Wednesday 20 June 2012

Keeping up the diet!

I enjoyed the light diet of raw & fresh natural foods so much on R & R that I am actively choosing to follow it still now I am back!

Check out my delicious & healthy lunch :-)

Thursday 7 June 2012

Join the next Revive & Rejuvenate retreat!

If you have been inspired by my blog & want to feel as revived & rejuvenated as I felt then I urge you to consider joining the next retreat in October later this year.

For more information on the retreat - prices, dates, etc - please take a look at:

http://www.reviveandrejuvenate.com/

All photos from the May retreat will be up on the site soon! In the meantime you can see some of them as well as information & updates on the R&R Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Revive-and-Rejuvenate/114792475287525

Thursday 31 May 2012

Home time

I am so sad to go. The group has been amazing, the weather glorious, the organisation & execution perfect. Gutted doesn't begin to describe how I feel about this experience ending.

At the end of the week I feel healthier & stronger. On the boat trip I felt more confident in a bikini than I have done in years. I hesitantly posed for pictures in my bikini & expected to not be happy with the results. I was shocked at how happy I was - I even posted one of said pictures as my profile picture on Facebook! Something I never thought I would do.

I would definitely go back & do this retreat again. I have been on 3 holidays so far this year: skiing in Meribel, Las Vegas, & this retreat. The retreat week was my favourite holiday this year!

Thank you Kerry for a wonderful week! Please send me all of the juice recipes!

Day 6

Today is my last day, & this day was definitely by far my favourite. This might be because we were allowed to have some wine in evening for our celebratory end of week evening out in town... but I think mainly it was to do with the awesome boat trip Kerry organised for us.

We start our day earlier than usual with stretching & circuits as normal. After that we head down to the harbour & board our home for the day.
 
We spend the day moored up in a beautiful bay relaxing harder than ever on the cushioned sunbeds on the top deck of the boat. This really is luxury! Inland it had looked like rain was approaching but out on the water the skies are blue, as is the gorgeous sea. Kerry has duly informed the captain of our eating requirements (chicken, salad, vegetables) for lunch, & the captain more than delivers. A fresh feast is provided for us with supplies of cold water (there are spirits floating about in a few of the cupboards but I restrain...). We resume our sunbathing positions on the top deck & sail between bays for the rest of the day. In one bay there is the option to have a mud bath which some of the girls indulge in. The swim to shore to reach the mud bath looks a little bit too chilly for me so I use my photographer excuse again & remain on the boat!

Late afternoon comes & we head back to shore. We have a quick turnaround to make so we crack on with our evening boxing session (again, yesss!). Once this is done we decide to throw ourselves in the pool in our gym underwear (great time for me to be wearing granny pants, #fail).

We dry off & get ready to hit the town for an evening meal to celebrate a fantastic week. Dinner is by no means burgers & chips, we don't venture far from our healthy diet but a few cheeky carbs are consumed... as are a few cheeky glasses of wine... Not everyone followed this route I might add, only a few rebels! After dinner I take an ill-advised shopping trip - wine + cheap 'Mulberry' handbags = credit card taking a battering. It's all worth it though & I end the evening feeling very happy (& slightly tipsy).

Day 5

I can't believe it's already day 5. Today we have another day chilling at the villa. The skies are a bit cloudy as we start our day with stretching & more circuits, so some of the girls decide to take advantage of the the cooler day & wander into town to visit the market which runs every Thursday. I wait it out by the pool instead & my gamble pays off, soon the sun is shining once again & I resume my tanning position (by this time I am looking nice & brown, on top of feeling fitter I am feeling pretty good about myself!). It's worth pointing out that whilst all of this time by the pool might sound like it could get boring, it most certainly doesn't. All of the standard women's magazines are on hand as well as a selection of books. I personally love the fact that the sun loungers are nicely cushioned & the wifi reaches everywhere you can sunbathe - sunbathing with my iPad is great!

Our meal plan for Thursday rotates & we have a solid breakfast followed by juices for lunch & dinner. Nuts, seeds & dried apricots are freely available to graze on whenever you like, & a couple of the other girls & I decide to snack on avocados & tomatoes later in the day. To be honest I am not particularly hungry, it's more out of habit but as it is healthy I don't feel guilty. Kerry & Nora have ensured that there is always enough food in the house, & all of it is fresh, natural & raw. The intention is not to be hungry, but to detox & eat well. So far it's working very well for me!

I have a little treat today - Lauren, our resident masseuse, is treating all of us to a free session of reflexology. For those who are fond of having their feet, er, fondled, there is an option to have a massage instead. I opt for the reflexology despite my rather mangey feet (I live in flip-flops & spend my time walking around London). The session is an hour & based in the covered area of the terrace. I sit on the massage bed & look out at the incredible view once again - this is the life! The reflexology, which I have never had before, is good & I end up so relaxed I fall asleep (& dribble). Lauren tells me afterwards that she could tell that I have chest problems (correct - asthma) & am dehydrated (correct - I am awful at drinking enough water unless it has gin in it). Genius. Most of the other girls have already had their sessions by this point, I was saving mine!
I call home in the evening after a great boxing session (instead of Zumba, I am delighted being a boxing fanatic!) & share stories from the retreat with my family. I think they are impressed with me, it's a nice change from talking to me on the phone whilst I am standing outside a bar...!

Day 4

Today we are off to the beach for a training session. Kerry has pre-planned & thought of everything & provides towels & water for all. We have a juice for breakfast & head off in a minibus to 'Patara' beach which is around a half an hour drive away. The drive allows us to see some beautiful views around the bay.

We do circuits on the beach, utilising the surroundings & making the most of the challenge which sand provides when running. Our workout is shorter but more intense because of this. I am shattered after one light jog on the beach & retire casually to take photos (the perks of being the photographer!). The scenery gives me some great shots, & everyone seems energised by the change of location for our workout. After our workout we have an hour or two to relax & sunbathe on the beach in the lunchtime sun.

By early afternoon people have got sand in all sorts of places & we decide to head back to the villa for another amazing chickpea & avocado salad for lunch, this time served with tuna. An afternoon in the sun follows, some of the girls head off into town again whilst others lounge by the pool. Wednesday evening is our night off from exercise & we curl up on the sofa to watch a film (popcorn is even freshly made as a treat!). My behind was a little sore from sunburn, but I'd had a great day!

Day 3

Breakfast consists of hot water & lemon to wake us up followed by half an avocado with boiled eggs & tomatoes. My cockiness from the day before (oh I'm so fit I won't ache at all after all that exercise!) has worn off entirely - everything hurts. Having rolled out of bed (literally, I can't use my legs) & finished my breakfast I waddle out onto the terrace & join in with the morning stretching to wake the body session.

I'm surprisingly more bendy than the day before, & the stretches sooth my aching muscles as opposed to hurting them more. We move on after that into a circuits session & I am pleasantly surprised to find that we are doing completely different exercises to the day before. The session is still just as hard, but the variety provides a fresh boost.

After our morning exercise is complete we have another blissful day of relaxation at the villa with a short break for lunch where Kerry takes us down to the local beach club. Having done her research Kerry knows that the beach club serves food which is appropriate for our diet & whilst we are not under strict instruction to order a salad, we know what we should be eating & all quite happily order light salads. There is a sense amongst the group of wanting to succeed & follow the plan which has been so carefully laid out for us. In the heat of the midday sun I didn't exactly want to nosh on steaming hot pasta anyway.

After lunch we head back to the villa to digest our lunch & sunbathe. Once the sun starts to go down we prepare for our evening exercise session which, luckily for me (not), is Zumba again. There is no improvement in my performance & I once again look like I'm either blind or slightly mentally impaired as I lankily gallop around the terrace. It's still fun however & everyone has a good laugh learning (or not in my case) the routines.

In the evening I decide not to be lazy like last night & head out into town with some of the girls. The shops are incredible - everyone is so friendly & all of the merchandise (genuine replicas don't you know) is such good quality. We find some amazing bargains & head home very happy (& rather late) to bed.