Morning Buzz

The nicest night time tea I have ever tried and I have tried a few (most of them I have to force down). This I actually enjoy as a nice, evening wind-down cup of tea. I don' think this helps me fall to sleep, which is my main problem. But, I do think it helps me sleep deeper and although this could be psychological, it is probably due to the valerian root, a proven natural sleep aid. It is hard for me to fit this into my daily life as I don't like to drink too late at night and if I have it too early I don't see the benefit. So I have a bit of a dilemma. I also think this would be much nicer if the flavours were stronger.

Calm

Appetite

Crave 

System Cleanse 

Today i want to share my favourite vegan snacks. Some are healthier than others, some are great for on-the-go and some are for sharing. But there's lots for everyone! It just shows how being vegan isn't difficult, there's SO many options! So if you're thinking of being more vegan.. this is a good place to start, odds are you eat a lot of these things already. I hope you find some new snacks to enjoy, let me know your favourite treats in the comments below!

Aldi

Pea Snacks

Chocolate Orange Rice Cake Bars

Biscuits

Oreos - Mint, Chocolate, Original.. 

Bourbon Creams (usually own brands e.g. Asda,  Sainsbury's)

were vegan? This not-so-healthy snack is usually reserved for lazy weekends with a cuppa tea and a film. Probably best to leave the packet in the cupboard and just take a few with you.

Graze 

Dark Chocolate Cherry Tart

Cranberry & Hazelnut Toasts with Cocoa Dip

Misc

Banana Ice-cream/Chocolate Pops

Homemade Brownies/Blondies

Carrot Sticks & Hummus 

Everyone loves chocolate, don't they? 

So i decided i need to make myself more accountable. I've decided to quit the gym for a month (well longer.. 6 weeks to be exact). Yes i exercise, it's part of my lifestyle, i just can't help myself. BUT, i do find myself putting off working out if don't have a gym workout to complete. I dunno. I just don't get the motivation when i'm at home. It's far too easy to lay around in my pyjamas and blog all day. To add on to that i've always been snacking WAY too much and eating a lot less plant based than i used to. By that, i mean, i've been eating waaaay too many Oreo's. Oops.

So here i am. Setting myself some goals for September. Some healthy goals. Goals which i will stick too.

1. Cycling three times a week = 3hrs in total. 

2. Three Zumba workouts a week (min. 30mins). 

4. At least one piece of fruit a day.

5. Fluids: 2+ ltr of water per day, at least one green tea a day & only three coffees per week.

This is acai bowl above but, see my peanut butter, chocolate nice cream bowl here. Smoothie bowls are super easy simply add 1-2 frozen bananas to a food processor along with any other flavourings you enjoy. I love adding 1 cup of frozen mango or you can add fresh fruit (blueberries, strawberries etc.). You can also add protein powder and/or superfood powders such as; acai, spirulina, baobab, lucuma etc. Then throw on whatever toppings you have lying around. Go crazy. They really are the ones you can have fun with and suit to your tastes preferences.

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You know when you're feeling like being super naughty and scoffing your face with chocolate.. well here is a healthier version of a Bounty. Chocolate and coconut - two of my favourite things. These mini sized treats are vegan, dairy free, gluten free & contain no added sugar (dates are sweet enough). Perfect right. You can scoff a few of these guilt free. What makes them even better is they take less than 15minutes to make. Simply throw a few ingredients into a food processor and there you go. You can shape these however you like - add a few nuts and shape into raw brownies.

I love making these as the ultimate revision snack and the ultimate procrastination tool. This recipe makes 12 balls so they last a good few days as an inbetween revision snack or a little dessert. We all know now i have a massive sweet tooth (i've mentioned it enough) so just one of these make a perfect little post-meal bite. If i hadn't run out of dates i'd be making these again tomorrow. 

- 150g pitted dates (i used Deglet Nour but Medjool would be great. If you only have dried ones just soak them for 15minutes before).

- 1tbps of your favourite nut butter.

- 2-3tbps of cacao powder (depends how chocolatey you like them - adjust to your preference by giving the mixture a little taste test!).

- 2-3tbps of desiccated coconut (again this depends on taste preference).

Instructions 
Give the dates a few pulses in the food processor until they are a smooth(er) sticky consistency. Next add in the nut butter and cacao (or cocoa) and blend until it is all mixed together. You can add coconut at this point if you like.
Next shape into balls, i just use a teaspoon to make scoop it out to make sure they're relatively similar in size.
Then roll in desiccated coconut.

Store in the fridge for 3-5days. Or in the freezer for a few months (they won't last that long though). You can eat them straight out the freezer or leave them 5mins to soften.

As soon as i seen these Ferrero Roche style balls on Facebook i knew i had to make them. They're so simple to make, don't take long at all and whats not to love about a recipe that contains nutella?
Nutella is addictive to me, even when i was a child i would eat it straight from the jar & my favourite breakfast would be nutella on toast, every single day. So safe to say i enjoyed eating a fair few of these. I did share a few though ;)

The recipe has been altered slightly, i substitued the butter for coconut oil and used dark chocolate because i am a dark chocolate addict!
Recipe credit: Proper Tasty

13g rice krispies

100g Nutella

100g dark cooking chocolate

10g coconut oil 

Helloooooo! Welcome to Psychology, Food and Fitness.

My Journey

Seeing the scales hit over 10st was a huge shock to me. I'd never been chubby or even slightly overweight. I'd always been naturally skinny and never really had to worry about my weight so, to see the weight creeping on without really knowing what to do was a struggle for me. But getting into a relationship meant cheeky restaurant dates and cute takeaways in plus, chocolate as a fail safe present. That was it. I refused to put anymore weight on. Enough was enough.

So, 1.5kg (pink!!) dumbells and magazine workouts became my best friend. Alongside a little thing called 'my fitness pal' - sure you've all heard of it - which set me on 1200 calories. Whilst this worked for a long time & I also become a cardio bunny (1hr on the cross trainer and lots of running - which i now cannot stand). Eventually my progress came to a halt. This meant more cardio and less to eat. I eventually stopped at weight of 114lbs (I'm 5ft4 for those wondering). Still unhappy with how I looked, seeing lean, toned girls on tumblr and Instagram I decided I HAD to up my calories, start weight training with proper weights.

This is where it all began.. I sucked it up braved the men's room at the gym ;)

That's what I did and my body composition improved massively. Although when it came to cutting I still battled with hitting the gym 6 days a week (some days twice) and exercising as much as I could. Going back to old habits of dropping calories low when weight loss halted. This dramatically changed who I was a person, getting comments off friends and family. On low calories and carbs I was moody, irritable, always tired from getting up early but I couldn't sleep at night. Under recovery and a lack of nutrients also took a toll on my hormones and bodily functions.

Now i'm really into my nutrition and focus on eating well. As a psychologist focusing on clinical psychology, i understand how important it is to not only have a good relationship with food but also, how nutrition can directly affect your gut, hormones and brain functioning. So this blog will contain lots of fun recipes.
My fitness journey has come a long way; i like to focus on a balanced, holistic approach which includes eating well (plant based), exercising (but not excessively) and looking at your mind (mindfulness). I like to promote body confidence and self-love.. it's all about that SASS. You don't need to be in the gym twice a day, 6 days a week to love yourself or your body!

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