Category: FITNESS

A CLASSIC DAY OUT!

ALERT! This post has almost nothing to do with Fitness, Fashion, Nutrition or Travel, but it WAS a lot of fun to put together and it teases out a little passion of mine! Last weekend I went to the classic car Concours of Elegance at the majestic abode that is Hampton Court Palace. I was invited by a sponsor of the event, whom I believe to be the most magical of Swiss watch manufactures, Breguet. As I have a clockmaker in the family, I’ve long known of and marveled over this company’s virtuosic mechanical genius; all who call themselves ‘horologists’ worship at the shrine of Abraham Louis Breguet, the godfather of the temporal arts! In 1815, he was officially appointed chronometer-maker to the French Navy and as a keen sailor myself (you might recall my Bronze at Cowes Week) I was quite keen to discover the heritage and credentials of their Marine collection first hand, whilst seeing some of the most fabulous classic cars. Click MORE below to see it all…

Hampton Court Palace, once the residence of Henry VIII, and a sprawling labyrinth of confused semi-Tudor, quasi-Baroque architecture, hosted the Concours of Elegance which recalls the days when the Parisian aristocracy would parade around in their civilised horse-drawn carraiges. These days, it’s an excuse to polish up the most rarefied specimens of automotive heritage and show them to the world. My affections were taken by this pristine 1958 Mercedes Benz 300SL roadster!

To the Watches now, if I may. The resourceful creativity of Breguet totally astounds me. In an era when I can globally accomplish more communicative productivity with my smartphone in 60 seconds than Breguet perhaps did in a lifetime, I still completely fail to wrap my mind around the inventions he pioneered; almost because of our nonplussed response to digital technology’s capabilities these days, the romantic fascination grows stronger for mechanical genius, for devices imbued with life from breathing springs and whirring cogs. Apart from the first ever wrist watch, the self-winding rotor, the perpetual calendar, and the mother of all complications, the tourbillon, he also dreamed up the ‘Equation of Time’, to help sailors navigate better with their chronometers. The company describes it as follows:

From time immemorial, the Sun has served as the basis of time measurement. Nonetheless, the visible orbit of the Sun – the true solar time shown on sundials – is irregular.

The equation of time is the difference between mean solar time – our civil time based on a conventional twenty-four-hour period – and the true solar time, which varies with the earth’s irregular orbit round the sun. Mean solar tune runs up to 16 minutes behind true solar time, as is the case on November 3; or up to 14 minutes ahead of it, as is the case on February 12. The two values are exactly matched on just four days a year.

Appointed “Chronometer-maker to the French Royal Navy” in 1815, A.-L. Breguet and his son created the most elaborate equation of time models of their time.

My own fascination was for the Marine 5817, which I perceive to be the watch for a keen sailor to wear on an  everyday basis. A polished steel case, a screw-lock crown, waterproof to 100m, a simple and focussed rubber strap, and a set of muscular lugs protruding out from the circular case; these are the practical and sturdy components of the design. But looking a little closer reveals beautiful signature details which speak to me of passion and heritage; the enchanting Breguet hands in blued steel, the engine-turned face with that oceanic maelstrom pattern, and the sapphire glass to the rear guarding the guilloche-patterned rotor which itself unveils the beating heart of the watch, the silicon balance spring and spidery escapement wheel. It is the meeting place of functional and magical…

… But if you’ve made it this far and still aren’t convinced, then the following video shows basically the most sublime piece of mechanical engineering I’ve ever laid eyes upon, and wraps it all up beautifully, in this quite movingly portrayed video!

The Concours was quite an experience in a gorgeous heritage location, and overall a superb day out in Blighty to steal one of the final days of summer! Thank you for the invitation Breguet.

INTERVIEW W/ TOP SKI ATHLETE, MATTS OLSSON!

Last month, I was incredibly fortunate to meet some of my country’s top Alpine athletes at the HQ of Ski Team Sweden in Åre. Amongst them, I spent some time with Matts Olsson, a World Championship medalist and one of the top male FIS World Cup competitors from Sweden, with a specialization in Giant Slalom. He’s an ultra-experienced hand on the circuit, powering through 9 seasons, and has just had one of his best in 2016/17 with two podium finishes. It struck me that the younger members of the team really look up to those who’ve given battle alongside the international legends of the sport, and Matts wears his experience with great wisdom and humility. It was with great pleasure that I sat down to ask him about his training, his mental approach, his diet, and his ethos on competition! Here’s what I learned…

F.O.T:  Can you say how you get into skiing, your background?

MO: I don’t remember the moment I started to ski but I’ve seen photos, my parents told me I was 3 years old. That wasn’t in Are, I was from way more South, the slopes aren’t that fantastic! I grew up close to Karlstad, which was the main reason I started to ski because it was convenient! My parents weren’t into skiing so much – they knew about it, they followed Ingmar Stenmark for sure, but they didn’t have any skiing background. I just started, and then I started to like it!

F.O.T: Do you remember when you realized you loved skiing?

MO: At an early age, I knew that I wanted to be an athlete. I didn’t know skiing was my biggest passion. I played soccer, hockey, and skiing. It started to become obvious at the age of 11 or 12. I did all the training with gates, but I used to do free skiing in woods with friends. That was the biggest love, the feeling of being free! When I chose skiing 100%, that was because, in the hockey arena, I wasn’t as free as I was on skis!

F.O.T: It’s much more a solo sport, vs a team sport in hockey. Is that how you see it?

MO: Yes absolutely, that fitted my personality better, to do it alone. I don’t know why but that’s the way I am! Now, when we’re in Ski Team Sweden, to be out with the guys, that’s 80% of the fun. I’m super lucky to have team mates I really like and like to spend time with them.

F.O.T: How much of an athlete do you have to be?

MO: It’s hard for people to know. What you see is that you start on the top of a mountain and you ski down! And if you’re used to skiing on easy slopes for your ski holiday, it doesn’t feel like a big deal. But when you start to ski World Cup slopes when it’s actually not snow that you’re skiing on, but rather ice… And then you in the turns, you can generate 3-400kg of pressure loaded onto your legs, mixed with bumps that you don’t see and an uneven surface that takes a lot of balance to correct… Alpine Ski Racers won’t be best in any single discipline of physical abilities, but in the big picture, an alpine skier will do really well overall.

F.O.T: How do you train for that. How does a week look like in training?

MO: That’s different from person to person. For me, I train hard for 2 days, then I rest one day, and I train hard for 2 days again, and then I rest one day again. I don’t work out for the whole week and take the weekend off; I’m more two-and-one. If I work on a weekend, so I work a weekend. I focus on endurance, strength, agility, a bunch of different competencies. The main focus is often core and legs. In the past, I used to separate the body part that I wanted to train and focus on that for the day. Now I mix it up more; I can’t explain why, my physical trainer knows why I do that, I trust him and I follow the program.

F.O.T: How do you fuel that, in terms of nutrition?

MO: I don’t break things down by macros and measure them by grams. I eat a lot, I try to eat healthily, I try to get the right amounts of food, but I eat what I eat. If I train hard, I try to eat a lot, and I see how I feel. If I’m losing kilograms, I need to do something about it; I solve to a body weight. You need to be good in a lot of different areas, but you only have so much focus, so I like to keep some parts a little simpler and focus on the things that I feel are more important to my training.

F.O.T: What’s your guilty pleasure?

MO: I don’t know if I want to say, but I like snus every now and again, and I drink too much coffee I think. But that’s pretty much it. I don’t have to drink beer or eat junk food – I’m fine without that.

F.O.T: Mental focus; when you’re at the top of the starter gate, how do you fire yourself up to give it the most?

MO: Now I’m almost 29; I’ve done ski racing for a while. In the beginning, you try to find your way to see what’s working. You might think ‘it was a good race, what did I do differently?’. For many years, I learned how I wanted to approach a race mentally. Now my first step is to decide the day before that it will be war tomorrow, i have to go out there and be ready.  At the start, you have to get it fired up. I talk to myself with a few words, BEAST MODE!

F.O.T: Do you feel fear?

MO: Not now. I ski only Giant Slalom. I Don’t see that as such a high-speed discipline. When i was a junior and started to compete in World Cup, I did a few downhills. I was a good speed skier, but then I definitely felt the fear. The speed was fine, but the jumps were a nightmare, as I never felt so comfortable in the air. I never crashed in a jump, but I didn’t know how to do it! Then you start to ski too soon on the super tough hills with jumps that are too big. With a different gradual approach, it might have worked. But some of the downhill guys have a mental approach that’s slightly unhinged, and you need that to tackle some of those runs. They don’t see what could happen, they just go for it. They love the adrenaline.

F.O.T: Which slope was it that made you wonder…

MO: A couple of the big jumps in Val Gardena, Italy. There’s a huge jump, not the one by the finish, but the one further up (See video about that HERE). It’s not just a jump where things fall away, that’s normal; it then goes up again, so it’s a gap jump which requires a 60-80m jump. At the inspection, I didn’t fancy my chances on that. I only did one training run. I didn’t really ‘ski’ the top part, I was just mentally preparing for the jump and it was pretty exhausting!

F.O.T: Have you had any struggles in your ski career, and how have you overcome those?

MO: As a kid, it was no trouble; I won races, and everything was fine. But then, later on, you have more difficult years where results aren’t there. After a few bad races, you get pretty down. For me though, I always have a day after a race where I’m disappointed, but then you keep on going and you believe in yourself for the next race. After a bad season – I had those for sure – I actually feel more motivated then, because I know I can do better.

F.O.T: A lot of people want to be healthy and to train, but struggle with motivation; Do you ever feel you just want to go back to bed?

MO: I never had a problem going to the gym. I kind of like it. I had an ACL injury a few years back, and before the surgery, I went to the gym, because that’s what I do. Then I suddenly felt ‘what am I doing here – I have no motivation because everything is so far away from skiing’. It didn’t matter whether I trained because I’d lose it all after surgery. I realized at that point that what gets me to the gym is that I have a goal. It’s the goal that gets me there. I want to compete in skiing, I want to do that well, that’s the goal, and that’s actually why it’s no problem to go to the gym. I didn’t realize that before the injury, but I knew it afterward. If you start to go to the gym and push yourself, at the end of the day, you have a great feeling at the gym that you’ve done something great today!

F.O.T: You mention the importance of rest. What do you do on a rest day?

MO: Sometimes I lie on the sofa and watch TV! Those are very few indeed though. In summer if I’m pre-season training, mobility takes precedent. If I go to the gym and do normal training, it’ll take me 2-2.5 hours. After that, I don’t really want to stretch, so I try to do that as its own session. I get plenty of sleep. I wake up and take an easy breakfast. Then I stretch, I do some foam rolling, focus on some trigger points with physio balls… I do that for more than an hour. Possibly 90 minutes. As an athlete that’s so important for me.

F.O.T: How about sleep?

MO: When we go into pre-season mode, we get out really early onto the glaciers, we need to wake up early in the morning. 22:00 is late for me to go to bed. Also, I usually sleep for an hour in the afternoon before a physical session, sometimes 2 hours! You feel a little weird, a bit lost after you wake up from that, but it’s great in terms of extra energy for the next session.

F.O.T: And what do you do at the gym for 2 whole hours?!

MO: Since my injury, the warm up protocol is LONG! That’s why I stay there for so long, and is why after the session, I do stretching on the following morning, or I’d be there all day!

F.O.T: Your favorite course on the World Cup?

MO: Well, I scored my first podium in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, so that’s up there! When I started World Cup, it was Alta Badia in Italy, then it switched to Kranjska Gora, and then Beaver Creek in the States! I love Colorado, I love the snow, that kind of slope they have there, it’s so much fun to ski. If I were a regular ski tourist, I’d go there for sure!

F.O.T: Do you ski for pleasure these days?!

MO: Not so much. I still enjoy it certainly; if we have some powder skiing when we’re out, I love it. Then you get that wave of emotion and think ‘oh man, skiing is fantastic!’. When you ski red and blue gates all the time, that’s work. The reward is absolutely the results, and that’s fantastic too!

Follow Matts on his pre-season journey thru his Insta HERE and keep up with all the FIS World Cup online HERE.

DOWNHILL IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, WITH EE!

A fortnight ago, I had an outrageously exciting adventure; I headed to Machynlleth, in North-West Wales to take part in the Red Bull Fox Hunt, the world’s only all-female downhill mountain biking event (N.B, there were no 4-legged foxes involved, only 2-legged ones on bikes!). Regularly cycling along the leafy roads of suburban North London and growing up biking about the idyllic Swedish countryside I mistakenly thought I probably had this covered and that it would be pretty easy; not for the last time, I somewhat misjudged it! The course was remote, cold, muddy, unbelievably slippery and the mountains were terrifyingly steep at speed; imagine trying to get traction whilst cycling through chocolate slurry… Why did I do it? EE invited me to go somewhere with absolutely no coverage, so that they could show how their 4G ‘Helikite’ can deliver superfast 4G to my smartphone in the most remote places.  This was a super muddy experiment for me to prove the thesis. Click MORE to see how I got on during the downhill (clue; my shoes became ‘collateral damage’!)…

1)    SETTING THE SCENE…

This was an event powered by EE’s superfast 4G network which allowed me to use my phone for calls, texts, and planning/checking my route. Whilst travelling to Mach (as the locals affectionately – and pronounceably – nickname it), there was a point at which signal simply stopped on the train. The more rural we got, the less likely it was that I’d be able to check emails, have a flutter on social media or even make calls. That absence of what you might take for granted, the ability to communicate on demand, was quite surprisingly paralyzing as if a sense has been temporarily muted. With that in mind, it was quite amazing to find myself standing on top of the mountains in rural Wales only to receive a good luck call before heading down the track!

Rachel Atherton, last year’s winner, and MTB pro designed the route. Unfortunately, she had a cracked rib and for that reason was unable to take part, but she was there cheering competitors along. This year’s winner was Millie Johnset who was the first down the hill with a dominant, fear-inducing and presumably reckless time of 00.03.50, outperforming 2nd place by a prodigious margin of 33 seconds!

2)    WHY CYCLE?

Cycling is one of my favourite ways to travel around as it not only gets me there, but I can do some bonus cardio training in the process. It burns calories (c. 120 calories per mile), elevates the heart rate, lowers blood pressure, eases the risk of cardiovascular disease and it’s pretty soft on the environment too! Compared to running, which puts a lot of strain on the body (especially the knees), cycling is very low impact exercise and is kinder to your joints. It builds stamina and strength, with fewer injuries along the way. If you’re worried about losing precious muscle mass because of the CV, cycling actually develops muscle, especially in the lower body as power is generated by the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes, which will fuel additional calorie burn even after the journey has ended. It will also stimulate the production of HGH (human growth hormone), and remember, muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so this is a form of exercise that keeps on giving!

However, this event evidently wasn’t about road biking. MTB is a completely different ball game; in fact, it’s not actually a ball game. Enthusiasts who’ve invested thousands of pounds into their bikes, gathered from all over the UK, pitched tents overnight in a muddy, sodden field surrounded by cute local sheep so that they could get on their bikes early in the morning in the rain, to cycle up a mountain and then hurl themselves back down again! That’s dedication, passion and enthusiasm from a super involved community!

3)   MY TAKE…

a) OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE… Whilst it was indeed cold, wet and rainy and the mud only got muddier, it was also super invigorating to be out there! For lack of a better example, it a little bit like the time when you’re standing beside a lake and you’re already cold and you’re debating whether to get colder and wetter by jumping in…. then you do it and it feels great! You just have to plough on and hope for the best!

b) Brings people together, a diverse crowd. This was my first experience within the community, and MTB is, I would say, a fairly niche discipline. Yes, it’s pretty accessible for everyone but for this event, you either live nearby or have gone out of your way to pursue this passion.This became apparent when looking around I saw energetic women of all ages and different fitness levels who all had different reasons for being there. One woman I spoke to said she wanted to lose weight but wanted a real outdoorsy challenge and another said she’d divorced her husband and wanted to just do something different.

c) It’s challenging, exhilarating and for anyone looking for a bit of adrenaline look no further! The closeness to nature combined with the speed and knife-edge approach to balance is a recipe for a natural high!

d) Intense cardiovascular training, whilst being low impact. It’s cardiovascular training with natural intervals. The terrain constantly changes, you may be going downhill, uphill, pitching left and right, whereby speed and resistance changes. This means you’ll have times of heavy resistance, so your legs burn and are seriously challenged. Interval training gets the heart rate up toasts more calories in less time. This is serious leg training targeting the gluteus as well, so you may experience soreness the next couple of days if this is something you’re not used too.

e) It’s affordable. You can rent bikes of varying technical credentials, and at different price levels but that’s a one-off investment. You don’t need a membership, you literally can cycle anywhere – endless freedom! I probably wouldn’t bring a Boris Bike to this sort of event though…

f) TOURISM! It means you see new parts of the world. Whether it be your city or the countryside, it gets you out in the open, fresh air and stimulation!

4) DID I GET SIGNAL?

Despite being off the grid, with no network coverage, in the rural outback of the remote Welsh countryside, EE’s ‘Airmast’ balloon showered an arcing dome of superfast 4G signal across the competition site, and beyond. With my smartphone tucked inside my jersey, I was in contact with whoever and whatever throughout. I was able to call, text and record-and-share my workout stats through the day. I took breaks during the hours of riding up, down and around the course, during which I could simply be in touch when needed – that’s a sense of freedom I very much appreciate, given how much the job relies on communication!

 

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This post is a sponsored collaboration with EE. For more about why I take on such projects, please see my DISCLOSURE page. Thank you. 

MOTIVATE YOUR EARS!

This is a short post-ette on seeking out acoustic motivation, in whatever form works for you! I’ve written extensively on the importance of setting goals, checking in on oneself, and measuring progress, but I believe that to achieve all of this, motivation is something that must be sought out every single day; as Zig Ziglar observed, ‘People often say that motivation doesn’t last – well, neither does bathing, that’s why we recommend it daily!’. I wanted to share with you one of the major ways in which I encounter and extract health and fitness motivation on a daily basis. The best bit is that you can do it anywhere, anytime and it costs nothing – whilst commuting, walking to work or the gym (my favourite), whilst cooking, cleaning or even whilst working. Podcasts not only deliver awesome and focussed motivation, but they’re informative and keep me entertained. As with everything, there are parts of certain pods I agree with and others I don’t, but it’s always interesting to hear different views. I’m broadening my horizons whilst accomplishing things I might not have wanted to accomplish, spurred along by this! Click MORE to see my top podcasts and my two items that deliver me pure audiophile bliss

First up, a small confession; I’m an audiophile! Like many, I find music to be such an evocative force, it can bring me to tears of joy and then sorrow, and back to joy again within mere minutes. My ears constantly crave high sound quality, and to that end my friends at Amazon made something pretty incredible happen via their #ShoptheFuture store: I am the very proud owner of a pair of Japanese hand-crafted Sony MDR-Z1R ultra-high-def headphones, which is the acoustic equivalent of a petrolhead procuring a Ferrari F40. The rendering of sound is quite literally as good as I’ve ever heard, throughout the entire register, with a warm rich bass, perfectly balanced by crisp trebles and impossible amounts of character and presence in between. They reveal details I’ve simply never heard in familiar songs, so that I can enjoy my favourite motivational tunes in the best quality I’ve ever experienced.  It is delicious, sumptuous audio quality, and parallels eating chocolate with your ears! Not only that but the butter-soft sheepskin padded muffs almost make you weep with the comfort – this is gearhead utopia. Having a huge array of diverse playlists to cycle through, consisting of new tunes, old favourites, up-tempo genres, and chill out standards – all of which enthuse and energise me, is a necessity. Training in a gym at 06:00 can at times feel lonely, but having someone wailing in my ear about their latest breakup in 4-part-harmony in HD clarity is like having a good friend giving you that extra bit of drive! 

Another favourite is heading down to my local park at sunset and just busting out some Beyonce to get me through an outdoor session! For this purpose, I’ve been experimenting with the Bose Soundlink Revolve Bluetooth speaker, which is perfectly suited to the task. It’s cradle rechargeable, instantly connects to my phone first-time-every-time, and delivers 360-degree sound with substance and presence. From something so small and readily portable, I am super impressed with the punch from this little package – perfect for when you and a few mates decide to go for a park session!

WHAT DO I RECOMMEND BY WAY OF PODCASTS?

Well, there’s always the classic TED Talks Health. If through some misfortune, you’ve not encountered TED Talks, they’re short erudite soliloquies lasting approximately 18 minutes or less. The TED Talks Health show some different subjects varying from body image, motivation, mental illness and nutrition.

There are so many to listen to, but some of my choicest favourites that have made quite an impression on me:

  1. Sandra Aamodt: Why Dieting Doesn’t Usually Work (see item #69 in the list that comes up)
  2. Why fitness is more important than weight – Leanne Spencer, at TEDxWandsworth
  3. One which touches more perhaps on organization (a key ingredient for goal setting) and one of my favourites; partly because it’s so funny and if you have a tendency to procrastinate you’ll relate. https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator
  4. And a key talk, Simon Sinek’s ‘Why, How, What’ thesis, which rose to prominence in his celebrated TEDx talk, about which I wrote in my recent post HERE.

ALSO, HERE ARE 4 MORE GEMS…

  1. Shredded by science Radio – Humorous but scientific. It’s informative and makes light of another wise at times; industry; which takes itself very seriously and is riddled by ego.
  2. Food for Fitness – Scott Bapties a Physique and sports nutritionist discussed diets, food shows, training.
  3. Podrunner – I recently discovered this is a podcast channel that’s established for 10 years+, and which delivers free music for anyone training – running, power-walkers, weight training etc. I find that anything between 120-130bpm (ideally 128) is ideal for the purpose! Power it out on the Bose Soundlink and you’re in business
  4. Barbell Shrugged – Find up to 250 episodes which interviews experts in specific different fields. It’s super informative and the sort of stuff which can be super helpful to improve your training. There’s a lot of x-fit stuff but also a lot of other bits too – something for everyone.

Enjoy the tunes & learnings!

Liked the products? Buy them here:
– Sony MDR-Z1R ultra-high-def headphones – HERE
– Bose Soundlink Revolve Bluetooth speaker – HERE

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This post is a sponsored collaboration with Amazon as part of their #ShopetheFuture campaign. For more about why I take on such projects, please see my DISCLOSURE page. Thank you. 

WHY TO START TRAINING – NOW !!!

Amidst the snowy deluge of a brutally frosted British December, Summer is but a moribund memory, seemingly belonging to a different planet (or Sydney in the case of my shots here!). Bikinis and/or trunks are consigned to a forgotten section of the wardrobe and instead, it’s acceptable to hide under countless layers of knitted misc. The commercialized ‘beach body’ frenzy is over; we feel as though we can relax, without the pressure to get naked! It’s also a time when we naturally eat and/or drink a little more than we otherwise would; t’is festive season leading up to Christmas…

For that reason, I say TRAIN NOW; this way whatever excess you’re consuming, at least you’re burning it off at the gym! Furthermore, you’re establishing a fitness routine now rather than leaving it to January, when going cold turkey will feel like a tragic uphill struggle. By the time the equally commercialized ‘new year new you’ fallacy comes around, you’ll already have a strong, regular thing going on; new year, same you! BTW, I don’t subscribe to the January frenzy, instead I believe healthy is a lifestyle choice all year round! This post contains a few 101 tips to get started, right now!

 

Without sounding like the Grinch I’m all for engaging with festivities; mince pies and mulled wine are some of life’s most wonderful gifts! BUT to avoid starting the year on a bad note, feeling overwhelming guilt the sense of futility, why not start now?! 

To help you with goal setting I’ve written lots of tips about this HERE.

 

If you’re completely new to training and thinking ‘where do I even begin’, my advice would be not to over-think the process. There are a million different ‘rules’ and techniques you can pursue, but at a high level, training really can be pretty straightforward.

101 OF TRAINING – KEEPING IT SIMPLE!

–       Keep it challenging. Always push yourself when it starts to get easy; you want to leave feeling that you’ve fatigued and challenged yourself, that you gave your all.

–       Always ensure to pursue good technique and form. Don’t be afraid to ask one of the trainers in your gym whether you’re doing it right; that’s what they’re there for, and it will benefit your body disproportionately to ask!

–       Start with body weight exercises and once that feels easy, introduce some light free weights.

–     Engage with your bread and butter training. The classic exercises are classic for a reason. Think squats, lunges, deadlifts, bench press, dumbbell flies, lat-pulldown, seated rows etc.

–       Start with a straightforward, easy split routine 3 times a week. Day 1: Chest and biceps. Day 3: Legs. Day 5 Back and triceps. Then repeat the following week.

–       Make sure to include rest/recovery days in between each session

–       Always warm up and stretch after every session

–       Eat within an hour after each session.

–       Abs are made in the kitchen. Cut out junk food.

–       AND if you’re feeling like something festive then enjoy those treats in moderation; accept it, don’t feel guilty but perhaps see it as extra fuel to work even harder at the gym!

Finally, besides all of that, make the small every day changes first, while your body gets used to the idea. Remember, any change is better than what you are doing right now. It is possible! Just start today—you will thank yourself in a few months!

LAST-MINUTE ‘TOP 10’ WELLNESS GIFT LIST!

Under a week to go until a BIG focal day in many people’s annual calendar, and if you’re anything like me you’ve left your seasonal gift shopping perilously late! Fear not, my dear disorganised reader, for here’s my snappily-titled “Christmas Eve Emergency Health & Fitness Top 10 Present Idea List” (phew!) which I whipped up for just such an eventuality – perhaps it’s one to send your other half for those last-minute ideas! So here we go, please Santa may I have…

ITEM 1) Apple Watch Series 3

This is the ultimate fitness gift, to my mind (If you already have one, skip to item 2, you lucky thing). I’ve had an Apple Watch since day one and recently started using their third iteration of the wearable beauty! Aside from allowing me to check emails and be on top of texts/WhatsApp’s, automatically track all my fitness data (heart rate, exercise, moves, standing time, calories burnt etc.), the watch also no longer needs a phone nearby so I am both untethered and yet connected. Instead, you can go cycling up in the rural mountains or for a long jog, and not need to bring your phone whilst remaining contactable at all times.

The Apple Watch is genuinely awesome. I’ve used a lot of wearable trackers and general ‘fit kit’, but this is one I have easily woven into my daily routine. It’s the flavour of technology you want more of; super intuitive to navigate, whilst it deftly does all the ‘thinking’ for me, operating unobtrusively in the background so that I just consume the fruits of its data, eliminating all guesswork! It’s a great way to stay motivated especially for the new years’ push!

My Version is beautifully modelled by Rudolph below…

ITEM 2) Neck & wrist Cashmere warmers

If you’re struggling in this frosty weather on your power walks, there’s nothing quite as comforting or indulgent as a super soft cashmere neck and wrist warmer. Something so super soft against your skin to help keep you warm feels a little extra special and such a wonderful gift. I often think a superb gift is something you wouldn’t necessarily buy yourself, but would love to receive. This little selection below is from Somerville, and is both practical and luxurious!

Wrist warmers HERE…
Neck warmer HERE…

ITEM 3) Some ‘Monreal London’ Sports Luxe

This is an evergreen appearance on my list for the brand’s unparalleled style credentials, leading functionality and super luxurious feel! I’ve followed their journey from the beginning and am constantly enchanted by the creations of master designer Stefani Grosse. Recently given the proverbial Royal ‘seals of approval’ by the gorgeous sisters Kate and Pippa Middleton, this is functional high-quality chic athleisure wear. Yes, it’s pricey but the pieces are enduring, clean-lined investment articles which will last the test of time. If like me you love sportswear and wear it all the time this is the sort of pieces that dress up your day!

Check it out HERE!

ITEM 4) Invest In Sleep – Jersey Duvet and Throw 

https://beachhousecompany.com

I know, I keep banging on about the importance of sleep, it’s a bit of a personal vendetta to sleep better, and more! Sheets are, surprisingly, very low-hanging fruit when it comes to upgrading the calibre of restful shuteye you get each night, so this is one way to make each night dreamier! Invest in beautiful covers to help you sleep well throughout the night as well as some beautiful and snuggly throws. These ones are from a company with strong Swedish roots, but with US West-Coast influences, and I have been loving the quality of their products for 6 months now; the jersey product is really coming into its own on these cold winters nights, delivering super softness night after night.

 – Duvet Cover; https://beachhousecompany.com/product/duvet-cover-band-ivy/

the bedding is made of 100% combed cotton thread that is finely knitted; so-called single jersey. That material breathes better than closely woven high thread count sheets. It’s also more supple, and few materials can compare to its soft surface; Oprah once called this her ‘discovery of the year’, and if it’s good enough for her…

– Alpaca Throw; Super soft throw to snuggle up in on cold nights.
https://beachhousecompany.com/alpaca-line-throw/

ITEM 5) Custom Clutch Bag from Bags by M

This is a personalised, one-of-a-kind, unique bag which is a total reflection of its owner. Admittedly, not fitness related in the slightest, but I wanted to include it nonetheless because I fell in love with this clutch some years ago, and think there are many people out there that might want to tell their own story with the book that means most to them. Master craftswoman Maria Caracciolo draws upon an extensive background in the history of bookbinding using traditional artisan techniques, and the results, created from scratch and delivered within a month, are extremely special, even emotional. This is a bespoke, standout piece at a reasonable price; you can get yours made HERE.

ITEM 6) Sweaty Betty Ski Layers

http://www.sweatybetty.com/clothes/bottoms/leggings/beetlebluejacquard-drift-colourblock-ski-base-layer-legging/

Despite being a Swedish lass from a country with much of its land mass in the Arctic Circle, I fundamentally struggle with the cold! Another helpful cosy investment to get you through these cold winter days are these quick-drying, super soft and ultra comfortable thermal base layers. They’re  awesome under your activewear in the city on a run or in the slopes, and they look pretty ‘Tron’ chic! n.b. Yep, same picture as above!

ITEM 7) Tea Pigs! https://www.teapigs.co.uk/tea/shop_by_category/all_tea/liquorice_and_mint.htm

This is a proper stocking filler here – I’ve always thought this Liquorice & Mint tea is simply aaaamazing and a wonderful gift to any fitness enthusiast! Hydrating, nutritious and it satisfies any sweet tooth without delivering calories!

ITEM 8) A beautiful Yoga Mat from Soul Mat Yoga

I discovered this a while ago; these ‘eco-friendly yoga mats are designed to be beautiful enough that they can double as colourful rugs in your home or studio. They’re forged from 100% natural tree rubber, printed with water-based inks and kept completely free from nasty chemicals so they’re super kind to both your skin and our planet.’ Check it out HERE.

ITEM 9) AESOP products to luxuriate & look after your skin

The skin is our bodies’ largest single organ which, if you’re training every day, can get pretty dry in this bitter cold, and will be in need of some TLC. I recently re-discovered Aesop on my trip to Sydney (full blog posts forthcoming!) and have been obsessed since. It’s an Australian home-grown company which has branched out globally; I adore their packaging, and all the products are exceptional and differentiated… but if I could only pick one I’d suggest the utterly delicious-smelling Resurrection Aromatique Hand Balm. The botanical oils and skin-softening ingredients leave my skin feeling nourished and refreshed – and there is something totally invigorating about the ingredients’ aroma, so much so that I went overboard and snapped up the whole range. Oh, and I also LOVE the packaging of that mouthwash!!

ITEM 10) Woolrich Coat – ‘W’s Military Parka’

Finally, if you really want to spoil that special someone this is a coat that will keep you warm all winter in the urban city or for apres ski purposes! It’s a little off the beaten track of Canada Goose / Moncler, but I absolutely love it’s furnace-like warmth and bold features for these frosty times of the year.  Pick one up HERE.

Hope that provided a little spark of inspiration for any last minute purchases. Yes, some of them can’t be obtained NOW, and need a little lead-time, but the very delivery of an IOU should be met with bundles of festive excitement!

Happy hunting and Merry Xmas

ACTIVE SKI ESCAPE TO COURCHEVEL

Skiing is a grueling full-body aerobic workout, and regularly puts thousands of calories to good use every single day… However, in my younger days, I can only remember it as an uncomfortably awkward experience for the unfortunate, suffering mountain-goer. As a skier, you’d have to tolerate some serious unpleasantness to survive the week; the sweaty boots would imprison and crush your feet and always inflict shin splint, the skis weighed a ton, chairlifts were slow and unreliable, the clothes weren’t really weatherproof, the food was terrible, the chalet beds were paper-thin and yielded a pitifully un-restorative night’s sleep… and I shan’t touch upon the neon all-in-one “fashion” monstrosities! Thankfully, times have changed unrecognizably, for ’skiing’ has radically upped its game, and nowhere on the planet has this alpine art de vivre been more finely honed than Courchevel. I ventured to the warmth of Hotel Le Saint Roch in Courchevel 1850, to deliver the first Alpine Active Escape I’ve covered on this blog, and the refined experience I discovered there has transformed my understanding of pure joy on the pistes! Click MORE to see the full experience…

As ever the review shall be structured in 4 parts, as follows: 1) The Fitness Activity, 2) The Hotel Facilities & Service, 3) The Food, and 4) The Summary Thoughts…

… But before I start, perhaps a little background about this magical resort. Courchevel is the jewel in the crown of Les Trois Vallées, a vast interconnected realm of 8 resorts, with 600km of skiable runs, and range of altitudes troughing at 600m above sea-level, and peaking at 3400m. It has 183 ski lifts that can move 260,000 skiers about every hour. It is simply cavernous, which makes it a total playground for winter sports. Courchevel itself has a degree of glamorous repute, with its own Bond-villain style airport, the unusual concentration of designer stores, and even higher concentration of Michelin-starred establishments. Ski resorts often look ugly, adorned with gargoyles of 1980s construction; unimaginative concrete blocks clustered in towns that protrude garishly from the snow. Courchevel however, is the prettiest ski resort I’ve ever seen, with a gorgeous traditional village, immaculately well kept public amenities, elegant and charming architectural structures both new and old, a wonderful aspect to catch the best of the day’s light, and stunning shoulders of fir trees that run down the mountains creating the unique backdrop that identifies this place at a glance. It is then, quite a special thing to spend time here and I savored every moment of it; here are my thoughts in more detail.

1) FITNESS ACTIVITY – THE BENEFITS OF SKIING:

As I sat on the chairlifts and bubbles, I kept a set of notes recalling my fresh reactions to the Ski experience unfolding around me; here are some of the undiluted thoughts I penned:

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On the slopes, literally – ice bath required for leg recovery after 3 days of squats-on-planks ?⛷ In @sweatybetty thermals & @hellyhansen pants. #ski ???✨?

A post shared by Faya Nilsson (@fitnessontoast) on Jan 31, 2018 at 12:26am PST

2) THE HOTEL FACILITIES  & SERVICE

If you’ve ever visited this resort, you’ll have encountered the Maison Tournier group (consciously or otherwise) operating both in front and behind the scenes. The Tournier family’s roots run deep in this village, stretching back to the late 1940s when Courchevel was first established, and their dynasty has spawned a unique hospitality collection fusing heritage and modernity in equal parts. My home for the trip, Le Saint Roch, is a part of that group, and has a unique character I found totally compelling and fascinating…

With 19 suites, 5 rooms and 2 apartments, this is an intimate hotel; it feels discreet and subtle in many ways, yet charismatic and indulgent in others. Overseen by the venerated General Manager, Valerie Mansis, there is a dedication to anticipate guests wishes and a service ethic which is quite differentiated from anything I’ve encountered before. Whilst ski accommodation is often just a necessary ‘means to an end’, here it is elevated to an art form where detail is the life-blood of the Saint Roch. There’s a signature scent that just works for this hotel in this resort, which subtly drifts through the communal areas and rooms, an evocative touch which helps to carve out the memories more clearly; there are indulgences such as custom bed sheets and bespoke toiletries from Maison Kurkdjian; the distressed-wood ceiling is hundreds of years old and preserved from the original structure that once stood here; there’s always jazz and bossa nova playing from some of the coolest ceiling-hung speakers I’ve seen; the day service is in white and the night service is in black; they print you a custom newspaper edit on their signature silvered paper each morning in your language; the rooms boast a host of warm and endearing touches like a fresh chamomile tea heated by candlelight beside your bed after turndown, a plate of bon bons upon arrival, and an interior scheme with lush cozy flourishes of leather, fur and velvet. And a personal favorite touch; every single room has a private hammam in its bathroom, great for facilitating assisted stretching!

But the most remarkable aspect of Le Saint Roch is the service. I have been fortunate to travel extensively and enjoy some of the worlds finest hospitality, but this has been amongst the most consistently professional, attentive, subtle and effectively delivered service I’ve encountered, true of the entire staff. Ever present, yet seemingly absent, they quietly observe and anticipate what you might like without you ever having to trouble yourself too much, judging what’s appropriate for each guest, and thereby promoting pure cognitive ease. Your preferences are discovered – never intrusively so – learned, and remembered for tomorrow or equally the next trip. And this is the genius of Le Saint Roch, and of Maison Tournier; surrounded by a comforting cocoon of support, the guest need never suffer during the ski experience. For those who have had to tolerate discomforts on alpine excursions, it needn’t be the case here; the staff will remove your ski boots for you (usually quite an ordeal at the end of a tiring day); they will relieve you of your skis / boots / helmet & gloves and dry/warm them for tomorrow morning’s use when they’ll deliver them back to you; they arrange for your ski pass to be routed to your room, your transfers to and from the airport, your instructor to meet you at the hotel, your lunch venues to be booked (with priority, many of them are also Maison Tournier operations!), and their shuttles are always available for you to be transported around the village. And every member of staff knows you by name, a small personal touch, but a clear differentiator of world-class execution.

I would be remiss not to mention the Spa as a place to unwind in silent tranquility at the end of the day. This became part of my daily ritual, as I stepped across the centerpiece swimming pool and rested in quietude upon the far side of the facility for an hour or so, to rehydrate and decompress in equal measures.

3) THE FOOD

Burning 450 ‘active’ calories per hour, for 5 hours each day, means that you’ll need to fuel up so as not to fall into deficit. Luckily for you, Savoyarde cuisine doesn’t shy away from calorific bombs such as cream, cheese, butter and sugar. Whilst mountain restaurants are light of what I might deem ‘healthy’ options, there are still options at some sublime restaurants. Here are my 4 top picks for slopeside lunch:

Back at Le Saint Roch, the cuisine which they deem Bistronomic, is worthy of decoration, as the hotel’s eye for detail is at work again. The truffled cashews and amuses bouche to accompany an aperitif are exquisite productions in themselves. To accommodate my pescatarian preferences, the chef re-purposed anything on the menu with deft, and rather than describe it in words, I can show you a host of images we shot. The food was, quite simply, beautifully executed.

4) SUMMARY THOUGHTS

Skiing is not cheap, and Courchevel even less so. Many places in this resort charge the wrong price, simply because they attract customers who actually prefer to overpay; Le Saint Roch is not one of those venues. It is a 5* establishment which plays to the beat of its own drum; its personality is distinctive and unique – both quietly understated and charmingly gregarious at the same time, yet always below the radar, and fabulously welcoming. It is the solution to alpine hassle, and enables you to pursue the optimal mountain break for a price which, whilst expensive in absolute terms, is inexpensive relative to almost all of the comparable hotels surrounding it, especially when one considers the sheer quality of the half-board offering here. More broadly, the village of Courchevel, being located at the pinnacle of the world’s largest ski area, is too good a draw to refuse; for those seeking an unconstrained retreat to the Alps, this is quite simply the only combination you need.

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A light pre-ski spread today at the marvellous @lesaintrochcourchevel – home-made muesli & berries with a side of fruit ??⛷? #ski

A post shared by Faya Nilsson (@fitnessontoast) on Jan 29, 2018 at 11:33pm PST

MY SKI FASHION CHOICES:

THE ‘EVERYDAY’ MOVEMENT…

Movement is everything to our species, both metaphorically and physically. Without it, we are static, listing, without direction, traveling to no destination other than our present. Embracing movement is chasing the future, which is almost exactly what being active represents to me. When I am training, I constantly keep in mind the goal of a stronger, more functionally capable body, both for years time and equally for 40 years time. Without movement, we would waste away, our bodies and souls would atrophy, but the struggle and the journey are what gives us the stories and purpose of existence. It’s a pretty fundamental recognition. In a world where we move less than ever in our sedentary lives, where it’s considered ‘normal’ to sit in front of a screen for up to 10 hours a day, only arising to use the restroom… remaining active and moving where possible is of utmost importance. This post is a collaboration with Matalan, as part of their Value of Movement campaign, which totally resonates with my entire ethos. Click MORE to see my top reasons & ways to get moving right now…

BUT FIRST, A LIGHT STATISTICAL OBSERVATION…

The UN notes that a quarter of all Brits are obese, with levels in excess of Spain, Germany, and France. There are in excess of 20 million souls who are without physical activity in this country, per the British Heart Foundation (sub 150 mins activity per week). They also noted that the average person spends 1/5 of his/her life sitting down, or put another way just under 80 days of each year seated; and yet inactivity is a cause of about 10% of all premature deaths from heart disease, and 15% for any cause.

WHAT’S THE ANSWER?

Well, activity, clearly! However, one must be realistic; the dilemma of new clients is often that you want to be active but it’s genuinely not feasible, with work and life commitments interfering with the best-made activity plans. You simply can’t get to the gym 5 times a week. However, I would argue that your health is the most important investment you’ll ever make; it’s the one thing you carry with you for the rest of your life, and if you neglect it near-term, you’ll suffer long-term. Embracing motion is the only way around this.  Therefore here are a few tricks that can help you incorporate exercise into every day, even as part busy life. Aside from that, keeping active will keep you motivated. Just a little activity every day deploys endorphins and reminds you just how great it feels to be active, with the benefit that your body will gather incremental strength each time, and the exercises will become easier. Heading out even for a brisk 20-minute walk will lift the mood, and trigger a release of happy hormones, which in turn help keep you positive and motivated.

ONE) POWER WALKING IS A SUPERB WAY TO EMBRACE MOVEMENT…

Yes, it works, it’s not meant to be a leisurely stroll but one that you literally power through. I recommend to most of my clients who have started training for the first time to aim to achieve >10,000 steps (at least) per day. Invest in a step counter of sorts (Apple Watch does the job beautifully for me), or most mobiles with an accelerometer will have this feature to help calculate your daily steps. By checking in on this throughout the day it’ll help you ensure you don’t leave it until late last minute before bedtime, and spread the activity as you go through the day.

HOW TO?

– For an indoor treadmill, I’d suggest that a person of medium fitness should aim for a gradient of 7% with a speed of 7km/h. However, this completely varies depending on your fitness level. Ultimately, if you’re outside/indoors you should be thinking ‘this is tough’. You want it to feel almost like a jog although you’re walking – the same sensations are triggered; a raised heartbeat, a light sweat and the feeling of being slightly out of breath.
– Ensure the arms are at a 90-degree angle
– Maintain good posture throughout
– Engage your core and squeeze your glutes.
– Avoid looking at the ground, instead gaze forward with intent.
– Ensure you have comfortable walking shoes
– Bring water to stay well hydrated
– I’d also suggest some banging tunes to push you onward!

WHY?

1) Superior fat burning
2) It’s relatively low-impact, so the consequences on the body are far more gentle (compared to a harsh run),
3) A full-body work out which sculpts arms, legs, and core particularly.
4) Strengthens bone density.
5) Improved blood circulation and pressure.
6) Cholesterol improvements.
7) The exposure to some hard-to-find Vitamin D (i.e. outdoors!),
8) Mood boosting
9) A mindful escape – a bit of ‘you time’ for a spot of solitude, to think about things!
10) If you’re short on time. Squeeze it in where possible – en route to work, during a lunch break or walking to a meeting – anywhere, anytime but the best time is before breakfast for 60 minutes!
– Plus you’ll be taking in some great scenery – nature or the urban city – whilst walking!

TWO) BODYWEIGHT EXERCISE 

Training, or indeed introducing lighter activity during the day, needn’t be complicated. The benefit of bodyweight exercises are that they’re effective and can be done anywhere. It’s also not unusual that regular gym goers can lift incredibly heavy loads in the gym, but ask them to do 10 push-ups and they struggle. Functional strength is far more useful to the body than the ability to lift huge amounts on a single, less useful plane. That functional capability will help you to stay mobile well into the future, whilst a pursuit of heavy weights may threaten to impair joint functionality in the long run. Here are some of the benefits of bodyweight exercises.

WHY?

– Functional exercises that involves body movements that are similar or mimic tasks we perform in our daily lives. This can help prevent injuries in the long run.
– Strength gain helps to build a more defined musculature and support the loads on joints.
– Boosts cardiovascular fitness.
– Toasts fat, with a thermogenic effect consuming calories hours after a workout.
– You can even deploy body weight exercises en-route to work on your power walk; a park bench is the only kit you’ll need!
– Empowering, as you can see how your body gets stronger with time, via your ability to manage more reps of the same exercise.
– Improved balance – many moves require balance and work your core as well, from the perspective of stabilizing the motion.
– It’s good fun – you can swap it up all the time to add variation, and avoid plateauing.
– Solo or in a group – Invite friends to train with you in the great outdoors.
– Easily modified – to increase the difficulty factor, simply add more repetitions, focus on tempo – performing the exercises more slowly, for instance can be a lot harder.

Check out THIS LITTLE VIDEO I made for Matalan, wearing their Souluxe collection; a power walk, achieving my 20,000 steps, and stopping along the way for a stretch & some light bodyweight exercises.

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This post is a sponsored collaboration with Matalan as part of their #ValueOfMovement campaign. For more about why I take on such projects, please see my DISCLOSURE page. Thank you. 

THE ‘RECOVERY’ TRIO…

Tempur Recovery

To me, sleep has long been ‘everything’, but others have been coming round to this stance, as already, sleep is emerging as quite the hot topic in 2018, with several national newspapers drilling down into its favourable effects our constitution; as health and well-being (quite rightly) occupies a growing mindshare of ‘the Zeitgeist’, it seems only natural that society will begin to challenge that age-old travesty of sacrificing sleep to ‘look committed’ to a cause. We may, in our machismo, think of it as a bank account that can be raided, as a currency which can be exchanged for kudos, or perhaps as an unproductive use of our 24 precious hours, but times – and attitudes – are unquestionably changing. Sleep is fast being seen as an indulgent luxury of which we should consume more, not time wasted but time well invested, and even perhaps as a currency to be spent of its own accord. The tide is beginning to turn, it’s no longer as socially unpalatable to prioritise one’s own recovery, to have an early night, or even (heaven forbid) two in a row! The nation has begun a long overdue conversation about this topic; recovery is on the agenda more than ever before, whether you’re into fitness or not. This post is in collaboration with Tempur, and highlights the so-called Holy Trinity of Recovery; Sleep, Stretching and Sports Massage! Click MORE to read on…

To my mind, there are several components to optimal recovery, chief amongst them is sleep, followed closely thereafter by stretching, sports massage in equal runner-up positions. This is the Holy Trinity of Recovery! Taking each in turn;

1) SLEEP 

Fitness On Toast - Courchevel Saint Roch - Ski France-45

It is the time-honoured antidote to tiredness, and perhaps more broadly, the regular cure for wakefulness, that condition by which we grow wearier as each day drags on! Foregoing the right amount, or right quality of sleep can weaken our immune systems, leave us sluggish and with less energy to work out, slow our metabolisms, make it harder to lose weight, affect blood sugar and blood pressure levels, increase appetite due to a depletion of satiety hormones, and trigger some pretty grumpy mood swings!

But if you get it right, regularly, it can enhance muscular recovery, restore mental acuity, release Human Growth Hormone, restore bone and organs, and generally make you a more content individual with whom to interact! It’s easy to preach that someone should ‘get more’, but harder to implement in practise.

On my travels writing this Blog, I’ve encountered a number of the country’s leading sleep scientists, several times each, and there seems to be a consensus amongst them for tips to optimise slumber. Investing in a good bed which is the largest possible size is the single largest and most game-changing adjustment most people can make, as they’re often sleeping on outdated, unsuitable, un-sleepworthy beds; a Tempur mattress is made with an optimally comfortable orthopaedic material on which to recover after a tough workout. Mindfulness and unflappable patience matter too, as does restrained alcohol consumption and no caffeine after 13:00; plus don’t exercise late at night, keep the bedroom temperature cool, introduce a clockwork routine every night, avoid props like sleeping pills, take a warm bath and burn a little lavender oil, and eradicate the blue light emitted by screens an hour or two prior to bedtime. Further, it seems de rigueur not to go back to sleep when the alarm clock rings!

Tempur Recovery

2) SPORTS MASSAGE

Fitness On Toast Faya Blog Girl Healthy Workout Exercise Training Sports Massage Knowledge Discovery Course Learn Skill Therapy UK-16

This is one of my top luxuries to lavish upon my body after a hard session, but it’s not just a personal opinion; top athletes consider it critical to boost recovery as part of their physical conditioning program. Far from the lightweight, superficial ‘cosmetic’ sort of massage you ought to find at your local spa, this is an intense dose of focused, physical therapy schooled in the medically demonstrable study of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems, administered by qualified professionals. It helps loosen and soften hard muscle tissue, corrects imbalances, improves mobility, and releases accumulated tensions around the muscle sheaths. What’s more, rock-like muscles clumps make it harder for blood to flow, stopping your muscles getting what they need! With sports massage, the blood vessels dilate & membrane pores widen, allowing better oxygen flow, the transportation of lactic waste, as well as nutrients for the restoration of the muscles. It also reduces the muscular pain you feel called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, promotes relaxation, releases endorphins when some of the knotty nodes are targeted and can help to boost overall performance. It is a superb pursuit for the goal of recovery!

3) STRETCHING

Fitness On Toast Faya Blog Girl Workout Exercise Gym Healthy Fit Training Trainer Swedish Fitspo LuluLemon Lulu Lemon Athletica Yoga Autumn Cashmere Stretching Importance Lunge Flex Reach Warm Down Cool Stretching-15

Too often at the gym, I observe stretching to be considered a sacrificial part of the workout, as if it’s somehow perfunctory to the purpose of training, and can therefore be cast aside until some nebulous time in the future. Yet just a few minutes after each session will form a habit that changes the way you age with your body.

So there we have it, the Holy Trinity of Recovery! With that in mind, perhaps now go and get some rest :)

Faya x

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THIS POST IS A SPONSORED COLLABORATION WITH TEMPUR AS PART OF THEIR POWER OF RECOVERY CAMPAIGN. FOR MORE ABOUT WHY I TAKE ON SUCH PROJECTS, PLEASE SEE MY DISCLOSURE PAGE. THANK YOU. 

4 SUPERB PRE-RUN STRETCHES!

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-9

There’s an asymmetric profile to the advantages of warming up before heading out on a run – it helps to materially decrease the risk of injury as by ignoring or rushing a warmup, you’re more likely to pull a muscle, tear a tendon, or tweak a joint. Also, I find that if I don’t warm up but rather go straight into a run, it’s simply harder to sustain the pace, and I’m more likely to burn out quicker. This, in turn, makes me feel demotivated and discouraged from running again; cue the spiral of unfavorable results! This post is a brief overview of my 4 favorite warm-up stretches which you might give a try next time you’re about to go for your run!

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-4

Sneakers from my friends at Deichmann – adidas Light Racer

Warming up helps blood flow to all the muscles you’ll shortly be using, and it lubricates the joints with synovial fluid which helps absorb the impact of running. Further, by gradually increasing your heart rate it’ll help you find a rhythm that you’ll be able to keep for longer.

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-3

I always start out with a brisk walk as it helps ease into the movement, it takes your body through the range of motion, mimicking the exercise at hand and firing up the right muscles. After 5 minutes or so, I start feeling warm, will add a 2-minute jog and then revert back to walking.

Once you’re properly warmed up (typically after 5 minutes or so), start with dynamic stretches. Unlike static stretches where you hold a muscle for a longer period of time in a static position (often in excess of 30 seconds) here, the stretches are short but not rushed. In a controlled manner, you use movements (stretches) to improve range of motion. Aside from jumping jacks, side shuffle, backward jogs, burpees, squats etc (all of which are popular ways of warming up, below are a few legs stretches that are quick and easy to do.

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches 

1) STEPPING LUNGE

Stand with your legs a shoulder-width apart, in a parallel position, ensuring you maintain a good neutral posture. Bend the left knee and lunge forward onto your right foot. Go as far as you are comfortable ensuring the right knee doesn’t bend past the toes. Try to keep the hips ‘square’, without collapsing onto one side or the other. Then straighten the back leg (without locking the knee). Increase the stretch to the extent you feel comfortable by lowering the hips. Engage the throughout as it will help protect the lower back. Hold for a couple of seconds and then step forward into a lunge with the other leg.

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-9

  1. LEG EXTENSOR STRETCH (similar to butt kicks)

Standing tall, bend the left knee behind you, bring your heel toward your gluteus and swing the right arm back and left arm forward. Repeat on the other side, and try to do at least 10 on each side.

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-7

  1. LEG FLEXOR STRETCH

With your feet parallel, stand upright and extend forward the left arm, whilst bending your right knee at 90 degrees in front of you. Try to extend the calf so that it’s in line with your leg, creating a straight leg per the below image, parallel to the ground. Really engage your quads whilst you extend the leg. Then return to the original position and repeat with your other leg.

Once you’re used to the leg flexor and extensor kick (stretch #2, above) perhaps combine the two – start by standing tall, walk forward whilst kicking your heels toward your gluteus and alternating between high knees. This will help stretch your quads particularly. Butt kicks with high knees, plus a straight kick!

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-6

  1. PLANTAR FLEXOR STRETCH

With hands on the hips, lift the left leg slightly off the ground, ensuring the knee is straight and aligned with the leg. Point the toes straight out in line with the knee, and then reverse this flexion by pointing the toes upward, and then return to your starting position. Repeat this on your right leg, and then a further 9 times on each leg.

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-8

Below is a neat variant to assist in stretching the calves, and can be dispatched on any curb in the country :)

Fitness On Toast - Deichmann Pre Run Stretches-5

WHAT I’M WEARING?

I’m wearing the Light Racer trainer from Adidas – they’re lightweight as the name suggests, and are also made with an ultra-light midsole which has a superb comfort-to-weight ratio!  Aside from the warmup stretch, I went out for a 5k run whilst the sun was setting in London and found the trainers supportive for pounding the trails around Hampstead Heath. I got my sneakers from my friends at Deichmann – head over for loads of trainers for affordable prices.
WANT MY ONES?
Pick them up here: Adidas, Light Racer HERE!
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THIS POST IS A SPONSORED COLLABORATION WITH DEICHMANN. FOR MORE ABOUT WHY I TAKE ON SUCH PROJECTS, PLEASE SEE MY DISCLOSURE PAGE. THANK YOU.