The High Fat Diet - 7 Days In

I apologise that this may have gone up slighter later than usual but I was waiting for my latest weigh in to see what my current body fat percentage is looking like now I've hit the half way mark!

First things first though, I promised to give you my thoughts and an idea about the sorts of things I've been eating. At the time of starting this post (i.e. the next couple of paragraphs) I was still undergoing the 4 day pre-tox stage. It's designed to get your body used to the diet and will help your body to realise that sugar and carbohydrates won't be hitting it any time soon and therefore, it needs to burn fat in order to get energy.

These few days started well, on the Saturday after a full day on the plan I felt OK having scoffed Greek yoghurt and berries for breakfast, chicken for lunch and a rather frittata for dinner.  I did feel a little bit peckish as I was heading towards bedtime but I suspected this was my body trying to trick me into munching on some sugars. The start of Sunday I was feeling a little weak but this is something I expected as my body hadn't quite realised it needed to burn fat instead of sugar for energy.

By Monday, I had full on 'carb flu,' my joints were feeling achy, my mind felt foggy and by home time, all I wanted to do was sleep. Whilst I managed the 12 minute work out routine, it was a struggle but I pushed it as hard as I could. Again, I didn't feel hungry but the temptation was definitely there to pick and to nibble, especially knowing that all it would take was some white rice and I'd be feeling right as rain. Tuesday marked the final day of the pre-tox and I woke up to a very achy lower body but I managed a good nights sleep and hoped that my body would finally make the switch to burning fat instead of seeking out sugar and carbohydrates.

I used the 4 day pre-tox stage to familiarise myself with the at home work out plan and found it was tougher than expected. I certainly felt the burn, that's for sure.

What kept me going during the early days was seeing my tummy looking better already, knowing that I was eating more than enough in terms of calories (around 2000 a day) and that my body would get the hint eventually.

Wednesday marked the first day on the full plan and the end of the pre-tox so naturally I climbed on the scales and was delighted to see I'd dropped down to 26.4% body fat and lost 4lbs in the process.

I was hoping things would get easier from here on in and thought I'd share some photos showing the sorts of things I've been eating.

This might not look pretty, but it was pretty scrummy and believe it or not, this is breakfast. It's cream cheese, walnuts and chorizo. Other breakfasts have featured heavily in cream cheese, eggs and avocado, all of which are very creamy and incredibly satisfying!

Lunches have included dishes such as the above which is spinach, feta, walnuts, pumpkin seeds and mint. Other dishes have included salad with mackerel, mozzarella with home made pesto and tuna with avocado.

Dinner meals are when I get most of my protein, as you can see above, for dinner last night I was able to munch on spicy chicken wings with celery and a guacamole style dip made with, you guessed it, cream cheese!

So, now you've seen what I've been eating, as a half way update I can confirm I've now lost 6lbs and this morning I was 26.3% body fat. Whilst it's not a massive difference body fat wise since Wednesday, I'm not 100% positive that my scales will be totally accurate on this front.

Anywho, 6lbs in 7 days and 1.9% body fat down is serious progress. I can't wait to see the results when I finish the plan next Friday.

Please stay tuned to see my final results next week.

Teapigs - Pick 'n' Mix

I drink a lot of tea, not your usual run of the mill everyday breakfast tea, I myself happen to be a lover of green tea be it green tea with lemon, or one of my personal favourites, green tea with mango and lychee. Yummy!

Every so often, I get the urge to try something new and had spotted the brand Teapigs popping up more and more in my local supermarket. As I'd never tried anything from their range before I popped on their website to see if they did smaller packets of tea so I could 'try before you buy' as it were.

The website certainly didn't disappoint, there was an option to select 12 different mini packs of tea for £15. Each mini pack of tea would contain two tea temples and there were 28 varieties of tea to choose from! You can have a peek HERE.

Now usually, I wouldn't blog about this kinda thing, but look how pretty this is! I think this would make a wonderful gift for a tea loving friend, especially when you consider that you get to select the contents. It's actually a pretty thoughtful thing to do and I'm sure the recipient would appreciate the time and effort which had gone into selecting just the right teas.

I myself kept things fairly safe and did order a couple of repeats as I had a feeling that I'd know which ones would be my favourites.

 My selection was as follows:

• Chocolate Flake Tea- Assam tea with real chocolate flakes, this stuff was awesome and I shall be getting a full bag
• Marakesh Mint - Green tea wtih mint
• Mao Feng Green Tea - A green tea with hints of peaches and apricots, I ordered two of these and I love their delicate subtle flavour
• Rooibos Creme Caramel - I've never tasted Rooibos prior to this point, it has a fairly woody and nutty flavour and the addition of caramel flakes gives a real sweet kick which would make this perfect to satisfy any sugar cravings you may have
• Silver Tips White Tea - Tastes delicate and light and something I've enjoyed first thing in the morning
• Yerba Mate - An incredibly smoky tea (think whiskey but without the alcohol) which gives a good hit of caffeine to keep you focused without the horrible coffee caffeine crashes. It really does keep me perky and I've loved it so much, I have already stocked up on more!

• Liquorice & Peppermint - This really helps if you've got a dodgy tummy and certainly keeps things nice and calm. It's naturally sweet and strangely moreish and doesn't taste anything at all like the black stuff used to formulate liquorice allsorts
• Pure Lemongrass - Pretty much what it says on the tin
• Popcorn Tea - This is an usual one, green tea with toasted rice which gives it that authentic popcorn flavour, the plain stuff of course, don't go thinking it's sweet!
• Super Fruit - A lovely fruity tea formulated with elderberry, blackcurrant, blueberry, lingonberry and hibiscus, I reckon this'll be delicious during the summer month

As you can see each pack is nice and diddy and has a cute little story on the back telling you the tasting notes, and how to brew each tea to get the best flavour.

I've been using each tea temple twice, so four cups per tasting pack, meaning that my pick 'n' mix selection has lasted me a fair old while.

What I really liked about the Teapigs tea temples was not just that they contained proper leaves (we're talking whole leaves here, not the grey leaves you find smooshed up in your usual super market tea bag), whole herbs and whole flowers but the tea temples as they're called at Teapigs are made with a special mesh which allow the perfect brew.

I reckon this'd make a lovely gift be it to yourself or a friend and is a fabulous way to try something new.

Can A High Fat Diet Help Me Shift The Fat?

Now bear with me and please don't go freaking out, I promise I've not completely lost my mind. I realise that from the title alone, many of you are questioning how on earth this sort of thing can even work?

Firstly, I should add a little more information in that the fats which I'll be eating won't just be any old fats, we're talking avocado, smoked salmon and certain nuts. 

Next, I won't be eating this way forever, the diet plan itself lasts around 14-days during which I'll be undertaking short sharp bursts of exercise of around 12 minutes per day and cutting out the carbohydrates completely. 

Sounds to good to be true right? 

Apparently not! Having looked into the reason why this way of eating works the logic is that by cutting out the carbohydrates, your body is forced to burn fat for energy! Some people have claimed to loose as much as 8lbs of fat in 14-days and this seriously appeals to me.

Ever since I injured myself a couple of years ago and ended up on crutches for several months, I've really struggled with my weight and general toning. My body just doesn't seem to respond to anything be it working out or eating right. 

I really want to give my body a good kick start so I can get to where I want to be with my figure. I have a very clear image in my mind about what I'm looking for and what I want my body to look like namely the below. It's always good to have an end plan so you know what you're working towards!

This was a time when I felt pretty confident in my body image. My body was responding well to exercise and my thighs were nice and toned (I've always had runners thighs so they're pretty big but most of that's muscle). 

Whilst I didn't have a 6-pack, I felt that my tummy was pretty flat and there was some good definition around my waist. This is what I'm aiming for and this is my motivation. This picture was taken in 2012  when Ad and I were away in Lanzarote and we had such a lovely time relaxing and scoffing lots of tapas style dishes. Point being, it wasn't that long ago, so I know it's something my body can achieve!

Now we've discussed my motivations, I think we should move on to why I'm blogging about my newest venture. Well that's easy, I know my readers might be interested in seeing how I get on so I thought I'd share my journey with you including some starting images and figures (although not my weight as I don't want people criticising me here) and also sharing some pictures of an average eating day whilst on the plan!

Today (21st February) marks the first day of mine and Ad's new routine, yup, I'm dragging him along for the ride. I've stocked up on some supplements such as magnesium and a multi-vitamin which really helped me during a previous clean and lean style detox.

So here we go:

• Waist - 28 inches
• Tummy - 33 inches
• Body fat - 28.2%

I'm not huge by any means, but I'm not confident right now and I do want to get my figure back.

So, stay tuned and I'll let you know how I get on!

Have you tried the High Fat Diet? 

Liebster Award - A chance to get to know me better

I was very kindly nominated by Eden Markl to take part in the Liebster Awards. For those outside of the world of blogging this is an internet only type of thing and is a way for bloggers with less than 200 followers to build a bigger audience. The idea being you graciously thank the blogger who nominated you and pay it forward.

As a fun fact, Liebster is actually German for dearest. I know that's useless information for most of you, but still super cute.

As part of the awards, I get to answer 11 questions which Eden wrote for me. So without further adue:-

1. If you could interview anyone in the world (alive/dead) who would it be?

This is an easy one, Audrey Hepburn

2. What would your dream job be?

Working in the beauty industry, waffling on about skincare

3. Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?

Finally married and in my own house.

4. What is your favourite meal?

Pizza with my special spelt flour base and Ad's gorgeous home made tomato sauce - delicious

5. Tell me one thing about you

I'm currently in the process of telling you eleven things, do you really need another?

6. If you could go out tomorrow and buy one thing, money being no object, what would it be?

Business Class flights to New Zealand to see my family

7. Where is your favourite place to sit and let the world go by?

The Southbank Centre on a sunny day with a ginger mule in my hand

8. What do you love most about blogging? 

It's a great outlet to write about the things I'm passionate about namely raising awareness about mental health issues, beauty, food and burgers.

9. If you could work and PR for any brand, who would it be? 

Soap & Glory, I'm yet to find a product I don't like and their branding is really good fun!

10. What is your dream job?

No disrespect Eden, but you asked me this one already, see question 2 above.

11. Why did you start blogging?

As with question 8, it's a good outlet for me, I love to write and whilst my readers don't always interact with me, I can see people are clicking and reading which is always a good thing!

In the interests of paying it forward, I can confirm the rules (per say) are as follows:-

1) Link back to the wonderful person that nominated you

2) Answer the 11 questions given to you by the person who nominated you for the award.

3) Nominate 11 bloggers who themselves have 200 or less followers and LINK back to their blogs, this is how we all continue to grow and build our own following

4) You should come up with your own 11 questions for the people you are nominating to answer.

5) Then you need to notify your nominees so that they know and can answer and join in, this is where social media comes in handy

My questions are:

1. Why did you decide to start blogging?

2. Who you admire most in the blogosphere?

3. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

4. Why have you think nominated for an Liebster?

5. What do you consider your greatest achievement to date?

6. If you could change one thing in your life, what would it be?

7. Whose is your favourite blog to read and why?

8. What would you like more time to write about?

9. Travelling, Cooking or Singing, choose one and why?

10. What's your favourite blog post (from your blog) that you've written?

11. Where's your favourite place to eat out?


My Nominations:- 

Emily's recipes and reviews 
Call me Kim
Fitbits 
Built Like a Boss
The Fashion Ramblings
The Little Fawn
Best BB Creams
Deliciously Yum!
With Wonder & Whimsy

After nearly an hour of trying to figure out how to find new and/or bloggers with less than 200 followers on Bloglovin I have given up and decided to cut my losses. I've listed 7 bloggers above, most of whom I already follow and read on a regular basis! Please do check them out!

Omorovicza- Introductory Kit- A Review

I was one spoilt lady over Christmas, this is the first year that I've had almost everything purchased from my Christmas Wish List. Being a bit of a beauty obsessive, my list naturally featured some beauty goodies which I'd been desperate to try but just hadn't had the opportunity to buy for myself.

One such item was the Omorovicza 6 Piece Introductory Kit which is £42 from Cult Beauty. Regular readers of the blog will know that I'm a big fan of introductory/starter kits like this as they're a fabulous way to try out a brand without having to commit to paying full price for any one product.

This particular set contains some of Omoroviczas best selling products and they're all packaged together in this cute little travel case. 

Inside you get the following products:

• Thermal Cleansing Balm - 5ml - An oil based balmy cleanser which packs a serious punch owing to the fact that it's formulated with thermal mud, plenty of vitamins and minerals. It removed every speck of make-up (including waterproof mascara) from my face whilst drawing out any impurities to leave my skin lovely and clear. 5ml lasted two to three weeks with me using it every evening as a little goes a long way. I'll be purchasing the full size me thinks.
• Instant Plumping Cream - 5ml - A super rich cream which is marketed as a bit of gem for those of us with dehydrated and dull skin. You apply this in the evening and the hyaluronic acid goes to work overnight to plump up the skin. Whilst this was nice, I wasn't AMAZED with the results, plus, at £105 a pop for the full size, I reckon I'll be sticking with one of my go-to products. 
• Deep Cleansing Mask - 15ml - This little beauty is infused with the Hungarian healing waters and mineral mud which Omorovicza is famous for. It's rich in calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc which basically means it works to brighten the skin (it definitely tingles) even out skin tone and of course with all mud/clay masks, it draws out any impurities. I was pretty chuffed with this albeit I am a little put off by the £57 price tag. Birthday wishlist maybe?

You also get:

• Cleansing Foam - 30ml - A blue foaming cleanser which again, helps to clear congestion and sooth sensitive skin. I was a little wary of this as it's a foaming cleanser,and foaming cleansers usually dry out my skin, but I was pleasantly surprised with this as my skin was left soft and supple after using.
• Queen of Hungary Mist - 30ml - Now THIS is one of the big reasons I wanted this kit. I'd heard so much about this cult product, including the fact that it had been formulated for the Queen of Hungary herself whereon it was so successful as a beauty product that a 25 year old proposed to her when she was at the end of her life! Now I'm not sure about that, but what I will say is this smells wonderful, and I've been using this at the toning stage as it's packed with good stuff to keep my skin looking and feeling hydrated and dewy. Again, I'll be purchasing this when it's gone.
• Illuminating Moisturiser - 20ml - This moisturiser is packed with Vitamin C, Vitamin E and the usual goodies one would expect from Omorovicza. It's super light in texture but doesn't compromise on the hydration front. It keeps my skin looking lovely and glowy thanks to the ruby crystals and is a product which will be great to take away on short trips! At £85 for the full size it's certainly not cheap so I've been saving this for special occasions.

Overall, you should have gathered by now that all of these products contain the Hungarian Thermal Water which is of course the basis for most (if not all) of the Omorovicza line, it's this water which is packed with lots of lovely goodies such a calcium, magnesium, zinc and copper which keep your skin looking wonderful. All of the products smell incredible, almost herbal like, it's certainly not over powering in any sense and I'd say the smell makes it suitable for both men and women.

My two LOVES from the range are the Queen of Hungary Mist and the Thermal Cleansing Balm, both of which I'll be purchasing ASAP. The Instant Plumping Cream was ok as was the Foaming Cleanser, but I know of two cheaper alternatives which do the job just as well so I'll be leaving these. Whilst I love the Illuminating Moisturiser and the Deep Cleansing Mask, they're both a little pricey so I'm unlikely to treat myself to these and I'm more likely to ask for pennies towards them at special times of year...that's totally acceptable right?

Which of these products would you most like to try? Have you used Omorovicza before?

Givenchy- The British Beauty Blogger Edit- A Review

I've had a hit and miss relationship with beauty boxes over the last year or so, first I was obsessed with the Birchbox, then it was the turn of You Beauty Discovery Box, I'm a fickle creature me. Anywho, Jane Cunningham over at British Beauty Blogger has done a few of beauty boxes in association with Latest In Beauty, each with an awesome array of goodies, however, I've never shared a post with you as they're always guaranteed to sell out! Lucky for you, this extra special box is still available to buy HERE.

So, here's the skinny, this is a special box done in association with Givenchy and contains a selection of goodies which Jane has hand-picked as some of her favourites from the brand. Being a Givenchy virgin, I thought this would be a fabulous opportunity to try the brand and get to know them a little better.

The box itself is presented beautifully (excuse the dent, the postman was clearly feeling a little careless), and comes wrapped in gorgeous black Givenchy paper with a little booklet with some more information on the wonders within the box itself.

As you can see, it's jam packed full of goodies and this little selection will only set you back £18.95 with free delivery. I think this is fabulous value for money.

There's a bit of everything in here ranging from skincare, to make-up and even a couple of fragrance samples. It'd make a wonderful gift for a beauty loving friend and it's a lovely way to introduce yourself to the Givenchy beauty world. 

On the skincare side you get the following:

• Hydra Sparkling Luminescence Moisturing Cream - 5ml  - A cream formulated to deliver a hit of hydration whilst creating a luminous finish. According to the booklet the formula is a cooling gel like texture meaning it's light on the skin. I've not tried this yet but it sounds like it'd be ideal for summer.

• Hydra Sparkling One Minute Glow Powder - 0.5g - To use, you simply tap a little into the palm of your hand before adding a tiny bit of water and massaging into the skin for a smooth and cleansed complexion.

• Hydra Sparkling Nude Look BB Cream - 2ml - A smoothing and hydrating cream with added SPF30. It claims the texture is fluid and easily blendable giving skin that "your skin, but better" appearance. I'm always a bit nervous about BB creams as my complexion is super pale but I shall give this a go at home and see how I get on.

On the make-up side you get:

• One pot for a free 5 day sample of Givenchy Foundation & Free make-over - All you need to do is take this little pot to a Givenchy counter to have it filled with a sample of your choice. While you're there you can also get a free make-over as well.

• Phenomen'Eyes Mascara: The Iconic Reinvented - 4g - Reformulated to give more length, more curl and more definition which is set to launch this year. The brush is certainly unusual but it means you get right in there to catch each and every lash.

• Mini Le Rouge Lipstick in Shade 202 Rose Dressing - 1.5g - This is the sweetest little lipstick I have EVER seen in my entire life. The shade is fabulous and feels incredibly light on the lips once applied. Just one swipe over my lips was enough to pack a serious punch and after smothering my other half in smooches it left a lovely light stain on my lips.

Finally on the fragrance side of things we have:

• Dahlia Divin & Blotter - 1ml - This is presented in a sweet organza bag which I'll keep for my jewellery whilst travelling. The fragrance is floral and slightly musky and not something which I'd pick for myself but it was lovely to have the opportunity to try such a recent fragrance launch.

• Gentleman Only & Blotter - 1ml - Again, presented in a sweet organza bag which I've popped somewhere safe. It smells woody, spicy and has a slight citrus note to it, naturally I've passed over to Ad to have a play and see what he thinks.

I'm sure you also spotted the gorgeous little Givenchy coin pursue which just makes this box seem extra special.

Overall, I think this really is a lovely little selection of goodies and I'd highly recommend getting your mitts on a box as soon as possible. For a little over £18, it's great value for money and is a super opportunity to try the Givenchy range.

What do you think of Givenchy British Beauty Blogger Edit? I reckon it's an absolute peach!

Bootea Teatox -28 days in and I'm finished

Regular readers of the blog will know that over the last 28 days, I've been trialling the Bootea Teatox. If you missed my introductory post, you can catch up HERE, if you missed my 14 day update on how I was getting on, you can catch up with that post HERE.

Rather than repeating what I've said in those two posts, the main things which I have noticed over the last 28-days are as follows:

• My skin seems clearer and has more of a glow. This in turn has made me feel confident enough to go without any make-up most of the month
• I have been drinking a fair bit more, I've found the tea has made me feel quite thirsty, this could be a placebo effect, but more fluids should mean my body is being 'flushed out'
• My tummy is a lot less bloated 
• I've not suffered with any stomach pains during the 28 days (WIN!)
• I've actually been able to 'go' every other day which is a marked increase from once a week if I was lucky!

As a side note, whilst I wasn't using the Teatox to loose weight, I've actually lost about 7lbs. Now, I wouldn't just take that as being purely down to the Teatox, I have been making more of an effort to listen to my body and eat what I need, rather than just stuffing my face with whatever is on the plate.

BUT, as my stomach is less bloated this of course means you can actually see more of the tone and definition on my arms and stomach.

Swings and Roundabouts people.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you're using the Bootea Teatox to help flush out the rubbish from your system, help with bloating and to encourage your body to work the way it should then I am all over the Teatox. I've already stocked up on the Bedtime Cleanse as I found it to be 100% effective and just what I needed.

IF however, you're using the Bootea Teatox to loose weight, then please bear in mind that you can't just sip the tea and hope for miracles, you'll need to a) either follow the eating plan which Bootea provide or follow you're own healthy eating plan and b) exercise. Let's not forget people to loose weight, you need to be burning more than you're putting in!

I hope you've found my Bootea Teatox posts useful, if you do have any questions, please do let me know either on here, via email or via Facebook - no question is off limits!

Warner Brothers Studio Tour - The Making of Harry Potter *SPOILERS*

If you're planning a visit to the Warner Brothers Studio Tour in London and fancy a wee insight about what to expect then please do keep reading. I will give you some handy hints and tips which I picked up during my visit and share some of my own pictures from our recent visit.

If however, you don't to know what to expect then please stop reading now!

So, first of all, I should preface by saying my lovely little sister bought me two gift tickets for Christmas. Before we were able to go, we had to pre-book our tickets (TIP: Make sure you pre-book your tickets, you cannot just turn up on the day and expect to get in!!) so we had a look online and saw that until the 1st February, they were doing Hogwarts in the Snow.

This meant that the Hogwarts Castle would be covered in snow, the Great Hall would be decorated for Christmas with Christmas trees and their would be seasonal feasts lining the tables. We'd also be able to see the hand-knitted jumpers that Mrs Weasley gave Ron and Harry for Christmas in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Before you book your trip, it's well worth checking online to see what's on, in March, the Hogwarts Express will be paying a visit to the studio which sounds pretty exciting!

We pre-booked our tour to start at 11:30 (TIP: the website says to get there 20 minutes before your tour starts) and decided the best way to get there was to hop on a train from Euston to Watford Junction, the train cost about £10 ish return for each of us. 

From Watford Junction you get a shuttle bus to the Studio which costs £2 for a return ticket, they don't tell you this and I stupidly binned my ticket and had to pay another £2 to get back to the train station. The driver wasn't having my excuse of "look I've lost my ticket but how else do you think I got here??" so please put your ticket somewhere safe. The buses are fairly frequent and leave every 10 minutes or so.

The bus trip was about 10 minutes tops and when you arrive, there are some little tickets machines to the right of the main doors where you can grab your ticket to get in. If you have a voucher for a Souvenir Guide, you'll need to pick this up from the Information Desk inside. They recommend doing this after the tour but I grabbed mine before as I knew I'd forget to pick it up before I left.

Once inside, there's a large cafe to the left, the gift shop is to the right and there's a cloakroom for storing any large suitcases/pushchairs or generally anything you don't want to lug around with you. As the tour was fairly quiet, we were told we could start our tour early and so happily joined the queue.

There are some bits and pieces to look at while you're queuing, so don't worry you won't get bored. I'd strongly recommend nipping to the ladies/gents before you start as there isn't another one for a little while. Once you're in, there's a couple of movies which you'll watch with everyone, and a pretty cool cinema section. Then it's on to the Great Hall.

The Great Hall and Cinema Section are the only aspects of the tour which are guided, the rest you can do at your own pace. There are two 'lots' the J Stage and K stage, in the middle of the tour, there's the Back Lot which is where you can buy the famous Butterbeer and take break for lunch (TIP: It took Ad and I around 3 1/2 hours with lunch, so leave yourself a good 3 hours at least to enjoy the whole experience.)

All of your favourite bits and pieces are available to view, and there's even the opportunity to ride a broomstick or have a go in Ron's little blue car. Rather than setting everything out blow by blow, I thought I'd just pop some pictures below for your viewing pleasure, including some of the extra bits which were about for Hogwarts in the Snow.

 Just some of the wigs used.

 The Ministry Of Magic Fireplaces.

 Someone's very pink office!

 Some gorgeous artifacts used in the movies.

 The lovely knitting skills of Mrs Weasley.

The Gryffindor boys dormitory. 

Sipping a Butterbeer.

 Just wandering about on Set.

 The Knight Bus

Privet Drive

 Dobby

 The Basilisk

 Hanging about in Diagon Alley.

 The Hogwarts Castle

An edible momento.

I hope you enjoyed my sneak peek and that some of my tips prove to be helpful in arranging your own visit to the Warner Brothers Studio Tour.