Fitness Friday: 5 tips for a more effective leg day

It's time for Fitness Friday! As part of my constant battle to become one of those 'fit people,' I am sharing my fitness tips, routines and stories with you all. Today I wanted to talk about 5 easy things you can do to make your leg day more effective. Squats and other leg exercises have become a necessity in a fitness routine but that doesn't mean everyone does it right. Hopefully my five steps will help you get more out of your gym session:

1. Take off your trainers

This seems like a slightly weird one, but take off your trainers for leg day. It allows you to really see what your feet are doing - are you pushing down on your heels? Are you lifting your toes? Are your feet straight? Your technique will be instantly better; after all, if Arnie does it, then take note!

2. Place a bench behind you

My flexibility is my weakness and this shows when I squat. A great tip to make sure you get the right depth is to place a bench behind you. As you squat, try to sit down on the bench (without actually sitting down and letting the tension go!) It gives you something physical to focus on to improve your squat technique.

3. Increase the weight

If you squat just with your bodyweight, then get some weight on! Squats with a bar in the squat rack are so much more effective than doing so without. Try the bar empty on its own first, then build up.

4. Decrease the weight

Wait, you just told me to increase the weight? I know but there is a balance - increasing too quickly can cause bad technique. If you're depth isn't right, try dropping the weight down to focus on technique for a few sessions and see the difference.

5. Stretch!

My final piece of advice is something I need to do myself - stretch! After all, I am the idiot who physically had to crawl up the stairs after a particularly hard leg day this week. It may feel good to push yourself that much, but not the next morning when you can't walk! Invest in a foam roller and make sure you warm up and cool down There are great tutorials all over YouTube and Pinterest, but this gives you a good basic routine. 

What are your tips to get the most out of your leg day?

Jess

- Bloglovin . Twitter . Instagram -

#CambMeetUp

I love meeting local bloggers and have missed my amazing Leeds bloggers since moving down South. However, it turns out there are some pretty nice bloggers in Cambridge too and I recently got the chance to meet a few of them at the #CambMeetUp. The meet up itself was held in Revolution and I was amazed by how many bloggers there were in Cambridge, after assuming that there were hardly any of us! Pippa, from Clashing Time, did an incredible job of involving a huge range of brands to talk about their businesses and even treat us to some goodies. It was a brilliant mix of some very well-known brands and smaller independent companies.

The Million Dollar Moisturiser from Lush is an intense facial moisturiser, with the added benefit of SPF 15. It's a little heavy for me to wear on a daily basis underneath makeup, but I think it'll be great in Summer to provide some sun protection. I'll be taking it to Croatia with me next month! We were also treated to a miniature L'Occitane's Cleansing Oil. I love my The Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Oil, so it's great to compare the two as I think they're a great part of my beauty regime. The L'Occitane version is very gentle and the size is perfect for travelling.

There were also some independent brands who I hadn't come across before. I love the cute cake-themed badges from Jilly Jilly - they couldn't be more perfect for me! This beautiful scarf from Lisa Angel was also so generous. I love the tie-dye and purple tassles, along with the motto 'we are made out of stars, you and I.' Finally, what better theme for a Cambridge meet up than a bicycle necklace? This one is from Claireabellemakes and is a cute addition to my jewellery collection.

There were also some tasty treats from Chocolat Chocolat and Kettle Chips, which were obviously demolished before I got round to photographing them! I'd also like to thanks The Blogger Programme for helping Pippa with her meet, and of course Pippa again for allowing me to meet some lovely local bloggers!

All products included in the #CambMeetUp Goody Bag.

Jess

- Bloglovin . Twitter . Instagram -

OOTD: I Wanna Be Adorned

It's time for an outfit post! Yes, I love clothes and so I love talking about them on the internet. I was excited to get the opportunity to shoot an outfit post in the beautiful city of Cambridge. I felt like a proper 'fashion blogger' as I posed on someone's doorstep, praying that they didn't come home or that my friend got ran over taking photos in the street! That's the weird reality of fashion posts, guys!

Dress: Adorned. Turtleneck: Matalan. Shoes: Primark. Hat: Asos.

This dress is another stunning find from the wonderful Sarah from Adorned. I am totally obsessed with Sarah's stuff and she always has some amazing vintage gems on the Adorned website and Depop. She's also a bloomin' stylish lady who had headed to Cambridge to visit for the weekend, so I obviously made her take photos of me in my purchase in return for shooting her for her Lookbook page (check it out for some hippy-fabulousness!)

I love the oversized shift dress with the fantastic bright blue and intricate pattern - not to mention the fact it was a total bargain at just a tenner. I layered it with a maroon polo underneath and left the dress flowing and oversized. I adore the jewel-like colour combination and turtlenecks have become a massive wardrobe staple (as you can probably tell from my last outfit post too!) They are so easy to wear underneath dresses to add some warmth and interest to the look. I added my favourite floppy hat from Asos and some smart but comfortable pumps which I picked up from Primark for a couple of quid.

I really enjoyed shooting in Cambridge and exploring some of the quaint backstreets of my local city. I've been working on posting outfit posts from locations other than my back garden and I always love the results. The real question is, where is that photographer boyfriend in my life to take all these photos of me?

Jess

- Bloglovin . Twitter . Instagram -