Mini Primark Haul!

 Shorts: £5

 Flip Flops: £1.50

Sandals: £4

Pumps: £6

My whole intention for going to Primark was actually to get some new work shoes as mine had fallen apart. Although I did actually get some shoes suitable for work I also managed to walk out with two other pairs of shoes and a pair of shorts. For £16.50 you can't really complain, they will all be well used when the summer eventually gets here.. 

Mexico Monday! 12 Weeks To Go..

I am aware it is Tuesday today..

Current Weight: 123lbs or 55.7kg
Gym Sessions: Six
(2 x Pre Breakfast Cardio, 2 x Back & Biceps, 1 x Chest & Triceps, 1 x Legs)
Water Drank: 13 Liters
Clean Meals Eaten: 25
Cheat Meals Eaten: 5

Well, as far as countdown weeks go, this one hasn't be the best. There have been a few occasions during the week where the need for the ease of a simple 'cheat' meal has overcome me and I've caved. It can sometimes be difficult to find the time to cook a clean meal after being at work for 9 hours and finishing at 8pm or being stuck in a VW garage by a pushy salesman who was out for all he could get, when you leave at three after not eating since breakfast the motivation to go home and cook a meal is at an all time low, McDonalds here we come!
I'm hoping, despite the slight dietary mishaps, the the 1lb gain is actually muscle. I have been training pretty hard in the gym most of the time and can already see and feel the difference in both my biceps and triceps as well as the shape of my back.
This week I am hoping to up the amount of water I drank in the week as well as lowering the amount of cheat meals!
With 12 weeks to go I'm hoping I will start getting more motivated and get my head in the zone!
We'll see, eh?

Fitness Friday - Workout of the Week

If anyone is confused by the whole Fitness Friday/Mexico Monday on a Friday thing then see HERE for an explanation. 

For my first Mexico Monday inspired Fitness Friday post I am going to be telling you about my favourite workout Josh and I completed this week.

This workout comes from Monday mornings pre breakfast Cardio session. The aim was to burn around 300 calories on the cross trainer, however, after about 5 minutes in we both needed a wee, our new target was 150 before a toilet stop. After the quick stop josh suggested we do a circuit to finish off instead of getting back on the cross trainer so this is what we did:

Skipping with 10 double unders 

(the skipping rope spins twice in one jump)

or 30 seconds of normal skipping

FOLLOWED BY

15 Kettlebell Swings 

(chose a sensible weight, nothing to heavy. Dip into squat position and swing kettlebell above your head keeping your arms straight)

FOLLOWED BY 

30 Second Plank

(lay flat on the ground, push yourself up off of the ground slightly leaning on forearms and toes, keep legs and body suspended straight behind you, hold abs tight to keep you stable)

FOLLOWED BY

15 Crunches using ab machine 

(Hold body suspended on handles and pull legs up using abs)

or 15 sit ups

30 Second Rest

Repeat 3 times

Let me know if you try this out at home or in the gym and tell me how you found it!

OOTN: Dinner With My Other Family!

On Wednesday Josh, his Mum and Myself went up to Birmingham to visit Josh's Dad, who very kindly took us along with Josh's Uncle and Nanny out to dinner. The gorgeous dress that I wore to the dinner was the second mystery dress mentioned in my 'What I Got For My Birthday' post. Josh chose and bought me this massively figure flattering bodycon dress as part of my Birthday gifts, he seems to have a hidden talent for picking pretty dresses! I love this dress so much and would wear it all the time if I could. It hugs you in all the right places and the coral colour is going to complement my Mexico-induced tan perfectly when I take it on holiday with me in July. Thank You Joshie for picking me two amazing dresses, you da best! :)  I noticed that a few of my nails disappeared into my dress, a bit to co-ordinated I think! With this dress I wore my black pumps from Tesco as well as a black cardigan to keep me a little warmer on these chilly Spring evenings. 

Mexico Monday - Intro.

Welcome to my new fitness blog series!
In just over 12 weeks I am heading away on holiday with Josh and his family to Mexico and because we have neglected training and dieting over the last couple of weeks neither of us are looking as good as we could be. I sometimes find myself slightly demotivated to eat clean and train but when you feel the need for a beach bod its kind of important to stick at it. What better way to make sure I stay motivated than to keep you guys updated with my progress each week that way you can see if I've fallen off the train or not!
My week is running from Sunday to Sunday so each Monday, for the next 12 weeks, I will be posting a weekly update on how I am getting on with my diet and how I'm shaping up in preparation for the holiday. Along with this I will include, as part of my Fitness Friday series, either my favourite meal or work out of the week to give anyone who may be interested a few ideas to try out in the future. 

Each week I will list my current weight, number of gym sessions completed & what areas were worked, how much water I drank, the number of clean meals eaten (meals on my diet plan) and number of cheat meals eaten (naughty, non diet related meals) as well as a little ramble on my progression.

Before I start I thought it would be a good idea to give you a sort of "first weigh in" 
Please refrain from any negativity as it takes a lot to put yourself out there, you know as well as I do that confidence is easy to smash, especially for a girl!

So this is me as right now after neglecting to diet and train for a few weeks. 
My current weight is 54.5kg or 121lbs. 
See you on Monday for an update on how I've got on this week! 


If there are any other fitness related posts anyone would like to see then let me know in the comments! 

OOTN: My Birthday Dinner!

Please excuse the blurry-ness, my camera was not enjoying the print on this dress..

If anyone saw my 'What I Got For My Birthday' post you may have seen me mention the two mysterious dresses that my lovely boyfriend got me for my birthday.. Well, here is one of those dresses. It is beautiful. I wore this one on my Birthday for my meal out with my Boyfriend, Dad, Grandma, and Boyfriend's Mum. I love it because of the pretty flower pattern and because it's not something I would usually go for. I give Josh full credit for picking this out for me, you did good babe! 

I wore my tesco 'tory burch knock off' flats as well as some tights as it is still quite chilly over here despite it being Spring! I am already looking forward to the next occasion I get to wear this to as it seems a waste to leave something this pretty in my wardrobe for ages!

A few pictures that my Dad took during dinner. Thank you to my Grandma for my uber pretty birthday cake! 

Fitness Friday: Daily Supplementation

What, Where, How Much..

Boots Omega 3 1000mg (60 capsuals) - £4.55 - Link!

Haliborange disolvable Vitamin C tablets (20) - £3.69 -Link!

Maxiraw WPI Intensity Chocolate orange flavour - £39.99 - Link!

Reflex Nexgen+ (90 Capsuals) - £14.99 - Link!

ON Amin.o. Energy BCAAs - £25.99 - Link!

Grenade Thermo Detonator fat burner - £27.99 - Link!

Small disclaimer, I am new to the fitness scene and am in no way trying to pretend I'm a professional because I'm not. This is just my views on the subject with a little help from my smart cookie and fitness friday co-writer of a boyfriend! 

Supplements are of course an important part of a fitness diet, each individual product has it's own way of improving performance, recovery and overall health. 

The supplements included in this post are the ones I use on a typical day, consisting of a cardio session in the morning and a weights session in the afternoon. 

In the morning before we head to the gym for our cardio session I take 1 grenade fat burner with one scoop of liquid BCAAs in a glass of water. The grenades are the best way to get that coffee like energy kick to prepare you for your session whilst raising your metabolism to help you burn more fat during the session. As I do morning cardio pre breakfast on an empty stomach BCAAs help to prevent muscle breakdown as my body has no fuel to run on. 

Breakfast is accompanied by a glass of water and a dissolvable vitamin C tablet, 1 multi vitamin and 2 omega 3, I do the same thing with my dinner too minus the vitamin C. The vitamin C does a good job of perking you up if you feel like you're coming down with those horrible colds, giving your immune system a little boost. The Multi vitamin and omegas are just essential vitamins to help your body do its thing, I have found since taking those daily my skin has cleared up massively and I have felt a lot better in myself. 

Pre and Post workout I mix up 1 scoop of Maxiraw WPI with about 150ml of water. I am not a massive fan of the taste but I'm sort of at the stage now where I can just down it and get it over and done with nice and quick. The protein is perfect for supplying your body with the energy and fuel it needs to aid you through the workout as well as feed your muscles after you have finished in the gym. 

I know this isn't amazingly detailed but I'm still learning too! If anyone has any questions then leave them below and I will consult my very knowledgeable boyfriend if I don't know the answer!

& Josh.

What I Got For My Birthday!

 On Tuesday the 9th April I kissed goodbye to my teenage years as I turned 20! Thank you to any of you lovely bloggers that wished me 'Happy Birthday!' I feel no different than I did when I turned 18 but it is a little weird to say 'I'm 20' instead of a number followed by 'teen' Anyway, I know a lot of people love to be nosy so I thought I'd do a 'What I Got For My Birthday' post. 
DISCLAIMER: I am not bragging, I am extremely great-full for everything I received for my birthday.

I went shopping with my mum on the morning of my Birthday and she bought me some lovely things (with some persuasion)

Navy Heart Top & Neon Green Top - Marks & Spencer

Khaki Studded Top & Plenum Style Top - Debenhams

Spotty & Tribal Crop Tops - New Look 

Tribal Print & Lace Print Shorts - Debenhams

Track Shorts - New Look

Burgundy Converse - Office

Rose Gold Pumps - Debenhams 

From my Grandma I received some money and a pretty Thomas Sabo handbag charm for the bracelet she bought me for my 18th Birthday.

From my mum and her boyfriend I got One Directions new album and Now 84 for my car.

From my Dad I got a massage table! If you didn't already know I study sports massage so now I have my own table I can practice properly at home.

My amazing boyfriend got me my favourite chocolate smoothie flapjacks which have been out of stock for months now as well as two beautiful dresses which are going to be revealed in two OOTN posts coming up very soon. I am so happy with them I just want to wear them all the time! Thank you so much baby, I love you!

As well as the above I got some money and gift vouchers which will be spent sensibly soon! 

Thank You to everyone who got me something, said happy birthday or sent me a card. I had a really lovely day!