My Training Programme | Day 1.

Today marked the start of my 6 week training programme. I was both excited and nervous about it. One part of me was looking forward to taking the first steps towards becoming a fitter and healthier me, but there was another part of me that was freaking out at the prospect of entering a gym. That part of me kept telling me that I was completely out of my depth and that I'd look like a fool doing all these beginners things in a room with regular gym-goers dotted about the place.

Thankfully once I was there it wasn't too bad. There were a group of students waiting around by the main doors to the building and I'll admit I felt very self conscious walking past them, but once I was in the actual gym section and having a go on the rowing machine I felt a lot more relaxed and at ease -even with three people on the treadmills facing me!

Sorry about my awful posture. I didn't feel brave enough to take a picture in the mirrors lining the gym so resorted to taking one in my bedroom instead and the mirror in my room is quite low down.

The things I said I wanted to work on were: my strength -mainly core and upper body-, core stability and balance. Tuesdays are the days I'll be working on my balance and core stability and Fridays will be when I work on my strength.

As it was my first day and my first workout we didn't do anything too intense; it was more just getting me used to things and learning the ropes. And as today was Tuesday it meant the exercises I was doing were focussing on my core stability and balance. My routine today was:

• Warm up: 5 minutes on the rowing machine,
• A few stretches that targeted my core muscles,
• Evaluating my balance,
• Balancing exercises,
• Planking for as long as I could manage,
• Balancing on the Swiss ball (core stability work),
• Side planks
• Cool down: 5 minutes on the stationary bike.

I was pleased with the session and my performance overall. Although I wasn't great at everything I put in all my effort and I'm proud of myself for that. A good example would be all the side planks I did. The longer I did them the more my body would shake because my muscles were under a lot more pressure than they've ever experienced. But instead of collapsing onto the mat before x amount of seconds were up, I forced myself to keep at it until I heard Brandon say "Zero," which is when I would happily drop onto the mat.

I know that over the next two weeks it's going to get a lot tougher than today was, especially my strength days, but I'm looking forward to it for the most part. I can't quite get rid of that little bit of dread and self-doubt, but hopefully as I progress they'll disappear.

A #GlitterGetsFitter Late Arrival.

As some of you may be aware, the blogger/YouTuber Sprinkle of Glitter decided that this year she wanted to get fitter and healthier. To help stay on track and motivate herself -and others who had similar New Years Resolutions- she started the 'GlitterGetsFitter' tag on Instagram.

There's a long road ahead.
Photo credit for this image and all others featured in this post goes to Louise, a.k.a. Sprinkle of Glitter.

I thought it was a really good idea and I'm really pleased with how responsive people/Sprinklerinos were to it. What made me pretty excited about this tag was knowing that I'd be able to join in, all be it a bit later than everyone else.

As part of my boyfriend's university course he has to personal train someone for six weeks. I decided to volunteer as his participant for this assignment for two reasons,

1. I always want to improve my fitness and physical appearance but never get motivated enough to do so. So this seemed like a good way to get my 'bum in gear' and make a start on bettering myself; especially as he's a qualified personal trainer now, so he'll know what exercises are best for the goals I have, unlike me who is totally clueless when it comes to exercise.
2. My 'before' and 'after' stats, measurements, appearance and God knows whatever else may be recorded will probably get him full marks as I'm tremendously out of shape -although I admit my physical appearance doesn't reflect it too much- and I know he'll make me work hard throughout the six weeks.

We're starting on Tuesday and so far the plan is: I'll be going to the university gym with him on Tuesdays and Fridays; one day we'll work on improving my overall strength, with a focus on core and upper body; and on the other day we'll be focussing on my core stability and balance, with a bit of cardio thrown in for good measure.

I'm pretty excited to start although Brandon did make me a little apprehensive when he said not to pay attention to the other people working out in the gym and to not feel intimidated by any of them as I'm a newbie and everyone else there will be more experienced and doing more than me, e.g. lifting heavier weights and have a better lifting 'form'. Now I hadn't actually thought about that before he mentioned it. I just pictured it being the two of us as I didn't know how many people used the uni's gym; so when he said that I started to feel a little apprehensive and intimidated, just like he told me not too. He also said he'll probably act differently than usual as he wants this to be as professional as possible, which is fair enough and I totally understand, but it might take a little getting used to at first as I've had over two years of acting unprofessionally with him.

But going back to the Glitter Gets Fitter aspect of this post, I'm really looking forward to documenting any improvements I make! Whether it's a tweet outlining what I got up to in the gym or the dire amount of pain I'm in the next day, or Instagram pictures of my hopefully improving figure, gym equipment or a sneaky caramel protein shake if Brandon lets me have some, I'm looking forward to joining in with the rest of the Sprinklerino community.

Depending on how well it goes I may even do a before and after post once my six weeks are up. I'm really hoping I see the improvements I want and get a figure that I'm not only happy with, but proud of. If all goes well and that happens I will definitely start seriously considering joining a gym in order to maintain it all. I've just got to keep my fingers crossed that if that does happen I can actually financially afford to join a gym.

Are any of you guys Sprinklerinos taking part in Glitter Gets Fitter? I'd love to hear how you're getting on so far!
-Hannah.

Deaf Havana.

Not my image.

Whenever a Deaf Havana song comes up on shuffle I always find myself thinking, "Wow, I'd forgotten how much I love these guys! Their music is so underrated!" And quite often it has led to me abandoning my iTunes library shuffle session to listen to purely all of their songs -which is currently happening. So I decided I would act on these thoughts and write a short, little post encouraging you to go away and give these guys a listen.

Now I'm no music critic or journalist, so I can't promise the most eloquent review, nor the most analytical and jargon filled. But I'm pretty passionate about this band, and music in general, so what I can do is give you a post detailing simplistically why I enjoy Deaf Havana's music and why I strongly advice you listen to them if you haven't already and if you have a similar taste in music to me.

I first discovered Deaf Havana in 2010 when the music channels I watch began playing their video for 'Nicotine and Alcohol Saved My Life'. Soon after that I saw their video for 'Friends Like These' on another of the music channels; and those first two songs were all it took to get me hooked.

Since then I've downloaded the majority of their music -all legally I might add!- and seen them perform a number of times, either as supporting acts at concerts or at Slam Dunk South, and they have yet to disappoint me. 

So far I've been able to 'connect' with all their music. Now I know that sounds a little odd, and I can't really explain it all that well, but what I mean is that when I hear their music -as well as other bands, some I may recommend to you in the future- something in me sort of lights up/comes to life, all of a sudden all I want to do is sing along loudly, while jumping and dancing around the place. There's just something about their sound and their lyrics that makes me want to come out of my shell and express myself through them. I guess you could say that I connect with a lot of their songs on an emotional level, or something else that sounds just as cliché. 

I'll leave it there, as I feel that I'm starting to ramble. I hope some of you do go and check out Deaf Havana if you're not already fans. If you do, I would suggest giving the following songs a listen:

Nicotine and Alcohol Saved My Life

Friends Like These

In Desperate Need of Adventure

I'm a Bore, Mostly

Leeches

Filthy Rotten Scoundrel 

The Past Six Years

Boston Square

Lights

Night Drives

Kings Road Ghosts

Review: Penelope | Film.

Released: 2006
Watched: 04/01/14, E4.

Basic Storyline: After her daughter's unfortunate death a witch curses the 'blue-blooded' Wilhern family. The curse states that the next female born into the family will have a face that resembles a pig's face, and the curse will only be lifted -to give her a normal, human face- once she has been fully accepted by "one of her own kind." 

After numerous generations of only male offspring, Penelope is born. True to the curse she is born with the ears and nose of a pig, making her parents -particularly her mother- keen to protect her from the outside world and the media desperate to get a picture of Penelope. It is these two things that lead on to the two main storylines within the film.

Penelope, played by Christina Ricci.

The first is Mrs. Wilhern's quest to find her daughter a 'blue-blooded' husband in order to break the curse and give her daughter a more human face. Although Penelope's mother means well, she often comes across as quite harsh and selfish, and a lot of the time it seems like she cares more about lifting the curse than she does about her daughter.

The second main storyline revolves around a reporter (Lemon) and an ex-suitor's (Edward Vanderman) mission to obtain a picture of Penelope to show the world. It is an unlikely pairing and they both have very different reasons for having their hearts set on obtaining Penelope's photograph. 

Lemon wants the photograph to heal his bruised ego and make up for the loss of his eye; both of which were a result of being attacked by Mrs. Wilhern, when he was found hiding in the Wilhern household trying to get a picture of Penelope after she was born. Alternately, Edward wants to get and publish a picture of Penelope in order to restore his reputation, after he was deemed to be crazy when he ran to the police after first seeing Penelope face-to-face and claimed he had just seen a fanged and pig-faced monster.

Johnny (a.k.a. Max impersonator), played by James McAvoy.

The two storeylines are intertwined with the arrival of Max, a 'blue-blood' who had gambled away most of his inheritance and was hired by Lemon and Edward to act as a potential suitor and in the process of courting Penelope get a picture of her for them to publish. What they didn't know however is that they had actually hired a man named Johnny that they had accidentally assumed was Max, even though at first Johnny even told them they had the wrong man.

After a few twists and turns in the plot Penelope decides that she needs to see the outside world and as a result runs away into the city disguising herself by wrapping a scarf around the lower half of her face (pictured nearer the beginning of this post). She appears to thoroughly enjoy her time in the city -keeping her parents up to date on her adventures by sending them postcards- and befriends a woman named Annie, who for the most part acts as her tour guide. 

There's more to the story but I feel like this is a good place to leave it as I don't want to ruin the ending for any of you that decide to go away and watch it. :)

Annie, played by Reece Witherspoon.

My Thoughts/Opinions: I personally really enjoyed the film overall -Penelope's mother did annoy me a little from time to time- and would definitely watch it again. I particularly liked the fact the Penelope had the bravery to run away and experience the outside world for herself. I also liked how accepting the friends she made were when they discovered what she really looked like under the scarf; and of course I loved the happy ending -particularly the scene towards the end were Penelope goes to find Johnny and they are reunited.

Lemon, played by Peter Dinklage.

If you've not seen this film before I suggest you watch it at some point in the future. When the film first came out I saw the trailer for it a few times and it didn't really appeal to me. But I'm glad that one day, years later, I was feeling too lazy to change the channel and ended up watching it.

If you have seen this film before, what are your thoughts on it?

-Hannah.

December Favourites.

>Hot Chocolate - In my opinion hot chocolate is a great drink all year round, but it is absolutely perfect during the winter months. This year I've been rather adventurous with my hot chocolate. It goes without saying that my Twinings hot chocolate powder is still my staple, but I've also developed a fondness for hazelnut hot chocolate and orange hot chocolate -both supplied to me by the wonderful Starbucks.

>My Boyfriend - I could honestly write an essay on this man. I love him so much; it's practically impossible to surmise just how much in words. Not only is he one of my December favourites, he is one of my all-year-round favourites too and I'm incredibly thankful and grateful for having him in my life.

>My Leather Jacket -  This is one of the gifts Brandon gave me for Christmas and I absolutely adore it! I've wanted a leather jacket for so, so long and now I finally own one! I'll definitely be proudly walking around in it like a badass whenever possible until the weather gets too hot for it!

Just a few of my favourite things: my leather jacket, my newly dyed brown hair, my awesome Vans iPhone case, my super cosy snood, one of my two red lipsticks and my gel eyeliner done almost perfectly.

>Brown Hair - I dyed my hair on Christmas Eve. It was meant to be a dark brown -Bitter Sweet Chocolate to be precise. I wasn't sure I was going to like it as I didn't actually want to dye my hair brown -I just wanted to try and get the red out somehow, and purple wasn't working- but I actually really, really like it! One good thing about it is that I think it makes my red lipsticks look better on me. Before they never looked quite right in my opinion because of the coppery colour of my hair contrasting against them. So it was well worth taking the plunge and going brown again.

>Candles - I'm not sure how much I've advertised my love of scented candles in my previous posts, but I absolutely adore them. I usually go for different vanilla scents, my favourite being the 'Vanilla Cupcake' scented Yankee Candle. It smells delicious; if it were possible to eat it I would! My boyfriend's mum brought me a honeysuckle scented candle for Christmas that smells amazing! There's also a scented candle in my living room that we usually light on winter nights and that's a pomegranate scent, which smells lovely!

>My Friends - This month sees my friends on my favourites list because this month I've actually seen and spoken to a lot more of them than usual. I don't usually go out much in the holidays but that all changed this Christmas break. I've still not gone out loads, just because I find going out day after day really wears me out. I'm very introverted so I like to regularly have my fair share of 'me time'. I've been to a number of pubs with a variation of chums, I had a lovely meal and catch up session in Nando's -Dappy made an appearance- and I spent a day snooping around the stalls in Camden.

>Wrapping Presents - wrapping presents is without a doubt my favourite thing about Christmas. I'm not sure why that is, all I know is that I will happily wrap anything for anyone!

>Fishtail Braids - Now that I've got the hang of them I am loving fishtail braids. Whenever my hair looks a complete mess this is my new go-to hair style. It may take longer than a ponytail, but it looks prettier which makes up for the added time taken, in my opinion at least.

So those are my December favourite. What have been some of yours?
-Hannah.

NYE

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL THE LOVELY PEOPLE READING THIS! I HOPE 2014 IS A GREAT YEAR FOR YOU ALL!

Greetings and good wishes aside, I hope you all enjoyed your New Year's Eve however you chose to celebrate it.

Personally, I was a little apprehensive about my plans. Originally I was meant to go to a friend's house for pre-drinks and a big group of us were going to go down to a pub/restaurant for a buffet and for the countdown. That changed two or three days before to going to a different pub for the whole evening/night. Now I don't really have a problem with pubs, but this one in particular isn't great. There isn't ever much of an atmosphere and the crowd is usually small and not very diverse; to add to the list by midnight they'd run out of at least three types of beer.

My dress.

My night wasn't too bad though. I felt quite overdressed as I went in what I had planned to wear for our original NYE's plans. I decided to go with my original outfit, even though I felt it was a bit too dressy for this particular pub, partly because I love the dress, partly because I think it looks good on me and wanted to feel good about myself, and also partly because I hadn't actually worn it since I brought it back in the summer apart from when I tried it on. 

The company was good. I was sat at a table with the younger of the two Lark generations present. We were in a blocked off little part of the pub which was nice in terms of privacy, but it was a right pain trying to all fit around the table and getting out to go to the bar was nearly impossible. I learnt a new game over the course of the evening, which I would explain if it wasn't so hard to. I think it's called 'Cowboy', there's definitely the work cowboy in the name of it anyway.

Dodgy pub lighting.

Then of course there was the countdown, or lack of one. It got to 11:59pm and there were choruses of, "One minute!" Yet the next thing we all knew it was bang on midnight. Everyone started making their way around the group of tables we had claimed over the course of the night. I was trapped in the corner and couldn't get out very easily so I had to awkwardly lean over the table in order to hug people and wish them a happy new year. After many hugs, good wishes, and kisses on the cheek everyone returned to their previous state of chatting and drinking until people slowly started to head off home.

My first picture of 2014.