Sponsored Video: I want to be slim. And fast!

Hi guys,
As you already know, I am a curvy gal. Certainly no one has every referred to me as being 'all skin and bone'! However since I had Wilbur my size 14-16 frame now sits very firmly in the size 16 camp and when the little man hit 18 months old last month, I decided it was time to do something about it: Curves are good. Fat is not!

Summer is the perfect time of the year to start a diet. Delicious salads and yummy summer fruits are a much better alternative to heavy meals on hot days anyway. It's also a wonderful time to start a new diet plan: and there's no better plan to try than the Slimfast 3-2-1 plan! Basically, you eat three Slimfast snacks (or fruit and veggie snacks: as long as its under 100 calories per snack) substitute two of your daily meals with meal replacement drinks and eat one delicious low calorie meal of 600 calories for a woman and 800 for a man a day then you watch the weight fall off. It's as easy as 3-2-1!!  The plan is scientifically proven to work and has been approved by The European Food Safety Authority.

Slimfast shakes aren't what they used to be. If (like me) you last tried one ten years ago and found them to taste a little powdery then you're in for a pleasant surprise. Nowadays it's just like drinking an ordinary delicious milkshake, and when combined with your three slimfast snacks a day, is just enough to keep you feeling full until dinner time. My favourite is the strawberry one. I also really like the Slimfast chocolate caramel treat bars: chocolatey yum!

If you need a little more motivation to get going, why not follow Slim Fast on Twitter for a range of hints and tips? I'm also going to be giving it a go, and am currently halfway through a week of sandwich-free lunches, so you can follow me for inspiration and motivation too! There's also a great new Slim Fast website to check out! Do you have any weight to loss? And what plan are you currently trying?

Love Tor x

*This post has been sponsored by Slimfast but all thoughts are my own 

Exercise: Fixing my Post-baby body!

Hi guys,
This week I paid the balance of Wilbur's first birthday party venue, and made the scary realisation that time really does fly: In six short weeks, I will be mum to a one year old. That got me thinking about me, and about the battlefield that is my post-baby body. I have saggy stretched boobs from my extended period of breastfeeding (we're still going strong!) and my tummy looks like a wrinkly partially deflated balloon - complete with stretch marks. Yup, I'm a looker! Which means it's time to do something about it and attempt to get back to something vaguely resembling a passable form!
Since I was pregnant I have been swimming twice a week: it's the only time I leave Wilbur and it gives me a chance to clear my mind and relax as I swim. It's also had the added benefit of meaning my legs (previously the part of my body I would say were my worst) look better than they ever have: If you want to tone your legs then I would heartily recommend swimming!

If you do decide to swim I can also recommend the swimming supplies from Zoggs: that's what they stock in my local pool, so my goggles and swim cap are both by them. They also have a range of gorgeous swimming costumes for women. And once a week I take Wilbur swimming too: he's going to grow into a water baby! Wilbur is wearing one of the Zoggs bodywarmers in the picture above, and it's brilliant for keeping him warm and toasty when we're in the pool together.They have a great range of children's swimwear and you know what you're getting is good quality.

I love my swimming sessions and wouldn't give them up for the world. And my arms and legs are thankful for them too! But they aren't doing much for my middle section sadly. Which means it's time to try something else: I'll be documenting all my diet/exercise attempts to lose my 'mummy bits' here over the next couple of months and let you know what works and what doesn't - for me at least! I'm determined it's time to do something about it, although whether abstaining from food is a good idea over the Christmas period is yet to be seen.

Do you have any diet and exercise tips to share? Anything that might kick start my new regime - or even something new I can try in the pool that might work out that pesky tummy area? All tips and ideas will be gratefully received!

Love Tor x

*This is a sponsored post

Top tips for staying healthy this Christmas

                                   

Hi guys,

Deck the halls with boughs of holly: 'Tis the season to over-indulge! Yes, Christmas is here and with it comes not only the desire to dress up in sequins and party dresses but also the temptation to eat every chocolate that passes you by, and double portions of pudding after every meal. Admit it, I know it's not just me!!

But I have some baby weight to shift, so my overindulgence needs to be reined in this Christmas. Which is why I thought it was a brilliant idea when I saw that Bupa had released the Bupa advent calendar: a daily advent calendar for the month of December. But instead of tiny little chocolates inside, you'll find daily health tips on how to stay active, healthy, and stress-free, as part of the Bupa find healthy campaign.


Here are some of my favourites:
1. Have skimmed milk in your winter warming drink. This is a good one for me because the hubby makes the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted: and when he isn't at work over Christmas, I drink a mug a day! Using semi skimmed milk will cut the calories without affecting the taste.
2. Pick your puddings sensibly: choose just one dessert not several. This tip could have been written with me in mind: puddings are my weakness, and when I'm struggling to choose between trifle or a mince pie, I quite often will just decide to have both! This one will take some will power, but I'm prepared to give it a go!

There are loads more great tips included in the calendar which provide perfect motivation, so it's well worth checking out if, like me, you’re trying to rein in your greedy instincts this Christmas!

Do you try to find healthy at Christmas? Or do you forget all about diet and exercise and just overindulge to your heart’s content? And do you have any healthy tips to share for festive restraint? I'd love to hear your thoughts and tips!


Love Tor x

*This is a sponsored post 

Do you want to play a game?

Hi guys,
Last Wednesday afternoon I had just got back to my desk from a trip to the pub (for a lunch of sticky BBQ chicken and chips) and was sitting down to check my emails and enjoy a bar of Galaxy chocolate. As a was scoffing my second square of chocolate, I opened an email that was entitled "Fancy playing Weight Watchers?"

Now I post enough outfit photos for you guys to know that I'm not a skinny girl. But I'm not plus sized either. I've always been fairly comfortable in my own skin, but I've also noticed that since the wedding I've put on a few pounds: settling into married life, and cooking super sized feasts with my husband meant that any weight I lost for the wedding is now firmly back, plus (to be honest) a bit more too!

So I responded to the email (I finished eating my chocolate bar first) and said yes. If losing weight is a game then I want to play! Weightwatchers isn't just a last resort for the morbidly obese (as I has previously, very wrongly, assumed) You can join and play along if you just want to drop a dress size, lose those last couple of pounds, or just get back into healthy eating habits.

I currently wear a size 16 (14 on a good day) and would like to be comfortably back in all of my size 14 clothes again. Not a massive target: I'm not planning to give up food and look like Kate Moss or anything. But definitely a big enough starting challenge for me, and I know dropping those pounds will make all the difference to how I feel when I get dressed in the morning.

So the upshot of all of this is that I'm going to give it a go. Try to shed a few pounds so that I feel healthier and my clothes feel better. Exercise a couple of times a week and leave the biscuit tin alone. And, if you don't mind, I will occasionally be sharing my journey with you guys. Wish me luck!

Love Tor x

Pizza express: Eat pizza, stay thin!

As I mentioned earlier in the month, I am on a health kick this year and have started watching what I eat and exercising three times a week: I don't want to be 'skinny' and don't think that anyone should be pressured to be thin, but I want to tone up!
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This should mean that pizza is off the table. So you can imagine how excited I was when Pizza Express got in touch asking if I wanted to attend an event where I can make and eat a pizza which has only 500 calories from their new Leggaria range(this is basically a pizza with a hole in the middle filled with salad) alongside a 100 calorie (!) glass of wine as well as meet a nutritionist and a life coach.



I sat with the lovely Reda and Harriet of Where is Harriet (http://www.whereisharriet.blogspot.com/) We chatted about blogging and were then joined by the nutritionalist who helped develop the leggara and the life coach respectively. They were both lovely and I learnt that it is not OK to just have a banana for breakfast (i'm now having wholegrain toast with my banana, starting this morning) and that the reason I don't feel hungry in the morning is because i'm eating too late at night. I also learnt to think positively during exercise to maintain my motivation.
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Then we went to get our hands dirty in our pizza making masterclass:

I am a terrible pizza maker but Mike (the handsome pizzaiola) was great. He taught us how to toss the dough and the secrets of the leggara: how to cut the hole in the middle, and the low fat cheese that still tastes great, but keeps the calories down. And then he let us go crazy with the toppings!
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And here is my completed pizza: yummy cheesy goodness but without the guilt!


It was a really fun and educational event, and though I still don't think we can say we're on a diet and eat pizza everyday, it's nice to know that the option is there when you want a guilt-free treat.
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Love, Tor x

New Year, New You: Power plating

I know it's a horrible cliche, and I too cringe when I hear the phrase "new year, new you" but it's true that now is the time when a lot of us are thinking about changing our diets, or getting fit and healthy.

In December I tried powerplating for the first time, and I enjoyed it so much I intend to combine twice weekly visits with a less chocolate intensive diet for a healthier happier new me.

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Powerplating is basically vibration training: the classes last just 25 minutes during which time you stand on your vibrating powerplate holding poses such as lunges and crunches. The sessions are lead by specialist instructors (mine was very nice and explained everything clearly) Your muscles contract and relax 30-50 times a second, hence the high speed training. 10 minutes on a Power Plate is worth an hour in the gym. As I got of the machine my legs were shaking and the following morning I had the comfortable ache that comes with a decent work out: but without any of the hard work (I barely broke a sweat during my session!)

If you want to give it a go then Good Vibes (the company I used) offer free trial sessions for first time users. They also have great packages (one guarentees that you'll drop a dress size!) and discounts for off peak users. It doesn't seem like going into a gym; it has a more cozy and personal feel. And the classes are a maximum of 5 people, so even the session feels intimate and you get plenty of attention from the instructor who can tell you whether you're doing it right!

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The price of powerplating is really the main con to giving it a go, as if you choose to pay as you go then each session costs £20, but when you think about how much you waste every month on gym memberships you never use, it could well pay to try it; at least then you've in control of how and when you exercise and how much it costs you as well!

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I am hoping to lose a stone and a half but i'm not rushing myself: all at my own pace! I'll let you know when I reach my target!

Love, Tor xx

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*Images taken from Good Vibes website.