Category Archives: sport

Horse Riding And Its Celebrity Fans

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With the lockdown continuing to ease in most parts of the UK, there has been a rise in the number of people who are getting back in the saddle and enjoying horse riding all over again. The Queen was just one of the people who had missed riding during lockdown, and indeed the first published picture of her after lockdown was, inevitably, one of her riding a pony in the grounds of Windsor Castle.

It is apt then, that horse Riding is often described as the Sport of Kings, but these days it could also be as truthfully described as the sport of the glamorous celebrity. The list of well known names who have their own horses and custom built stables within the ground of their homes is both long and surprising.

Here are just some of the celebrities who take the opportunity to ride in their downtime.

Madonna

Top of any list of celebrity riding fans has to be the queen of pop herself, Madonna. We all know that Madonna had a very ‘English phase’ during her marriage to film director Guy Ritchie, where, as well as drinking tea, talking with a cut glass accent and wearing a nifty line in tea dresses, Madonna developed a passion for horses that continues to this day (she currently owns two.)

I can’t help thinking that the fashion maverick just loved the look of jodphurs and a riding hat (and we all know she’s been partial to a whip at times), but the fact that she actually trained, and with none other than William Fox Pitt clearly indicates that the one time Material Girl has clearly been bitten by the riding bug.

Mary Kate Olsen

These days she is better known for her fashion designing skills along with her sister Ashley for her label ‘The Row’, but Mary Kate is actually an accomplished horsewoman who has competed, most famously at the Hampton Classic Show. From a fashionista point of view, can you imagine how stylish The Row riding apparel would be. I think Mary Kate could be onto a real winner with that.

Bella Hadid

It sort of seems apt that the coltish, beautiful Bella Hadid is another lady with a passion for being in the saddle. The lovely supermodel is said to aspire to ride in an Olympic Games, well, there’s certainly still time to get the practice in before Tokyo 2020.

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga became a fan of horse after she was presented with one by her record company. She is now the proud owner of a stallion called…wait for it…Trigger. (How Original!) Gaga is one person I would totally love to see on a horse, can you imagine the fun she would have with equestrian gear, and as for the boots….

Jordan/Katie Price

No roundup of celebrity horse riding fans can be complete without some mention of Jordan/Katie Price, or whatever she happens to be calling herself this week. Katie is a lover of dressage (couldn’t you guess that a woman obsessed with pink would also love the idea of dancing horses) and is actually, all joking aside, an accomplished horsewoman who is very passionate about horse sports, also playing polo. She even had her own equestrian clothing line, KP equestrian, which, as you can probably imagine, was very pink, very tongue in cheek and a whole lot of fun. After all, who could resist a ‘50 shades of hay’ t-shirt…

Are you a fan of horses, have you ever tried horse riding?

Finding A Healthier You

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Becoming a mom is one of the most physically gruelling things you can do to your body, though sadly without the end result of washboard abs or a pert booty. When you have a young family, it’s so easy to let fitness fall on your list of priorities but this only leads to low self-esteem and even lower energy levels.. You can make the decision to prioritise your fitness regime, and one that works for you by making smart choices, and working out for a small period of time, every day. Here are some ways you can do so quickly, and effectively, even with a busy lifestyle.

Image by Sangudo used under the Creative Commons license.

Power walk to victory

Walking is the best thing you can do for your body to slowly build strength and fitness without putting unnecessary stress on it. If you can’t neglect your everyday chores to make time for a stroll, then build walking into your day’s routine. Park a few blocks away from the supermarket and make up the distance on foot. Walk the kids to school if it’s in the local neighbourhood, vow to take the dog on a brisk walk every morning, and make play dates with other moms for a stroll rather than a sedentary hour in the park. At the weekend, a hike is the perfect way for your family to get healthy together. Make sure everyone is well-equipped with good quality walking socks and boots, and work together to navigate to make it engaging.

Add a Multivitamin Complex

Our body does not always get all that it needs from our diets and lifestyle, so we sometimes need to give it a helping hand. Adding a multi vitamin from Epsilon Life could be the answer if we feel we need to give our immune and digestive system a boost. Epsilon’s Multivitamin and Mineral complex is Vegan certified, and  has, among other ingredients Iron, B-complex, Ginkgo Biloba and Ginseng. It will give you all the vitamins you need in one tablet, and not only will you feel better, but you will look better too, with healthier looking hair and skin.

Resolve to eat well

Your fitness is about 30% exercise and 70% diet, so the importance of what foods you choose to put in your body cannot be overstated. If you have a busy lifestyle, aim to eat small meals, often, to sustain energy and concentration. Ditch sugary, processed food, and anything you have been using as a crutch to get you through the day, whether it’s that third cup of coffee, cans of diet soda or chocolate bars. Exercise and a positive attitude will eventually replace these. Snack on fruit, veg, boiled eggs, nuts and cottage cheese, and whatever you do, don’t skip breakfast.

Many people are now turning to a plant based diet in order to improve their health and well being. Veganism is now seen as a way to not only improve all of their general health, but also to help save the planet too. If you are thinking of changing to a plant based diet, or want to see what effect certain meat products may have on your body and what they can be substituted for you could have a nutritional health test.

HealthLabs.com has been offering customers affordable lab testing online since 2015. These can help to identify which meat or animal products are causing body irritation or what nutrients are lacking which may be addressed by adopting a plant based diet,  nutritional panel tests can also identify other common deficiencies in a broader diet. These tests are far cheaper than if you try to organise through a doctor and can really help you to achieve greater well being.

If you are based in the US and would like to organise a test, you can save 15% by booking through this link.

Make some time for you

You can power walk and chow down on granola bars all day long, but if you’re mentally frazzled, it probably won’t help much. Allocate a set time every day (or every few days) which is just for you. This might be an hour in which you go for a massage. You may want to indulge in an evening yoga class, or spend the morning painting. It could be a creative writing class, or a book group. Whatever it is that helps you reconnect with yourself, make time for it. Your sense of personal well-being depends on it.

 

 

Enjoying The World’s No1 Sports Drink

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Gatorade is the world’s number one sports drink. It is a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink that comes in a range of flavours and is designed to maintain endurance performance and to enhance the absorption of water during physical exercise. It is the perfect drink to take to the gym, to the track, and to the football pitch. In fact, for any activity where you are going to be using lots of energy and building up a sweat, Gatorade will enable you to replenish your fluids and perform better.

My son Joe is extremely active. He plays for a football team and trains twice weekly with them. He also plays for the WBA foundation once a week, plays school sport 4 times weekly, and boxes on Fridays. He takes a drink with him as he builds up a sweat and uses lots of energy, but he is not a fan of water, and we found that during training he was sometimes not drinking enough, which led to a loss of energy and a drop in his performance levels.

He now takes a bottle of Gatorade with him to each training session. The 500ml sports drinks bottles are easy to open and close and are non spill. There are a range of flavours including Cool Blue (Joe’s favourite), Red Orange, Orange and Lemon. The drinks taste great, and if you are interested in trying them all, Amazon has a pack that includes 12 bottles (3 of each flavour), along with a cool towel and a Gatorade squeeze bottle. This is a great way of getting to know the brand.

The Gatorade drinks taste great and have been a real success story in my house. We reserve these for sports time only, they are sports drinks and so not just for after school, but when they are used correctly, they are a great way of putting the energy and hydration back into the body.