travel | Fitness on Toast

Posts tagged 'travel'

REVIEWED: APPLE WATCH SERIES 6

13/10/2020

If you’re as stubborn as me, and are convinced that there *ARE* yet days remaining of the summer, here’s a remarkable day trip idea for you! Earlier in the month, I spent one such day enjoying the exquisite Jurassic coast, on the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England’s only natural UNESCO World Heritage Site – which was really quite resplendent in glorious British sunshine! Whilst I’m 8 months pregnant, a gentle hike along the rolling chalk cliffs is just about the perfect level of exertion for me and the little one, so I/we packed a bag and headed down to Durdle Door for a walk and an afternoon of calming ocean breeze. It was an excellent destination to trial my brand new Apple Watch Series 6 (previous reviews HERE) on the hike. Plenty of interesting insights packed into this one, my dear reader, so read on…

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10 AUTUMN ‘HEALTHY GETAWAY’ ESSENTIALS!

09/10/2020

The summer may be well and truly kaput, yet your travel aspirations invariably live on… The deluge of the past week has unquestionably marked the seasonal transition to Autumn, and whilst we weren’t exactly travelling abroad en-mass over the summer, the ‘Blighty staycation’ certainly came in handy as a welcome relief from cabin fever. Whilst I have around 8 more weeks until my little one bids a hello to the big wide world, I will try to punctuate the weekends with a few more mini countryside/coastal getaways. Given my size as a heavily pregnant woman, the items filling my getaway bag look altogether different to my usual Active Escapes! This post shows 10 key essential items I pop in the bag when I’m after a wellbeing escape to some wonderful part of the country, as you might be considering this ‘fall’! Read on, dear reader… (more…)

WELLNESS ESCAPE TO THE WESTIN MALDIVES MIRIANDHOO

11/01/2020

I recently returned from 9 days in planet Earth’s most rapturous dreamland – the Maldives. I’ve been fortunate to visit this heaven on prior occasions, and I am struck by how its luminous beauty never dulls; on this trip, I visited the wonderful Westin Maldives Miriandhoo, a jewel in the crown of the Westin Hotels and Resorts group. I’ve worked with Westin for many years as their Wellbeing Movement ambassador and I’ve experienced several of their properties around the world; as such, I know the wellness ethos that pervades every detail of this hotel group well, and it’s one that I feel passionately about infusing into every trip I take. Whilst I was hosted at the Westin Maldives Miriandhoo (henceforth WMM), I experienced the purest expression of their Wellbeing philosophy, free from the restrictions and confines imposed by a bustling cityscape, and instead, able to indulge in the secluded tranquillity of island life. Picture-perfect postcard-style, powdery-soft sandy beaches, mesmeric sunsets, the freshest seafood and perfect temperatures, all render it an unsurprising top honeymoon destination; for me, after only a few days, I recovered the hitherto lost sensation of feeling recharged, relaxed and renewed. Thereafter, the ensuing week of pure revival left me ready to take on 2020 with gusto! Click MORE to see and read about my experience of this nirvana…

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SEA TO SEA IN ISRAEL!

06/08/2019

When first I visited Israel – a decidedly middle eastern country – I didn’t expect to find myself strolling amidst a Gay Pride parade with over 100,000 people revelling on the beaches of Tel Aviv. On my recent and second visit to Israel, I had the great honour of being invited by The Ministry of Tourism, who ushered me and two journalists on an equally unexpected – and remarkably broad – historical and cultural tour of this breath-taking country, called ‘Sea to Sea’. Israel is a delicious melting pot of religion, culture, people and food; where Mediterranean meets Middle-Eastern, and where modern meets traditional. On this expedition, I discovered some truly ancient sites, voyaged through one of the oldest cities on the planet, enjoyed exquisite Israeli restaurants, feasted my way through vegetable/fruit and fish souks, and languished in the intimate boutique hospitality of this country. The list of highlights is impractically long so I’ve listed my absolute key takeaways if you’re thinking of a trip – and at the bottom of the post, other things to do whilst you’re there, should you have time. This is an active trip to remember!

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A LITTLE TIME WITH APPLE WATCH SERIES 4

19/09/2018

Over the past 3 years, I’ve authored some of my most in-depth blog posts about each successive version of the iconic Apple Watch since it revolutionised the health and fitness tracking landscape back in 2015 (see review 1, review 2, and review 3); personally I’ve enormously valued the advances it’s enabled for me, arming me with data and awareness, reminding me to act, keeping me in contact with the community around me – and it did this whilst integrating seamlessly with my own ‘life technology stack’ in an un-intimidating, user-friendly way. Now, following an overwhelmingly impressive trip to the Steve Jobs Theatre in Cupertino, California, I have been introduced to my latest wrist companion, Apple Watch Series 4… Click MORE to see my full perceptions about this fascinating piece of kit, which represents a big hope for the future! (more…)

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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WELLNESS ESCAPE TO BORDEAUX WITH CAUDALIE

21/05/2018

Les Sources de Caudalie is one of those rare hotels to enjoy the mysterious ‘Palace’ designation – a hyper-prestigious mark of distinction bestowed upon just 24 hotels, all of which are in France. Unclear as to what it officially means, to me it represents an endorsement that an operation has proven itself a practitioner of the finest haut hospitalité that the French call their Art de Vivre. Whilst the hotel itself is really quite special, there were two other major components to the site which rendered my stay here totally memorable and unique; the world-class ‘Grand Cru appellation’ vineyard on site, and the shrine to the French beauty house Caudalie, itself stemming from the vines. When choosing a place to stay, one must select the appropriate property for the geography; Les Sources de Caudalie masterfully bottles the essence of this region into one exceptional package. For a wellness escape to Bordeaux, it is a sublime choice, and this post reveals the magical experience I found there!

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SKI SMARTER…

04/03/2018

I recently hopped over for an alpine excursion to Andermatt, Switzerland and whilst there, I continued my investigations into the Apple Watch Series 3. I’ve taken detailed looks into its baby brothers’ capabilities on my blog before, both here and here; as a kale-munching millennial, I’m a technivore who craves machinery that’ll eliminate guesstimation and present me with solid, irrefutable data to track my fitness progress. Unlike swimming and running, however, skiing is the type of cardio which historically has been all but impossible to track with anything other than a vague approximation. But thanks to the GPS module and an integrated altimeter, that’s no longer the case… what I found was rich data that massively complemented and enhanced the fun of my slopeside accomplishments! Read more below…

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ACTIVE SKI ESCAPE TO COURCHEVEL

12/02/2018

Skiing is a grueling full-body aerobic workout, and regularly puts thousands of calories to good use every single day… However, in my younger days, I can only remember it as an uncomfortably awkward experience for the unfortunate, suffering mountain-goer. As a skier, you’d have to tolerate some serious unpleasantness to survive the week; the sweaty boots would imprison and crush your feet and always inflict shin splint, the skis weighed a ton, chairlifts were slow and unreliable, the clothes weren’t really weatherproof, the food was terrible, the chalet beds were paper-thin and yielded a pitifully un-restorative night’s sleep… and I shan’t touch upon the neon all-in-one “fashion” monstrosities! Thankfully, times have changed unrecognizably, for ’skiing’ has radically upped its game, and nowhere on the planet has this alpine art de vivre been more finely honed than Courchevel. I ventured to the warmth of Hotel Le Saint Roch in Courchevel 1850, to deliver the first Alpine Active Escape I’ve covered on this blog, and the refined experience I discovered there has transformed my understanding of pure joy on the pistes! Click MORE to see the full experience…

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AUSTRALIA pt 2: MY ‘SYDNEY TOP 10’

22/01/2018

Across the world, countless bloggers have majored on Australia as a destination; there’s also a ceaseless stream of toned and fashionable Australians who dominate a casual perusal of the Instagram ‘Explore’ screen as if the algorithm is calibrated to go overweight Aussie beauty! My experiences, however, are just that; my own, not ‘new’, but just from me. That said, I sure as hell did my research before arriving in Sydney, systematically surveying every single Australian I know, then distilling their collective output into a one-week, extensive plan of attack! Indeed, having done-and-dusted with my experience in the Great Barrier Reef, pursued my full Sydney scheme precisely as it was sketched out, it gives me great joy to recount and depict the choicest of experiences here to you dear reader, whether you’re just curious or are planning an adventurous ‘Active Escape’ of your own! This post makes up Part 2 of the Australia series – and I sense there will be countless more parts to follow upon my future return to that magnificent country! I discovered an outdoor-dwelling society, predisposed to health and fitness, blessed with supreme weather and a fresh fish-based diet, in a culturally diverse and well-invested city where inhabitants genuinely smile. In fact it’s so good, this could conceivably be ‘home’ one day! Click MORE to discover my Top 10 experiences in Sydney…