Confessions of a third year student...

These days, my life seems to resemble a pair of scales: balancing a social life and sanity with final year university work and insanity.

My lack of blog posts and ideas have been a result of this. I knew this was coming and I tried to prepare myself for the stress and copious amounts of work that would come my way.

I won't sugar coat it, final year is hard, it's meant to be. 

As we approach the end of April, the deadline for my thesis is just around the corner. I've spent pretty much every day since January in a laboratory, desperately trying to gather results to give me something to write about.

This is the life of a final year biomedical science student. It's not fun, but at the same time I am weirdly enjoying it. For those who choose to study a scientific course, then it is most likely that you will end up doing a research project. Not only do I think it is harder than a dissertation, I also think it is waay more stressful but at the same time way more rewarding.

Having to design, plan and conduct a research project by yourself is hard and without proper training, it means you have to use your own initiative on a daily basis to make sure you actually know what you are doing. There were times when I felt like crying in the lab because I had no idea what I was doing and none of my experiments were working. This is where patience comes in handy.

I've learnt so much in a matter of months, not just to do with my course but to do with myself. I definitely do not want to go into research as a future career, and I have also realised that the best way to complete something is to just sit down and get on with it.

I suppose the one thing that keeps me going is that it'll all be over in a couple of months. It's actually scary how quickly time goes when you are so preoccupied with various assignments and revision.

I think it's this point in a degree where you have to make sure you have chosen the right course and that you enjoy it. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to find the motivation to do anything.

Gone are the days of partying almost every night. In fact, after a days work I feel mentally exhausted and the last thing I want to do is get glammed up for a night partying into the early hours.

The coping mechanism's I have acquired are getting enough sleep, which is incredibly important and really effects your performance. I also try and go to the gym a few times a week, as well as going to local dance classes as this fulfils my other passions. It makes for a really good break and keeps me sane.
The most important one however is to START EARLY! I seriously cannot emphasise this enough, the earlier you start, the less stress and panic there will be towards the end. If you find yourself with spare time, make a head start. You will thank yourself for it later.

I can't say I have changed my diet to enrich me with brain boosting omega-3 or anything, I simply indulge in chocolate most of the time to satisfy that sweet craving and as a reward for all those revision notes I made. And there is nothing wrong with that. I also have become a procrastibaker, as you can see from the pictures below!

Blueberry Cake

Strawberry fairy cakes

Easter egg chocolate cakes

So I guess this post is like a diary entry and when it is all over I can read over it and take comfort in the fact that it's all over.

Review: Nutrition Mixer

I have to say, I'm quite hard to please. And when it comes to spending money, I don't like to be ripped off.

So I've had my eye on the Nutribullet for a long time, ever since it came out.

I've also been consumed with jealousy when coming across people's instagram pictures of delicious, colourful looking smoothies that people create using these blending machines.

I realised it was time to invest in one when I really fancied a bowl of warm, homemade soup that wasn't straight from a tin. This was impossible to make without some sort of blender, so when I heard that Lidl were creating the Nutrition Mixer for only £29.99, I took the chance and purchased my own.

At around £80, the NutriBullet is £50 more expensive than the Nutrition Mixer, which both do the same job.

So, armed with my blender and an collection of recipes I had been saving up, I got straight to work making that bowl of soup.

I chose to make a simple, yet satisfying butternut squash soup.
When it got to the blender step, I filled up the beaker, flipped it over and began pureeing it.

The Verdict:

I was amazed! 

Not only is it super fast, it whizzes everything into a smooth puree within seconds! Yes it's loud, which I expected, but the results blew me away and I could finally enjoy that fresh bowl of homemade soup I had been craving for ages.

Now I cannot compare this to the NutriBullet because I've never used the NutriBullet. But I can review Lidl's Nutrition Mixer and I have to say, I'm impressed! I certainly do not feel like I'm being ripped off.

 I cannot wait till summer to try fresh smoothies, and I've already planned a Mexican night where I will use the machine to make homemade guacamole.

So if you are looking for something cheap, good value for money and does a fine job of blending, then definitely consider this model! I guess what they say is true, good things come to those who wait! I'm certainly glad I waited until a cheaper model came out than jumping straight on the bandwagon and buying the NutriBullet.

Battle of the Christmas Drinks

This post is about Christmas drinks! Yes I know what you're thinking, Christmas has been and gone, but I started this around 2 months ago. I wanted to try as many Christmas themed drinks as possible, and only managed about 5 but I have included my thoughts on the most popular flavours:


So I just tried the famous  Gingerbread Latte from Costa, which is one of their festive special edition drinks and my first ever holiday drink!

Yup, I've never tried any Starbucks, Costa, Pret, even McDonalds festive drinks ever! Call me crazy because it was the biggest mistake of my life!

So I had an epiphany, why not try as many festive themed drinks as possible and review them all? At first this sounded like a good idea, who wouldn't want to gorge calorific, sugary drinks and call it research?!

Then I realised how bad they were for you, so for 'research' purposes (and so I don't get diabetes), I will be trying the skimmed/non-fat sugar free versions. Also, these things aren't cheap and due to being so busy, I only got around to trying ones from Costa and Starbucks.

Disclaimer:
This is my personal opinion and taste, which differs from every single other person, so just because I don't like something doesn't mean you will too!

Up first is...

1. Costa Coffee Gingerbread Latte 

Well, this was delicious in every sense. I had it with no whip because I hate the stuff, but as soon as I took one sip of this I was succumbed to that warm, festive feeling. The gingerbread is prominent throughout the whole drink, not just the first few sips. It also meant I could enjoy a coffee without the need for sugar because the sweetness finishes it off nicely. If you are a fan of gingerbread, this is the drink for you. It was sensational! Extra points for the cute cup designs as well.

2. Costa Coffee Caramel Fudge Hot Chocolate

Admittedly I tried a sample of this as I'm not a big fan of hot chocolate, but nevertheless it was nice. I failed to taste the difference from normal hot chocolate's though, which made me question why it was a festive drink if there was nothing festive about it. It was pretty sweet, too much so that a full size drink would have been too much for me. Last year I believe they had a chocolate orange drink which they never bought back this year, to many peoples anger, and I couldn't help but feel this would have been better than the fudge version this year.

3. Starbucks Toffee Nut Latte 

Well this surprised me. I expected it to taste like a generic toffee latte, but the nutty flavour really stands out. I'm not the biggest fan of nuts (no pun intended), but this adds to the whole drink. It's subtle enough to not overpower the sweet toffee syrup in the milk, yet it adds a nice festive touch. I found myself wanting another one straight after. Again, I went for no whip but it was still really nice and I would definitely recommend trying it! I would even go to say that it is worth the more expensive price than the other coffee chains, just because it is quite a unique flavour.

4. Costa Coffee Black Forest Hot Chocolate

Another sample I tried, but I was remarkably surprised by this drink. The cherry flavour really is prominent in this drink and compliments the chocolate well. It really is like drinking a Black forest gateau. So if this is one of your favourite desserts, then this drink is the one for you!

5. Salted Caramel Cappuccino (Costa)

A cappuccino is by far my favourite coffee drink so I was very excited to try this. I love salted caramel as well, and when I received the drink it was topped with gold chocolate! How cool is that?! So when I took a sip of this I was a little disappointed. I could taste the caramel, but no salt. It tasted like a regular cappuccino but with a pump of caramel syrup. It did redeem itself with the gold chocolate though!

6. Starbucks Gingerbread Latte

So my last taste test was the Gingerbread Latte from the American chain, so I could do the ultimate comparison between Costa and Starbucks. I have to say, this was good, but Costa ever so slightly won in the taste test. In fairness, they do taste pretty similar so it was hard to distinguish which one was better, but maybe Costa had that little extra drip of syrup.

So that's all I managed this Christmas because these drinks ain't cheap!
My favourite and winner of this experiment has to be Costa's Gingerbread Latte, just because I love ginger and the cute cups made it slightly better than Starbucks!
However, it is followed closely by the Toffee Nut Latte which was unique and still just as delicious.

Hope you enjoyed this experiment, I know I have! Now it's time for a sugar detox as I wallow in post Christmas depression. See you next year!

Healthy This, Healthy That!

Ok, so is it just me, or does anyone else feel bombarded to stock your cupboard with quinoa and avocados, as well as head down to the gym and instagram it at the same time?

I thought I would write a post about healthy eating and living. I don't know about anyone else but it seems to the in thing to eat healthy foods and to wear the latest gym fashion. At first I saw this as a positive thing as everyone knows that obesity can have detrimental effects to your health. I felt that this new trend would encourage other people to change their lifestyle for the better. It certainly got me thinking about how I could be healthier.

It wasn't until my whole instagram feed was made up of acai berry bowls (what even is acai?) and gym selfies that I realised it seems to have steered away from actually being healthy, to letting everyone you know about your new lifestyle change.

All the posts about the new diets, like juicing and gluten free, really need to stop focusing on losing weight quickly and focus more on the gradual decline from an unhealthy lifestyle to a healthier one. Now it's probably me, but as I study a scientific degree, I 100% do not agree with juice detoxing, and the gluten free fad is a load of rubbish. Your diet should only be gluten free if you have Coeliac disease or an intolerance i.e. it is making you symptomatic. Otherwise cutting it out of your diet is like cutting out carbohydrates, the biggest source of energy and nutrients for your body. It really is a personal choice what you do with your body, but when I feel bombarded with information that gluten is bad for you (which is completely false), that's when I get frustrated.

Another thing is that while most people can afford to eat healthily the normal way, eating all these 'in trend' foods such as quinoa and buckwheat is very expensive. I visited a whole foods specialist supermarket only to be astounded by what people are prepared to pay for this type of food!

I do get that it is a lifestyle decision. I just hate the fact that everywhere I look, people are showcasing it on social networks. Although it is unintentional, it makes me feel pressurised to do the same. Something that as a student, I neither have the money or the time to do! This type of pressure can lead to eating disorders and insecurities for many people. For now, I think I'll stick to my way which is simple. Eat a balanced diet (not cutting anything out, including sugar!) and exercising reguarly. The NHS recommends around 2 hours of physical activity a week (don't quote me on that) which sounds manageable. Simply walking to the shops, or having a little jog in the evening will do. Also, I do indulge in treats because a little bit of something yummy is not bad and will not make any difference to my weight or health.
So next time you see the latest picture of a green, non appetising smoothie, my advice is to keep scrolling and do your own thing!