August 8, 2013

heathrow injection

Hey guys, its interesting being back in the North East of England (where I was born and brought up). Get ready for one of my jibber jabber’s 🙂 

If you are a follower of this page you will know that I was overweight as a kid and teenager and in all honesty just didn’t feel like I fit in anywhere. Coming back always stirs up emotions and memories of what that time was like for me. 

I have to say that I think it would be really challenging for anyone living here to live a healthy lifestyle and eat good, healthy nutritious food and exercise regularly. I find it so much easier in Sydney to do this because of food options and of course the weather. 

It is so difficult to make healthy choices as all menus are full of the opposite. I scan the menus searching for something I can eat. Always asking if I can change the chips for salad (and receiving a surprised look and a ‘not sure, let me check’) and then getting a bit of lettuce on the side. Trying to grab a healthy snack from a service station or a corner shop is almost impossible. 

Please don’t think that I’m slagging the North East off (for my northern followers), that is not my intention. I just think that it is literally so much harder to achieve health and fitness goals here. 

People talk about the ‘Heathrow Injection’ (the idea that you put on lots of body fat when you arrive in the UK). I have had many enquiries because of this Heathrow injection from 
people returning to Oz from a prolonged period in the UK. I can totally understand why this happens. It’s something that I observe all over the UK. 

I guess my mantra of being organised is even more prevalent if you live in the UK. You have got to make sure you have your food packed and ready to go. A banana in your bag for a healthy snack etc etc this is the way to eat healthy. If you don’t do this, especially here, you are going to struggle to get to where you want to be and make bad junk food choices as that is the only option you have. 

This area is a place of two parts, on one side you have Redcar Beach (see pic) and on the other you have the most beautiful North Yorkshire moors. My dad and I are staying at the Lion Inn at Blakey Ridge tonight (my favourite place here) and I am going to do the 8 mile trail run this afternoon: check it out! How beautiful does it look?
 Anyway guys, I’m gonna rug up and make myself a healthy breakfast before heading up to the beautiful moors.

JJ_heathrow_injection