Wedding fun - a London engagement shoot

A few weeks ago, our wedding photographer - the fantastically talented Neil Jarvie - was going to be in London, so we took advantage of the opportunity to meet up, get to know each other a bit, and mess around and take some shots.

I met Neil YEARS ago, but only a couple of times and though we'd been Facebook friends ever since, it wasn't until I spotted his lovely wedding photography on his website at the start of this year that I got back in touch. He very quickly emerged as our front runner and it didn't take us long to make the decision to book him.

Your wedding photographer is the only person that's with you from the start to the end of the day, so it's really important that you get on. As such, we were really keen to take him up on his offer of an engagement shoot. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't looking great for the day we were meeting up, so we decided to head for Leake Street, a really cool tunnel near our flat in London where graffiti artists get to go nuts with all the wallspace, venturing out onto the south bank once the weather had picked up a tad. It actually turned out to be perfect for us - the usual soppy pics in romantic locations wouldn't have suited us, and the area is very much "our" London, as we've lived around here for years, both separately and together. And as the wedding will be in my homeland, it was really lovely to have something to represent our London life.

Hope you like them!

Ax

Insanity diary days 103-105

IT'S OVER!!!

Ok, I didn't do it in the timescale I was meant to, but I did every last ruddy session, in the right order, and I threw a few extras (additional sessions when my body couldn't take what was prescribed, or going for runs before jumping back into it) for good measure.

The last few days went down something like this:

Day 103: Max Interval Plyo - everything's easier once you know it's the last time...

Day 104: Max Cardio Conditioning - I made this harder for myself by getting up really early (on a SUNDAY) because we were meeting friends for lunch at 12, but it was a whole lot easier because I knew we had this to look forward to, and it's probably my favourite session anyway.

Day 105: My final Fit Test. I'd love to say I beasted it because I'd been working so hard, but reality is this will never get easier because you're always pushing yourself to the max, whatever your "max" is. I had one slightly disappointing result in that my Globe Jumps went down by 1, but the results really do speak for themselves. See below for my results from each of the Fit Tests, with my starting and ending results in bold.

Switch kicks  90/45 -110/55 - 112/56 - 122/61 - 130/65

Power jacks   50 - 56 - 60 - 60 - 61

Power knees  85 - 104 - 118 - 120 - 126

Power jumps  0 (ankle injury) - 26 - 30 - 36 - 38

Globe jumps   5 - 8 - 10 - 11 - 10

Suicide jumps 8 - 12 - 14 - 15 - 16

Push up jacks  0 - 12 - 16 - 22 - 24

Low plank oblique  33 - 42 - 50 - 56 - 62

I was so desperate to have amazing final results that I finished the test feeling absolutely terrible. I blame the switch kicks for me not improving on my globe jumps - I could feel my form starting to suffer slightly and it took me a long time to recover afterwards. It would be impossible to work at that capacity for a full workout, but it shows you just how far you really can push yourself! If ever I think that I "don't have time" for something, I think of Insanity, how long 60 seconds really is, and just how many switch kicks you can fit into those seconds. It's more than you think!

As for the result on my body shape and weight, this has probably been less pronounced than I perhaps expected, but I really don't care. I never really saw Insanity as an option for drastic weight loss - it's about building strength and fitness levels, which I've definitely done. When you start working out so much, you need to eat more calories to function. You can't do this programme without the proper fuel in your body. That said, I've still lost roughly 7lbs and my torso has definitely toned up a bit. 

Day 1

Day 105. Excuse the toilet pic - it's the only large mirror in our tiny flat!

All in all, I'm chuffed with the results. Every time it comes up in conversation, people seem to know someone that's started it but didn't manage to complete it (or get through the first week), which makes me really proud for persevering and getting all the way to the end. I wouldn't recommend it if you don't already have a good base level of fitness, and definitely DON'T try it if you're harbouring an injury. But if you're fit and healthy and fancy a challenge, what are you waiting for?

Ax

Insanity diary days 71-102

Wow... where has the last month gone?! Well actually I know the answer to that. I went home to Scotland for a long weekend and bought a wedding dress, I ran a Festival up in the Lake District, and I didn't sleep nearly enough.

And along with all that stuff comes a real struggle to fit Insanity into my life. I think I've done alright, but the 60 day programme has now taken me nearly twice that long!

Day 71: Max Cardio Conditioning - starting to enjoy this session now. It still hurts, but after about 20 minutes I seem to hit some sort of stride and though I'm a sweaty mess by the end, I don't feel completely ruined, and even feel like I could do a little more.

Day 72: Max Recovery. The recovery session in the first month did nothing to prepare me for this. Some serious stretching. Some serious pain the next day. But I loved it.

Day 73: Max Cardio Conditioning and Cardio Abs. I got through this and had a little left in me for the abs session. But I don't think finishing one session and then getting straight into another will ever get easier!

Day 74: Rest day. Yay!

Day 75: I failed to workout - as I was going home the next morning, I lost this evening to packing and other housekeeping bits.

Day 76-78: I went home. I went wedding dress shopping. I ate too much. Oops.

Day 79-81: Having had a few days off, I really didn't feel up to going straight into the max sessions, and didn't want to ruin myself right before my next Fit Test, so I opted for a few days of the Core Cardio & Balance session instead as a bit of a warm up.

Day 80: Fit test time!! I really wasn't expecting great things from this, but embarking on each exercise with my targets in mind, I managed to equal or better every result again. See below for the results of my initial, 2nd, 3rd and 4th tests:

Switch kicks  90/45 -110/55 - 112/56 - 122 / 61

Power jacks   50 - 56 - 60 - 60

Power knees  85 - 104 - 118 - 120

Power jumps  0 (ankle) - 26 - 30 - 36

Globe jumps   5 - 8 - 10 - 11

Suicide jumps 8 - 12 - 14 - 15

Push up jacks  0 - 12 - 16 - 22

Low plank oblique  33 - 42 - 50 - 56

Day 81: Max Interval Circuit - this one will always hurt. Esp when I first put it on and see the timer way up at 59 minutes.

Day 82: Max Interval Plyo - it does get easier. Slightly.

Day 83: Max Cardio Conditioning - this one's my new favourite. It's definitely not easy, but I feel like I'm making a good go of it!

Days 84-91: I got sent up to spend a week in the Lake District with work. I'd love to say I was out running in the hills every day, but in reality I was eating way too much white bread (festival food = burgers, pizzas etc) and working really long days with no chance of fitting in a workout - esp not Insanity given i was in the tiniest little box room with a low sloped ceiling. At least I walked a lot on site!

Day 92: Back in London, but truly exhausted after a week of 15 hour days and only sleeping 4 hours a night. I needed to ease myself back into the programme, so started with a nice 5k run. It felt good. REALLY good. Until the next day - my quads were killing me! I obviously don't use them so much doing Insanity. But it felt good to really succeed at a workout.

Day 93: Core Cardio & Balance - again, I needed to warm up to doing the crazy max sessions!

Day 94: I got home from work about 10pm. Insanity just wasn't happening.

Days 95-96: Core Cardio & Balance, though I did feel up to going for a run after doing the session one day and the abs session the next. Energy levels are back on the rise!

Day 97: Day off - I was probably just about due one, but I was staying away the night before so it was a no brainer to take one.

Day 98: So with a slightly less hectic fortnight ahead, I made the decision to really beast it and do the last week of the programme in as close to one week as possible. There will be one night I can't do it as I have plans, but with that exception I'll be done in a week. So with a new energy for the programme I started the countdown to "the end". Max Interval Plyo. It wasn't easier, but I think my form improved, particularly on the upper body work as my shoulders and biceps REALLY hurt the next day.

Day 99: Max Cardio Conditioning. My favourite. Again, it was no easier, but I felt like I was doing it all better and getting more out of it.

Day 100: Max Interval Circuit. Still hate it. No change there.

Day 101: Core Cardio & Balance. A very welcome rest day.

Day 102 (tomorrow): Will be a day off as I'm out in the evening and just won't be able to fit it in, but then it's the home stretch with just a few more sessions and a final Fit Test to go.

A little trimmer?!

But will it be the end? The problem with programmes like this is, as soon as you stop you lose your strength and stamina and start to undo all the good work. Six times a week isn't sustainable long term (hell I've struggled doing it just for a few weeks) but I'm thinking I'll devise my own programme that combines maybe 2-3 workouts a week with a couple of runs to maintain the progress I've made, but knowing I can always do the programme again (and perhaps manage it in 60(ish) days next time) if I ever feel my fitness needs a boost!

Ax

Insanity diary days 68-70

Day 68: Max Cardio Conditioning. Getting home from work at 7pm on a Friday night and choosing to work out rather than go for a drink will never get easier. But I did it.

Day 69: Max Interval Circuit. Only about 14 hours after doing the Max Cardio Conditioning session on Friday night, I find myself back in front of the telly in a pool of my own sweat. This felt particularly tough, and I struggled to catch my breath throughout. I put it down to tiredness, and just kept trying! This session is a full 59 minutes long, and it's a killer. One of the rules of Insanity is that you should keep moving between exercises so you keep your body going and between warm up and cool down and you don't cease up - physically or psychologically. I love this screengrab, complete with "don't stop moving" reminder - it shows you that even the mega fit types on the dvd are struggling:

At least I got to follow it up with afternoon tea and a night at the theatre.

Day 70: Max Interval Plyo. Definitely my least favourite workout. I put it off til late afternoon, and made it a condition on myself that I could only have the lovely hearty (but healthy) dinner we had planned if I worked out as I needed to "earn" some extra calories. It got me through, but I'm now sat on the sofa, watching a film, and wondering if 9pm is too early to go to bed.

Ax

Skincare empties

It's been a while since I did a skincare post - it's been a while since I posted anything other than Insanity! So it's time to get back on it, and what better way to do so than with all the products I've finished in the last few weeks?

Soap & Glory Supereyes Moisturising Gel

I've not been serious about eye treatments all that long, but since I've been losing a bit of weight I've noticed my eyes are looking a little more tired now there's less fat in my face to keep the skin plump. And when I do long hours at work and don't sleep enough, it REALLY shows. I've had this eye gel a little while, but not using it religiously until a few weeks ago, and I have to admit I'm not sure how effective it is. It has a lovely cool gel texture and is pretty wet for easy application (not too thick, doesn't drag the skin). If I've exfoliated, I get a slight tingle too, which makes me feel like it must be doing something. But I haven't really noticed any visible difference - though I'm aware I maybe didn't give it a fair trial. The jury's out.

Cost: I think this was around £10, but it appears to have been discontinued so I guess it doesn't really matter!

Repurchase? I might have given it another go, but if, as I suspect, it's no longer around, I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.

Balance Me - Cleanse and Smooth Face Balm

I wanted to love this. I so wanted to love this.

I'm a huge fan of Balance Me's signature rose scent, their lip balm is one of my all time favourites, and I'd heard great things about this cleanser, but I just couldn't get on board with it. It's a really thick balm, and I struggled to get enough slip to really massage it into my skin. Then I had issues in removing it effectively even after going over my face 3 or 4 times with a warm wet flannel.

It smelled divine, and I'm sure it would be ok on a dryer skin (or perhaps in cold weather where it feels like it might do some good against cold air), but I just couldn't stop feeling like it had left a sticky residue. I did however use it up - mostly using it as a pre-exercise make up remover - so it wasn't a total waste.

Cost? £18 for 125ml
Repurchase? Sadly no

Bioeffect EGF Serum

I got a tester of this in my advent calendar, and having done a little research I was unsure as to whether I should use - there has been a lot of debate as to whether EGF (Epidermal Growth Factor) technology is safe to use on the skin, but having discovered that Bioeffect's EGF is plant-based (meaning it's copied from human DNA rather than cloned from it), my mind was suitably put at rest.

And then once I decided to use it, I discovered how much it cost and decided I REALLY didn't want to waste this stuff if it was going to be anywhere near as effective as the price would suggest. So, having read that's it's most effective when used on fine lines, I decided to use it in a targeted area, focusing on the fine lines around my eyes for as long as it lasted to give myself the best chance of seeing a difference. So did I? Not really... Maybe my lines aren't severe enough to see a marked difference. But at £83.33 per 10ml I wanted to see SOMETHING.

Cost? £125 for 15ml
Repurchase? I'd maybe give it another go sometime if I had any particular areas of concern, but only if I was feeling particularly flush. So probably not.

Origins High Potency Night-A-Mins night moisturiser

My last night cream - by my beloved Lancôme - was just a little too rich for me, so I did a lot of research before investing in this little beauty. And boy am I glad I did. My super oily skin still needs a big old moisture hit, but the traditional thick night creams leave my skin feeling smothered, and I wake up feeling greasy. I've used a cream-gel day moisturiser for a while, so I guess moving to a more gel textured night cream was an obvious move. And they do an oil-free version for greaseballs like me.

I LOVE this. It's a lovely cooling translucent gel which feels incredibly moisturising but also very light, and it has an amazing refreshing orange scent. In the evenings, when I layer up with toner, serum and moisturiser, this lets me enjoy the combination of different products without feeling like my skin is clogged and suffocating.

Cost? £34.50 for 50ml (currently 10% off in Debenhams)

Repurchase? Already have :)

Ax

Insanity diary - days 64-67

It's been a tough week at work, so I'm very chuffed with myself for making it through and not skipping any further workouts!

Day 64: Max Recovery session. The recovery session from the first month did not prepare me for this. 47 minutes of serious stretching and strength exercises. I got through it - albeit with difficulty - but the next day I felt like I had serious bruising all round my ribcage! But the sadist in me liked it - I love feeling like I've earned my aches and pains.

Day 65: Max Interval Circuit - tough, working with the aches from the previous day, and I felt really sluggish. But I got through.

Day 66: Max Interval Plyo - this is (currently - it changes) my least favourite workout. It's a real split of upper body work and glutes - and by glutes I mean squats. My legs were shaking in no time. But again, I just had to keep pushing. It feels a lot like the first week of the first month, when I just needed to get through the first few sessions so I had a base level to improve upon.

Day 67: Rest day. I make no apologies for eating a steak and watching a film.

Ax

Insanity diary - days 59-63

I always said the biggest challenge with Insanity would be fitting it into a busy schedule, so its not really a surprise that I had to skip another session this week due to getting home from work so late (had I done it, I wouldn't have had time to cook and eat before bed). I did pretty well the first few weeks when work was quiet and I didn't have many weekend plans, but it's got a lot harder recently between longer hours at work and being away for a couple of weekends. Day 60 should have been the last day of the programme, but instead marked the start of the Max sessions.

In better news, I'm starting to see some real change in my body. Nothing drastic, but my waist is definitely smaller and I'm feeling a bit better about myself in general. More importantly, I feel strong.

Day 59: Another unplanned day off due to getting home from work really late.

Day 60: Max Interval Circuit. Wow. Ow. This session cranks the volume up to 11, and the duration up to nearly 60 minutes (all the sessions from the first month are 38-45 mins). It takes the same circuit format, but every exercise is done for 45 seconds instead of 30, and they're all a lot more intense - everything is faster and harder. Even the warm up. And lots more upper body work - my weakness. It definitely wasn't easy, but I'd say I found it about as difficult as the first time I did the first sessions, so I'm hoping that within a week or two it'll be tough but manageable.

Day 61: Another day off - and boy was it worth it to have a lovely catch up over some fab food at House of Ho with my bloomin' gorgeous chum (and chief bridesmaid).

Day 62: Max Interval Plyo. Again, ow. At least slightly shorter than Max Interval Circuit. Lots of legs, lots of upper body. Squat push ups were a personal favourite - genuinely enjoyed an upper body exercise. Level 3 drills nearly killed me. And don't start me on some of the combo exercises.

Day 63: Max Cardio Conditioning. This was like the Pure Cardio session from month 1 - individual exercises were performed for a minute with no repeats and no breaks, other than the 5-10 seconds you get while transitioning and Shaun T is demoing the next exercise.

Bring on tomorrow's recovery day of stretching :)



Ax