Chia Seed Puddings

Chia Seed Puddings

First of all, I want to apologise for being so absent from writing post's! Lets just say, life got in the way a bit. But I'm back now and of course with  two new recipes for you! 

 This recipe has 3 key ingredients - Chia seeds, yogurt and honey, the rest is up to you guys :) 

 I LOVE to incorporate chia seeds into most recipes I do, purely because they contain so much goodness, 30g of chia seeds contains 11g of fibre, 12g of carbs and 4 grams of protein, plus all the omega 3 essential fatty acids and antioxidants!

 So, the recipes that I am going to write for you today are super simple and literally take about 20-30 minutes to prepare and make! I made a lemon and honey pudding and a mixed berry one too!

 WHAT YOU NEED 

 1 Lemon 
1 Pot of Fage UK 0% Yogurt 
1 Tablespoon of Honey
6 Tablespoons of Chia Seeds 

 The only thing you need to do differently for the mixed berry pudding is to swap the lemon for mixed berries! (Told you they were simple!)



METHOD 

 1. Grab a mixing bowl and put half the tub of Fage UK yogurt in (you can use any yogurt you want I just prefer this one), and the chia seeds and stir well until they are both combined. 
2. Cut the lemon in half and juice it, then pour the juice into the mixture and stir (again), then add the honey, and you guessed it, stir it well again! 
3. Grate some lemon zest into the mixture, stir it up and pour the mixture into two small jars like the ones pictured. 

(I definitely just wrote those numbers whilst having Dua Lipa's new rules in my head) Buuuut I'm gonna have to add a 4th step so Dua Lipa, add a 4th rule? LOL. 

 4. Put the jars in the fridge overnight, this should give the mixture time to set, and when you eat it it's like a mousse-like consistency! 
The only difference for the mixed berry ones would be to blend the blueberries and strawberries before you add them to the mixture, then just make sure you combine everything well before pouring the mixture in the jars and putting them in the fridge to set!
And there you have it! Delicious chia seed puddings to have at literally anytime of day, I personally like to have them for breakfast as they are filling yet quite light! Perfect if you're on the go too. 

Let me know what you think in the comments below xo

 OH and before I go, can we just appreciate how amazing this tank top is from HeyHolla! Fit Wear for an allstar cheerleader that absolutely loves chia?! I just HAD to buy it when I attended Be:Fit London 

Caio for now guys xo 

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Lemon Honey and Chia Seed oat muffins

Lemon Honey and Chia Seed oat muffins

Lemon drizzle has got to be up there in my top 5 cakes, but obviously not something I can eat until my hearts content (unfortunately). 

So I thought I'd give a healthy version a go! Although, if you're expecting a sugary, lemony, indulgent piece of cake you're in the wrong place. These muffins have different ingredients to a Lemon Drizzle cake, so it's bound to taste slightly different! 


I tested out a few recipes last night, I will post the successful ones on here in the following weeks!

What you'll need for the Lemon Honey and Chia Seed muffins - 
  • 35g of old fashioned oats
  • 30g of powdered oats
  • 1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder 
  • 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
  • 1 banana 
  • 2 table spoons of greek yogurt 
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 
  • 1 egg 
  • 2 table spoons of honey
  • the juice and zest of 1 lemon 
  • 2 tablespoons of chia seeds 
  • Pinch of salt 

The Method - 
First off, you'll need to preheat your oven to 180 degrees (my oven is fan assisted so you may need to slightly increase the temperature if your's isn't. 

 Put 8 cake cases into a tin ready to fill with the mixture! 

 You'll then need to peel the banana and mash it in a bowl with a fork until it's all gooey. Then cream together the banana, Greek yogurt, honey, vanilla extract and brown sugar until it's combined completely. Then add the egg and beat it in. (I'm fully aware that this will look like something that has seen better days at this stage haha!)

 Add the salt, baking soda and the powdered oats, then stir until it's all mixed together well.

 Squeeze the life out of the lemon into the mixture, without getting any pips in it! Then grate some of the lemon zest in too.

 The penultimate stage before you can taste the goodness, is to add the old fashioned oats and chia seeds to the mixture, and stir. 

 Take a large tablespoon of the mixture and place into each of the cake cases, this should make roughly about 8 muffins. 

 Pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes (or until golden brown). And there you have it! Some healthy Lemon Honey and Chia seed muffins! 

The nutritional values of each muffin is as follows (approx)- 

 Kcal - 92 
Fat - 2.25g 
Protein - 2.5g 
Carbs - 15.25g 

 They are perfect for a mid afternoon snack with a cuppa or even for breakfast! I had 2 today for breakfast with my morning Womens Best Vanilla Protein Shake :)

 Let me know what you think of the recipe in the comments and if you try it! 

 Ciao for now xo

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Reese Peanut Butter Cups - MOVE OVER

Reese Peanut Butter Cups - MOVE OVER

Hallelujah, praising the gods and thanking them for making my adult taste buds like dark chocolate! Why? Because my take on the classic - Reese Peanut Butter cups, is a dream!

All you need to make them is 2 ingredients, thats it! 

  • 2 Lindt 85% dark chocolate (you can use 70% if preferred as 85% can be quite bitter to some people)
  • A jar of Meridan Peanut Butter 

Why dark chocolate? 

Dark chocolate is packed full of fibre and antioxidants and the darker the chocolate, so the higher the percentage the less sugar the chocolate contains. However, it's definitely not to everyone's taste, if you tried to give me a piece of dark chocolate a year ago I would've told you I'd rather eat frogspawn. But as I'm 24 now there had to be a perk somewhere and that was me starting to LOVE dark chocolate. (thank god getting old has perks ey) 


The Method 

Making these peanut butter cups is so so simple. First off, take one bar of the Lindt chocolate and break it up into little pieces and put them in a bowl ready to melt. I like to melt my chocolate in the microwave, blast it for 30 seconds, take it out and stir, then repeat until the chocolate is fully melted. This ensures that you're not burning the chocolate (and you get to lick the spoon - winner!!) 

Once the chocolate is melted, take your cake cases and put them on a plate, pour about 5mm-1cm of the melted chocolate into each case to just cover the bottom, you should get about 10 out of the 1 bar of chocolate. Then pop them in the freezer to chill (insert funny chilling in the fridge meme here) for about 10 minutes or so. 


After 10 minutes in the freezer the chocolate should be set again. It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time! (Minus the jelly). Put a teaspoon of Meridian Peanut Butter on each of the cases. You can use any kind of peanut butter, but I like Meridian because it's organic and has no nasties, so it's much better for you than most. 


Take the other bar of Lindt chocolate you have and melt it the same way you done the first bar. Then pour the melted chocolate over the peanut butter until it's completely covered. Once you've covered them all, pop them in the freezer for another 10 minutes or so. 

Once set, sit back, relax, grab a cuppa and tuck in! 

BUT, just because these are a healthier version of Reese's Peanut Butter cups it is still chocolate, so don't say I didn't tell you that eating all 10 is probably not the best idea! (but if you fancy a treat, go for it ;) )

I hope you liked this recipe! let me know what you think in the comments. 

Ciao for now xo

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Vanilla Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie

Vanilla Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie

This morning was such a nice morning, the sun was shining and there was a beautiful breeze. So I thought instead of my oats, I'll have a thirst quenching smoothie to kick start my day! 


All the ingredients you'll need to make it are - 

I always add the dry ingredients in the blender first as I find it blends better. 

So, add them all into the blender, and then - BLEND!


And there you have it, a thirst quenching smoothie to kick start your day!

 The macro's for this smoothie are - C 32g, P 38g, F 15g.

 Let me know what you think if you try the recipe in the comments below xo 

 Ciao for now x

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BRINNER - Breakfast for Dinner!

BRINNER - Breakfast for Dinner!

Brinner, (Breakfast for Dinner, duh) something I like to eat as often as possible! It's definitely up there with my favourite meal of all time, easy and simple to make yet an absolute taste sensation! 

For this particular "Brinner" I had sweet potato fritters, mashed avocado, bacon medallions and 2 fried eggs. Absolute winner in my eyes. 

The ingredients you will need to make this recipe are; 
  • Sweet potato
  • 3 eggs 
  • Half an avocado 
  • Bacon medallions 
  • Garlic powder
  • salt and pepper 

To make the sweet potato fritters you will need the following; 
  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1 egg 
  • salt and pepper 
  • 1 tsp of garlic powder
You'll need to grate the sweet potato into a bowl, once grated, place onto some kitchen tissue and take an extra piece to press on top of the grated sweet potato to get rid of any excess water. Then add the potato back into the bowl with some salt, pepper, the garlic powder and the egg. Then mix until all the ingredients are combined. 

To cook these, you'll need a frying pan and a teaspoon of coconut oil, heated in the pan ready. Take a tablespoon of the mixture and then press it down in the pan so it forms a circle shape. You should get about 4 out of the mixture. Fry for approx. 5 minutes on each side (or until golden brown) before serving. 

Once the fritters are done, you will need to take the half avocado and mash it on top of 2 of the fritters, then add the grilled bacon (I tend to grill my bacon on a high heat for about 10-15 minutes) and the eggs (my preference was fried, but any kind of egg would work!) garnish with salt and pepper and add the 2 extra fritters on top - voila! A wonderful brinner! 

Leave a comment if you try it and let me know what you think xo 

Ciao for now!






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Halloumi Chicken, YUM.

Halloumi Chicken, YUM.

This evening I had the pleasure of cooking my two best friends dinner. It's always "something healthy but absolutely 10/10 tasty" that is requested. 

 I was thinking, what can I cook that is healthy, tasty and includes cheese? Voila, halloumi chicken came to mind!

All you would need to make this is the following - 

  • Chicken breast
  • Sweet potato
  • Piccollo Cherry Tomatoes
  • Halloumi
  • Pesto
  • Garlic powder
  • Salt & pepper
  • Olive oil
I'm no Michelin Star chef so the method for the meal is so simple, you simply;

Cut the sweet potato into chip's and put them into a bowl with some salt, pepper, garlic powder and a tablespoon of olive oil and mix so everything is combined then spread them out onto a baking tray. 

Using the same bowl, add olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder to the bowl and then add the chicken breast. Combine so the chicken is completely covered.

Slice vertically through the side of the chicken and add the pesto, place on a baking tray and add the sliced halloumi on the top of the chicken. 

Then bake in the oven for 30 mins at 180 degrees. Turn around after 20mins! 


There you have it, a healthy yet tasty cheesy dinner! Perfect for a dinner date with your besties xo 


Ciao for now xo 
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It was a snaccident, I promise!!

It was a snaccident, I promise!!

For someone who is 5'3", damn I can eat. I am always hungry. FACT. I also suffer from extreme cases of "hangry" which in their severity have resulted in tears, and a break up. (moral of that story, don't mess with me when I haven't eaten for a few hours, or put food in the oven when I ask you too :) ). 

 Snacking is a staple part of my diet and always has been. Working in an office is tough when you're trying to be good with what you're eating and then in wheels the left over buffet trolley from a meeting, tell me you don't eye up the little savoury snacks and cakes as they pass your desk screaming EAT ME.

 Therefore, I am always prepared to have a little something by my side for when I find myself about to eat 10 duck spring rolls and a dozen cocktail sausages off the buffet that has conveniently been wheeled into the office, mid afternoon (when all things seem hazy and you have definitely hit the wall)! I've listed my top 3 below;

Proper Corn Popcorn
OH EM GEE, now this stuff is to die for! My favourite flavour is the Sweet and Salty. But all of their flavours are amazing and they do some really different flavours too, like Coconut and Vanilla. YUM. If you want to see the nutritional information on these and how easy they are to fit into your macros, check out their website!


Grenade Carb Killa Protein Bars
I LOVE these, perfect to target that sweet chocolate craving. My go to bar would be the Dark Chocolate Mint one, with over 22g of protein, only 0.6g of sugars and 0.6g of impact carbs they are perfect, especially if you are low on protein that day. Unlike some protein bars, these aren't hard to chew, I'd describe the texture as similar to a Mars bar, so really easy to eat and I am yet to find a flavour I don't like! 

 Nakd bars
So these are a little bit on the carby/sugary side, so pretty good on high carb days and perfect to satisfy that 3pm "hitting the wall" feeling! my favourite flavour of these is the cocoa orange, I'm a sucker for a Terrys Chocolate orange and this is definitely the next best thing!! 

 Of course there are hundreds of other things I could/would snack on but I thought I'd tell you guys my top three! 

 Also; I don't religiously track my macros, but I always make sure the snack's I'm eating won't make me go ridiculously over my carb intake for a day, so the snacks I've listed above are all pretty macro friendly!! 

 Thanks for reading this post and let me know what you think in the comments!

 Ciao for now xo 

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 *Disclaimer - This is not a sponsored post!! Just my own honest opinions. However all the things I have mentioned have been linked above to provide more information for you readers xx
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Fasted Cardio, is it worth it?

Fasted Cardio, is it worth it?

Cardio, possibly everyones least favourite thing to do BUT something that has to be done if you're looking to burn fat / cut for summer! I am one of those people that has tried endless types of cardio because, lets face it, it's not the most glamorous/enjoyable thing to do in the world. Anyway, I thought I would give "Fasted Cardio" a shot...
Action shots of me before leaving to go to the gym @ 6:30am

The first day I got up to go to the gym at 6:30am to do fasted cardio I felt extremely awake and okay, I done 20mins of interval sprints on the treadmill, then 20mins on the stepper. HOWEVER, by 3pm that afternoon I felt like I needed a nap SO bad I could've turned into the devils offspring. 

But I carried on that week and got up, went to the gym and done the same thing. I found it boring and repetitive and the only real changes I saw was that I became more tired and LOADS more hungry, I mean I'm a hungry girl anyway but sweet Jesus, this was SOMETHING ELSE this then resulted in a hangry Nicola and a Hangry Nicola is not good.

If you are looking for a way to burn fat, doing cardio when your body is in a fasted state will use the fat you have stored as energy as it's the only energy available as you have not fueled your body with food. Claims are that fasted cardio will target stubborn fat, so for women, around your abdomen, HOWEVER, this is a claim, unfortunately we cannot choose where the fat burns from on our body first. 

I think that if you're not a bikini competitor or fitness model blah blah, then fasted cardio isn't necessarily worth it, 20 minutes of sprints at the end of a workout or a 20 min HIIT workout would easily suffice in the evening! Especially if like me, you have a busy life, I juggle a full time job Monday - Friday and part time on a Saturday for 8 hours, I cheer 3 times a week, go to the gym at least 3 times and ontop of that I have a boyfriend, family and friends to fit in too! (oh and I somehow have to manage a social life too). 

So unfortunately Fasted Cardio, it's a no from me! :( 



Please let me know what you think of this post in the comments below! 


xo

*Disclaimer - This post is just my opinion on how I found Fasted Cardio :)


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Protein Berry and Chia Seed Smoothie!

Protein Berry and Chia Seed Smoothie!

I don't know about you (but I'm feeling 22) sorry Taylor Swift had to get in there somewhere, but I get so bored of protein shakes. Having the same vanilla or chocolate shake everyday just doesn't cut it for me, so I like to mix it up a bit! 

 I often add protein powder to smoothies to make them that little bit sweeter, as they can be quite sharp if you are just using berries and coconut milk, I preferably add Womens Best Vanilla Whey Protein to my smoothies as I find it blends really well, but any other protein is fine! 

Thats just me being super pouty because the sun was shining and my highlight was poppin'

To make the above smoothie, you will need the following ingredients - 

 100ml Alpro Coconut Milk
50g Raspberries
50g Blueberries 
1 Tbsp of Chia Seeds
5-6 Ice Cubes

The method to make it is simple - BLEND! And enjoy every single sip!

 The macro's for this smoothie are; Carbs - 20g, Fats - 3.3g, Protein - 26.3g. I know it is quite high carb but it's an ideal smoothie to have at breakfast or just before you train if you haven't got enough time to cook anything up.

Ciao for now xo

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 *Disclaimer - This is not a sponsored post
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Don't worry, be happy!

Don't worry, be happy!

^Never a truer word said^

Now's the time to admit we are all guilty of the first word you see in this post - COMPARISON. 

Comparing your "9pm bloated just out the shower self-criticising every inch of your body" self to someones 8am "fresh outta bed and in the gym" self is NOT the way things should be. Of course it's going to look different, for trillions of reason's, the list could go on and on and on; 

1. EVERYONE, I repeat, everyone's body is different, so you're bound to look different to other people! 

2. People will only put their best foot forward on social media, people only post what they want you to see. Noone puts their "9pm bloated just out the shower self-criticising every inch of your body" self on instagram for 1000+ likes.

3. Filters - they are like a gods gift sent from the heavens above to make that slight definition on anyones stomach look defined! Wait, one step better! You can actually edit pictures so you look like you have abs, who'd have thought it!!

What I'm trying to get at is, in this day and age there is so much around to make you feel like you're not good enough or that you need to work harder in the gym because you don't have a toned stomach that is symmetrical or legs longer than the A1. But I'll tell you the worst kept secret in the history of secrets, the pictures you're seeing on social media probably don't look like that 99.9% of the time. Take a look at the pictures below as an example, the top picture was taken at 9pm at night, after a whole day of eating (just out the shower hence the wet hair) and the bottom picture was taken at 7:30am the morning after, so exactly 10 and a half hours apart! 



We all need a bit more self-love and I have learnt that once you are happy with your body and you learn how to nourish and treat your body right, you feel less like you need to constantly compare yourself to others. I have come to terms with the fact that I have never been the skinniest in my friendship group, and that at 5' 3" I'm never going to look like a VS model, but I am happy with how I am and I hope that every girl reading this will hopefully feel that way too. 

I'm not saying I never get sad sometimes because I have cellulite on my thighs or that my butt isn't as peachy as I'd like it to be (I'm a girl of course I'm gonna have days like that) but I will never let those thoughts take over my life!

Don't be so hard on yourselves guys, we all have flaws and imperfections <3 

xo

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10 Things that go through a cheerleaders mind at competition!

10 Things that go through a cheerleaders mind at competition!

Competitions, SUCH a love hate relationship. Love; that feeling of coming off the Mat knowing you done your coaches proud. Hate; those 4am wakeup calls and 20 hour days. Nothing, I repeat, nothing, spells G L A M O U R, like an Allstar Cheerleading Competition.

 Being a competitive Allstar Cheerleader is probably one of the best things I have done in my life, being part of a team that is like a family, doing something you absolutely love with some of your best friends. 

 Competitions are all kinds of crazy, here's 10 things that'll go through everyones head at some point in the day! 


1. OMG I'm so tired. (said on average about 1000 times a day) 

2. "What I eat now isn't gonna affect what I look like on the mat", said while staring at the over priced burger and chips at 10am, totally acceptable. 

 3. Ohhhhh only 7 hours until I compete, not like I've been AWAKE since 4am. 

 4. I feel sick, I need a wee, omg so nervy. Standing waiting to compete is the most NERVE-RACKING thing I have ever gone through, think you have sweaty palms? You will when you're stood there hun!!

 5. OMG can I do it again?! I love competing! BEST. THING. EVER. 

 6. YAAAAAASSS GIRL, dance time before awards, I'm gonna SLAY Peanut Butter Jelly, watch me. 

 7. OMG tired. 

 8. My Ponytail is far too tight. And my bow is on a wonk. (standard)

 9. I feel sick, I need a wee, OMG gonna cry (EVERYONE must feel this when you're sat on that mat waiting for the announcer to announce your placement)

 10. I LOVE THIS SPORT SO MUCH OH MA GAD <3

 The list could absolutely go on, no matter what level cheerleader you are, all of us have the same passion for the sport we do, that's what makes the competitions so great, I wouldn't change it for the world. 
*Shout out to the people that make it all possible, I love you endlessly <3*

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Did someone say Pancakes?!

Did someone say Pancakes?!

I don't know about you, but I'm an absolute sucker for anything sweet, chocolate, cake, Haribo Tangfastics, the list is pretty much endless. 

So when I discovered that something sweet could actually be good for me I simply HAD to try it. 

Behold the Chia Seed Protein Pancake 

This is basically my own twist on a flourless pancake. All you'll need to make it is as follows: 
  • 1 Banana - Medium 
  • 1 Egg - Medium 
  • Chia Seeds - 1 Tablespoon
  • Honey - 1 Teaspoon 
  • Womens Best Vanilla Protein - 1 Scoop
  • Frylight - any will do however I used coconut oil
To start you will need to half the banana and place 1 half to the side as we'll use that later on for the topping. You will need to mash the other half of the banana then add the egg, protein and chia seeds, and mix them all up together. I'm the first person to admit, this mixture is not pretty, at all, not even in the slightest!! (But it's the taste that counts!)

Then you will need a heated frying pan with a couple of sprays of Frylight, pour enough mixture into the pan so you're pancake is about 20cm in diameter. Fry for approximately 5 minutes each side. (Repeat until the mixture is finished) 

Chop up the rest of the banana and add to the top of you're pancake stack and then drizzle the honey over the top, tadaaaaa and there you have a beautiful healthy breakfast. (or just something to eat at anytime of the day, I did have these for breakfast though) 


I like to add chia seeds to most of my breakfasts, as they are an amazing source of Omega 3 and are very high in protein, they also aid your digestion as they have 11g of fibre per ounce! 

The mixture I have used contains the following macro's - 
Fat - 9g 
Protein - 35g 
Carbs - 38g
Kcal - 373

Let me know if you like this post by leaving a comment below! x



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Who am I? That's a secret I'll never tell xoxo

Who am I? That's a secret I'll never tell xoxo

Okay, so the heading of this post is a lie, of course I'm going to tell you who I am and what I'm about.(I just had to get the Gossip Girl reference in somewhere!)

 Here's the basic's, my name is Nicola, I'm 25 years old (ew mid 20's!), 5' 3" and I absolute cannot go a day without having a cup of tea. I mean I live in Britain, we need a good ol' cuppa to function right? 
THIS IS ME L

 I'm gonna quit the boring stuff and get down to why I have ventured into the world of blogging and why I started CheerFitNG.

 I have always been into fitness and how and why certain foods are good and bad for you, what fuels your body and how to live a healthy lifestyle, I'm up for learning new ways of eating and exercising, so I thought I'd write it all down in a cute little blog for me to keep track basically (oh and I love gym clothes, practically live in them, that's ok right?) 

 CheerFitNG broken down - Cheer, I'm on a UK cheerleading squad. Fit, I like to assume I am somewhat "fit" and NG because it's my initials, finitoooo. 

 In absolutely no way shape or form am I writing a blog to tell people what to eat and how to exercise, there are millions and trillions of different diets, ways of training etc, people are free to do what they want! I'm no nutritionist or PT, I simply just love exploring food and trying different ways of exercising :)

 I hope you enjoy!




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