“It’s always been known that people have internal dialogues with themselves, but until now, we’ve never known what an important function they serve, this study shows that talking to ourselves in this ‘inner voice’ actually helps us exercise self control and prevents us from making impulsive decisions.”

Well that’s good news. I’m always talking to myself.. Sometimes my boyfriend will catch me mumbling to myself and give me the side-eye or call me crazy, but now I can tell him that it means that I am merely exercising my self control!

I just won’t tell him that it’s actually a full on conversation between myself, Josh Duhamel, an imaginary wedding planner and an imaginary divorce lawyer.. Because I’m pretty sure that classifies me as a special should-be-heavily-medicated kind of crazy.

Don’t judge.. Fergie must have racked up some SERIOUS karma points in a previous life! I’m just saying..

And I’m kidding, by the way. Really, I am…

However, I do talk to myself.. But the conversations in my head are only between me and myself. And are normally a running commentary of what I’m doing.. For example, whilst drying the cutlery and putting it away, the following may occur, “Have to dry the cutlery and put it in the drawer.. I hate watermarks.. Oops, that’s where the forks live, you’re not a fork, you’re a spoon!”. Ok, maybe I have conversations with the cutlery.. But they’re not really conversations.. It’s just me talking to the cutlery…

I think it will only be an issue when the spoons start talking back to me…

Spoon: “Oh I’m ever so glad that you put me back in the right compartment, it was absolutely terrifying being with those things with big giant spikes on their heads..”.

Vicky: “You’re very welcome. How polite you are. I would not have expected such lovely manners from a piece of Ikea cutlery – no offense”.

Spoon: “None taken! At least I’m not plastic like you with your big giant fingernails. The nerve of calling me cheap. Please close my drawer, I do not want to look at you”.

Vicky: “Asshole spoon. You’re getting replaced tomorrow” *Slams drawer*

Yeah… If that ever happens, then we DEFINITELY have a problem!

Cell phone use is linked to cancer. Who saw this coming?!  Sorry, you don’t get a prize.. But guess what, as usual, the findings were deemed inconclusive. The study was conducted over the past 10 years and pooled data from hundreds of researchers who interviewed thousands of people and studied a whole boat load of different cell phones. This international study, quite ingeniously named “Interphone”, found evidence that people using their cell phones for at least 30 mins a day for 10 years have a greater risk (maybe as much as a third higher) of developing brain cancer. The study is to be published this week and governments from around the world are eager to get their hands on it – as are the cell phone execs. Somehow, I don’t think this multimillion dollar study took into about the crazy cell-phone-wielding kids? And what about hands free devices and the thing where you can make your car stereo turn into a phone (is it still called a stereo?!). No doubt more money will need to be spent on this.

Ok, next. Gluten is good for you (unless, of course, you’re allergic). The hot new diet is the no-gluten one (Gwyneth Paltrow and Victoria Beckham are big fans), but apparently, not consuming gluten is bad for you. It can lead to headaches, tiredness and weight gain! Yep, that’s right. Gluten is found in bread, pasta, beer.. So don’t feel bad about eating french toast or pizza! It’s good for you! Dietitans have looked into the pros and cons of gluten free diets, and found that initial weight loss will happen, but switching to gluten free food will induce weight gain because people are more likely to eat potatoes, rice, buckwheat.. Also, foods that are manufactured as “gluten-free” contain more sugar and salt – which is super unhealthy. And, like organic and free-range things, gluten free will do a number on your wallet because its very expensive. So crack open a cold one and enjoy it with some garlic bread – it’s all part of a balanced diet!

This last tit-bit of stupidity made me laugh. Research has shown that insomnia is caused by our inability to “switch off” at night. No kidding! Apparently, the doctor behind this groundbreaking finding thinks we should look to the cavemen for the secret to a good night’s sleep.. Of course we can’t switch off at night – we have a million different things to worry and stress about! Did I turn the stove off? Is the door locked? Is the tap dripping? Mr. Caveman didn’t have any of this to disturb his slumber. He may even have found that the gentle sound of running water near his cave was relaxing. AND, lets not forget the invention of the light bulb. This has had such a big impact on how we sleep – instead of darkness and stars, there’s always that dim city glow.. Unless you’re lucky enough to live in the country. But still, we need down time. If you can’t find time to nap during they day then at least try not to work through lunch or at home.. We all need breaks – I’m sure Mr. Caveman took breaks during the day too! We have to rediscover the art of stopping.

With that being said, it’s time for a cup of tea!

I was a bit concerned when I started doing this that people would think that I was in some way taking the piss. I didn’t want people to think “why is this skinny cow doing this ‘get fit’ thing?!” I’ve always been quite a boney person – I have chickeny legs, boney knees, boney wrists and my collar bone sticks out worse than Victoria Beckhams! In high school, I was always SO self conscious because I was so skinny. Changing for gym class was an absolute nightmare. I hated showing my legs, and I would always wear high-necked tops so that my collar bone and boney chest wouldn’t be visible.

No amount of food that I ate would make me put on weight. I know a lot of people thought that I was bulemic, which is an awful condition, and awful for a 12-13 year old girl to hear, when they’re not! I would eat plate after plate of chips for lunch. It wasn’t until I was 18 that I finally weighed 100 lbs. And I was so happy!! Nonetheless, I was still very thin – but at least my weight finally consisted of 3 digits.

Oh, and clothes. It was impossible to buy anything that fit nicely or fit at all. I would have to alter all of my jeans myself – I would hide in my bedroom and by hand, sew the legs in. The up side to that was that I got quite good at sewing! I could do both legs on 1 pair of jeans in 1 night! But I couldn’t wear anything right off the shelf. My chicken legs would be swimming in trousers that were supposed to be tight.

In the last few years, since leaving university, work had kept me skinny, I would work through lunch, quite regularly, and 5 à 7 my way through supper. Unhealthy, yes.. But very awesome!!!

If I ever mentioned wanting to go to the gym or something, I’d be met with “but you’re so skinny!”. To which I would always reply “I’m skinny, but it’s not healthy skinny”. Which is true.

But now, after a year of no office job to stress me into not eating, coupled with the fact that I’m not 18 any more, my body has developed into quite an unfortunate shape. So that, my friends, is the point of my Get Fit For Summer Challenge. It’s not to take the piss or to make anyone feel inadequate. It’s an attempt for me to get healthy, by eating a little better and sucking up the pain and exercising every day.

Hey, if I had as many dollars as Heidi Montag, I’d pay for an ass lift, back re-shaping and lipo.. But, I don’t.. So my body has to be “shaped” the hard way!  And maybe my daily exercise updates will encourage some of you to do the same.

I’m not trying to be some great inspirational beacon of hope, just a real life example of how exercise and a good diet (dispite the slip ups), can (hopefully) pay off in the end!

Thank you again to those of you who have been following my updates. I hope you will keep reading!

Much love xx

Happy Sunday! I hope you are all having a lovely weekend and that the sun is shining wherever you are!

So after nearly a  month of no posts, I think it’s time to resume again!

I was in the bath yesterday evening and I had an epiphany whilst staring at my not-so-flat tummy..  How many of you promise yourselves that you’re going to work out and get all healthy before beach season starts? I know I do! Every year – without fail, I’m all like “YEAH, I have to get bikini ready.. I’m only going to eat salads and croutons and do 1,000 sit ups every day” and it never happens.. and then I schlepp around all summer feeling like crap..

But not THIS summer!!! I’m going to do a daily “Get Fit For Summer Challenge” blog, and I think (hope!) that actually documenting it will be the motivation I need to stick to it. I thought about doing video blogs for it, but being devastatingly camera shy, I figured that this would be an awful idea.. And, my stomach does not need it’s own internet air time!

Also, I was at The Room magazine’s annual party last week and the skinny-mini models made me super sad.. I don’t intend to be model-skinny, just a bit more compact!! After all, not *everything* is meant to jiggle!

So, starting tomorrow (not today because I just ate a giant bag of Cheetos), I’m going to get all healthy and exercise! And it’s going to be done properly – weights & measurements, possibly some photo evidence, etc. I’ll hit up some salads, sit ups, lunges, those leg lift things.. I think the main challenge will be trying to stick to a healthy diet in a country where everything is doused in oil… In case I didn’t mention before, I’m in Budapest, Hungary. The country of Pálinka, Paprika and Kólbàsz (fruit brandy, red pepper and Hungarian sausage!).

Oh lord, I just realized what a “lunge” is.. so i’ll have to “Vicky proof” the room before I lunge my way through a table or something.

Ok, just a little side note… This is not going to be some crazy “I’m not going to eat any wheat” diet or weirdo cleanse. I think diets are ridiculous.. So it’s going to be an exercise in eating in moderation – so 1 Cheeto instead of 1 BAG of Cheetos. And my boyfriend found a series of workout videos on YouTube that he thinks would be useful- I’m sure him finding them has nothing to do with the hot girl who stars in them!!!!!

Right, I’m going to leave you with this awesomeness that I was watching on YouTube yesterday. Enjoy! DeStorm – Ke$ha vs. Lady GaGa

Happy Sunday! I hope you are all having a lovely weekend and that the sun is shining wherever you are!

So after nearly a  month of no posts, I think it’s time to resume again!

I was in the bath yesterday evening and I had an epiphany whilst staring at my not-so-flat tummy..  How many of you promise yourselves that you’re going to work out and get all healthy before beach season starts? I know I do! Every year – without fail, I’m all like “YEAH, I have to get bikini ready.. I’m only going to eat salads and croutons and do 1,000 sit ups every day” and it never happens.. and then I schlepp around all summer feeling like crap..

But not THIS summer!!! I’m going to do a daily “Get Fit For Summer Challenge” blog, and I think (hope!) that actually documenting it will be the motivation I need to stick to it. I thought about doing video blogs for it, but being devastatingly camera shy, I figured that this would be an awful idea.. And, my stomach does not need it’s own internet air time!

Also, I was at The Room magazine’s annual party last week and the skinny-mini models made me super sad.. I don’t intend to be model-skinny, just a bit more compact!! After all, not *everything* is meant to jiggle!

So, starting tomorrow (not today because I just ate a giant bag of Cheetos), I’m going to get all healthy and exercise! And it’s going to be done properly – weights & measurements, possibly some photo evidence, etc. I’ll hit up some salads, sit ups, lunges, those leg lift things.. I think the main challenge will be trying to stick to a healthy diet in a country where everything is doused in oil… In case I didn’t mention before, I’m in Budapest, Hungary. The country of Pálinka, Paprika and Kólbàsz (fruit brandy, red pepper and Hungarian sausage!).

Oh lord, I just realized what a “lunge” is.. so i’ll have to “Vicky proof” the room before I lunge my way through a table or something.

Ok, just a little side note… This is not going to be some crazy “I’m not going to eat any wheat” diet or weirdo cleanse. I think diets are ridiculous.. So it’s going to be an exercise in eating in moderation – so 1 Cheeto instead of 1 BAG of Cheetos. And my boyfriend found a series of workout videos on YouTube that he thinks would be useful- I’m sure him finding them has nothing to do with the hot girl who stars in them!!!!!

Right, I’m going to leave you with this awesomeness that I was watching on YouTube yesterday. Enjoy! DeStorm – Ke$ha vs. Lady GaGa

It’s been a few weeks since my last “Stupid Health News” post, and I think it’s time for another one!

Well, this stupid news comes just in time for Easter – so don’t worry about having to run away from people carrying big chocolate Easter eggs! According to the Chocolate Police, you are allowed to indulge – provided it’s only 1 square of chocolate per day. A small quantity of chocolate – about the size of a quail’s egg, can apparently lower blood pressure and reduce the risks of heart disease. So, it’s  official: chocolate is now good for you, but only in small quantities? Well, the phrase “everything in moderation” seems to ring a bell…..??

I read this and almost fell off my chair! Scientists are developing mirrors that can analyze our health. So apparently, this technology which is around 10 years away, will be able to analyze the way we look when we’re brushing our teeth in the morning and it will report any major changes to our doctor – via email. As if those scales that tell you how much mid-section fat you have aren’t bad enough, you will now have to have a mirror tell you that you look a bit rough first thing in the morning – “Mirror Mirror on the wall, who’s the most hungover of all!” No Thank You.

And lastly, this isn’t really health news, but it’s about fruit, so it fits!

This bizarre fruit is the Pineberry. It is a strawberry looking fruit which is white with red seeds. The texture is that of a strawberry, but the taste and smell is that of a pineapple. They go on sale in Waitrose in England tomorrow for £2.99 / 125g and the price will go up to £3.99 after April 13 - which, quite frankly, is bloody robbery. They would make an exceedingly pretty cocktail decoration, and they would probably make very tasty pina coladas <3 mmm or maybe a pineberry mojito… <3 Ok, enough, since my Chinese doctor told me that I can’t drink.. maybe a virgin pineberry daiquiri?

Crack out the bottle opener ladies! According to “new” studies, a glass of wine every day will help you stay slim.

This American study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston  studied 19,200 women aged 39 and over and asked about their drinking habits. Their weight gain was recorded for the following 13 years. Not surprisingly, all of the women gained weight, but those who reported to drink “moderate” amounts – which consisted of a glass or two of wine each day gained the least weight.

But the researchers noted that not all types of alcohol are equal – hard liquor and beer are less friendly to the waist line.

So, with this information, the researchers decided that one theory for this is that the livers of regular drinkers develops a separate method of breaking down alcohol, with surplus energy turned into heat, rather than fat.

Another theory is that maybe the age old saying of “everything in moderation” could be true…

Or alternatively, since this study does not appear to prove that wine is the sole reason behind these women gaining less weight. It could be that they exercise more, or that they eat a more balanced and healthy diet? Or it could just prove that women who throw back a few glasses of wine each day lie about their weight! Who knows!

It’s groundbreaking research, nonetheless!!!

Also, it has been proven that eating too much fruit will make you fat. And the acid in fruit – if ingested too much – can lead to tooth decay.

Fruit is of course, very good for you. I am not trying to tell you to not eat fruit. But it’s the crazy people who take it a step too far, and go and a diet, vowing to be more healthy. And instead of eating a salad and an apple for lunch, they eat 6 salads, 5 apples and 2 grapefruits.

*Just because it’s healthy, doesn’t mean you should eat 70 times more of it*

The fact that someone needs to research this means that there is clearly a problem. I mean, isn’t it just common sense!? It’s like telling someone that water is good for them, so they go and drink 6 gallons of water. What will happen? They will die from drinking too much water! Ok, this may be a bit of an extreme example, because I don’t think too much fruit can actually kill you, but I think you see my point.

Eating reasonable amounts of nutritious food with a bit of excercise – even just a brisk walk will make you healthy.

And I’m not even going to start on the study by the British fish & chip people claiming that cutting the chips bigger will be more healthy – something about how the oil is absorbed when they are fried.

If they’re that bloody concerned about obesity etc, then the governments and councils should stop allowing McDonalds and Burger Kings to be built on every corner! Keep the humble chippy and let the fast food joints go!

I feel like I need to create a chart on healthy vs unhealthy vs deadly, because I’m getting very confused over here.

Ok, so in latest health news, if you’ve been ingesting a whole ton of antioxidants in an attempt to fast-track your way to good health, then put down the green tea and goji berries and keep reading. Nutritionists have been pushing the idea that anything “antioxidant” is magical and really extra super good for your health. These foods were believed to lower the risks of cancer, lengthen life and allegedly can lead to better sex!

But new studies by the Cardiorespiratory Exercise Lab at Kansas State University have revealed that too many antioxidants makes the chemicals in the body unbalanced. The body needs antioxidants and pro-oxidants (essentially the evil twin of antioxidants) in order to maintain a balance. So a lack of pro-oxidants can lead to the body crying out for the missing pro-oxidants. So downing too much green tea and popping too many blueberries is actually not a good thing.

In the last few years, the word “antioxidant” has become a buzz word. Everyone has been jumping onto the health food bandwagon. But these new studies are claiming to show that although antioxidants can slow down and even reverse some effects of aging, some of the changes that the body go through are not good.

One of the main points in the study was to show that the antioxidants hinder the way that blood flows by taking out vasodilators – which are chemicals that help open the blood vessels. As you can imagine, this is not good for the body! In older people, this results in individuals getting out of breath quicker, which in turn stops them from exercising.

One of the researchers behind this study, Steven Copp, said that antioxidant therapy takes away hydrogen peroxide (a naturally occurring vasodilator) which can impair the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to the muscles. This causes muscles to be sore and for individuals to get tired easily when exercising – because the muscles are being starved of oxygen.

Copp says that his findings should be treated as cautionary. Antioxidants and their functions and effects need to be studied more in order for nutritionists to recommend certain foods to their patients.

I think the “everything in moderation” is applicable to this.

fruit & vegetables vs. pills & medication

Ok, it’s time for another round up of the week’s stupid health news.

I found this fantastic article on Wednesday with a dreadfully long winded headline: Don’t eat cereals that change the colour of the milk: Unlikely but brilliantly simple rules that will transform the way you eat

No, I didn’t make that up!!! Feel free to read it, it’s really quite insightful! Here are some of my favourite bits:

Don’t eat cereals that change the colour of the milk
Um, I thought that it was because of cocoa powder – which is good for you, right?! I get the ones that are coloured purple or bright green etc, because I’m sure that’s all awful chemicals and colourants etc.. but what about Nesquik? It looks suspiciously like dog food, but cocoa is natural.. actually, I guess it depends on whether or not cocoa is good for you or not this week! And what about Fruit Loops?

Avoid foods Grandma wouldn’t recognize
I’m not sure that my Grandma would know what tofu is let alone recognize it.. Or goji berries.. Or ginseng.. Well, my Chinese Grandma would of course know what they are and how to best cook them.. Is this rule calling White people stupid?! lol

Buy smaller plates and glasses
I’m pretty sure that if I went by this rule, it would only encourage me to help myself to more helpings – since the tableware is smaller!!! Makes me think of Zoolander “What is this.. A school for ants?!?”

It’s not food if it has the same name in all languages
I’m going to pull the Chinese card again and say “TOFU”!! … I wanted to be smart and think of more things, but I got nothing…!

Ok, that’s enough of that.. If you want to read more of these stupid rules, then check out the link!

Now for some happier health news! A study done in the UK showed that the average woman burns 48,000 calories per year by shopping! So now we have an excuse to go running around the shops! But it’s true, especially if you don’t drive and you have to rely on public transport or walking to bring all of your new treasures back home! Carrying stuff is a workout in itself!

And finally, this isn’t really health news, but I’ll throw it in anyway. According to yet another useless study, the weight of the average woman’s purse/handbag has decreased by 50% over the last two years. Apparently, this is due to the take-over of gadgets like BlackBerries and iPhones replacing the heavy cell phone and bulky address books/planners. I don’t know about you, but my purse always weighs a ton! And it’s full of so much crap! I have to have about 5 lip glosses and hand cream, and maybe some ibuprofen, and maybe a book, and of course my glasses case, a nail file or 2.. and then there are receipts, loose change, old bus passes, Mentos <3 .. And what doesn’t help is the fact that the new hot thing is those great big giant purses – even “small” bags are still really big. So ok, your phone might not weigh 2lbs like it did before, but to me, if there’s more space, then I’ll cram more crap in there. Maybe an additional hand cream and a few more lip glosses!!!! Did I mention that make-up makes me happy???

They should have factored in the weight of a woman’s handbag when doing that shopping study.. I remember when I was in college, they had some chiropractor people come in and weigh people’s school bags to see what kind of long term damage hauling a heavy bag around all day was doing to them.

Check out last week’s stupid health news too!!

The internet is amazing, think of how the use of the internet has changed our lives in just the last 10 years. We’ve gone from merely sending e-mails to things like Skype, reading the news, watching movies and tv, finding out pretty much anything and everything you can think of with the click of a mouse! But now, when we’re sick or don’t feel well, the first thing we do is hit the internet and Google our symptoms.

This is great if you know that you have a sinus infection, so that you know whether or not you’re contagious, what you need to take and how you need to treat yourself in order to get better again..

But if you wake up one morning with a headache, and decide Google headache types, you’ll see “brain tumor” in the related searches section. So then, you start looking up “brain tumor symptoms” and you find that you have a few of them – maybe weakness, you’re lethargic and have trouble concentrating. And boom! After just a few clicks, you’ve managed to convince yourself that you have a brain tumor. So in a complete panic, you decide to go to the doctor, you demand that he give you an MRI and you want a referral to see a neurologist.

But then it turns out all you need is a new pair of glasses because you can’t see too good and the strain on your eyes is giving you a major headache. And maybe the weakness and trouble concentrating is because you’re overexerting yourself at work.

I mean, obviously its better to be safe than sorry, but there is a very fine line between being cautious and turning into a super-extra hypochondriac. But think of how many sites there are out there that help you self diagnose yourself: WebMD, YourDiagnosis, FamilyDoctor, SymptomDiagnosis, etc, etc… Do you think these online medical diagnosis sites are good or bad? Are they useful? Have you used them? Personally, I prefer going to talk to a pharmacist, so that I don’t have to wait for 16 hours in the doctors office – unless I REALLY need to.

Check out these stupid health stories that I found across the web from this week