Little Geordie Lass

It is no secret that cardio is not my fave. I will do whatever I can to try and avoid feeling breathless at the gym, however if goals are fat loss- needs must. So if I have to do it, I try and do it in a class so I have that slight bit motivation. Or I try and get it over and done with as fast as I can. Today was one of those days. I was in a rush but I wanted to get a workout in and burn off all the Christmas food (particularly the amount of cheese I ate...) so I started off the new year right (lies) and I did a full High Intensity Interval Training workout in the space of 15 minutes, it only involved 6 movements and includes rest time but is enough to get your heart racing...

Let's get real... Cardiovascular exercise can be a bit of a bitch. I HATED cardio. For a very long time, I found it really boring and repetitive which really made me lack motivation to go to the gym. It can be very demoralising knowing that you have basically move more to burn more fat, and the thought of being on a treadmill or a bike for ages just makes you want to rip your hair out. But it doesn't have to be like that. I am going to share the ways in which I incorporate cardio into my fitness routine without it being mind-numbingly boring and are quick and (sometimes) fun.

When I started my fitness journey, I didn't have a clue! I had never stepped foot into a gym in my life which is why I decided to begin getting fit by going to gym classes as I didn't know what to do in the gym on my own. My motivation is when I am in classes as I am very competitive, I always want to be the best in my classes and do better than the people around me. That may sound quite conceited, however it is definitely what motivates me and many others. However, on thing I have become quite observant about is that people would rather do classes because they have no idea where to begin when it comes to planning a workout on the gym floor. This can be from how to use machines, the difference between reps and sets, what weights to life, how to not get bored, what exercises are good for different muscles, and so on. This is something I wanted to learn more about and wanted to get into, there were some times where classes didn't fit in with my personal schedule so doing my o...

One of the things I get complimented on a lot is my nails. It's always "ooh, I like your nails" whether I am wearing a neutral nail varnish or have gone all out wearing something brighter. I always respond with a "thank you" before following up with a "they're real, you know". That is when they are really impressed. And when I say 'they' I am referring to lots of people, from my friends to a waitress at a restaurant, a cashier in Primark, on one occasion even a drag queen responded by exclaiming that my nails were "#goalz"... on to a winner there, aren't I!

I have been on my fitness journey for nearly 1 year now; and even though I feel that I haven't had a drastic transformation due to my uncontrollably bad eating habits, one thing I do know is that I have found a new hobby which is in health and fitness. It is crazy to think how much I have learnt in a year, I didn't even know what sets and reps were and I had never even stepped foot into a gym, so what changed? This blogpost is going to be for those who, like me, may be scared about getting into the world of fitness, which for some can be quite overwhelming; with all the different machines and equipment and what not and what is best to do for people who either want to get into fitness, may have never stepped into a gym or just to have an idea of what to do when you get there. Newbies- this one's for you!

This post really has been a long time coming, I have mentioned in previous blog posts about how I have started going to the gym and how I am starting to focus on myself and take care of my body. So I thought I would actually sit down and take the time to show you how much I have changed throughout 2016, what I have been doing to lose weight and how my perspective on exercise has changed. So if you want to know how I went from being my heaviest in my final year of uni to being just half a stone off my weight when I began uni back in 2013 then please read on...