This month’s issue:…
- Upcoming Events
- What’s in Season at the Allotment
- Easy Recipe: Almond Milk
- Resisting Temptation Hint of the Month: Measure Your Muesli
- Fad or Fab: Half Toe Clips
- And Finally….
Hello healthy people,
As the days get longer we’re cranking it up a gear with a workshop, exhibition and a new class starting in the Griffen Fitness studio…
‘Fit to Ride’ Edinburgh Festival of Cycling workshop
6.30pm – 8.00pm Thursday 12 June, Griffen Fitness studio, £10
You look after your bike, but do you look after your self?
Following booked-out workshops in 2013, I’m presenting a more in-depth look at how you can maximise your fitness and nutrition both on, and off the bike. Free healthy nibbles, and only 12 tickets available, so book now! email me to book or call 07743 741 088.
Exercisations exhibition, Leith Festival
14 – 21 June. An exhibition of unique illustrations and fun inspirations to aid exercise motivation. The exhibition will be hung and studio open as the Leith Gala parade makes it way down Balfour Street on the morning of Saturday 14 June. The following Saturday, 21 June there will be an ‘open studio’ all day so the general public can view the exhibition; this coincides with LeithLate, so pop by! www.exercisations.co.uk
Metafit classes with Ainzlie, an intense weekly workout to boost your fitness in only half an hour, 10am Saturdays from 28 June.
What’s in Season at the Allotment
It’s a busy time down the plot – weeds are starting to pop up signalling the start of growing season. We have lots of seedlings (peas, beans, mangetout, beetroot, courgette, lettuce and tomato) on the go, ready to plant in the ground as soon as it’s warm enough. Last weekend we harvested rhubarb, chives, rocket, radish thinnings and the last of the over-wintered parsnips and beetroot. These made room for sowing our early potatoes and a couple of lettuces. We are using seeds from the Real Seed Catalogue, who encourage British gardeners to cultivate lesser known vegetable varieties and save seed year on year.
Easy Recipe: Almond Milk
Almond milk is a tasty non-dairy option to ‘moo juice’. I have always bought it ready-made from a shop, but got sick of lugging it home, so decided to have a bash at making it for myself. Weirdly it doesn’t work out much cheaper making it at home, but it does taste better. Almond milk is lower is calories (good) and calcium (bad) than ordinary milk. Best of all it’s really easy to make.
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. Something I learned on our recent Aussie trip. 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…
Resisting Temptation Hint of the Month: Measure Your Muesli
It’s great to eat a big slow burning breakfast, however many of us (myself included) are guilty of overindulging in muesli. Sometimes my eyes are bigger than my stomach, and I pour loads into a large bowl. A serving size of muesli is about 40g which is around 200 calories, half a metric cup. Try measuring out your muesli a couple of times so you know you’re getting enough, but not super-sizing it.
Fad or Fab… Half Toe Clips
Bicycle toe clips effectively clip a rider’s feet to the pedals ensuring greater efficiency (as the rider can pull up with one foot as well and push down with the other). There’s a bit of a knack to it, and it’s not unheard of for a clipped-in cyclist to topple sideways. For this reason I’m somewhat wary of the full toe-clip when cycling through heavy traffic and stopping constantly. Thank goodness for the nifty invention of half toe clips! What wonderful things! I’m so glad someone told me about them.
As you can see from the photo they offer a secure place to position the riders foot, plus easy side access so quick escape route for the feet, if required. Fab!
Have a happy and healthy May,
Tracy 🙂
Join Griffen Fitness on Twitter and Facebook for daily fitness updates…
© Copyright all material Tracy Griffen 2014