Health | Super Simple Summer Salad: Recipe

These long summer evenings are getting me even more excited about the prospect of travelling around Europe over the next couple of months! Apart from my primary desire to spend hours laying by the pool with a good book, I'm equally as excited to be sampling some of the amazing food on offer (especially when we head for our Tuscan road trip).. pass me the good food and wine, please!

I'm pretty sure it's the heat that makes me want to avoid heavy/big meals in the evenings, but there is also something wonderful about eating something easy to prepare and good for you, and being able to enjoy it in the garden. Hence the emergence of this blog post. Since I started blogging in early May, I've really enjoyed making some seriously yummy food knowing that it's going to be great for my body, tastes good and I get to write about it!

This simple and easy to make Salad is perfect on it's own, or with a little bit of protein on the side too. We enjoyed this alongside some spicy chicken kebabs and a natural yoghurt dip, which went really well. As with any fruit and veg, if you can, do grab the organic or locally sourced produce as it's always nice to know it's come from a great place :) .... and it tastes better too. But I understand this isn't always easy. 

Ingredients (Serves 2)

- 2 handfuls of mixed salad leaves (spinach, lettuce and watercress if you prefer)

- 2 chopped tomatoes

- 40g feta cheese (crumbled)

- 1 handful of pitted green olives

- 2 celery sticks (chopped)

- Small handful of Pumpkin seeds

- Sprinkle of crushed black pepper

The method is pretty standard, so I won't bore you with the details but once mixed together drizzle with a little bit of olive oil. Ready to go!

Let me know if you gave this recipe a go, or if you have any suggestions on what I can add next time. Feel free to tweet me your pics.

Foodie | The Big Easy - Covent Garden

Every so often Lewis and I will head in to central London to do a little exploring. Of course, part of these adventures will always be heading to restaurants we've heard good things about, or read positive reviews about online. A few weeks back we took a trip to Covent Garden to do a bit of shopping and enjoy the May bank holiday together. Normally we'd head for the coast when we have an 'extra' day off, but the city just seemed too good to miss this spring with so much to see and do.

After much deliberation, we thought we'd see what the hype was all about the 'The Big Easy' in Covent Garden. I've read countless reviews of this place, and seen far too many bib-bearing grins on my Instagram feed not to see if it really is as good as it's made out to be.

The Big Easy is a BarBQ and Lobster shack, aimed to create a 'bold americana' feel through both it's food and it's restaurant Decor. It's reminiscent of Cleaver restaurants if you are familiar with those, and really takes the rustic texan shack theme to town. First impressions at Covent Garden were good, with some super friendly waiters seating us during what appeared to be a quiet lunch time.

We didn't get round to sampling the drinks menu, but it looked pretty impressive. The bar itself was reminiscent of a 1920's bar you'd find in NYC, which added to the charming decor of the place. Some may say it's sitting on the fine line between rustic and country western, and I would have to agree. Any more reference to the boldness of the texans and I might of started asking for a cowboy hat to accompany my bib. The bibs add to the 'big eating' menu they're going for. I loved wearing mine as did Mr Smith, even if it was more of a novelty that a necessity. A nice touch, and meant we got the staple big easy pic we secretly wanted.

The food was really good, and perfect for a late lunch/early dinner if that's what you've got planned. It's not too much, but it's enough that you don't leave the place feeling hungry or slightly cheated. Lewis ordered a Burger and I went for the Lobster Platter, with a selection of other seafood including. Despite it being tricky/embarrassing to eat.. it tasted brilliant and meant I got to eat a lot with my hands.. which is always an interesting experience.

Overall we were really pleased we went along to try it out. Would we go again? Maybe, if a branch popped up that was a little more local for us, but only on the odd occasion. At just over £70 for us both, it's not too bad but quite pricey if you consider what you're getting. Thanks for having us!

Have you been before? What did you think?

Fitness | Home Workouts & Physio World Review

I made the decision a little while back to cancel my gym membership. Based mostly on the cost of it, but also on my inability to find the time to go inbetween working a full-time+1 job and modern day life. Prior to starting my current job I managed to squeeze in at least 2 classes a week, but now my work has picked up I'm generally working pretty late, so not knowing when I'll be leaving the office means I can't commit to attending classes or even head down for an individual workout (boo).

Without getting into it too much, I'm surprised fitness bloggers generally don't cover home workouts tht much. Longer working hours aren't a thing of the past, and keeping up a gym membership isn't exactly the most budget friendly way of getting fit for many. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is I'm going to make home workouts a little feature on my blog, to share with you what workouts work well for me, and how I fit them into my busy schedule (and modest living room). I hope you'll find them useful, and that they work well for you whatever your schedule might look like :)

Despite not having all of the regular 'gym' equipment to hand, I'm a huge fan of strength training and using my own body weight to improve my fitness. Working out at home has made a significant difference to my running too. Focusing on my core strength has really helped me to maximise my longer runs, and has helped get rid of some lower back pains that keep appearing after most runs over 8ish miles.

In light of my gym break-up, I purchased a shiny new workout mat to make my workouts easier and more comfortable. I've tried a few exercise mats over the years, and have generally been pleased with them all. After all, they aren't particularly exciting...right? Nonetheless, if I was making a monthly membership saving I wanted to try something a bit more 'up market'.

I picked this up from Physio World on Amazon after scouring the usual sports websites. Thanks to my prime membership it came within a day, and I'm really pleased! Naturally, pink was my first choice and I went for a 10mm depth. You can get an even thicker version if you prefer, but I would highly recommend the 10mm if you're like me and generally don't have many issues with your back. Unlike most exercise mats on the market it's super long, which means I don't have to worry about my hands or feet hanging off the edge too much. I'd definitely recommend giving this mat a try if you're looking for one to get started with your home workouts, or even one of a similar size/depth if you can't get it online.

Youtube is brilliant for quick workouts when I don't have much time. I've been a subscriber of Xhit Daily for a while now, and I honestly can't recommend their workout videos enough for women and men of all fitness levels. Heres the link to the video I was watching when I snapped these pictures for my blog if you wanted to give it a go! See you soon with a home workout blog post!