A Winter Essential

If you’re to get one thing this winter let it be this... the Swell bottle.

I won my swell bottle through a Flybery competition and wow, it’s not only gorgeous, it actually works!! 

It’s the blooming best drink bottle I’ve ever had! Perfect for my long days in the cold coaching and working as a therapist. I’ll make a fresh coffee at approx 5.50am and no lies, when I go to take a drink after work at 6pm the coffee is at a perfect drinking temperature! Not cold and not too hot. Plus, there’s no metal-ly taste that you get with cheaper thermos bottles. 

These bottles are perfect for the outdoors type or those with a long commute. 

Here are the pros - 

• These bottles are sustainable! By purchasing a Swell bottle you won’t waste your money at Starbucks using plastic cups that are only to be thrown away after use. 
• Drinks stay hot for 12 hours and cold for 24hrs! (I've tried it, it works!!!)  The opening is even large enough to slot in ice cubes if you fancied something ultra cool.
• They don’t leak or give you that funny coffee moustache you get when walking and sipping.
• The 17oz Swell bottle holds a lot of coffee - probably the perfect amount for me! It's bigger than any Costa you’d get. But if you want something smaller, they do smaller sizes in the 'tumblers' and 'travellers'.
• Varied designs of pretty patterns - the Swell bottle is designed for all. From marble effects to bottles covered in swarovski crystals to glitter, to prints, to matt plain designs. 
• Triple-walled technology allows your bottle to remain warm without nasty condensation. 
• The bottles are BPA free, so you won't be left with a nasty taste in your mouth.
• Travel friendly - the 17oz bottle fits perfectly in my car holder and the secure top doesn't leak when the bottle is flung in my bag to go coaching.
• Not only are the bottles great, but Swell are also a partner of UNICEF USA, giving back to the wider community. What's not to love? 

The cons? I can't find any...

Here are my favourites Swell bottle designs - 

Teakwood Design

The White Marble - my own bottle 

Onyx Tumber

If you're a travelling therapist like myself, who's often on the road visiting Starbucks and Costa to keep the energy levels high, and then stood in the cold for hours on end... Grab yourself one of these bottles! They are a life-saver!

A year full of promise

I'm not one for waiting for the New Year until I start practising a new training programme or a certain mindset - there is no time like the present! Yet, this year there are particular goals that I am putting down as 'New Years Resolutions' which I can't begin while I'm on my winter holiday and will certainly take some time to complete. That being said, I've been making plans to help me start them.
Here are my goals for the coming year. 

Last year I started a nutritional diploma course. With a busy year due to a new direction of my research, my study of this course fell away. In 2018 I'm determined to keep it going and complete it within a few months - To 'blast it out'!

Over the past year as I begun my second blog Gridiron Strong and got it going, I paid less attention to this blog. Turns out, Performance Sports Therapy is pretty popular (thanks guys!), so I've decided to keep on top of it. My sports therapy and American Football focus is still likely to be over at Gridiron Strong (so make sure you go check that out), but lifestyle and blog posts (which I quite enjoy writing) will be kept here. 

Over at Gridiron Strong I have big plans (not that I will disclose them all quite yet). One area I'm happy to disclose is that of my plans to try my hand at vlogging. You can find my YouTube channel here. 

I plan to be super busy in 2018 (not that I haven't in 2017) but along with travelling with my new job at GB Women's Flag Football, I am super excited to begin research with fellow researchers in the North East. So lots of time will be spent with my head stuck in journal articles and with fingers covered in highlighter colours. Alongside this, I have plans for my clinical work in my business Performance Sports Therapy. 

Due to being so busy I know I will need to ensure I take time for myself. To do this and remain focused on my goals I plan to practice meditation, mindfulness and gratitude. Over the past year I have practised gratitude by using my bullet journal and found it quite rewarding. I tried meditation at times but struggled. This year I really want to get to grips with it as I understand that it can be very beneficial! 

Despite what some may think, the North East of England is an incredibly beautiful place! Having lived there for 7 years I know there is so much more to see! I'm going to make sure that Richard and I get a weekend off once in a while to enjoy the local countryside. Perhaps go back to Kielder to star gaze, explore more of Northumberland's castles and beaches or go up to Scotland.

With so much planned, 2018 looks to be a great year!

Do you have any New Years Resolutions for 2018? I want to hear!

2017 in photos

2017 has been a very busy year! Here are some highlights!

Jan

I launched Gridiron Strong and visited Kielder forest for the first time.

Feb

Sadly the football season with the Newcastle Raiders ended.

March

I worked with Chris Rennison-Rae on an awesome dance shoot in Newcastle.

April

Football season with the Newcastle Vikings began!

May 

My sister visited and we travelled around Tynemouth by bike.

June

I potted my own veg in our backyard!

July

I moved my sports injury clinic to FSI Gym.

August

We had a great holiday in Devon. I can successfully use a stand-up paddle board! And I modelled the new Greg Norman Golf Collection for ProQuip Uk.

September

I began coaching with Durham University American Football Team. And launched the Gridiron Strong Pitch-side Injury Care e-book.

October

I shot with Dan Beegan Photography on Tynemouth's beautiful beaches.

November

I covered the Opal Series Tournaments.

December

I secured my new position with GB women's Flag Football.

What a year it's been!

Tegen Jewellery

I found Tegen Jewellery during my Instagram scrolling in 2015 and was hooked by the unique designs of her rings. I love unique pieces of jewellery and Tegen’s items are so beautiful! I’m not one for flashy or sparkly pieces so love the earthy stones, simplistic casings and unique look. If I had the fingers for it, I would purchase so many more!

For my first item, I purchased a commissioned piece, a ring with two stones of my own and Richards birth stone, pearl and opal. I can’t wear rings everyday due to my line of work, so it feels extra special when I get to slide the ring on!

I was always slightly worried about getting an opal as I’ve heard (and unsure whether this is correct), that opals can fall out of their setting. My stones haven’t moved an inch in the 2 years I’ve had it!

As Tegen runs her business from Truro in Cornwall, we communicated about the commission via email, with design drafts and measurements sent back and forth. When the ring arrived I was over the moon! I will treasure it for a long time!

Last December I was lucky enough to win one of Tegen’s Instagram competitions. I was sent three sea-themed rings, one of a starfish, one of a shell and one sand dollar. My sister and mum have one each, and I the other. It was a lovely Christmas treat! At the moment I wear my sea shell alongside my commissioned ring.

Tegen Jewellery doesn’t just offer rings. Her collection also includes: necklaces, anklets, wedding accessories, bracelets and ‘treasures of old’. I love the option to purchase each piece in various metals, making your own more unique. 

With some money left over from Christmas I decided to treat myself to the silver mini dangle hoops. I first saw these on surfer Corinne Evans and contacted Tegen as I loved them so much. Despite them not currently being on her collection, Tegen was kind enough to make a pair for me. I’m looking to seeing what interchangeable dangles will be available soon. I keep these earrings in permanently and they cause me no trouble, unlike other earrings which I find can irritate my skin.

I hope to add to my collection of Tegen Jewellery as she creates new items.

Here are my favourite pieces from her current collection -

Morvoren ring

Sirene medium v ring

I also have another commission in mind…

Find Tegen's treasures here.

-E

Exploring Tynemouth by bike

 

Over the past few days I've had the delight of having my sister visit. As well as both doing bits of work (finishing a uni project for Alicia and business bits for me) we have managed to squeeze in some adventures! A definite welcome break after the last two hectic weeks.

Alicia arrived in Newcastle Central station early Monday morning so of course we had to go for brunch! After wandering around looking for a place that sold pancakes (we are still looking), we settled for a window seat at the Tyneside Cinema café.

We couldn’t shelter from the rain forever and so ventured out to the shops where Alicia proceeded to purchase 4 pairs of sunglasses (she has a shades obsession rather than handbags). I picked a pair up myself and we headed to Lit and Phil library near Central Station. I must go back when my hands aren’t full of luggage and shopping!

We spent what was rest of the day doing bits of work and enjoying a bits and bobs dinner.

Tuesday was a perfect day to spend exploring as the sun decided to show itself. We took a trip to Cullercoats bike and kayak hire to hire out cruisers (something that’s been on my to-do list for a good while). The service at the store was excellent and we enjoyed our cycle along Tynemouth’s coast-line. Next time I'll convince Alicia to try the tandem bike. And I must bring up my own bike from Essex so I can do more cycling!

We took a stop at Dill and the Bear along Tynemouth high street where we enjoyed iced frappes and a slice of banana and walnut bread – heavenly! Then it was back to mine to finish off some work.

In the evening, once Richard was back from work we went back to Tynemouth to enjoy dinner at Lola Jeans. Alicia and Richard had burgers while I enjoyed my favourite salmon super food salad. We then took a long walk along King Edwards bay and Longsands beach enjoying the beautiful sunset and smooth sea until we made it to the Surf Café to enjoy the live acoustic music.

Two brilliant days spent with the younger sister and enjoying what the local area has to offer! Hopefully it won’t be too long until I get to see Alicia again!

-Ellie

Dealing with a severe ankle sprain

Four weeks yesterday I seriously sprained my ankle. Trust me to do such a thing whilst trying to perform an exercise to build reaction and strength in the muscles surrounding the ankle joint! *face palm* It was totally my fault and not something I will do again!

Having had a very exciting meeting I wasn’t keeping track of the time and consequently had to race (within the speed limits) to reach that evenings rugby clinic. Still buzzing from the meeting and disappointed at myself for not keeping track of the time I wasn’t focused sufficiently to perform a complex exercise (I got caught up in a 12-inch hurdle whilst performing lateral ankle hops.) You live and learn eh! Good thing I wasn’t coaching a large group at the time!

At first I was in so much pain and worried as I couldn’t move my foot. (I hadn’t sprained my ankle since I was in primary school so the pain felt very alien). Thankfully my boyfriend Richard was there training with me and able to calm me down and carry me back inside. Having had a great number of injuries himself, Richard took on the role of therapist and could assess my ankle without much prompting from me (A sports therapist in the making perhaps?)! The injury didn’t seem too severe in that nothing was broken but instead a lot of soft tissue damage had been done. I’d fallen into a plantarflexion/inversion position so a lot of anterior structures had been damaged. I placed it at a severe grade 2 injury, and hobbled my way home for immediate treatment.

Immediate swelling

Over the next few hours/days the ankle swelled up quite significantly and bruising of a beautiful violet blue developed! I used the R.I.C.E protocol of rest, ice, compression and elevation for a good 10 days straight, and tried to keep off my feet as much as possible. This admittedly wasn’t as much as I ideally would have since my parents were visiting and I wished to show them around rather than be stuck indoors, but I survived!

Richard applying Kinesio Tape

Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation

The swelling was pretty significant!

In addition to using a crepe bandage with horse-shoe padding to encourage a greater decrease in swelling, I used Kinesio Tape to help lymphatic drainage. Again Richard put his therapist skills to good use! The effects of this tape were most evident in the bruising, where on removal you could see where the tape had once laid (small thin .5cm lines no longer the colour of the bruising).

I had some beautiful bruising!

In the weeks prior to this injury, training had been going well and so this caused me the most frustration. However I have managed to adjust my training accordingly. For the first week I laid off training legs completely, only concentrating on my upper body – fun and frustrating at the same time. Slowly but surely I have gradually been working the ankle through proprioceptive work on the ground and then on un-even surfaces. At 14 days the ankle was still too painful to perform general resistance work with therabands so I stopped and moved on. Listening to your body following an injury is key to progress and not regress. I have finally managed to get back squatting by performing front squats as this doesn’t cause any pain at the ankle. Back squats however are another matter. I tried this exercise first, but found that my ankle was uncomfortable and consequently changed my form. I wasn’t having that! So I tried loading from the front i.e. front squats. Flexible training at its best!

Rehabilitation begins!

Thank you to Chris Rennison-Rae for allowing me to change the nature of our recent shoots due to the injury. Dancing on pointe and jumping around are not ideal with a poorly ankle! And I think the alternative photos turned out quite nicely!

You can see my swollen ankle if you look closely!

Four weeks in and the swelling has almost disappeared but what remains seems to be within the joint itself. Actively placing the foot in demi-point and pointing the toes/ankle is now possible. I am also able to jog without pain but springing off one foot is not yet comfortable. With swelling still present in the joint I am continuing to follow the R.I.C.E protocol and hope that I can up my rehabilitation soon. I expect it to take another 2 weeks to fully recover. Then I think I might try my hand at some running along our beautiful coastline.  

 - E