Last weekend I settled down to watch the live conference from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. SO many great speakers but amongst them was one of my personal favourites Dr Oz.
Dr Oz is full of so much good advice (especially when it comes to the topic of weight-loss) that when I got to the States earlier this month, his magazine was the first one I sniffed out (unfortunately, my magazine obsession is still as strong as ever).
A point Dr Oz made during his #IIN lecture was that weight doesn’t matter – it’s waist size that’s really the key. Now as a total slave to the scales myself, this seems like a sensible idea.
Weight is no longer relevant (we’ve known this for a while), BMI certainly isn’t relevant (Brad Pitt would be classed as clinically obese if you went by BMI calculations) and it’s been long standing advice that we take measurements to be able to see the true effect of any weightloss.
But whilst measurements are all very well, the question is – if we’re not striving for a perfect weight then how do we know that we’re on the right track?
Dr Oz suggests that in order to find your ideal waist size you need to:
I’ve been reading about the resurgence of veal for quite a while. It’s always been a meat I’ve avoided due to the publicity surrounding how the animals are treated. However, Sainsbury have a range of “Freedom Foods” which means that any veal they sell has been reared by farmers in a dedicated veal development group where the calves are house in open, straw-bedded barns and fed on a diet of milk, water and fibre.
Slow Roasted Veal
I slow cooked this shoulder of veal and as I didn’t want to mask the taste of the meat too much I kept it simple with just garlic and olive oil.
I’m not really sure where my show off streak comes from. My mother comes out in a rash at the thought of standing up and speaking in public and my father (despite having no confidence issues) would rather hide in the toilets than get up on stage (< that’s a rather funny story about the circus in Blackpool – one for another day).
Me however, I love it.
Don’t get me wrong I do have that pang of nerves, I remember my first time on live radio – the dry mouth, the worry of not knowing what I’d say if I didn’t understand the question etc.
But overall, I’ve most definitely got the bug.
However, for those who do get anxious when it comes to public speaking I saw a great tip on The Atlantic.
I’m well in to my kitchen hacks at the moment. As you know, anything that makes life a bit easier is all good with me.
So when I saw these two genius kitchen hacks I knew I had to spread the word.
1. Peel a head of garlic in less than 10 seconds.
I HATE peeling garlic, it’s messy and your hands stink afterwards BUT cooking website Saveur has uploaded a handy video that shows a simple hack to peel a whole head of garlic in less than 10 seconds!
Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating. – John Cleese
I’ve spoken before about my habit of procrastinating, I’m kind of embracing it these days. Usually the main cause of my whiling hours away, doing nothing, is feeling as though my creative juices are empty. There has to be nothing worse than staring at a blank page when you know it should be brimming with words. Nothing worse and nothing more hampering either.
Since it’s midweek and that’s usually when the slump sets in (or at least it does for me), I thought that I’d share a few methods that I use to boost creativity whilst I’m working…
How to Become More Creative
1.Take the afternoon off and go watch a film. A solo trip to the cinema always helps. I don’t know whether it’s the 2 hours living in someone else’s world or just time where my phone is off and I don’t have to think. But it does work.
2. Pick up a pen and write by hand. Notebooks and handwritten notes are a vital part of my routine.
3. Go outside. Walk, run, sit, whatever, just the feel of the sun on your skin, the rain on your face and the fresh air in your lungs can work wonders.
4. Have a glass of wine (or whatever your drink of choice). An ice cold glass of chablis is the perfect creativity booster for me. There’s a limit though, one glass = great work, two glasses = sloppy and incoherent (no matter how great I think it is at the time). As Ernest Hemingway says “Write drunk, edit sober“- although not recommended for 9am on Monday morning!
5. Turn EVERYTHING around you off. No radio, telly, music. I’m not one for silence but sometimes an hour or two of perfect silence gets shit done.
6. Take a nap. Sometimes you just need to shut down.
8. Work elsewhere. Coffee shop, co-working space, a friends house – a change of scenery is good.
9. Get to work on your confidence. Nothing will stop creativity in it’s tracks quicker than low self esteem. Check out Alex’s Confidence Vitamins.
10. Get a cat…I love this piece from Muriel Spark. If you’ve got a cat,you’ll understand.
If you want to concentrate deeply on some problem, and especially some piece of writing or paper-work, you should acquire a cat. Alone with the cat in the room where you work … the cat will invariably get up on your desk and settle placidly under the desk lamp. The light from a desk lamp … gives a cat great satisfaction. The cat will settle down and be serene, with a serenity that passes all understanding. And the tranquility of the cat will gradually come to affect you, sitting there at your desk, so that all the excitable qualities that impede your concentration compose themselves and give your mind back the self-command it has lost. You need not watch the cat all the time. Its presence alone is enough. The effect of a cat on your concentration is remarkable, very mysterious.
Now I want your tips…What are your sure fire ways to improve creativity?
Bonus tip…Do something different. Join a theatre group or a writing club. Something that you can get out and mingle with like minded creatives. I love the blog post by the American Musical Theatre Academy – 5 insights into the Life of a Theatre Actor which discusses creativity and how the theatre embraces it.
