An Evening with Kate Mosse

It’s been way too long since I wrote a feminist post on my blog! I definitely felt inspired last Wednesday when I went to the Nottingham Playhouse to see one of my favourite authors perform a one woman show based on her book of the same name: Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries: How Women (Also) Built The World.

I love Kate’s historical fiction, which is mostly set in the city of Carcassone in France. It was my father was originally got me into reading Kate, and we both went to visit Carcassone many years ago after reading the Languedoc trilogy, which consists of Labyrinth, Sepulchre and Citadel. Kate portrays powerful female characters in all of her books, demonstrating their bravery and resilience during periods of turmoil throughout history.

I found out about Kate’s show while scrolling through Facebook, and I managed to book a front row seat which was very exciting! The majority of the audience were women, which created a real sense of empowerment throughout the show when Kate spoke to the audience. The stage was set with props to represent the women Kate talked about, such as a lantern for the founder of modern nursing Florence Nightingale (1820 – 1910), and a seat from a bus for American Activist Rosa Parks (1913 – 2005).

Throughout the show, Kate discussed how women have been purposefully eradicated from history and their contributions to revolutionary changes, the majority of which men took full credit for. Kate mentioned so many women who I had never heard of before. One remarkable example was Eunice Newton Foote (1819 – 1888), an early climate scientist pioneer who discovered in 1856 that carbon dioxide contributes to warming the Earth’s atmosphere. Eunice did not receive the recognition she so clearly warranted, with her male colleague Joseph Henry presenting her findings and only being included in a small section of David A. Wells’ Annual of Scientific Discovery 1857 volume. Another eye-opening example Kate mentioned was Mary Sommerville (1780 – 1872), the first person to be coined with the term ‘scientist’, which I thought was incredible!

Kate’s show was a celebration of women’s achievements and how equality has slowly progressed. The show was a clear reminder that women have wanted to be treated equally as men, raising questions throughout history such as ‘Why can’t women have equal access to education?’, ‘Why are women not entitled to vote?’ and ‘Why should women be treated like property and not a human being?’ Another woman I hadn’t heard of until last Wednesday was Barbara Bodichon (1827–1891), a key figure in promoting women’s rights and releasing women from coverture, which meant married women had no independent legal rights. By 1882, the Married Women’s Property Act was passed in parliament, enabling married women to have custody over their children and rights to properties.

T-Shirt and Kate’s book 🙂

Kate named her book Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries to recognise all women who have played their part in reforming history, whether they portrayed a fighting spirit and raised their voices, or reservedly initiated change. A beautiful example of Quiet Revolutionaries were Emily Williamson (1835 – 1936) and Eliza Phillips (1823 – 1916), who both founded the Plumage League in 1889 to campaign against the slaughtering of birds for their feathers. The feathers of exotic birds were particularly fashionable in the Victorian era, but shouldn’t have been at the expense of killing birds with many species nearly reaching extinction. The Plumage League then became what we now know as the RSPB (The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) – what a fantastic reform in history!

I am really looking forward to the next book in Kate’s Mosses Joubert Family Chronicles, called Ghost Ship. Kate mentioned during the show that Ghost Ship is based on the history of two notorious female pirates called Mary Read and Anne Bonny (yet again two more women I had never heard of before). Ghost Ship will be published in July this year, which will make great summer time reading.

My signed copy of Kate’s recent book 🙂

After the show Kate stayed in the foyer of the theatre to sign books and meet the audience. I brought my copy of the Burning Chambers just in case I got to meet Kate afterwards. I felt very privileged to meet Kate and she was lovely to talk to. I thanked her for educating myself and audience members about women unknown throughout history, and mentioned about my love of Carcassone, which is thanks to her historical fiction. Kate signed both the Burning Chambers and my copy of Warrior Queens and Quiet Revolutionaries, and she was more than happy to have a photo with me!

Kate Mosse! 🙂

I would definitely identify myself as a Quiet Revolutionary as I am not a very outspoken feminist however, I hope that the feminist posts I’ve written on my blog have inspired others to pave the way for a future of equality for everyone, however they identify themselves. I was overjoyed after the show – it was an incredible and eye opening experience, and it felt amazing to meet one of my favourite contemporary authors. Thank you Kate!

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂 xx

5 Years!

It was five years ago on the 5th March that I had a light bulb moment while training for my first 10km Race for Life. I had been thinking about writing a blog while I was an undergraduate, but what to write about… I didn’t know. But then it came to me all of sudden, why not write about my fitness journey? I was training regularly in 2015 in anticipation for my first 10km run, so I documented my progress via my blog and acted on advice/feedback from fellow bloggers and readers.

While training, I was studying a Masters degree in English Literature with feminism as a key focus for my dissertation, which was about British female poetry of the Second World War. I also kept bloggers/readers informed of the progress on my dissertation, which I completed in September 2015 and followed with my graduation in January 2016. As a firm believer in feminism, I decided to advocate equality by writing blogs on issues which women, in particular, are confronted with, including body hair removal, the negative stigma around periods and the call for banning high heels in the workplace.

For as long as I can remember, I have always been a foodie. I love good food, eating out, trying new dishes, baking, cooking, attending food festivals… you get the idea! When starting my blog, I had decided to give up meat for lent for the first time in my life. I do like vegetarian options, so I experimented during lent by having a go at making meat free dishes, such as vegetable lasagne, sweet potato skins and stuffed peppers. Most recently I made some carrot and parsnip soup which is perfect for the cold and wet weather. I abstained from meat for lent again for the next three years, and continued to post homemade vegetarian recipes. I do have a sweet tooth as well, so occasionally I make cakes for special occasions including birthdays, charity events and seasonal times (e.g. Easter and Christmas).

I can’t believe it has been five years since I started my blog! A lot has happened over half a decade of my twenties, which has been documented through my posts. I’ve had various ups and downs in my personal life, which at times has affected how much I have written. There have been occasions where I wondered if I could keep my blog going, but I’ve persevered and am still going strong to this day. For instance, my most recent revelation is being diagnosed with gout in my hands, which causes shooting pains in my fingers and wrists and can make performing certain tasks feel slightly uncomfortable. However, I am not letting this stop me from continuing with what I love… blogging!

My blog has mapped my journey from being a postgraduate student to finding my way through the workplace and getting my feet up the rungs of the career ladder. I started off my blog weighing probably about two – three stone lighter than I am now, but I have achieved great things in my fitness journey, most notably completing a half marathon. I have also explored my views on gender equality through blogging, and helping to spread the feminist message across.

I am so proud that my blog is still going, and I’m so grateful to you for reading and engaging with my posts. I’d like to say thank you to my family and friends, and to you for your support. Writing is one of my passions, and it’s nice to have a platform where I can share my feminist fitness foodie journey. I hope to carry on with my blog for ongoing future… who knows where I will be this time in five years?

As always, happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Hello world

Hello… it’s been a while (3 months in fact)! I’m sorry that it’s been so long since I posted on my blog. The run up to Christmas at work was rather hectic for me as I had a lot of deadlines to meet. I was frantically typing away right up until Christmas Eve. The Christmas and New Year break was definitely needed, as my last day off was at the end of August; I used up all of my holiday during the summer when I went to Orlando and Spain. As a result I usually felt tired after work and most of my weekends were busy in the run up to Christmas, with lots of nice events such as taking my boyfriend to see the Lion King in London and seeing the Lighthouse Family at a gig in Nottingham.

I also seem to have a problem with my hands. A few months ago my hands were starting to hurt. I started developing shooting pains up my fingers and my wrists felt sore. I thought this was down to typing so much at work and so I diagnosed myself with RSI (repetitive strain injury). My doctor suggested rest which I did over Christmas, and having some blood tests to check that I don’t have any deficiencies. My blood test results were fine, except that I have high levels of uric acid. The doctor advised that this is usually common in women after they’ve had the menopause, which I definitely haven’t had yet (plus I’m too young)! He also said that I could have gout, and suggested that I cut down on cheese and alcohol. I don’t really eat that much cheese or drink that much alcohol, so I’m a bit bemused. I’ll need to go back for another blood test in a few months to see if anything changes in my uric acid levels. I also need to book in physio to help ease the pain in my hands.

I recently had my hair cut really short – I’m loving it!

So now you know why I’ve been quiet for the past three months. My fingers are starting to feel a little sore from writing this post, but nothing like they were just before Christmas. I want to get back into writing posts on my blog, but I will do this gradually and take my time when typing. You will be happy to know that I’m still attempting to advocate feminism, go to the gym to improve my fitness and I will always be a foodie at heart (which can make fitness challenging)! In fact I made some lovely red cabbage recently, which I will post about next time on my blog.

As always, happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Blast from the past

Not long after waking up, I usually check my social media. This morning, I was in for a bit of a surprise. The first thing that appeared on my Facebook news feed was a picture of me holding my completed Masters dissertation – this happened four years ago today, and marked the end of an era.

Handing in my final dissertation

For over four months, I worked on a 15,000 word dissertation for my masters degree in English Studies. During this time, I regularly posted on my blog about my dissertation as it was greatly related to feminism, one of the three ‘F’s I’ve been writing about on my blog for over 4 1/1 years. In fact, my blog was born while I was studying my masters degree. As many of you know, I started my blog for tracking my fitness but I also found it useful to post about the progress of my dissertation. I also enjoyed letting people know about the four women I was researching about, and giving them the recognition they deserve.

The final title of my dissertation was ‘Fo(u)r Women: British Female Poetry of the Second World War‘. I wrote about the poetry of Wrenne Jarman, Vera Bax, Sylvia Read and Alice Coats. All four women represented different aspects and experiences of the Second World War, but they were all united in the fact that they were all women. Women’s experience of both world wars was very different to men’s, and I believe that to this day, they are still under represented. Both world wars brought about gendered experiences with the fact that, back then, women were not allowed to become soldiers and were forbidden from participating as combatants on the front line in the British forces. Therefore their experience of war through poetry was (is) often overlooked.

I have included the links below for the blog posts I wrote while completing my dissertation. I’ve read through them this morning, and it’s really making me feel nostalgic:

• Dissertation time
• Let’s get dissertational!
• Dissertation done!

It really doesn’t feel that long ago that I finished my time in higher education, after spending four years in the university environment (three years as an undergraduate and one year as a postgraduate). Since finishing my masters, I have contemplated about going for a PhD. My original intention was to go straight into a PhD after completing my masters however, I needed a break from studying and wanted a taste of the ‘real world’. My experience of working full-time has certainly been mixed; in fact I’ve been in six different jobs since finishing university! At this stage of my life, I don’t want to do a PhD but it is something bearing in mind for the future.

I don’t know what my future holds, but time will tell.

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Four Years

Today is the four anniversary of my blog… how has that come around so fast?! I’m glad that I’m still keeping up with writing my blog, as I hadn’t envisaged that I would still be writing posts to this day.

I’ve been through some challenges throughout the past four years, and I was worried last year that I wouldn’t be able to carry on writing my blog. I wasn’t writing as much content last year but one of my strengths is being adaptable. I’ve switched jobs more than I would’ve liked since completing my Masters degree, but I always find a way to keep my passion going. I’ve managed to fit in blogs where I could, but now I can write more than ever due to commuting to my new job which involves an hour’s train journey. It’s the perfect time to write new posts, read books or catch up with friends via social media. I love the feeling of sitting on a train and writing new content, with beautiful countryside scenes until I reach the city and its urban landscape (which in some ways has its own beauty too).

I’ve also been on quite a journey throughout the past four years, and one which will carry on for the rest of my life. Everyone has their own journey in regards to their fitness; some find it easy and others find it rather challenging. I’m definitely with those who find it challenging to keep up the fitness game.

When I started my blog four years ago, I had only recently in the past year started to take my fitness seriously. I had started going to the gym and was training for my first long distance run, which was the 10km Race for Life in July 2015. I wasn’t content with my body weight and was struggling to lose and maintain my weight since being back at home from university. Despite this I completed many long distance runs and successfully ran my first half marathon in October 2017 in 2 hours and 47 minutes, while raising over £3000 for the Association of Air Ambulances.

Aftershot of completing my first half marathon

Unfortunately since running my first half marathon, I haven’t felt as motivated to run that far again. I failed to train and run my planned second half marathon, which would’ve been on Sunday 17^th February this year. Again I come back to what I’ve called one of my key strengths, adaptability. In some ways I fall short on this strength, but I will always find a way to fit in my fitness somehow.

Instead of running a second half marathon, I am currently doing a sponsored weight loss in aid of Action of Hearing Loss. I have gained a considerable amount of weight over the past year and need to shed at least a few stone, and some more. Therefore I have sat myself the challenge of losing between two and three stone in the space of 100 days. I started this challenge three weeks ago today, so I’m currently on day 21. So far I have lost ½ stone which is down to simple lifestyle changes, such as eating slower, avoiding sweet treats and cutting down my portion sizes. I work out when I can during the week; the best day currently is Friday evening after work and during the weekends. I also opt for the stairs rather than using an escalator or lift at the train station.

August 2018

I have set my weight loss challenge to fit around my current circumstances. By making this a sponsored challenge, it is making me feel more motivated to lose some weight as I know people will be counting on me to stick to my pledge. I’m grateful for the support I have received so far, and for the past support for what I’ve previously achieved (most notably the half marathon).

While fitness dominates my blog, being a foodie definitely shapes how I go about keeping fit. It’s certainly a challenge to control your body weight when you’re a big lover of food! I’ve posted a mixture of blogs on food, including homemade recipes and the odd sweat treat for someone’s birthday or a work cake sale. I also usually abstain from meat during the period of lent which means I write about various vegetarian dishes which I’ve tried or had a go at making. I’ve enjoyed trying different mouth-watering meals which contain no meat, and sometimes I prefer to have a vegetarian option.

Some vegetarian burgers I made last year during lent

However, I am breaking the mould this year and will not be giving up meat this year for lent. In fact, I’ve decided not to give up anything as of tomorrow. I am taking a break from lent this year, which is again due to my current circumstances. With a substantial commute to work, I don’t get back home until fairly late which means I have less time to prepare dinner. I usually cook at the weekends as my parents very kindly cook dinner for me during the week. So I wouldn’t have much time to make vegetarian meals during lent this year.

I’ve also found that giving up meat doesn’t really help with losing weight. While my body feels like it’s had a detox after abstaining from meat for over six weeks, I’ve not really lost weight as a result. Sometimes I think vegetarian meals at times can contain more calories that meals containing meat. I did mention recently that I was thinking of being a vegan for lent this year, but this would certainly be a real challenge, and I don’t believe it would suit my current lifestyle. Maybe it will be something to try in the future.

Feminism appears to be on the back burner on my blog but don’t worry, I will always be a believer in gender equality. I recently watched a very interesting programme called Back in Time for School, which saw a group of school children and teachers experience how education has changed over the course of a century. There have definitely been significant improvements over the years, with a more gender neutral approach to education compared to segregating classes in the not too distant past. I was thrilled to see that the children on the programme didn’t see gender as a barrier, and they were absolutely shocked with how girls and boys were treated differently. They all see each other as people who can achieve whatever they like, no matter their gender.

A sign I spotted during my travels in Belgium (2017)

My blog has helped me over the past four years in many respects, such as tracking my fitness, my foodie habits and how I advocate feminism and gender equality. My blog has also greatly helped me while job hunting, and I believe it helps me to stand out and ultimately be hired for a new job. My passion for writing also extends into my working life, so when I do look for a new job, it’s always heavily based on crafting words and narrative.

I’d like to conclude this post by saying thank you to everyone who reads my blog and has supported me over the years in my various ventures. In particular I’d like to thank my parents, as they’ve always supported me in whatever I do. I’m glad that I’m still keeping up my blog, and intend to do so for however many years that I can. I’m great at being adaptable, so don’t expect me to stop blogging anytime soon!

 

As always, happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Hello 2019!

Happy New Year’s Eve!

I hope you’ve all had a lovely Christmas celebrating with family and friends. The period between Christmas and New Year is always strange – you never know what day it is, you end up snacking on lots of leftovers and finishing off treats you’ve received as Christmas presents. I recently heard this period referred to as ‘Twixmas’, which I think is a brilliant word to describe it!

I know I say it a lot on my blog, but I really don’t know where the time goes. 2018 has just gone by in a flash, and a lot of interesting things happened! I started off the year by becoming an auntie; I’ve enjoyed lots of cuddles with my nephew and seeing him grow up. I started a new job at the end of April, and will be starting a new job very soon in the New Year. I bought my first brand new car just at the right time, as a heatwave had just started and it was a luxury for me to have air con!

Another major part of my life this year was meeting my current boyfriend in January this year. I’m very lucky to have met him and his family are so lovely. I received the biggest surprise of my life so far on Christmas Day. My boyfriend told me just before Christmas that he is taking me on holiday for my Christmas present.

As part of the reveal, I received an adorable Minnie Mouse money box so I thought that my boyfriend is taking me to Disneyland Paris. He then opened a scratch map and Florida was scratched off… I couldn’t believe it! My Christmas present is a two week trip to Orlando! We will be going in July, and I really can’t wait! I’ve never been to Florida and love going to theme parks, so it will be a trip of a lifetime for me.

I better start saving!

While I didn’t achieve what I set out to do this year, I’m definitely in a much better position than I was in 2017. I believe that the most important thing in life is to be happy, which I’ve definitely accomplished this year. I still need to work on being more assertive and more disciplined as well, but 2018 has been such a lovely year for me. It’s made me realise how lucky I am to have such a supportive family and friends, and a loving boyfriend.

There is something important I need to do in 2019, which is to lose some body weight. My fitness declined as soon as I started my new office job, and it’s only going to decline more when I start my new job if I don’t take action. I didn’t run my second half marathon like I set out to do at the start of this year and my wake up call hasn’t yet taken full effect.

However, I now have a few motivators to help shift some body weight. My boyfriend bought me a beautiful dress (in the photo below), but it doesn’t quite fit. I can’t do up the zip on the left hand side of the dress. I reckon I would need to lose at least one stone to fit. The holiday to Florida will also be a good motivator to shed off the pounds. I’ve set my aim to lose at least three stone by July – I should then be almost back to how I was during my final year as an undergraduate.

Another aim for 2019 is to write posts on a regular basis. I’m sorry that I have been lacking this year. The main motivator for my blog is fitness, which is what started my blog in the first place. 2018 was lacking in fitness somewhat, hence why my blog has been quiet.

Lent of course is a time of year when my blog is more active as I’ve given up meat for the past three years. I become a vegetarian for six weeks and enjoy experimenting by cooking and trying new dishes. I have been contemplating becoming a vegan for lent in 2019. There are more options out there now for vegans, but my only concern would be keeping up my fitness while being on a vegan diet. There’s some food for thought here, and I’ll have to think hard in what I decide to do.

I have been very quiet on the feminist front this year, but rest assured I’m still a believer in gender equality. I’ve enjoyed discussions with colleagues, family and friends this year as we strive towards gender neutrality.

I hope you all have a happy and prosperous New Year – here’s to a fab 2019!

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Update #28

It’s been a while since I last wrote an update, four months to be exact! I usually write monthly updates to look back at what I’ve been up to in terms of feminism, fitness and food.

As usual the focus has been on fitness. Last month was a wake up call for me, as I braved the scales and realised how much I really weigh. It’s not where I want to be and unfortunately I shied away from the scales towards the end of October. I did lose three pounds but I’ve probably put that back on again.

I’ve picked a challenging time of year to be honest. With the run up to Christmas, it’s a dieter’s worst nightmare! The biscuit tin at work keeps on being restocked with tempting treats, which I’ve indulged in recently on busier days. I do bring healthy snacks with me (such as grapes, bananas and carrot sticks), but sometimes temptation gets the better of me.

Besides the current struggles with my diet, I’ve been keeping up going to the gym after work. I aim for twice a week (three times if I go during the weekend). At least that’s helping with my training, as I signed up for my second half marathon! This takes place in February, so I only have three months left to train now!

Counting down the days until my second half marathon!

My mojo is coming back slowly – I just need a little more willpower and I should be well on my way to shedding some pounds and getting back into shape for the 17th February 2019.

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Catch Up Time

Hi there! Even though it’s been a while again (almost six weeks to be exact), I’ll keep this post brief.

All I seem to do is apologise these days on my blog (I’m sorry for this – see, I’m apologising already!). I’m not writing posts as much as I’d like to, some of the reasons which I wrote about in my previous update for June. I have been feeling tired again as it’s been really busy at work recently, but the hectic spell seems to have died down for now, so I don’t feel so tired at the moment when I get back home.

I went away to Spain again for a short break to Benidorm at the start of September. It was certainly an interesting experience, which I was expecting as I had heard a lot about the lively and exciting Spanish resort. I am also a big fan of the TV series Benidorm, so I had an idea of what to expect. I didn’t know until arriving that it was Pride week – everywhere was alive with colourful flags and people dressed up. It was a fantastic experience, especially when I attended my first Pride march which processed along the sea front and into the Old Town.

After almost four months of no intense exercise, I went to the gym last Saturday morning! The gym I go to had been closed for three months for refurbishment, and I didn’t really fancy going to the one in town where I would’ve had to pay for parking and endure early morning city centre traffic. I must admit, it was hard work. I’m behind on the cardio exercises I was capable of doing four months ago, as I struggled with the higher intensities which my body used to endure.

Recent photo at the gym (sorry it’s blurry)

In case you were wondering, I’m definitely not doing the Leicester half marathon this year. With a serious lack of training and motivation, I’m in no fit state to run 13.1 miles in just over three weeks’ time. I dread to think how much weight I’ve put on due to very little exercise, but there is a half marathon on 17th February 2019 which will be good for me to aim for.

Hopefully you’ll hear from me again much sooner, and not for over a month! I promise to do better this time and get back on track with being a feminist, fitness foodie!

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear

Update #26

How are we already half way through the year?!

I know that I tend to mention a lot about how time seems to fly by, but it really is true. The older you get the faster time whizzes by! I mean it’s already been just over a month since I started my new job.

May was well and truly a foodie month for me. I went to a cheese festival and most recently the StrEAT food festival in London. Both events were very enjoyable and I got to sample some tasty food.

Last month I also ran my first parkrun in almost a year. It was good to see some familiar faces again and run a fairly gentle route (expect for the steep hill halfway through). My 17th parkrun was the slowest one I’ve done so far, in a time of 36 minutes and 50 seconds, but I’m sure that I can get back up to speed again. The fastest I’ve completed a parkrun in so far is 32 minutes and 1 second which I achieved in March last year.

I know that I’ve been quiet on the feminist front recently, I just haven’t had the chance to write about it. The most notable event that’s happened recently is the Northern Irish referendum which saw abortion being legalized. Abortion is of course a controversial topic, but I believe that Northern Ireland has taken a huge step forward. Northern Ireland has now given women choice over their bodies, especially those whose pregnancies are life threatening and now they can terminate it without having to travel overseas to Great Britain.

Another recent news story outlined the ‘excuses’ made by male bosses about why women aren’t hired as directors. It sickened me to hear some of the reasons why many companies have no or very little women in senior positions, such as ‘Women don’t belong in the board room‘, ‘Most women don’t want to the hassle or pressure of sitting on a board‘, and ‘I can’t just appoint a woman because I want to‘. With the move towards gender equality, sexism is still glaringly obvious within the workplace and the majority of senior positions are held by men. I’m sure that one day we will reach the point where equality is achieved in businesses and it won’t matter what gender you are.

 

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂

Update #24

A belated Happy Easter to you all!

I was away in a lovely seaside town called Sheringham in Norfolk for a week with family and friends. My nephew was on his first holiday and even went swimming for the first time at a local leisure centre! It was nice to have a week away and the weather wasn’t actually too bad; I realise that other parts of the UK had it much worse over the Easter weekend.

First day in Sheringham

I am now back to being a carnivore after a successful third year of giving up meat for lent. I had a fry up on Easter Sunday morning, which included bacon, sausages and black pudding, I devoured a hog roast pork bap after swimming with my nephew and enjoyed a juicy rump steak last night when I got back from Sheringham. Each time I eat meat again I remind myself that I couldn’t give it up entirely and become a full time vegetarian- meat just tastes so good!

What a hog roast!

However during the period of lent, I don’t miss meat too much. I have the odd occasion where I fancy a bacon sandwich or a lamb roast dinner, but otherwise I enjoy trying out vegetarian options. Last month I had a go at making dauphinoise potatoes and veggie burgers, two new food cooking ventures for me. I also enjoyed making quinoa during lent and quite often had it in salads for lunch or mixed with sweetcorn and other beans for dinner.

Since giving up meat for the first time three years ago I have cut down my meat intake. I generally try to have meat just once a day for one meal, opt for vegetarian options and eat more fish.

Last month also marked three years since I started my blog! I find it crazy that it’s been that long, it doesn’t feel like three years to me. I really do enjoy keeping a blog and I will continue to post about my three favourite topics: feminism, fitness and food.

 

Happy reading and blogging!

Clare Bear 🙂