Goals

Making it H”App”en

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Staying fit and healthy would be so much hard without a little bit of help – I don’t pay for a trainer or a nutritional advisor but I do use a lot of Apps to keep me motivated and on track. 

So I thought I would write a little post about the main ones I really couldn’t without:

TomTom My Sport

I have a fitness tracker watch, which I wear all day everyday, except when I need to charge it! and this has an app on my phone which allows me to see everything from the watch. It tracks my daily steps, my heart rate, how many calories I have burnt and things like that. When I go for a run, bike ride or a swim the watch will also track that and log distance, pace, elevations and a map of the route. 

The watch connects straight to my phone so I can see exactly how things are progressing. 

Calm/Headspace

I am pretty new to the meditation world, but I am really starting to enjoy it. I started using the Calm app which I would simple breath with. It encouraged you to take a big breath in and hold it for a second and then let it out. It is so simple but it really does make you feel so much better if you are having a moment. 

The Calm app also has a few other features which include stories to help you sleep, sounds to help you relax and a meditation course where you are talked through different sessions. The free version allows you access to quite a few sessions, but you can pay to gain access to all of them. I only have the free version and think it is really good and more than adequate. 

I have also just started to use the Headspace app, this app is helping me learn to mediate. So far I am on session 7 of the take 10 series. This is a series which encourages you to take a little time each day to stop, breathe and allow your mind to accept thoughts, sounds and distractions but to bring your focus back to the breath, This is an app that you have to pay for but if you have a premium Spotify account, you get one year free.  

YouTube

I know this isn’t just an app, but I love YouTube and I really do use it all the time for workouts and watching my favourite foodie and fitness vloggers. 

Clue

This is a bit of a weird one, typically people use a cycle app when they are trying to get pregnant – and that is certainly not what I use it for!! I really like being able to see how I am feeling on in the run up to my period. 

What apps do you use to keep you motivated and on target? 

 

Smart Scales

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I do love a bit of technology when it comes to fitness, I think if it is used correctly it can be really helpful. It allows you to push yourself and your training into another level which you wouldn’t be able to do on your own. I think making tracking your activity and progress really easy enables you to stick to your goal and really understand what is working for you and what isn’t.

The iHealth smart scales track 9 different aspects of your body composition, including weight, body fat percentage, BMI, water weight, lean mass, bone density, visceral fat rating, daily calorie intake and the temperature and humidity of the day.

The scales connect to your Wi-Fi and then automatically upload any new results on to your phone via the iHealth app. You can have multiple people using the scales and check them separately, which is pretty cool, as then your whole house hold can get in on the action.

The app allows you to set a target with your weight, your BMI and your body fat and then you weigh yourself regularly, while the app keeps track overtime on a graph. The graph allows you to really see exactly how you’re going with your goals and makes it really visual. 

The scales are white with four silver circles on, the overall size of the scales are quite large, but they are not too bulky and they can easily be packed away. The app is a little bit old school and a little bit clunky but it really does what it says on the tin. Once you’ve connected your scales to your Wi-Fi and downloaded the app there isn’t really much more you need to do other than to set your goals, and weigh yourself as often as you would like to.

I’m not a big believer in weighing yourself every day get hung up on your weight, however with the scales it shows the different elements as well so your BMI and your body fat. I have no idea how to calculate your body fat from standing on a scale but it seems pretty accurate.

Since I received the scales I have managed to put on weight, but my body fat has stayed the same, so I am taking that as a positive! 🙂 The scales can be ordered online from iHealthlabs.com and cost $129.99. 

Do you use any smart scales or bits of technology to help you keep on track? 

** These products were gifted to me by iHealth but the opinions and pictures are my own. 

30 Day Challenge – Week 1

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Week one started really well, I had planned food for the week and planned out the hits sessions for each day. Even though the meals look pretty small and the workouts look really hard, I was really looking forward to getting stuck into it.

The main aim behind the protein well challenge was to decrease intake of food and increase calorie expenditure by working out – This I can understand however I’m not a big fan of cutting down on food.

With my long work day I’m used to planning out food to the last ingredient. So planning my food for this week was quite exciting. The protein world website and a great range of different recipes for me to try. 

The one thing I really wasn’t too sure about with this challenge, was the tablets I was supposed to take. The first tablet was a fat metaboliser tablet and the second one was a hunger buster. I’m a bit of a wimp when it comes to taking tablets so was a little upset at the size of these ones and not 100% confident in taking tablets to make me less hungry or to help me lose fat. I am supposed to take the tablets three times a day just before food.

So, Monday come around and the food was great feeling pretty happy I decided to take on the first hit session. I didn’t anticipate just how hard this would be. I hate to admit it but only managed to complete half of the reps. In my head half was better than I right?

Tuesday, I woke up feeling a little sore from the workout but really determined to face the day and snatch the challenge. Again there is a planned out to that part was easy the only difficulty I had was taking the tablets. Again I up for the work out and managed complete the full set.

The rest of the week follow in a pretty similar fashion, really enjoying the food and really give it a good shot at the workouts. The weekends are where I really find it difficult to stick to a plan. I’m always pretty busy at weekends either working events, going home to see the family, or generally just meeting up with people that I haven’t seen in awhile.

Again throughout the whole week I was pretty rubbish at taking the tablets, I would always forget that I needed to take them before I’d eaten and then I remember after and then thought there was no point taking them!

All in all week one done really well, the food was lovely the workouts are hard but fun and I feel pretty happy.

 

** These products were gifted to me by Protein World, but the opinions and pictures are my own. 

How do you plan to be more Rooster?

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Right, well I know I am massively late posting this one, but I really enjoyed the idea of it so I thought I would write it and put it live anyway! 

So everyone knows about the tradition new year that happens on the 1st January, its that one occasion where people get together and probably over indulge a little too much (or in most cases a lot too much!) But the majority of people will go on to the new year with hope and aims and even some resolutions that they hope to stick to making the year their best one yet. 

However, this is not the only new year of the year! The Chinese new year fell on the 28th Jan and 2017 is the year of the Rooster! But did you know that a roosters best qualities include:

  • Honesty
  • Punctuality
  • Ambitious
  • Hardworking
  • Observant

So when the people at `Leesa got in touch and asked me how I was going to be more Rooster this year and what I can do to be a better, stronger badass than I already am (their words, not mine! 😍) I thought it was such a good idea, I had to write about it! 

I continued my tradition of setting goals for the year and then setting smaller ones that I will focus on one month at a time – I feel this is the best way for me to stay motivated to my goal and keeps me on track! 

This blog is obviously about a healthy lifestyle and I think for the first time in my head that doesn’t just mean food and fitness, it is also about learning and mindfulness. I want to become more educated about subjects I love and want to know everything I possibly can about. 

Along with educating myself I want to challenge myself, so I have decided to do something new each month, be that visit a new city or county or try some new food/ new workout or even try a new skill. I have started listening to lots of different podcasts on my commute which is helping in this! 

I have also decided to start writing a to do list for the week – and this is for both work and home! I tend to forget a lot of important things and then get annoyed at myself! So this should hopefully stop this. 

I am really excited for 2017 and I am going to be more badass than I already am! I am going to focus on what I want and I am going to achieve it. 

How are you going to be more Rooster? 

 

February Goals

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Erm, how is it February already?!?! 

Anywho, here are my goals for the month ahead…

Actually finish my book 

This was a goal for January but I have just been so busy with the new job and the commute I just didn’t get around to finishing it. I don’t have too much more to read so will make sure I  get this finished this month. 

Book a race

I have been toying with the idea of entering the Humber Bridge Half Marathon, so this month I am going to make a decision and book it. And if I decided not to do that one, I will pick a different event to enter – then I will actually have a target to train for. 

Step at work

I have been at my new job for just over a month now and I have massively lost my steps, as I am now driving to work and not walking! So I am going to make sure I get out at lunch and get some steps in. I might even bring my kit in and go for a quick run! 

Blog more

I really want to get into a good routine with my blog and start posting at least twice a week. The ideal plan would be to post on a Sunday and a Wednesday each week. So I am going to try my best to stick to this for the rest of the month. 

Drink more

In all honesty I think this goal is going to be on my monthly goals every week. There is never any harm to increasing water intake! 🙂 

What are your goals for this month? Let me know by either commenting on this post or tweeting me @RunningLife01