Yesterday I went to the gym for the first time in three whole years! I'm definitely feeling it today. Since I had Chloe I've had literally no time to myself and now that she's finally started preschool one of my main goals is to lose weight and get fit again. I can tell I've put on some weight over the past few months. I no longer have any willpower when it comes to cake, chocolate & biscuits. All my clothes feel tighter and it's really getting me down. So this is the perfect opportunity to sort myself out and stop feeling so crap about everything. Going to the gym isn't a particularly glamourous affair. I like to work hard at the gym so I tend to look like a sweaty ugly mess by the time I'm done. It's hard to look nice with your hair scraped back and no makeup on. If I do wear any makeup it's just a bit of mascara, undereye concealer & lip balm so I look a little less zombie-like. Instead I think it's important to invest in some cool gym clothes. Personally I think the main things to get right are a good sports bra and the right kind of trainers. I swear by my M&S sports bra, it offers fantastic support & didn't cost too much either. I normally wear plain black leggings and a colourful vest. I like the ones from H&M. They're fairly cheap but look awesome. I wore this neon orange one yesterday which was only £5.99.
When I used to go to the gym I wore a pair of MBTs which are amazing at toning up your legs & bum! But their wobbly sole made it harder to lift weights and participate in exercise classes. I've heard so many people going on about Nike Frees lately so I decided to get a pair of them instead. I got mine from SportsShoes.com who have them at the lowest price I could find. These are the Nike Free TR Fit 3 so they're perfect for working out in the gym. They enhance natural flexibility and help to strengthen your foot muscles too. I cannot tell you how enamoured I am with them! They look incredible and feel really comfy. They've definitely helped to spur me on a bit. I couldn't resist a bit of neon pink but they come in so many amazing colour ways, I kinda want more haha! I'm used to barefoot technology from my MBTs so I haven't had any problems with them but apparently you need to get used to them gradually. I'm normally a size 5 in every shoe shop but after trying on a 5 and a 6 I decided to go for a size 5.5 which is perfect for me. If you want some trainers especially for the gym then I can't recommend these enough.
To go with my new neon trainers, I picked up some sports socks from Primark. They're tacky but colourful and entirely fit for their purpose. For only £2 you can't go wrong!
On top of trying to eat healthily and exercise more, I've decided to take up the Zaggora two week challenge. I was sent a pair of their HotPants 2.0 Capri leggings to try out and I think they're a great choice for workouts. They look stylish and feature a special fabric technology to help you burn more calories. When I first tried them I couldn't get over the swishing sound they make but as soon as I went outside in them I didn't really notice it anymore. They definitely make you sweat! My legs were drenched with sweat when I took them off. Make sure you bring some spare underwear if you wear these to the gym (TMI? Yes...). Anyway the challenge is the wear them for 30 minutes a day for two weeks and then measure any difference in your hips, tummy and thighs. My hips are a major problem area so I really hope they work! You can wear them anywhere, even if you're just doing housework and they'll help you burn more calories. I might even wear them to bed considering how cold it's gotten lately.
Something I never used when I previously went to the gym is protein powder. I think it's something that's become more widely accepted as a way of toning up rather than just something that hardcore bodybuilders use. I'm roughly following the Tone It Up diet as a fitness guide and they have some great recipes for protein pancakes, coffee, muffins etc. They also produce their own protein powder called Perfect Fit. It's a brown rice based protein so it's a lot easier on the stomach than whey protein and is sweetened with stevia. I think it works better in food so I'm gonna get a flavoured protein to mix with water too. For this I bought a Blender Bottle. I had one of those Maxitone protein shakers with the mesh but this uses a ball shaped whisk inside the bottle which makes protein shakes so much smoother. The Tone It Up girls sell them online but I found this in Boots a couple of weeks ago. I'm also using my Fitbit Ultra to track my steps & calories for the day. Mine is actually a bit smashed up now and refuses to sync properly so I think I'm gonna invest in a Polar FT4 watch instead. Fitbits are great if you just want an estimate of calories burned but a heart rate monitor is gonna be more accurate and more helpful for proper gym training. So yeah that's my fitness plan, I just hope I can actually stick to it this time. I'm fed up of my flab and it's time to shape up. Wish me luck!
When I used to go to the gym I wore a pair of MBTs which are amazing at toning up your legs & bum! But their wobbly sole made it harder to lift weights and participate in exercise classes. I've heard so many people going on about Nike Frees lately so I decided to get a pair of them instead. I got mine from SportsShoes.com who have them at the lowest price I could find. These are the Nike Free TR Fit 3 so they're perfect for working out in the gym. They enhance natural flexibility and help to strengthen your foot muscles too. I cannot tell you how enamoured I am with them! They look incredible and feel really comfy. They've definitely helped to spur me on a bit. I couldn't resist a bit of neon pink but they come in so many amazing colour ways, I kinda want more haha! I'm used to barefoot technology from my MBTs so I haven't had any problems with them but apparently you need to get used to them gradually. I'm normally a size 5 in every shoe shop but after trying on a 5 and a 6 I decided to go for a size 5.5 which is perfect for me. If you want some trainers especially for the gym then I can't recommend these enough.
To go with my new neon trainers, I picked up some sports socks from Primark. They're tacky but colourful and entirely fit for their purpose. For only £2 you can't go wrong!
On top of trying to eat healthily and exercise more, I've decided to take up the Zaggora two week challenge. I was sent a pair of their HotPants 2.0 Capri leggings to try out and I think they're a great choice for workouts. They look stylish and feature a special fabric technology to help you burn more calories. When I first tried them I couldn't get over the swishing sound they make but as soon as I went outside in them I didn't really notice it anymore. They definitely make you sweat! My legs were drenched with sweat when I took them off. Make sure you bring some spare underwear if you wear these to the gym (TMI? Yes...). Anyway the challenge is the wear them for 30 minutes a day for two weeks and then measure any difference in your hips, tummy and thighs. My hips are a major problem area so I really hope they work! You can wear them anywhere, even if you're just doing housework and they'll help you burn more calories. I might even wear them to bed considering how cold it's gotten lately.
Something I never used when I previously went to the gym is protein powder. I think it's something that's become more widely accepted as a way of toning up rather than just something that hardcore bodybuilders use. I'm roughly following the Tone It Up diet as a fitness guide and they have some great recipes for protein pancakes, coffee, muffins etc. They also produce their own protein powder called Perfect Fit. It's a brown rice based protein so it's a lot easier on the stomach than whey protein and is sweetened with stevia. I think it works better in food so I'm gonna get a flavoured protein to mix with water too. For this I bought a Blender Bottle. I had one of those Maxitone protein shakers with the mesh but this uses a ball shaped whisk inside the bottle which makes protein shakes so much smoother. The Tone It Up girls sell them online but I found this in Boots a couple of weeks ago. I'm also using my Fitbit Ultra to track my steps & calories for the day. Mine is actually a bit smashed up now and refuses to sync properly so I think I'm gonna invest in a Polar FT4 watch instead. Fitbits are great if you just want an estimate of calories burned but a heart rate monitor is gonna be more accurate and more helpful for proper gym training. So yeah that's my fitness plan, I just hope I can actually stick to it this time. I'm fed up of my flab and it's time to shape up. Wish me luck!
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i'm starting at the gym too, so hopefully I will stick at it and lose a few pounds before christmas and all that! those trainers are amazing, I want them in every neon colour there is haha x
ReplyDeleteruffles and lace xx
Ooh love those trainers, I'm currently running in some New Balance vibram barefoot ones that are fab for a while but my feet are starting to ache, will have to check the Nike Frees out x
ReplyDeleteCute colour runners ! I work in footlocker and those are a great choice for any gym work. Hope you get good results :)
ReplyDeleteoxo
www.dashoxo.blogspot.ca
I need to get my butt back down to the gym. It's easy to put it aside and forget about it. Cool clothes defo help though! Good luck getting fit :)
ReplyDeletexx
Ohh, I'm so jealous of your fitness kit - I've been lusting after Zaggora hotpants for ages, and I'm definitely going to be investing in some new Nikes for a charity walk I have at the end of the month. I think it's just easier to get yourself motivated to go to the gym if you feel like you've got comfortable, stylish workout clothes xx
ReplyDeleteLove my zaggora shorts, get such a good sweaty workout in them x
ReplyDeleteGoof luck with your new health and fitness plan :-) and thanks for the sportsshoes.com link I need to buy some new trainers for myself! Holly xx
ReplyDeletehttp://www.caramellacouture.blogspot.co.uk/
Holly, the campaign is still running so we can offer you SportsShoes gear too, i cant find your email anywhere on your blog though?! Mail me at sophiet@propellernet.co.uk :)
DeleteSo many lovely things in this post, I have the same Zaggora HotPants and I love them, very envious of your gorgeous Nike FreeRuns though, they are awesome, have been coveting FreeRuns for forever, must get myself a pair! xo
ReplyDeleteRosie | A Rosie Outlook
I'm trying soo hard to loose weight atm it's so hard for me to get motivated to exercise! I love my nike free's though ;) you look awesome!
ReplyDeletecowbiscuits
Good luck with your training ;) These shoes are perfect!
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures and amazing shoes! Enjoy your training with them. :)
ReplyDeleteKisses
Tabea
http://wolkedrei.blogspot.de/
good luck with everything :) trying to get fitter too, where did you get the perfect fit protein, did you have to order it from the USA?
ReplyDeleteThanks
yeah i did but i ordered when they had a 10% discount on so even with the shipping costs it wasn't any more expensive than the whey protein you can get over here. i didn't have any customs charges either so that was a bonus! xx
DeleteI adore this post - you'll do amazing! Especially with all of that gorgeous gear for motivation!
ReplyDeleteI recently bought so many of the cute workout socks from Primark as they are such a bargain! I love the Nike Training Frees but I find they don't provide enough support for my high arches :( and the blender bottle is fab too, I haven't tried one from that brand before but it's now on my wish list!
Natalie xoxo
theblondeethos.com - fitness, beauty + lifestyle
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