Fitness on Toast

TURMERIC & SAFFRON WILD SEA BASS!

22/05/2017

Fitness On Toast Faya Blog Girl Healthy Cod Turmeric Spice Saffron Flavour Diet Low Calorie High Protein Delicious Dinner Lunch idea

Turmeric is all the rage these days, having successfully captured the zeitgeist of hipster nutrition. It appears in all sorts of places from lattes to protein shakes. I propose something altogether different today; in order to help you channel your inner trend-follower whilst enjoying a superbly tasty and healthy dish, here’s a quick and easy fish recipe using turmeric and saffron to give it some unexpected flavours, AND alluring colours. The turmeric and saffron enrobe the fish in a wonderfully rich yellow hue whilst the sweet flavours work beautifully with the savoury fish. Colourful plant foods are superb for our health because of their phytochemical properties (plant pigments) and turmeric is an extremely concentrated example of exactly that. It offers a disproportionate suite of health benefits due to the presence of curcumin, the yellow pigment. Mainly that curcumin’s benefits range from potent anti-inflammatory properties to areas of heart health and cognitive function. This dish is quick and easy to make and really doesn’t require much by way of kitchen skills. Click MORE to get the ‘how to’…

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INTERVIEW WITH TOP BRITISH HEPTATHLETE!

17/05/2017

One of the greatest privileges to come from writing this blog is the epic 1-on-1 exposure to world-class professionals operating in the health & wellness arena. From Elle Macpherson to Steffi Graf, I’ve recorded my Interviews on a special section of FitnessOnToast.com, and today I’m thrilled to reveal another fascinating insight into the life of a top-level British athlete, Katarina Johnson-Thompson, of heptathlon fame! Katarina hosted a class with my friends at BRITA which amongst other things, touched on the importance of optimal hydration – a topic I’ve written about several times on this blog; with a gruelling 7 components to master for her athletic discipline, I wanted to understand how she approaches this incredibly broad ask, and how she tailors her lifestyle to the task! She took attendees through a seriously demanding Switch7 workout for an hour, building on Hydration, Speed, Power, Strength, Agility, Stamina and Recovery. Click MORE to read our full interview…

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GYMBOX ‘GIVE IT A SPIN’ CLASS WITH METHOD!

10/05/2017

I wanted to share a recent visit to Gymbox Farringdon, where I was invited to hit up the method laundry Challenge for their “Give it a Spin” class! It’s a purpose-built Spin Cycle class, crafted by method (a planet-friendly household brand which massively appeals to my inner eco-warrior) using a series of fragrances which motivate you to work out even harder! Now, there are countless mega-gyms, niche studios and pop-up classes proliferating all around London, and I’m always thrilled to try new ones and share them here. This class, at this gym, did not disappoint! If you haven’t been to this Gymbox, it’s well worth a visit; it’s unlike any other gym in that it feels as if you’ve entered an underground rave. With a DJ in a cage blasting forth tech house upon the cavernous gym floor, exercise revelers are propelled by the energy, and therefore they really go for it. That in turn, is hugely motivating. There’s no need to wait for any of the squat racks or benches because there are so many of them all over the place. There’s a huge section of monkey bars, pull-up bars – it’s literally an adult’s playground! Click MORE to see all about the class, to enter my competition to win AN ENTIRE YEAR’S free laundry detergent plus a Monreal gym bag, and to discover the delicious scents!

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CITY ESCAPE TO CARDIFF!

05/05/2017

You may have spied that I recently ventured west to Bath for a Great British city ‘wellness break’, and through my escapades around that wonderful place, I wondered what lay further beyond, more westward still in the British Isles… this weekend, as a guest of the charming team at Visit Wales, I discovered precisely that. On a bank holiday city break to Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, I hiked the beautiful Taff Trail and toured the Millennium ‘Principality’ Stadium ahead of the UEFA Champions League final in June ! Here’s what I discovered…

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ACTIVE ESCAPE: MONASTERO SANTA ROSA

29/04/2017

When pondering life in a monastery, images of stoic monks engaged in the pursuit of tireless abstinence come to mind; perhaps you conjure their unfulfilled passions, heavy sacrifices, and somber dutifulness underscoring a lifetime of pious devotion. Well, you shall have to park those preconceptions to one side the moment you hear the Monastero Santa Rosa‘s bell welcome you to the Hotel – a charming and sonorous tradition ringing out from a simpler era. Whilst an ancient spirituality pervades Monastero‘s stone corridors, this is perhaps the most well-invested, immaculately finished gem on Italy’s glistening Amalfi Coast, and was the scene of my latest wellness pilgrimage. Blending the owner’s meticulous eye for detail, a masterpiece organic vegetable garden nourished by lashings of Italian sunshine, a ‘gourmet heavyweight’ chef, a heavenly infinity pool, a sumptuous spa complex, and exquisitely appointed rooms, the hotel nails the very essence of Amalfi magic. I visited in order to road-test their newly launched ‘Health & Hike’ package, and am thrilled to recount the special experiences I encountered over my 3 days. Read MORE to see all the glorious details…

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A KILLER WORKOUT WITH TEAM ‘BAR’

18/04/2017

During my blog trip to Bermuda last month, I trained with the elite sailors from Team Land Rover BAR, the Great British hope for the 35th America’s Cup and run by the most successful Olympic sailor of all time, legend Sir Ben Ainslie. Whilst they’re a brand new team for this event, they mean business with a 150-strong contingent and a well-funded £80m budget; second place isn’t an option, they’re out to #BringTheCupHome. This was a pretty unique and exceptional opportunity for a bit of an amateur sailing geek like me. I’ve previously featured professional sailing teams on my adventures with Helly Hansen, and indeed myself trained with Team Concise, as well as participating in Cowes Week 2016 (placing third!). The America’s Cup is something altogether different; akin to a Formula 1 on water, it’s the hardest cup in all sport to win, with only 4 nations having won since it began in 1851 – and NOT Britain, yet. This year for the first ever time, it’s being held in the Great Sound, a sheltered yet windy expanse off the Bermuda coastline. This is the most glamorous and intensely competed meet in the sailing calendar, and I was allowed super-rare insight into the team’s training regime. Warning: it’s beyond gruelling! Read on… (more…)

MINI COCONUT EASTER MOUNTAINS!

10/04/2017

Whilst you probably had us Swedes pegged for masters of meatballs, herring, and surstromming, we’re actually a nation of distinguished bakers and have considerable deft with a dessert too! Want proof? These delicious little Coconut Mountains are a totally classic dessert straight out of the Swedish motherland! They’re particularly appropriate this time of year, as I’ve always thought they looked more than passingly like little Easter bunnies – perfect for next week’s festivities. I’ve changed up the recipe by replacing the dairy product with coconut oil instead, as I’ve received a surprising number of emails requesting dairy-free desserts. However, the taste profile is the same and coconut hosts some awesome health benefits too, which I wrote about in some detail in my recent post, GOING COCO-NUTS! In the meantime, fire up the oven and click MORE for the full recipe below! (more…)

10 BEAUTIES OF BERMUDA…

01/04/2017

The Bermuda Rectangle. Is what I thought it was called, but it turns out that doesn’t exist either. Apart from a superstitious fiction of vanishing vessels and the even-more-mysterious Bermuda Shorts, I’d not really encountered the island of Bermuda before. This marvel of nature is a long, thin, subtropical, volcanic island (made up of 181 mini-islands!) that’s shaped like a seahorse, and is a veritable slither of paradise with soft pink sandy beaches and turquoise waters. Marine heritage is a fundamental part of daily life here, and it offers simply some of the best sailing conditions in the world. When the Bermuda Tourism Authority invited me to tour the island and train with the Land Rover BAR team ahead of the elite and ultra-prestigious Americas Cup in May, I commenced my research; Turks & Caicos is 1,340km away, this isn’t in the Caribbean, it’s one of the most isolated islands on the planet, and it’s surrounded by absolutely nothing other than the fresh depths of the Atlantic Ocean. And its waters are blessed with lashings of wind; a sailors mecca! What I discovered when I set foot on the island couldn’t have been more unique; this is one of the most welcoming gems I’ve encountered on my voyages! Click more to see behind the scenes from the sailing equivalent of F1, as well as my top 10 wellbeing activities on this stunning, arresting island! (more…)

WORLD SLEEP DAY WITH WESTIN!

24/03/2017

As part of the festivities for last Friday’s World Sleep Day (it’s March 17th – perhaps mark it in your calendar for 2018 and maybe grab a belated extra hour snooze tonight?!) I had the superb opportunity to hop on board a plane with a friend and voyage to the peaceful climes of Westin La Quinta, Marbella. I’ve written extensively about the importance of sleep – it’s a critical component of the wellbeing formula, rather than some sort of hedonistic luxury. To quote sleep legend, Professor Adrian Williams, we’re taling about ‘survival of the most rested‘. In line with this, I was thrilled to trial Westin’s brand new Bedtime Routine and to have had the chance to gift two lucky people their very own wellbeing break to the beautiful Westin La Quinta, Marbella! I spent a few nights in one of their deliciously compelling ‘Heavenly’ beds, so-called for good reason, and left feeling better than when I arrived, which is a sort of wellbeing nirvana, to my mind! Click MORE below to see the full behind-the-scenes of the routine and a little glimpse into the trip… (more…)

VEGGIE, KALE & BROCCOLI QUICHE!

12/03/2017

I’ve been making this quiche dish for years and have come to depend on it as a reliable hit with friends and family, right when I need something to deliver! It’s similar to my approach to soups in that you can get creative and throw in pretty much any veggies to the mix, free-style; perfect if you have a few veggies in the fridge which are on their last legs (we Swedes hate wastage!). Also this dish is delicious both hot and cold, so it’s perfect to bring to work for lunch the next day, or as a cheeky picnic now that the British weather is finally looking up! As always on this blog, creating the dish is quick and easy, and relies on fresh ingredients you can find in your local supermarket. Click MORE to see the ‘How To‘!

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