- Update from the studio
- Easy Recipe: How to Make Your Own Almond ‘Milk’
- Article: Why Turbo Train?
- And Finally… Everyone Loves a Parade
Hello healthy people,
Apparently it’s spring already. Not that it’s felt like it, what with the ‘Beast from the East’ dumping snow everywhere. Coco the fitness pug (pictured) loved running around the snow, and we’ve been walking everywhere.
It’s been excellent turbo training (indoor cycling) weather and below is an article I recently wrote for the Etape Caledonia cycle race blog. Both Andy and I will be taking part in this amazing cycle race in the Highlands. Visit their News page for more of my cycling blog posts.
If you check out pages 50 to 54 of this month’s Women’s Running Magazine, you’ll see lots of my favourite tips in staying injury-free as you’re building up your mileage. You can also see the article on the Griffen Fitness Facebook page, and whilst you’re at it, give us a ‘like’ for the latest fitness hints and tips.
Easy Healthy Recipe: How to Make Your Own Almond ‘Milk’
Almond milk is a tasty non-dairy option to ‘moo juice’. I’ve always bought it from the shops, but got sick of lugging it home, so decided to have a bash at making it for myself. It’s really, really easy.
All you need is some almonds and some water. Start by ‘activating’ the almonds by soaking them overnight in water. They will swell up as per photo. ‘Activated’ almonds are meant to be more nutritionally available as the soaking makes the nut easier to digest. After you’ve soaked some (I usually soak around one cup), drain, rinse and blend them in a jug blender / vitamiser with double the amount of water i.e. blend one cup of ‘activated’ almonds with at least two cups of water.
Strain the blended almond mix through a muslin cloth or thin tea-towel and the resulting liquid is almond milk. You can adjust the concentration to suit your taste. Delicious on muesli, or own it’s own…
Article: Why Turbo Train?
Apparently it’s spring, however it’s not been ideal cycling weather. So, I’ve been cycling indoors! Turbo training is a great option for training for an event, especially if you have childcare responsibilities, are short of time or need to train at night. A turbo trainer is a relatively inexpensive and compact piece of kit which effectively turns your road bike into an exercise bike – perfect for improving leg strength and endurance.
– You will get very warm on the turbo, so wear lightweight kit. Pop a full water bottle onto your bike, have a towel handy and open a window to let to cool air in.
– Set up a cooling fan directed at your legs. Tie back long hair and prepare to sweat (protect your bike frame from sweat with aforementioned towel).
– Switch off your phone, go to the loo first, and put yourself into ‘Do not Disturb’ mode. Once you start, you’ll not want to stop!
– Entertainment is good: I’m quite happy watching an hour of Netflix, then the second hour listening to favourite tunes (music and remote controls set up on a table next to the bike). ‘Road to Nowhere’ by Talking Heads is appropriate.
– You can also use turbo specific apps to race others from your living room. Zwift is a popular racing app for staying motivated.
– You can do interval training on the ride, switching up and down gears. Cycling World magazine online has a plethora of turbo workouts to choose from to keep you engaged.
– Use a heart rate monitor / cadence monitor to ensure you’re at the correct exertion level.
– Have an exercise book nearby to write down post-ride notes. What would you do differently next time?
– Schedule your training rides in your diary to make sure they happen.
– If you’d like a comprehensive guide to turbo training, I recommend ‘The Obree Way’ by maverick cycling champion Graeme Obree.
And Finally… Everyone Loves a Parade
Here at Griffen Fitness we believe in volunteering. I’ve recently joined the board of Leith Festival and this year and am in charge of revitalising the pageant. The Leith Festival pageant is over 100 years old, and goes from Pilrig Park, along Balfour Street (past the studio) to Gala day at Leith Links. This year it’s on Saturday 9 June from 12pm to 1pm. We would love local organisations to get involved and join us in the parade. Simply drop me a line if you’re interested.
Another way you can help is by voting in Leith Chooses. You need to be working / living / volunteering or studying in the EH6 or EH7 postcode, go to http://www.leithchooses.net/and ask them to send you a voting access code. You can vote for up to a dozen worthy Leith causes. Leith Festival is applying for a Medium grant to create a legacy banner that can be carried at every parade.
Have a happy and healthy March, and Easter too,
Tracy 🙂