Kate Moss in not eating shock!

Friday, November 20th, 2009

When Kate Moss said “nothing tastes better than being skinny” who was honestly surprised.

I always assumed she existed on a diet of fags, champagne and white powder anyway. Never ever has she extolled the virtues of healthy eating. Her diets don´t appear in magazines extolling the virtues of endame beans and lettuce. We are never invited to look inside her fridge.

She´s a model. A very successful model. And she eats virtually nothing - because if she gained weight she wouldn´t have a job. And obviously she loves being a skinny minnie.

Now I know the talking heads are already venting outrage about the fact that La Moss is not a good role model to young girls etc. But what do you think about Kate´s “revelation”?

Tags: celebrity dieting, diet, Kate Moss, model
Posted in Celebrity Watch, Diet & Wellbeing | 41 Comments »

I’m loving Angels instead. Well not really. Angel Therapy not for the likes of me

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

istock_000004694785xsmall

The therapist came out to where Kirstie and I were relaxing on loungers. “Who is for the [insert mumbo jumbo therapy name here] treatment?” she asked kindly.

We looked at one another.

“Eh… her… not me… eh I dunno”

With reluctance I put down my trashy mag. In the end I was the creathur who had to go and do it. Lying on the bed in the treatment room, crystals were passed over me and I was told the name of my own special angel who was “in the room with us. Can you feel him?”

“Er… no”

“He’s very powerful.” (Some Reiki is done on me). ” Can you feel him now?”

“No, sorry”

“Look , I’ll open the door.” (makes gesture like huge wind almost knocking her over when door is opened) “So many of them! Rushing, rushing through the door. Eager to meet you. Oh can’t you feel it?”

“Really sorry, I can’t feel anything.”

In the end I had to (unconvincingly) pretend to feel an angel and submit to his wisdom. Perhaps there’s something wrong with my aura - but this kind of therapy does nothing for me. I only like therapies involving squeezing out blackheads and conditioning hair etc. Obviously I haven’t spiritually evolved. What about you?

Tags: alternative therapies, angel therapy, ridiculous, unevolved
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Diet & Wellbeing | 31 Comments »

Man Flu season open

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

istock_000004812091xsmall

Man flu visited my home this weekend.

And it was a terrible terrible thing. It began with a “bit of a scratchy throat” and progressed to “itchy eyes”. Then things went rapidly downhill. There was coughing, there was sneezing, there was a lot of shivering and suffering and there was an inability to answer the door to any Halloween callers. How selfish of me to think that was a bit convenient.

Thankfully a brief rallying period was brought on by a visit of another male and the quaffing of several bottles of Schofferhofer (obscure beer from Aldi, pronouced very good indeed). However things once more deteriorated after this, leading to a night of heavy snoring. Refusal to take any cough mixture or paracetamol to relieve symptom, despite loudly voiced misery, was typical of this patient and therefore not unexpected.

Morning led to a worsening of symptoms and bed could only be breached by the aroma of bacon and toast. Suggestion of coming with me shoe shopping led to severe relapse. Suggestion that perhaps a shower might help patient feel better, scorned. Duvet is all that can alleviate the misery.

All we can do now is pray.

How do you cope with Man Flu?

Tags: For Men, man flu
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing, For Men | 19 Comments »

Barbie and her fat ankles: Christian Louboutin’s searing comment

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

louboutin-barbie-shoes
When Christian Louboutin said Barbie had fat ankles all hell broke loose.

In the process of designing shoes for the new Barbie Doll Lauboutin commented unfavourably about her ankle proportions. He quickly denied it, but it was too late. A matter of such seriousness cannot be simply swept under the carpet.

Feminists were outraged. Barbie fans were outraged. Tubby people were outraged. Skinnies were outraged. In short the world found the pronouncement outrageous.

Barbie is no stranger to size battles. For years the plastic one has been subject to an inferno of debate about how her blonde and skinny proportions are unrealistic and place unfair expectations on women at their most vulnerable age.

But is it all just a storm in a shoebox?

Tags: Barbie, body image, cankles, louboutin
Posted in Beauty News & Links, Celebrity Watch, Diet & Wellbeing, Polls | 11 Comments »

Are you using the hand sanitisers? Come on admit it

Thursday, October 8th, 2009

istock_000005052910xsmall

They’re everywhere aren’t they? And I’ve noticed that everyone was so enthusiastic about using them… at first.

But soon people began to complain. “The gel makes food taste terrible” i.e. when you use the gel and then pick up a sandwich. And “My hands feel dry from constant use”

And lastly, with no sign of the predicted pandemic on the horizon: “This is a pain in the arse isn’t it?”

But tell us: how are you finding the hand cleansing. Are you using the gel dispensers that are stationed absolutely everywhere, like a good citizen?

Tags: swine flu hand wash
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing, Polls | 35 Comments »

Legs Akimbo in the Alpen “Aerobics” Ad. You know how good it is

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Ah we all know by now that we should be eating brekkie. And although Alpen is crammed to the gills with added sugar and is not a very wise breakfast choice at all, it seems to have become instantly more palatable to a whole new generation of men.

For on the telly, in heavy rotation, five gorgeous knicker clad girls overlooking a lake are doing suggestive Aerobics whilst clutching bowls of Alpen. As you do.

Why it’s enough to make a red blooded man choke on the biscuit he’s dunking into his tea as he sits innocently waiting for X Factor to resume. Cough cough went the husband. “Haha” I said, “I was wondering when you’d see that ad”.

“What do you mean?” he pretended. “Oh the Alpen thing, God I hardly noticed it. But now that you mention it… it is very er sexy for a cereal ad”.

Now that I mention it eh? As soon as I hear the slightly sleazy music start up now I make sure to tell him “Your ad is on”.

(By the way Alpen the inclusion of the men at the end is no cigar. For effective comparison they would need to be shirtless and doing, I don’t know press ups or something. Not stupid waist stretching exercises).

Tags: alpen, breakfast, sailing close to the wind
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing, For Men | 23 Comments »

Could Your Candles Be Carcinogenic?

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

candles

We’ve been busy debating the merits of fancy ’spensive candles on the Blather over the last few days, trying to decide whether a Jo Malone would trump a Diptyque and how a Cloon Keen Atelier offering might stack up against a Max Benjamin number. So I was thinking of y’all when I came across a study that was presented orally to the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Washington on 19th August last.

That study was conducted at South Carolina State University, and reported that burning paraffin wax candles releases harmful fumes into the air of your home, including some toxins that have been linked to asthma and eczema as well as known human carcinogens. This was said to be because burning candles doesn’t produce high enough temperatures to completely combust the heavy molecules contained in paraffin wax. This in turn led to the formation and emission of the potentially hazardous molecules.

Beeswax and soy candles, by contrast, were not found to produce the same amounts of indoor air pollutants.

One of the researchers did state that the emissions of an odd paraffin candle was unlikely to have any adverse effects but cautioned against prolonged exposure to multiple lighted paraffin candles (as in every day for years) or lighting them frequently in unventilated areas.

(more…)

Tags: Cancer, candles, health
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing, Here comes the science | 27 Comments »

She’s got legs and she knows how to use em: Bigger thighs are better for health

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

beyonce

I love Beyonce anyway but two things make me like her even more. Her legs. Those gorgeous ‘real woman’ curves she’s got going on. A hell of a lot of all singin all dancin celebs have what looks like little threads coming out of their skirts - you wonder how on earth they could support them. And although in real life Beyonce would be super toned and super fabulous (if you saw her down the town for example) it still seems as though she might… possibly… be a normal woman.

Don’t mind skinnies like Neil Hannon warbling pompously on about thunder thighs and asses the size of a small country. Research has vindicated curvy girls everywhere by finding that generously padded - voluptous thighs - are better for heart health.*

“Smaller thighs are a disadvantage to health and survival for both sexes,” the researchers said.

So the next time you’re trying to squeeze into those jeans that, er, shrank in the wash, you can rejoice in this knowledge.

*Disclaimer: Of course this is just what they’ve found this month. Next month someone will have found out the opposite. Probably. Reading contradictory findings every week means that my trust in science is diminishing to the point that I’m starting to believe the earth may be flat.

Tags: beyonce, health, thighs
Posted in Celebrity Watch, Diet & Wellbeing, Here comes the science | 18 Comments »

More Skids than Eddie the Eagle: Pig2Twig Update #4

Thursday, August 27th, 2009

In the last update in early July, I was 10lbs down and, with a holiday and a birthday party coming up, was trying hard to focus and stay motivated. So how have I (and the other Pig2Twig dieters) been doing since then?

Well, as you may have guessed from the title of this post (coined by Babaduck one day on the Blather), there’s been good and bad news.

Good news first. In the two weeks following my last update, I managed to hit my first stone lost on the diet, just in time for my birthday. Turns out that having a party frock to fit into after my holiday was a great incentive, as I actually lost 2lbs while I was away – in that Carb Mecca, Italy.

I was pretty careful in Italy but didn’t deprive myself either - apart from loads of wine I allowed myself half a pizza one day, coffee every day, and even a small ice-cream another day. The rest of the time it was lots of lovely IPD friendly meats, cheeses, salads etc. I ate mozzarella and tomato salad til it came out my ears! So I was over the moon when I got back, and for the first time in my life I didn’t come home from holiday with that “Uh-oh, my jeans are too tight” guilty feeling.

Finally, I was within a stone of my final goal weight, so I was delighted that it was finally time to move on to Phase 2 of the diet, and start gradually introducing food like berries, dark chocolate and porridge oats. So everything should have been hunky-dory. But - here’s an extract from an email I sent to the other IPD-ers 2 weeks later:

(more…)

Tags: diets, pig2twig
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing | 9 Comments »

Celebrity Slim - yet another diet in a sachet… Or is it? The trial begins

Thursday, August 20th, 2009

celebrity-slim

Now excuse me if I’m jumping the gun Celebrity Slim - but haven’t we seen you somewhere before?

Haven’t we seen other meal replacement diets just like you many times before in fact? Haven’t we seen Slim Fast, Lipotrim and countless other disgusting starvation diets just like you?

Why yes we have. So I’ll stop asking rhetorical questions now.

But you’re different you tell us. Your shakes are delicious. And the variety of your snacks is incredible. And eating six small meals a day is much better than three big ones, because you see in this way you train your metabolism to burn calories more efficently - and you create a realistic way of eating that you can stick to for the rest of your life.

Well excuse me if I think that two apples, a yoghurt, a bit of salad and some blurgusting shakes are anything but a crash diet and not sustainable in the slightest.

Now if you’ve lost weight on Celebrity Slim good on you - but I would guess that’s because anyone will lose weight on a restricted calorie diet.

But instead of just shaking my head about this diet I’m going to try it. I’m going to live and breathe Celebrity Slim and let you know how I get on! Sure I love doing the trials. My cellulite challange went bottom up (as did my laser treatment) I’ll admit - but I did have good results from Dove Hair Minimiser, glycolic peels and tons of other things I’ve tried and tested.

So lets see how I get on with this diet! And if you’ve been on it/are on it make sure you let me know how you’re getting on!

Tags: celebrity slim, diets, Lipotrim
Posted in Diet & Wellbeing | 32 Comments »