Goal Setting

Can you believe we are already swiftly heading towards the end of June? Where has the year gone!

Futhermore, how are those resolutions going, that you may have made back in January?

The focus of this post is goal setting. Not necessarily an in-depth 'how to', as I feel I'm not an expert on goal setting and this is something that should be tailored to each individual.

For those that have never set any goals before, but feel like your daily routine, in both health and fitness may be lacking, here are a few tried and tested tips!

Write clear goals

Sometimes its easier to start backwards from your end-goal and instead of writing "I should be", write "I am". eg "This month I am able to run a full 5km. I am one month away from my end goal and excited to see my progress".

Create a specific action plan for each of the goals that you want to set

How long will you allow yourself to achieve this goal? As an added extra I also like to make myself write bullet points on things that I still always forget are important. 

eg "Write 3 things that made you happy today".

Read your goals daily and visualise yourself accomplishing them

It's important to have a positive mind and the most effective way to encourage this is to find encouraging words, quotes and images of inspiration and wisdom to keep you on the right track. This is a perfect example of where your Vision Board could come into play.

Reflect on the progress that you make

 This can be month by month or week by week depending on your goal's time frame

Try to stay on target as best you can. If your goal is exercise related, you may find small and simple things such as pre-planning your meals and weekly shopping, along with preparing your next day's meals the night before, will assist you in your goal process

Make yourself accountable

Do you have a like-minded friend that also has goals of their own to accomplish? Why not team up, and report your goal progress to each other - weekly or monthly depending on your goal's time frame. Also a great opportunity for a catch up and some exercise. See, that counts as goal progress and you probably didn't even realise!

Eliminate Procrastination

If you know you're slow or lazy at something, try to eliminate the odds of this happening. This ties in with the meal pre-planning I mentioned, and can also apply to laying out your work clothes the night before, packing your training gear the night before so you're ready to go in the morning or leaving your breakfast ingredients out on the bench (if not needed in the fridge) the night before.

Now after reading this, is it time to re-asses the goals you have already made? And if you haven't made any yet, go find a pen and some paper, and start writing down your July goals - plenty of time for you to visualise what you want to achieve before we finish June, and break down your weekly items to tick off.

Image: Pinterest

Just Breathe

 

Images: Pinterest | They All Hate Us



The Boathouse - Palm Beach

By the weekend we've just had, you wouldn't know we were in Winter. The sun shone brightly all weekend long, and the weather was cool but not too cold, that you couldn't enjoy being outdoors. While this weekend was filled with domestic duties and catch ups with friends, I wanted to share with you all a lovely sunny Sunday that I experienced the other week, that gets the body moving but can be social and relaxing at the same time.

My friend Amanda and I decided on an active and social Sunday plan - doing the Palm Beach Lighthouse walk, and then enjoying a yummy breakfast at one of the "hotspots" that the Northern Beaches has to offer - The Boathouse Palm Beach. Known for Moby Dicks Whale Beach, the newly opened Balmoral Boathouse and previously Armchair Collective, the Boathouse Palm Beach never fails to impress, both locals and those that travel some distance to experience what this gorgeous boutique cafe has to offer.

Being the active ladies that we were, the lighthouse trek did not take long at all. We stopped to admire the view, catch our breath, take some pics and then the urge for coffee overtook us and we headed back down.

We arrived on the Boathouse doorstep early enough to miss the queue that can sometimes snake out to the front, and were able to find a table inside, complete with blankies for those colder winter mornings as you sit and sip your coffee and read the sunday papers.

Despite everything on the menu sounding delicious, we both couldn't pass up the opportunity to try the Avocado and tomato on charred toast with goats curd and basil 

 (and our well deserved skinny cap & skinny latte)

Time passed so fast, as we sat and had a chat and did some people watching

A great way to spend a morning and to show that you can combine being active, eating well and having a social catch up in one lovely outing.

Not only can you dine inside or out on the sunny wharf (which you may recognise from watching Home and Away, yes, you are in Summer Bay territory) but the arrangement of fresh flowers, fresh fruit and coconuts are also readily available to take home.

This place is a definate "must visit"!

The Boathouse Palm Beach can be found here:

http://www.theboathousepb.com.au/

Images: My Own

Easy, Healthy Cookies

Get ready to learn the easiest cookie recipe you have ever seen!

My clever mum found this one, and I took last nights cold and rainy weather as the perfect opportunity to make something for after dinner.

Filling, satisfying, and not at all naughty!

 

You can add other things you like to this recipe, but the amazing point I would like to make, is that you only really need 2 main ingredients. Yep! TWO!

 

Ingredients

2 large bananas (can be ripe or old)

1 cup of quick oats

 

Method

Mix together

 

Then add in whatever else you'd like

eg crushed walnuts, choc chips, cinnamon, sultanas

 

 

For my first go, I didn't have quick oats on hand, so I just used 1 cup of my morning museli mix.

This contained shredded coconut, cranberries, sultanas and oats.

I then added some cinnmon and chia seeds

 

Try not to add too many mix-ins as the cookie mixture is less likely to hold together.

This should make around 16 cookies

Cook for 15 minutes at 170 degrees celsius

 

Because I used real oats instead of quick oats, i'm not certain if this altered the taste experience. I still found them incredibly yummy, crunchy on the outside but gooey on the inside.

Perhaps if you used the quick oats they might have more crunch all the way through - something to play around with!

 

For those that think eating about 6 in one go would be sacrilege, think back to what you put in there. Oats, banana and some nuts and sultanas... now you can reach for your 7th :-)

 

I allowed mine to cool from the oven until they were still slightly warm, and then enjoyed with a cup of green tea in my Hermes fine china.

 (Please read that last line in an extremely posh voice)

 

2 main ingredients, how easy!

 

 

 

Images: My Own

 

 

 

 



Chicken & Coriander Dumpling Soup

Although we experienced an amazing long weekend weather-wise, tonight, as I did sit ups outside on the damp grass, pulled rope and did squats in the cold, the salad that I had planned to prepare for dinner tonight just wasn't going to cut it. A quick trip to Mum and Dad's to say hello, resulted in a sneaky take-home container of a warm crunchy bread roll, and my clever mum's Chicken and Coriander Dumpling Soup. Perfect for this type of weather, already made with love and just sitting, begging for me to take some home. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients

4 cups of chicken stock

1 carrot

Half cut up pumpkin

 1 onion

2 potatoes

(any other kind of veggies are totally fine, get creative)

250g chicken mince

Handful of coriander

Tbsp garlic

Tbsp minced ginger

Method

Bring veggies and chicken stock to boil and simmer until the veggies are tender

Prepare the chicken mince, mix in with the chopped onion, coriander, garlic and minced ginger. Form into bite sized balls, and refrigerate until the veggies are cooked. This helps to firm up the mince and retain its round dumpling-like form.

Then drop the dumplings into the soup for 5 minutes and serve.

That hit of coriander as you bite into the dumplings, is amazing! The rule at mum and dad's is that dad gets the most dumplings in his soup, as he works the hardest :-)

Images: My Own

Fiona the Fence Sitter

Before we get started I should probably start by saying that I don't actually know a Fiona. But if I did, the first thing I would say to her is, STOP BEING A FENCE SITTER,FIONA!

 

 

Fence sitter's like our mythical Fiona, are the types of women that like to wait around, going about their day to day, and waiting for something truly amazing and exciting to happen. Oh Fiona...

 

You create the life and adventures that you desire, based on your thoughts, your words and actions.

Being comfortable is safe, and perfectly ok for some. Some days I am comfortable and safe, and that is just fine by me. But what would happen if you had the courage to change that safe, comfortable nest you've built? The first step off that fence is always easier said than done, but you need to embody confidence. Put yourself into a new situation, or one that you know might not make you feel truly comfortable because it's not your safe nest. Start saying yes to things! This will put you in a position that will help you welcome and encourage fantastic adventures and opportunities.

If you're like me, it takes some time to put this in to practise, and I like to think that something that involves confidence is always, ALWAYS a work in progress, but my best tip to you would be - fake it till you make it!

 

 

If you find yourself saying things like "I cant'", we repeat this mantra, and our mind starts to believe it. We become those words and they shape our ability. On Monday night during my Outdoor Fitness session, I decided to "I can". The shuffler in me ended up running- in between core work-, for around 50 minutes straight. The whole time I ran (shuffled), I kept thinking, "Ok this will be my last lap, I can't do anymore, no i'm actually serious Nicole."

Then when the next lap came around, I had no option. I was quite literally pushed into starting the lap. So I thought "How am I still possibly running (shuffling)? Maybe I should keep going to see how long I can go for". Oh I totally got lapped and overtaken. The air couldnt get into my lungs quick enough. But I actually did it!

 

 

As a side note, it 100% makes a difference if you are doing this with like-minded and motivating people. Had I been on my own, it probably wouldn't have worked. I might have run/walked to a blaring Thriller , but I would not have pushed myself. There's something so amazing about people cheering each other on, and giving positive feedback to one another, with nothing to gain other than making that person feel like they are really giving it a good go. In between gasping for breath. R.E.S.P.E.C.T to my training girls x

 

 

In order to amplify this confidence and positivity, take note of those around you. Who inspires you? Who can you learn from? Who motivates you? These are the people you want to stick with. The ones that bring out the absolute best in you. This is how you grow.

 

Stop sitting on the fence with Fiona, and say yes to something you normally would say no to. Instead of waiting for things to happen, make them happen and then see the rewards that you reap.

 

 

Images: Pinterest | My Own

 

 

 



Mixed Bag



Vision Boards

Whilst we read and learn about the power of positive thinking, and balancing our work and home lives in a happy headspace, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to talk about vision boards.

Vision boards, mood boards, dream boards, inspirational collages - whatever you like to call them, they exist for so many great reasons.

Vision boards help take you out of your comfort zone, and place you in the centre of achieving your goals.

If you're like me, and not 100% clear and accurate on what you actually want your goals to be, vision boards are great for just letting your creativity flow, allowing you to step back, and watch your goals grow organically, with no expectations and no pressure. Rather than just random pretty pictures that some may feel serve "no purpose", vision boards allow you to direct your eye towards things that inspire you, motivate you, or quite simply are images that you just can't tear your eyes away from.

For someone to look at someone else's vision board, they may not understand or relate to the images or the words that they have chosen. A board is unique to the individual that has created it, and can often explain in images, what the individual may struggle to say or convey with words.

Making a vision board is extremely simple. The example below, is my vision board I have created and added to over time, at my work desk. To have a vision board at work allows me to escape the stresses that a job can often bring. Some brightness, colour, and motivation are always more appealing to look at , particularly if you spend around 9 hours a day at the same desk, 5 days a week.

For me, sourcing my motivation and inspiration is based online. I collect images that I see all over the internet, save them to a folder, and when I feel my vision board needs a makeover, or adding to, I print the pictures and stick them up!

My friend Niccy, is a fan of cutting out images and quotes from her magazines, this in itself is quite a therapeutic process, on a cold and rainy afternoon, sitting and watching a movie, while you browse through your favourite mags and cut out images that just say "you".

Below are some further examples of vision boards. Yours may have a theme - Fitness, Health, Fashion, Travel or a combination. There's no rule of thumb with a vision board. Whatever makes you happy and motivates you when you look at it. If you're not a "board" person, why not use some space on your fridge to start, so you can glimpse some inspiration whenever you walk past . Some would argue that this is now the point of web-based sites such as Pinterest, but in my opinion, there's something so much nicer about doing it the old-school way.

Quotes and Motivation

Fashion

Health and Fitness

If you're DIY inclined, my friend over at The Life Creative has done a tutorial on how to create your own mood board, that you may also like to give a go! You can check it out here: http://thelifecreativeblog.com/2013/05/19/an-easy-ikea-mood-board-makeover/

Images: Pinterest

Links: http://thelifecreativeblog.com