easy | Fitness on Toast

Posts tagged 'easy'

4 TOP EXERCISES FOR ABS AND CORE STRENGTH!

16/07/2018

Core strength will look after your body as it ages, so it’s well worth working towards a strong muscular girdle right now, whatever your age! To help accomplish that, here’s a great little ab routine which aims to target all your abdominals muscles and give your whole core a serious punishing! It’s been a while since I wrote about training abs and I thought this cheeky routine was worth sharing, as it requires no weights or gym equipment; it’s perfect to bust out in the living room, garden or local park whilst enjoying this stunning weather! It’s not overly complicated but when done correctly it’s devastatingly effective! Dispatch the 4 exercises back to back. Then have a 1 minute break and do it all over again! 4 rounds should do the trick!

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BREAKFAST POTATO FRITTATA WITH MUSHROOM & SPINACH!

04/06/2018

The humble spud may have originated in the Andes 7000 years ago, but it features heavily in today’s Swedish diet, and is a mainstay in many of the recipes in my recent book Fit In 3. When Love Potatoes reached out to ask me to craft a delicious, healthy breakfast recipe using potatoes, I was delighted to oblige, and dipped into my deep bench of spud dishes! The potato isn’t just an incredibly versatile ‘hero ingredient’ (think roasted, baked, mashed, steamed, crisped, wedged/chipped etc), but it packs significant health benefits. Each one is loaded with flavonoids and carotenoids (whose antioxidant activities to help reduce the risk of chronic diseases), vitamin B6 (to enable enzymatic reactions and promote cellular renewal, as well as the production of serotonin in the brain and healthy heart function) and a unique type of ‘resistant starch’ that may help regulate blood sugar and improve the digestive health. They’re satisfying (their latin name solanum tuberosum literally means comforting tubers!) so you stay fuller for longer, and actually contain more potassium than a banana (which helps to regulate blood pressure and protect against the likes of stroke) or indeed any other fruit or vegetable. They’re also affordable, and always on hand as they’re grown throughout the year – the leading vegetable crop in the world. This recipe is for a delicious Breakfast Potato Frittata with Mushroom, Spinach and Italian Herbs – it’s quick and easy, requiring limited kitchen skills, packs a serious nutritional punch and will keep you full until lunch time! Click MORE for the full recipe and video ‘how to’… (more…)

VOLVO AT THE GROVE!

12/03/2018

I spent last weekend in the company of one of the greatest Swedish icons; no, not Björn Borg, ABBA, or the Chef from The Muppets – but Volvo! Throughout my childhood in Karlskrona (southern Sweden) literally everybody’s parents drove this marque, including mine. Our country has a reserved, understated national culture, and it’s a point of humor that the populace differentiates its individuality by buying the *newest* Volvo. Now though, the exquisite, silky and muscular aesthetics of this freshly-launched beauty, the XC40, make our old 1990s Swedish 240 estate look about as aerodynamic as a cube! Our weekend at The Grove was themed around the classically Swedish concept of Lagom (there’s no direct translation but perhaps conjure Goldilocks and her ‘just right’ porridge), and part of my role was to lead a group of fabulous lifestyle press around a 30-minute HIIT workout on the ‘wellbeing’ part of their experience. Click MORE to read my thoughts on this car, to see how we got on with lagom, and to get a little BTS from the event!

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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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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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PRAWN & RASPBERRY SPRING SALAD!

23/02/2017

Fitness On Toast Faya Blog Girl Healthy Workout Meal Post Training Dish Tasty Idea Food Cook Recipes Healthy Diet Lean Protein Prawn Fresh Berries Raspberries Berry World Make Food-4

Salad isn’t boring, it’s just chronically misunderstood; this recipe is a refresher on how to get the most out of your relationship with it! It’s a protein-packed dish which takes mere seconds to throw together and packs a host of flavours as well as some unusual textural surprises. It’s light, lean, nutritious and also works as a great post workout meal. For the piece de resistance, I’ve added some fresh, plump, juicy raspberries! The low GI sweetness of these little red cones compliments the crunchy textures and savoury flavours of the broader dish fabulously, and overall makes it taste fresher and lighter. What’s more, the colour renders the dish less drably green by introducing some visual variation to excite the eye as much as the taste buds! A beautiful, timely reminder that spring is on its way which is a big deal for us Swedes 🙂 I hope you love it too; on the off chance you prefer something more carby, I’ve provided an alternative ‘progression’ of the dish, invoking the timeless formula of the whole grain wrap… Click MORE for the full recipes and how-to… (more…)

THE BEST SOUP YOU’LL EVER MAKE ?

05/02/2017

It’s February already, which in England means that statistically, it’s raining 60% of the month and the average temperature is a mere 5 degrees. So it’s cold, it’s wet, and the lack of sunshine adds insult to injury! Amidst this gloom, what could be better than a piping hot, hearty home-made soup to defrost your cold body?! This fool-proof recipe is one of my absolute go-to dishes which is both homely and comforting, and delivers all the nutrients your body will need to fight the effects of winter. The lentils are a supreme source of vegetable protein, not to mention that it works out to be a mere 25p per serving, and even if you ‘luxe’ your soup, you’ll struggle to spend more than £1.00 per serving. Click more to discover how quick and easy this classic winters recipe is, and up your soup game today! (more…)

SWEET POTATO GNOCCHI !

02/12/2015

Humanity is pre-programmed to love the carby sensation of pasta – especially at this time of year, when the cold weather leads us crave it. Physiologically, it’s thought that the body’s asking for more Tryptophan, an amino acid which helps produce serotonin, which in turn regulates our mood, helps with digestion and sleep cycles. I’m often asked if I know any “healthy hearty meals”, and whilst the likes of spaghetti, creamy soups and breads don’t typically come to mind, this post is an attempt to prove that hearty can be healthy! Click MORE for the recipe & how-to. (more…)

QUICK + EASY DESSERT DISCOVERY !!!

20/07/2014

Just a quick little post to share a recent dessert epiphany. Like most people, I always seem to be time-poor in the evenings, and whilst I’ll invest some of that precious time into cooking a nutritious main course, I’m often after a quick-and-healthy dessert option that doesn’t keep me from my sleep! I stumbled across Urban Fruit on an amble through Waitrose looking for inspiration, and their packaging piqued my interest: ‘Just fruit, gently baked’ they claim. No preservatives, gluten free, with no added sugar… they just bake it to make it ‘easier to munch on the go’. Interesting… (more…)

DELICIOUS HEALTHY DESSERTS? CHIAS TO THAT !!!

28/05/2014

This post details 3 of my favourite interpretations of the ever-elusive ‘healthy dessert’. Whilst chia seeds have been milling around since the days of the Aztec Empire some 450 years back, only recently have they emerged as a big piece of the ‘superfood’ jigsaw puzzle. They seem to wield diplomatic immunity over the health laws; they’re good for your heart, brain and body with seemingly no significant disbenefits. And whilst each seed is tiny, its superpowers are disproportionately sized, as if they’re some kind of ‘David & Goliath’ of the nutrition world. They boast the ability to… (more…)