Nine to Three Thirty

Week 28 of 2019

local music festival On Saturday I had to pull out of a long planned day out with my university friends because I wasn’t well enough. I was very disappointed, but there was no way I could have gone. Luckily it was a short lived thing and I was ok the following afternoon to go to a local event and watch some live music.

flowers in the garden

I spent some time in the garden this week. The white daisies were in the veg patch earlier this year and I’ve moved them to the flower border as that was a better place for them. They seem to be doing well.

red geraniums

My geraniums in pots are looking good at the moment. They brighten the patio area up a bit.

I was a bit early to meet a friend in town this week, so I popped into the cathedral for a look around. I spotted this lovely staircase. Birmingham Cathedral is a bit unusual as it’s not that big as it was built as a parish church originally, but it is stunning inside with its Burne-Jones stained glass windows.

cheesecake

Another week another food review, or so it seems at the moment, and I’m certainly not complaining. This was the fabulous cheesecake pudding at this week’s venue. Review to follow soon. I’ve had to write them up very quickly so I don’t confuse one with the other.

cafe interior

I tried out a new cafe with a friend (not a review). I might return and do a review as I did like the place. I managed to fit in a walk before and after the cafe trip. I’m upping my exercise quota again as I had to take a week off everything (except walking) when I had my cysts removed, but now I’m back at both yoga and swimming again which is nice. I need to do the exercise to burn off the review meals.

Being Healthy Into My Fifties And Beyond With The Restored

stones Last month I hit a significant milestone birthday: my 50^th. Really I’ve been very lucky health wise over the years and whilst I’ve had a few niggles, there’s been nothing too major to deal with. I look around at my contemporaries and it’s a bit of a mixed bag to be honest. Some are in excellent health, but there’s a growing number who are struggling one way or another. I’d like to make sure I stay one of the healthy ones and I’m always looking for ways to improve my health, but it’s difficult to fit everything in. Not only that, I found myself wondering if things I am doing are cancelling each other out. I like the idea of using a well-rounded, integrated approach where everything I do, works with everything else I do, so this is why I’ve been looking at The Restored because they want to help you ‘feel better’ by looking at your health and well-being in the round.

There are a number of foundations of health, according to The Restored, there are four foundations of health: Sleep; Nutrition; Movement; Mindset. The Restored is a new health start-up who are keen to help people ‘feel better’. Combining products and practical guidance the idea is to help you feel significantly better. The Restored are launching a range of innovative health product including supplements, equipment and information in August 2019. It sounds like just what I need.

If this is something that is of interest to you, why not take the The Restored health quiz. You’ll be asked a series of questions about your sleep, the amount of exercise you do and your diet.

The quiz has been developed by a team of experts to help you identify one foundation of health that you can restore – the one that could make you feel significantly different. You’ll probably be able to anticipate which element you are struggling with, but you may not know where to start in terms of improving the situation.

I’m not surprised that when I took the quiz, the main problem I was experiencing was SLEEP. I think it’s very common in parents. I struggled with sleep deprivation when my son was small and now he’s no longer causing me sleep problems, I still seem to be behind with it and I never catch up. Did you know that if it takes you less than 7 minutes to fall asleep, then it’s likely that you are sleep deprived. I’m often asleep in less than 7 minutes, although it has improved over the years, I’ve still got some way to go and I think I’m in need of a little help and assistance.

So what can I do? Here’s one of the ideas that’s been suggested as a result of completing The Restored health quiz: setting in place an effective pre-sleep wind-down routine. The idea is that starting 1-2 hours before your bedtime, begin to practice a healthy sleep routine that helps you “wind down” and prepares your mind and body for sleep. It’s something I can easily put in place and as it involves some ‘me time’ I think I’ll enjoy it too. I’m going to give this a go and let you know how I get on.

Disclosure: This is a collaborative post.

The Protein Ball Co. Review and Giveaway #Ad

The Protein Ball Co.

Over the last few weeks I’ve been trying out some samples from The Protein Ball Co. I have to admit that I’d already tried the protein balls previously and enjoyed them, so I was keen to try out a bit more of the range available. As you can see from the photo The Protein Ball Co. offers quite a selection of flavours so there should be something that will suit everyone. You can pick from:

Cherry Bakewell
Cacao and Orange
Coconut and Macadamia
Peanut Butter
Lemon and Pistachio
Goji and Coconut
Peanut Butter and Jam
Raspberry Brownie

I think my favourite is either Raspberry Brownie or Cherry Bakewell – I’m torn between them.

One of things I love about them is that they are easy to carry around and I’ve found they don’t tend to get squashed in a handbag in the way cereal bars seem to do (or is that just me?). Another bonus is that they don’t melt, so they are much better than chocolate (plus they are much better for you health wise too). Both H and I have been trying them out and they are perfect for lunch boxes, which is a bonus for me as I’m having to make packed lunches because the queues in the canteen are too long.

Vegetarian-friendly with 100% natural ingredients, no added sugar and clean proteins, you’ll feel good about choosing from Breakfast Balls and 45g snack packs with six yummy bite-size protein balls. Breakfast Balls are available in 45g bags RRP £1.99 and available nationwide. The Protein Ball Ball Co. products are widely available from Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Ocado, Holland & Barratt and Amazon, RRP £1.99 per 45g bag.

If you would like to try out products from The Protein Ball Co. a good way is by buying the Selection Taster Box which lets you try out all the flavours. I also have a box available for one lucky reader. If you’d like to try to win, enter via the Gleam widget below.

Competition Terms and Conditions

1. No bulk, third-party or automated entries.

2. Entrants must be aged 18 years or older and resident in the UK.

3. The winner or winners will be chosen by a random draw.

4. Promoter is responsible for fulfilling the prize and full contact details of the winner will be passed onto the promoter to enable prize fulfillment.

5. The winner’s name may be published on this site.

6. Competition closes on 4th August 2019.
Protein Ball Co.

Week 27 of 2019

hay bales in worcestershiree

It’s been a lovely week really. Saturday saw me going to watch a friend play in a band. He’s been playing with them for years, but he is retiring from both his day job and the band (who have done very well playing at weddings and the like). It was a last chance to see him play and they always play a good set. Add to the mix a few other friends doing the same and you have a very pleasant evening.

I had a lovely long walk in the countryside this week. There’s a walk that I only do when the weather has been reasonably dry, but it is glorious so I did that one. As you can see Worcestershire was looking very pretty and the baler had been at work too.

chocolate dessert

I got quite a few things that had been hanging over me for a while. I had to do some paperwork for my mum’s estate which I’d been putting off partly because I was busy and partly because I didn’t really want to think about it. Then I did my tax return. I’m feeling fairly virtuous now, at least until I look at the pile of ironing and see how many jobs there are to do around the house.

I did manage a lunch out with a friend in the sun. Eating outside a pub in the summer is something I really love doing and we managed to avoid any wasps. Good to catch up too.

chicken wings

The end of the week was very pleasant. I found out I’d won a trip to Edinburgh to stay in a posh hotel on Princes Street. I’ve been to Edinburgh a few times before, but I still have a lot to see and as it’s during the festival I’m hoping to fit in seeing some shows.

Also this week I got to review another restaurant in Birmingham. I’m averaging one a week at the moment and I do love trying out new places. This time it was Ooty Station in the Selfridges food hall. It serves up a cuisine inspired by Indian street food.

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