My Love Hate Relationship with Mini Eggs! I absolutely love Mini Eggs! When they come in the shops on Boxing Day (how did that ever become a thing?), I have to look the other way when I pass them in the supermarket! Although I do allow myself as many as I need to get my tax return done (which is a good reason to leave it to the last minute), I don’t recommend this - it’s really not good for the stress levels! But it isn’t only Mini Eggs. I love chocolate. And that makes Easter a real problem as I just can’t stop myself if it’s in the house, and have therefore just spent the last week g ..read more

  Sometimes things just don’t work out as planned! In my last blog, I was extoling the virtues of self-care in January, a month when we could perhaps take things a little more slowly, sleep more, enjoy the simple things in life - a walk in nature, hot chocolate in front of a warm fire, reading a book wrapped in a cosy blanket, a massage.  Well, I hope that's gone well for you, but it all went to pot for me when my son came home from skiing with stress fractures in his spine, the builder decided to come two months early, my car sprung a fuel leak, I had two weekends fu ..read more

  Confession - I’ve not been looking after myself! I’ve just spent the last 10 days with a nasty winter cough/cold/flu/covid virus. Shock horror - I’m not immune to all the ailments and illnesses - I’m not perfect - I don’t always do the things I tell my clients they should do - and as a result, I sometimes get injured or sick or worn out or stressed, or all at the same time! In fact, often at this time of year, I end up forced into bed because I’ve basically run myself ragged trying to do everything, and I often reach for processed carbs for fast energy (schoolboy error obviously!) maki ..read more

  The benefits of beetroot - for all of us! Beetroot - a root vegetable which has a bad rap. It stains your chopping board, stains pretty much anything else you cook it with, stains your fingers and makes your pee purple! It seems you either love it or hate it. But why should those of us who hate it learn to love it? Isn’t it just something cyclists and runners use to improve their times when they are racing? What’s the big deal? You may know someone (or be someone) who eats beetroot, drinks beetroot juice or uses commercially available beet shots before running or cycling, or in the bui ..read more

  Does your heart need some TLC? I spend so much time talking about gut health, sleep and nutrition, building strength and balancing hormones, that sometimes I can forget that your heart is central to your health and fitness! Well, there are two reasons to talk about heart health just now - firstly my sister Sheila telling me she had heard that running down hill is better for your heart than running up (OMG - YES!! This is a life-changer!!!) and this month is heart health month. Often we get so fixated on goals and achievements and beating what we did last, or competing with the person n ..read more

  “If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” Vincent Van Gogh Have you been to the Van Gogh Immersive Experience which is touring the country (and the world) at the moment?  If not, then you should! (vangoghexpo.com) I’m not an art gallery or museum person.  Those of you who follow me on Social Media or know me well, will know that I’m a mountains a lakes person, a get out in nature girl, not someone who spends time in towns or cities.   When I have time off, I run to the hills with my dogs, my tent an ..read more

  Keeping your mitochondria healthy is key to your health. If you didn’t come to my talk on longevity at the Malvern Health & Wellbeing Fair, you missed a treat! I spouted science for half an hour! And 10 minutes of that was about your mitochondria and why keeping them healthy is so important if you want to age well. Mitochondria are little organelles in (almost) every cell in your body which produce energy from the oxygen your breathe and the food you eat. The more energy a cell needs to perform it’s function, the more mitochondria the cell has. In heart muscle for example, 40% of t ..read more

  Why insulin levels are critical for good health. If you haven’t read my previous blog, ‘Fueling for Life’, now might be a good time to go back and have a look - it’s all about what to focus on putting in your mouth when eating for health, rather than what to avoid. Here, I’m going to talk about some things to avoid if you really want to keep your body and mind in good health and avoid chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Let’s start with some science. Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas and, in a healthy body, is involved in maintaining blood suga ..read more

  Don’t just fuel for an event, fuel for life. Last week, Synergy Worldwide ran a webinar presented by Morag McDowell, an age group GB triathlete, on fueling for endurance. If you missed it, you can access the recording, which will be live for a limited time, by clicking here: https://vimeo.com/678117640/4a380927c1 It was really interesting to hear how Morag overcame chronic fatigue, having eaten (and drunk - she described going to the pub after training!) very unhealthily for years, by changing her nutrition and adding in targeted supplements to improve her gut health, but also to fuel ..read more

  This is me. #onehealth. I’ve been championing human health, fitness and wellbeing for almost 20 years now, and developing my business to focus on optimum nutrition, getting outside to exercise, breathing, sleep and stress management. Most of my personal training sessions are outside and outdoor group fitness takes us up onto the Malvern Hills benefiting from the incredible views and sunrises early in the mornings, improving both our mental and physical health. My health and wellbeing challenges take you outside for a good proportion of the exercise sessions and encourage you to go out ..read more