My Protein Review: Chocolate Protein Pancake Mix, Pure Energy Tropical Fruits Energy Bar, High Protein Bites/Snack & MP MAX Elle Aqua Slim

My Protein Review: Chocolate Protein Pancake Mix, Pure Energy Tropical Fruits Energy Bar, High Protein Bites/Snack & MP MAX Elle Aqua Slim

Today I will be reviewing these products from MyProtein, they are all from an online store called The Hut Group, they sell products from well known brands like Apple, Nike, Nikon, Playstation, Loreal, Garnier, Kardashian Beauty and a ton more. Check out all of the different brands they sell here. 

But today I am specifically reviewing products from MyProtein which is one of the leading fitness supplement companies in the UK. I have previously reviewed their Oats & Whey Flapjack protein bar, MyProtein Pulse V4 Tropical Storm Pre Workout Formula and MyProtein ENER:GEL Energy Gel, check out that review here if you are interested. 

MyProtein Pure Energy Tropical Fruits Energy Bar, £15.99 (for a big pack as seen above), "With over 25g of carbohydrate per 60g bar, Pure ENER:GY combines an optimal blend of fast and slow acting carbohydrates to help fuel activity. The natural and healthy ingredients combine cereals, fruits, honey and coconut oil to give you the best nature can offer in one great tasting bar."

I've tried quite a few protein bars, including another one from MyProtein which I linked at the beginning of this blog post, and this is the only one which is a cereal bar instead of a chocolate bar. This one is in the flavour "Tropical Fruit" but it also comes in Forest Fruit. It contains dried fruits which usually aren't my favourite but I really enjoyed this bar. You can see how big the pack is and I have finished all of them (plus another box which was sent to me again by mistake)! These work well before or after gym or just as a snack in your hand bag to keep you from feeling hungry throughout the day.

 MyProtein Chocolate Protein Pancake Mix, £8.99 "Myprotein's pancake mix is a ready to make high protein, low GI, great tasting snack. It includes three types of protein (whey, milk and egg protein) which can help with the growth and maintenance of lean mass. These protein pancakes are Ideal for breakfast or as a nutritious snack in between meals and provide over 30g of protein per 50g serving."

I was so exited to try these. You have all probably seen that protein pancakes are pretty popular in the fitness community but I still hadn't tried making them. Now these are the easiest pancakes ever to make! The pack comes with a measuring cup of the correct size (!) so all you have to do is add a scoop or a little bit more into some water and mix. When you mix, I usually always get "clumps" and they don't go away when whisking more but they disappear as soon as you put the mix in the frying pan. Oh and the taste of them, I read some reviews saying they taste nothing like "normal" pancakes- well of course they don't because a). They are protein pan cakes b) they come in powder form and are mixed with water. So they don't taste bad but I would recommend adding fruit/honey/syrup (or see my recipe below) for added flavour.

Pros: Let me tell you, these will make the most perfect round pancakes on  no time! You know how it is hard to flip normal pancakes because they might fall apart? Not with these, perfect pancakes every time with hardly any effort!

Cons: They contain sweeteners and no real sugar, now for some this might be a plus, this is just my personal opinion- I don't think you need to completely avoid real sugar to maintain a nice diet. Also, both sweeteners and a lot of protein can give you a belly ache!

Here is how I eat them:

-Fry them in Coconut Oil (will test yummy)

-Serve with Fage thick and creamy greek yoghurt (it's so nice trust me), some cinnamon and dark chocolate sprinkles (don't worry, to get as much chocolate as in my pic you need like a 8ths of a "square" of chocolate) and fresh berries.. yummy!

Inside of the pan cake mix bag- you get your own scoop! And I also wanted to show the easy instructions.

MyProtein Protein Bites (Protein Snack), £.6.99 (I believe this is for more than one pack) & MyProtein MP MAX ELLE AQUA SLIM, £7.29:

MyProtein Protein Bites (Protein Snack):"Available in 3 flavours, Protein Bites are a great tasting savoury snack which can be enjoyed as part of your Exante Diet. Low in carb and high in protein these are the perfect snack for low calorie week, working or simple solution and even a part of our Man Plan!"

Now I really loved these. I think snacks with protein is a great idea and this taste just as nice as normal crisps/snacks. Also they don't contain too many calories so they might be a good substitute for "normal" crisps if you are trying to maintain or lose weight, or just tone up and focus on eating protein!

MyProtein MP MAX ELLE AQUA SLIM: "With a light and refreshing taste, Aqua Slim is the ideal drink to quench your thirst. It has been designed to keep you hydrated throughout the day whilst boosting your performance during exercise."

So this is as you can read a drink which does not contain any sugar, instead it contains sweetener. It comes in two different flavours: Mixed Berries and Orange & Passion fruit, I tried the latter. It says that it is designed to help burn fat more effectively, and contains L Carnitine, Green Tea, Chromium & added vitamins.

Have you tried any fitness supplements or any from MyProtein?
What did you think and what are your favourites?

xx

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(*) These products were gifted to me to review

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Exante Diet Review And Pictures- Simple Solution

Exante Diet Review And Pictures- Simple Solution

Today I am reviewing these food products from the Exante diet. Just as I decided to go back to the gym again after almost a year long break I saw on Twitter that Exante were looking for bloggers to review their products, and I just thought the timing was perfect!

How does it work? So I received quite a few products to try out. Once you have your products, you can decide whether to follow either of these three diet plans: the Simple Solution, Working solution or Total Solution. For each of them, you'd use the same products and only how many additional meals you have will vary.

Here is a little info about their products "All of our soups, shakes, bars and food packs (porridge, pasta carbonara, shepherds pie etc) are Total Meal replacements. By using 3 of our products a day to replace your normal meals you can cut down your daily calories, and you'll still receive 100% of your Recommended Daily Allowances (RDAs) of vitamins and minerals. This means that you stay fit and healthy whilst you lose weight, because your body has all that it needs to enable safe and effective weight loss." Find a link to their product ingredient lists here.

So this is what the packaging of the products look like, for the Simple Solution, I got a mix of breakfast, lunch and ready meals. I got the flavoured shakes in: Strawberry, Toffee Caramel, Banana, Vanilla, Chocolate and Chocolate and Mint. For ready meals I got the Spagetti Bolognese, Pasta Cabonara, Red Bean Chili, Shepherd's Pie and Curry. The "breakfast food" I got were the Porridge Oats and the lunch type of food was the Mushroom & Tomato and Basil soups. 

Below you can find my favourite of each type of meal, and some thoughts on them. In the end I will put my overall thoughts on all of the Exante Diet products I have tried.

Information about the Exante Diet shakes: "Exante's diet shakes are thick, creamy and formulated specifically for weight loss. They are high protein, low carb and we've made sure they contain NO aspartame, NO artificial colours, NO MSG and have NO genetically modified products! 3 packs gives you 100% RDA's for vitamins and minerals."

So I received this Shaker Bottle for my shakes. It came with a stainless steel ball inside of it, to help the shakes mix properly when you are shaking it. I didn't realise so for the first shakes I tried (Chocolate & Vanilla), I tried them without using it and they were thick and not properly mixed. After using it the proper way, with the steel ball inside- they turned out so much nicer. The consistency is pretty thin but they are super tasty! My favourite is this one in the pictures, chocolate and mint, and also the toffee caramel ones. As mentioned in the info, they do not contain aspartame but they use the sweetener Sucralose instead. A little tip, these contain a lot of added vitamins, minerals and best of all- a lot of protein! So bring the Shaker bottles with you and your favourite shake to drink straight after a gym session! 

Check out all of the shakes here.

Information about the Exante Diet Porridge Oats: "Exante Diet Porridge Oats - the perfect winter warmer. This generous portion will fill you up whether it's for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We have recently updated the composition of the Porridge Oats pack, so some of you may find the product less sweet than previously. If you like it sweeter then feel free to add a tablet sweetener or how about some cinnamon for a nice change."

I was pretty surprised to discovered that this was one of my favourite food products, as I usually don't actually like porridge. The taste is really, really nice and contrary to what you might think from the info above suggestion that you might want to add some more sweetener- it already taste pretty sweet. Again, it is sweetened with sucralose and as with all of the other products, it contains added vitamin and minerals. The instructions tell you to microwave it for a couple of minutes, however, I'd say add a few minutes to what it says on the pack, or simply microwave it until you get the consistency you prefer. I always eat breakfast, and quite a lot- and I was surprised that this was actually very filling on its own. If you are used to light breakfast, this will be enough, otherwise- have a boiled egg on the side or some fruits. 

Information about the Exante Diet Mushroom Risotto: "Exclusive to Exante, you won’t find this stunning meal anywhere else in the UK! This lovely creamy mushroom risotto is packed with flavour while still being high in protein and fibre!"

As this contains rice, I thought this was okay to eat on its own. However some of the other ready meals, like Red Bean Chilli (see below)- I would personally eat with something like rice or pasta. This was really taste and had a lot of flavour. Again, when you microwave this, you might want to leave it in a little longer than the packaging says to get the right consistency. I really enjoyed this meal but as it isn't a really big, I would personally have it as lunch for instance. 

Information about the Extante Diet Red Bean Chilli: " Packed with full red kidney beans and sweetcorn, this spicy beef style meal is a real favourite. Suitable for vegetarians." 

This was my favourite ready meal, although I did have it with pasta, so if you are following the diet step by step- this is supposed to be eaten on its own as you can see in the product pictures on the website. It was really easy to get to a nice consistency and had a lot of flavour in it, and as they mention in the description- it contains loads of beans. It is a little spicy and very tasty.

So my overall thoughts? To start with, along with the products you can a few sheets of information about the diet which explains, how and why it works. And with calorie and eligibility for the different types of diet programmes they offer which was really helpful. If you try out the programme you don't have to worry about planning your meals as it is all thought through- and the total calories and vitamins/mineral per day have been calculated to match your personal (chosen) diet plan. The products do not contain aspartame (but instead Sucralose), no MSG trans fats or GM ingredients. All of their products are high in protein, fibre and vitamins and minerals and (from what I can see) they are all suitable for vegetarians.The allergens are either mentioned or highlighted in bold on the ingredient lists, and some contain gluten, lactose, both or other allergens. So if you have any allergies- just check each individual ingredient list. I really like the fact that they all come in powder form because they are so easy to bring with you somewhere, to store and probably to sit in your cupboard for a little while if you like to stock up on products. If you don't want to eat sweeteners, these are probably not for you. Also, if you don't have a microwave you will definitely struggle. Unfortunately I am moving soon and won't and I have a couple of products left so I might have to invest in one!

Have you tried any food products like these? Do you have any questions about the products I have tried? I included loads of direct links so it would be easy to check out any products you are interested in reading more about.

xx

Check out my other health and fitness posts here.

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*These products were sent to me to review, all opinions are my own and no compensation was given to write this post.

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Greek Yoghurt Berry Smoothie Recipe with Cinnamon and Flaxseed

Greek Yoghurt Berry Smoothie Recipe with Cinnamon and Flaxseed

Hey, so in addition to trying to get back to posting regularly and I trying to start posting some of the things that I used to post more often before, like health & fitness posts and DIY's and tutorials. So first up is this smoothie recipe. I have posted a similar recipe once or twice but with Soy Milk so here is another version.

• Greek Yoghurt

• Mixed Berries 

• Cinnamon

• Flaxseeds

• Honey and/or banan to sweeten

As I mentioned, you can also use Soy milk instead of Greek Yoghurt, it is a lot cheaper and doesn't taste as much. But this is the last time I post this same recipe and I really really need some new smoothie recipes, So do you have any nice recipes for a healthy smoothie? 

Pls share 

xx

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Neal's Yard Remedies Create Your Own & Super Foods Event

Neal's Yard Remedies Create Your Own & Super Foods Event

On Wednesday I was invited to celebrate the Islington Neal's Yard Remedies store's 5th birthday, along with a couple of other London bloggers. As usual with Neal's Yard Events these was a sort of theme or activity- this time the activity was to create our own blend of essential oils and use it for a chosen product. Last year I went to their massage event near Marble Arch and learned a couple of tricks, read about that here. 

As you might know if you have followed my blog for a long while, I am interested in both natural beauty products and making my own products- so I was super excited about this evening. If you follow my Instagram (link) you will also know that I will actually be studying Cosmetic Science starting in September.  (Check out ALL my DIY posts here) 

We were told a little about essential oils and their benefits and then we got to smell loads of different ones, choosing our favourites to go in our own blends. We then got to use them in either a body oil, body scrub or shower gel using NYR own product bases (find them here). I believe you can also go to the store and mix up your own blend using these! 

                                                                                                                                        My blend was a little bit of Ylang Ylang (spelling?) essential oil, Rosemary,Geranium and a whole lot of Lime essential oil. So basically I just made a lime Shower Gel. Find their essential oils here. We also got our own hand made on the spot lip balm a la Neal's Yard made of beeswax, love it! I have actually tried making a similar lip balm before which you can read about here. 

As we arrived we were treated to this super yummy champagne with their own added special syrup mix (I believe), it was soo nice!

We were also introduced to some of their new Neal's Yard super foods. This is their chocolate with added Goji Berries (amongst other healthy things I believe). I am usually not a fan of fruit added to chocolate but I actually loved this and when offered, I happily accepted to bring home a few pieces.

We also got treated to some yummy muffins! Check out their page with some Super Food Recipes here.

Last but not least we got a very nice goodie bag with some items I am really excited about. As this post is already pretty picture heavy, I will save those for another post :)

Have you tried making your own products?

&What is your favourite super food?

xx

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♥ Today's Killer Bum and Thighs Work Out || Squats, Lunges & Donkey Kicks

 I am very happy to share a very over due fitness post! Even though I don't post them as frequently any more, I have a good few fitness post in my archives. Check out all my fitness posts here. Today's (well it was two days ago) exercises included my boyfriends dumbbells, a lot of squats and lunges.

Killer bum and leg work out:

• 20 kg dumbbells- 30x3 Squats
• 10 kg dumbbells- 30, 25, 25 Lunges (thought 30 was a bit much)
• 60 Donkey Kicks/Glute Kick Backs (30 for each leg)
• 60 Straight Leg Kicks (same position as donkey kicks, but with a straight leg, backwards)
• 60 Sideways, Straight Leg Kicks (Same as above but leg going sideways)

Then we did Abs: (Click the names, for a link to a picture of the exercise)

• Pilates Roll Ups- 2 min (You gotta try this for your abs! Do it for at least 2 minutes it takes a while for it to start "hurting").
• Side oblique crunch: 25x2 (One set of 25 for each side)
• Knee Crunches- 25x2
• Bicycle Crunches: 25

The ab exercises weren't planned so I didn't keep track of what I did, so this is roughly what I did.

Healthy and easy to do post dinner work out (inspired by an Instagram pic from this fitness blogger)

• Beef (Steak, chop, don't know what it is lol)
• Green Beans/Mango Tout looking vegetables
• 1 medium sizes sweet potatoe and one small normal potatoe chopped into cubes
• The best part- Tzatsiki! This is so nice, I didn't make it myself but the ingredients are: Greek yoghurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, mint, olive oil

What was your last work out like?

& What are your favourite bum and ab exercises?

xx

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♥ DIY: Valentines Day Chocolate Recipe Swedish Style

Valentines Day Chocolate Recipe Swedish Style

Happy Valentines Day Everyone!

I've always loved Valentines day, it's a great day for being extra positive and grateful for the people around you. And for the single people- Valentines day has got nothing to do with couples, so I've never understood when single people "complain" on Valentines. It's just a chance to show your loved ones some extra love, doesn't have to be a partner. ♥

Now, to my post. As you probably know if you follow me on Instagram I am in Sweden for a few days for me annual "surprise my little sister for her birthday". She is turning 10 and I've surprised her every year for 4 years now, and she still didn't have a clue I was coming lol.

The chocolate on the picture are what we call "Ischoklad" in Swedish which means Ice Chocolate. They are really Christmas sweets but me and my little sister decided to make some today- and she came up with the idea to create the cute heart shape. So I decided to share them as Valentines Chocolates :)

Check out this GIF for instructions :)

How was your Valentines Day?

Will you be trying this?

xx

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♥ Gym Day- What to eat?

Gym Day- What to eat?

After way too long, I finally went back to the gym yesterday. I enjoy going gym, and I don't struggle to do what I have to do when I am there- but I literally hate taking myself to the gym lol!

Anyway, this is what I had to eat, I thought I'd share it in my blog since both the breakfast and lunch are cheap, easy to make and healthy!

Breakfast:

• Freshly squeezed orange juice (I used 5 clementine sized "juicing oranges")
• Fruit salad containing banana, apple, orange.
• Two scrambled egg, boiled would have been better but I was being impatient.

Lunch (After work out)

• Nourishment drink, contains a lot of vitamins and protein, but is by no means healthy. 
• Tuna salad, salad, avocado, tomatoes, feta cheese, salad cheese and tuna.

When you go gym it is important to eat a lot of protein because that is what your body will use to actually change and build muscle. I thought these meals were great to share because I naturally eat a lot of protein, meaning I never though "let me eat this because I've been gym, and it contains protein". Egg, tuna, avocado and the nourishment drink contain a lot of protein :)

What do you eat when you go gym??

xx

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♥ Healthy Smoothie Recipe & Exercise of today

So one thing that probably doesn't come across as much as I'd like in my blog is my interest in health and fitness. Im health crazy or anything, I eat unhealthy things as much as I eat healthy stuff basically. But I love both of them. 

As it is now I go gym once a week and do some exercises at home during the week. I thought I would start sharing my work out of today (WOOT, Just googled this and apparently this means Work Outfit Of Today- well not anymore ;) ), is that something you think I should keep doing?

Here it goes, if you don't know the exercise, just click on the name, I've linked a picture :)

Treadmill: Warm Up 5 min walk

Leg press 90 kg: 25 reps

Dumbbell Lunges (one weight in each hand): 12kg x 12 || 14kg x 10 || 16kgx8 || 18kgx6

Rowing Machine (Resistance 9): 2000 metres

Elliptical (Crosstrainer): 30 minutes (low level, got lazy here, but atleast I did it)

-Remember, do the strength exercises first!

-Dont forget to warm up!

-Drink LOADS of water (I finished two big water bottles) 

_________________________________________________

Raspberry and Flaxseed (Linseed) Smoothie

I'd also like to share my favourite Smoothie recipee. It's really healthy and soo nice.

-Fill a 1/3 of the glass with Raspberries (I used mixed berries which are sold in both Tesco and Sainsbury's) I really recommend buying frozen berries, both because it's convenient and it makes you smoothie nice and cold.

-1 banana

-1 teaspoon Cinnamon

-1 teaspoon Linseeds/Flaxseeds

-1 teaspoon honey

-Fill up with Soymilk (You can use Greek Yoghurt too for example but I'd recommend Soy Milk)

Cinnamon and Linseed might sound strange but you shouldn't leave them out, these are the benefits:

Cinnamon (text borrowed from HERE, click for more info)

"A cinnamon and weight loss study (Journal of Clinical Nutrition) showed that ingesting a teaspoon of cinnamon decreases one's blood sugar levels. When ingested, cinnamon has similar characteristics to insulin. It boosts the body's metabolism of glucose and therefore decreases blood sugar levels.
Cinnamon also helps to fight hunger pains and cravings. It improves the digestion process and assimilates more nutrients into the body which in turn make you feel fuller for longer (the opposite of what fast food does)"

Linseed/Flaxseed (What it says on the package)

-Has a high content of Omega 3 essential fatty acids.
-Helps to maintain digestive regularity
-Contains a balance of 50% soluble and 50% insoluble fibre

Mixed in my new Kenwood Smoothie to go blender. Love it!

What do you do in the gym?

Do you have any great smoothie recipes to share?

x

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Easy easy

Here is a smoothie I made earlier :)

Really easy to make.. all you need is .

• Berries: Blueberries, raspberry, strawberries etc. I used tesco summer berries.

• Greek yoghurt, Yoghurt or soymilk

• Bananas, to make it sweeter

• Honey, to make it sweeter

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