Back in Business...!

Picture Credit - thirtytwohundred.tumblr

First of all, I need to apologise – I’ve been really really terrible.

Not only have I not been blogging, but I’ve also not been running so after a successful few weeks of weight loss where I managed to lose a stone I am now back to square one and as fat as ever*

Previous efforts of
food prep by @tamsinkr

All I can say that work has been really really busy for me – and I’ve been feeling ashamed of my lack of effort.

*I’m not really ‘fat’, but I am fat for me. This is not a result of society’s perceptions of beauty – this is me knowing that I’m a good stone heavier than I have ever been in my life and a lot more jiggly then previously. Growing up I never had weight issues because I was doing enough exercise to keep me in check (and also just didn’t care – when you’re locked in a boarding school you’re going to eat what you’re offered) but as the years have gone by, I have done less and less and eaten more and more so it’s time to get my portion control back and get fit again.

New leggings - motivation via new fitness clobber! by @tamsinkr

Since Centreparcs I’ve really fallen off the wagon and had like a two month free-for-all binge so this is me taking back control. I am pledging to blog at least bi-weekly as a way to keep myself on track – make myself answerable to my blog and all that. Let’s hope it works. Not only is my body a mess, but my head and skin is a mess too – I feel tired, grouchy and unmotivated, and quite unbalanced emotionally too. I’ve been snapping all over the shop. Plus my skin that was finally clearing is also in a state too from all the sugar consumption.
Time to toughen up.

I’m moving out of my beautiful flat next week (sob!) and then I’m off to London for ten days where I will be staying at my sisters palatial flat. Her building has its own gym AND swimming pool so I’m going to try and treat my time there as a kind of fitness and diet ‘retreat’ and hopefully kick off my weight loss – as well as focusing on getting a routine in place while I’m enjoying my down time away from work.

Wish me luck!

T

Cool Runnings

Winter Running Layers by tamsinkr featuring Sweaty Betty

WINTER IS COMING

The cold, dark nights are beginning to set in and it's almost time to turn the clocks back. This means its important to start layering up if you want to enjoy a successful run.

After I put it on blast last week that I was going to take up running I have since become a woman obsessed. I've been devouring running books, skulking in sports shops and doing some serious online research looking at different running blogs and websites. 

Basically I've bombarded myself with so much inspiration and motivation that I'm pretty much foaming at the mouth and in a frenzy to finally get out there and go for a run. I've even got my exact route planned and mapped out!

I'll save my run planning and favourite websites & blogs for another post and instead introduce a few of my favourite picks for appropriate layering if you're running this winter - you may notice I've not included any jackets or windbreakers and that is because I've fallen deeply in love, but sadly that love will remain unrequited because of the extortionate price - and also because I thought I'd do a more detailed post about what you want to look for in a running jacket, and what best suits me. 

I wouldn't yet count myself as a runner yet (seeing as I've not yet ran!) but I've read enough of the books, did enough sport at school and have lived long enough in the North & Scotland to have some background knowledge as to how to wrap up warm - although does anyone agree that at school you were generally ripped out of your warm tracksuit whatever the weather and forced to play hockey with chattering teeth in just a skirt, knee high socks and thin polo? If people are so insistent you can do yourself damage by being too cold why is this the norm at schools?!

I think the key ingredients for any run are simply

a) a good sports bra (high impact of course)

b) a good pair of trainers - which means getting a gait analysis to ensure your trainers are helping how you run!)

c)a wicking top (wicking material being what draws your sweat away from the surface and to the top of the fabric to stop you getting too cold/or overheating

d) comfortable bottoms - whether thats shorts/capris/tights - lycras generally the best though. 

e) Sports socks - you can buy specialist running ones which help prevent blisters through a double layer system

f)a hat - a cap to keep the sun off your face (not cardboard as it tends to go soggy), and to keep your ears warm in winter

Jon Snow knows one thing - how to
dress appropriately for winter

However in winter you definitely need to add a few extras, such as:

g) gloves - protect those hands! And according to some books - good for wiping your nose. You won't be the only thing thats running, guaranteed. My ones feature a handy hidden pocket for my house key.

h)a snood - protect that neck!

i)a base layer thermal wicking top - this can go under any tshirt, although experts warn you to stay away from cotton as a 2nd layer on top of this, as it can get soggy and therefore heavy.

j) a jacket/windbreaker - definitely needs to be waterproof. This is the UK after all. 

Even more additional items that have been suggested include leg warmers, and specialist trail shoes to handle different terrains and icy roads. Don't kid yourself that your run itself will warm you up - winter is bitter and you'll enjoy your run more if you have the proper layers - you can always take them off as you go along. *

Now that that's all done its also important to remember that just because the nights are getting dark and gloomy your kit doesn't have to stay muted. In fact it's imperative to your safety that you're as bright and noticeable as possible, so say AYE to anything neon so that you don't end up being hit by a car that didn't see you trotting along the side of the road. You should always have something bright and reflective on - even if its just an armband (As seen in image 9 of my collage) it could just save your life - especially if you're too focused on your music that you can't hear any background noise, (massive no-no) and therefore any cars coming, several books back up the idea that you should run in the direction of traffic & try to look the driver in the eye so that you know that they have seen you. 

Lecture over, lets look at my top picks.

1. 2. & 3. Are all by Black Milk Clothing. Not specialist running wear, but they are lycra, look great, and lots of runners are already big fans. I love these Queen of Hearts, Cathedral and Hills of Gondor (Hello LOTR) prints but Black Milk are really well known for their Galaxy prints also and have a huge choice of lots of imaginative designs including famous artwork. Pricey, but it beats black. (If they bring out some Game of Thrones styles I'll be a very happy lady)

4-9 Are all from Sweaty Betty.

4. Stardust Run Tights £65

5. Competitor Run Hoody £70 One of my faves, this has thumb-hole cuffs and a funnel neck for extra warmth. Its at the top of my Christmas list already with...

6. Zero Gravity Run Tights £85 It's taking me a lot of willpower to not just buy these immediately. They look amazing. I love galaxy prints.

7. Relaxed Long Sleeve Run Top £70 I just love this colour combo, and it looks like it has a nice fit. I like my clothes slightly baggier. Would work well over a thermal base layer.

8. Heart Rate Long Sleeve Run Top

9.Reflective Arm Blinker £14 You can get much cheaper ones but I like that this one has blinking lights as well. You don't have to rely on the car light catching you, your blinking E.T arm will be seen a mile off. 

10. Saucony Ultimate Run Gloves - there's a lot of gloves out there, I liked the orange stripe on these. My gloves were actually a lot cheaper and although they're just plain black they also have the secret key pocket. Mine are by Hind.

11. & 12. Both Urban Outfitters - you can get proper running hats, and its important to wear something as a lot of heat leaves your head, but I don't see anything wrong with just wearing a baseball cap or a normal woolly one. Mine's from UO as well and I like the extra colour and pattern it brings to my outfit. As long as my ears are warm and it helps keep my headphones in - I'm happy. Plus it never hurts to include a few contrasting patterns & colours, hell it brightens up my day even if it makes me look like a jumble sale escapee.

There we go - those are my top picks! There's A LOT of running gear out there but these are just some of my favourites from some of the more well known websites. If you want to look further I'll be doing a post soon with some of my favourite running websites and retailers (so much running right now, I did tell you - a woman obsessed!)

I tried to leave off Nike etc because the big brands are an obvious go-to for goodlooking sports wear, but they all do have lovely stuff. I can't wait for my new Nike trainers to arrive!

Happy running/shopping

T x

*Never forget the general essentials such as sunlotion throughout the year, & staying appropriately hydrated.

Built for running?

Sports Day... a long time ago. 

 In my younger days (who am I kidding? I'm only just 22)
In my less lazy days I actually used to do sport.

 Zoom Terra Kiger Woman's Trail Running Shoe - £110
Would be hard to miss wearing a pair of these!

 It may have been a result of being at boarding school and therefore not having much else to do but I used to play (and enjoy) hockey, lacrosse, rounders, and netball as well as take part in the compulsory athletics of the summer term, and various charity/ competitive runs. Although the latter was just so you could get your hands on the '10k tshirt' to wear around House with pride.
As well as this I also attended pilates, dance and circuits classes from time to time, put in a few hours at the gym every so often, and maybe on one or two occasions even went for a morning swim.
All in all I was kept pretty fit and trim, and its only now post-University& post compulsory games that I realise just how important this was for me and my body.

LunarGlide 5 Shield Women's Running Shoe
Has reflective panels on - safety first!

Although not overweight, (yet) without any kind of enforced fitness my body has unfortunately been steadily piling on the pounds, not unnoticed, but not necessarily dealt with - until now.
At 1 and a half stone heavier than what I used to be in my prime I think it's high time that I took my hand out of the biscuit tin, shoved myself off the sofa, and take up an activity to try and get me back in shape.

As a child I was fairly athletic (2nd place for Girl's Champion, 1st place medal winner for High Jump at school *cough cough*) and my Dad had great pride in telling me that my (then) scrawny physique was 'built for running, if I'd only give it a go', but a disastrous inter-school cross country championship run at prep school soon put paid to those ambitions, and I flatly refused to run for anything more than a bus. In my defence for that competition I didn't actually understand what cross country was, I was fresh out of a primary school where P.E consisted of being released into a field for half an hour and I was suddenly told that I had been 'running well', bundled into my tracksuit and driven in a minibus with the other poor souls who had been selected to the track.
I remember thinking it would just be a run around a large field and tore off, only to horrifically realise that the other runners all started to go up a large hill after they had gone round the field.
I can still remember this horror, no wonder I was put off running.

Anyway, roughly about 12 years later I'm back, and actually excited to get going. I've been reading lots of running blogs to inspire me, and have been doing my research into kit, courses and tips.

Possibly my favourite - the Wildhorse Women's Running Shoe

I'll be going to get my gait analysed tomorrow to find the best pair of trainers to fit my 'running style' ad therefore hopefully sort out the pains I get in my shins while doing any form of high impact exercises; although I've included pics of some 'pretty' Nike trainers that I'm hoping I'll get paired up with, as well as tangling with some sports bras and running leggings.

If I spend enough money getting appropriately suited and booted then I'm hoping I'll keep running out of guilt - this was an actual tip that I read on the internet and I intend to follow it to the very letter.

I'll keep you updated on how I get on - but please feel free to bombard me with abuse if I don't keep it up! I think guilt is definitely going to be my main motivation to keep it going, but if I'm honest I am rather looking forward to reaching that point where I look forward to going for my run, and start crushing goals and feeling confident to enter races.
Maybe all those years ago my Dad was right (as he was about nearly everything) and I am 'built for running'. We'll see.

T x

Find the trainers here:

Not Another Bill

Today something happened to me that finally inspired me to start the blog that I’ve been threatening to set up for several years now.

Yesterday I finally got round to signing up to the ‘Not Another Bill’ service online, after having read about it several weeks (months?) ago on a blog. 

This website had initially really intrigued me and I found it a really interesting and lovely concept – who doesn’t love receiving unusual knick-knacks through the post?

 But unfortunately at the time I was earning an almost unliveable wage and it’s only now that I have my fab new job that I decided I could afford to ‘reward’ myself with this every month.

It’s a beautiful website, and one that you could easily spend hours on. 

I’m currently going through the process of re-designing a website with my new job so I could easily rabbit on about the gorgeous design and layout but I’ll just settle on saying that the content is great and anyone reading this should really just check it out and see for yourself.

After relenting and signing up I also ‘followed’ the company on twitter – and this is really where the story begins.

I was pleased to immediately be sent a welcome message by Ned, who started the company and we struck up a conversation where we discussed what my favourite gift that had been sent so far had been – I explained that I had only signed up that day but from the past gifts that had been sent out, what had particularly caught my eye was a chip fork necklace from Tatty Devine, and an interesting crown ring from Rentaro Nishimura, after which he tweeted me the rather (now it seems anyway!) cryptic reply of ‘intriguing!’

I was left absolutely stunned when I received in the post today a package from Not Another Bill – I wasn’t expecting my first package till October, which featured a small gift wrapped box and a handwritten note from Ned himself saying

‘Dear Tamsin, We all like suprises! Enjoy Ned x’

Love the crest too! Wouldn't mind if a real life lion delivered my mail.

Lo and behold, I unwrapped the box to find…the Tatty Devine chip fork necklace.

My boyfriend James can vouch for how stunned, and genuinely touched I was on opening this surprise gift.

Apologies for my poor photography (and grammar.) I promise I'll practice!

After a year spent having my faith in humanity chipped away by working in a well known but budget department store where customer service is definitely discouraged in the face of other ‘more important’ factors, such as upselling and opening store cards (you know the drill) it was overwhelming to be on the receiving end of what is a very kind, thoughtful gesture, as well as an absolutely superb example of what customer service should be.

I actually turned to James and said ‘I wish I was a blogger so that I could return the gesture by telling everyone how fab this company is’ and so here we are.

Being my first ever blog its expected that I won’t reach a vast audience but really, I so wholeheartedly encourage everyone to check out this company– right now with similar companies its so easy to feel that you are one of many, and so it really is so lovely to find a brand that really does notice, and focus on the individual. And they really do choose such beautiful,  and unusual gifts to send to you, which can expose you to a fair few new brands & designers you may end up loving but might not necessarily have stumbled upon yourself.

Ned, and everyone at Not Another Bill – thank you so much, your gesture really has meant so much to me and has absolutely made my year, and from now on I’ll be shouting from the rooftops with praise for your company!

I certainly do like surprises, and this was one of the best.

T x