai one next I think!

 

 

ESWC Final has been announced! 

Eeeek! Yes, The date and events have been announced and looks to be a great Comp! So, the final will be on the 20th September and luckily, it will be held in Southampton, so not far for me to travel at all! It also means I get a chance to finally meet all the other Strongwomen from across the UK who have also qualified. I'm really looking forward to this! Glad it's off in the distance at the minute, it will give me lots of time to prepare for a car deadlift and anvil carry...!

In the meantime, I am contemplating entering the BNSF Strongwoman Comp on August 10th - again, looks to be a good one, but tough!

British Senior Championships 2014 May 10th

On Saturday, a few of us travelled to Coventry to watch EBW Coach Ben compete on the national stage at the Senior Championships in Olympic Weightlifting. This was a qualifying event for the Commonwealth Games so there were some extremely impressive lifts going on!

Ben representing EBW at the Senior Championships!

It was a great atmosphere and the largest audience Ben has competed in front of to date. He did very well but didn't quite make it to qualifying standard this time around. Although he was obviously less than happy with his performance on the day, Ben was ever the optimist at our post comp Mexican dinner, now taking a rest for the summer and preparing for three back to back comps in October, November and December this year - aiming to qualify for the big comps next year.!

We are all extremely proud of him and his achievement so far!! Competing at a National Level is incredible - we look forward to following his continuing journey!

My 28 Day Challenge

On May 1st I decided it was time to detox again - starting to feel a bit sluggish and bloated after the food I'd eaten before and after the comp - having a lot of carbs, trying to put a little bit of weight on etc - and this mainly came in the form of sweet potatoes and ice cream ;-). My body really wasn't liking me!

So back to mint teas, no sugar or dairy and carbs post workout -  a format that has previously worked for me. And 12 days in, I'm not feeling all that much better for it! But that is so unfair! Why is this?! Going back to a seminar point, I think it is down to the medication I take - so a review is needed I feel! (when I can get an appointment with my own doctor that is!!)

Aside from this, I decided to take up something new - The Fitter Foods 28 Day Challenge.

You are provided with a 28 day meal and exercise plan which focusses on clean eating and varied exercise. I have tried two of the sessions so far and wow - I am certainly made for lifting heavy objects a few times rather than fairly light weights for 12 reps...! ;-)

You also get a brand new E-Book with yet more recipes for me to annihilate my kitchen with, as well as a brand new copy of their book - which I am kindly donating to Georgie even though my copy has seen better days!

Not only this, but we have access to a private Facebook Page for members to share experiences, before and after photos and ask Matt and Keris any questions they have - as well as keeping each other motivated. There are already a great bunch of people on the page, all with different goals and reasons as to why they are starting this journey, and I look forward to developing some e-friendships over the course of this challenge!

Today marks the 12th day of detox and first day of my challenge, so here are my before photos;

yep, back to brunette, I get bored too easily!

I'll keep you updated with my results! I have a pre-planned girls weekend away in Newcastle at the end of this challenge, so hoping to feel and look my best! It does help that I have an awesome dress I want to wear - added motivation! And maybe a tan...jeez!

Just wanted to catch up guys, I promise my next blog will contain more depth! I have a topic of discussion that I think a few would find interesting...keep an eye out, I'll post it this week!

OOOOOHHHH YEA.....I'm nearly at 10,000 views people! Help me reach it with this post alone and I would be eternally grateful!!

Franki x

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