LIFESTYLE // I'm trying to make better choices

Hello there!

I currently write this as a sweaty mess after one hell of a body combat class. Is it just me or is it quite satisfying to sit in a puddle of your own sweat like YES, I EARNED THIS I WILL SIT IN IT FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE BEFORE IT GETS DISGUSTING before eventually realizing that was a massive mistake and scorning yourself for not showering earlier? Anyway, I thought it was time for a change and so I have decided to up the amount of exercise I'm doing, cut down on junk food and increase the amount of fruit and veg. It's as easy as that right?

Well, it's not as easy as that but I finally think I have my family on board with it all. We're getting less take-away (although I had both fish and chips AND TGIs last week - oops) and there are healthier snacks in the house to hopefully tempt me away from this biscuits. I became such a slob during exam season - like everyone - and I thought 'hey, if I can get into a good habit during the summer when I only have work to worry about, maybe it'll stick for the next academic year?'

So that's what I'm doing.

Let's just say I do not have the most developed taste buds and finding healthy, filling food that I enjoy is not easy. However, I'm gradually trying to increase the amount of healthy bits, reduce portion sizes and cut down on the number of pizzas and other glorious fried foods I'm eating. I'm trying to drink more water, decrease the glasses of fizzy drinks (low calorie or not) and reduce my intake of gluten because whilst I am not intolerant I eat far too much of it. I'm talking to you cheese toasties.

My aim is to exercise for 30-60 minutes, 4-5 times a week. I'm doing pretty well with that, whether it be a run or body balance session before work. I'll be honest, I haven't gone for a run in a week. We all know I'm not the smallest Shiela and it's such high impact on my body I'm thinking it may be worth doing other cardio instead to start off with. I currently subscribe to Les Mills on Demand and it is my favourite thing. They have lots of exercise videos ready to watch on your laptop, tablet or TV and it costs £9.99 a month. I know it sounds pricey but when I'm using it 3-5 days a week (as I have been doing for the past month) it's not that bad at all considering their classes are generally £5+ at a gym.

I've done Body Balance and Body Combat classes at the gym before and absolutely love them. For anyone interested, Body Balance is a mix of tai chi, yoga and pilates which acts to strengthen the body and increase mobility and flexibility. All exercises are accompanied with chart music we'll all recognize and it's a lot more interesting than your usual yoga class. Online there are plenty of 30 minute classes and a few 60 minute ones too. However, if you want to get the most recent release, I suggest joining a class at a gym near you. 

Body Combat is a high intensity cardio class (but isn't quite HIIT) which is a mix of martial arts to pumping and thumping music (honest to god, the Pirates of the Caribbean music was in one release I have done!). It's a lot of punching the air and kicking an imaginary component and if you are in the right frame of mind does wonders to work out aggression. If you're unfit I suggest going for the 30 minute classes first because I have almost thrown up multiple times from the 60 minute classes (they are hard okay!!) but as far as a cardio class they are really fun and you do not stop moving. I have been putting off high-intensity cardio for a few weeks because of work but from now on I'm going to keep up with the Body Combat and give the HIIT a try. I am petrified to say the least but I only have to do it once-twice a week right?

Just to note, this isn't a sponsored post at all. I just wanted to let you guys know about the service because I am using it on a daily basis and it is currently my favourite thing right now. I do want to mention that I went to classes at my local gym before I started doing classes online and so I could jump right in. If you haven't done any of the classes before, I suggest looking at the relevant how-to videos which show you all of the moves you'll need to know/watch the class first.

I thought if I wrote this up it would help this change stick. We'll see what happens there. If you do want to try out Les Mills On Demand they do give you a 10 day free trial which may be worth taking out if you want to get some good workouts but don't want to leave the house.

Do you have any tips? Have you used Les Mills on Demand or done any of their classes? Let me know!