Saturday 26 May 2012

For a brief moment today whilst laying out in my bikini, the smell of freshly applied suncream wafting past my nose and the extreme heat of the sun burning my shoulders, I completely forgot I was in England.
How amazing is this weather?!

To escape the heat of the sun, I ventured indoors and baked Oreo cupcakes. I've been cooped up in bed with a rotten cold the past few days and felt the need for a sweet treat, especially as i've been so good at sticking to my healthy eating (see below post)

Now I am not much of a cook but my wifeskills improved somewhat after these badboys. Nom!

Hope you are all enjoying the weather (before it no doubt turns to torrential showers again next week!)

Tuesday 22 May 2012

Summers coming...!

Hi ladies!

Summer is looming and I have retreated out of my winter blogging hibernation, finally!
With a mere six weeks until I jet off to the glorious sunshine of the Canary Islands, I am embarking on a health and fitness mission to get myself in tip top shape to rock the three new bikinis that I have recently purchased.

A year or so ago, a male friends holiday photo album popped up on my Facebook newsfeed and among the photos was a pic him or one of his equally laddish mates had snapped of a girl in her bikini from behind, and she had the most incredible derrier I have ever seen. Quite frankly, if i had been there with the lads, I probably would have done the same (although for inspiration purposes rather than perving purposes, tut tut boys)
Anyhow, it is this picture that has inspired me to work my butt off quite literally in the run up to my summer holiday. The thought of having a derrier so hot that strangers want to take pictures of it is all very shallow but oh so satisfying!

As i've mentioned in previous health/fitness posts, the aim of this isn't to lose weight. It's to shred and tone up. I'm fortunate in that i've always been slim (I am 5ft 4, size 8/10 and currently weigh in at about 8st5 which is pretty average and healthy for my height) but I have never been toned and now the time has come!

This was me last August on holiday with 'Ex Crush' (Who I am totally over, i'm pleased to report!) - slim but by no means toned, and to be honest I don't think i look very nice in this picture.

And so, my quest for the ultimate bikini body has begun, with the aid of Ministry of Sound's latest DVD, Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, a drastic change of diet (goodbye chocolate, goodbye copious amounts of alcohol, hello vegetables & protein) I have also enlisted the help of MyFitnessPal, a free iphone app that tracks your dietry intake and calculates how many calories you should be taking in/how much exercise you should do per week in order to reach your goal weight (I specified a couple of pounds lighter, but again weight loss isnt my goal)

I have started taking my own lunches to work so i know exactly what I'm eating, and have as near as cut out chocolate, instead opting for fat-free low cal yoghurts and fruit to eat as snacks instead.
I also follow @myonlinefitness12 on Twitter because they offer great nutritional advice straight to your mobile (if you're on Twitter as much as I am, it's like having a personal trainer in your pocket)

So this time round I am totally motivated and dedicated to sticking to my health and fitness plan and reaching my goal of looking snap-worthy in my new bikinis....Bring on the Summer!!

x

Saturday 31 March 2012

AWOL!?

Hellooo.
Wow, I really have been AWOL from the blogosphere for a really long time!
My usual excuses - laptop is useless, work has been busy, etc etc....really do love blogging but sometimes there just isnt the time!
I thought id sneak a post in to let those of you who still visit my little blog (hey there!) what I have been getting up to.
Workwise i've had some really exciting projects on that have enabled us to actually leave our London studio and venture out into the big wide world...or at least to other parts of London!
Recently I was floor manager at Twickenham for the huge England v Wales rugby game

(Our wonderful makeup artist Carla & I having some pre-match posey pictures in the stands)


(Team Blonde rocking the talkback headsets)
This was my first time using talkback and it was so wierd having the director talking in my ear and yet having the noise of an entire stadium of rugby fans also in your ear!

I also worked as a coordinator on the England v Holland match at Wembley. I love Wembley, so exciting being a part of it all! I even spied the England team arriving, but quickly got ushered out of the way and banished back to our truck!

Lastly, i have finally ventured to Sugarhut! For those of you who watch TOWIE you will know Sugarhut is Micky Norcross' club/restaurant - i highly recommend you visit, it's a lovely venue, very packed so get there early, but its a great night out! I felt like a proper tourist haha.

Hope you are all well - looking forward to catching up on all of my favourite blogs!!

Saturday 11 February 2012

Ear Candy

I Heart the Weekend

Last night a group of us went out clubbing as a send-off for our lovely friend Nat who is going travelling around the world for 18 (!) months

(My bff Laura, her man Matt, & me - Laura's dress is from Lipsy London & mine is from River Island, current stock & diff colours available!)

We danced the night away, and amazingly I woke up without a hangover hurrah! It was so nice going out on a Friday night for a change as it meant I still had the whole weekend ahead of me to do as I pleased - and so, I decided to turn today into a total chillax day. Spent the best part of the day lounging around reading magazines, then this evening I whacked on a facemask, had a Champneys bubble bath, ordered far too much from the Indian takeaway and settled down on the sofa in my Lipsy tracksuit to watch Take Me Out (Damion and Francis..shocking excuse for men)
All in all, I would say it was an evening of pure bliss!

As nice as the takeaway was, it's made me realise that I really do need to get back on track with Holly's Healthkick/Operation Victoria's Secret Model. Right now, I'm on the NHS website trying to get clued up on healthy eating and nutrition before I devise a serious plan of action. I'm thinking along the lines of healthy eating Monday - Friday with regular exercise, and then a guilt-free weekend foodwise. This, combined with regular workouts should hopefully do the trick! I did the BMI Healthy Weight check on the NHS website and I am a healthy weight for my age/height but as I mentioned in a previous post, I really do want to tone up to improve my overall confidence, so changes to my diet and fitness routine are key.

Does anyone know of any good fitness blogs or youtube channels? I love Tone It Up - Katrina and Karena are great!

Sunday 5 February 2012

I HATE SNOW!

As amazing as snow makes everything look, i cannot stand it. It's definitely true that the older you get, the less magical snow becomes as you start to realise the sheer chaos it causes, and how dangerous it actually is.

Last night we had a big night out planned, and thinking that the snow wasn't due until today, we got all dolled up ready for our night out and I left the house to discover it had already started snowing. Being a relatively new driver, I have never driven in snow before and I was terrified! Took is slow down the motorway and was relieved to get to my friends house in one piece! Our friend then drove us to town and as we got onto the motorway there was a car facing the WRONG way...terrifying!!

Completely inappropriately dressed for the weather, here are some pics of our night out:




We had a great night, until the snow came down too heavily and all of the taxi drivers gave up and retreated home, leaving us stranded! Walked the treacherous walk to the train station in the snow and ice...ruined my best heels and lost one of my rings in the process...ended up getting a bit emotional then having a very uncomfortable sleep on the sofa of a friends house MILES from home...got in to my house at 4pm today after a mission back to my car, then another scary drive in the snow!!

Hope you all have happier snow stories to share!

Wednesday 25 January 2012

Holly's Healthkick #2

Today I went shopping with the mother to the new Westfield centre in Stratford City.
Whilst there, we stopped off for lunch at Strada where we both had pasta in a cheese sauce with rockett and parma ham (and far too much parmesan, cant get enough of cheese, it's definitely my downfall!)
This in itself, not so bad, but then naughty mother tempted me into dessert of chocolate mousse & strawberries - one day i WILL go a whole day without eating chocolate!!

I came home and worked out to my new Ministry of Sound workout DVD.

I love working out to the MOS DVDs because they play music that I love and take a really fun approach to exercise with their high energy dance workouts.
This one is probably my favourite of the lot (i've tried quite a few of them over the years) as the presenter talks you through each step, and it's not too hard to follow.
So far i've only tried the warm-up, tone up, and bums tums and thighs section of the DVD which are KILLER but do-able..you really do feel the burn afterwards!!
The dance workout sections look so much fun, but i feel like i need to get my fitness levels up before i even attempt these. My issue is that i cant dance. I love getting dressed up to go clubbing but on the dance floor i seize up and get mega paranoid that all my friends are such hot movers and i am stiff as a post. This is why i cant wait to try these dance sections as i feel they will definitely help me get some rhythm in my life!!

Have you tried any workout DVDs that you would recommend?

** images borrowed from Google. Thank you Google.

Monday 23 January 2012

Need to get me one o' these


A button to stop the urge to text ex-Crush would be wonderful. Gah.

Hollys Healthkick #1

So today i am feeling the burn from my Ministry of Sound workout DVD...everytime i got up to walk to the printer I had to hobble!
Been relatively good today in terms of healthy eating...porridge for breakfast which i've started up since before Christmas. This is supposed to be really good for you - I tried original porridge and in all honesty I really didnt like it, no matter how good it's meant to be for you! Then I discovered flavoured porridge - Cinammon is my favourite! - you can get it in individual pouches which are great for portion control. If you have a microwave at work, definitely worth taking it in with you to eat first thing at your desk if you don't have time for breakfast before you leave. If you don't, it only takes a couple of mins in the microwave :)

For lunch I took in a tin of good old Heinz raviolli (stole it from my parents cupboard..trying to be budget and stop buying expensive lunches in London!!) I also took in a bar of Lindt Lindor 70% cocoa dark chocolate - after lunch I ALWAYS want to eat chocolate (Cadburys Snack Bars are my downfall, damn you canteen vending machine) so I figured if i must eat chocolate, it's better to go dark.

For dinner, my mum made chicken and vegetable soup. Nice and healthy. Then I went and blew it by having a melt in the middle chocolate pudding...d'oh.

The thing I always think with healthy eating is to stick to under 2000 calories per day. This is the guideline calorie intake for women, so by staying under and combining this with exercise, you're bound to see results and stay in shape, no need for silly extreme diets.

Sunday 22 January 2012

This post is inspired by the stunning Kayleigh over at Couture Girl.
I love a post about health and fitness - as much as i love reading about beauty products and whatnot, lately health & fitness posts have become my new favourite reads.
Since my recent breakup, I feel that the best use of my time as a single girl would be to work on myself, -rediscover all of the confidence I lost over my last two relationships, and the best way to start would be to work on my body confidence. I've always been slim, but i've never been toned. Knowing how good it makes you feel to work out and see results has inspired me to really kick start a health and fitness routine. Especially now that I have an awesome holiday to Vegas in the pipeline for the summer, I have a goal to work towards.

Que workout outfit pose


What I want to do is fully tone up every inch of me, especially my stomach, bum and thighs. I've got this dream to have a body like a Victoria's Secret model....although i will NEVER have the time to work out as much as required to achieve this!!

My trouble is time. As I work in London, I have to commute in for an hour, and an hour and half commute home, so by the time I get in it's already 8ish and then the last thing I feel like doing is going out again to the gym. I used to use the gym down the road but I really didnt like it, always struck me as quite a grubby gym. So then I joined a gym that was a 15 minute drive up the motor way and I loved it and made good use of it over the summer whilst we had a break from work, mainly swimming because the pool was always quiet. Since being back at work though, there just isnt the time to drive all the way over there. Eventually I let my membership run out, but i'd love to join up again.

In the meantime, i've been doing home work outs and running and already im seeing results. So this, combined with healthy eating will hopefully be what it takes to regain my body confidence. So irritating that a guy can make you feel so shit about yourself eh? But yes, time to put all of that behind me for a healthy, happy 2012!

Apologies if this was a bit rambling!!

Saturday 21 January 2012

Girl on the platforms smile...

I love the Match.com advert with the guy serenading the girl on the train platform...TOO cute.
I'd give anything for a romantic encounter like this, but sadly i think my mind has been warped by TV and film and moments like this dont actually exist (has the breakup really turned me this cynical!?)

So i have a rotten cold, currently home alone downing several glasses of Cosmopolitan in an attempt to distract myself from sneezing. I literally cannot wait to look in the mirror and not immediately be drawn to the fact my nose gives Rudolf a run for his money..to be able to actually see a point in wearing makeup again because right now there is no point!! Erghhh. On the plus side, I had Paddy McGuiness and Take Me Out for company.

I then attempted my new Ministry of Sound dance workout DVD, which from the segments I have tried so far, I think I will love! Especially when I am back to full health and able to fully throw myself into it. Spent the day walking the dogs over the lakes, and then a quick trip to Halfords for a new battery for my car, which refused to start yesterday conveniently when I needed to drive to meet friends for Thai dinner.

Slightly dissappointed that we had Kelly Brooks hot man on our show today and I wasn't working...gutted!

Watching Notting Hill now, woohoo!
Hope you are all having a good weekend :)

Saturday 7 January 2012

TV just got good...

This weekend saw the return of my ALL TIME favourite show (besides TOWIE)...Take Me Out!!

Friggin LOVE Take Me Out...i will gladly forfeit a night out to stay in with a takeaway in my pjs with Paddy and his cheesy lines :D

Another show i'm all over is this years Celebrity Big Brother. Loving the 'celeb' lineup...playmate twins, Kirk from TOWIE, Romeo, a whole host of hot girls (which one will Kirk end up with!?) and the most vile male on the planet..Frankie Cockozza.

Honestly..the girls in CBB could not be more gorgeous. I have major hair, figure, and face envy. Particularly over the gorgeous Georgia Salpa who could not be any hotter!!!

How unfair is it to look like this?!

Anyone else watching CBB this year?
x

Thursday 5 January 2012

Nothing like a squishy-faced dog to put a smile on your face :)

Today I had a midweek day off as i'm working on Sunday for the FA Cup. My mum and I decided to take a trip in to town, as I needed to purchase some new trainers because I've somehow managed to lose mine. Honestly, who loses their trainers?!
Initially I went in to Footlocker to scout out some proper running trainers, as I figure i'll probably need some if im going to train for and run a 5k this year. Once I saw the terrifying £90+ pricetags I decided to venture in to Sports Direct and purchase a cheap and cheerful (yet super cute) pair of pink and white Londsdale trainers for £19.99..much better. Once I got home I even went for my first run of 2012...granted it was only round the block but that is definitely a start!
Other purchases were of the mundane necessities variety - facewipes, deodorant, shampoo & conditioner (had my hair cut and coloured today so needed some colour support products). Also made one rather cheeky purchase...a JLS Calender! Needless to say this calender will live on the month of August for the duration of 2012..and maybe even beyond.


* Dog image from Weheartit. I definitely heart it.

Wednesday 4 January 2012

Ho Ho Ho

Bit belated with my Christmas post (!) but thought id share some snaps from Christmas at my family home.
I usually really love everything about Christmas (bar Christmas songs that start in July)..my mums decorations, buying presents, Christmas food, being with the family etc etc, but this year was slightly overshadowed by the breakup. Christmas only managed to magnify how lonely I felt. However, I still had a lovely day and was spoilt rotten by my wonderful family :)

Some gorgeous pressies, including a Tiffany bracelet from my brother and his girlfriend, Prada perfume from my mum, a massive box of Champneys spa goodies from my lovely boss, Zumba fitness on the Wii, pjs, chocolate oranges, a River Island watch, vanilla champagne candles, and an amazing Crabtree & Evelyn Vanilla Creme Brulee lip butter which really deserves a post all of its very own! The VS bag contained some VS Pjs, and an awesome leopard print laptop case from my ex boyfriend. The Louboutin bag is a limited edition bag from a 1000 dollar pair of CLs, my ex brought it all the way back from Australia to England for me, wrapped up in a whole packet of clingfilm so it didnt get damaged, what a sweetheart :)

All the decorations came down today, back to normality..

Sunday 1 January 2012

Hello 2012!

Happy New Year blogosphere! I spent NYE in the company of my cousin in London, clubbing & then trotting (painfully, in heels) around the city watching party goers getting up to mischief, and befriending policemen.



1. My cousin Steph & I
2. My NYE dress (Lipsy London, £40 -i think?!)
3. Molly on New Years Eve...she hates it as much as i do
4. Molly on New Years day - She picked the movie

Hope 2012 brings wonderful things your way :)