Bounce Energy Balls

Happy Friday!

I've double posted today as I normally do a Fitness Friday post, but this is related. Bounce balls are something that I've previously mentioned in posts where I've detailed my snacks that I have in between meals.

If you haven't heard of them they're great for a pick me up and are really quite filling.

A few weeks ago i tweeted at them because where i buy them in Waitrose, they've recently gone up in price by 30p per ball which is quite a lot when they were already £1.79 each which is quite expensive for one snack. I tended to buy them as a treat anyway unless they were on offer which was rare but that was ridiculous!

Bounce Energy Balls were shocked at the price increase as they hadn't been made aware they would increase that much and kindly sent me a variety box to apologise and thank me for making them aware of it. It was a really nice touch and shows that a great customer service can change everything!

I was really excited to try some of them out as I hadn't tried the purple ones, the Fudge and Walnut.

The flavours have a great range, Coconut and Macadamia is a great sweet treat and seems to curb my cravings for cake. The Cacao Mint Protein Bomb is perfect for the chocolate cravings and the Peanut Protein Blast is ideal for when you are really hungry or have a heavy gym session coming up.

All contain whey protein, are 100% natural and are GM free, gluten free and free from artificial preservatives.

The Almond Protein Hit is similar to the Peanut ball in which is protein heavy and great for those hungry days. Spirulina and Ginseng was very interesting in the first bite, it's a green/black colour and a little off putting on appearance but tastes great and really serves as a Defence Boost as the name suggests. The Fudgie Walnut Brain Storm energy ball was the only one I hadn't managed to get my hands on.

Here was the note that came with the variety box, so lovely of them to send me a box an although the snacks are expensive I won't be as put off as I was before!

I really enjoy Bounce Energy Balls in my morning break to stop me from eating cake in the staff room. Some such as the almond and peanut balls are quite chewy and dense meaning they fill you up a lot easier than the others and they've been very handy! I also tend to have one sometimes on my way to the gym straight from work if I'm feeling low on energy; the coconut and macadamia or cacao mint balls are a lovely sweet treat for times like these and I've tricked myself into thinking that they're just like chocolate or cake for me!

Have you tried a Bounce Energy Ball? Which one is your favourite?
Have you experienced good customer service recently?

I always think its lovely to share when companies go the extra mile.

L xxx

Hip and Healthy Box

Hey lovelies!

I've got an awesome post for you today. I'm sure you love beauty boxes just as much as I do....but Latest in Beauty have recently brought out their Hip and Healthy* box featuring a whole host of products including organic skincare, free from foods and interesting teas and powders.

They were lovely enough to send me a box to review after they loved my post on their Glamour Beauty Edit box before Christmas so I was very excited as I was already considering buying it when I got paid.

I love the presentation of these boxes, the tissue paper is always gorgeous and its always a feelgood thing to open these boxes with the pretty presentation.

There's a huge and varied selection of items in this box and you can see how tightly packed in they are!

There's a photo below of the full size products so you can see and even an example of a recipe:

Starting with the sachets below we have Teapigs Matcha Green Tea at the bottom, Aduna Baobab, Organic Super Blends Omega 3 powder and Together Health Multi Vitamins.

Teapigs Matcha Green Tea is green tea leaves ground to a fine powder. Just 1/2 a teaspoon has the same benefits as 15 cups of normal green tea.....FIFTEEN!!! That's unbelievable! This means it gives you a natural energy boost for up to 6 hours, has 70 times the antioxidants of orange juice and can boost your metabolism. The also claim that 60% had improved skin, hair and nail condition in just 2 weeks.I cannot wait to try this!

Aduna Baobab is created from the African Baobab and contains 14 essential vitamins and minerals. It is 50% fibre and has one of the highest antioxidant capacities in the world. Nickname the 'Feel Good Fruit' it can hlep with energy, immune system and a reduction of tiredness and fatigue. Not only all this plus it helping your skin look great on the outside it also helps sustain 6-8 million households in rural Africa. You can mix this into shakes, smoothies, yogurt and porridge for a boost your day.

Organic Super Blends have been created to suit different purposes and all are soy, dairy, gluten, wheat and sugar free (woo!). The main ingredient was Chia and then each of the blends; Omega 3, Skin Food, Alkaline Greens or Energise, have their own individual ingredients. These powders can be added in to smoothies, porridge etc for a nutritious boost.

I've just added both of these powders to a smoothie (recipe coming soon!) and can tell you they're both very tasty.

Together Health Multi Vitamins are made from the highest quality natural foods and contains no hidden nasties, not even preservatives, sugars, synthetics, wheat, gluten or lactose. They really are super pills! My sample only contained 4 capsules so I'm afraid I won't be able to comment on the effects of these too much.

As part of the beauty product offering the Neom Organic Hand Cream is packed with antioxidant extracts including Acai and argan oil to aid collagen production and tighten the skin. It's very absorbent and feel thick and luxurious.

Balance Me Cleanse and Smooth Face Balm is an oil based balm with a combination of oatmeal and Arctic cloudberry (never heard of this!) to cleanse and smooth your skin just like a facial would.

Nourish Golden Glow Face Shimmer is a really nice product, a tiny bit goes a long way as its so moisturising. It's totally organic and whilst it's moisturising and helps reduce the appearance of uneven skin tone and age spots it also contains golden mineral powders for a healthy and vibrant glow. The shimmer particles in this are so fine that you can barely see them which I find is best in a highlighter, I don't want a glittery look!

Rude Health Ultimate Granola is a blend of oats, spelt, barley and puffed amaranth bked with honey and date syrup  and roasted nuts to create a breakfast cereal to keep you full until lunch time. My plan is to try this in the morning with Greek yogurt and some blueberries so I'm really looking forward to it! There's no added salt or sugar so you can rest assured that what you're eating is completely guilt free.

Jax Coco is 100% coconut water and is only 50 calories for the whole 250ml. It is allegedly one of the best ways to rehydrate after a workout and give you a natural boost. I mixed this in with the smoothie that I made with the above powders and it was really tasty. I'd definitely mix this into more things in the future!

I have previously posted about Bounce balls before and I'm already a huge fan. I have tried all flavours apart from the Walnut one and would recommend them all. The peanut and almond balls are great for filling you up with protein, the coconut ball is perfect for a sweet snack and the spirulina and ginseng ball is a great pick me up for your immune system.

This box was a great way to try new products as beauty boxes always are, but this box was even better with the new food products and so many different ways to try them out.

I've already made a smoothie with all of the powders and coconut water and will be posting a recipe soon.
Are you a smoothie fan? Do you like clean snack such as granola and bounce balls?

This box can be bought from the Latest in Beauty website for just £9.95 (plus £3.95 P&P) but is worth over £50. You also get a free days pass into a Virgin Active health club which would be a great way to try a new gym.

Do you like beauty boxes? Would you like to try the Hip and Healthy box?

L xxx

Tough Training: Healthy Snacks

Morning everyone!

Having written about my fitness plan for the year in a post last week (see here) I thought I'd start sharing some of my meals and snacks that I have in order to give you some ideas and suggestions in case you're lacking in inspiration as sometimes it can be so hard. I'm no expert in this whatsoever but I've lost around 2 stone and got myself to a size 10 and even though I do have my binge moments I don't often put on weight so thought maybe this could help!

First off, my number one tip is to make sure that you always have some food on you. This will mean that you are never tempted to buy anything from a shop like chocolate, crisps, cake etc that are just far too easy to pick up. I've got a range of stuff in my handbag and there's always something there whenever I need it which has stopped me many times from legging it to the corner shop. I also ALWAYS have water on me too, I get my 2L a day ever since buying myself a proper plastic bottle and swigging it when I'm 'hungry', but that's for another day.

Here's a few of my favourite snacks!


I don't think anyone will argue with me when i say fruit can be a perfect snack....its low calorie (around 50 per portion aside from a banana at 100), contains vitamin and mineral goodness and also water to add to your bodies hydration. It can be boring trying to get your 5 a day, but now I regularly get 7/8 a day without even trying as I put fruit on my breakfast, have some as my mid morning snack, a piece at lunch and maybe on the way home if I'm hungry to stop me eating something else before my tea.

I tend to eat a banana mid morning to give me a boost and also give my body the chance to burn off the extra calories, though lets be honest at 100 it's not a big deal!




Sometimes I really want crisps. I'm mostly a fan of savoury foods so sometimes I need the salt and the crunch and fruit just isn't good enough!

Nairns oat cakes are what I turn to when this happens. There are a variety of flavours but I find the plain ones (rough, organic etc) are perfect for me. When I'm in need of a boost pre/post workout and am not near a meal time I eat 3 of these with some nut butter on to keep me going; then I get the crunch and the salty taste guilt free!





You can read the ingredients and calorie values on these pictures, plus the qualities such as high fibre and no hydrogenated fat. I also sometimes eat these with a salad if I'm on a 'hungry' day.
I try not to have carbs with my salad as I have a decent helping at breakfast and try to burn those off throughout the day, but sometimes you just have to eat and these are perfect at 45 calories per oat cake.

(is it anything to do with them being called 'cake' as well? Hmm....)



I found Nakd bars just over a year ago and haven't looked back. At around 100 calories these are one of the few bars that are completely natural (all the contain is 100% fruit, nut, oat or soya crunchies), contains no added sugar, are wheat and dairy free and count as one of your 5 a day.



There are a variety of flavours and types; the apple pie bars are the original type of bars with raw fruit, oat and nuts 'smooshed' together to create a bar and the ingredients are listed on the packaging below. You can buy them individually, in boxes like in the pictures or on their website they have 'taster' boxes where you can buy a selection of bars together to try them all out.



The newer crunch range has soya crunchies added into them so that they contain more protein which is always a good thing. More protein means you are unlikely to lose muscle after burning off calories at the gym and it also fills you up for longer.

The good news is on their website (see here) you can get some great deals, currently you can get 20% off using the code NY14 but this only until the end of the month so hurry! Otherwise there are plenty of deals on their site so look out for them.
The Find Your Favourite box is £7.99 but they also sell boxes in Asda and Waitrose and probably more places too.



Sesame Snaps are my go-to snack when I've had a long day at work and know i have the gym to contend with on the way home. I often eat an apple on the way home to keep me going through my hour long drive home as its easy to get peckish around the 5/6 o clock mark.
I eat these snaps when I'm on the way to the gym so that I've got a bit of a sugar boost to fuel me through my workout. I know that once i'm in the gym I'll do it justice but sometimes it can be hard to make the decision to go!



These are quite simple; sesame seeds, glucose syrup and sugar. Normally I avoid sugar like the plague, unless its in fruit or honey I avoid it but these really do help and for days when I need something extra these 3 little snaps can make all the difference. That and there's THREE in a packet, so I feel like I'm having a big treat!
Plus its 157 calories for the packet and you can get these from Waitrose for 75p for a packet of four.....much cheaper than a chocolate bar! If you're lucky too they also do a coconut version with desiccated coconut and they taste GREAT.




Last but not least is my latest find; Bounce Balls.

I found them on a trip to Waitrose just before Christmas in the 'Free From' aisle. Being filled with protein and containing peanuts i snapped up my first one and haven't looked back since...
There are 5 in the range but I am yet to try the walnut version. The Almond, Peanut and Macadamia are all protein based and contains some whey powder to bind the ball. I find the almond and peanut ones are quite chewy but this takes me longer to eat and therefore I feel fuller quicker.



The coconut and macadamia one tastes more like a sweet that you'd have after a meal so I save this one for when I'm having a sweet tooth moment. The spirulina and ginseng ball was a newbie for me having never tried either and was very surprised to see it as a black/green colour in the package but it tastes AMAZING and I've been back many a time to get these.

My only qualm with these is that they retail for around £1.50/£1.70 which is expensive in comparison to everything else in this post. At the moment Waitrose have a deal on them where you can get 3 for £4 and I will certainly be stocking up as I do like them as an alternative especially as they contain a good dose of protein. They're also higher calories at 150-200 per ball but I'm not too bothered about counting my calories as long they all come from good sources.


So what do you think of my suggestions? Have you tried any of the bars before? Do you have an suggestions of your own?


I'm thinking of doing a Fitness Friday series so I can write about something different each week, whether it be a recipe, training plan, meal suggestions and other handy hints, would you be interested in reading them?

Let me know as I'm completely obsessed with it all and have been for a while but I don't feel like it comes across on here. I spend 5 days a week in the gym/exercising so would love write about it more!


L xxx