The Anti-diet way to get Beach Body Ready

So this is my very first blog post that isn't a recipe and isn't even really related to food.  But it is a topic very dear to my heart that I feel incredibly passionate about, so I thought I'd put my 2 cents in regardless.

Here are my top tips for getting a Beach Body in time for the summer....are you sitting down with a pencil?

1) Have a body.
2) Get your ass to the beach.

That’s it - plain and simple. We have entered the very confusing time of year - on one hand, excitement for holidays and better weather, but on the other hand, slight dread at the thought of finally baring our bodies after a whole nine months of clothes hibernation. So while I’m all for the odd beauty appointment to get waxed and pedicured, I am very much against panicked crash dieting and the inevitable self-loathing and feelings of inadequacy associated with getting “summer body ready”. 

Don’t get me wrong, I do NOT have the same pre-kids body I had in my 20’s. I certainly don’t look in the mirror and think “phwoar, I look g-oo-d!” but I’ll be damn sure that I am the one building sandcastles and cannonballing into the pool with my kids without obsessing about what doing that does to my tummy rolls. My kids won’t remember that I don’t have a thigh gap or that my boobs are two sizes smaller than they used to be (what a cruel motherhood going-home-present that was!) but what they will remember is the fact that I was the one splashing and skipping through the summertime by their side without a second thought as to how I look while I was doing it. 

As you know, I am a huge advocate for healthy eating - but to me that means ADDING more good things to your diet (hello oily fish and whole grains!), not by excluding or demonising whole food groups, that can lead to feelings of guilt and shame. Food is such a source of pleasure in my life and enjoying it with good friends and family is exactly how I plan on being “summer ready”. Who’s with me?