Blog

Let’s assume we have a friend called Jane.  Jane has been trying to get into shape. She’s a size 16 and desperately wants to be a 12 and for about four weeks now she’s been having a damn good go at getting her eating back in order. The trouble started with Love...

Question: “Do I really have to do cardio exercise to lose fat?” Answer: No! Actually, you only have to do very little exercise to lose fat, but that would be silly, because the benefits of exercise go way beyond the boundaries of fat-loss.  Making sustainable changes...

The team at 'Woman' asked me to put the cards on the table.  “So Annie, should we be doing a short HIIT session or a long walk…which is best?”.  Well, it all depends on your goals, your current fitness, your age, the time you have available but essentially the answer...

"Worse for what?' I asked when the team at Woman asked me to tackle this topic. “Health?”  I asked “Or fat stores?”.  Both, came the reply.  Right here goes and I’m going to use the word diet, which I loathe. It smacks of temporary, restrictive and painful, but let’s...

As humans, we can be quite good at kidding ourselves, can’t we? Dab hands at pretending. Masters of the vague.  If you’re trying to lose fat (sorry, I never say lose weight, because it’s not our heaviness which is the point), then how much we eat and drink is...

Without sounding selfish, one thing to remember in this world is that the most important person in your life is you.  Obviously, there’s our children and our family but treating yourself with respect makes you a stronger person and one who can lead and influence....

I'd been to Cornwall many times before but my friend Fiona and I decided we fancied the challenge of visiting it again for our annual cycling tirp.  (We may have occasionally regretted that decision, given the sharp inclines we were occasionally faced with). ITINERARY...

A (fairly) quick version of Muhammara, a dairy-free dip with a sweet smoky flavour. 3 red peppers 100g walnuts toasted, plus a few extra to garnish 1.5 tsp chilli flakes 1/2 tbsp pomegranate molasses 1tbsp olive oil 30g fresh breadcrumbs (or those ones you froze...

Don't eat so much. "Is that it?" Yes.  Stupidly simple, but yes, that's the nub of the matter.  Summer means longer days, more socialising, more "just one more won't hurt", more "shall we have chips with that?' more "could we have another bottle please?"  There are...

Failure, says Wikipedia, is the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective. It smacks so much of the negative side of exams, marriages, jobs but from the point of view of personal change and betterment …(is that a word?..it is now)… then a...

Never mind that you're totally focused on a summer fitness programme of 50 press-ups, 10 miles and 250 crunches (all before breakfast), we’re going to strip things down to basics and talk about ‘activity’.  Not a planned workout, but being active.  I’m going to throw...

Our hormones affect our well-being and our propensity to put on weight.  Looking at the menstrual cycle first, there’s basically two halves. The follicular phase starts with the first day of your period and lasts for around 14 days, with ovulation in the middle. ...

Over the last two years I've enjoyed walking and cycling trips with friends, all in the UK.  I needed to get back on a plane and widen my horizons so I booked this trip through an adventure company called Exodus. It was trekking in the Aitana Mountains, which lie just...

What an interesting topic this is. Let’s dive straight in!  Number 1: Every illness or condition you google there will always be, under the heading treatment or avoidance, the words ‘Do some exercise’.  Give your heart and lungs something to work for, give your joints...

Some people avoid eating fat because there is a tendency to think that it has something to do with the reason their clothes are too tight.  But it is eating too much of anything that is the reason we have love-handles. Fat is essential in our diet because aside from...