Crisitunity: loving the limp

Crisitunity: A portmanteau created by Homer when Lisa tells him that the Chinese have the same word for "crisis" and "opportunity". The actual Chinese words for those terms are different but share a common character (危機 for "crisis", 機會 for "opportunity").

I was right smack bang in the middle of a massive plateau when my Achilles tendon gave way. This time last year I was smack bang in the middle of a 3-4 month stint on crutches, which is what got me into my weight gain spiral of ice cream and chocolate and cheese and sadness in the first place. Le sigh. I had been consistently training away and not seeing any really big results, and frankly, getting a bit bored by my workouts which were becoming a chore, not a challenge. But when last week my ankle gave way, suddenly the idea that I might not be able to train terrified me. I came home after the physio told me I'd be on crutches for 6 weeks, and I bawled. Not just from the pain, which was excruciating (if you want to know what its like, imagine your ankle feels like its made of very think glass, and if you step on your heel, it feels like you have no skin - raw, exposed, and horribly painful). But from the fear. This is the injury is what got me to where I was back in January when I started this blog: fat and depressed. What if I put on weight again? What if I couldnt work out? What if I get depressed and dont want to leave the house again, and end up making guyere and chocolate sandwiches with icecream and wine sauce? 

So I joined a gym. Its a gym I used to be a member of, until we really couldnt afford it anymore and I was working such crazy hours I couldnt get to go often enough to justify it. But it is absolutely amazing. I loved it so much and was really sad to leave it in the first place but I had fallen out of the habit of going and at the time, my work schedule really didnt allow for any extra curricular activity. I joined on 27th July, the day after I came back from the physio. I have been to the gym at least once a day every day bar one since then. My 'rest' days have been swimming and some light cardio. I can use the stationary bike and I can cycle which is great - even if I can't walk at least I can still get around. And the best thing is I feel this will actually bring me to the next level in terms of my training, something I had felt I was stagnating with.

Ive also lost an inch from everywhere in the past week, which is a happy side effect. In total, Ive lost 10 inches off my stomach since January. YAY! So - how to bust through a weight loss plateau? Completely change your routine and significantly up the ante. I almost doubled some of the weights I'm lifting in the gym because I was sticking to the shitty small selection I had at home.

Maybe this injury was exactly what I needed - I had always felt a weakness in my achilles, and now I'm religiously sticking to the exercises my physio gave me, so I'm hoping I'll build it to become much stronger than before. I have to forego some socialising and fun times and walks with the dogs, but if I come out of it stronger it will be worth it. Crisitunity!

PS I've started logging all my food on instagram, so if you want some recipes/ideas follow me @lucyrhinehart xx

Embarrassingly easy and amazing chickpea salad

Ive been living for salads recently, because its so absolutely hot at the moment. every night is a struggle to get to sleep with in my hot, sticky, muggy room and huge duvet. We're really not equipped to deal with this heat in this country - no air con, no fans... Also working out is a nightmare in this heat! Sweating buckets always makes me feel lethargic and I just want to pan out like a lizard on a rock, and not jump around swinging kettlebells. I also feel like I've put on a bit of weight over the last two weekends of excess and partying and some slight wagon-falling in terms of booze and food... so salads are really light and even when they aren't, they feel very virtuous. Here's a picture of the salad I've given the recipe for, with some leftover chilli from last night. The lime juice gives it a lovely Mexican flavour and it goes really well with it.





Warm, sweet, herby chickpea salad
ingredients:
2 cans chickpeas
4 green onions, thinly sliced
2 ears corn, cut from the cob, or 1 can of corn, grilled (I grill with a little coconut oil in a pan until golden)
1 punnet cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 packet chopped fresh basil
1 packet snipped fresh chives
1/4 tsp salt and lots of pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey/golden sugar/maple syrup/agave
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 limes, juiced and zested

directions:
In a large bowl, combine the chickpeas, onions, corn, tomatoes, basil and chives. Toss with lots salt and pepper. In a small saucepan, add the oil, vinegar, honey or sweetener, garlic, lime juice and zest. Heat over low heat and whisk until the mixture is warm and garlic cloves are sizzling a bit.


Pour the liquid over the chickpeas and and toss well to coat.Its actually lovely warm but you can refrigerate it and eat it cold if you prefer.

Travel broadens the mind...and palette...and the beauty of being alone

Yesterday, my OH and I were vegging on the couch watching Catfish, the MTV show where people are baited online by some randomer pretending to be someone completely different. (Its incredibly brilliant bad TV, and a surefire hangover cure). Anyway, the guy on the show was talking about the girl he fell in love with, and was describing nothing about her, but only what she did for him. "I love her because she makes me happy, she tells me she loves me, she's there for me, I dont feel lonely anymore, I have someone to care about, blah blah". We started a conversation about how when youre in love with someone, you really should be in love with them because of their unique qualities and not because you are lonely and want to fill the existential void in your life that sitting alone with only your own company late at night brings.

Being alone is something that always terrified me since I was a kid. I woke up in the middle of the night when I was about 5 or 6, and my mum and dad were not in the house. They had popped out to get a bottle of wine or something and both of them went for the spin. They were gone for about 5 minutes and when they came back, my face was pressed against the tear-stained glass and I was beside myself. I needed constant company as a baby, as a child, and right through to growing up. I never minded sharing a room. I liked the comfort of the sound of another human being breathing and being there at night.

When I was 21, I made a decision to travel on a round the world ticket by myself. More so than anything else, I felt it was time for me to learn to be by myself. I was going to have to live with myself for a very long time, and I may as well like my own company in the process. The day I left I was in a massive panic on the plane. What have I done? Where am I going? What the hell am I doing? But gradually, over time, I liked it. I was actually rarely alone on this journey, but I had the freedom to choose to be alone any time I liked. I could leave town at any moment and move on to the next adventure. I was in full control of every decision and I actually enjoyed not having to compromise, and the freedom that came with it. I spent a month in New Zealand where I barely spoke to a soul. I hiked endlessly, wrote diaries into the night, and did a lot of soul searching and a little bit of crying. But you know what? It cured me of the loneliness. I knew I never had to feel that way again. Because I was ok with my own company. Even if, at the end of my life, it was just me and a notebook and someplace to go walking in the woods, I'd be ok. And when you do fall in love after realising that youre ok with just being by yourself, it changes how you love someone. You welcome them into your life as a wonderful addition, rather than a plug for a hole you feel inside.

When I was travelling I learned to love lots of different new and different types of foods, spices, flavours and textures. Travel does wonderful things to broaden the palette. Fijian food was my favourite - with taro and cassava and kumala piled high on the plate, with coconut milk before and kava before and after, with its muddy, sedative drunkenness soothing you to sleep. Recently, I've been trying to experiment with different cuisines from around the world that I have never tried. My favourite over the last while has been Ethiopian food.

Ethiopian food is a smokey, thick, arid and densely flavoured cuisine (from what Ive tried). You gotta love your big, balls out flavours to love this. The curry I'll share with you now was my favourite - you can use chicken or meat, I used quorn chicken but equally you could use chickpeas or beans. I made these with injera (an adapted version of the Ethiopian injera: a sour pancake). I also made some ayib on the side, which was a simple mix of equal parts cottage cheese (curds dried), greek yoghurt and lemon juice. You definitely need yoghurt to cool it down. Dont scrimp on the spice - its seems like loads, and it is. Just follow the recipe.

Dont be scared of all the ingredients. Buy them from any asian store, and you WILL use them again and again. This recipe is absolutely gorgeous and so easy.

Doro Wat with InjeraIngredients:
3 lbs. 1 inch cubes of quorn chicken
2 large onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced (I used a pre-minced garlic from the asian store)
50g butter (I used this for a once-off, in future I'll be swapping this with coconut oil or something healthier! and less of it...)
1 cup red wine
2 cups water
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cardamom
2 Tb. garam masala
1/3 cup hot smoked paprika - this seems LOADS. Use it all.
1 Tb. crushed red pepper
2 tsp. fenugreek seeds
1 Tb. dried thyme
3 Tb. tomato paste
1 Tb. sugar (I used brown)
1 lime, juiced

For the Injera Recipe:

4 cups gram flour (you can use spelt or any other flour substitute)
2 Tb. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 cups club soda
1 cup white or rice vinegar
Oil for pan

Directions:

For the Doro Wat: Place all the ingredients, minus the lime juice, in a slow cooker or just a big crock pot/ceramic dish with lid and cover - I didnt have a lid so I used tinfoil. Cook for 2-3 hours. Then mash the quorn chicken to shreds with a potato masher (or the bottom of a ladle.) Stir in the lime juice and keep warm.

For the Injera Recipe: In a large bowl, mix flour, salt and baking soda together. Whisk in the club soda until smooth. Then add the vinegar and whisk.

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Pour oil on a paper towel and wipe the skillet with the oiled paper towel.

Using a scoop, pour batter into the skillet creating a 6 inch circle. Carefully swirl the pan around to thin out the batter until it measures 8-9 inches across.

Cook for 1 minute, then using a large spatula, flip the Injera over and cook another minute. Remove from the skillet and stack on a plate.

Repeat with remaining batter. The Injera will seem slightly crisp in the pan, but will soften immediately when placed on the plate.

Once finished cooking the Injera. Cut the circles in half with a pizza cutter, roll into tubes and stack. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Serve the Doro Wat and Injera together, tearing piece of Injera and using it to pick up the Doro Wat.

YOM YOM YOM DORO WAT. 

Lunch, raw food, and Natasha's Living Foods

Back in 2007 I went to San Francisco with my OH, and it was right around the time I was getting a bit obsessed about raw foods. I was already a vegan and had been for years, and the raw food movement was really taking hold in the US. Raw vegans recognise that the heat in cooking food destroys a lot of the enzymes and nutrients in food. When you eat brocoli raw, for example, youre likely to get a much denser nutritional profile than if you boil it for an hour.

I read countless blogs and testimonials about raw food online and although I could never commit to being 100% raw (nor do I now believe it to be something that is healthy), it was something I SO would have done had I had a little more cash and access to more ingredients. When we went to SF, I was so excited that there were actual RAW FOOD RESTAURANTS. My poor better half was incredibly supportive and tagged his cheese-loving ass along with me on endless visits to Cafe Gratitude. I bought their un-cook-book and took it home, and some of the simple juices and salads are to DIE for, but the more involved stuff took endless hours of dehydrating, chopping, juicing, mincing and messing so I never got past the few simple recipes at the front, except for an aborted raw burger episode which cost us at least €60 in ingredients and was inedible. We had another raw restaurant which we visited and my OH reached the end of his tether when he found a caterpillar in his salad. We headed to Wendy's after that for a boca burger.

I came home from SF completely psyched about raw food, convinced I'd be making my own nut milk and dehydrating flax crackers. Aint nobody got time fo dat. I gradually drifted away from trying to eat all raw, which was probably a VERY GOOD THING because I can be super-faddy about food. I tend to get a wee bit obsessive, and back in college I was very disordered about how I eat and my weight, size etc. That's a whole other story, but I have to keep a close eye on my patterns and faddishness with food to make sure I dont slip into any bad habits again.

I was absolutely delighted to see Natasha's Living Foods which set up shop in 2009 in Ireland. I've been a huge fan of her produce ever since then. Her range is all raw, and really gorgeous. She worries about all the sprouting and dehydrating and juicing and messing, and you get the delicious end result with zero effort.

Today's lunch was Natasha's Onion and Kelp crackers with Basil and black pepper sprouted chickpea hummus, avocado, red onion, and smoked almonds.

The onion and kelp crackers are made with sprouted flax seeds, sunflower seeds, onion and kelp (the sea vegetable). They're really lovely and have a rich, almost cheese and onion crisp flavour (the cheesiness comes from nutritional yeast flakes, a gorgeous if unappetising sounding cheese substitute for vegans or people who want to reduce their dairy intake). The sprouted hummus doesn't taste anything like traditional hummus. There is a spicy tartness and a strong umami flavour to it that would not be to everyone's taste, but I adore.

I topped these crackers with avocado and red onion. If you are one of the people who thinks they do not like avocado, I have news for you. Add salt. Avocado LOVES salt, and a pinch of slat brings it to life (same goes for chilli, and a dash of EVOO). If you had something gorgeous like Himalayan smoked salt or Maldron salt then all the better. But a pinch of salt brings avocado to the next level in the way strawberries dance with a little sugar and cream.

Now I want strawberries and cream. WAH. Strawberries and 0% Greek yoghurt would make a pretty epic substitute though....

PS
Before I finish, its with a word of warning that I recommend trying out some raw vegan food. Please do not go down the rabbit hole of eating disorders that are raw food blogs and forums online. They are loaded with people with incredibly disordered eating and if, like me, you can get easily sucked into that world, then you are better off steering well clear...

Jillian Michaels and the teeny dress

My name is Ciara, and I'm addicted to Jillian Michael's DVD programme, 'Ripped in 30', and I am SORE. And TIRED. And EVERYTHING IS WEAK. And I HATE her. And I love her. And the best part... I fit into my 'skinny' dress. I'm by no means skinny, by anyone's standards, but we all have a dress that lurks in the back of the warddrobe, usually strategically covered by mounds of winter clothes, that we can never fit into. I call it my skinny dress. Lots of my friends would likely swim in it, but its MY skinny dress. And I love it. And its way too short. And it FITS.

My OH bought it for me as a present after spotting me lusting over it online, but bought a size that was way to small for me. It eventually fit, but many years later I had forgone the dream of the skinny dress and cast it to the dark recesses of my wardrobe with my shame. I've been trying it on in some weird motivation/self-flagellation exercise since January. Back then, it wouldn't go up over my thighs (ho-hum). In March, it wouldn't go up over my bum. In April, it wouldn't even come close to zipping. In May, it zipped up half way. And I tried it on the other day and it zipped up. I don't look GOOD in it yet, I'm still a bit like a potato in a vaccum sealed bag, but I FIT INTO IT AND THIS IS ALL THAT MATTERS. My goal is to wear it on my birthday date night, which is in July. Fingers crossed!

I said at the beginning of this blog that I wouldn't be sharing my weight or measurements etc, but I can tell you that since February, I have lost 8" from my stomach, I'm aiming for at least 10" and I'll be happy out. YAY for progress.

Jillian is really getting me there with her punishing horrible evil disgusting awful workouts. They are based on circuit training - there are three circuits, starting with 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and one minute of abs. This takes approx 35 mins with warm up and cool down. This sounds very doable. Let me assure you that it is not and I dont care who disagrees with me. I have been training hard since January and I have found these to be the most challenging workouts of my life. Jillian hits multiple muscle groups with each exercise (think single-leg squats with a bicep curl...ow) AND THEN she hits the same muscles in every exercise in the circuit. This means it feels like your arms are SCREAMING by the end of a series... and example would be from circuit 3 last night - here's JUST the strength part of the circuit: 

1. pike push ups (30 seconds)

2. single arm left side push up (30 seconds)3. weighted elevated leg tricep dip (30 seconds)4. pike push ups  (30 seconds)
5. single arm right side push up  (30 seconds)

6. weighted elevated leg tricep dip  (30 seconds)

My triceps were aflame. I honestly have felt like puking on several occasions during these workouts. . It was a pretty big step-up in strength for me, and Ive also recently moved up to 10kg dumbells on each side (I'm probably ready to go up to 15kg at this point). I've been sticking to this pretty religiously, because I'm scared Jillian will find out if I skip a day. I'm definitely seeing results with this, on the first week alone I lost a half inch from everywhere. I havent felt strong enough afterwards to do my yoga cool down so I need to start doing yoga in the mornings now, which I have been very lazy about. Honestly this workout has me pooped, too tired to blog, too....

So overall I totally 100% recommend Jillian's workout, I've done One Week Shred too and this is WAY harder, I think this might be her most advanced workout. She's total f*cking a badass and you mightn't be into her style, she barks orders and screams at you throughout, but you can do it with the sound down and 'Sissy that Walk' blaring, like I do sometimes. Although I secretly think Jillian is totally freaking hot and I do absolutely enjoy a woman screaming orders at me. #learnedsomethingnew

Jillian is a total bitch but she gets you through it, I find her counting down and screaming "come on, two more, you can do it" really helps when I'm about to die in a gloupy mess of flab and tiredness on the floor. And when things get really really bad, there's always a RuPaul megamix.

The Punnet: review

Where I work, in Ballsbridge, there is a serious lack of good places to get healthy food. There is an abundance of 'soup and a sambo' joints (eugh) where white roll after white roll is churned out with chicken tikka and extra mayonnaise. But if you are trying to watch what you eat, or just eat healthily, there's hardly anywhere. I mostly bring in my own lunch, but when I forget, I normally have to cycle to Camden St to go to Listons to get anything remotely salad-like.

This was why I was over the moon to discover The Punnet had opened literally a stones throw away. Calling itself the home of healthy living, and a 'health and beauty store', I was delighted to see they were serving shots of wheatgrass, fresh juices, smoothies, salads, herbal teas and GIANT TUBS OF ALMOND BUTTER OMG. They seem to have positioned themselves as a super healthy store for gym bunnies, with paleo boxes and protein bars galore.

Yesterday I popped in to have a look and was impressed by some aspects of the store, and was a little disappointed with other aspects. The store was bright and clean, but the selection of products wasnt amazing. They had walls of tea, and shelves of almond butter (I'm not complaining) but it seemed like they might have been filling space with a lot of the same product. It was also more expensive than Nourish and other health food shops for coconut water, tofu, and almond butter (my quest to find the cheapest almond butter in town has led me to Donnybrook fair so far, the quest continues). They have another store in Glasthule which seems to boast way more stock and looks really fantastic, so I'm looking forward to them branching out and stocking more of what they stock there.

I opted to have a salad box where you choose a leaf, 4 veg and meat/smoked tofu for €6.95. I didn't think the tofu would be worth an extra €2 so just opted for the €4.95 salad box with no meat. After I had selected my veg, I was expecting some dressing options - but this was the biggest disappointment, there were none! They did however supply a gorgeous spicy hummus, but in a tiny tub and it was too thick to coat the oodles of salad leaves they give. I would have loved to have seen a healthy option for dressing, even a lemon, apple cider vinegar, avocado or mustard-y dressing with extra virgin olive oil. If you were a meat eater it might have been better as you would have had more flavour with the chicken or ham.

I got an apple, pineapple, spirulina, celery, cucumber and avocado juice too, which was gorgeous, and well worth the €5 as it wasn't watery or full of crap, sugar etc. It could have been a little less sweet though.

Overall, the juice was really nice, and filling. Which was good, because my salad was just a bunch of undressed veg which was pretty disappointing for €5. I think if these guys started to look into creating their own salads, like Listons (with grains like quinoa, buckwheat, some cheeses, gluten free wraps, etc) they could have a really loyal following.

I decided to go back today to give them a second chance today. I got a wheatgrass shot with apple and cucumber which was gorgeous and I could drink one every day, and a tuna, quinoa, avocado and tomato wrap which was OK, but again a little mealy and would have hugely benefited from some dressing or flavour of some kind. The tiny hummus smear on the inside of the wrap really didnt add to the flavour. I'm all for clean eating but you should SO have the option to add a clean, healthy dressing or flavour to your fillings. The large chunk of quinoa in my wrap tasted like nothing at all, which was disappointing, when it could easily have been spiked with lime juice, chilli and pepper and still kept incredibly clean and healthy.

So far, I'm only convinced that its got merit as a juice bar... but I'll be keeping a close eye on it to see if anything changes, especially in terms of their ingredients. I'm delighted to have a shop that stocks juice and health food shop ingredients, and I bought a tub of their clean version of nutella which I'm dying to try. But I wont be back for lunch anytime soon...

http://thepunnethealthstore.com/

The Breakfast Club

Breakfast can be a total pain. When you dont plan ahead, and you leave the house without breakfast as I did three times this week (because I was working at 7am), you have so little in the way of choice of something that will fill you up and still be healthy and low calorie. On Friday I decided to have a cheat and had raspberry scones with jam and clotted cream. It was absolutely amazing. But you cant have that every day, right? So what to do?

I put together a list of breakfast options that are high protein, not hugely packed with calories, and a mix of 'loads of time' breakfasts and simple, easy, day to day options. Ive linked to recipes where needed.

This is as much for myself to get back on track with my breakfast eating habits which have not been great. The other thing to say is that I have a green drink for breakfast at around 7.30am every morning except on the weekends, so I usually will eat something from the below menu at around 10am, because I dont find a green drink keeps me going until lunch.

Option 1: Porridge

Ive had a blog post about my love for porridge before. I have eaten porridge every morning, more or less, since forever. I love it, but sometimes you need a break. I'm on a low-carb kick at the moment, so am looking for high protein options for breakfast.

Option 2: Porridge substitute

You can make any of your favourite porridge breakfasts with a number of different porridge substitutes, like millet, buckwheat, or any other grain. One great substitute is quinoa, which is a grain with an incredibly nutritional structure. Its a brilliant high-protein breakfast option, and its a complete protein, meaning it contains all 9 amino acids. Its also high in iron and other minerals and vitamins, and is a bit of a powerhouse of a grain. You can just eat it with maple syrup and a nut butter, which is my favourite thing. You can add nuts too - pecans are amazing with the maple syrup. Add a touch of cream if youre not watching your fat intake :)  This is something you will need to prepare the night before. What you can do is on a Sunday, make a massive batch of quinoa, then pop it in a container in the fridge. You can then portion it out during the week (and use it for savory dishes and as part of your lunch/dinner too).

Option 3: Desert for breakfast - Chia seed pudding

Chia seeds are little nutritional powerhouses too, full of protein, omega 3s, and they absorb 10 times their size in liquid, making a kind of tapioca/semolina pudding consistency. Dont knock it till you try it.

10 tablespoons raw chia seeds
2 cups unsweetened almond milk (You can also use coconut, soy, or regular milk)
(*For a thicker pudding, replace 1 cup of almond milk with 1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt or non-dairy yogurt of your choice)
1¼ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons good quality maple syrup
Pinch of salt

Suggested Toppings:
Orange segments and pistachios
Mixed berries and lemon zest
Sliced Bananas with cinnamon and almond butter
Blueberries, toasted almonds and maple syrup

Place the chia seeds in a medium bowl. Add your almond milk, yogurt, and liquid ingredients. Cover with cling film and pop in the fridge overnight.

During the summer this makes a great cold alternative to warm cereal, and chia seeds are nutritionally amazing.

Option 4: Eggs

I always used to see people talking about having eggs for breakfast, and who the hell has the time for that sh*t? You know who? Everyone. Because they take hardly any time to make. You can have a scrambled egg on toast in 3 minutes, tops. You can have an omelette or a poached egg in 4-5 mins. Preparation is key for anything 'involved', so the night before, you can chop any ingredients you'd like to have in your egg - making a basic breakfast omlette, I'd chop one chilli, 1 clove garlic, 1 small onion, a handful of cherry tomatoes, and mix with 2 eggs, salt, pepper, oregano, and a drop of milk/almond milk. Pop this in a frying pan first thing in the morning and youve got an amazing breakfast. Serve with sliced avocado, a squeeze of lemon juice, roasted tomato and a slice of spelt bread. You can serve regular scrambled eggs the same way, or a perfectly poached egg. On the weekends, I add vegetarian sausages and fried onions.

Option 5: Pancakes

Ive given a recipe for protein pancakes before, but you can make any pancake healthy by substituting white flour for wholemeal, gram flour (chickpea flour), coconut flour, spelt, or any other kind of alternative to white flour which is nutritionally empty and fat-making. Keep your recipe simple, 2 eggs, 100g of any flour, 300ml almond, coconut or other dairy alternative, and add anything else you like - chia seeds, flax seeds, etc. Fry with coconut oil or EVOO, and top with chopped banana, nuts, maple syrup and nut butter. Yum! Using a blender, it takes approx. 10 minutes to make a stack of pancakes.

Option 6: Fruit and yoghurt with a protein shake

If youre pushed for time, a great breakfast is simply a pot of 0% greek style yoghurt, poured over a punnet of blueberries, raspberries and a sliced banana (or any fruit of your choice). You can supplement the calories and protein by including a protein shake with this. I'm in love with chocolate protein at the moment, its like having chocolate milk for breakfast, and its delicious.

Option 7: Cereal

If you absolutely want to have a bowl of cereal, there are a few you can choose from. But all processed cereals are high in sugar, salt and sometimes calories. Dont fool yourself into having special K, you may as well have a bar of chocolate for all the goodness it gives you. You'd be much better off sticking with something as natural as possible - weetabix, all bran or museli. This is my last resort for breakfast as cereals are just pretty crappy when it comes to being healthy and filling a lot of the time. Read the side of the box before you buy and compare sugar and sodium levels!

Hope this is useful to some of you for whom breakfast can be tricky. Happy breakfasting :)

Yogalife.

When I was 21 I walked into my first yoga class. I didnt have a clue what to expect, and wasnt able to get into most of the poses. The teacher, however, was so inspiring, and infectiously enthusiastic for the benefits of yoga, I came back. I shook and shuddered and whimpered my way through thousands of downward dogs until I mastered many of the more complex poses. I was eagerly striving to be able to do all the yoga poses, especially the advanced ones. I had lots of ego wrapped up in striving for this mastery - wanting to be the best, wanting to impress my teacher, wanting to rock the shit out of it. But more recently, my yoga practice has become less about trying to master and more about just going with what feels comfortable. And this is a precise mirror of how I am now trying to approach my life.

When I graduated from University with a Masters, I was determined to get a really great job. Something that sounded important and made me lots of money. A couple of jobs later, and I wanted more qualifications. More letters after my name plz. I began a PHD and spent 3 years striving to master this. After 3 years chasing someone else's dream (trying to be what my family and what I thought society expected of me), I unceremoniously quit. Quitting was incredibly powerful and cathartic, and since then, I have become less and less seduced by mastery and more and more about what feels good and right for me in the moment. I had a realisation that no one really gives a fuck what youre doing, so long as youre happy (not even your grandparents who proudly gush about their grandchildren's PHDs, high flying executive jobs, etc). No one who loves you wants you to be unhappy to prove a point.

While I was on holidays, I googled 'yoga teacher training Ireland' for possibly the 100th time. I found the school Ive looked at time and again. I searched my emails for the contact address. In the past 10 years, I have emailed this school 7 times asking about their next course. Each time, I told myself it was a luxury I couldnt afford, and I needed to focus on my career.

Now I'm 33, and I have been in several great and some not-so-great jobs. Some have sounded fantastic on paper. None have been fulfilling. None have been working towards my passion. I began to ask myself, what is the point of striving to be better and better in a field where you really couldnt give a shit? Sure, I can be good at my job, but who cares if it doesnt make you happy?

Yesterday I made a financial plan with my beautiful and ever-supportive other half, and this week I'll be enrolling to train as a yoga teacher in September. I'm taking another couple of courses along with this and in a years time hope to be out of my desk job and working for myself 100%. I cant wait to finally give myself permission to begin this journey I have been waiting to take for ten years. I'm writing this here because my blog has been a fantastic way for me to hold myself accountable for my dreams and goals. And I'm writing this to make sure my life never becomes about trying to master for the sake of mastery, but rather keeps focus on what is comfortable, what is good, and what I love to do. Fuck the desk job.

Post holiday blitz, and what I learned while drinking my own bodyweight in wine and eating cheese and pasta

One week ago I came back from holidays in Portugal, where I stuffed my face like a complete pig and let everything all hang out. I went to the gym 4 times to keep myself fit and not drop all my motivation but aside from that, it was diet out the window. I spent the entire week reading, and read a couple of fitness and health books that have been really inspiring and have helped me have a much better awareness of the science behind the kind of workouts Ive been doing (weight training and body-building, less cardio). 

One thing I learned while I was over there eating 100% carbs (damn vegetarian food on holidays is all carbs and fruit!) was that carbs make me feel AWFUL. White pasta, pizza, breads etc - all make me really ill. I felt sick, tired, lethargic and sometimes anxious after eating. Also I drank lots of wine which I had been avoiding and this made me feel hideous altogether. I loved my holiday but I could NOT wait to get back to my proper diet and get something green into my belly.

One of the books I read while I was away was The 4 hour body by Timothy Ferris. Timothy is a life- and body-hacker and multi millionaire from silicone valley, and has worked all his life to refine body building and optimum health and nutrition for a low body fat and high muscle density physique which is what I'm trying to cultivate. The book goes into extreme detail on diet, supplements and training regimes. He's much more focussed on the diet though, and the more I work out, the more I know that my diet counts so much more than anything else. Even though I'm pretty sceptical about these kinds of 'diets', as what he advocates is so close to what I'm already doing, I'm going to do his diet for 30 days and let you know how I get on. Today is day 1.

Ferriss's Slow-Carb Diet

Ferris reckons you can lose 20 pounds in 30 days without exercise, by introducing what he calls a "slow-carb" diet. I'm always allergic to anything that promises a quick-fix, but the rules are are simple, intuitive, and tried and tested (see the 4 hour body forums), and worth a try. 

Here's what you have to cut out: white bread, white rice, potatoes, and other white carbs, whole grains and steel-cut oats, all fruit and dairy (except cottage cheese). This will be a challenge for me as I have porridge most days for breakfast :( I dont think I'll be sticking rigidly to the diet beyond a couple of weeks, by I'm going to try as much as possible to stick to it initially and test the theory.

He also suggests eating the same small meals over and over and over again.

He allows two glasses of red wine each night (preferably a dry Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Merlot). “Red wine is by no means required for this diet to work, but it’s 100% allowed (unlike white wines and beer, both which should be avoided).” Lucky for me as I love red wine, but have been limiting my intake seriously over the last while, and doubt I'll be having two glasses a night....

Finally he allows for one full binge day per week, where you break all the rules and have what you like, but you use supplements, food (like cinnamon) and exercise to keep your blood sugar regular and ensure your body doesnt store the binge food as fat. This is explained in detail in the book and is fascinating science so I'm going to try it.

Other stuff in the 4 hour body

Another thing I'm going to take from the book is the use of supplements, which I havent used before. He recommends the use of a fat-burning stack called PAGG. PAGG is a combo of 4 different supplements, taken in a combination at particular doses: Policosanol, Alpha-Lipoic Acid, Green Tea Extract and Garlic. All these simply increase your body's ability to burn fat. If youre interested in finding out more about the science behind this, just google PAGG stack. I'll also be supplementing with Magnesium. 

He also advocates something that I'm going to try but am not happy about: cold showers. He talks in detail about how plummeting temperatures can significantly help with fat burning. But really I am just excited about the challenge of cold showers, because I'm a cold creature and always tend to have boiling hot showers and HATE the cold. It'll be good for my mind to overcome the discomfort, so Im happy to try this without the fat loss benefits.... well, happy is a strong word... :)

Day 1:

Breakfast: Poached eggs with roasted tomato
Lunch: Giant salad with lentils and chickpeas
Dinner: Taco salad and roasted sweet potato chips
Snacks: Nuts

This salad is my life

Chop: red onion, tomato, avocado, chilli, garlic

Shred: spinach and flat leaf parsley

Process: 6-7 florets of broccoli until the texture of cous cous

Add: puy lentils, chickpeas, cayenne pepper and cumin

Dress: with udos oil and the juice of one lemon, lots of pepper and  a pinch of salt

Mix and eat. 

YUM.

Taco salad and bikinis

I'm going on holidays on Sunday - and I think I might bring a bikini. The thing is, I'm in my early 30s and I still have never worn a bikini. In my whole life. Primarily this is because I never went on a sun holiday until I travelled around Oz, and by the time I got to the good weather (I arrived in Perth in winter, which is a slightly less shitty Galway-in-spring-style weather) I had already consumed VAST VAST quantities of boxed wine and stubbies. I was in NO shape for a bikini. My first ever proper sun holiday I had the fear so no bikini was packed. My last sun holiday was January, and I was MAHOOSIVE and honestly, could not fit into my one piece let alone a bikini.

Now I must be realistic here. I'm still in no shape to be in a bikini. I am not ripped. I have not got a flat stomach. I have rolls and flab and squishiness that I know will be highly unflattering. But the fuck-off-fairy is here, and I've decided to bite the bullet and buy one. I need to fulfil this life long ambition. Ive worked my arse off and eaten clean since January. I'm rewarding myself with not giving a fuck and wearing a motherfucking bikini.

In terms of my itsy bitsy VERY EFFING SLOW progress, Ive been consistently working out with my trainer and at home, and doing a butt-load of yoga every single day which I'm loving. My friend Claire teacher hot yoga in a new studio in Stoneybatter and Ive been popping along there to sweat it out. I'm nearing my goal weight which is fantastic, but even so, my goal feels kinda miles away. But while I'm on this path and Ive gotten almost to where I want to be, I may as well keep going. I have new goals too now: to be able to do 5 x pull ups, to get to 25 push ups in one go, to learn to bench some serious weight, to get a little bit ripped. Now that I'm this far along the path of getting strong, I'd love to see how far I can push myself and what I can achieve. BEASTMODE.

In other news I made a faboosh taco salad last night and thought I'd share the recipe with you.

Taco mix:
1 tin refried beans or red kidney beans
1 bag quorn mince
1 onion
1 pepper
1/2 tin sweetcorn
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp coriander
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper
1 red chilli or 1/2 tbsp chilli powder
1 tbsp hot sauce
1-2 tbsp tomato paste
4-5 cloves garlic (reduce according to your taste!)
Lime juice x 1 lime
Fresh coriander
Sweet potato (with paprika, garlic, lime juice and olive oil to serve)
Sliced avocado
Low fat yoghurt

1. Fry the onions, add the garlic, peppers and sweetcorn and fry until soft
2. Add the quorn mince and fry for 2-3 mins
3. Add the rest of the ingredients, stirring all the time, and add 1/2 cup water
4. Simmer for 20-30 mins. While simmering, slice sweet potatoes into chips. Take 1/2 the chips and slice them into strips (like in a taco salad). Pop them in a bowl and add 1 tbsp paprika, minced garlic or garlic powder, and olive oil. Mix them up and bake in a hot oven for 10-15 mins, turning mid-way. Add lime juice 2-3 mins before theyre done.
5. Add fresh lime juice and fresh coriander to the taco mix, and serve with the sweet potato strips on top, chips on the side, some yoghurt and sliced avocado. Oh and some salsa. YOM.

Cauliflower rice is actually amazing - THIS IS NOT A JOKE.

For the last few months I've been (in the evenings) carb and (all the time except for cheats) dairy free, which meant I've been relying a lot on curries and other Asian dishes which normally have rice with them. There is something so satisfying about rice despite how utterly bland it is. I have been desperate for a no-carb alternative to rice, and kissed a few mealy, wormy, disgusting rice substitute frogs along the way. Then I discovered cauliflower rice.
HOLY. FUCKING. SHIT. 

First of all, unlike rice which is a big fat empty carby will turn to sugar nothing food, cauliflower is VERY good for you. After citrus fruits, cauliflower is your next best natural source of vitamin C. It's massively anti-inflammatory. Cauliflower is also packed with fibre, folic acid, and potassium contents. Cauliflower is like winning the antioxidant and phytonutrient lottery. Some studies have shown it to be cancer-fighting. Its an all-round good guy.

So here's how to make cauliflower rice. Step 1: put a head of cauliflower into a food processor and whizz. Step 2: put into microwavable dish and steam in the microwave for 7 minutes. Step 3: Add anything you like. Thats it. It is so ridiculously simple. I added salt, pepper, Udo's oil and lemon juice. My OH suggested pilau rice mix would be nice to add to it as well, which I'll try when we're eating Indian food next! You can fry it too if you're feeling saucy. And if you're feeling VEE saucy, throw a load of sharp cheddar on top of it and pop it in the oven OHGOD.

I'm incorporating cauliflower into my diet more by having cauliflower rice, and I'm going to try this recipe as a side, this recipe next because it looks decadent and amazing (but probably a cheat night meal...) and this recipe sans the lamb because OMGYOM.

I thought I'd share the recipe for a super simple dish I had last night and has been a regular staple in our meal rotation for years. I adapted the recipe from one on BBC by Bill Granger, the smug, self satisfied, Aussie c**t. That guy and his aryan children and perfect Sydney middle class life can go to hell.

Could you get any more smug Bill Granger with your perfect kitchen.

I'll share what I used to have with it before I was going carb-less too - pitta chips. They're LOVELY. My OH made a tzatziki to go with this which was gorgeous!

Chickpea and tomato chilli

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 red onion, finely sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger - or use Garlic and Ginger paste from the Asian supermarket - an amazing time saver!
• 1 or 2 green chillies, to taste, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 X 400g/14oz tins of chickpeas, drained
• 80ml/2¾fl oz water
• 1 tsp cumin / 1 tsp corriander / 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp turmeric
• freshly ground black pepper
• 500g/17½oz cherry tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato paste or puree 
• 100g/3½oz baby English spinach leaves

To serve

• plain yoghurt or tzatziki
• pitta bread
• olive oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• paprika - LOADS
• Cauliflower rice

Preparation method

1. Heat a large deep frying pan over a medium to high heat.
2. Add the oil, onion, garlic, ginger, chillies and salt and cook for five minutes (or until the onions are soft) being careful to stir regularly.
3. Add the chickpeas, 80ml/2¾fl oz water, cumin, turmeric and pepper and cook for five minutes or until the water evaporates.
4. Add the tomatoes and tomato puree and cook for another ten-fifteen minutes to soften, adding more water if it dries out.
5. Remove from the heat and check for seasoning.
6. Stir through the spinach and top with yoghurt/tzatziki.
7. To make the pitta crisps, cut the pitta bread into triangley bits and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika.
8. Bake in a moderate oven for 10-12 minutes or until crisp.

Aside from my new love affair with cauliflower, all else is going ok. My journey towards having a flat stomach (the ultimate goal!!!) is slow and plodding. I'm impatient and my resolve gets tested. But every day I show up to the mat. I push a bit harder than the day before. I add a little more movement into my day. I try new exercises and things to do to keep active. I exercise for at least 1-2 hours per day. I strictly eat according to my diet except for 2 cheat meals per week which I am LIVING FOR HUNTY. 

Sometimes I find the impatience is overwhelming and I feel like I'm not getting anywhere, so my trainer Chris told me to take progress photos (this was after a nasty bout of PMS and a run-in with a scales). Progress photos are ugly pictures you take of yourself in your knickers in front of a mirror so you can see, like PHYSICALLY SEE, the changes to your body over time. This has been helpful because when I think nothing is happening and life is a mess and I may as well have a wheel of cheese, I look back to the first photo I took and realise that I have changed. And slowly, slowly catchy monkey. And all that noise. (now fast forward to skinny plz.)

My diet and workout regime... all work and no play makes me something something...

A few people were asking me to post my current diet and workout regime so this might be a bit of a boring post unless you are on a health kick as well. My biggest vices are delicious white carbs and red wine. I havent given up wine altogether but I'm drinking sweet FA at the moment. Refer to my previous post about my scumbag brain that I have to trick into thinking that I'm not giving up anything... so I tend to have really small amounts of both (barely worth having!) just so it doesnt kick up a stink about feeling deprived and then go on a binge.

I had to keep a food diary for my trainer so he can review where I am at right now, so I thought I could share it with you. I'm working pretty hard physically at the moment so a little treat on my 'cheat meals' is fine, but otherwise, my diet looks like this:

Breakfast: Green blended drink (kale, spinach, apple, lemon, hemp protein, chai seeds, cucumber, celery)
10 am: Porridge with almond butter, almond milk and maple syrup or green scrambled eggs (eggs with hemp protein powder) and roasted tomatoes or poached egg on spelt toast
Lunch: Large salad with carrot, brocoli, tuna, tomato, hazelnuts or leftovers from dinner the night before (small amount of carbs here usually)
6pm: Coconut milk and whey protein powder shake
Dinner: Yesterday was falafel with tabouleh, tonight is a light yellow curry with no potato and no rice

I'm on less than 10% carbs at the moment, probably more like 5%. I'm off dairy at the moment too which is not really a problem as I was vegan for years so would eat a largely vegan diet normally anyway. When I have a cheat meal, all I want is ONE GIANT CARB. I had Indian the other night and has a giant masala dosa, which is a potato curry pancake. Practically a carb inside a carb. COVERED in yoghurt. I was in heaven. My other cheat meals usually HAVE to involve cheese. OMGCHEESE.

In terms of working out, I'm doing a mix of low intensity duration cardio and HIIT.

I cycle for over 1 hour a day, I power walk the dogs for 30 mins - 1hr. I have been doing 20-30 mins HIIT with either Zuzka Lite or Jillian Michaels using her 30 day shred programme which is HARD AS HELL! Jillian is a power lesbian who screams at you, I happen to quite enjoy this...

Then in the evening I have usually a 30 min weight protocol (I'm on a three day split at the moment meaning I do a different workout every day for three days and then start at workout one again on day four). I do this six days per week.

I cool down with 20 mins yoga. Ive been occasionally going to hot yoga classes when I have time, and doing Bellydance classes for 2 hours per week as an extra.

When I get to my goal weight and I'm just in maintenance mode, I'll be able to increase carbs and re-introduce dairy. I'll probably be able to reduce the intensity of the workouts as well - probably doing HIIT 3 days a week instead of 4-5, etc. I cant wait!

I've got quite a way to go from here, at the moment I'm desperately trying to trust the process, keep my chin up, and work hard. I've lost 5 inches from my hips and waist so I'm pretty happy that I am progressing and it is actually working, even though lots of days I just feel like flinging myself on the ground and going to sleep.

Because I clearly hate myself and want myself to be in pain (I'm blaming Jillian Michaels) I really want to run Hell and Back this summer - if anyone has read this far I'm assuming you have some level of interest in fitness and might be up for doing it with me? I'll definitely need a companion... to dig me out of the mud when I go for a nap... face down.....

Hot m%+¿~¥f%'€¥¢ing yoga

It began with my very lovely and fabulous friend Claire saying casually to me that she was teaching at a yoga studio in Dublin, and was taking a yoga class herself there the next day, and would I like to come along. I jumped at the chance of joining a class where I knew and trusted the teacher, and so I bounded along like a springtime bunny to meet her after work. I started yoga 14 years ago - FOURTEEN. Man I'm old. The first ever yoga class I took was with a fabulous South African guru-style teacher who lived on a planet of his own and was a friend of mine at the time. Myself and my cousin Shane went along to his class and spent most of it pissing ourselves laughing at his banter which was largely focussed on how we can all abandon psychadelics because yoga was going to bring us to such crazy places in our minds, man. He was off the hook hilarious. We'd all go for a feed of pints afterwards (this ended up being the main attraction of yoga - the pints after). I practiced daily even after our guru moved away (He's now teaching T'ai Chi in Thailand and, I'd bet, eating mushies for breakfast), and kept up the practice on and off since then. I always come back to yoga, its my happy place. I started out in Ashtanga, a vigorous form of yoga that is pretty challenging compared to some of the more chilled out, meditative forms. For me, I dont really want to ever sit and watch my breath - it doesnt suit me. I wrestled with meditation my whole life and I just cant do it. But I can when I'm doing yoga. I distract myself from myself, which after many years reading many spiritual books and meditation guides, is the very essence of meditation in a nutshell. I tried a few other forms but today, I was about to attend a Bikram studio for the first time. The class was a Vinyassa flow which is the toughest workout you can get in yoga - but in a hot room like Bikram (40 degrees Celsius). As I had so much experience in yoga, I thought I'd be grand. HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

I arrived and rented a towel and a mat, already in my yoga gear having changed before leaving work. (This is an important detail). Claire set up my mat behind her and I followed her tentatively into the studio. The first thing that hits you is the wall of heat. Its like when you step out of a plane to a tropical climate - the air is thick and stifling and wet. I sat on my mat and eyeballed the door. There were approx 3 rows of mats between me and the door. People would notice if I tried to escape. The class was going to be 90 mins long, I had been in the room approx 3 minutes and I thought I might puke from the heat. I had no fucking clue how I was going to last and started to predict what would happen. I'mgoingtofaint. I'mgoingtovomit. I'mgoingtorunoutoftheroomscreaming. Clairewillneverbeallowedteachinthistownagainanditwillbemyfault.Panic was setting in. I dont do well in the heat, I told myself. Why am I here. Oh God.

A stunning, lithe woman took her place at the front of the class and greeted us. She said hi to the couple of newbies in particular (there were about 3). There were about 30 people at the class. I stood at the top of my mat and willed myself not to fall over, as she had just outed me as a newbie. And it began - no messing around, no warming up, just straight in there. Suddenly I was upside down. My vision started getting weird. Time began to expand and contract wildly. It all went a bit fear and loathing as I wondered 'how long have I been here? will this ever end?'. The teacher paced through the moves quickly - with no rest and no bullshit. I began to sweat.

I dont tend to sweat that much. Even with mega-cardio, I'll get a little bit sweaty if I'm killing it - but rarely. I'm a very un-sweaty person. This is genuinely the most I have ever sweated in my life. At one point the teacher said "this isnt going to last forever". I did not believe her.

About half way through the class, something completely fucked up happened. I was wrestling with myself the entire time wondering if I was going to die, panicking about needing water, trying not to pass out, sweating. Then, it happened. I was in downward dog, with a RIVER of sweat ACTUALLY FLOWING OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD. I have never seen this much sweat coming from anyone. And it hit me. I'm doing it. I thought I couldnt. I was afraid I would die. I was terrified. But I did it anyway. And now... I think... I was enjoying it! I sweated and pushed my was through the rest of the class, inelegantly twisting and contorting (as opposed to my friend Claire who is a true yogi, glistening gently and pretzeling into the most unimaginable positions (with a smile)... The class came to a close and I was SATURATED... like I'd been caught in a monsoon. My hair was stuck to my face, my clothes were drenched. I lay down on the mat and realised I had nothing with me to change into. Fuck. I stuck with the last few moments of breathing and the teacher opened the door. The breeze was 9 million kittens licking my face with their little sandpapery tongues. I was in heaven. I felt really proud that I hadnt panicked and ran away. Not only that - I was feeling amazing - light, refreshed, in a great mood - and ready for the next class. I was IN my body for the first time in a long time, and it felt incredible.

Next time I opted for a Bikram class and I enjoyed it a lot too - it was a lot less intense and in fact I think I enjoyed the intensity of the previous class. Bikram is more a test of endurance in the poses - you have to stick them out - whereas Vinyassa is more focussed on moving through the poses. I felt the teacher was a little less sympathetic in that class - she pointed me out a couple of times for not going fully enough into the poses despite me gesturing to her (in front of about 30 people) that I had an Achilles injury which stops me sometimes from going too deep into the poses or doing one leg poses as fully or for as long as I'd like. That was kind of off-putting and embarrassing - think they need to work on calling people out in class - but aside from that the workout itself was fantastic.

I've been 3 times and am definitely going again this week, for hot vinyassa flow this time. I cant recommend hot yoga enough if you really want to push yourself, if only for the absolute buzz you get afterwards... but just remember to bring a change of clothes......

http://www.inityoga.ie/