Photographic Memory

SNAP AWAY

Taking pictures has never been so easy. Back before the smart phone days, we had compact cameras that were our means of capturing the moment, but it was only really after 2000 that compact digital cameras were becoming good enough for this job over their film camera alternatives. But even then the quality, the storage and the battery life were not up to a standard where we could take them everywhere we went - hence they were usually only pulled out on very special occasions, like birthdays etc. Before that time, with film cameras, the limitations on film roll size (24 or 36) and the expense of developing film/prints, meant that photos were very considered, composed and every effort was taken to ensure there was no wasted shots.

Fast forward to the present day and everyone seems to have some form of camera on their person at all times of the day. The latest offerings from Apple and Samsung also means we can shoot bursts in hi-resolution, panoramic or fire off HD video - even in slow-mo. Afterwards, everything can be edited before they magically move themselves across to the 'cloud', where they simultaneously materialise on our other devices too.

Storage is also not much of a problem these days as Flikr give 1Tb for free and other storage providers like Dropbox, The Box, Google Drive etc. are finding even more ways to seamlessly integrate with our operating systems of choice - and all for very low cost. Battery issues are still a minor limitation, but carrying a miniature charging device or USB plug around with us (or even spare device battery), means we can top up on the go. This means that we can snap away to our heart's content using our cameras as memories for all the good times we've had. With metadata, we can even track the time and place where the shots were taken and look back at them on a map alongside a timeline of great memories in our lives.

Dictation Freedom

VOICE RECOGNITION

My new favourite tool is the dictation feature on my MacBook Pro. It enables me to get my first draft down in blogger so much quicker. By double tapping the function key, speaking and hitting function again to pause, I can get the bones of what I'm going to say and go back and edit after.

After years of using computers for work, I'm now feeling the effects of over-using my fingers to type and arm to use a mouse. The very action of hunching over a computer has arguably given me a bit of a drooped posture which I'm correcting through yoga and stretching.

Hands Free
Coupled with my other favourite bit of kit - the Sony SB20 bluetooth receiver, I'm now able to walk around the room away from the chair and keyboard altogether! Although I still like to practice my touch typing - the freedom this new technology has now given me will make writing all the more easier on my posture and hands in the long run.

Specialist Equipment

OBSESSING OVER STUFF WE DON'T NEED

It seems to be mostly a guy thing, but I'm sure the girls do it too - namely, getting obsessed with the tech. Fixating on equipment add-ons, accessories and gadgets. I have a few mates who are like this.

Tech lovers get most pleasure talking about what the various bits of kit do. Having everything all shiny and clean so they can admire the brilliance of their equipment, also helps them visualise the benefits that these new additions will bring to their performance. Snowboarding, mountain and road biking are especially rife with these tech-nerds. They are usually found fiddling with dials, adjustment knobs and tweaking settings when they should just be riding.

It's the body and the mind that should be focussed on more to get the most out of the equipment we're using, yet these guys are usually lacking in that department and rather than strengthening the body, legs or dropping a few pounds to get more performance, they are relying on the weight gains saved from having the carbon or space-age parts, which they've paid an arm and a leg for instead.

Buying stuff we don't really need is an excuse for covering up our own inadequacies. Compensating with tech, seems to be what this phenomena is all about. If there's a quick fix to be found and providing it's really expensive too, must mean it's gonna work wonders on improving our performance. So why kit the gym?

Bags & Covers
I recently found myself getting a bit caught up in another area of buying stuff we don't really need. I was sucked in to the 'stuff I absolutely must have to complete my already amazing bit of kit' syndrome. 

I needed a way to protect my DJ S2 midi controller for a trip to Spain. I needed a special bag. Did I hell. Because that's when I realised my spending £100+ on a flight case or Traktor branded backpack was crazy. I have little money available to me at the moment and I'm using cash instead of credit cards to try and clear my debt. When you see how much a £20 note can get you if you're being frugal - a couple of alcoholic drinks and decent food for 3-4 days at best, possibly still leaving you with a bit of loose change if you're lucky. So spending over 5 times that amount on a canvas bag, especially when I have some great bags already, where the original packaging for the controller (with polystyrene foam included), fits snugly inside.

I noticed that Traktor also make plastic dust covers which I needed to keep the dust off my amazing kit. But £36 for a bit of plastic. Did I really need it that bad when a light towel did the job just as well? Heck no! So, keeping a reality check on ourselves is needed. Will that £££ spent on kit really make the enjoyment of using it that much better? Probably not. Will it look all shiny and boost confidence initially - probably a bit, but take away that distorted reality field - a piece of moulded plastic costs nothing to produce. And a bag is a bag. It doesn't need a logo on it to justify the price tag.

Carry on Camping

MOBILE HOME IN A BAG

Taking to the roads this week, we packed the car with our camping gear and headed for some of the most beautiful places in the south coast - Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.

No-Go Bongo
The original plan had been to take a trip down to my friend's place and buy his used Bongo Friendee but it had a serious engine problem and meant a costly repair. So, we decided to take our Mercedes for a 900 mile spin and see what adventures we could make for ourselves in this old convertible.

Who needs a camper or caravan when you have a tent?
Overtaking so many caravans and looking at the options for mobile homes - dull looking camp sites with dull looking people staying there too. We opted for the hidden little farms and quirky places with no electric points, hence no RV's - where only a tent could make the most of these gems. So while the weather was mixed and the initial thoughts were for the confines of the pop-up roof of the campervan to make our luxury sleeping quarter, it actually worked out better for many reasons.

It's so easy to pitch up and make a temporary home from a compact folding abode. Buying tents that pitch in minutes, ones that you can stand up in, others with porches, or seating areas and multiple sleeping quarters - all for very little money these days, means the home is where you make it.

Having a few essentials like a decent sleeping bag and the odd luxury like a pillow or blow-up mattress, means the night's sleep can be just as comfortable as back at home. And gone are the days that going camping means packing up the car to the max - because even if there's a bit of equipment required that we don't have, or can't improvise with - an Argos or Halfords is never too far away. And choosing these national outlets mean, should an item not life up to its standards, it can be replaced easily at any branch within a year. Having the tent meant we paid £6 each per night - leaving far more of the budget to spend in the local pubs and fine eateries too.

Second Hand Goods

GOOD AS NEW

Every day, someone, somewhere is packing off something to be taken to the second hand shop or sold on eBay. These are goods that have had some use but are still good for more. The reasons for throwing them out may just be that there's no room for them or that they don't get used enough t warrant keeping them.

We're all conditioned consumers in this day and age - and retail for some, truly is a form of therapy. We're simply a couple of clicks away on Amazon, from what may just be another impulse buy...

The economics of purchasing
My brother has gotten really good at sniffing out bargains on eBay. He'll always choose to look for a used item before buying new - especially when it comes to kids games and toys. The kids are usually involved in this process. What this means, is that he is teaching his kids about the value of money and economics when it comes to purchasing. Understanding monetary value, knowing how to negotiate and when/why to purchase is not something we are taught in school. Using kids toys as a model - buying at a fraction of the original price, using and playing with it - then selling on again, quite often making money at the end, will stand these youngsters in good stead for when they grow up and buy their own house etc.

Grabbing a Bargain
Many people are oblivious to how they spend their money. They live to and beyond their means and without controlling their desires, they buy stuff that ends up in the cupboard or in a storage unit gathering dust. Quite often, they'll want bigger, better, newer versions of the same thing and the 'old' one will just be in the way. There's bargains to be found. Hence, when I decided on buying an Omega VRT352 Juicer (normally around £300+), I had to look for a second hand one to justify not spending more money than I spent on a one week all inclusive holiday to the Canary Islands! Here I found one on a really great website called Preloved. And everything I've purchased on here is just that - loved and looked after. So for a very easy purchase at £165, I'm really happy to have found something that is guaranteed for 10 years and potentially will boost health and vitality at a bargain price.

Ample Kit for a Traveller

WORKING ON THE GO - LITE

When you're on the go and need the right equipment to be able to work and play - carrying around a laptop can be a bit of an inconvenience, when quite often, the smart phone can do the job just as well.

So, an ample bit of kit for me at the moment, which allows me enough power to do what I have to do without breaking the bank is to use my iPhone 5s with a few choice apps installed like Blogger, Twitter, Spotify, Shutterstock, iBooks, Pingit and of course the browser and email apps. Trouble is, there's not enough battery power and the headphone wires can get in the way when listening to music or making calls while tapping away on the phone.

I could have bought an iPhone 6 - but this company provided me with a perfectly good iPhone5s 32gb for £300 in A1 condition. To get a full day's use out of it, I slip this little battery pack in my pocket wherever I go and to make sure I've got the right cable for charging everything, I have this handy 3-in-1 USB charger lead and carry this USB plug just in case. And in order to walk, talk, listen to music and read/blog/text - whatever...without the problem of messy wires getting in the way, I use this great little bluetooth device from Sony - which works with any headphones and will last all day long when plugged in to the battery pack!

Take The Plunge

MILES AWAY

Swimming up and down in a pool can be very therapeutic. Counting off the lengths towards the goal of 1 mile today, I switched from focussed practice of my stroke to what I need to achieve in the coming weeks. 

To get an increased workout in my arms, I tried these aqua gloves - which were actually quite hard going and surprisingly, didn't add anything to my speed in the water. 

The resistance made each stroke a lot more powerful and where they took water in, were heavier through the top of the stroke. The best thing about them, is that they give an extra stretch on the backs of your arms, from the longest reach of the stroke all the way through to where your hand exits the water at the end of the stroke. Which was great to free up my muscles after training hard on the rower machine yesterday

Swimming is a great form of low-impact exercise. It's easy on your joints and great if recovering from injuries plus offers a multitude of other benefits including giving you a kinda zen feeling as you glide through the water, that could be of course, unless you catch the school lessons like I did!

Leaner, Stronger, Faster

HAPPY FOOD

So, it's nearly two weeks since I stopped drinking and I'm really starting to notice the difference in my energy levels and general positivity. The guy's who I regularly see at the reception to my office - one of the security team, asked what I've been doing, as I seemed different in some way - more vibrant and extra friendly (jeez, I must have been such a moody b*stard before!). I explained my diet and the early starts and he said he'd like to lose a bit of weight and was on a diet too - It is Jan after all...Thing is, I reckon his diet is wrong for him as it's essentially giving him a lot less food than a man of his size needs and especially as he stands outside in all weathers, he'll be feeling it in the cold at this time of year. I've passed on the Paleo info - and I'm going to send him a link to the blog today. I've also spread the word to my partner and a good friend to see if we can get our beach bodies back in a month!

I've been reading the Paleo book by Robb Fox and starting to get a better understanding of how our digestive system works to break down the food we eat and how we use it as fuel. This is why I can see the Paleo diet really works. I ate well yesterday, cutting out the carbs as much as possible and taking on my daily amount of protein. This seemed to give me enough energy to take two intense yoga classes. The first was a dynamic yoga class with Geraldine of The Radiant Hand - these are excellent teachers who really teach yoga through discipline - giving clear direction, watching, walking the room and correcting poses. I'm starting to get a real flow now, my flexibility is really coming on and I believe I actually got an 'excellent' yesterday, my first - and coming from this teacher, it has spurned me on even more! The second class was at Fierce Grace in the City. I tried Bikram yoga before and liked the intensity of the stretching in the hot environment - and Fierce Grace is a newer cooler version of Bikram - with music. The class I took was 1.5 hours long and equally as much of an endurance test in the 40+ heat!

We had food after - tricky eating out on a Paleo diet but Busaba Eatai have some grill options and I went for the cod stir fry with broccoli, garlic and shitaki mushrooms instead of rice. I had to take my lemongrass tea without honey in it but it was still sweet anyway. I confess, I ate the cashew cookies (it's my weakness). The greatest thing about the meal was the bill, as it is 50% for the whole of Jan - and you can go as many times as you want!

Restocking the cupboard
Day 3 on the Paleo diet - and it's time to get the right foods in. So, we've been down the supermarket at 7am buying meat and fish amongst other things...

Funny how giving up drinking gives you more time - but it can leave a bit of a void for what to spend your money on...I'm really trying to save money, but so used to getting the wallet out - so the motivation for going down to Aldi at 7am this morning as it opened, was to make the most of picking up this week's offers! Aldi now has an organic range and it's a good place for getting packaged meats like ham, turkey and chicken and great value for buying bags of nuts and fresh veg, fruit etc. We also need to stock up on quality fish & meat - we have Waitrose and Sainsbury's very near - but there's a great butchers called Chadwicks also nearby (who also do delivery) that's going to have the best grass fed beef and free range stuff in the store - plus we have a locally sourced fish mongers that comes to our farmers market every saturday which I'll be buying from. My parents befriended our local butcher to ensure always getting the choicest cuts...and we ate really well as a kid. It's going to be more expensive as a rule, but if there's a proper fish mongers or butchers nearby - it makes sense to make the most of it.

Improving digestion
The daily dose of Aloe Vera is really helping keep away any stomach issues and sticking to less acidic and non spicy foods is helping too. I've also been taking a supplement called Argi+ with anti-oxidants and vitamins - including L-arginine which is claiming to aid faster recovery after training. I've noticed that when taking before and after climbing or mountain biking, I've had less aching muscles the following day. I'll have to continue taking it to measure longer term benefits.

I'm not drinking tea or coffee during the day - but having an espresso in the mornings after eating. I've taken to regularly drinking freshly squeezed lemon in hot water (no honey or sugar added now though) and having a shot of Milk Thistle first thing in the morning - allegedly good for liver function.

Fit and Flexible 
First proper week back on the exercise routine. Here's how it's been in the week so far...

Tuesday was the first day back on the early boxing routine - really enjoyed pushing myself physically and mentally, it really helps to clear any angst or frustrations. I noticed a change in the core strength immediately after doing 100 situps at the end of the session. If you're in the London area and a member of Fitness First - we're having the sessions every Tuesday morning at 7.15-8am. If you'd like to know more and to join, email me at fitclubbox@gmail.com

Wednesday was a double helping of dynamic and hot yoga. I'm really starting to notice the difference in my flexibility and posture and my lower back aches and stiffness seem to have subsided considerably. I've got a great iPhone/iPad app for the days when you just want a quick 20 minute session at home or are on holiday - it's called Yoga Studio - available on the app store.

Thursday is my personal training day. So I'm going to really push myself and with all the good food I've been eating, should be on top of my game today. The guys at Ultimate City Fitness really know their stuff! Sign-up to get their daily newsletter giving advice on personal training, nutrition and achieving a leaner, stronger and fitter you. I'll be posting my routines up on a separate training page at some point in the near future.

Touch and Go
I realise I'm spending considerably more time on the keyboard typing these days. I should know where the keys are after 20 years using a computer but I just do two-finger typing. So I've decided to teach myself to touch type. I've been using this great free typing tool called Typing Club and after doing 20-30 minutes a day for 5 days - I'm up to about 20 words a minute! There's still a lot a of work to do before I'm speedy enough to be using this method full time - but it's a start.

A final note on speed
Saving seconds from my day to do the important things by being efficient, are part of my research on how to do things better. I wrote in a previous post about using a long-life, aluminium free deodorant and said I'd come back to it soon. So, I applied a very liberal amount of cream on Monday morning. I've washed 1-3 times every day with soap and water, but haven't had to re-apply any deodorant in 4 days. That's pretty good considering all the sweating I do. So this product is £8 but it's meant to last for over a month. That means I don't have to carry deodorants around with me in my gym bag, saves me time and could save money in the long run - plus it has to be better for me not using aluminium products. This will be great for festivals me thinks...

It's not that I ever get a chance to smell, because I wash a lot - 1-3 times a day typically. I'm usually having a shower after cycling in to work in the morning, one at lunch time if I'm hitting the gym and one in the evening after cycling home. Do I need to wash so much - probably not? I'm also getting through a lot of shower gel - so I only use soap now. I've got a small bar of aloe soap (which you can get from Holland & Barratt) and a Speedo sports towel - which is small, light, faster and more efficient for drying yourself off with - it can also be used as a flannel if, like me, you don't want to wash yourself away with constant showers. It's easy to carry around and you don't have to wait for it to dry like a conventional towel - just wring it out!